The movie " Jujutsu Kaisen Kaisen : Kaigyoku/Gyokusetsu ", a compilation of the second season of the TV anime "Jujutsu Kaisen", based on the popular manga by Gege Akutami serialized in "Weekly Jujutsu Kaisen " (Shueisha), will be released on May 30th. " Kaigyoku/Gyokusetsu Kaigyoku/Gyokusetsu" is a 5-episode episode that aired from July 2023, depicting the "blue spring that can never be returned" of Gojo Satoru, Satoru Gojo , Shoko Ieiri and others during their time at Jujutsu Technical College. We spoke to Shoko Ieiri Aya Endo Shoko, about what went on behind the scenes of the recording and the charms of the three characters, Gojo, Geto and Shoko.
◇ It's painful to watch even now, but I'm happy. In fact, I like Geto's "friends"
Endo said he learned about the production of the compilation movie along with the audience at the "JuJu Fest 2024" event held last August.
"I remember being really happy when I found out about it together with the audience at the venue. Of course I was happy to be able to watch what was broadcast on TV in the theater, but I also wondered how everyone else would feel about it, since it had been so long since it was broadcast."
Endo, who rewatched "Kaigyoku/Gyokusetsu" once again, said, "I was happy to see the three of them when they were young and still inexperienced, but when I watched it again this time, I felt happy in the same parts and painful in the same parts. I got to experience the same emotions once again."
When asked about the most painful scene, she immediately replied, "Riko-chan." She said she was shocked by the tragic end of Riko Amanai, a girl with a cruel fate.
"I wasn't in that scene, but Fushiguro Toji... I was really shocked. Geto's face also gradually changed. No matter what her background is, I want a lively young girl to have a bright and cheerful future. I had no connection with Riko as a character, but I enjoyed watching the Okinawa scenes with Gojo, Geto, Riko and Kuroi, so it really did feel like I had lost a friend."
When asked which scene made her happy, she said she also liked the opening movie, which depicts the daily lives of Gojo, Geto, and Shouko, "the three of them as students." She said, "The opening movie kind of filled in the parts that weren't shown in the main story. I was happy to see that it was like that time walking home from school, walking side by side like that."
Endo is also a fan of the cursed spirits that Geto possesses, and said, "I really like Geto's 'friends', like the dragon-like cursed spirit that clings to the plane (to Okinawa) and protects it. Personally, it might be because I also play the role of Geto's friend, but I also play Dagon's cute state (Cursed Womb)," revealing some heartwarming points.
◇The charm of Shouko: "An eccentric who can be with those two"
Endo-san reflected on playing Shouko in her technical college days, saying, "I didn't talk a lot, so I wanted to make sure that each and every one of my words made it clear that this was Shouko when she was young." For the recording, she prepared a "brighter Shouko," but "the direction was to leave in the elements of the adult Shouko."
"During the recording, the voices of Gojo and Geto were being recorded before me, and when I heard their voices, I thought, 'Oh, so she's playing this young'. After that, I entered the booth and played Shouko in a lively manner, and they said, 'Let's keep the feeling a little more lethargic'. Now that I think about it, it does seem like they created it in a way that would lead to the adult Shouko. It's true that if I had played her too lively, then when you see the adult Shouko you'll wonder 'What on earth happened?' There was something, but it would make people think, 'Maybe there was something on the Suguru Geto,' so I think it came together really well in the end."
Endo says he feels that what's attractive about Shouko, who affectionately calls Gojo and Geto "trash," is that "no matter what, she's the kind of eccentric who can be with those two."
"There is a lot of mystery surrounding Shouko, and unlike Gojo and Geto, our private life is not visible. Since it isn't depicted, there are some things we can only imagine, but from what the two of them talk about with Shouko, we can see that she probably speaks to them in ways that only she would understand. She doesn't seem like the type to do anything unexpected, but I think she's the kind of eccentric person who can be with those two. It's amazing that they can be together (laughs). I think she's probably calm and unfazed no matter who she's with, which is why the two of them are able to hang out together. I feel like I'd like to be like her."
◇ I wanted to see the three of them on a mission. What was included in the farewell scene with Geto?
The sight of Gojo, Geto, and Shouko together is both radiant and ephemeral, precisely because they can no longer "go back." How does Endo-san view the relationship between these three people?
"Since they work together on missions as a team, each of them has a clearly defined role. There are some things that only Gojo and Geto can do, and some things that only Shouko can do, and I think the two of them respected that. So I feel like I would have liked to see the three of them on a mission. How much they fought, how much they disagreed. I think that, after all, it was comfortable for the three of them to be together. There's a good thing about the three of them not talking about much, and I think they had a wonderful relationship. That relationship falls apart, but that's why the time the three of them were able to spend together is so precious."
At the end of "Kaigyoku/Gyokusetsu", Geto causes an incident and ends up parting ways with Gojo and Shoko. Regarding the scene where Geto appears in front of Shoko in Shinjuku, he said, "I tried to act it as if it were an everyday scene."
"Shoko knows about the situation, but she treats them normally, and I could imagine that they always talk like that. You can get a sense of the relationship between the two, so it's one of my favorite scenes. But I feel like she really wanted to end it with just a normal conversation. For Shoko, that would have been a real farewell. I think the three of them had been living their lives expecting that they would eventually part ways, but I feel like it would be terrible if they were to drift apart in that way. It seems like it would carry that feeling with them even when they become adults."
When we asked Endo again about the appeal of "Kaigyoku/Gyokusetsu," he replied, "I think the best thing is being able to see everyone in their uniforms."
"Each character has a different uniform, right? Shouko's is quite short. I think it's fun to watch the characters change clothes. I also liked Geto's hairstyle, how it was tied up tightly. When he lets his hair down it looks a little dark. Shouko also had a bob cut in her high school days! I also got the feeling that she grew her hair out after that and didn't have time to cut it. I think it's fun to see these characters in their still inexperienced state."
The movie version will also include a new mini-anime called "Theatrical Compilation Juju Stroll," which depicts Gojo, Geto, and Shoko spending time at a movie theater. It was newly recorded especially for this release, and Endo said with a smile, "I was happy that we could record together as a trio." "Kaigyoku/Gyokusetsu" depicts a "blue spring that can never be returned to." Endo said, "I personally feel that very simple times, like being able to do something crazy and sweating, were important. I think it would be good to watch this while looking back on your life and wondering what your youth was like."
