Džudžucu kaisen

The second season of Jujutsu Kaisen could have been a 10/10 - anime of the year, delivering an unforgettable experience filled with unexpected twists, darkness, and suffering. But no. The animation hell called MAPPA once again went full throttle without any breaks, unfortunately burning out countless promising animators in the process. However, as a consumer, my primary focus should be on the product itself. I did enjoy The Witcher 3, even though many game developers suffered during its creation, and it's still a topic of discussion today. Despite this, I have enough empathy to acknowledge that it's not right. If MAPPA had better scheduling, there could have been at least some space for animators to rest during the second half of the season. We're used to having recap episodes for a six-month anime. What annoys me even more than the fate of the animators is imagining how the product could have looked with better execution and without a change in animation style. Now, at the end of the season, it's clear why there was a change in animation style, why the characters are slightly less detailed, why they no longer have such defined outlines - because when you want to fight with them like crazy throughout the whole season, they are easier to animate/draw, and when something escapes you, it's not such a big deal with those finer outlines. This is the Gainax/Trigger school for me, or rather, I've seen a similar drawing style and its use for dynamic movement in anime from these studios in the past. But back to the problem. If you have an episode where the fights occasionally look completely confusing, in other places, you can see a decrease in frames (even noticing that is a problem), or you realize the insufficient detailing of what little there was to detail, your 10/10 experience slowly falls apart in your hands. When one of the animators declares that one released episode was only 30% finished, it doesn't matter if it still looks better than most of the competing anime that aired that week. I don't want a 30% product; I want to see the 100% version. It annoys me that I can only imagine how great it could have been. That's not cool! Giving the series a 10/10 and raving about it being the best thing I've ever seen is disrespect for human suffering, and claiming that a 30% demo version is better than 100% is nonsense. So, I got rid of the "elephant in the room," let off some steam, and even though I might come back to it later, it's time for praise now. In what way is this season better than the previous one? In the number of battles? Definitely. However, there is a question of quality and quantity. If I put all the fights from the second season next to those from the first season, would they be better? The second season has a different style, faster, more dynamic, more efficient, but slightly less impactful and visually captivating - which again is due to the fact that it's not finished animation-wise. On the other hand, most of the fights are more significant for the story, and much more dramatic. What makes the second season significantly better than the first is the story itself and the handling of individual characters. When the manga readers promised us the "most powerful moments" from the whole source material, they weren't lying. What the story did with Nanami, what it did with Nobara, and how it portrayed them, how animation and music worked in these moments - made them emotionally striking. Unlike the fights, these were the 10/10 moments of the whole season. Simply put, it's dark, it doesn't hold back, and it still makes sense plotwise and from a human perspective. Yuuji himself made an impression on me. He is an indomitable hero facing events that would bring anyone to their knees. The dramatic aspect was perfect. The music aspect was mostly flawless. The tension was palpable. And I'm back at the beginning; this is 10/10 material, an unforgettable experience full of twists, and a possible candidate for anime of the year. But with all the controversy, it just doesn't deserve a full score from me. However, let's face it; with the qualities this series has and as an appreciation for what the animators have ultimately achieved even in inhumane conditions (and now they're probably looking for another job or the nearest tree since MAPPA already announced another season), I don't want to give it less than 5 stars, as it would also be a form of disrespect. But those are the most bittersweet stars I'll give out this year. 8.8/10. (29/12/2023) (less) (more)