Summary
Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 animator HoneHone snuck in an Easter egg in a scene to reshoot MAPPA, expressing his frustration with their working conditions. The animator used the interior of the MAPPA studio as a model for a demolished building, which was well received by excited staff and fans, gaining over 8 million views. The incident highlights animators’ unresolved outrage over MAPPA’s labor abuses, but also demonstrates their creative freedom to express frustration through humor .
Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2 was controversial due to the harsh and cruel working conditions of the animators working for MAPPA, but one of them found a great way to return to the studio.
During the fierce battle between Sukuna and Makora/Mahoraga in episode #17 of Jujutsu Kaisen, most of Shibuya was destroyed. Animator HoneHone, who worked on the scene, decided to sneak in an Easter egg which he later revealed on X (formerly Twitter).
The animator modeled one of the destroyed buildings from MAPPA’s interior, which seemed to be well received by the remaining staff. Fans went crazy over the post, which was viewed by more than 8 million people.
Jujutsu Kaisen animator expressed disappointment over the destruction of the MAPPA building in the Anime
As one of the most outspoken members of the Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 crew, HoneHone often expressed his dissatisfaction with too much work and little pay. The skilled artist continued to work on the episodes despite the team’s strict schedule, which often left them with only a few days to complete each episode. Using actual locations, the production aimed to create a genuine Shibuya for Jujutsu Kaisen. In the case of this scene, HoneHone couldn’t find a floor plan of the actual Shibuya building so he instead chose to use MAPPA’s interior because luckily it was the same size.
While this action is hilarious, it unfortunately reveals the animator’s unresolved resentment towards Mappa. Mappa is especially notorious for labor abuses, even if they are not the only animation company to do so. When combined with the studio animating some of the most popular anime on the market, their bad reputation has now become a brand they will have to fight to shake off. This season of Jujutsu Kaisen was just the tipping point as there were many other incidents of workers speaking out about the brutality of the industry. HoneHone’s only way to vent his frustrations is through humor, and it’s nice that some form of creative freedom has been allowed.
There are still plenty of amazing moments left for the Shibuya incident, which is slowly coming to an end. Understandably, fans were concerned about controversy during production, but it seems the animators still decided to finish their work. Although MAPPA’s activities are reprehensible, fans have great respect for animators like HoneHone, who are not afraid to speak out about the harsh working conditions behind it. Jujutsu Kaisensuccess of.
Source: HoneHone (X), VocalPinneapleAcademia (YouTube).
Watch On Crunchyroll
Jujutsu Kaisen
Release date: 2020-10-03
Cast: Yuichi Nakamura, Junya Enoki, Yuma Uchida, Asami Seto, Kaiji Tang, Adam McArthur, Robbie Daymond, Anne Yatco
Category: Action, Animation, Supernatural
Rating: TV-MA
Seasons: 2
Writer: Hiroshi Seko
Streaming service(s): Crunchyroll
Franchise(s): Jujutsu Kaisen
Director: Sunghoo Park, Shota Goshozono