“I psyched myself up”: Gege Akutami was Looking Forward to the Most Dreadful Gojo Illustration After Feeling Pressurized
- Jujutsu Kaisen fans were once again divided over the dubious Satoru Gojo cover art.
- Gege Akutami psyched themself up by saying they were going to draw the death portrait of Gojo.
- Gege Akutami hates their own creation.
Warning: Spoilers ahead for Jujutsu Kaisen manga chapters!
Jujutsu Kaisen saw the death of numerous fan-favorite characters, one of them being the strongest sorcerer, Gojo Satoru. His shocking death brought the entire fandom together and fans came to the inevitable conclusion that Gege Akutami, the creator of Jujutsu Kaisen, is a Gojo hater.
Fans were once again divided over the dubious Satoru Gojo cover art for Volume 26 by Gege Akutami. The cover art, which was set to be released on April 4 in Japan, was revealed by the official social media accounts for the series.
The artwork, which was illustrated by Akutami, shows Gojo up close and personal in what appears to be a winter environment without his signature blindfold. It also depicts the legendary jujutsu sorcerer grinning, which many fans find incredibly unsettling.
Gege Akutami Reveals That They Felt Pressurized To Make Gojo Satoru’s Portrait
An X user, @f9x00, posted the official translation from the Jujutsu Kaisen exhibition booklet, which revealed that Gege Akutami was feeling pressurized to make Gojo’s color illustration.
The fact that Akutami psyched themself up by thinking that they are going to draw a death portrait of Gojo, confirms the popular fan theory that the creator really does hate Gojo Satoru, although the reasons are yet unknown.
Official: From JJK exhibition booklet
"I psyched myself up saying, 'I'm going to draw a death portrait of Gojo!!!' But I feel pressured to make Gojo's color illustrations look cool every time. I find it more relaxing and can produce better art when drawing for Jump covers"
1/2 pic.twitter.com/QAVYlQ20Uy
— Myth (@f9x00) July 7, 2024
"for example. Originally, I planned to draw camellia flowers, but since Gojo lost, I drew camellia-like sasanqua instead."
Note:
Death potrait as in funeral portrait.(Thanks to @z9eIYzeCPxP4d34 for translating)
2/2
— Myth (@f9x00) July 7, 2024
Fans had a lot to say about Gege Akutami’s portrait, as well as the accompanying comments. Jujutsu Kaisen fans didn’t waste a moment to riff on it, taking to X to express their disapproval. The fact that Akutami illustrated Gojo in an unflattering manner after killing him off mercilessly and ignoring fan pleas to bring him back sounds like a reasonable factor to earn fans’ hostility.
Gege Akutami Seemingly Hates Gojo Satoru, Despite Being The Creator
Gege Akutami is never beating the allegations, and the allegations refer to the claims that Akutami hated Gojo Satoru, who is ironically one of the most popular and well-loved characters in the series.
These allegations also originate from Akutami, who mocked their own creation in the Weekly Shonen Jump Author Comments section. “Something lacking in Satoru Gojo… Most likely a personality” Akutami wrote on November 24, 2019. (via Screen Rant)
“Now that Gojo is gone, it’s looking like 2020’s gonna be a good year,” Akutami stated on January 13, 2020. Akutami alludes to Gojo’s imprisonment in the Prison Realm in Chapter 90 of the manga, which takes place during the “Shibuya Incident” narrative arc.
It seems that the primary reason Gege despises Gojo is the fact that they unintentionally gave him too much power. Because of this, Gojo’s presence in the narrative makes it challenging to imagine new threats that are believable and compelling, which leads Gege to grow a deep-seated contempt for their own invention.
