Jujutsu Kaisen, the popular dark fantasy anime series, has been facing some controversies lately. The anime studio Mappa, which is responsible for the adaptation of the manga by Gege Akutami, has been criticized for its poor working conditions.
Some fans have even started a petition to stop the anime production temporarily until the studio improves its situation.
However, the controversies did not end there. Recently, one of the animators who worked on episode 21 of Jujutsu Kaisen received harassment from some fans for animating a scene where one of the characters, Aoi Todo, cross-dresses as a schoolgirl.
The episode, which aired on Dec 14, 2023, featured a climactic battle between Todo and the main protagonist, Yuji Itadori, against the cursed spirit Mahito.
Mahito, who has the ability to manipulate the souls of humans, was on a rampage and threatened to kill both Todo and Itadori. In a desperate attempt to defeat him, Todo unleashed his full power by imagining himself performing on stage with his favorite idol, Takada-chan.
In his fantasy, Todo was dressed as a schoolgirl, matching Takada-chan’s outfit.
This scene, which was not present in the original manga, was animated by @Hone_honeHONE.
However, instead of receiving praise, he was met with backlash from some fans who claimed that cross-dressing was a sin in their religion and that it was disrespectful to Todo’s character.
The animator, who was shocked by the negative response, apologized for any discomfort that he might have caused to some viewers. He explained that he was not aware of the religious implications of cross-dressing. He also deleted his original tweet after a few hours.
However, his apology did not go unnoticed by other fans who supported him and his work. Many anime accounts on Twitter, such as @jjk_mya, reshared his tweet and condemned the harassment that he received. They argued that cross-dressing was not a sin but a form of expression and art.
In the name of criticism, one of main animator of JJKS2 was attacked, harrassed, discouraged & even received death threat
— JJK (Mya) (@JJK_Mya) December 15, 2023
All cuz they animated that extra scene of Todo, especially him in cross dress
Yet the animator apologies due to his beautiful soul. Shame on those JJK fans pic.twitter.com/O0HmbuwnCo
In case you are not aware, Jujutsu Kaisen has been praised for its animation quality, story, and characters, is one of the most popular anime series of 2023. It has won several awards, such as the Anime of the Year at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards.
It is also one of the best-selling manga series, with over 50 million copies in circulation. The anime is currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Netflix, and the manga is available in English from Viz Media.
