We Need to Talk About the Whole Mappa Situation…

So Mappa is the studio that became famous overnight thanks to their flawless execution of 2 huge projects, AoT Final Season and Jujutsu Kaisen. And it has been under quite a lot of fire these past few days. Why? Because of their working conditions. Now, bad working conditions and low wages in the animation industry have been an issue for a long time. I have no right to comment on it but, Mappa is going too far.

How is Mappa going too far? They a lot of stuff in the pipeline and a lot of that “stuff” is high-budget projects that will require a lot of attention. Why am I saying this now? Well, let me start by going through all the “new” news related to Mappa first.

Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2

Yes, Mappa officially announced Jujutsu Kaisen season 2 on Saturday. It is coming out sometime next year. Jujutsu Kaisen is of course a big deal and is going to take a lot of resources. To make it in time for next year, I’d assume a team is already working on it. If the news ended here, I’d have been ok with it. Because it’d only be 3 big series in Mappa’s pipeline out of which 2 will probably end this year itself.

Although I do agree that they still have way too much stuff in the pipeline. But, the next news just blew it all away.

Vinland Saga Season 2

Ok, so this is not official but, rumors say that Mappa is taking over Vinland Saga season 2. Normally I’d have been happy but, Mappa already has more than enough on their plate. Granted, Vinland Saga Season 2 will be like a farming Simulator unlike the first season but it is still a big-name anime nonetheless. And it will also require a lot of time and attention.

Combine this with the fact they have Chainsaw Man coming this year, Attack on Titan’s supposed sequel to take care of and the anime itself still isn’t complete yet. Then, they have smaller projects like Hell’s Paradise, Kakegurui, Dance Dance, etc. and you start to see the problem. I like Mappa, they do a really great job on anything they touch so I don’t wanna bring bad attention to them but, this is way too much.

Summing Up My Thoughts on the Mappa Situation

I do not like to comment on the Animation industry’s working conditions here but Mappa is going too far, too fast. There is a way out for Mappa in all this. If they distance all their releases properly, which I am sure they will they should be able to significantly reduce the workload. Once, AoT is done with they really should just take a break till the fall season and not put anything out.

The only major release of Mappa’s confirmed for the next year is Jujutsu Kaisen season 2. If they schedule it in the latter half of the next year, they should be good. As far as Vinland Saga is concerned, I think they should release it next year. The minor projects can all go in between these major releases. This should be a fairly relaxed schedule and I hope Mappa goes with this. I want good anime but, I don’t want people to get overworked for that.

Conclusion

That is all for now. This stuff is open for all kinds of debates so let me hear from you down in the comments. I really respect Mappa and their work huge shoutout to all the workers of the anime industry. Thank you for giving us something to talk about. With that said though, I will take my leave here. See ya!