After the release of Gege Akutami’s Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 episode 14, the anime was heavily criticized for what appeared to be low-quality animation. This sparked a debate in which MAPPA staff opened up about their experiences at the organization.
Even though the employees had little to no influence over the circumstances, they were criticized for their performance, which caused them to break down, all while jeopardizing future job possibilities.
The discovery underscores the production team’s limitations and constraints as they work to achieve tight schedules while maintaining the high-quality animation that viewers have come to expect from the series.
After witnessing all this, Gege Akutami, the creator of the manga, came forward to commend the series animators. They stood up for MAPPA’s animators amidst complaints following the latest Jujutsu Kaisen episode.
Gege Akutami Defends MAPPA Animators
Gege Akutami, the creator of Jujutsu Kaisen, tweeted about the anime’s most recent episode on October 28, 2023. They hoped that the wonderful animators who worked on the anime would be rewarded increasingly. The tweet was translated by @soukatsu_. The tweet said:
“Thank you for season two episode fourteen!! When the animation (in this case, the outline, the timing, and the actual drawings themselves) is so ridiculously good, I really do just laugh. I hope the people who have worked so incredibly hard for this whole experience and for this anime can be repaid more and more…is all I have to say!!”
Gege thanked the animators for season 2 episode 14. They not only talked about the animation but also the outline, timing, actual drawings, etc. They showed appreciation for the animators and asked the studios to see to it that they get repaid more and more. While the manga creator did not explicitly state their stance on MAPPA, it is safe to presume that they support the animators and must have learned about the dispute online.
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MAPPA Animators Struggles While Working on Jujutsu Kaisen
While talking about the bad animation of the episode, Hokuto Sadamoto, the Episode Director, replied to fan criticism of the animators by breaking down and disclosing the difficult conditions he had to work under at MAPPA.
He appeared to be dissatisfied with what he had contributed to from the start. This was because he was charged with completing 250 cuts in just two weeks. He admitted that he wasn’t happy with what he had done and pledged to make it up to supporters with future work.
This event is the latest in a long line of employee mistreatment in the animation industry. This made it clear that the animation studio needed to take immediate action to start treating its staff fairly.
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