Jump Review [2025: No. 47]

I went to Machi Asobi. I left my house at 5:00 AM (it was still dark enough to see the stars), got a ride in my friend's car, and spent the whole day walking around, eating, and watching events. Finally, I watched Asaka and Konomi Suzuki's live performance before heading home. The live performance was so amazing that my arms hurt. Also, this blog used to have a table of contents and header set up for a template, and I would manually rewrite the work titles every week. I've just realized that I should have AI do this kind of work, and I'm doing that from today. It's easier because I don't have to move the cursor, and I don't have to type the same characters twice in the table of contents and header. Now I'm going to manually write my impressions of Jump.

Table of Contents: Ichii Witch Module Aoha Ko Bachi Sum Wan Akane Yōtekko no Kuro Hima-ten Nue Nige Waka Robo-ko Ping Pong Kaedegami Postscript

Ichii

Using Uroro right away is so Ichii-like. Kizashi's chest numbers decrease before and after Uroro's special attack, so it feels like a remaining lives system. The 'ki' in 'remaining lives' is a different character, but these kinds of enemies are perfect for showing the strength of the strongest characters in the story, like Uroro. It doesn't end in one hit, but it's satisfying to beat them up, so the existence of enemy executives was also hinted at. We also learned that Uroro can take over bodies, so this episode made me look forward to the future development.

Witch

It's been a while since we've seen high school student Nico. I thought they would do stories that could only be done while Nico was away for a while, but it feels like she came back sooner than I expected. Well, if they want to do something, they can just make up a reason to send Nico out.

Module

It's interesting. I thought it was incorporating a lot of current social problems, but the core of the story is the immigration problem. I really enjoy the fact that they are tackling issues that might be avoided in entertainment. This week was exactly that kind of story, but because they are depicting the same problem from various perspectives, it doesn't feel like they are pushing their opinions on me, so I personally don't get stressed out. I also think it's a story that should be told because Jump manga is becoming a global content. I also like Akutami, but I'm fascinated by the theme selection and how the story is put together. I also love Jujutsu Kaisen, especially the emotional stories that focus on one person, like 'Young Fish and Reverse Punishment,' but I feel like Module's story is something that can only be drawn after ending a series once and becoming one step more mature. Above all, the question of whether you can do a fumie if the picture is a living creature, which is a problem specific to the work and separate from reality, was a good question that left an impression even in the small panels. I don't think the fun of the manga is lost by including too many messages. The setting that Yuka has a limited lifespan was also shocking. It seems like she was given a terminal diagnosis this time, but her reaction was as if she had vaguely sensed it herself. I liked that she didn't jump to a reckless conclusion like, 'I'm unhappy, so I should be allowed to do anything,' which contrasted with Cross. Why are you rushing to such a conclusion? I feel like that's a very important question to ask in this day and age, where information is overflowing and there are answers everywhere. There are some problems where the process of deriving a tentative conclusion is important because there is no right answer, but I think there are many cases where only extreme opinions like Cross's are loud and the gap is only widening. I often think that obtaining information with that in mind is the literacy that is required now. Also, it's Mahito. He's definitely my favorite villain character in Jujutsu Kaisen, so I'm happy to see him appear, and above all, I'd be happy if the story that Mahito and Jogo were talking about in the main story, about curses circulating, is being revisited. The content of the first volume is up to this point, but I'll definitely buy it when the first volume comes out. Also, I thought it was very Akutami-like that he's making sure that there are no criticisms coming in at these points.

As expected, he's the man who, having been told by his editor that the opposite of liking is indifference, held a grudge and wrote a rant in the bonus pages of the collected volume (it's unclear whether the author was involved, but as a matter of fact), and even had the anime's script changed from the original.

Aoha Ko

I'm always happy when the romance starts to move. Kaname is saying something almost like a confession, and I feel like he's properly reflecting on what happened last time and fighting. It's roundabout, but it suits him better than suddenly saying, 'Hey, so are we going out or what?' I can watch these guys who are on the winning route with peace of mind, but I'm really looking forward to the next episode to see how Hina-chan will attack.

Bachi

This time it's a Hagiwara reboot episode? → They're even locating the enemy's position! → They're even going to defeat them! I laughed at the flawless three-stage strategy. They don't hesitate to move the story forward or kill off characters. He's one of the few characters of Bishaku, so I don't think it'll end with this... but that's how Hokuto was too (Deku was instantly killed without any combat depiction at first).

Sum Wan

Center color next week! Yay! The jellyfish are cute. This week was stable and interesting with some slightly thrilling scenes. They're also talking about the Koshien tournament, but I want them to keep going at this leisurely pace.

Akane

It's good that they skipped the prearranged commentary part and moved on to the next one without any stress. Personally, I think it's dramatic but lacks professionalism to collapse after a performance, so I appreciate that they are properly paying attention to that, which is a modern, stress-free element. I'm really looking forward to next week's drinking party.

Yōtekko no Kuro

I really liked the idea of bringing a folklorist to hunt yokai, as someone who's been going to folklore museums lately. I also liked the silly setting of the Yōroi, which sounds like it was just made up with a pun, and the decisive panel that made it look cool. However, personally, I found the explanation part to be too much of an explanation... I was reading while thinking, 'I'm being explained to now,' so I would have been happier if they had conquered it while talking about the legend of Tsuchigumo, since there's a folklorist there. I also wanted to hear things like that. What a waste.

Hima-ten

It's tough being a popular guy. It's rare to see each heroine having a character who supports them.

Nue

Kuni Ruri Nazuki is a mess.

You should refrain from moving around in that outfit as much as possible. I'm happy, but it's too much that only she is coming to join the unit with the intention of getting married, as Nue says. Honestly, it's helpful that it's erotic every week, so I hope you'll continue to do so in the future. At the beginning, I also thought it was pretty good that Gakuro proposed a plan to avoid a kiss. I laughed purely, and it's funny that he's growing up so that he can properly avoid a kiss. Also, I was really looking forward to the chocolate egg opening edition in the author's end-of-volume comments, and I was moved that it finally concluded this week. They've been building up to it to match the color page.

Nige Waka

I'm glad I read Nige Waka last night on a whim. I think it was a better episode to read when I wasn't feeling well. It interferes with the reader, but it's still a manga, so no matter how much you struggle, there's only one route, but the creepiness of the presentation made it worth reading. Is the historical revision ability the power to see into the future? Come to think of it, Yorishige was also concerned about the readers' reactions. This manga, which shows the story from the perspective of the losers rather than the winners of history, may have been a move planned by Yorishige to seal Taka Uji's last resort.

Robo-ko

The Sum Wan harassment is fast. A new series being harassed by Robo-ko feels like it's a full-fledged series.

Ping Pong

I'm glad they seem like they'll do everything they can to the end. I've been thinking since I saw Gurren Lagann and Kill la Kill that manga with this kind of momentum has to go to space. The action is cool, and this week was good too, but it's from my house...

Kaedegami

Finished! I didn't write many impressions, but to be honest, it wasn't that I clearly disliked it, but it wasn't that I clearly liked it either. I had the impression that there was no expectation that I might see something like this in the future, and maybe that was bad. I didn't feel that the characters were so appealing that I wanted to keep watching them, and the story of searching for a body, which was the vertical axis, probably had the most impactful face recovered at the beginning, and even in Jujutsu Kaisen, there weren't many people who were excited about collecting fingers. I think the butterfly collection in Witch Watch is a little better, and there's an expectation for the development of 'There will be puberty stories when Nico becomes a junior high school student' because there's a change in Nico's growth, and there's an expectation for visual changes. I didn't feel that moved by the fact that I got my hand this time either. I wonder if the story would have been different if they had talked about things you can't do without a hand with an impressive episode. But I was happy that it was based on Chinese yokai, as someone who likes Hoshin Engi and The Twelve Kingdoms.

Postscript

The day after Machi Asobi, I went to see the Kasagake ritual. It's similar to Yabusame (horseback archery), but it's characterized by targets that are aimed at the feet, as if aiming at infantry. Although it's called a ritual, it proceeds with a fairly competitive procedure. First, there's the first stage of aiming at a large target, 'Hosha,' and then there's the second stage of aiming at a small target, 'Kyosha,' and only the top members of Hosha can participate in 'Kyosha.' The small targets are hard to hit, so when someone hits one, it gets really exciting. I thought it would be a formal event, but it was just good. Well, that's it for this week, see you next week~