To boil down a character such as Toji Fushigoro into ‘good’ or ‘bad’ is a very reductive take, in my opinion. I know Jujutsu Kaisen is a Shounen and we’ve got the good guys, the bad guys and the conflict in between but still, villains that are purely written to be villains? They don’t make for the most compelling character takes. And in Jujutsu Kaisen, compelling character takes are one of its stronger aspects. (The other would be the amazing female characters it introduces, if only they’d live long enough.)
Okay but is Toji Fushiguro good or bad? Well, I’d definitely say he’s more morally gray, but definitely leaning more into the ‘bad’ side. After all, one of the biggest markers of Toji’s is how cruel and callous he can be. I mean, the man abandoned his family and left his son, Megumi Fushiguro, a practical orphan. Not to mention how he became known as the ‘Sorcerer Killer’. But the thing is, he actually did care. Probably more than anyone realized, especially considering how he left the Zenin clan for love.
Morally gray characters, or villains you can empathize with, are not something that is exclusive to Jujutsu Kaisen. Villains secretly turning out to be misunderstood is an old concept in Shounen, with characters such as Itachi Uchiha being redeemed after they had committed literal war crimes. But with Toji Fushiguro, this takes a new turn. After all, he is still a man who enjoys what he does, which is essentially murder. But there are more layers to his actions than many realize.
And so, we come to the deconstruction of what it means to be Toji Fushiguro. His past, present and future selves included, of course. To try and determine whether Toji Fushiguro is merely good or bad is a moot point. Instead, let’s discuss what makes Toji Fushiguro so compelling as a villain, and where his monstrosity hid a lot of his humanity. Let’s break it all down in yet another segment of Character Analysis.
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Toji Fushiguro Is Neither Good Nor Bad, But A Secret Third Thing

Okay, I know I’m making it into a joke but genuinely? Toji Fushiguro is probably one of the most complex characters in Jujutsu Kaisen. And you wouldn’t think of him that way from first impressions. The man puts all his stock into his strength, which is truly unmatched. Despite not being born with Cursed Energy, he is one of the most deadly people around.
And he makes a business out of it. That’s one of the reasons he left the Zenin clan, because yeah, Toji Fushiguro is a Zenin, of all people. After leaving he meets Megumi’s mom, takes her name and decides maybe he can have a new life, free from the abuse he suffered at the hands of the Zenin. Except that doesn’t happen, and he has to leave Megumi. Why? Because he believes he can’t be better than who he is first: a killer. It’s what he does best, after all. That’s what he was trained for, all that responsibility that was put upon his shoulders, to kill and kill well.
That’s not something you raise a child in, and the most humane thing Toji can do for his son, for his wife, is to leave them be. And I know that sounds cruel but sometimes, you can’t shake a cycle of abuse. It’s too ingrained in your personality, in the things you do. And you can either grow from it, like Maki Zenin did. Or succumb to it, like Toji.
The Zenin Cycle Of Abuse Is A Curse In And Of Itself

Speaking of, let’s talk about the Zenin clan for a minute. Notice how Toji isn’t Toji Zenin? Yeah, as stated before, Toji suffered a lot at the hands of the Zenin clan. Because of his unnatural disposition, he was considered a runt of the clan. He was doubly pressured and doubly punished for his actions and that is a lot of responsibility to hold.
At some point, it was all too much and he left. But not before his hatred for ‘gifted’ sorcerers didn’t become fully actualized. And hey, if he could make a living from it, more the better right? That’s how he became the Sorcerer Killer in the first place. But it’s also why he didn’t leave his son, Megumi, with the Zenin clan. And perhaps that is the kindest thing he ever did.
Toji didn’t want Megumi to grow in the same stifling environment he did, even though Megumi was someone who was very gifted when it came to harnessing Cursed Energy. No, Toji viewed Megumi as a final blessing, the one good thing in his life he couldn’t bear to sully. And so, he makes the one decision that hurts him, but keeps someone else safe.
Toji is a villain, for sure. He’s one of the main catalysts of the events of Jujutsu Kaisen. But in the end, he was also a victim of abuse. And while that doesn’t excuse his bad, there was still good in him.
What do you think?
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