Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 episode 13 review – “Red Scale”

Just when you think Jujutsu Kaisen couldn’t get any more tense, it reminds us why our weekend plans are basically “Sorry, I’ve got a date with Crunchyroll.”

Seems like we are getting ourselves out of filler limbo when it comes to Jujutsu Kaisen!

In this episode, we get some good action and a nice little cliffhanger-ish at the end to keep us stomping our feet, waiting for next week’s episode. We’re 13 episodes into the second season, which puts us right around the halfway mark when it comes to episodes. How much worse can things get until then? Will Gojo ever get out of his box?

Here’s an obligatory spoiler warning before we get into details about this most recent episode and the plot in general.

If you haven’t caught up with the newest episodes of Jujutsu Kaisen yet, what are you waiting for?

As our plucky protagonist, Yuji Itadori, scrambles to save

the coolest thing since sliced bread and most supreme sorcerer ever

Gojo, he bumps (quite literally) into Choso, who’s in a bit of a vengeful mood. Note to self: don’t upset a guy with blood manipulation techniques. Their rivalry becomes the core of this episode, and man, oh man, does it deliver a punch. A BIG, red, bloody punch.

Speaking of red, you have to give credit where it’s due: the artists nailed the theme in this episode. Whether it’s the rage-inducing emergency lights or Choso’s flashy techniques, there’s a reason this episode’s called “Red Scale.” The shade isn’t just a color here – it’s literally the entire mood of the episode.

“Red Scale” is pretty action-packed. The nice thing about this arc taking part in Shibuya Station is that it gives us wide-open spaces for the kind of martial arts choreography that makes my heart sing. Then we dive into a restroom (courtesy of sleeping-but-not-really-sleeping Mechamaru) for a cramped, close-quarters little exchange.

The camera work makes it clear: there’s no running, and there’s certainly no hiding. Just punching. And lots of beautiful choice words. But the animation truly is top-notch. Honestly, if I tried any of those moves in my living room (like my sister and I did while watching The Adventures of Jackie Chan back when I was young), I’d probably pull a muscle and accidentally hurt my dog. Choso’s blood magic dances and twirls as if it has a life of its own, in a very entrancing game of suspense – where is it going next? What’s it stabbing?

Mechamaru, who’s like that calm friend trying to give advice while the rest of us are freaking out, brings out a fun contrast between his demeanor, Yuji’s, and Choso’s. His balanced tone clashes with the emotionally high-strung Yuji and Choso, and it’s fun to watch such a chaotic combination work so well on-screen. Speaking of clashes, I did find it interesting that the tone of the fight changed a bit as it developed. Yuji is a bit of a hand-to-hand fighter with his ridiculously strong strikes, yet he seems to be kind of evenly matched with Choso, who’s not one to do much punching. But hey, the dude has muscles – maybe that’s why? Anime logic.

In the grand scheme of things, though, this episode was very entertaining. Intense, personal, and serves as a reminder to us why Jujutsu Kaisen is one, if not the, of the best anime IPs out there.

Catch all previous and current Jujutsu Kaisen episodes on Crunchyroll, with a new one coming out every Thursday.