So I finished Stone Ocean
Yup. I’ve finally gone and done it and finished all the animated parts of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. I can’t believe it. This animated watch started in late October and it’s finally come to an end today on January 10th. I’m quite impressed
Of course, I need to state that I am not done with Jojo yet and I 100% intend on continuing with Steel Ball Run and Jojolion, and I will also keep up the livetweet thread during both parts, so don’t you worry!! I’m not done yet!! Also, for the Twitter thread, here is where Stone Ocean starts if you want to check that out
Without further ado it’s time to make myself cry again
What I liked
I actually have to leave my favourite part of this part (heh) for the end since I don’t want to ramble too much, so I’ll start with the obvious: I really liked the characters. In particular I found myself really attached to Foo Fighters and Weather Report as everyone predicted, but also Emporio and Pucchi, somehow. I didn’t quite think their bonds were as interesting as what the Golden Wind gang brought to the table, but I did find their individual personalities to stand out a lot more than before and overall they felt a lot stronger (save for Ermes but I’ll talk about that later)
Character conflict and relationships was fun to follow!! I liked what a piece of shit Anasui was even though I didn’t really like him as much as I would’ve liked to. I liked his interactions with everyone BECAUSE he was so unlikable and he caused fights. Though he wasn’t my favourite, again. And I do prefer the way my favourites interacted with the world around them and their own views of it (Foo Fighters FUCKED ME UP)
I found it quite interesting that the plot not only started to unravel and get more and more intense as things went on, but also that this time, Stands and the story were directly affecting the whole damn world instead of just a small area. The stakes really did get astronomically high and I had a great time thinking “just how the FUCK are they going to unfuck this mess” to myself. I do think that resetting the universe was the right call though, considering that after this I have no idea how Araki can keep thigns stupid but fun enough that they don’t feel like more ass-pulls than what Bohemian Rhapsody was
Anyways, my favourite part of SO? Pucchi, actually
Pucchi was a really fun villain. Ruthless and determined, but at the end you still kind of had a sense that he thought he was doing what was right. I get the feeling that if Pucchi could win without Emporio stopping him in the end, Pucchi would be completely able to overlook and withstand his own guilt over the mass death he caused just by saying his view was correct and what would benefit people the most
He is a hypocrite. He turns a blind eye to the bad things he does, and he pretends that he is doing what is correct instead. That everything is meant to be. I do think part of this is Dio’s influence in his life, but he is also just… like that. The way it becomes clear with how he treated Perla and Weather Report, especially Weather. And that’s why he’s terrifying; if you’re an obstacle, he can and will be able to twist whatever atrocities he does to you as all worth it for being part of a bigger plan
To me Pucchi is different from most villains because of how he is a walking contradiction and a legitimate threat. He is intimidating, and his presence through the whole part was vicious and terrifying. Every time he was on screen I was afraid for someone’s life, and I was right to be scared like 80% of the time. Pucchi stops at nothing. Deadass I think one of my favourite villains thus far together with Dio and Kars
Also, maybe a little silly, but I really liked the entire concept of Underworld. That was an incredible Stand
Oh oh oh, and I liked Jolyne a lot!! I loved how you could actually SEE her character development from scared girl in way over her head to recklessly determined bitch with a huge heart. Every death hit her, every loss empowered her, and yet she was still scared. Jolyne is a great protagonist because of how well-rounded she was. She stood her ground in the end even if she was dealing with tremendous loss. She put herself in harm’s way to meet her goals. Jolyne is a fantastic protagonist, and I genuinely believe Pucchi when he said that Jolyne was the heart keeping everyone together
Story progression was ruthless. It didn’t slow down one bit, and I think it was pretty tight. I cannot believe I missed the monster of the week format, but I kind of did, actually. Though I understand that the very nature of Stone Ocean being set in jail and needing to 1. Get out -> 2. Rescue Jotaro -> 3. Stop Pucchi was a bit pressing and didn’t lend itself to the more lowkey moments of, say, Diamond is Unbreakable, I can’t say I didn’t enjoy the high stakes high velocity (heh) plot going on
Ah, I also liked the utilization of Jotaro in this Part. Making him more of a damsel in distress of sorts was a fun idea ngl, and I like how he VERY obviously is not doing well even several years after Stardust Crusaders, yet he clings to Jolyne as a reason to live. I do enjoy his character progression a lot more outside of Stardust Crusaders proper, and I like how he got a moment to shine at the end against Pucchi
What I didn’t like
The underutilization of some characters like Ermes and Anasui. It felt like as soon as their things were done, they weren’t necessary anymore, and became kind of nuisances to Araki. Ermes got the shortest end of the stick by getting put on a bus SEVERAL times, which is a shame!! I like her character a lot, but she barely got time to shine or do anything!! Some of her few key moments were at the start and then she fades to the background, and it was sad to see
Anasui meanwhile I didn’t like because of how his very character was kind of just… obsessive? If it weren’t for THAT trait, I would’ve actually adored him. But ah well. I do feel like he wasn’t used to his full potential unless Araki needed a braniac to solve a situation. I do like how he was willing to just die to stop Pucchi though
I also didn’t like the big, STUPID ass-pull of having Weather Report just straight up go “infinity plus one sword” at Bohemian Rhapsody. That was legit an ass-pull and made me roll my eyes so hard because yes, I can accept contrivance and coincidence and “infinity swords” but that one was too obvious of an attempt to fix a fucked sitaution. I did like that arc but it quickly lost its charm when I saw the “How are they gonna get out of that” was just “Oh, by literally willing it undone, ok”
I also did not like the nice guy-ification of Dio Brando, ngl. He was a little too nice and a little too friendly for my walking war crime babygirl. I don’t know how I feel about him supposedly having several children either, unless he specifically had them as sacrifices for Pucchi, but then how does that explain Giorno? I dunno. I feel like this Part dropped the ball hard with Dio. I’m choosing to ignore it for my own sake
Other than that, while I liked what Araki did with Pucchi’s powers and power progression, I am still finding it exhausting that he continues to overuse time based powers for his final villains. I want to see originality god damn it. Pucchi did a lot of good, fun things with his abilities using Made In Heaven, but it doesn’t change the fact that it did seem like it was going for time based again. In the end though I think this is the LEAST egregious time based villain Araki’s made. And thank god for that
Final Thoughts
I liked Stone Ocean. I liked what I got out of it and I liked my time with it, and while that ending definitely took me by surprise, I definitely think it was the right choice in the end. As much as I like JJBA’s weirdness, it was starting to get a little out of hand and a reset needed to be had for it to work, and so I’m pleased with the neat bow that the series “ending” like that is. I also cried hearing Roundabout again and seeing everyone in the ending, ngl. That was a beautiful way to send it off
I am incredibly satisfied with my anime watch. I cannot wait to get on with Steel Ball Run after a short break, and I am excited to continue now, onwards, towards things I genuinely do not know about now
See you later y'all, this time in horseland as I get to explore this new reality Emporio so kindly shoved us into
