“Looking for meaning in logic or death can at times defile the memories of those we’ve lost! Even so! What have you been entrusted with?”

- Aoi Todo

You needn't go too far on the quest to discover anime characters that are big on everything including personality, ripped muscles, fights, and even bigger, uh, personal preferences. Jujutsu Kaisen’s Aoi Todo fills all these gaps. Even though people disliked that he almost killed Megumi just as a show of strength, Todo remains one of the series’ most liked characters, especially for his forced but iconic relationship with Yuji Itadori.

What do we actually know about this perfect combination of brain plus brawn? He’s a friendly menace, he’s the kind of guy who’ll punch first and ask questions later, and discuss his crush and personal preference in between fights, right? But how does his technique work? Where’s he from? Apart from Takada-Chan, who or what else does he like?

In understanding one of Jujutsu Kaisen’s exemplary characters, let’s delve into a concise and all-you-can-know character wiki and analysis of Aoi Todo. And for those who don’t exactly know or remember him, let’s begin by answering the most important question.

Who is Aoi Todo?

Aoi Todo is a secondary character in the Jujutsu Kaisen manga and anime series created by Gege Akutami. He is a grade 1 Jujutsu sorcerer, a third-year student at the Kyoto Jujutsu High School, and one of the school’s strongest students. In his younger years, he was trained by Yuki Tsukumo; he also holds Yuji Itadori in high regard, considering him his best friend.

Aoi Todo | Character Profile

Aoi Todo | Background & Origin

Aoi Todo was born 18 years ago on September 23, 2000 to unnamed parents. During his time in grade school, he encountered Yuki Tsukumo, a Jujutsu sorcerer who took a liking to him seeing a show of his physical prowess right after he had just beaten a fellow high school student. She inquired about his preferences in women, something Todo does whenever he meets an opponent. Aoi sensed that having her as his mentor would alleviate his boredom and proceeded to receive training from her in Jujutsu.

A few years later, on the 24th of December 2017, Aoi demonstrated his exceptional skills during Geto's attack on Shinjuku and Kyoto. Single-handedly, he defeated six cursed spirits, five of which were Grade 1, without relying on his cursed technique. Furthermore, he successfully took down a formidable special-grade cursed spirit using his innate technique.

Aoi Todo | Physical Appearance

Aoi Todo is quite the character, standing tall and exuding youthful energy. He has a tan complexion and a well-defined, muscular frame. He has black eyes and black hair that stops just at his shoulder, which is nearly always pulled up in a bun knotted at the top, leaving peculiar flyaway strands that have rounded tips like many flower stamens. He has a scar on the left side of his face, a lasting reminder of the rigorous training he endured under Yuki.

Even though Todo wears a Jujutsu High uniform most of the time, before or during a fight he usually rips off his jacket. He also wears slippers and dark brown trousers. Todo wears extremely baggy slacks that end above the ankle, cinching his waist with a bright-colored belt. When he played ping-pong with Mei Mei, he dressed differently from his usual attire—a collared shirt and shorts.

When Todo imagined himself going to junior high school alongside Takada-chan and Yuji, he dressed in a black jacket that resembled his Jujutsu High outfit, which he left open to show off his undershirt, just like he does with all of his coats. He even matches his clothes and blue sash in these fake recollections.

He had to amputate his left hand at Shibuya to prevent Mahito from completely transforming him, and he also seriously hurt his right palm when he gave Mahito's hand a quick smack so he could switch places with Yuji. In the Shinjuku Showdown Arc, Todo's left hand is heavily bandaged, as a result of Mahito's transfiguration. After the bandages were removed, it became apparent that he had put in a vibraslap to replace his hand.

Aoi Todo | Character Personality

Aoi Todo truly has a one-of-a-kind personality. Upon initial observation, he may appear to be a fight-hungry meathead, proudly showing off his muscular physique and finding joy in the thrill of battle. However, he's not your average Joe. His obsession with the tall pop-idol Takada-chan, whom he frequently talks about, sometimes makes him seem like a clown/creep. He even envisions interactions with her in his cute imagination. One could say Takada-chan holds a special place in his heart, influencing his actions with a desire for thrill and a distaste for monotony.

When first meeting someone, he always asks "What kind of girls do you like?" This originates from his first encounter with Yuki Tsukumo, which profoundly impacted his perspective on life. He uses this question to assess people's personalities and, depending on their answers, determines how to engage with them. While he found Megumi Fushiguro uninteresting and proceeded to defeat him mercilessly, Yuji Itadori's reaction struck a chord with him. Todo quickly created a made-up memory of them being close friends and started regarding him as "mai besto-friendo”.

Todo's true nature reveals a surprising depth of philosophy and intellect beneath his rugged exterior. His support and encouragement to Yuji during the Goodwill Event demonstrate his expertise in effectively explaining the flow and nature of cursed energy. Todo's profound understanding of the mind, body, and soul allows him to guide Yuji toward unlocking his full potential and mastering the powerful Black Flash technique.

Todo possesses an unwavering self-assurance and a passion for fierce battles, which greatly influences his approach to combat. Even in dire situations like the Shibuya Incident, he can keep a calm head, carefully evaluating his actions with meticulousness. He remains fiercely loyal to Yuji and provides valuable insights into the perseverance required to become a jujutsu sorcerer. Todo believes that the key to being a sorcerer is to never give up and he imparts this belief to Yuji, urging him to keep going no matter what challenges he faces.

Aoi Todo | Relationships And Interactions

Todo is undoubtedly one of the most interesting characters in Jujutsu Kaisen and one whose fights and interactions one cannot help but be wowed by. However, his personality and perception of others play an integral part in his relationships and interaction with them. While he had a fairly good appearance in the storyline, he has some notable interactions which include the following.

With Yuji Itadori

Aoi's relationship with Yuji Itadori is one of the most significant in the series, especially as it plays a very good part in Yuji's character development. Initially portrayed as a formidable opponent, Aoi rapidly flips gears after finding Yuji shares his taste in ladies and immediately takes Yuji as his best friend.

This casual friendship develops into profound mentoring as Aoi takes it upon himself to teach Yuji, assisting him in mastering the usage of Black Flash and understanding the flow of cursed energy. This mentoring goes beyond basic training; Aoi's advice improves Yuji's confidence and abilities as a sorcerer, forming a relationship of brothers based on mutual respect.

Also, their coordinated combat methods and shared battlefield experiences strengthen their bond, making them one of the most formidable duos in the Jujutsu Kaisen series.

With Other Kyoto Students

Aoi's relationships with his classmates at the Kyoto Jujutu High, especially Mai Zenin, are characterized by a mix of intimidation and protective care. He frequently uses his physical presence and combat skills to impose authority, ensuring that his peers value power above everything else.

However, this intimidation is not only for self-promotion, as he believes in motivating others to get stronger. His interactions with Mai and the others demonstrate that, while he may come out as a bully, he ultimately wants his classmates to toughen up and be able to protect themselves.

With Principal Gakuganji

Aoi's relationship with Principal Gakuganji presents him as someone who prioritizes a personal code of honor over blind obedience. Despite being a student, Aoi is not afraid to challenge the principal's directives if they contradict his convictions about what is right. This was evident at the Kyoto Goodwill Event when he supports Yuji over Gakuganji's conventional stance, therefore protecting the young sorcerer from his Principal's execution order.

With Megumi Fushiguro

While Aoi's interactions with Megumi Fushiguro are driven by competitiveness and a desire to test Megumi's strengths, Megumi doesn't like Aoi for this reason. During their fight in the Kyoto Goodwill Event, Aoi's sheer strength and combat prowess swiftly overwhelm Megumi, making him seem like a bully. Although Aoi initially criticizes Megumi for lacking conviction, he grows to respect for him after realizing Megumi's potential. He sees Megumi as an example of how respect is gained by personal strength and determination, not inherited status or ancestry.

With Cursed Spirits

Aoi Todo is a Jujutsu sorcerer, but that doesn’t mean he sees cursed spirits as enemies. Rather, he sees them as nefarious entities who should be eliminated to protect the weaker and more populous human race. One of his biggest fights in the series is against Hanami, the special grade curse that forced him to use his full abilities, especially his Boogie Woogie technique, combined with his strength and speed, all of which couldn’t bring Hanami down. He always enjoys a good fight, especially whenever his opponent’s strength matches or supersedes his, as he always sees that as a challenge and avenue for growth.

With Other Jujutsu Sorcerers

Aoi's interactions with other jujutsu sorcerers are generally cordial and based on mutual respect for each other's abilities. Aoi values strength and integrity, qualities he notes in his fellow sorcerers, even if he could come across as demanding or forceful. His connection with these sorcerers is more about mutual respect and camaraderie of fighting a common cause than about personal ties.

Aoi Todo | Skills And Abilities

Aoi is ranked as a Grade 1 Jujutsu sorcerer while being a student, defying expectations as he comes from a non-sorcerer family. His incredible strength makes him undeniably one of the most powerful students at Jujutsu High.

Hyper Strength

Aoi Todo is an absolute force to be reckoned with, consistently overpowering his opponents with his extraordinary physical prowess. His punches can send opponents flying over a great distance and his fighting style is an impressive display of force, combining a flurry of punches, kicks, and suplexes without giving his opponent any time to react or recover from his attacks.

With his blows infused with cursed energy, he can completely exorcise lower-grade curses and inflict significant damage on even stronger opponents. Todo skillfully combines his Boogie Woogie technique with strategic precision, capitalizing on any vulnerabilities in his opponents' defenses to deliver devastating blows. His power is truly remarkable, as it alone, even without combining it with cursed energy or his technique is enough to deal considerable damage to opponents.

Martial Arts Skills

Aoi Todo is highly skilled in close-quarters combat, preferring to crush his opponents with his raw physical strength and martial arts skills rather than using his jujutsu techniques. His fighting style is a combination of forearm smashes, powerful punches, and stomps, resulting in direct and fatal attacks. Megumi was completely overwhelmed in a hand-to-hand fight, as Aoi effortlessly outmaneuvered and overpowered him. Aoi managed to gain the advantage over Yuji, despite the latter's reputation as a skilled fighter. His strength alongside combat experience caught Yuji off guard.

Superhuman Speed

Aoi Todo possesses an impressive combination of speed and strength, enabling him to unleash a barrage of lightning-fast and persistent assaults that catch his opponents off guard. With ease, he skillfully penetrated Megumi's defenses and swiftly made his way to the opposing team during the Kyoto Goodwill Event. Yuji found himself momentarily outmatched by Aoi's impressive speed, which made his movements highly unpredictable, particularly when using his cursed technique.

Strategic Brilliance

Despite his seemingly crude appearance, Aoi Todo showcases a keen strategic intelligence, boasting an impressive IQ of 530,000. With his profound knowledge of Jujutsu, he was able to tutor and mold Yuji from a novice into a skilled sorcerer who could take on even more powerful curses.

Aoi's impressive intellect allows him to sometimes come across as being philosophical, allowing him to effortlessly explain complex subjects to others. With his quick thinking, he effortlessly analyzes and counters opponents' moves in the blink of an eye, as demonstrated in his fight against Hanami.

Aoi Todo | Jujutsu Techniques And Tools

Kokusen – Black Flash

This is a technique he’s only been able to perform once so far. It is a phenomenon that results in a spatial distortion when the user binds a surge of cursed energy within an incredibly short timeframe after a physical hit. As a result, the cursed energy flashes black, resulting in a significantly more powerful attack that is 2.5 times stronger than a regular hit. Aoi initially used Black Flash when he and Yuji fought against Mahito in Shibuya. He has only performed it once so far.

Cursed Energy Control

Aoi possesses an incredible amount of cursed energy and demonstrates a keen expertise in using it. His punches have an incredible force, capable of destroying curses or obstacles with a single strike. Additionally, he can imbue cursed tools with his cursed energy. Aoi could also enhance his defense by applying a special cursed energy coating to his body, which serves as a protective barrier against incoming attacks.

His innate technique also allows him to effortlessly use a technique multiple times without draining his energy. This skill complements his enhanced physical abilities perfectly. Even without prior experience using Black Flash, Aoi has a deep understanding of how it works, and also how to do it time and over again.

Binding Vows

This technique is called Joho no Kaiji and is also known as revealing one's hand. Many Jujutsu practitioners frequently use this binding vow. By revealing how his technique works, Aoi enhances its potency while also deceiving his opponent about its true nature, making it a two-edged sword.

Bugi Ugi – Boogie Woogie

This is Todo's innate technique. He uses it to effortlessly swap the positions of objects infused with cursed energy around him, simply by clapping his hands. He can seamlessly change his position with someone else's, or change the location of two different other entities, provided they're around him. Even though he needs to clap to activate the ability, it's interesting to note that he doesn't necessarily have to clap his own two hands. In one instance, Todo is seen activating Boogie Woogie by clapping his hand with Mahito's.

Bugi Ugi Kai – Boogie Woogie: Revised

After he lost his left hand during the Shibuya Incident, Todo attached a Vibraslap, a percussive instrument with a rigid wire linkage joined to a wooden ball within a hollow wooden box containing metal teeth. Using the vibraslap, he modified the activation method for Boogie Woogie, replacing the usual clap with the sound of a metal piece striking a wooden box.

He could do about 50 swaps in a second. Seeing as the Vibraslap only allows him to do a limited number of swaps, he could use his technique on a wider range of targets by combining it with a binding promise.

Kan’i Ryoiki – Simple Domain

This is a technique he learned from his mentor, Yuki Tsukumo. It effectively counters the sure-hit effect of a domain expansion by nullifying its protective barrier.

Yu-un - Playful Cloud

Aoi Todo is one of the five Jujutsu Kaisen characters that ever used Playful Cloud, the others being Maki Zenin, Suguru Geto, Toji, and Megumi Fushiguro. Combining his martial arts skills plus his ability to infuse a cursed object such as Playful Cloud with his cursed energy, he could use this weapon to deal massive damage on an opponent, as seen in how he used it to destroy Hanami’s shell, despite its durability.

Aoi Todo | Major Combat Encounters

Fearsome Womb Arc

Vs. Megumi Fushiguro

In the Fearsome Womb Arc, he effortlessly outmatches Megumi Fushiguro, simply because he wasn’t pleased with Megumi’s response to his question. Todo's incredible strength and speed enable him to completely overpower Megumi, and he would’ve fatally injured Megumi save for Panda and Toge’s arrival.

Kyoto Goodwill Event

Vs. Yuji Itadori

Todo's next encounter is with Yuji Itadori during the Kyoto Goodwill Event. At first, Todo has the advantage, of utilizing his combat experience and physical abilities to overpower Yuji. As the fight progresses, Yuji gradually adjusts to Todo's strength and techniques, leading to a dynamic exchange that tests the limits of both of them. Todo recognizes Yuji's potential and goes on to guide him in honing his combat skills and mastering the use of his cursed energy.

Vs. Hanami

Shortly after Hanami and his allies infiltrate the school, Hanami stealthily approaches Yuji and Aoi. Aoi decides to leave Itadori to confront the cursed spirit. Upon observing how Yuji's anger was affecting his combat abilities, Aoi intervened and hit him to assist him in regaining composure. Subsequently, Aoi proceeded to actively participate in the ongoing battle against Hanami.

The sorcerers engage in a relentless exchange of attacks, as Aoi cleverly utilizes Boogie Woogie to create openings for Yuji to deliver a powerful blow with Black Flash on Hanami. In a brilliant move, Aoi then seizes a cursed tool and uses it to shatter Hanami's skin. Aoi quickly realizes that Hanami is about to flee, and senses Satoru Gojo preparing to unleash one of his powerful techniques. Acting swiftly, he moves Yuji out of harm's way, and the duo watches as Satoru's hollow technique wipes everything in front of them, including Hanami.

Shibuya Incident

Vs. Mahito

Aoi’s biggest fight occurred during the Shibuya Incident, where he had to swiftly jump in and save a dejected Yuji from Mahito. He quickly engages Mahito in a bid to protect Yuji, and after he successfully gets Yuji to shrug aside his regrets, they both coordinate their attacks against Mahito. Their attacks and Yuji’s consecutive Black Flashes force Mahito to quickly activate a domain expansion, which Aoi countered with a simple domain. In a swift moment, Mahito lands a Black Flash on Aoi and almost transforms the sorcerer when he touches his left hand.

Aoi then cuts off the hand and shows Mahito that he can still activate his technique without his hand, after which he goes on to switch using his technique with mere clapping of hands to trick Mahito, until the curse knocks him out, leaving only Yuji to continue fighting against him. A while later, Larue came to whisk him away.

Aoi Todo | Fan Reception and Popularity

Aoi Todo has gained a distinct following among Jujutsu Kaisen fans, thanks to his quirky personality and impressive fighting abilities. Fans have grown fond of his unique qualities, like his infatuation with Takada-chan and his exaggerated bond with Yuji Itadori. These traits add a touch of humor and resilience to his character, making him a beloved choice for many.

Although he may have been initially seen as just a typical musclehead, his moments of deep philosophy and genuine support for Yuji reveal a complexity that endears him to a wider audience. This is especially evident in his rank in the Jujutsu Kaisen First Popularity Poll, where he got a total of 7,791 votes, putting him in 8th place, just after Yuta Okkotsu. Undoubtedly, Aoi Todo remains one of Jujutsu Kaisen’s most memorable characters.

Aoi Todo | Trivia

• That Aoi’s cursed technique, Boogie Woogie, is actually a style of blues music that is closely related to dancing.
• His favorite food is skirt steak.
• He greatly despises boredom and boring people.
• Aoi is extremely conscious of his appearance. He ensures that he is clean, applies deodorant, and maintains a neat appearance, but his pleasant scent never fails to provoke the girls at his school.
• His hobbies include playing ping pong, traveling, fighting, listening to Takada’s songs, and going to her events.

Aoi Todo | Brother In Arms

Jujutsu Kaisen has a range of interesting characters, but Todo stands out among them. One thing that makes Todo spectacular is the comic vibe he gives, plus how his character effortlessly combines that with brute strength and intelligence. That makes everyone (both other characters and fans of the series) respect him, even though some might not like him for being a bully (especially towards Megumi).

I do not know what position he falls into in my list of Jujutsu Kaisen characters I like the most, but I’m sure he’d be somewhere in the top 8, and unlike what the Polls say, he isn’t number 8!