Things No One Cares About:Jojo's Bizarre Adventure 2012

Jojo once held the distinction of being one of the longest running manga to not have a TV adaption,only having a thirteen episode travesty of an OVA series Last year changed that and we received the first part of this ambitious project to adapt the the whole series. This part cover the first two arcs of the series Phantom Blood and Battle Tendency. I'll talk a little more plot on BT as I already discussed PB a few weeks ago. Without further ado:Jojo's Bizarre Adventure...2012.

The first half is again Phantom Blood and covers episodes 1-9. The story is a straight adaption which hinders it on the character side as Johnathan Jostar is still not that interesting but makes up for it by basically having everyone ham it up. No one has an indoor voice and everyone just devours scenery. It's a sight to behold and makes the whole show enjoyable. Special mention goes to Takehito Koyasu as Dio who manages to steal every scene he is in and is a terrifying presence even when he's only a head. Along with Smoky in BT they have made Wang Chun a little less of a stereotype though it's still a little jarring. Overall this section works and we also get to see Dio taken out to Yes' Owner of a Lonely Heart which is cool. Also be on the watch for episode three which is possibility the most manly thing to be put on TV. I might be pregnant now from the sheer testosterone pumping through the final scenes. A minor compliant is that if your not familiar with the original arc it will feel a little rushed but it's a pretty short arc anyway so it's not too bad.

The remaining episodes(10-26) cover the slightly longer Battle Tendency and we our introduced to the amazing Joesph Jostar The arc covers his battles with the beings that made the stone mask form PB. To me this is one of the best Shonen manga arcs I've ever read. It takes the concepts from PB and takes them to their logical extremes while exploring the source of Dio's power and having Jojo fight that. It has only about four or five major fights but each one is grandiose in it's own right. Overall like part one it's just having fun. Joesph is a fun character he's constantly thinking about how to outwit his opponents. He's the only man that can make running away look heroic He is also a world class bluffer,talking his enemies into giving him a month to train because he might be able to beat them. Tomokazu Sugita is obviously enjoying the role and fits Joesph to a T, pulling of the goofy engrish catch phrases with panache. The main trio of Joesph,Caesar and Lisa Lisa are all well rounded enough and I think we get a little more back story on our antagonists the Pillar Men here than in the manga. The only character I really don't care for is Suzie Q due to her and Joesph's romance coming out of nowhere. If I have any complainants about this part specifically is that near the end R.E.O Speedwagon's shtick of yelling exposition gets grating and the last few episodes seem to meander around waiting to get to the final one for the big epic battle.Overall it is a load of fun to watch and Joesph Jostar is a sexy charismatic stallion who,who dammit I forgot what I was saying. He's great is what I'm saying,(stupid sexy Joseph).

The storys in this world of ham work perfectly but the art catapults the series to greatness The authors signature sound effects are strewn through out the scenes and like everything else the art just oozes style. It's so over the top that the very act of walking around is made fun. The colors are very bright and the outfits are glam as hell with Caesar's outfit not looking out of place at a 80's club.

Unlike those abysmal 90's/00's OVAs this is how you adapt Jojo: with style and fun. I honestly can't wait to see the next season for Stardust Crusaders maybe I'll actually enjoy the arc this time. If you're looking for a good fighting show and haven't watched this then go ahead and do so, you won't regret it.

As Always Stay Positive.

Jojo,Schedules and a Hiatius

I've always written reviews for fun.A side project to pass the time and help me form my opinions Then these JoJo OVA's came along and I honestly could not sit through them. They are bad,they just are. I'm not giving them a full review because I can't finish them.Instead I'll use this post to sum up my thoughts on the ones I did watch and Startdust Crusaders as a whole.

I'll admit I really don't care for Startdust Crusaders for a few reasons.First is the pacing,there are too many fights and we're never given time to be breathe before hoping in to the next one.Despite that the arc still feels too long(clocking in at 17 volumes) and padded. Second Jotaro is just not that interesting a lead especially when you have his grandpa,Joseph,right there.Jotaro lacks the fun of Joesph which is ok I don't want another Joesph but give him something to make him likable.Outside of kicking Dio's ass because he pissed him off. Third outside of the two Jostars,I never got attached to the main group so when some of them die I didn't feel a thing. I about lost it when I though Dio killed Joesph but everyone else was a meh.

There are some good things,most of the fights are very well done the highlights being Joesph's fights with the Empress and Mariah Carey and while I don't care about the main group I did enjoy their dynamic Which these OVA's stripped the group of along with Joesph's sense of humor. These episodes take themselves too damn seriously and lack what makes the series great style and humor. The manga had him cracking jokes and fighting with his usual flair to probably cope with the dread he feels that his daughter might die. The OVA's have him almost as sullen as Jotaro,which defeats the point of him being here.Also for some reason Enya,the old witch can change into a young woman,no explanation given and the first time you see here she's in the young woman form.So honestly if I finished theses OVA's,you wouldn't see me for a while as I would be crying into my girlfriends shoulder for three weeks just to ease the hurt.

Enough about me whining lets talk about every ones's favorite thing:schedules. I'll still be doing the 2012 Jojo anime this week so no back out on that.After that Things no One Cares about will be taking a semi-hiatus for a few months.I'll still do them and Mistress Fortune may be on schedule.This is because I want to start a short project I may actually finish and that is a case by case review of the Phoenix Wright games.

This is going to be a look at every cases of the original 3 games,picking apart the plot,the characters and various other things.It's like a mini version of Arcwords except not called that. I am not going to cover Apollo Justice or Investigations(for now). These will start next week and since they are pretty short I'll be putting two out a week on Monday and Friday. I may slip in a regular review on occasion but no promises.
Also so people know I'm saving Case 1-5 Rise from the Ashes  for the week I cover case 3-5 Bridge to the Turnabout  to give the week an epic feel.See you Wednesday for decidedly less whining and next week for some Legal goodness.
         

Things No One Cares About: Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Phanatom Blood

I decided to change this review to Things No One Cares About. I'll save the long winded explanation and just say real life and leave it at that.

Phantom Blood is the first part in the Shonen epic that is Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. When you hear Jojo most people either think of this arc or part three,Stardust Crusaders. Though if your a decent human being you should at least also remember Battle Tendency because it's where Joesph Jostar is originally  from and inspired a few Street Fighter characters. This and to an extent Battle Tendency tend to be old shame for the author and can best be described as Fist of The North Star if it was glam. So lets look see if this actually worth it or do I need to start drinking bleach to forget(though I might do that later when I'm bored).

The story here is pretty simple being divided into three parts each ending with some one biting it and manly tears being shed. The in between times are filled with hamminess  and diabolical plans. It is a pretty standard good vs evil plot with no real twists outside of the villain's refusal to just die. The fighting technique is the Ripple which again not to unique as it is just punching people while shouting silly things. It doesn't get much creative use as it will in the next arc outside of wine darts.

Once we get to the final part the plot gets silly ,events just sort of start happening and I'm not quite sure why. There is also this malarkey about vampires that is dropped after this part of the manga. It's there to justify people following Dio,instead of just raw charisma like later story arcs. Three new characters show up to join Jojo and barley contribute to the plot. Hell one has a bigger part in Battle Tendency and he hardly did anything in this story. Back in the eighties maybe this was fine but now it just feels run of the mill.

So what saves this manga from the ignore list,that is style. The book just oozes it from every pore and everyone is hammy. The guys are manly,their fighting styles flashy,and it's just having a good time. Everything is done in big broad strokes and it takes the substandard elements and makes them tolerable. It's also fairly short and I mean that in the nicest way possible. The pacing is very tight and none of the fights get drawn out. The bulk of which happens in the last part letting the first two sections build up Dio and Jojo's relationship.

There is something to be said for the Johnathon(JoJo)/Dio relationship and that is that it is pretty good. They are polar opposites in every way and their schoolboy rivalry evolves into respect/loathing for each other. However Jojo is a gentleman of the highest caliber and that's about it. You still feel for Jojo but he's just not that interesting outside of his archeology major which serves more as a plot mover than anything else. He did start the trend of the Jostars being incredibly bright people,having that noble spirit,which would later add to the leads rather than define them. He also is responsible for Joesph,who I do not have a crush on,in that Joesph's personality is meant to be as far from Johnathan’s as possible

Dio is a little more tragic in a way. He essentially created his own rival in Jojo and is so blinded by power that he doesn't realize that he's become like or even worse than his despised father. He could make a good argument for either side of the nature vs nurture argument. Was he evil from birth or did his poor upbringing ruin any chance of a good life even after he begins living with the Jostars. It adds some depth to the character that Johnathon lacks.

The rest of the cast is mostly manly men being manly except for Erina who gets to be the medic to Jojo's heavy and has a really great supporting role. She doesn't do much but is still enjoyable. Also there is Robert E.O Speedwagon who is a fun example of captain obvious because I imagine his just shouting all of his lines. Plus he gets a sweet hat from Jojo's mentor to replace his already pretty cool razor blade hat.While not getting much to do here,his eventual fortune is a constant help to the Jostars.

Moving on to some talk about art: it's okay. This was my second time reading this and really the art is not as bad as I remember. Everyone has bodies chiseled in the image of the gods and all the men are huge. It's very dark to look at which adds to the atmosphere and the gore is fairly intense though nothing worse than something from Fist of The North Star. We do get the authors love for SFX words as they litter every page but not in a way that clutters it up.

In the end this is really not that bad a manga,it just hasn't aged that well and is weak compared to some later parts of the series.Though if you need to grow a beard read this, you'll be hairier than a bear in no time. It's still better than Stardust Crusaders and that has to count for something. Till next time: Stay Positive.

Next Week:Stardust Crusaders OVA's

Housekeeping Hijinks

Decided I'd do one of one of those fancy updates and let people know how the next month or so is going to play out.



Despite being a woman,I do tend to enjoy Shonen on occasion and most of the Shonen works featured on here  have been mildly ok and nothing to get worked up about.Well I feel like getting worked up and as the the temperature gets hotter,my blood follows suit.It only seems right to to talk about a series that has blood hot enough to boil noodles.I am of course talking about Princess Tutu...just kidding I'm talking about Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. Jojo is one one those old school series that many other series have taken inspiration from.Though it started out drawing from the also influential Fist of the North Star. It follows the long history of the Jostar family and their very odd lives usually intertwined around a man named Dio and later his followers. It also has enough western music references that describing this series to other people is hilarious. It's really fun to be able to say that Lisa Lisa was tricked by Cars or that Dio's right hand man is Vanilla Ice. Ok enough about subjects you can read about on Wikipedia,let's move on.

I'll admit that while I am a Jojo devotee I have not read past part 4 so I really can't comment on the later part of the series(maybe next year). This month will be covering the various anime products that Jojo has  received over the years. However I'm going to kick it off in a couple of weeks with an Arc words on the Phantom Blood section of the manga.After that we'll take a look at the Stardust Crusader OVAs and then talk about the game based on the same arc.We'll finish out the month on a high note with the most recent anime adaption. Before I get ahead of myself this week we'll be tackling Tompopo,a Ramen Western and then cooling my blood with Mistress Fortune.

Here's a list for people who hate paragraphs

May 29th:Tompopo
 
June 5th: Phantom Blood

June12th: Startdust Crusaders OVAs

June19th: Stardust Crusaders(SNES)

June 26th:Jojo's Bizarre Adventure(2012)

July 3rd:Mistress Fortune

That is all I  have for you today so for those who acknowledge it have a good Memorial day and a happy Monday to the rest of you.