Warning: Contains spoilers for Sakamoto Days chapter #216.There’s no denying thatSakamoto Daysis one of the biggest manga inShōnen Jumpright now. The series has slowly built up a major fan base with its absurdist comedy and stellarJohn Wick-style action, and with the success of the anime followingMy Hero Academia’sandJujutsu Kaisen’smanga both having ended, there are fewShōnen Jumpmanga that can compete with it right now.
Sakamoto Daysis bigger than ever, and that makes what’s currently happening with it even funnier to think about.Sakamoto Dayschapter #215 ended on a major cliffhanger where it seemed like Uzuki killed Shin, and while it was obvious that Shin wouldn’t die,the waySakamoto Daysresolved its biggest cliffhanger has sparked a massive meme that’s taken the anime community by storm. It’s going to be a while beforeSakamoto Dayscan live this down, if it even can, but in the grand scheme of things, that might not be the worst thing for the series.
Why Everyone Is Making Fun Of Sakamoto Days' Latest Chapter
What Made Sakamoto Days Chapter 216 So Weird
Sakamoto Dayschapter #215 ended with Shin getting his neck sliced by Uzuki, and chapter #216 reaffirmed that Shin couldn’t dodge the attack, but he was somehow miraculously unharmed. Even Shin didn’t understand how he was alive, but Atari, the fortune teller of the JAA, explainedShin survived thanks to the “tunnel effect”, a theoretical phenomenon that can cause objects to momentarily phase through each other; even in real life, the tunnel effect, if it’s real, would be virtually impossible to witness, but Atari used the last of her luck to make it happen.
Naturally, the entire situation was quickly met with mockery from fans. As ridiculous asSakamoto Dayscan get with physics, it’s typically for the sake of action and something the characters already had the power to do. Conversely, Shin getting saved by the tunnel effect is a completely random means of keeping him alive in an unwinnable situation, especially since Atari appeared out of nowhere to use her luck, so overall,Sakamoto Days’ use of the tunneling effect has become a major source of mockery due to how much it exaggerates the story’s writing style to the point of parody.
Even other anime fandoms have taken to making fun ofSakamoto Daysand the tunnel effect on social media, with people jokingly asking why characters in certain manga didn’t just use the tunnel effect to avoid being killed.
What makes things even worse is how quickly the joke has spread. Not only has the tunnel effect become a joke within theSakamoto Daysfandom, but even other anime fandoms have taken to making fun ofSakamoto Daysand the tunnel effect on social media, with people jokingly asking why characters in certain manga didn’t just use the tunnel effect to avoid being killed. It’s aphenomenon similar to the legendary “Nah, I’d win” meme fromJujutsu Kaisen, but unlike that meme, it’s being used purely to make fun ofSakamoto Days, not to celebrate it.
Sakamoto Days' Biggest Meme Is Actually Great For The Series
Everyone Making Fun Of Sakamoto Days Is Better Than People Think
In the age of social media, what often attracts people to shows, movies, and anything else of the sort isn’t the stories being told, but the memes that spawn from them; the previously mentioned “Nah, I’d win” meme brought incredible attention toJujutsu Kaisen, and outside of anime,the memes forA Minecraft Movieare the biggest reason it’s become such a box office success. By that logic,Sakamoto Dayscreating such a massive manga meme can do a lot to bring more attention to it, especially if it’s already at the point of other fandoms parroting the joke.
That sort of attention can be a good thing, however; as big asSakamoto Daysis withinShōnen Jumpright now, that’s mostly by default, as it’s still nowhere close to some of the magazine’s bigger names, but with how muchmomentum it’s gained recently thanks to theSakamoto Daysanimeand other factors,Sakamoto Daysgarnering a big meme culture could be exactly what it needs to truly become a massive hit.Sakamoto Dayswould hardly be the first manga to achieve something like that, and with how great a series it is, it would be plenty well-deserved.
Sakamoto Days
Cast
Sakamoto Days centers on Taro Sakamoto, a former top-tier hitman who has traded his life of crime for a peaceful existence running a convenience store. Despite his attempts to leave the underworld behind, Sakamoto’s past catches up with him as old rivals and dangerous enemies reappear, threatening his newfound tranquility. Forced to defend his family and business, Sakamoto must draw on his lethal skills while navigating the humorous and unexpected challenges of balancing his ordinary daily life with the chaos of his former profession.
