On March 19th the highly anticipated JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure part 7, Steel Ball Run, came out exclusively to Netflix.
This part is highly acclaimed being the second highest rated manga on My Anime List and Jojo’s being one of the longest running modern manga here is everything you should know before watching.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (JJBA) is a Shonen turned Seinen Manga/Anime series with the ongoing Manga since 1987-present and the anime running since 2013-present. JJBA’s creator, Hirohiko Araki, is open about being inspired by music, fashion, popculture, and many more that he goes over in his book Manga in Theory and Practice when he draws.
Araki has stated before that JJBA is “an ode to life and a celebration of humanity” and has often said he wants to make the invisible visible. If I could describe JJBA in one phrase I’d say it is creativity at its finest. With art from the manga being showcased in the same museum as Mona Lisa
JJBA is a story following the Joestar bloodline noted by their strange star tattoo birthmark on their back and spanning over 9 parts currently with a constantly changing Joesar main character as we follow the family through sons, daughters, and illegitimate kids. The Joestars are ultimately characterized by their exceptional will, mind, courage, and variety in each one. This change keeps the story fresh and unique and lets Araki truly be creative. Always changing with a new backstory, character, power, and most importantly lets Araki think outside the box and keep the story fresh and constantly expanding.
In parts 1 and 2 of this bizarre adventure we have the power system called either Hamon or Ripple. Hamon is a power directly inside of you deriving from the sun itself with this power becing controlled by your own breathing and calmness. This power system in these two parts is the perfect counter to the so-called “Perfect beings” abandoning their humanity and becoming vampires. Stands are the power system introduced in part 3 of JJBA and now being the main current power system inside of Jojo’s. Stands are known as the physical representation of the soul/ or the user’s fighting spirit with a special ability to follow that with the stands user. This power system is Araki’s idea truly realized of wanting to draw the unseen. With a Stand only being able to be seen by yourself or other Stand users. Stand users get their stands by either inheriting them or getting them through other means such as the Stand arrow. The Stand Arrow is the object with when pierced you either die or unlock your Stand.
Jojo’s is a story intertwined with fate and this theme is a prevalent part of JJBA and many characters have major philosophies of fate.
Jojo’s has an extreme cast of villains and their overwhelming strength carries the common “work smarter not harder” with ingenuity beating strength.
For part 7 of JJBA we are in a new universe with new rules with the same old system. The power system is still the same with a new power system set up called spin. Spin is based on simple rotation until we take a deeper dive into the true nature of the spin being seen everywhere in the world. This new world is called the base world and this fact plays a major role in the end game of the part.
Jojo’s part 7 takes place in the western 1890s as follows The Steel Ball Run race. The steel ball run race is a horse race across America that is used as a disguise to the real plot to steal the corpse of an ancient saint resting in America. We follow Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli as we see both men walk.
I think as people watch both Johnny and Gyro go on this horse race across America they will be encapsulated by their journey and struggles to walk.