Why did Jujutsu Kaisen fail Nobara while My Hero Academia succeeded with Bakugo?

Jujutsu Kaisen and My Hero Academia both pulled a controversial move and brought back a main character from death. But while the latter was successful in its execution, the former failed to do the same.

While Jujutsu Kaisen is known for major character deaths, few people expected Gege Akutami to kill a main character so early in the story. Nobara Kugisaki supposedly died at the hands of Mahito during the Shibuya Incident Arc.

Since then, she has been absent from the story with no update on her status for nearly 150 chapters. That is until Chapter 267 where she suddenly appeared out of the blue to aid Yuji kill Sukuna. 

To the unfamiliar, this might look very similar to Bakugo’s return in My Hero Academia towards the end of the Final War Arc. However, despite the common denominators, the two incidents are far apart. 

Nobara and Bakugo’s comebacks look similar

Shueisha

Before we look into how different Nobara and Bakugo’s respective revivals are, let’s talk about their similarities. Like Nobara, Bakugo ‘died’ in the middle of the final war at the hands of Shigaraki. His ‘death’ was tragic and fueled Deku’s determination to stop the villains.

In Nobara’s case, it hit the final nail (no pun intended) on Yuji’s coffin that fateful day. After Gojo’s sealing, Nanami’s death, and the slaughter of countless people, the protagonist faced another tragedy when he saw his friend get killed. This later led to him vowing to destroy Mahito in a cold rage.

While their ‘deaths’ had similar effects, their respective returns share a similar role, too. Bakugo came back at a crucial moment when All Might was about to be killed by All For One, just like how Nobara returned at the final moment to end Sukuna. 

The hotheaded hero then not only saved his idol but also defeated the biggest villain of the series. This, in turn, saved Deku the trouble of facing the antagonist himself (at least for the moment).

Then, what is different between these two events? Well, the difference lies in the execution and its impact on the core story. In short, it’s all about meaningful storytelling.

Nobara’s return was too late

Shueisha

Bakugo’s return, no matter how controversial at that moment, was as surprising as it was expected. It could’ve easily turned into an ugly affair if it wasn’t done at an appropriate time. He came back at a moment crucial enough to hold our breath, but not so climactic that it took the spotlight away from the protagonist.

The same couldn’t be said for Nobara. She came back just before Yuji could defeat the final villain of the series. It appeared more unseemly since Jujutsu Kaisen doesn’t give its protagonist the center stage very often, especially in the Shinjuku Showdown Arc.

So, when he finally had the spotlight, it should’ve been solely about him and Sukuna. As the protagonist, that’s his role, and we, as readers, have been waiting for that key moment since the beginning. There was plenty of promise, too, as Yuji had finally unleashed his domain expansion and threatened to kill Sukuna if he didn’t release Megumi.

Having that brilliant moment followed by Nobara’s assistance completely ruined its significance. After learning what’s waiting next, we can never revisit Chapter 265 and take Yuji seriously ever again. What’s the point when we know he’d need the help of someone to defeat Sukuna?

It’s like Bakugo staying dead for the majority of the story before suddenly reappearing, just as Deku is about to defeat Shigaraki and All For One. Doesn’t sound very exciting, does it?

Nobara coming back opened a can of plot holes

Shueisha

Another complaint I have against Nobara’s return is just how insignificant it is to her character arc as a whole. Other than having ‘aura’, it provided nothing but plot holes. Why was it necessary to hide her status from Yuji, especially after Sukuna was gone from his body?

If Yuta and everyone else knew about Nobara and had included her in their contingency plans, keeping it hidden from Yuji sounds completely illogical. And why had Sukuna, who knew about Nobara’s Resonance and her fate, not planned ahead to avoid this possibility?

We’ve seen the King of Curses bypass powerful techniques like Hollow Purple and Jacob’s Ladder multiple times, not to mention his countless and very convenient Binding Vows. But when it came to avoiding a technique from a sorcerer who was one of the weakest of the bunch, Sukuna somehow failed.

But that’s not even the biggest question I have for Nobara’s comeback. I wonder what Yuji would’ve done if she really hadn’t lived. He must’ve had a way, with how confidently he threatened Sukuna. What was he going to do without the aid of Resonance? Was he just bluffing? We’ll never know the answer to those.

Bakugo’s comeback contributed to his character arc

Shueisha

Bakugo, on the other hand, received better treatment. His revival not only created a hyped moment but also added to his ongoing character arc. We saw an arrogant bully being gradually humbled until he faced his end, the ultimate hit to his ego.

His life was saved by someone else, someone who sacrificed a lot just to keep him alive. It showed him how powerless he really was in the face of the bigger picture and how he couldn’t survive without the help of others.

So, when he reappeared to save All Might and stood up to All For One, we could only look on with pride as he confessed to his powerlessness and his gratitude for the kindness he received. But did that mean he wasn’t the same hotheaded boy anymore?

Not at all. Bakugo was the same as ever as we saw him staring dead at All For One before declaring himself the final boss. Just because he’d been humbled didn’t mean his personality was changed. Instead, he evolved both as a person and a hero. His ‘death’ was the final push he needed, and he learned an important lesson from it.

That didn’t happen with Nobara at all. We knew very little about her to begin with. She was a strong woman with an admirable way of looking at life. Nobara could hold her own in a fight and was nowhere near having a crush on her teammates (thankfully!). But other than that, she didn’t receive much, mainly because she was gone from the story too early.

If she had stayed longer, I’m sure we’d have come to love her more and, more importantly, learn the intricacies of her character. But what ultimately happened was that she died too early and came back in a way that could very easily be called fan service.

It’s sad that such an interesting character like Nobara was reduced to a surprise revival in the eleventh hour. Hopefully, Jujutsu Kaisen’s ending will be satisfying enough to ignore this bad decision in the future.

For more of our takes like this, check out our review of the My Hero Academia ending. You might also like our views on Dragon Ball’s most important character and Yuta’s Gojo transformation.