Even without watching Jujutsu Kaisen, many anime fans have recognized the central character Satoru Gojo as a modern-day anime icon. Some may only recognize his image, while others may know him for his bold personality or his incredible strength. Without question, Gojo has become a viral sensation among anime fans whether they've watched JJK or not, and a new meme puts him in the spotlight yet again.
After ten very dark episodes of Season 2, the brief scene of Gojo breathing heavily has popped up everywhere. It's become so vastly popular that it's become a meme. Straying away from the typical memes that are ultimately made to make people laugh, there's a critical reason why this scene blew up in the fandom. JJK's infamous Shibuya arc is already known for shaking up fans, and this scene not only reflects that but also has a huge impact on Gojo's character development that few could have expected.
Gojo's Shibuya Fight Against the Enemy And Its Importance
The key visual of Gojo's heavy breathing occurs because of the aftermath of his fight against the main enemies of JJK, a battle that had been building up since early on in Season 1. From the first season, it quickly becomes clear that the villains are after Gojo because they see him in the way of their plot to destroy the social order between humans and curses. Hailed as the greatest sorcerer, Gojo easily puts an end to the enemies' plans more than once, revealing how effortlessly he fights. After Gojo's win against the special grades Jogo and Hanami, the clear ringleader of the villains Suguru Geto puts together a plan that he is sure will stop Gojo in his tracks.
The most important detail of this plan against Gojo is to have innocent hostages put Gojo's morals and battle strategy into question. The enemy uses the eventful night of Halloween in Shibuya to their advantage in order to trap the hundreds of Tokyo civilians celebrating the holiday. Using a series of layered veils, the enemy traps these innocents along with Gojo in the narrow space of the underground Shibuya train stations. With the pressure of balancing both offense to defeat his enemies and defense to keep as many innocents alive as possible, the enemy hopes to push Gojo to his limits. Sadly for them, Gojo still had the upper hand with a counter-strategy to nullify their Domain Amplification, which is supposed to be effective in neutralizing any opposing cursed technique or domain expansion they come into contact with.
As calm as Gojo is, he does occasionally have a light reaction to witnessing humans being killed and tossed around by the enemy. Despite that, Gojo's primary focus remains on his enemies. After overwhelming Jogo and destroying Hanami, Gojo is faced with Mahito's horde of transfigured humans who rush in to kill as many humans as possible. With the stakes even higher now, Gojo does the one thing that the enemy didn't anticipate.
Before launching their plan, the villain group discusses the plan at various times. In one instance, the focus is on Gojo's reactions and how they can take advantage of any missteps. At this point, they believed that he would never release his Domain Expansion Unlimited Void because that would surely kill all the innocent humans in the immediate area. To their surprise, and probably the viewers' as well, Gojo takes the biggest gamble and releases Unlimited Void, rendering every person in the area mentally incapacitated — but only for 0.2 seconds. After deactivating it, he manages to kill every one of the transfigured humans while everyone is still immobilized in a matter of 299 seconds, also deciding to avoid touching Jogo, Choso, and Mahito in case that would wake from their daze. In the bloodied and silent Shibuya train station, the scene of Gojo struggling to catch his breath while gripping two transfigured human heads occurs.
The Impact of a Distressed Gojo
From understanding the context of the scene, what at first appears to be an entertaining meme becomes an iconic image of a very heavy situation. Depending on one's perspective, the imagery of this brief scene changes in meaning. From one perspective, it could appear to be a very dire scene. The enemy plans to turn the world upside down, causing torment and anguish to humankind, and the one man who can stop them is struggling to breathe. On the other hand, the scene is also a testament to how powerful Gojo is. Believing that Gojo has won, the viewer can also see Gojo's panting as a sign that the fight is over. It's also the brief calm after the chaotic storm of this intense fight, primarily led by Gojo, making him even more frightening and powerful.
Unfortunately, the calm and power of this scene do not last once the final enemy joins the battle. At this point, the last thing that Gojo is expecting to see is his former best friend Suguru Geto, whom he watched die in the prequel film Jujutsu Kaisen: 0, but that's the person he sees before him as he catches his breath, leading to one of the biggest twists of the series.
Already physically worn down, Gojo is mentally stunned upon seeing his dead friend's face. This gives the enemy a chance to finally trap and seal Gojo away in the Prison Realm and complete their plan. Before Gojo is locked away, he declares that he rejects that the person in front of him is Geto, prompting the villain to reveal that truth. The person that viewers were led to believe is Suguru Geto is actually someone else using Geto's body and techniques. The realization that his best friend's corpse is being used by a villain is the last thing that Gojo sees before he is fully sealed away.
The Shibuya arc is a dramatic and emotionally heavy part of JJK's plot. It's a major turning point that shifts the balance of power from the heroes to the villains, and at the center of it all is the imagery of Gojo heavily breathing for air. What aired as a very powerful and overwhelming scene became a viral sensation within the anime community. There are fans who spread the meme around for entertainment, but without any edits and with full JJK context, the Gojo-breathing meme highlights one of the most significant moments of Season 2 and arguably the entire series.
