January is going to be a funny month for anime. It follows a trend of months where there have been more great shows to watch than I legitimately have time for, but it also represents the first time that I find myself staring at Jujutsu Kaisen on the release schedule and seriously doubting if I’m going to find time for it. Not only is it competing with Frieren, Oshi no Ko, and Trigun Stargaze, but Jujutsu Kaisen season three has to contend with the fact that the best character, Satoru Gojo, spends the whole season locked up in a box.

Even without an obnoxiously stacked anime season to compete with it, Jujutsu Kaisen has a tough task to keep fans’ attention this season. This is the first season to air since the manga ended, so lots of people (but not everyone, which is why I'm being somewhat vague) already know what is coming next. And, unfortunately, what comes next isn’t nearly as exciting as what has just come before. The Shibuya Incident arc has just ended and had some huge reveals and impressive fights. We got to see Sukuna unleash his full power for the first time, and it was beautifully terrifying.

It isn’t that the Culling Games arc is bad. The problem is that it simply isn’t as good as what came before; it gets bogged down in a lot of lore and backstory while also reintroducing a character who only shows up in the Jujutsu Kaisen 0 movie. It is a lot to take in during an arc when I spend the whole time wondering when they are going to get Gojo back.

This is the blessing and the curse of having a character as effortlessly cool as Satoru Gojo. The man steals every scene he is in. Not only is he the most powerful character on the show, but he is the most interesting. His design is awesome. His powers are stupid but fun to watch. Every time he shows up on the screen, I am transfixed.

And he spends this season locked in a box. Nobody puts Satoru Gojo in a box; not if they want me to care about the story anymore, that is.

So Jujutsu Kaisen season three has to deal with the come down from the Shibuya Incident arc and missing its best character, while the rest of the anime season is loaded with great returning shows. I’ve been hyped for Trigun Stargaze since I saw the first two episodes at NYCC 2025. The first season of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End was a huge moment for anime, and there is every reason to think that the second season will be the same. Oshi no Ko and Hell’s Paradise are back for more episodes, which further puts a squeeze on how much oxygen Jujutsu Kaisen is going to be able to have.

While I’m sure that Jujutsu Kaisen will be a hit this season, I’m not quite convinced it will be the hit of the season as it has in the past. Season two is arguably the best that Jujutsu Kaisen is ever going to be, and not even MAPPA’s herculean efforts in the animation department will be able to make it dominate the industry as it has before. There is every possibility that Jujutsu Kaisen season three will have to settle for being merely good instead of being horrifically dominant.

These long breaks between seasons (Jujutsu Kaisen season two aired October-December 2023) are becoming more common in anime, which means that there is less hype to carry fans into new episodes. Without Gojo’s ridiculous charm to carry a substantially weaker arc against stiffer competition from other anime, Jujutsu Kaisen season three is already struggling to get me excited for its return.

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