JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Diamond wa Kudakenai

Fume

# Spoilers and a little swearing ahead, obviously Finally got here, and finally finished it, THE part of Jojo everyone talks about, but does it really live up to the hype? Hell yeah it fucking does! I have to say that, this is now my favorite part of Jojo yet, and Josuke is my favorite Jojo yet as well, he's absolutely gureto daze. Alright let's start getting into it, ok, first... the obvious artstyle switch, i like it a lot, didn't throw me off really, i liked it at first glance, but the day i started it i was sick as hell and having those crazy fever dreams so... the sky not being blue fucking destroyed me the first time, it did stop being weird afterwards ofc but damn, why though. Now, the cast, the IMMENSE cast of recurring characters, one of my favorite aspects if not MY favorite of this part. Having this Diamond is Unbreakable be in a single town, not traveling like a madman is a nice change, not better but different and it was awfully nice, specially having this recurring cast making Morioh feel absolutely alive, feel like an actual place, mori mori mori mori MORIOH CHO, RADIOOO! We love Morioh Cho amirite. And the gore and unpredictable nature of this show doesn't stop here, Part 4 definitely takes it up a notch, of course, that is seen throughout this part but you are technically greeted by it at the start of it, by having Angelo say hi to a dog in the classic Jojo way, by fucking killing it, fun. Now, as for the main villain, Kira Yoshikage, who shows up about half way through, not a very unpopular opinion but he really is one of the best anime villains out there, he's not evil for the sake of being evil, but neither does he have a super awesome plan and reason to take over the world, he just wants to live a peaceful life, like a plant, and well, keep up with his little hobby/fetish, which really... isn't exactly nice. And he doesn't try to act invincible in front of everyone, before being defeated, he got his ass kicked plenty of time, by many people and a cat, showing frustration and worry openly instead of trying to act tough, he feels human, and really isn't afraid of showing what he feels... actually no wait, that doesn't include the fetish! Now, Brosuke, he probably has the most personality out of every Jojo before him, yeah, including young Joseph, he's fun, he has his flaws which actually make him more likeable and make him feel more human, i just like everything about it, i don't think i can express it that easily, uhh, his hair is very cool. And last but not least, the stand, OH boy, now, these really do make the Part 3 stands look boring, because they take such great liberties with their abilities, there's simple stands like ZA HANDOOO, and then there's stands like Echoes, that can transform, and has different abilities with each form, and he can switch between them whenever... holy S-H-I-T he's cool. Anyway, this part has been my favorite so far, and now that i'm watching/reading Part 5 i can see just how creative they keep getting with everything, this will just keep getting better! Thanks for reading, and have a nice day, you crazy noisy bizarre buddy ^-^

myvelouria

This review is spoiler free. All gifs were made by @mob. img500(https://66.media.tumblr.com/bcaf0d53cd87e410c9287cfb5f86cc96/tumblr_pfksljltaT1vz5npso1_540.gifv) There are few franchises that have captured my attention in the same way "Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure” has. Both as a manga and as an anime it manages to be this wholly unique experience. Through the combination of Hirohiko Araki’s never ending imagination and David Production’s efforts this has become what I consider to be one of the defining anime series of the decade. With each new installment in the franchise this feeling becomes more validated. What I want to explore in this review is the fourth part, “Diamond is Unbreakable” or DIU for short. This was a very refreshing series, especially when following something like “Stardust Crusaders”. It gave us some of the greatest characters in the franchise, some of the best arcs, it gave me my personal favorite villain in Kira Yoshikage, an amazing visual style, a wonderful soundtrack, rewatching it for the first time since it aired really gave me a new appreciation for it. When we first saw the key visuals for the anime I will admit I had some apprehensions. I wasn’t sure at the time if this is how I wanted to see the characters look, but as time progressed it really grew on me. The difficult thing about the aesthetics in DIU is in the manga Araki was undergoing some radical change as an artist. The earlier chapters show a significantly different style than the later ones. This is quite the situation to be in when adapting the manga. Do you try to achieve that earlier look or do you just work with what we had at the end? What fans got was this middle ground that ended up working to the anime’s benefit. This style allowed for the characters to be more expressive than they had been in previous installments. And this color palette is so unique that I really have to applaud the staff. Josuke in his royal blue gakuran against this yellow sky is so eye catching. Koichi’s silver hair is far more interesting than the blond hair many expected him to have. And I just love the shade of green they chose for Rohan’s hair. Fans over the years have brought up how there were some dips in animation quality during DIU. I can see what they mean, however the televised version still contained really strong visuals in spite of a few slips. Now something that I think needs to be brought to people’s attention is what David Pro did with it later. The bluray release of DIU was given a major facelift that looks absolutely stunning. It is just as visually impressive as “Vento Aureo”. And those infamous moments fans took note of during the broadcast were fixed. If you have a way to view this version of the anime I strongly suggest that you do. img500(https://i.imgur.com/JMP9kkT.png) img500(https://66.media.tumblr.com/67026cc95909bced62fffcef40dd6e39/tumblr_pf22s51Mcm1vz5npso1_540.gifv) The DIU anime begins with the sounds of the Morioh Cho Radio jingle while we observe what would be revealed as a severed hand preparing breakfast. This was an anime original scene and I think the choice to open up this way was perfect. It establishes that we are going to be in what appears to be a regular suburban town, but something is lurking. We then see our previous hero Jotaro Kujo, now more mature and wise, arrive in the town of Morioh in pursuit of Josuke Higashikata, the illegitimate son of his grandfather Joseph Joestar. Jojo at its core is a generational series and one of the strengths to it is how Araki manages to build off of his previous concepts. We see a fan favorite character come back into the plot, but showing signs of progression. And it is very interesting to then see Jotaro in this mentor kind of position considering the person we saw him to be in "Stardust Crusaders". Josuke is the character Araki has said is his personal favorite and its clear why that is. He is made instantly likable and distinct from his predecessors. He doesn’t want to cause issues for Joseph’s family and we see that he’s a really good guy. That said we also get to see that he has a ferocity when pushed too far showing that he contains that same intensity we’ve grown accustomed to in this family. He also isn’t above a little bit of scheming on occasion, but it never leaves the viewer feeling against him. Josuke is still that same positive character in spite of a little sneakiness. We also meet Koichi who does not appear like he will be very important on first glance, he even says his name isn’t worth remembering. But as we follow him and Josuke we see him undergo great character development, becoming more confident and assertive without losing that humility that endeared him to viewers in the beginning. Okuyasu is the third person to round out our main trio and he is just a delight. Initially an enemy he then becomes Josuke’s best friend and a source of so much fun. I love watching Josuke, Okuyasu, and Koichi interact amongst themselves and following them through their crazy noisy bizarre town. After a series of adventures in Morioh that bring in other characters like Rohan Kishibe and even an older Joseph, we then shift gears into exploring just what the mystery is behind the hand in episode one. The anime handles the transition between these two phases in the story extremely well. One thing that has always made DIU feel so fresh is that it’s not a grand epic taking characters across the world, it’s a story focused within the town of Morioh. This worked because the characters Araki gave us are so engaging and the situations they end up in are so filled with creativity. Seeing Josuke navigate his daily life while dealing with enemy Stands and eventually the hunt for Kira Yoshikage helped give DIU its own distinct voice compared to previous parts. A Stand user of the week format is something we saw with “Stardust Crusaders” except here it’s intertwined with Josuke’s life in Morioh. We see the cast grow with each encounter he has and once our key players are established things feel so alive. When we see Josuke, Koichi, and Okuyasu about town it really feels like we have experienced a lot with them and that Morioh itself has taken on its own identity. The anime pulls this off with great success. They nailed the chemistry these characters share. And the seiyuu cast really brings it home. Jojo is a series that has one of my favorite casts in all of anime. We see Daisuke Ono and the late Unsho Ishizuka reprise their roles as Jotaro and Joseph. And among the new characters we have Yuuki Ono, Yuuki Kaji, Wataru Takagi, Takahiro Sakurai, Toshiyuki Morikawa, Kappei Yamaguchi, and Shigeru Chiba. The anime’s casting is just so perfect. These seiyuu just nail their roles and David Pro deserves a tremendous amount of credit for assembling such talent. As previously stated, DIU takes on a somewhat slice of life style. There are episodes where the characters encounter their enemy of the week and then proceed to go about their usual routines. While some episodes may not be crucial to the search for Kira, the anime doesn’t treat them like they don’t matter. We still get the same amount of excitement out of “Let’s Go Hunting”, an episode where Jotaro and Josuke hunt for a rat, that we do in something like “Sheer Heart Attack” where Jotaro and Koichi have to face off against Kira’s automatic Stand ability. Sometimes the episodes are funny and sometimes the episodes are serious, this is something Araki has always been great at balancing and David Pro has managed to strike it for themselves. There are even episodes, like “We Picked Up Something Crazy” where Josuke and Joseph find an invisible baby, which manage to serve incredible fun and then present the viewer with some strong emotions. And it all feels at home in this story. I felt the weight of the Nijimura family’s problems, I felt Hayato’s anxiety during the Bites the Dust arc, I was moved by Josuke opening himself up to Joseph. And on the other hand I always get a great laugh at Rohan being punched in the face after boasting “I’ve won” or Tonio losing his mind at Josuke because he entered his kitchen without washing his hands. None of these serious moments felt undercut by comical ones nor do the comedy scenes feel out of place in this narrative. And in the case of a character like Kira Yoshikage I always felt he walked the line between being unsettling and being darkly comical. This is what I like about him and the anime captured that amazingly. Take the scene of him licking sauce off of his “girlfriend’s” fingers after piercing the wrapping on a sandwich. Is this disturbing? Is it funny? Is it both? This is what I think Araki was trying to achieve and the anime pulled it off perfectly. img500(https://66.media.tumblr.com/1558111ba2a007d1853da183951d2c9d/tumblr_pfh9a2l9Jh1vz5npso2_540.gifv) The work David Pro continues to put into the Jojo anime is nothing short of spectacular. They have continuously topped themselves and showed they are willing to try different things. When DIU came out it felt so different from what we had gotten before. The tone and feeling of it felt so fresh. It managed to be everything that the manga was while also offering up exciting new things. They provided the audience with some new scenes and even linking up three different arcs into a series of episodes creating an arc all its own. Not to mention the openings which are every bit as great as fans expect even without the CGI from past series. We still talk about the Bites the Dust version of “Great Days” for a reason. We had seen a villain tamper with the opening of the show before, but never to this extent. It’s clear to me that the anime staff members are always looking to find new ways to enhance the experience. These are things that make manga fans like myself get excited for the anime. It’s not just wanting to see the story animated, but what they are going to do with it. The manga was already a masterpiece in its own right, but sometimes that’s not going to ensure a good anime. We have seen some great manga get outright terrible adaptations, but Jojo is not among them. And DIU is every bit the adaptation it needed to be. It captures the mood and spirit of the manga while also supplying audiences with striking visuals, great voice acting, excellent music, and new ways to present the story and characters they love. And I strongly recommend giving it a revisit.

Protogeist

__Spoiler Alert__ I was never that big of a fan of Made in Abyss. I found the main cast to be very uninteresting and nothing about the story struck me as anything that memorable. I feel like I could appreciate a little more when rewatching it, seeing as the themes it tackled became more clear (with Reg’s sexuality being a very interesting aspect of his character). But what I always appreciated from day one was its story. The way that you are truly placed into the world that the character inhabits is very impressive. The incredibly detailed backgrounds by Osamu Masuyama mixed with the way that the character interacted with the setting made me feel like it was a world worth exploring. And this is something I find few shows or movies do well. Every now and then you find a show like this that really does something with its setting, but for the most part, I find that the world I enter isn’t worth shit. And that doesn’t just mean fantasy stories, even ones that take place in the real world can’t use that as an excuse to not make the setting interesting. There’s a lot that you can do with the real world, cause it isn’t just the world. It is where you have lived ever since you were born. Your school isn’t just a school, it’s the one that you have possibly spent a lot of time in and have made relationships and memories. Your house isn’t just a house in whatever country and city you live in, it’s one where you became who you are. And I feel like many anime neglects that and just make their setting a background and not an aspect of its characters. And to my surprise, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable avoided this. In the fourth part of the popular Jojo series, Jotaro Kujo whom we saw defeat Dio Brando 11 years prior, meets Josuke Higashikata who is revealed to be another stand user. The two make friends along the way of hunting for the next threat in the city of Morioh. And this premise kind of scared me. The previous seasons of the series have almost always been about finding the antagonist and beating them. The first part of Jojo focuses on Jonathan Joestar who has to find Dio Brando and kill him, the second focuses on… was it the pillar men or was that just a side thing I don’t know, and then in the third part the focus is on Jotaro and his friends finding Dio again and killing him. But this season feels differently, however. While the focus is still on finding Kira and killing him, because of his goal of living a peaceful and normal life which I’ll get back to later, the series doesn’t leave the town of Morioh. The series has always had a lot of different settings, but few of them felt all that developed so I was scared that the town would become boring after a while. Still, there was hope. I had seen The Lighthouse a few days before which only takes place in a lighthouse, so a whole town was probably enough to make 16 hours interesting. In the second episode of the series, a villain by the name of Anjuro Katagiri has already started threatening Josuke and Jotaro. When the weather becomes rainy in Morioh, he uses his stand to control the water in and around his house. It becomes a tense fight scene, where the villain could come at any point from any direction. But in the end, Josuke and Jotaro find Anjuro hidden in a tree, and with Josuke’s healing ability he morphs Anjuro with a stone. And like most rocks, he stays. Anjuro, or more commonly known as “Angelo Rock”, becomes a part of the town. The rock becomes a landmark, almost a tourist attraction, where lovers meet. We continue to see Angelo rock, Josuke says hello to it which Koichi then starts to do as well. We see it become a part of the world. And this is one of the reasons why I found the world to feel so real. These landmarks are what make Morioh so special cause you can tell that people live in it. Boing-Boing Cape, a place believed to be holy for saving Yukako when she was seen “committing suicide”, Toyohiro becomes famous after being known as the man living in a tower, and Rohan Kishibe’s house whose directions aren’t noted as he’ll pretend that he isn’t at home. Irrelevant details are included to make sure that this town feels real. And I find one of these landmarks to be especially interesting, that being Reimi’s Alley. The alley where you can meet a ghost girl and can’t look back. I find this both interesting because of how reminiscent of a rumor it sounds like, but also how it is executed in the series. How important the alley becomes to telling the story. First Rohan gets possessed by a stand that kills its own user if it is seen, and he walks to the alley to make the stand look back and is therefore taken by the ghost-hands to the unknown. It is then later used in the end to finally kill off Kira, which puts Reimi at peace at last. And I find this so interesting because it tells me that both Araki and his characters know this town. Rohan knows it enough that he uses it to defeat Cheap Trick, and Araki knows it enough that he kills off the central antagonist with it. It shows that Araki wants the setting to be a part of the story and not a backdrop to it. It started to feel like a character, and I loved that. But like most (good) characters, it is multi-sided. And another aspect of Morioh that I feel the need to point out how the town tackles the precognition that your town is and will always be good. That what you know is good. Morioh resembles in many ways everyone's hometown. It’s a normal suburban neighborhood. Nothing about it sticks out, if not it’s anticlimactic existence in a Jojo season. But the structure is very reminiscent of part 3 which feels weird in a setting so calm like this one. Villains are thrown at you left and right when one leaves another appears. And you start to realize then how Morioh isn’t what you were led to believe. Morioh isn’t the image of a hometown that you have in your mind but what it actually is. Flawed and potentially dangerous. Your hometown is probably not the home of a mass murderer with a hand fetish, but it is probably closer than you think. We have been tricked by the fear of the unknown that the known isn’t to be feared. But you don’t know everything about what you think you know. And speaking of mass murders with hand fetishes, Kira Yoshikage embodies this theme. Kira is unlike any Jojo villain that we have seen before. Both Dio Brando and the Pillar men are clear-cut villains. Their goal is to kill the main characters, and they’ll do anything to do so. They present themself more as forces of evil rather than actual characters. But Kira presents himself differently. His goal isn’t to kill anyone, but to keep himself sane and normal. In the popular monologue about how Kira lives his life, he tells Shigechi that his life resembles our own mostly. He works for the Kame Yu department stores, he doesn’t smoke but drinks on occasions and he cares deeply about getting enough sleep. But if killing someone means that he’ll get enough sleep, then he’ll do it easily. And that’s how he characterizes the town. His appearance is unremarkable, his way of life isn’t abnormal or immoral really and he just wants a quiet life, not unlike what many of us. But when you look closer and see the end of the hand, you realize that something’s off. And I think I’ll always find characters like that interesting. Ones that can embody a theme or setting. That can personify what a story is about. At the same time, I have conflicting thoughts about this theme. While the structure helps to convey the feeling that the town isn’t what it seems, it quickly becomes very repetitive. There always seems to be another villain that can inconvenience the Jojo boys for a few episodes until they befriend him/her and they turn into a completely new person. Many of them start to feel useless in the end, like the episode where they fight a rat for 30 minutes or try to find a baby. They start to feel like fillers, even when they “develop” the characters. It turns into some pretty annoying moments where they try to make you feel emotional for a character that you’ve mostly seen as an asshole. Yukako is a good example of this, who threatens to kill Koichi in an episode but has her own arc a few episodes later where we are supposed to feel bad for her. In the end, I don’t think Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable is a genius masterpiece. For the most part, it is dumb fun with interesting stand powers and weird inconsistencies. It ends with the Jojo boys having fun in the town, showing all the characters we have met in all the new places we have been at, with Great Days behind it all. And doesn’t that just feel weird? We have spent all this time showing that this town isn’t what it seems, and that is neglected as Tonio makes food Okuyasu’s dad but comically only sheds his skin and maintains his weird form. Isn’t this exactly the opposite of what the story wanted to say? Well, I started looking at it differently. And I realized what this means, and that I lied. Kira isn’t the embodiment of the town, we only want it to. Killing Kira doesn’t change the fact that the town will still be the home of many more fucks. We only want it to. And so does Josuke. We are the Jojo boys. What the fuck did I just write? __A weak 8/10__

BluBilly

AwesomzGuy

~~~Review contains spoilers For the lazy readers, there will be a summary/verdict at the end of the review~~~ --- Did you know Diamond is Unbreakable? Yeah shockers I know. Anyways, DiU taking place 10 years after Stardust Crusaders, a lot has changed like Jotaro is now a Marine Biologist (and likes dolphins), Joseph is an old man, turns out he had an illegitimate child called Josuke!? Man what else did we miss, definitely it can't get any more bizarre than that, right? ...right? If you had read my SC review, you must have seen I wrote "In my future reviews I will say what DiU did right which SC did wrong", so here I am today to list you the things which DiU did better. But before that, let's start from scratch and go in order. ~~~img400(https://static.jojowiki.com/images/thumb/b/b3/latest/20191015215452/Good_morning_morioh_Booklet.jpg/453px-Good_morning_morioh_Booklet.jpg)~~~ --- __Story:__ Now this story is kind of different than the previous JJBAs, this time it's kind of like a Slice of life, Mystery kind of story which is really good. Their execution of that theme was really good. A serial killer roaming around Morioh attacking young woman because he has a hands fetish so our cast of casual school goers has to take him down? Heck yeah! The mystery theme really suited well among the slice of life and somewhat comedic nature of the show and the theme felt really fresh. Not to mention, the soul and spiritual concepts like Reimi being a ghost character and others, really fitted the theme of DiU. ~!*Guess you can say the voice of love took Reimi higher! ...sorry.*!~ __Characters:__ The characters are some of the most lively characters similar to Battle Tendency. Each of the cast is very like-able and fun due to their diverse characteristics. Though however some may not like Shigechi due to his selfish act of money greed, due to which some or many people hate Shigechi and didn't really cared when he died but it's all upto your personal opinion. Joseph is another character which people started having mixed feelings due to him having cheated on Suzie Q. which I admit, even for me ruined the character a bit considering he is my favourite JoJo but he tries his best to make up for it so I guess it's alright. Mikitaka is a very fun and interesting character, he is meant to be a 'confusing' character about whether he is truly an alien or no, which is very fun concept for a character. __OST:__ Oh boy, this OST makes me wanna __BREAKDOWN BREAKDOWN__. The OST is excellent in this part. Josuke's theme is my favourite character theme but Okuyasu, Kira, etc themes are also so good. Not to mention the OPs and ED is excellent too. I don't really get why Chase is over hated, it's one of the best OP of JoJo. Great Days is good but Kira version is Amazing. The OST really matches the environment very well. ~~~img400(https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/164/017/a80.png)~~~ --- Now I am going to talk about what Diamond is Unbreakable did right which Stardust Crusaders did wrong. __Antogonists:__ Unlike in SC, DiU antagonists ACTUALLY effect the story. For eg, in SC, all of the Stand Users served nothing but to essentially slow down the crusaders and lengthen the episodes. However in DiU, all the Stand Users have part in the story, remember Anjuro? Yeah he's a rock now. You can call him "yo Angelo". Remember Rohan? Yeah he becomes part of the Main Cast. Remember Keicho? Yeah he dies but becomes a important role model for Okuyasu. Heck even the italian cook from the corner of Morioh serves a minor part. This is what SC should have done, make the characters reappear, that's how we grow fond of them (eg: Hol' Horse, Oingo Boingo). Even if the characters make very small reappearance or subtle effect in the story, as long as they don't just serve as minor extend of episode, the antagonists are enjoyable. __Stand Fights:__ The Stand Fights were so much better in this part, they were so unique and had variety. I honestly didn't enjoy SC Stand Fights much and preferred Hamon but DiU changed my mind. Instead of the battles being who can throw the hardest punch, it felt like true battle of wits. Josuke using his Stand Ability to break stuff and fix it to trick/escape his opponents, Koichi using his Stand's 3 Acts in different situations for different variety, and a lot more made the battles very enjoying. __Episodes/Pacing:__ Sure the episodes are close to the number of SC, but the pacing was a lot better. First half of the season were spent introducing the side minor cast. The second half of the season was spent with main plot of the part, Kira Yoshikage. The episodes didn't feel tedious at all and felt like at every episode there was something new to learn about the story. I already talked above (Antagonists section) about how the first half didn't feel like as if they were doing it for sake of extending the episodes. The second half with Kira was very interesting. Kira is definitely one of the smartest villains and I like him a lot. The cast investigating Kira's hideout, taking him out in the final episodes felt very interesting and enjoyable. And unlike SC, I felt Kira fight's ending was very satisfying. The fight lasted 5 eps long unlike in SC which was only 4 due to which it felt very satisfying and more enjoyable. ~~~img400(https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/030/601/Yo_angelo_737ff3_7169722.jpg)~~~ --- Now I am definitely not saying this part didn't have any flaws or if it didn't have any plot holes __(looks at ep 26)__ but overall this Part did a lot of things right and showed what could be the true potential that can be earned with Stands. And when you compare it with SC which was another Stand part, it was a HUGE improvement. This part showed (just like Part 2: Battle Tendency) that if an idea is executed well, it can be an excellent and fun idea. Well now I hope you enjoyed this review but I am sad to say you won't be able to leave because... __Killer Queen had already touched this review.__ *click* ~~~img400(https://pm1.narvii.com/6300/5d5be0c4c83f8bb4294d12d4f8e35436cace179e_hq.jpg)~~~ ~!P.S I can't wait for the Shizuka part of JoJo! Definitely she will get another appearance in JoJo, right guys?!~

Pockeyramune919

**This review contains spoilers for Diamond is Unbreakable** *More JoJo's Bizarre Adventure reviews? Gu-rei-to.*

[ img20(https://bestanimations.com/Signs&Shapes/Arrows/Left/left-arrow-15.gif) ](https://anilist.co/review/12638)

[ img20(https://bestanimations.com/Signs&Shapes/Arrows/Right/right-arrow-29.gif) ](https://anilist.co/review/14207) img520(https://cdn-images-1.medium.com/max/2560/1*MfwuXCu_SvRIEAwXhZHe_Q.png) Hello and welcome back to my review series on *JoJo's Bizarre Adventure*! Last time, I dove into *Battle in Egypt* the conclusion of the third part of this bizarre series, *Stardust Crusaders*. As I said before, *Battle in Egypt*is far from perfect, yet I’m able to look past its faults because, *Stardust Crusaders* is a very fun, exciting installment in a very fun, exciting series. In my *Stardust Crusaders* review, I stated that Part 3 is the most iconic JoJo part, the part that tends to be associated with the franchise the most. I'd go so to say that *Stardust Crusaders* is the most popular part insofar as it is the most well-known. This isn't to say that *Stardust Crusaders* is considered the best or most beloved part; in fact, as I've begun to delve into this franchise, I've come to discover that *Stardust Crusaders* is somewhat divisive. To be fair, it's somewhat divisive in the way that nearly *every* entry in a long-running franchise can be, but it's certainly not the universally lauded part I assumed it to be. If you're looking for the *JoJo Bizarre's Adventure* part that has grabbed the heart and mind of practically all who watch it (at least in the West), you'll be led to today's entry, *Diamond is Unbreakable*. img520(https://i.imgur.com/IDImRIW.jpg) While I was aware of a meme or two from *Diamond is Unbreakable*, I didn't know the larger conversation surrounding it. I soon realized that people regarded this entry very, *very* highly, to the point where a decent number of people recommend committing the cardinal sin of skipping parts just to get to it sooner. While it doesn't have nearly as much of a loud presence as *Stardust the Crusaders* out-of-the-fandom, in-fandom, it's widely considered the best animated *JoJo* part. This is exemplified by comparing and contrasting the reviews of both parts on Anilist, with the reviews of *[Stardust](https://anilist.co/anime/20474/JoJos-Bizarre-Adventure-Stardust-Crusaders/reviews) [Crusaders](https://anilist.co/anime/20799/JoJos-Bizarre-Adventure-Stardust-Crusaders--Battle-in-Egypt/)* being more mixed while those of *[Diamond is Unbreakable](https://anilist.co/anime/21450/JoJos-Bizarre-Adventure-Diamond-is-Unbreakable/reviews)* are more glowing. I approached *Diamond is Unbreakable* with caution. Even as someone who generally likes what they watch, I had doubts about how *Diamond is Unbreakable* would shake out for me. After all, even acknowledging its faults I loved *Stardust Crusaders* and from what I could tell, the parts I loved about it would be downplayed. Naturally, as a fan, this filled me with trepidation. That said, I wasn't *too* worried. I hadn't watched a *JoJo* show I hadn't liked. Perhaps I'd like the show well enough, just not as much as *Stardust Crusaders.* This wouldn't be the case. img520(https://miro.medium.com/max/996/1*S6i99xaZ_5kNof-Gtxrxyg.gif) Having finished *Diamond is Unbreakable* I can confidently say that I like it more than *Stardust Crusaders*. I might not like it *much* more, but it’s undeniable that *Diamond is Unbreakable* improved upon the formula that *Stardust Crusaders* established. It ironed out the wrinkles, featuring better characterization, a more vibrant setting, a dynamic structure, and more imaginative Stand fights. Araki has outdone himself once again and delivered a bizarre adventure better than the last. He’s also delivered a bizarre adventure that's quite different from what's come before. Coming from *Phantom Blood*, *Battle Tendency,* and **especially** *Stardust Crusaders*, one of the first things you'll notice about *Diamond is Unbreakable* is its character design. Gone are the days of the burly, absolutely *built*, *Fist of the North Star*-esque main characters JoJo had been known for at this point. The proportions are more reasonable, the frames lither. Characters can still be shredded, but they're no longer bodybuilder-esque, 6'+ goliaths of men. Standing at 5'11", main character Josuke Higashikata is my height. This might not seem like much, but it goes a long way in making the cast of JoJo not feel as larger than life as they once did (physically, of course, whether they're 5'11" or 11'5", they'll have supernatural abilities the rest of us can only dream of having). This change in design philosophy extends to returning characters as well. While Jotaro retains his height, many have noted that he looks younger than he did in Part 4 despite being eleven years older. I imagine this character design change could be a bit hard for some JoJo fans to swallow. After all, the style of Parts 1-3 seems to establish *JoJo's Bizarre Adventure* as a series about "manly men doing manly things." Sure, it largely looks ridiculous (just *look* at the shoulders of the Stardust Crusaders) but you could argue that this is the point: being ridiculous and larger than life to the point of light parody. From that, one may argue that taking away some of this ridiculousness is thus taking away some of what makes the series work. A lot of my acceptance of this shift boils down to simply preferring this more subdued style. Yes, the previous style was funny and cool, but when it comes to characters, I tend not to go for the guys with bulging muscles, so I find myself more naturally drawn to the designs of Part 4 over Part 3. JoJo doesn't *need* these huge characters to be bizarre, and in some ways, it actually *enhances* the bizarreness of the show. I also like the character design change because it brings something different to the table — so far, each Part has maintained its own identity, and keeping the old design might have led to stagnation. Most importantly, I believe that Araki shifting his style somewhat changes the types of characters he focuses on. Koichi is one of my favorite JoJo characters and it’s hard for me to imagine him being much more than a sidekick if he debuted in the previous parts. I can't help but feel the art style plays a role in this. And how can you dislike the character design when it gives us Moe Josuke!? Can you find Jonathan, Joseph, or Jotaro ever looking this cute? I think not! img520(https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/001/140/739/5b2.png) img520(https://data.whicdn.com/images/335035829/original.png) img520(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Eh9_XktUcAAeWK2.jpg) img520(https://64.media.tumblr.com/aba2139d075771d4682de6d530572c9e/tumblr_oade5rS4MS1u0jrjfo9_250.png) img520(https://66.media.tumblr.com/e2f4619d7dd9b7870c254a1ec09bfa8d/tumblr_oade5rS4MS1u0jrjfo3_250.png) ([A “brief” aside on the art shift in the manga](https://anilist.co/activity/285200039)) Even if the character designs look more realistic, you'll quickly realize that another, vital aspect of the art direction is committed to being bizarre — the color scheme. During the day, the sky of Morioh is a brownish-yellow color while during twilight hours, it’s a deep teal with golden clouds. The grass is always a *bit* more green than blue, the trees are often purple, and the streets tend to be green. *Diamond is Unbreakable*'s color scheme gives it an absurd, Seussian quality. We get the sense that anything can happen in the town, that there are no rules. This simple decision really solidifies Morioh’s identity. The striking color shifts that made the series so absurd are now a constant fixture of the design. It was to the point where I believed the color shifts were phased out. Thankfully, they're still here and they're still awesome, but just less "loud," for a lack of a better word. They don’t draw as much attention to themselves. They're still well-done, but they're a lot less telegraphed, more subdued. The anime still is committed to being like a comic book put to motion, continuing to use cut-ins and text for onomatopoeia. The visuals in general are still amazing. The creepy Killer Queen is a standout, particularly anytime it’s cloaked in Shadows. Its final ability, Bites the Dust, also provides some killer animation. img320(https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/jjba/images/2/21/KQ_Bites_the_Dust.gif) The next major difference comes via the setting. Before we get into that, however, we must delve into the story. The year is 1999 and a 29-year-old Jotaro Kujo, now working on his Ph.D. for Marine Biology, goes to Morioh to clear up an inheritance snarl in the Joestar family. The subject of said issue is Morioh resident, the pompadour-sporting, happy-go-lucky, friendly neighborhood delinquent, Josuke Higashikata, the illegitimate son of Joseph Joestar. Besides finding Josuke, Jotaro has come to Morioh to secure an arrow capable of giving its victims Stands. Like his father and elder nephew before him, Josuke himself has a Stand, but doesn't wish to get involved with the hunt for the arrow. That changes when things get personal, with the threat of Stands beginning to threaten his friends and family. Josuke, Jotaro, and their increasing band of allies do battle with the colorful cast Stand of users operating in Morioh, soon finding themselves facing a serial killer user who has been making Morioh his personal playground for the better part of 15 years… *Phantom Blood* took place across England. *Battle Tendency* takes place in America, Mexico, and across Western Europe. Finally, *Stardust Crusaders* is a globe trotter, going from Japan all the way to Egypt. *Diamond is Unbreakable* is the first part since *Phantom Blood* that takes place in a single country. It sets itself apart, however, by being hyperfocused on a single town via Morioh (or Duwang, if you're so inclined). The importance of Morioh is immediately established as we begin with the iconic Morioh-cho radio jingle ##[mori](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdahP278OSM) ###[mori](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdahP278OSM) ####[mori](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdahP278OSM) #####[mori](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdahP278OSM) *Everything* that takes place happens in Morioh and it's undeniable that this takes away from the "adventure" aspect. Since I praised *Stardust Crusaders* for *its* adventure aspect, I expected that I wouldn't like this characteristic of *Diamond is Unbreakable*. And on paper, I shouldn't. *Diamond is Unbreakable* is a lot less grandiose, less epic. Indeed, as the main antagonist, Yoshikage Kira has few "machinations" to speak of and doesn't operate outside of Morioh, *Diamond is Unbreakable* feels a lot less *important* as well. But in a strange way, Part 4 is a bit better for it.*Diamond is Unbreakable* feels more approachable and personable than everything that's come before. You really get a feeling for this setting in a way that you couldn't before. As a fictional location, Araki was able to make it his own. The city feels quite lived-in and real, particularly thanks to its landmarks. Since Morioh is based on Araki's hometown of Sendai, a lot of love went into creating the town. There's a strange, fuzzy feeling I get when watching *Diamond is Unbreakable*, a sense of nostalgia. It feels like it could maybe be home, or maybe I just *want* it to be home despite the madness contained within it. Overall, *Diamond is Unbreakable* is quite light and optimistic, which is very welcome, given how depressing some of the previous JoJos could be. This isn't to say that there isn't still tension. *Diamond is Unbreakable*'s opening scene starts with a shot of one of Kira's victims, keying us in *immediately* that something sinister lurks beneath the surface of this idyllic town. img520(https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/jjba/images/d/d4/Beautiful_Duwang.png) Araki has stated that as a child, Sendai started feeling less like home because he was afraid of the strangers that started living there as it became more developed. This manifests in the fact that Morioh finds itself infested with dangerous Stand users. Not to mention, there are *two* serial killers hiding in the city. *Diamond is Unbreakable* can still be as bloody as the parts that preceded it. At the end of the day, though, a good number of the Stand users end up being decent people at heart which I find beautiful given their inclusion essentially symbolizes a childhood fear of the unknown. The change in setting also has tangible effects on the part's structure. I Stand by the enemy Stand format employed in *Stardust Crusaders* working well there, but I have to admit that *Diamond is Unbreakable*'s structure works better. There's less room for burnout, for one. As the enemy Stand-users don't constantly hunt down our heroes, the show feels more dynamic and organic. Again, I love *Stardust Crusaders*, but especially in the face of *Diamond is Unbreakable*, it feels serial to the point of woodenness. It’s exciting, but after a while, this is somewhat in spite of its format. Every Stand user isn't out to kill our heroes (in fact, I'm pretty sure murderous Stand users are in the minority), with some even being outright benevolent. When our main villain *does* show up, it's a nice change of pace and the show becomes a compelling game of cat and mouse. It's a minor thing, but I really like how many episodes lead into the next, making them feel more connected. While the story feels more "lowkey" than the ones that came before, I don't think you can quite call this slice-of-life. While our ineffectual delinquents, *do* go to school, it's a rare backdrop and it's never really focused on. img520(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZDAyMTU2NjgtNTI5OS00ZjZhLTg3Y2QtZTY4MzAwY2VkNTgxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTQzNjE2NjI@._V1_.jpg) As I said, few Stand users are out to kill our heroes. This makes for more interesting conflicts — on the whole, Stand Powers have had an amazing glow-up. Out-and-out slugfests are seldom seen here and the powers themselves are either more interesting or used in creative ways. Stand out examples are Shigechi using a swarm of tiny stands in various ways, Aya who uses her Stand to work as a beautician, and Chef Tonio who benevolently uses his Stand to make food that violently heals ailments. The difference can be seen most prominently by comparing the two Joestar groups. The stand powers of Jotaro, Polnareff, Iggy, Avdol, Kakyoin, and Joseph are almost all less interesting than the powers of Josuke, Jotaro, Koichi, and Okuyasu. Josuke's Crazy Diamond, like Star Platinum, utilizes rapid-fire fisticuffs (complete with a "dora" kiai that's obviously similar to Star Platinum's "ora"), but in addition, he *also* has the ability to heal anything he so touches, which goes a long way in making him much more interesting. It facilitates very creative uses of the ability like so: youtube(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fv6rBVEko80) Even more interestingly, Jotaro and Star Platinum *themselves* are much more interesting here due to Jotaro retaining use of The World, thus making it as much of his toolkit as his rapid punches. It also helps that he's used sparingly, making him feel less annoying here and highlighting his insane skill compared to the rest of the Stand users. Thus, when he *is* used, he entertainingly steals the show almost every time. More than the setting, the biggest improvement that *Diamond is Unbreakable* has over its predecessor is in its characterization. In Morioh, I found a setting that I really enjoyed coming back to and a big part of this is because of all the smiling (or sinisterly smirking) faces that I knew would be greeting me. Again, I want to stress that I loved the characters of *Stardust Crusaders* — the group dynamic was and remains great. With that in mind, the fact that I find these characters better really says something. For one, they're rounder and fuller than their predecessors. I said in my *Stardust Crusaders* review that the eponymous group really worked as a unit and I couldn't see them being that compelling on their own. This isn't the case for the group featured in *Diamond is Unbreakable*, each of whom having more depth than the Joestar group of old. Even someone like Okuyasu who, on the surface, doesn't seem much more than your stock dense character seems like he could do well on his own if given the chance (more on that later). Hell, Rohan *does* have a solo outing in the OVA, *Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan.* Josuke makes for a more emotive, compelling protagonist than Jotaro who, at times, felt more like a force of nature than a character. Again, Jotaro himself ends up being much better in the transition — him being a force of nature works more when the focus isn't constantly on him. He absolutely nails the role of a mentor/uncle. [The Fate Which Still Remains](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIuDDwWQuWc) and [The Stardust Man](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjT0p2z4hGg) Appears encapsulate this quieter role perfectly, but of course, Jotaro's glorious proper [theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFjE5A4UAJI) still appears. img520(http://images.shoutwiki.com/jojodiamondrecords/a/a3/Profile_Jotaro_Part_4.png) It's a testament to Araki's characterization that I don't completely hate Joseph Joestar despite the fact that this entry reveals his infidelity. One of the easiest ways to make me completely hate a character is by having them be unfaithful. I'm still not sure I can call Joseph my favorite Joestar anymore, but I'm surprised that I'm still somewhat receptive to him. ~~Though make no mistake, I'm still fucking salty that Araki made Joseph into a scumbag.~~ The spotlight is also shared more here, with no one character of the cast feeling like they overshadow the rest in the same way Jotaro (or to a lesser extent, Polnareff) did. It certainly helps that there are fewer main characters to get the spotlight in the first place. The antagonists are still colorful and they end up being more memorable here. Multi-parter episodes happen a lot more often, making them stick with you more. When there *are* single episodes, the antagonist will often reappear later as a friend (the sole exception that I can think of being Janken Boy). It *is* a town, after all, and this makes it feel more like an actual place. img520(https://arthouseanime.files.wordpress.com/2018/10/yukako-yamagishi.png?w=825) Then, of course, there's main antagonist, Yoshikage Kira who absolutely steals the show. I found him to be a better villain than DIO. DIO certainly is the more bombastic, fun villain, the guy you love to hate, but Kira is menacing in a way that DIO nor the Pillar Men never were. There's a quiet creepiness to him, an unstableness that feels all too real. It's that phrase again: larger than life. Kira is an unnervingly methodic and calculating serial killer — he's designed himself to never stick out and thanks to that, he comes across as just an ordinary guy. By the time you notice the dread that surrounds him, by the time you notice his terrifying Stand, it's almost certainly too late. I absolutely loved Kira and his twistedness. img520(https://c.tenor.com/yPBRHSFQ_ggAAAAd/killer-queen.gif) It's thanks to Kira that *Diamond is Unbreakable* culminates in a final arc that works a lot better than "DIO's World." I think "DIO's World" might be more enjoyable for me due to the hype, but I appreciate that the "Bites the Dust" and "Crazy Diamond is Unbreakable" arcs are a lot more cohesive. "Bites the Dust" has nearly all the suspense of "DIO's World" but the seemingly invincible Stand power is able to be stopped thanks to an inherent weakness in the Stand and the user, which was one of my biggest complaints with "DIO's World." After Bites the Dust is neutralized, we get into the fight properly and I can track *how* Josuke beats Kira a lot better and it doesn't feel like Araki is throwing him a bone in order to get to the conclusion he wants — the victory feels more earned. Kira is finally defeated for good thanks to a delightfully, explicitly collaborative effort between everyone. Across the board, this is an improvement over the last final battle and if not for the bombastic quality DIO brings, I'd easily like it more than DIO vs. Jotaro. And, of course, *Diamond is Unbreakable* is still a hoot: "Shigechi's Harvest," "Let's Go Eat Some Italian Food," and the conclusion of "Highway Star" are particularly of note. img520(https://i.imgur.com/je1Ae8z.jpg) As much as I enjoyed *Diamond is Unbreakable*, I have to acknowledge that it certainly has its problems. They're not *glaring* problems, by any means, but problems, nonetheless. While *Diamond is Unbreakable* does a better job of managing its characters than *Stardust Crusaders*, it still fumbles a bit. There are a number of Koichi-focused episodes (to the point where call you could make the argument that he gets as much focus as Josuke) but absolutely none involving Okuyasu. In general, Okuyasu ends up feeling almost like a sidekick to Josuke, similarly to Avdol feeling like a sidekick of Joseph. In *Diamond is Unbreakable*, Araki still has the problem of not knowing how to deal with protagonists he deems too powerful — it happened with Avdol and it's happened again with Okuyasu It's fine when he's handicapped due to him being dimwitted, but I take issue when he's often just left out of the party entirely, like Avdol often was. There are other characters that I would have liked to see more of. Less is more is definitely the play with Jotaro, but characters such as Tomoko and Joseph definitely felt underutilized. Probably my biggest problem with *Diamond is Unbreakable* comes in the arc wherein Kira's father uses the Stand arrows to create Stand users who will come after our heroes. Ring a bell? If you said it sounds like a budget *Stardust Crusaders*, then pat yourself on the back because it *is* a budget *Stardust Crusaders*! The format that *mostly* works for *Stardust Crusaders* absolutely doesn't here. The plot feels a lot more wooden and obligatory. During this section of the anime, *Diamond is Unbreakable* becomes something it's not and it's worse off for it. We do get some good arcs *within* this one, but the greater arc during this time felt like artificial padding, moving away from the strengths of the setting. img520(http://pm1.narvii.com/6778/ead7a24e98105cf7292afcc7c13e4e733712141cv2_00.jpg) Yet these issues barely detract from my enjoyment of *Diamond is Unbreakable*. The show was a treat from start to finish, with something I loved in each episode. It's telling that I've recently finished it and I'm already rewatching scenes.While it does a lot to change the JoJo formula, the changes ultimately make for a more approachable JoJo fair than we're used to. Yet the show still feels like it's a part of the series I've come to love. I couldn't keep myself from watching the episodes as fast as I could. *Diamond is Unbreakable* might not quite be a 10, but I'm comfortable in calling it a favorite. Assuming *Golden Wind* doesn't knock it off its throne, of course. ~~~img200(https://i.imgur.com/grbhLZG.png)~~~ img520(https://i1.sndcdn.com/artworks-000591336842-py64oo-t500x500.jpg) *What a beautiful Duwang!* *chew* *There must be no page as pretty as this review.* *This reads like a picnic.*

CNAPCN

Minha nota para esse anime: __8 ★__ O que eu levo em consideração: ◈ História: (2 /3 pontos) ▫ Ritmo apresentado ✔ ▫ Consistência / sem furos de roteiro ✔ ▫ Lore bem apresentado ✔ ▫ Boa Lore ✔ ▫ Complexidade ✔ ▫ Sem enrolação ❌ ▫ Plost twist ✔ ▫ Bom final ✔ ◈ Animação/produção: (2 /2,5 pontos) ▫ Estilo de Arte (traçado dos personagens, ambientação) ✔✔ ▫ 3D/CGI ✔✔ ▫ Fluidez ✔✔ ▫ Trilha sonora (músicas boas nos momentos perfeitos) ✔ ▫ Direção (consistência na animação e transmitir suas emoções) ✓ ▫ Primeiras impressões ✓ ▫ "assistível" (sem picos de partes boas e partes chatas são pontos negativos) ✓ ◈ Material: (1 /1,5 ponto) ▫ Quantidades de Ecchis ▫ Boa openning ✔✔ ▫ Quantidade de temporadas e eps ✔ ▫ Quantidade de material ▫ Adaptação do mangá ◈ Características: (3 /3 pontos) ▫ Comédias (quantidade e qualidade das piadas) ✔ ▫ Ação (qualidade das lutas etc) ✔✔ ▫ Drama (complexidade e mistério da história) ✔ ▫ Romance (construção e evolução dos personagens) ✔ ▫ Slice of Life (bastante peculiar apresenta a vida dos personagens) ✔✔ Sobre o Enredo: É complicado eu explicar o enredo de Diamond Is Unbreakable pois a estrutura narrativa desse arco é totalmente estruturada nas outras partes de Jojo. Dito isso, eu preciso mencionar que esse foi o arco de Jojo que mais trocou de gênero em toda a franquia, uma brincadeira com as nossas mentes que quebram nossas expectativas e impossibilita prever o que vai acontecer. Trocando entre mistério, ação, combate e comédia. Falando dessa maneira, parece meio monótono, porém, o jeito do como isso é aplicado se torna algo muito emocionante, sem falar na grande diversidade de personagens e Stands apresentados, além das batalhas cheias de tensão e reviravoltas. A partir do aparecimento de Yoshikage Kira, o objetivo de achá-lo se mescla ao tipo de desenvolvimento atual, intercalando entre um e outro, adicionando mais suspense a obra e evitando que se torne repetitiva. Sobre a Trilha Sonora: Sem sombra de dúvida as músicas usadas na obra são cativantes, emocionante, muitas são energéticas, mas, principalmente, viciantes, tendo sincronia e harmonia perfeitas com as cenas em são utilizadas. Sem falar nos três temas de abertura, pois eles chegam a ser várias vezes tocantes, vibrantes, com letras e melodias incríveis, especialmente a terceira opening "Great Days", que é a minha favorita. O encerramento também é bacana, porém, não chama muita atenção comprado ao resto da trilha sonora que compõe o anime. Conclusão: O desenvolvimento desse anime é parecido com a temporada anterior, porém, com esse objetivo que surge após a aparição do principal antagonista, o enredo fica bastante interessante, mudando a atmosfera e o gênero da obra, mas sem deixar o estilo anterior que nos é apresentado. Enquanto assistia ao anime, não notei nenhum furo de roteiro grave, entretanto, acho que os fatos que ocorreram em alguns episódios poderiam ter sido melhor desenvolvidos. No geral, a história de Diamond is Unbreakable consegue entreter muitas pessoas devido a variedade de gêneros presentes, como: comédia, mistério e ação. Muitos podem assistir e achando muito clichê ou estranho, mas JoJo é um mangá escrito desde os anos 80, ou seja, na época, isso era normal, além de que essa franquia não deve ser levada a sério demais. Afinal, o que você esperava de um anime que tem "bizarro" no nome?

Krankastel

It would be imprudent of me to claim part 4 is the best animated part, given how Stone Ocean currently airs, but I can confidently claim it is the more balanced and polished pre-part 6 addition to the Jojo series, and easily the most cinematic. Nonetheless, it's being judged here both within the continuum of Jojo as well as a standalone. --- ~~~ __[1. On both story and characters...]__ ~~~ Unlike the previous parts which are country-to-country adventures, here the setting is much narrower topologically: the suburb of Morioh, S city. Without going into too much detail, the heroes are called upon to uncover and confront stand-related dangers plaguing their suburb while exploring its various corners. There are quite a few slice-of-life and suspense elements, the first of which serve to break the mould of repetitive Stand battles, and even serve to toy with or subvert the very concept of a Stand battle as established in Stardust Crusaders. Examples include an original sniper duel in the countryside, and an Italian cuisine episode. img(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzlhOTY4NjgtYzg1Ni00OGQ5LWIyNGQtOTgzN2ExNGRkYjhjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjc3OTE4Nzk@._V1_.jpg) Suspense elements are especially prominent during the second half of the series. Combined with (a)typical Jojo campiness and madness, creative Stand battles, and the aforementioned slice-of-life elements, Morioh's setting kept me constantly in an impression of viewing something "uncannily familiar". It's somewhat hard to explain, but the idea of a mundane, commonplace Japanese town crawling with oddities and dark secrets that lurk in the alleys, corners and in plain view reminded me of Higurashi and even Uzumaki, two horror media that despite being a far cry from even slightly resembling Jojo involve quite some "horror in plain sight". ~~~ img(https://livedoor.blogimg.jp/paruparu94/imgs/6/d/6d25195e.jpg) ~~~ On characters, there is a much lower ratio of disposable ones and a much higher of reoccuring ones. Some remain static whereas others develop, and some are even fairly complex and compelling, such as Rohan Kishibe. There are also characters from previous parts, who via interactions with the new cast serve to connect the part to its predecessors. The selection of a "big bad" for Jojo is nothing short of brilliant. It's one thing to write an actually menacing and terrifying villain, and another to actually establish them as a person with their own lifestyle, morals, preferences and points of view. I am obliged to point out some flaws, first of all that the story could become too inconsistent or illogical occasionally. An example is a Stand User around the first third of the part, who was perfectly informed on Jotaro's Stand power, without any explicit statement over how they came to know of it. There were also some missed opportunities. For example, Araki introduces a chef, whom he could have used brilliantly as a plot device given this chef's skills and potential, but instead he was totally left out and wasted. Another was a delinquent flashback that did shed some light on a character trait of Josuke, but did not further build on such an important scene. I believe Araki must have attempted to use this flashback similarly as a plot twist not unlike one in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, only to have forgotten. --- ~~~ __[2. And on audiovisuals...]__ ~~~ Aesthetic from beginning to end, part 4 is very pleasant to behold and easy on the ear as well. Character designs retain typical Jojo traits such as prominent eyebrows and a campy sense of fashion, but are also far more "sculpted" and not buffed to exaggeration. There is healthy variety in individual builds, expressions, etc. Backgrounds alternate between ones of mundane urban landscape (e.g. interiors of buildings) and more unique and memorable scenery (e.g. sunflower fields). ~~~ img(https://c4.wallpaperflare.com/wallpaper/559/689/117/jotaro-kujo-jojos-bizarre-adventure-anime-boys-hat-sky-anime-wallpaper-preview.jpg) ~~~ What really surprised me in this part was direction. There was plenty of creative camerawork that made for memorable highlights and amplified the suspense . Another aspect was the color choice in the sky, which made for an overall sickly, "miasmatic" atmosphere. Even a couple of episodes make clear that this part is not limited to a faithful adaptation, but has a clear creative vision behind. On audio, it does not falter either. Most seiyuu matched perfectly with their characters (even if I preferred some over others), and included a dream cast of quite prominent voice actors such as Sakurai Takahiro, Daisuke Ono and Ohara Sayaka alongside less prominent but nonetheless successful ones. Audio direction is harmonious, including both timing and delivery of lines, sound effects selection (e.g. Killer Queen's sound effects) and overall, sound was never grating or ill-matching. On music, it is noteworthy how apart from upbeat pop-rock tracks that it includes some quite unusual tracks, such as Killer. This is the main villain's leitmotif, a classical piece that brilliantly encapsulates their personality. ~~~ Hope you enjoyed my review! ~~~

iAmApiano

I get it now. I finally understand why all my friends and everyone online has been hyping up JoJo Part 4 for the longest time, and it’s one hundred percent apparent that this is, in fact, Araki’s favourite child. The style is still the same with all the characters, including the children, being inexplicably ripped and chiseled like a friggin Michelagelo statue, but the world is painted differently. Instead of a recognizable real-world location, we find ourselves in the fictional small town of Morioh, a place where the sky is yellow. And instead of all-powerful demigods, the main antagonist is a man who only wishes to live a peaceful life. Unfortunately, he achieves that life by being a serial killer. Despite carrying on the revised magic system from Part 3, this part feels very different from the previous one, and I think it’s because Part 4 is more funny. Granted, it still has more of those classic hammy over-the-top moments that give JoJo its signature charm, but this one feels more like it’s intentionally trying to be funny. Coupling that with more narrative freedom (since we’re not spending the whole season on a glorified road trip) easily makes this the most fun season of JoJo up to this point. I really liked all three OPs this time around (Crazy Noisy Bizarre Town, Great Days, and Chase, in that order). I like that they’ve mostly forgoed using 3D models of the characters in the OPs, which makes it feel less like it’s trying to compensate for something. _JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure_ was rapidly rising in popularity in the west at the time of Part 4’s release. It had its own identity, and it didn’t have to be extra to stand out; all it had to do was be itself. Even though this is my favourite JoJo part so far, I have one big gripe about this part, and it’s similar to the previous part as well: there’s too much filler. You could easily cut out five or six episodes from Part 4, and it would change very little. That being said, the filler episodes in here are far better than in Part 3, but my problem isn’t with the quality of the episodes, it’s about the pacing. The main plot with Kira only starts just over halfway into the season. The first twenty episodes are spent showing us the town of Morioh and the people (read: Stand users) who live there. There’s a lot of back and forth about an item that gives people Stand abilities, and some of it is vital to the main characters and the plot down the road. But do you really need to spend twenty episodes doing that? And it only gets slightly better when Kira is introduced. He is definitely my favourite villain so far for how he’s not someone with a god-sized ego and universe-encompassing ambitions. To be fair, he does have a big ego, but he’s scary for how mundane he is. But even having a better villain can’t help the pacing issues, because we spend far too long fighting new Stand users who do little to move the plot forward at best, and bring the story to a screeching halt at worst. I think I might have to get used to the pacing in JoJo being a bit slow, considering they’ll eventually have to adapt the far longer Part 7, _Steel Ball Run_ and the excruciatingly slow Part 8, _JoJolion_. All that being said, it’s no question that this is the best JoJo so far! I’m really looking forward to seeing Giorno and his gang get into trouble in Part 5, and I’m really looking forward to hearing Giorno’s Theme in context, finally.

blizar

__JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable__ is the worst part in the Jojo's franchise and the most overrated anime of all time. When I first watched this after coming off the flawed but enjoyable adventure that was Part 3 of JJBA, I expected great things as Jojo fans sing the praise of this part all across the internet. However, in Part 4, I only found utter boredom and disappointment. To explain why I feel this way towards one of the most praised anime seasons ever, let's dive into each detail, starting with the terrible and almost non-existent storyline, down to the plain and underdeveloped cast. JJBA Part 4 spends the first two-thirds of its runtime going basically nowhere, with the main cast chasing random nobodies with the most random stand abilities the author came up with during a long walk at the beach. Each episode is dedicated to fighting weird lunatics, most of whom don't matter in the grand scheme of things. Moreover, these fights are painstakingly slow-paced and can extend up to two episodes, essentially delivering very little substance for 45 minutes of your time. Most fights are just thrown in there to pad out the runtime for a show that could have ended in a third of its total length. The fights you see in Part 4 aren't interesting, as they are the same as Part 3, with nothing new added, therefore making the fights worse. Each fight follows a 4-step formula similar to this: 1. Oh no! It's an enemy stand user! 2. The hero is in trouble! 3. Aha, you thought! The villain is now in trouble! 4. Aha, you thought! The hero is in trouble! Steps 3 and 4 keep repeating until the author decides to give the hero that extra IQ point above the villain because tactics in Jojo's don't matter since literally anything goes. Yes, with a show about fighting, the fights are as boring as that. After a whole lot of meaningless detours, the main villain finally shows himself in the final third of the season, just to only show up every third or fourth episode for a five minute scene while the main villain's dad trolls the main cast. Seriously? Like, come on, this speaks for itself... Alright, enough about the non-existent plot, and onto the characters. The characters aren't fleshed out, and aside from a few, most don't get any development and if they do the development comes down to the typical "I once was a bad guy and I got beaten so now I'm good." The characters can sometimes be funny, but that really can't save how poorly they're written. And that's all I have to say about the characters because there isn't much to talk about here. Ok, now for an obligatory review of the animation, so here it is. If you thought maybe the animation could save how poorly written this season was, then you're wrong because the animation is the most stiff I've seen in a Jojo's part. All fights are filled with still frames where only characters' mouths move. It's so bad that it actually pulls you out of whatever immersion there was to begin with. Overall, __JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable__ is an extremely overrated anime that spends 24 episodes of its 39-episode runtime going nowhere, and the remaining third trolling the viewer. There's even a better anime/game alternative with a similar premise called __[Persona 4](https://anilist.co/anime/10588/Persona-4-the-Animation) __which is way better written and cares about it's story as it sticks with a firm motivation the entire time without having copious amounts of filler. So, if you want an anime that wastes your time with pointless detours, forgettable fights with nobodies, and a poorly planned narrative that won't take itself or you seriously, then this is for you. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ __Final Scorings: Animation: 7/10__ Artstyle + 2 (Unique) Consistency + 2 (Consistent) Backgrounds + 2 (Colorful) Sakuga + 0 (Still frames) Directing + 1 (Generic) __Sound: 9/10__ Voice acting + 1 (Standard) Soundtrack + 2 (Cool themes) Sound effects + 2 (Great) OP/ED + 2 (Iconic) Purposefulness + 2 (Character themes to increase hype) __Story: 3/10__ Premise/Setting + 0 (Mundane villain of the week) Pacing + 0 (Aimlessly slow) Plausibility + 0 (None) Themes + 1 (Basic) Conclusion + 2 (Solid) __Characters: 2/10__ Personality/Presence + 1 (Basic/Expressive) Motivations + 0 (Unfocused) Interpersonal Dynamics + 1 (Basic) Development + 0 (None) Appeal + 0 (Lost its appeal) __Enjoyment: 0/10__ (Painfully boring) __Overall Score: 4.2/10 ~ 4/10__

May

~~~*Spoiler warning for JoJo: Diamond is Unbreakable*~~~ webm(https://v.animethemes.moe/JojoNoKimyouNaBoukenS4-OP4.webm) Unlike previous JoJo's installments, Diamond is Unbreakable (henceforth referred to as Part 4) is not imbued by innate or classic heroism, and instead by the collective decisions of a locale's inhabitants to shape a meaningfully better world. Morioh is a vibrant town (un)like any other: it has a Lawsons, secluded suburbia, its own radio station with dedicated writers and callers, and [designated landmarks](https://i.imgur.com/7dBXUzv.jpeg) with their [own respective folklore](https://i.imgur.com/GFtmFGr.jpeg). Its loving citizens too are mostly regular people -- civilians, if you will -- who, despite their own quirks and social standings, come to understand that everyone's actions reverberate through families, friends, and eventually the entire community. Stands -- JoJo's ever-evolving manifestation of superpowers -- come to empower these civilians, allowing them to protect and do their community a kindness nobody else can. But being powerful does not make a hero, as Part 4 insists through its emotional lynchpin in Reimi Sugimoto; [a young girl](https://i.imgur.com/1VrzRHl.jpeg) who was slain while helping [a younger boy](https://i.imgur.com/6LSTuou.jpeg) escape from a serial killer. Being powerful merely makes one even more responsible to do what heroes do: courageously stepping forward together even in [the most perilous situations](https://i.imgur.com/PGE9RX8.jpeg), against the biggest threats, to save a soul and make your town a better and safer place. But just as stands empower Morioh's honest civilians, so do they let [potential villains](https://i.imgur.com/N76HgJI.jpeg) commit heinous violence more grotesquely and/or discreetly. So many of Part 4's fights are set in enclosed spaces, and [predominantly in houses](https://i.imgur.com/3EQzFTR.jpeg). There is foremost the severe, palpable fear that [bad actors like Angelo](https://i.imgur.com/HOMPm9O.jpeg) could prey upon and intrude homes to violate their projection of safety, but the core of Part 4's violence centers around terrifying individuals leveraging the safety of society for their own means of destruction. Kira is incalculable and invisible: a man who, by adopting a strict self-imposed persona, [successfully blends in with other civilians](https://i.imgur.com/kscuiHL.jpeg) in society. He could be you, he could be me; [he could be anyone clocking out from their 9-5](https://i.imgur.com/CHyls8L.jpeg), returning home to their wife and kids. There is but one universal truth: he will, inevitably, strike again. This violence, the sort of which leaves no remains nor closure for relatives -- [Reimi witnessing Shigechi's extremely painful death](https://i.imgur.com/fjS5Typ.jpeg) is maybe the series' most upsetting moment -- disturbs the community, whose notion of safety further becomes shattered, as Kira weaponizes collective anonimity [to cause further distrust and paranoia](https://i.imgur.com/IjQUPsI.jpeg). A terrifying [monster whose propensity towards evil for his own satisfaction](https://i.imgur.com/ejPUevR.png) will tear apart several families and the quotidian equilibrium unless we collectively decide to do the right things, even if it's scary or dangerous, because that's what heroes do and heroes always win. And if not, they are liberated in the end. ~~~img400(https://i.imgur.com/luBadpA.jpeg) img400(https://i.imgur.com/Nj6Mx4L.jpeg) img400(https://i.imgur.com/Q9GZy8c.jpeg)~~~ There's that classic spirit of communal justice, but it isn't borne out of a mystical sense of heroism, nor is every villain a grotesque monster: sometimes making the world a better place includes beating up a [shitty loan shark](https://i.imgur.com/Z9YgIJr.jpeg), some incel, and other annoying people that prey upon and upset others -- maybe you'll even knock some sense in them! While the entire Kira arc is certainly Part 4's most memorable event, what stuck with me most on this rewatch is how the exploration of Morioh and its characters that surround give form to villainy and the subsequent justice. Kira cannot exist without the homely nature and rich tapestry of characters and situations in Morioh: a town cannot exist of only heroes and villains, but there must also be [girls developing their first crush](https://i.imgur.com/HPDcl6F.jpeg), petty otaku teenagers, [gang members](https://i.imgur.com/hKxqZEU.png) on the fringes of society, oddities, and adults who don't fight but socially contribute in other ways. Are they heroes or villains (they're often both)? How do they navigate Morioh with their stands, and how does Morioh respond back to them? ~~~img(https://i.imgur.com/eUCsRmt.jpeg)~~~ Part 4 is so iconic to me because it is here where Hirohiko Araki harmonizes all of his idiosyncratic elements into a holistically satisfying odd-ball piece, with visual direction and banana editing shenanigans that bring out all of his pop art sensibilities, pristine paneling, and one-of-a-kind storytelling. A huge part of JoJos at large feels like Araki responding to his own cinematic/comic canon, yet literally all of its constructions and conventions are made so completely his own: striking model poses and [vulgar one-liners](https://i.imgur.com/1Tg0lSV.png) of [questionable (and always humurous)](https://i.imgur.com/ClldLA5.png) quality frequently clash as a synthesis of low-brow comedy and [action](https://i.imgur.com/FNi3gFA.png) against [high fashion](https://i.imgur.com/35MxRzR.png); various genre stylings and tells - such as [Yukako's fairy tale episode](https://i.imgur.com/15TjxLh.jpeg) - don't disturb but rather bring out an additional dimension of stylization to an already dense work [that can't be encapsulated easily](https://i.imgur.com/4rCPBOV.jpeg); and oddly specific behavior traits further informs a community not as one entity but rather a collection of distinct individuals. As a tangent, it cannot be understated how casually weird this always is. At one point Jotaro -- who himself already is an accidental eccentric giant, whose entire [hair/hat situation](https://i.imgur.com/3xE95C2.png) we've just kind of given up on, and hilariously apparently [wrote an entire paper](https://i.imgur.com/ckhYo0W.png) on Morioh's starfish population offscreen -- goes to investigate a clothes store with Koichi (this parts' closest thing to a normal character), at which point a seasoned shopowner holding a cup of coffee offers Koichi one of his animal crackers, [except for the camel because he likes eating that one last](https://i.imgur.com/VHrJZAJ.png). After Koichi thanks him down the series continues and the shopowner dies a minute later. There's so much 'just doin shit' going on that almost feel entirely like impulses of Araki's scattered mind, yet its so synchronized with the series' overarching structure that you don't even question there being a cook, an alien, three tiny people, and a blob at Reimi's emotional sendoff in the finale. It is just too much fun to not meet Diamond is Unbreakable on its own messy terms: even weaker episodes become recognizable through insane twists or overall vibes so that they become indispensable elements to the series (see: [the 'invisible baby episode' anecdote](https://i.imgur.com/o4KrqhR.png)); occasionally weaker animation direction can be excused when its construction of images through comic-like editing and [vibrant yet playfully unstable color scripts](https://www.sakugabooru.com/data/fbf8bfe4587ec332d090398a8f3c5026.mp4) lets it look unlike anything else in the world -- even other JoJo parts -- and to put it simply, its overt personality is just disarming. What this is is the near-perfect realization of a work so insistent upon and hopeful in its belief of justice and the liberation of the souls who remain haunted by the spectre of violence, that it is impossible not to become emotionally attached to what happens in that bizarre summer of 1999 that happened to beautiful Morioh and its strange people. ~~~img(https://i.imgur.com/1nzh5z6.png)~~~