JoJo's Bizarre Adventure

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has garnered a multitude of accolades. It is one of the longest-running Japanese manga series and an endless source of memes that truly embodies its title in every conceivable way. Above all, it is an exquisitely unpredictable series where each installment offers a distinct and unique story. While it is set in a vast shared universe, the only commonality between each installment is that the protagonist is a member of the Joestar family, whose names all contain "Jo" or its phonetic equivalent. Additionally, each story is set in a different place, including historical England, ancient Japan, and bizarre versions of Egypt and Italy. However, the primary weakness of this Joestar family saga is its first nine episodes of the first season. After reading the negative reviews here, it is evident that most viewers gave up during this season, and I can understand why. The first part is overly dramatic, with each line drenched in pathos, the animation is too static, and the protagonist is too aloof and perfect. Nonetheless, those first few episodes are a necessary evil as they provide the foundation for understanding the subsequent events. The second part (episodes ten to twenty-six) is a marked improvement and introduces a more engaging male protagonist, completely altering my perspective on the series. The third part (Stardust Crusaders) is set in Egypt and features the best characters and fights, even though the plot is the most straightforward. My personal favorite, however, is the fourth part (Diamond Is Unbreakable), set in Japan and characterized by a well-balanced plot and characters, although it does contain a few filler episodes. The fifth and most recent part, set in Italy (Golden Wind), has some of the most bizarre battles yet, but unfortunately, its villain is the least interesting one so far. Each part has its strengths and weaknesses, but as a whole, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is an eccentric and captivating show, with the adjective "bizarre" taking on new meanings with each new, even more muscular character and reference to the Euro-American rock scene. Overall, I would give it 4 stars. (02/08/2021)

With each new season of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, you can be sure that it will surprise you both in a positive and a negative way compared to the last. With the fifth season, the most positive thing is the fact that it features a minimum of characters or references to previous events, unlike the fourth season, so if you are thinking of jumping into the middle of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure because you do not want to go back and wade through it from the start of the first season just to get the plot, Golden Wind could be the perfect stepping stone for you. Another plus is the change of scenery, where we are not stuck in Japan or Egypt and instead stay in sunny Italy the whole time, dealing with the mafia and of course a bunch of Stands. I also appreciate the fact that this season does not stand or fall solely on the main hero vastly outclassing the rest of the characters with his abilities, but their abilities are more or less balanced and they all have an equal chance to shine, which I give high praise for. However, now comes what I see as the biggest problem with this season, which is that it gives the impression of having been just going through the motions. Unfortunately. It does not really bring anything new to the world of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, on the contrary, it seems to contradict the rules of this universe - while in the previous season the use of Stands was presented as a highly selective matter for individuals who have something to do with a certain Arrow or are Joestar by blood, the events here give the opposite impression that every other Tom, Dick, or Harry could become a Stand User. Another sigh relates to the first half of the season when the creators fail to awaken the audience’s interest in the events that follow, and to offer a storyline that could arouse natural curiosity and hunger for further episodes. While this was something the previous seasons always managed to do in the first few episodes, this season completely fails to do so. The fights are dull, lacking in ease and ideas, and feel drawn out, or at worst, are strikingly reminiscent of some of the fights from the previous season, the bad guys lack any charisma, and overall the first half feels like a very weak concoction of the tried and true ingredients that JoJo aficionados have come to love. The second half thankfully rectifies this impression and offers a much brisker pace, more imaginative fights, unexpected twists, and, of course, a properly punctuated finale - it simply would not be Araki without a traditional final showdown with the main bad guy. What to say in conclusion? Die-hard fans will of course be satisfied with this season, and as the new audiences will not have anything to compare it to, they will probably appreciate it too, however, since I do not fall into either category, this is adding up to be the weakest season yet in overall terms. A completely average 3 stars. (17/12/2019)