I've begun watching Jujitsu Kaisen with my eldest. Like most shonen anime, it has some disturbing tropes and overt sexualization of certain female characters. The protagonist is the typical shonen teenage male protagonist who is somewhat OP (in this case because he has unwittingly formed a bond with a powerful curse) and forms friendships easily with those around him (although they don't all like him, and a lot of the adults are actively out to get him). He has the mentor figure who is also OP, the gang of friends who each have their own quirks, and the monsters he has to face (including the one that lives inside of him).
I think this show has some unique qualities you don't find in other shonen anime, and the world feels very different even though the monsters (called curses in this one) can feel somewhat similar to other shows like Demon Slayer. The first element that seems different to other shows is that no character feels safe. At the offset of the show, we are told that the life expectancy of Jujitsu sorcerers is very short, and our protagonist is told right away that he needs to deal with the fact that he's not going to be able to save everyone and sometimes he might even need to be the one doing the killing. This is different to most other shonen anime where the protagonist is generally a white knight even when he is paired up with morally grey mentors or friends. This time, being that good is not necessarily the virtue that sets other shonen protagonists apart but could be the thing that gets him or a team member killed.
Another thing that sets this one apart is that there is no clear line between villains and heroes. Some Jujitsu warriors can become villains, curses are born out of human emotions and therefore are, in some ways, simply the dark side of humanity. One of the main antagonist curses in the first season seems to be born out of fear for the environment and the damage humanity has done to it. Another thing that sets these monsters apart from monsters in other shonen anime is that curses can be formed from nothing, or they can be humans who are unwittingly cursed. Although most low-level curses seem to be mindless zombies just feeding off the negativity around them (it is stated that low-level curses tend to hang out together) the higher level the curse, the more intellect and understanding it has. The most formidable are able to speak and communicate and even manipulate, as one of the main antagonists from this season does.
The part about no one feeling safe comes from the third or fourth episode in which the actual protagonist of the show dies for the majority of an episode, and everyone is forced to mourn him. Because of his bond with the powerful curse, he was able to come back, but this event shakes the faith that most shonen anime give the viewer that certain characters are untouchable. This idea that no character is safe gives the show a certain edge and makes the cliffhangers more intense since you are unsure if the character who is on the brink will pull through or be destroyed.
Some of the female characters are well written, but there is still that underlying sexism that seems to permeate a lot of anime (especially shonen). Even the best female characters are never shown to be the strongest and often are in need of saving by their male teammates. This is one of the most distasteful elements of shonen anime to me. Especially in an environment where physical strength has very little to do with power and skill development is extremely important to survival. There is no need to make the female characters always be the ones who end up needing to get saved. There should be equal times where they are the ones who do the rescuing and there should be no qualms about this either.
The sexualization of underage characters (both male and female) is another disturbing element of the show. I understand that the target demographic is teenage males, and they are expected to be hormonal and horny, but I feel like this feeds into negative and sexist stereotypes that keep young men from growing up with a well-balanced view of the world. Just once I'd like to see a shonen show that treats all its characters with respect and decency, refuses to sexualize anyone, and does not rely on tired and sexist tropes. In the same vein, I'd like to see a shojo anime that does not have a love interest and where the girl protagonist is the strong independent type who (although she does not hate men) does not need a man to validate her existence.
Perhaps my criticisms of the genre are simply my age showing itself and I should stick to anime geared towards older people. I don't know. Anyway, for all elements combined I give season 1 an 8 out of 10.
