Where are the parents in Jujutsu Kaisen?

Summary

  • JJK lacks parental figures; the current ones are toxic or deeply troubled.
  • Gojo mentors Itadori, Fushigoro and Okkotsu as a surrogate parent.
  • The Jujutsu High faculty guides students and helps them realize themselves.



Jujutsu Kaisen fans rarely meet the parents of Jujutsu High's students. Furthermore, several of Jujutsu Kaisen's parental figures are toxic and neglectful. This detail is ironic given the emphasis on bloodline and inherited cursed techniques among the three great families.

Instead, Jujutsu High's faculty noticeably fills the gaps left by JJK's absent caregiver. This theme becomes especially relevant considering Tokyo Jujutsu High's first-year students, who are either orphaned or estranged from their families. Witnessing the bonds that form between Jujutsu High's students and faculty highlights a teacher's critical role in their students' development into adults.

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Parents are usually absent in Jujutsu Kaisen

The few parents present are bad role models

Nagi Yoshino smiles with a can of beer in hand in Jujutsu Kaisen.


There are few parental characters in Jujutsu Kaisen. The few who are parents are either off-screen or visible in minor roles. Yuji's grandfather, his primary caregiver, dies in the first episode of the anime. Dialogue mentions Nobara's grandmother, but she never appears.

Then there are the parents who are present, but not in a healthy way. The best example of a toxic parental figure in JJK is Toji Fushigoro, who abandons his two children and sells Megumi to the Zenin clan. As far as Megumi is concerned, Toji is a stranger.

The last group of parents present in JJK are worried people who are doing their best. These characters have flaws that might raise a beige flag, but they take care of their children as best they can. For example, Nagi Yoshino loves her son Junpei. She is genuinely enthusiastic when Junpei brings a new friend, Yuji, home for dinner. And Junpei confides in Yuji that he and his mother are close.

Unfortunately, Nagi is going through a difficult divorce with Junpei's father. She copes by drinking, even passing out during dinner with Yuji. Additionally, Nagi depends on Junpei to carry much of the emotional burden in their relationship, to the point where he hides most of the bullying he faces to protect Nagi's feelings.


Gojo brings in Itadori, Fushigoro and Okkotso

He advocates forcefully for them behind closed doors

Gojo offers condolences while Yuji rescues his grandfather's ashes in the Jujutsu Kaisen.

Satoru Gojo plays a surprising role in the development of his students at Tokyo Jujutsu High School. Despite his reputation for having a big ego and thinking selfishly, he steps in to fill the gaps where several parents are absent. For all else, Gojo adopts Yuji Itadori almost immediately after the youth's grandfather dies. Furthermore, if it weren't for the powerful sorcerer's intervention, Itadori would die at the hands of the Jujutsu Council.

And then there's Megumi. After killing Toji Fushigoro, Gojo regularly checks in on the orphans Megumi and Tsumiki and supports them financially. He also negotiates with the Zenin clan and cancels their transaction with Toji for Megumi. Finally, it's Yuta Okkotsu. The troubled teenager was on the verge of suicide when he met Gojo. Fortunately, Gojo helped Yuta find purpose by showing him how his curse could become a tool for good.


There are other moments where Gojo taps into a natural parental instinct. The best example is the second day of the Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event. After a devastating first day interrupted by nefarious actors, the Jujutsu High students are physically, emotionally and mentally spent. The supervising faculty almost canceled the event and ended the students' competition on a somber note. Gojo pushed Yaga and Gakuganji to continue the event, but the wily instructor planned a twist.

Traditionally, the second day of the Goodwill event features a variety of one-on-one wizard battles – not a fitting idea, given the current moment. Thankfully, Gojo steps in and makes a move while drawing slips of paper from a jar filled with Day Two challenges. Which competition is selected? Baseball. Is this Akutami's fanservice moment? Maybe, but it serves the plot well. Gojo's emotional intelligence and compassion shine here. He knows their future will be bleak and gives them an opportunity to be children, at least for a day. There is a lot of moral ambiguity in the jujutsu world. A net positive result can justify cruel tactics or physical/emotional burnout, requiring students to grow up too quickly. Gojo wants more for its students, and it's huge.


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Jujutsu High Teachers mentor and support their students

Their guidance enables students to realize themselves

Nanami pursues cursed spirits in a Shibuya subway station in Jujutsu Kaisen.

High school is a defining moment in a young person's life. Teens discover their values ​​and goals and how their actions affect the world around them—all while navigating the enormous growing pains of puberty. They are incredibly vulnerable individuals, and how adults interact with them can make or break their future. Jujutsu High's faculty has enigmatic personalities. Some are rebellious rabble-rousers, like Gojo. Others are more pragmatic, like Kento Nanami. Then there are the skilled but ethically dubious teachers, like Mei Mei. They are all flawed individuals, but they do what they can to develop the young minds of Jujutsu High into the guardians of the future.


Despite Megumi's disdain for Gojo, the wild instructor positively influences the reserved prodigy. Gojo's conversation with Megumi, as he encourages the self-aware sorcerer to allow himself to lose control, ultimately results in the breakthrough that allows Megumi to perform a domain expansion for the first time. Maki attends Jujutsu High while fighting against the negative prejudices the Zenin clan has against her. If it were up to a more conservative wizard, the gifted combatant would be kept down at class 4 indefinitely. Fortunately, Mei Mei, having experienced turning her underrated Cursed Technique into a very valuable tool for Class 1, recognizes Maki's potential and nominates her for promotion.

Kento Nanami leads her students by example. Despite his distaste for the jujutsu world and what it puts its wizards through, he still returns to train out of a sense of duty to others. His strength of character inspires Yuji to never give up, even when Mahito and Sukuna push the tortured teenager to his limits during the Shibuya incident. Jujutsu High's teachers don't sit on a pedestal. They are not objectively better parents than their students' relatives. But they show how important a good teacher is to a student's development into adulthood. In some cases, a committed teacher can build the foundation of a found family for students who lack a support system, initiating enormous change.


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