JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean (Season 1)

Type: Spider butterflies are the new Black!?

Synopsis: Jolyne Cujoh is convicted for a crime she didn’t commit. Well, sort of. I mean, she was an accessory to murder. She wasn’t behind the wheel of the car that killed that guy, but she did help hide the body. Personally, I blame the parents. Her mother clearly didn’t know what to do with her, and her father would rather hang out with dolphins. If only she had some sort of great grandfather, or uncle, or Italian relation, or global organization that pledged an eternal oath to her family to help steer her down the right path. Or grandmother. OR GRANDMOTHER. Ah well, I’m sure prison will straighten her out.

Pros: I mean, it’s more Jojo. This time with a, [check notes], female protagonist. Talk about your bizarre adventures. What’s next, a horse race? All “jokes” aside, this anime is an anime adaptation of Part 6 of the Joestar saga, starring Jolyne Cujoh, daughter of Jotaro Cujoh. As the latest direct descendant of the Joestar line, Jolyne’s story definitely feels more relevant that Part 5: Golden Wind. It helps that this story deals with the Dio’s followers trying to get revenge on the Joestars through Jolyne and Jotaro. Jolyne’s a great addition to the series, as we see her transform from a very bitter teenager to a driven young woman. Her interactions with her father and the character growth derived from that was the show’s biggest strength. Their stories parallel each other’s. Both are introduced as prisoners who have to save their parent from a mysterious foe connected to their family’s history. Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure has always been partly about legacy, but this is the first time a protagonist’s direct relationship with their father played such a primary role in their motivation. Once Jolyne gets a mission, saving her father, we see her gain a more commanding presence. We see her become a Joestar.

Cons: What even is a stand anymore? They seem to become more indirect the deeper we get into the series. The prison setting was also hit or miss for me. I like the most intimate environment, and a prison is an easy was to introduce Ne’er-do-well into the story. But some of the prison rules seem inconsistent. Like how Jolyne is allowed to wear her regular outfit instead of her prison uniform, and how a lot of prisoners can just walk around the facility, and how many guards are assaulted without any repercussions. Some of this crazy lawlessness can be explained because it’s set in Florida, but even American’s Wang has it’s limits. On a more objective criticism, the setting was also a little boring because it had a lot of concrete walls and grey backgrounds. Story wise, I like the character growth, but the mystery is only introduced in this series. You will have to wait another season for the story to unfold. One could also argue that Jotaro got seriously nerfed in this series. Jotaro was essentially beat by one of Dio’s henchman’s henchmen. Not a good look. [p.s. Can we all agree that Grandma Holy could have straightened this girl out? It wouldn’t have cured her daddy issues, but I can definitely see Jolyne and Holy develop a Joseph-Erina type relationship].

Watch it?: Of course you should. (5/5)

MVP: The Opening

3D is back baby!

Best Episode: Ep.5 “Prisoner of Love” (She is a Jojo, like her father before her).

Demon Slayer (Season 1)

Type: Hello fellow kids!

Synopsis: Yeah, I’m with it. I know all about sword Naruto and his backpack sister.

Pros: Demon Slayer, or Kimestu no Yaiba is you wanna be a nerd about it, is a pretty straight forward story. A young man living in the mountains comes home to discover that his family has been killed by demons. His sister, Nezuko, became a demon too, but she’s able to resist the urge to devour humans. Set on avenging his family and curing his sister, Tanjiro Kamado trains to become a Demon Slayer. My favorite part of the show is actually the slow build mixed with the fast action. Tanjiro kills about 4 demons before meeting with the larger Demon Slayer corps. The story has a pretty solid story structure, as each demon represents a stage in the hero’s journey. After getting out of basic training, Tanjiro has his first test solo against a mountain demon. Then he has his first challenge as a demon slayer against a shadow demon. Then he meets two allies, Zenitsu and Inosuke, while battling the drum demon. Finally, in his fight against he spider demons, he becomes meets the larger Demon Slayer Corps. Each mini-arc adds something to the story, and I enjoyed spending time with Tanjiro and Nezuko before the supporting casts comes in. I also liked that, for the most part, the demons where treated as actual monsters and not misunderstood creatures (except for the spider family). But where the show really shines is the action, which mixes 2D and 3D animation very impressively. While other shows have mixed animation styles before, I can definitely see Demon Slayer’s method become the standard for other action shows. Overall, just a very good story.

Cons: I got nothing. I guess you would say that the story doesn’t do anything revolutionary, it just does the basics really well. It’s got solid fundamentals. For the season as a whole, this is very much an introductory season. A lot of the “cooler” Demon Slayers aren’t introduced until Episode 22. As an older anime fans, I’m not 100% why this franchise in particular became the MOST popular manga in Japan, even beating One Piece. But I’m just happy that the Shonen genre is still going strong with entries like this.

Watch it?: It keeps you young (4/5)

MVP: Nezuko

For the memes alone.

Best Episode: Ep.3 “Sabito and Makomo” (you start to get an idea of what the show is going for).