There’s something good in him, too.
Manga spoilers ahead!
Summary:
- Sukuna is a real monster, but there’s one good trait of his.
- Sukuna often praises his opponents for their strength.
- Fans love that about him.
It’s fair to say that Sukuna is one of the most interesting Jujutsu Kaisen characters. Don’t worry, Gojo fans, just one of them, not the most.
And it doesn’t matter how sinister and cruel Sukuna is, everyone still loves him and the series gets 10 times more engaging when he joins a fight.
True Monster
There are a lot of traits to Sukuna, and most of them are… well, quite negative. He’s selfish and cold-hearted, his sadism knows no limits, he’s brutal and violent, he enjoys the suffering of others and loves to insult those he doesn’t deem worthy.
But there’s still one thing that fans find rather nice about him. And that is his ability to appreciate his opponents.
Sukuna is the strongest entity in the series, so he knows what true power is. He doesn’t think there’s anyone as great as him, but it doesn’t mean that he can’t notice worthy opponents. It’s rather out of character for him to praise someone, but he still does it, and not just once.
He Praises Opponents
During his fight with Jogo in the Shibuya Incident Arc, Sukuna tells him that he’s not as bad compared to those he fought over the last thousand years and calls Jogo “strong,” which moves the cursed spirit tremendously. Hearing praise from someone like Sukuna meant a lot to him.
The battle between Sukuna and Gojo was outstanding, it’s truly the most intense fight in the series, except maybe the final battle. And Sukuna also knew how much it really meant: he was against the strongest sorcerer in the world after all.
And Sukuna acknowledged it. There’s a certain amount of respect and perhaps even surprise in him. He calls Gojo magnificent and promises never to forget him as long as he lives. It could’ve been such a beautiful scene, had Gojo not just died at the hands of the King of Curses.
These are not the only characters Sukuna praises, he has something nice to say about every other person in Jujutsu Kaisen: Maki, Higuruma, Megumi; fans joke that he showed appreciation to everyone except Yuji.
It doesn't mean that Sukuna really cared about anyone, they were still just weaklings and a bunch of nobodies to him. But they managed to entertain Sukuna and even make him have some fun, and he appreciated them for that.