It’s prime lobotomy season folks, Jujutsu Kaisen (2020-) (JJK) is back and better (?) than ever! After recapping the “Shibuya Incident” and setting the stage for the winter 2026 anime lineup, JJK: Execution (2025) segued perfectly into the beginning of season 3 of this much-anticipated series. This comes alongside other heavy hitters such as season 2 of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End (2023-), the back of half of Fire Force (2019-) season 3, and a handful of other amazing releases that have this year hard to beat in terms of hype! But does JJK live up to it?
With a fandom known for its high expectations — and for approaching the series through a literary lens, dissecting theme and intention — any adaptation of the source material is bound to be scrutinized a tad too closely. Rather than unpack every character arc and bit of symbolism, let’s zero-in on the one facet of the series that’s been rubbing fans the wrong way: the music.
Winding the clock back to season 2 — specifically the “Shibuya Incident” — the opening song “SPECIALZ” by King Gnu drew mixed reactions, especially once it was used as the backing track of a scene meant to convey pure anguish and despair. Its refrain, “you are my special,” clashed with the tone, coming across as unintentionally silly to many English-speaking viewers, and undercutting the season’s more macabre atmosphere.
Jump forward to Execution. After years of waiting for season 3, fans saw this recap film as the perfect chance to create a cleaner transition into the even grimmer “Culling Game.” However, many of season 2’s issues went unaddressed, while the preview of season 3 took front and centre. Absolutely understandable — but then why rerelease years-old content without even acknowledging the frustrations surrounding it? And it’s not as if this is JJK’s first movie — JJK 0 earned much more acclaim.
Either way — mistakes made, lessons learned, on to 2026! Season 3 has continued more or less beautifully. The animation, sound design, art direction, have all been sensational, and for a while it seemed like it would surpass anything the franchise had produced thus far… only for the Zen’in clan massacre to come around. In the manga, it’s a harrowing sequence: beloved character, Maki, wiping out an entire clan in an act of justice and revenge. But instead of treating it as the serious, emotional moment it is, the adaptation set the whole scene to an upbeat battle track — thoroughly confusing manga enthusiasts, and pulling many viewers out of the moment. Some anime-only fans weren’t as taken aback by it, prompting others in the fandom to remind them that, unlike many series in the genre, JJK isn’t just about fights — it’s a deeply philosophical exploration of spirituality, religion, humanity, and grief. Turns out JJK can live up to the hype… and sometimes focus a little too much on it.
Rather than just being an odd production choice, this was a moment where it became overtly clear that the anime strayed heavily from the manga’s intent — and that the series’ overall vision wasn’t aligning as closely as fans had hoped for.
Speaking of adapting the manga — coming from someone who’s read all the way to the end because I couldn’t wait for the anime anymore — I do agree that mood, theme and music don’t necessarily have to align. Fan favourite Hakari comes along with silly theming and music but is a combatant in some of the best fight sequences in the series. And within the fandom, there’s even a running bit that Lady Gaga’s “Judas” should underscore the biggest fight sequence in the series. Do I actually believe they should — or would — do that? No, what a terrible idea… but it would be funny. Now, though, I have less faith that they won’t just give in to the fan animations and edits and throw Gaga in for the views. But there is hope yet: whilst all this has been happening, quietly in the background the sequel series JJK: Modulo is being written and illustrated. So, the stage is set for years of future translation and adaptation, hopefully teeing Mappa up to listen to the buzzing online conversation around the series and adapt more faithfully in the years to come.
