Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 8 Review – Some Emotional Build Up

Jujutsu Kaisen continues to lay down the rules of this cursed world across each chapter, and the students of Jujutsu High are definitely are finding their own place on the team. In Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 8, the 1st year students begin to make a name for themselves, but this volume ends up offering more insight into an older friendship.

The story delivery of each chapter within Jujutsu Kaisen tends to lay out the rules for curses and abilities haphazardly. However, it becomes more apparent in these chapters that it’s mainly due to the sheer amount of curses this world plagues. The volume begins by showing the tail end of the fight between Itadori and Kugisaki against Eso, which weighs heavily on the consciousness of Itadori. This creates some unique dialogue between him and Kugisaki that I found enlightening to their personalities.

The students are coming up on a lot of responsibilities as the possibility of them ranking up is on the horizon. However, this will require them to face tough fights, making the upcoming chapters so much more appealing. Further, their friendship is just so charming in this entry as they riff off each other in some of the funniest conversations in the series to date.

The action is subdued here, and we mostly just get exposition on what awaits the characters in the forthcoming volumes. However, we learn of a few secrets within the group about the state of the Sakuna fingers that rest inside Itadori, which raises the tension.

The volume is concluded with a few chapters dedicated to younger Satoru and Geto, and if there’s any reason to read this volume, it’s for these chapters. Until the end of the volume expect excellent character writing and a display of friendship that you know in the back of your mind is already damned.

The second half of the volume carries a different tone as it’s more action-focused, but Satoru and Geto fighting together are just way too overpowered. You end up feeling a little sorry for the enemies but in a comical way. As I’m writing, I think this is an excellent way to contrast the opening chapter’s emotional moments.

Each panel is beautiful, and no scene is wasted. The action scenes are well telegraphed, and the comedic exchanges between characters land thanks to how the panels are displayed. There are some stand-out panels as well, such as close-ups of the character’s eyes or full-page illustrations of scenes, which was nice to see.

Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 8 is a well-paced volume. The emotional moments of morality in the opening chapter could have been explored further, but instead, we learn of some secrets within the group. The second half of the volume is perhaps the most significant since the first half is mostly preparing for what’s to come.