One year after the first series ended, Gege Akutami’s smash hit manga Jujutsu Kaisen is back with a sequel, Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo. Akutami has paired with Cipher Academy artist Yuji Iwasaki to deliver a new extraterrestrial spin on the series that’s purportedly set for a short three-volume run. This new series shows a lot of promise already with its characters and concept, even for those unfamiliar with the original series (though they may be a little bit lost).
Jujustu Kaisen Modulo takes place 68 years after the end of Jujutsu Kaisen, where alien refugees called Simurians have arrived, who have similar abilities to jujutsu sorcerers. An alien named Maru is put on the same team as Yuka and Tsurugi Okkotsu, the grandchildren of Yuta Okkotsu and Maki Zen’in of the previous series, to see how well the aliens will be able to coexist with humanity. The series uses this both to explore both fun fight scenes and the careful politicking of diplomacy that the siblings must face.
The actual plot of the first chapter builds upon the original series, following a human trafficker selling off Japanese citizens as an energy source, and revealing that the alien invasion is on par with the battle against Ryomen Sukuna at the end of Jujutsu Kaisen. Some have compared this mix between the paranormal and extraterrestrial to DanDaDan, but such a comparison is only surface level. Modulo shirks romance to explore the sibling rivalry of the Okkotsu siblings: their relationship to Yuta Okkotsu’s ring, their quest to get stronger, and especially how they must work together to confront this new alien force.
I’m cautiously optimistic about where this series is headed. On one hand, Jujutsu Kaisen was already great, though it lagged in quality toward the end of the series. Furthermore, the introduction of aliens within a longstanding shonen series can, in my opinion, have mixed results, as was the case at the end of Naruto. Yet since Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo is putting it at the core of its story with a trio that’s fun to read, I don’t think this series can end up being bad.
I give Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo One Thumbs Up. It’s an interesting direction to take Jujutsu Kaisen, even for a short while, and the new characters it introduces are interesting. There’s a genuine looming threat to the prospect of the alien invasion. Even while the siblings might not initially seem like the most qualified to deal with extraterrestrial diplomacy, they just might be the right people for the job. The series is definitely best read having finished the Jujutsu Kaisen manga, so if you’re interested in Modulo, I’d recommend catching up on Jujutsu Kaisen. But even without having read it, what’s already there is sure to keep your interest if you’re a fan of shonen battle manga.
Verdict: 👍
