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Episode Notes
Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 officially began its broadcast on January 8th, 2026, following years of immense anticipation from the global anime community. Fans finally see the long awaited return of Yuji Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro as they navigate a Japan transformed into a supernatural battleground. Gege Akutami's world expands rapidly during this season, introducing a diverse cast of sorcerers with increasingly bizarre and lethal abilities. Viewers encounter legendary figures from history alongside modern sorcerers, each competing for points in Kenjaku's deadly tournament as Studio MAPPA continues to deliver the top tier animation quality that defines the Jujutsu Kaisen franchise.
Reader Version
In this podcast episode, the host Roos discusses the exciting news that Kazuya Nakai, the renowned voice actor of Roronoa Zoro from One Piece, is joining the cast of Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 as Kinji Hakari, a new and highly anticipated character. The season began airing on January 8th, 2026, and has been met with enthusiasm from fans worldwide. Roos highlights how the series continues to expand Gege Akutami’s supernatural world, introducing a diverse array of sorcerers and intense battles within the deadly Culling Games tournament. Kinji Hakari is described as a standout character due to his unique gambling themed curse technique and his role as a suspended student who runs an underground fight club.
The host notes that Kinji’s domain expansion, Idle Death Gamble, adds a thrilling element of risk and reward to his fights, making him a fan favorite. Roos points out that Satoru Gojo’s recognition of Kinji’s potential to rival his own strength further cements the character’s importance in the story. Roos praises Studio MAPPA’s choice of Kazuya Nakai to voice Kinji, emphasizing Nakai’s ability to bring a gritty, rebellious energy to the role. However, the host expresses skepticism about Nakai’s performance, suggesting that his portrayal sounds very similar to his iconic role as Zoro and questioning whether Nakai will bring genuine passion to the character or simply rely on a familiar voice for financial gain.
Despite this critique, Roos acknowledges that Nakai’s casting generated significant excitement among fans on social media. The episode also touches on the quality of Jujutsu Kaisen’s writing and pacing. Roos admits that while the story can sometimes feel predictable or rushed, the series excels in character development and fight scenes, which remain the main draw for viewers. The host appreciates the animation and production values but feels the narrative occasionally lacks clarity, making it harder to fully engage with the plot.
Regarding the English dub, Roos notes that while the Japanese subbed version of Kinji’s character has been well received, the dubbed voice actor has not yet been announced, leaving fans curious and hopeful for a strong performance. The podcast mentions that the English dub for Season 3 began streaming on January 22nd, 2026, with Kinji’s episode expected later in February. Overall, Roos affirms Jujutsu Kaisen’s status as a top tier anime, praising its character development and animation despite some storytelling flaws.
The host encourages listeners to share their thoughts on Kazuya Nakai’s casting and the series in general, expressing eagerness to engage with the community and discuss upcoming developments in the show.
Automatic Transcript
Basics. What's going on guys, it's your boy Roos. Welcome back again to another episode of the podcast. And today we are reading the article titled Roronoa Zoro's voice actor is joining JJK season 3's coolest character. And it's absolutely perfect. If you're new here, do not forget to follow the podcast as we are very close to 250 followers. Shout out to everyone who's followed up to this point. The total stallies at 223. And make sure to turn on notifications because you want to be updated on everything anime and manga. Alright, it says here in this article, Jujutsu Kaisen season 3 officially began its broadcast on January the 8th, 2026. Following years of immense anticipation from the global anime community.
Fans finally see the long awaited return of Yuji Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro as they navigate a Japan transformed into a supernatural battleground. Gege Akutami's world expands rapidly during this season, introducing a diverse cast of sorcerers with increasingly bizarre and lethal abilities. Viewers encounter legendary figures from history alongside modern sorcerers, each competing for points in Kenjaku's deadly tournament as Studio MAPPA continues to deliver the top tier animation quality that defines the Jujutsu Kaisen franchise. Alright, Kinji Hakari is the most anticipated sorcerer of the culling games. Most people will say it was actually Rika and... what's that guy's name? Yuta?
But I guess Hakari is a popular fan favourite, especially because when he opens his domain, he has this music that hits when he hits his peak of... should I say destruction? Kinji Hakari stands out as one of the most eccentric and powerful new characters introduced in Jujutsu Kaisen season 3. As a suspended third year student at Tokyo Jujutsu High, Kinji operates an underground fight club where sorcerers battle for profit. Satoru Gojo himself previously identified Kinji as one of the new students with the potential to rival his own godlike strength. This endorsement alone solidified the character's reputation among Jujutsu Kaisen fans long before his official name debut in the fifth episode of the new season.
Kinji's true allure lies in his incredibly complex gambling themed curse technique. His domain expansion, Idle Death Gamble, functions like a high stakes pachinko machine that grants him temporary immortality upon hitting a jackpot. This luck based ability makes every Kinji Hakari fight a thrilling spectacle of risk and reward. Fans gravitate toward his delinquent aesthetic and unapologetic confidence, making Kinji's arrival a pivotal moment for the series. Kazuya Nakai officially takes the lead as the Japanese voice actor for Kinji Hakari in Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3. Most anime fans will immediately recognize Kazuya Nakai as the legendary voice behind One Piece's Roronoa Zoro.
Studio MAPPA clearly sought a veteran performer who could embody the rough and tumble nature of a sorcerer who runs a secret fight club, providing Kinji with a voice that carries the perfect blend of authority, grit, and rebellious energy. Kazuya Nakai also expressed his excitement at joining the Jujutsu Kaisen cast during a special Jump Festa 2026 panel. The legendary voice actor noted that since Kinji Hakari's name appeared so early on in the series, even he felt the pressure to live up to fan expectations when voicing him. However, he trusted the voice he heard in his head when he read the original work and planned to deliver a performance that was grounded, flexible, and filled with passion.
Now, if this is the guy that speaks like Roronoa Zoro, I'm not gonna lie, he basically just sounds the same. I don't know what passion he's screaming, he's getting more money than he can ever think of from just playing the character of Roronoa Zoro from One Piece, so is he really gonna try his best or change the voice in Jujutsu Kaisen when he knows what works? I do not think so. At all, there's no passion, it's just him trying to get a paycheck. The announcement of Kazuya Nakai as Kinji Hakari triggered a massive wave of excitement across social media platforms like X and Reddit.
Fans compared Kinji Hakari to Roronoa Zoro, noting that both characters share a certain cool factor that defines their respective series. Many viewers also recognized Kazuya Nakai's work as Toshiro Hijikata in Gintama, another character known for his rough exterior and unwavering principles. Kazuya Nakai's past record convinced many Jujutsu Kaisen fans he would be a perfect Kinji Hakari and Episode 5 proved them correct. In this episode titled Fever, Kazuya finally showcased his range as Kinji after Yuji and Megumi sought the suspended sorcerer out to recruit his help in the Culling Games.
Kazuya delivered a masterful performance as Kinji saw right through Yuji's attempt to convince him that he and Megumi were just random sorcerers unaffiliated with Jujutsu High. I won't lie to you, when it comes down to the writing of JJK, sometimes it feels too predictable and sometimes it feels too unknowingly not good in terms of the writing. It was kind of so obvious that they were from Jujutsu High, if that makes sense. It's just weird that for some reason, as the writing, they didn't realise. It's just so weird.
In JJK, I'm really there mainly for the fight scenes, the cool story, the cool development for characters, but sometimes it feels like the story can be a bit too fast and so it doesn't really feel as though I'm following them along. I'm just being thrown into scenes where so much is going on. The voice acting as well, I'm not going to pretend and say this guy sounds anything different from Roronoa Zoro from One Piece because he doesn't. He sounds literally the same. It's just the exterior like I just read, it does definitely represent how Zoro would behave.
Unfortunately for Jujutsu Kaisen dubbed fans, however, while Kazuya's subbed performance as Kinji is receiving praise left and right, with the subbed episode earning an 8.5 out of 10 rating on IMDb, fans are yet to hear Kinji's dubbed voice. Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 dub went live on Crunchyroll after the sub on January 22nd of 2026, with the episode 5 dub expected to stream on February 19th 2026. Good luck to you guys. Hopefully the person who done it, done it in some form of justice. While the Japanese sub performance already sets a gold standard, the English voice actor for Kinji Hakari remains a topic of intense speculation.
Some older names are all set to return in the later season, like Adam McArthur as Yuji Itadori and Kayla McGee for Yuta Okotsu. On top of those, the production team continues to reveal new cast members for other Culling Game participants, further building the hype for future battles. Despite this, there has so far been no news on Kinji's dubbed voice. Although Kazuya Nakai's involvement signals that Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 aims to maintain its status as a premiere anime event. There's no word of a doubt or a lie in my mind that JJK is a top tier anime. Animation, production, story could be better, but character development amazing. It's just top tier.
I don't feel like there's much room to say any other anime can be in that conversation of what is better or what is good. Do you know what I'm saying? Because it really does take the cake. I'm excited to see more of JJK. I have read the manga, so there's so much to come. If you're new here, don't forget to follow the podcast. It really is highly appreciated. Leave a comment. I always encourage my viewers to leave a comment. Tell me what you guys thought about this article, what you're looking forward for or looking forward to. Sorry, should I say? And yeah, man, just involve me in a conversation. I want to talk to you guys. I know more about what's on your mind and how you feel about certain things.
Okay, let me know what you think about the Kazuya Nakai coming into JJK. Is it relatable? Is it good voice acting? And yeah, hope you guys enjoy yourselves. I'm out. Peace. Dergut, dergut, dergut.