absolutely criminal

Fushiguro Megumi: the protector

One of the things that makes jjk very interesting is how Gege writes the characters in a way that freed them from a number of stereotypes usually found in shonen manga in relation to how their appearance are. And that makes the character in this manga feels more layered. One of the example is our deuteragonist himself, Fushiguro Megumi. 

Fushiguro is one of characters that make you thought of certain stereotype - but as the story progresses and his character is explored more, he is actually different from the stereotype of dark brooding rival of the protagonist his appearance is based of.

On his first appearance, Fushiguro is shown to be someone serious, seemingly a stickler for rules and formality, as he speaks in honorifics to Gojo in the phone – even if it’s him saying that he will punch Gojo. When he speaks to Gojo, there’s a strange mix of formality and familiarity, which is a given considering their long history.

He even cites the law of jujutsu for the reasoning of Itadori’s execution right after Sukuna incarnates even though Itadori eats the finger because he is also trying to save Fushiguro. However once Gojo appears and asks what he should do to Itadori, his answer is right on the opposite direction. 

Akira being a student just trying to stay out of the way for now encountering Ann one day and at first she’s annoyed with him. She catches him staring and and things the worst, but he’s just as captivated as before. Kamoshida is someone she’s plotting again, actively trying to find a way to take him down herself for Shiho’s sake. Akira befriends her and he soon finds out about Ryuji, who is still on the track team but is going through it because of Kamoshida. They eventually meet up with one another and Ann is clearly ready to go to extremes to get him back because of the lives he’s ruined. 

Akira is finding himself at odds with her and the two don’t get along despite having now a common goal. After what happens to Shiho, he’s even more determined to help her. Although he doesn’t want her to do anything drastic. Akira wants to help her, but Ann wants to do it her own way, with or without him. Ryuji is trying to keep his spot on the team all through it and is on them about him possibly losing a track scholarship. They get Kamoshida arrested somehow and the three start a friendship. 

Sometimes it’s kind of like a game and Ann doesn’t see that until the patterns arise. The tapping is a subtle gesture, but it’s very much a him thing to do. Ann tries not to say anything at first, she wants to figure it out on her own. She’ll try to memorize it but he does it so effortlessly that she can tell she’s wrong, the patterns seem different every time she tries it. 

Eventually, she gives in and asks him one day about the tapping on her knuckles after he does it. Akira repeats the gesture without an answer. She’s more perplexed now, but he finally explains that it means “I love you”. It’s cute and silent, fitting the quiet thief. 

These kinds of scenes remind me of an old romance and frankly the scene is a little poetic. The lighting is picturesque and frames them together in their own scene. It’s weird that the morning Tokyo street is empty, I’d expect people to be passing them, but they’re framed so well together. They’re under a store named Jeunesse et Beauté, meaning young and beautiful, couldn’t be anymore fitting. 

akira and ann moving to the countryside after college instead of Tokyo, she’s a city girl so it takes some time getting used to. but they made a promise to be with one another, it’s a commitment. but it’s a much slower life out there and the living is easy, not too far from Tokyo but the scenic views in the countryside are sometimes enough for ann’s photographers.

music is something the both of them end up sharing, maybe even giving each other playlists even, but they learn more about each other even more so

food is something the both of them share too, ann schools him about desserts, akira/ren schools her about traditional japanese dishes, and ann even tries to one up him about her knowledge on american/finnish dishes

before they were together, they were friends, a lot of the old habits of them simply doing non-romantic things hasn’t changed, but it’s the subtle gestures and the words said that gives their activities a little more meaning

akira/ren invests in a gaming console back in his hometown to play with ann, the two end up being quite the rivals in most games, but in more cooperative games, they’re quite the pair - at the same time, they’re able to talk to one another instead of having to call

their gaming habit still continues on even after high school, with her abroad, she’s still able to spend time with him in some shape or form and akira/ren also finds time between his college classes

their dates are harder when they’re finally apart, distance can be tough, but their video chats bring a different dynamic to the two of them, rarely are any of them well dressed and both of them are usually in their rawest state of usually just barely awake

despite how quiet spoken akira/ren is in a general setting, he’s more talkative to ann as their relationship progresses, their relationship to him is worth more than the short quips he comes up with on the fly, he elaborates more and ann can better understand how he’s feeling that way

ann or akira/ren saving each other’s voicemails to listen to them if they start missing each other

akira/ren cutting his hair a little short and ann not knowing how she feels about it, but the change is interesting

promise rings, they dont seal the deal during college just yet because of their pursuits, but the ring is simple and lowkey - but it meant a lot to the both of them