Board 8 > Tazzy Ranks 102 User-Nominated Anime with Write-ups: The Top 20

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12. Attack on Titan (2013)
Johnbobb (1/3)
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/aIN6BTToTP4/maxresdefault.jpg

Attack on Titan is about an isolated city surrounded by massive walls to protect the citizens from gargantuan beasts that eat people. Eren Yeagar is a hot-blooded boy who saw his mother eaten in front of him and has vowed to slaughter every last titan in the world. He joins the battle unit in charge of combating titans in order to fulfill this goal, but eventually finds out he has the power to turn into a titan himself. The show is not for the faint of heart, despite being considered a shounen. It is loaded with gore and tackles some pretty dark themes that arise from the all-around hopelessness of the human race.

This is another one of those massively popular shows that most people at least like, but you do get the occasional hater every now and then. It has some pretty fantastic action and bold writing that allow it to stand out among other similar shows. Its one of those shows where nobody ever truly feels safe, despite most major characters living through some pretty awful moments. That it manages to keep this feeling of dread, despite nobody important ever dying, says a lot about the writing. The overall tone of the show is pulled off magnificently thanks to some great direction.

The show did lose a bit of steam in the community, however, once it took them four years to give us a single cour second season, which is totally bullshit Im not really sure why it took Wit this long to release that season, especially when theyre putting out a 2-cour third season just a year after season two, but I can understand the disappointment. I didnt finish Titan until early 2016 according to MAL, and even I thought the wait was brutal. I mean, Im not new to long waits after massive cliffhangers (Hello Half-Life), but its pretty lame that they took so long with it. Season three is supposed to be bad for whatever reason, but Im still pretty excited for it.
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Scum's Wish is an anime I have a lot of trouble placing on my own ranking because it's 95% really good but the bad 5% manages to ruin it for me. I know we've talked about this before but I felt that Akane needed some small loss but instead she got literally everything she wanted. I know you interpret the marriage as a downside for her but I dunno, she seemed happy with it and she wasn't exactly giving anything up for it so I view it as a win. I would have been happy with something as simple as Mugi leaving her of his own volition but even there she was the one breaking it off and leaving him pining for her even though she was a thoroughly vile person. Ah well, I guess I just prefer more karmic justice in my fiction.
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11. Welcome to the NHK! (2006)
FL81 (2/5)
https://nefariousreviews.files.wordpress.com/2017/01/welcome-to-the-nhk-featured.jpg?w=672&h=372&crop=1

NHK is about a college dropout who became a shut-in one day, and spent years in the state. During this time, he has grown to believe in various conspiracy theories, the main one being the Nihon Hikikomori Kyokai (NHK), an organization behind the spread of the hikikomori culture that devastates our main character, Satou, and many others in Japan. But one day he happens upon a meeting with a high school girl who seeks to reinstate Satou into society. Satou agrees, and so begin the misadventures of a few loveable losers trying to figure their lives out.

Satou is a pretty fantastic main character. I think anyone whos been depressed and felt the need to slack off on their life can relate to him. He doesnt so much as wallow in self-hate like so many other characters do, but he instead believes himself to be a victim of society, creating all kinds of excuses as to why he hasnt gotten his life together, which is a far more realistic point of view to take. I was in high school when I watched this, so I actually just thought Satou was an unlikable dumbass. But after somewhat experiencing the faults he had personally, albeit nowhere near the extent to which they affected him, I can definitely see the beauty in the story. Its a show that I havent watched in a while, but Ive always enjoyed it. But after understanding the more complex themes it tackles, I look back on it a lot more fondly now more than ever. I definitely want to watch it again, though there is an absolute ton of fluff.

See, the show is 24 episodes long, and is based on a 200-page book. You hit all the main themes the novel is relaying, but the anime takes some liberties in adding a ton of characters, stories, events, etc. I think, if youre looking for something more personal, the book is the way to go. The author based it on his own troubles, so it feels pretty special, all things considered. Its really compact and theres never really a dull moment, since everything comes together nicely. The anime is still wonderful, though. Its definitely higher on comedy, but it adds in some pretty good stories that serve to develop the main characters in interesting ways. You can't really go wrong with either! The manga sounds pretty dumb though.
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Time to watch Hell Girl then Roba
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So with that done, THE TOP 10:
AnoHana
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Baccano!
Hunter x Hunter (2011)
JoJos Bizzare Adventure
One Punch Man
Penguindrum
School Rumble
Wolf Children
Your Name

Leaderboard:
Roba - 45
Leonhart - 48
Eerieka - 52
TRE - 59
Koala - 65
SeabassDebeste - 66
handsomeboy - 68
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Yay, my guesses are doing okay. Usually I come in dead last in these things.

Mac Arrowny posted...

Time to watch Hell Girl then Roba

Crunchyroll only has season four for some reason but I'll add it to my list and try to track it down someday, thanks!
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Mobilezoid posted...

Yay, my guesses are doing okay. Usually I come in dead last in these things.

Mac Arrowny posted...

Time to watch Hell Girl then Roba

Crunchyroll only has season four for some reason but I'll add it to my list and try to track it down someday, thanks!

It's been on Netflix
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Mac Arrowny posted...

It's been on Netflix

It isn't there anymore unless the Netflix app is lying to me.
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tazzyboyishere posted...

you do get the occasional hater every now and then.

Reporting for duty!
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Bumpo
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wow my randomized list is in second place

you all suck

except Roba I guess
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NHK is the only anime in this topic i've seen. i didn't like the back half so much i think, but it's a distant memory right now. i read a bunch of the manga and didn't enjoy it quite as much. but my memory of the senpai and misaki is extremely warm.

can you find a translated version of the book online?
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bunch of cheaters in here using MAL
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The rankings don't even follow MAL scores

10. Penguindrum (2011)
pyresword (1/5)
http://www.otakuusamagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/LEAD_Spread.jpg

Penguindrum is a show about three siblings, one of whom is terminally ill. Through some mystery, theyre able to save their sister, But her body is taken over by an entity forcing them to seek out the Penguin Drum, a treasure that I dont know if I could ever grasp. On their quest, they come across various odd individuals also seeking the Penguin Drum, while more about their mysterious pasts get revealed.

Penguindrum is a pretty weird show, and explaining why I enjoy it so much is basically impossible. Most of the plot went over my head, and I dont remember a ton about it. What I do know is that this was one of the most fun shows to watch airing, basically ever. It felt like each episode was creating new conflicts and opening up new twists. It aired around the time I originally started watching airing anime, and it was probably the show that hooked me into doing that to this day.

It was no slouch on its direction either. Ikuhara did an incredible job at creating intrigue through the use of heavy symbolism and avant garde writing. Something he wasnt really able to replicate in his next big series, unfortunately. Anyway, this wasnt a very good write-up, since its pretty hard for me to write about this show. I really loved it!
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I'm going to watch Penguindrum someday just so I can understand what the "Dementia" genre tag on MAL refers to.

How is Dementia a genre
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9. Your Name (2016)
handsomeboy (1/5)
https://www.funimationfilms.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/YourName-heading.jpg

I watched Your Name pretty long after hype died down, expecting it to be a bit diappointing, mainly because Shinkais works werent really connecting with me in the way they do for so many others Needless to say, my presumptions were wrong, and Your Name is an absolutely brilliant piece of work.

Obviously, not enough can be said about the visuals. Shinkai is an absolute master at bringing out beauty in otherwise mundane scenery. The presentation alone is unreal, from the art to the animation to the voicework, to the music really everything here is phenomenal. Shinkai is a great director. But Ive always found hiw writing to be a bit dull. Until Garden of Words, his stories just bored me. Your Name feels a bit different from his other works, however. Its more lighthearted on the whole, which is more up my avenue. I had just finished watching all of Hosodas work not too long before viewing this one, and it kinda reminded me of one of his films.

The body switching plot always seems pretty silly, but it was used to great effect here. Rather than having the two characters interact personally, they can only communicate through writing. Watching the two of them actually help each other out, rather than delve into extremely awkward situations, was fun to see, and the ultimate challenge of saving hundreds of people from a natural disaster was a pretty neat gut punch to bring the story around full circle. This really is Shinkais magnum opus, and I look forward to what he has in store for the future.
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Your Name was pretty good.

A Silent Voice was a lot better though.
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Even better if they had animated the ending in the manga for a Silent Voice though.

The ending for the anime was much better than the manga's ending.
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8. One Punch Man (2015)
Koala (2/5)
https://dw9to29mmj727.cloudfront.net/promo/2016/5256-SeriesHeaders_OPM_2000x800.jpg

One Punch Man is the story of a man who trains himself to be a superhero to such an extent that he gains immeasurable power, capable of obliterating some of the most powerful entities in the universe in a single, effortless punch. Its a gag comedy centered around thihs concept in nearly every episode. Saitama is so overpowered, that his hobby of being a hero has become boring and seemingly pointless. But he soon meets an android named Genos, who idolizes his power, and the two become professional heroes together. Only problem is that Saitamas knowledge as a hero is basically worthless, so he manages to get on the bottom rung of heroes despite being far more powerful than any of them could hope to be.

This show is more genuine Madhouse brilliance. The battles are always fun to watch even if theyre usually one-sided as hell. When Saitama uses his powers, theres always a ton of effort into making the animation as beautiful and fluid as possible. The fight choreography is always top notch, with tons of movement and excitement at nearly every opportunity. And at the end of the day, its so much fun to see these absurdly powerful villains show the kind of sheer domination theyre capable of, only to be destroyed by Saitama immediately. One of my favorite parts is the battle with the Sea King, where he just destroys tons of powerful heroes, and the last hero to sand up to him is a small-time guy named Mumen Rider, who gets a ton of emotional support from civilians, still getting destroyed in the end. But Saitama finally comes in, punches a hole through him that causes the rain to completely stop, and wins without expending much effort. The entire story is played out so well.

Its a shame Madhouse wont be handling the sequel. I fully expect the source material to remain fun, but its annoying to see it taken out of known, capable hands and into a wild card slot. I still have hope for the season, but we havent even seen anything for it, so its hard to gauge my full interest.
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One Piece Man
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bumpo
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7. School Rumble
Leonhart (1/5)
https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/schoolrumble/images/7/73/Sr-cartoonanime-415122770.jpg

School Rumble is the story of a girl named Tenma, who has a massive crush on some jerk named Karasuma, and Harima, a delinquent who has a massive crush on some girl named Tenma. The story mainly follows these two in their hilarious misadventures with romance and friendship.

Its my favorite comedy anime of all time, but not exactly the funniest. Dont get me wrong, its still one of the funniest shows in the medium, but what sets this one apart is just how it builds itself with its writing and characters. The format of the show jut feels so damn unique, and Im not sure Ive seen many shows that even attempt to function this way. School Rumble is most certainly primarily a comedy. Its a comedy about love, but its more about their complete ineptitude with such love. Harima is basically the protagonist, and it mostly focuses on his unattainable quest to capture the heart of a girl whos both oblivious to his feelings, and also pretty dumb, all the while he receives help in his life and pursuit from girls who actually like him for who he is, despite his own blindness to how much better for him they would be. I dont think this is very good romance writing, but it absolutely allows the comedy to work to its fullest potential. The way the cast correlates so perfectly is what makes School Rumble feel like such a breath of fresh air. It can go from something incredibly sincere that tugs at your heartstrings, wanting to see some actual romance, but then snap that back into some out of nowhere comedic segments, and both are written together so well that it doesnt become annoying, like most harems.

Of course you cant really talk about this show without talking about the ending, which is actually among the worst of all time. It doesnt really change my opinion on the series much, since it doesnt do anything particularly damaging to the characters or story like some bad endings do, but it wouldve been nice to see Harima actually learning from his experience. The ending just screams, rushed, without any clear goal in mind despite creating a finishing point. I dont think the show needed a particularly great ending, since thats just how most comedies feel, but getting what we got is pretty awful. I read the manga in full before watching the final OVA, so it was less damaging to me overall, but seeing it happen at an even more abrupt time in the anime wouldve been the worst. But all in all, its still a damn masterpiece.

By the way, Yakumo best girl, but I ship Harima/Eri.
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Yakumo is indeed best girl
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You said you love baseball

Have you considered Major?
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NowItsAngeTime posted...

You said you love baseball

Have you considered Major?

I want to but I cant find it streaming anywhere :/
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Ah yeah sadly Crunchyroll only has the sequel
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6. AnoHana (2011)
Granzon (1/5)
https://www.rightstufanime.com/images/productImages/816546020668_anime-anohana-the-flower-we-saw-that-day-tv-series-box-set-blu-ray-primary.jpg

I think 2011 was a pretty great year to get into watching anime as it aired. It was certainly the first year where I began following multiple shows during a season, and I think, had I not experienced some incredible shows, I wouldve never bothered with it again (Ignoring that I didnt 2013-2015...). 2011 had a lot of classics, but AnoHana was the first one to really strike a chord with me.

AnoHana is heavily reliant on the feels. Its about a guy who starts seeing the ghost of his friend who passed away when he was a child, and he wants to gather his friends together to put her soul to rest. Issue is, these friends have all but grown apart, seemingly no longer affected by the death of their friend so long ago. This is obviously not the case, however, as none of them were able to cope with it in a healthy way, and have just been bottling up their emotions for years. The series follows this group slowly becoming friends again, as they begin to realize how much they missed each other. Its a beautiful story, despite some apparent flaws in the writing.

Its hard for me to really judge what affects me personally. I feel like some of the works that Im aware of having an impact on my personal life made their incisions subconsciously before I really began to think about them. When I watched AnoHana, I was basically Jinta: Unfriendly and reclusive. In middle school, I was pretty friendly, but after the death of a friend, I think I became a lot less involved in the lives of others. I had a lot of friends from earlier in my life whom I still went to school with, but I didnt have many that actually felt close. But something in my personality changed in my senior year. I was still a bit reserved, as I always will be to an extent, but I started socializing more with old friends, as well as new ones. It was a huge year for me, since it felt like I finally came out of my shell, and I look back on those other years and wonder why I ever lived that way. And looking back, I think AnoHana was a big part of what led me to that change. I didnt really value friendship until I had it, and I think thats the main thing this story is trying to get across. There was a movie released some time later, but I never watched it. I think the show is perfect as is.
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I didn't like Ano Hana much, but I can see why you did.
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5. Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005)
Zea (1/5)
https://nerdist.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/avatar-header.jpg

Surprisingly, this was the only Western production with anime influence nominated. Well, I guess RWBY was, but I havent seen that. Avatar was among the first American-made animatin projects to take heavy influence from the overseas medium. You had some shows like Teen Titans that borrowed different animation and design from anime, but Avatars structure is entirely that of the typical manga-adapted anime, filled with worl-building, an ongoing plot at the forefront of the story, and sick animation for its battles. Its about a boy whos been unfrozen from an iceberg after a century, who happens to be the Avatar, a human chosen by fate to learn and master all four primary bending types: Air, Water, Earth, and Fire. He must do this all while the pressure of a nation attempting genocide continues its plot, and also seeks to kill Aang on top of it. Hes joined by Katara and Sokka, two Water Tribe citizens left behind as children during the war, and eventually Toph, a blind aristocrat who moonlights as an underground earthbending fighter.

Avatar is the kind of show thats so easy to pick up just because of how simple it is on the surface. It takes a lot of queues from shounen anime like Naruto, but adds a more Westernized spin so as not to turn off some viewers, so the humor is more in-line with a typical cartoon, and you dont get much of the weird sexualization that a lot of shounen like to put forth. The main plot to thwart the Fire Nation is kind of in the background until the end, focusing more on a personal coming of age story about this boy who couldnt accept his responsibility, and how he aims to fix that before the worst happens. The main cast of characters is one of the best out there. You have the main trio during the first season, who all have great chemistry. Sokka and Katara are siblings who argue a lot, allowing for Aang to act as mediator between them, but hes childish enough to poke fun at either one of them. The second season adds Toph, whos just great. Shes basically this total smartass who just shits on everyone. Its cool that shes also blind as well. She takes it in stride and is also one of the greatest earthbenders of all time. And on top of them, we have Zuko and Iroh, who are my two favorites. Zuko has one of my favorite redemption stories in fiction. Its played really well, because Iroh is the only positive influence in his life, but due to his gentle nature, hes also viewed as a bit of an outcast to the Fire Nation, which Zuko desperately wants to be back in after having been burned and exiled by his father, the Fire Lord. Its great because he views capturing Aang as his shot at redemption, but the audience sees how much it hurts him to do some of the things he does for the sake of the villains. It makes his final heel turn to the good side feel so much more special, because it slowly builds his story almost from the ground up. They couldve easily just made a show about Zuko and Iroh, and it wouldve been great. It is a shame that Irohs VA passed away. Not only because its obviously a tragedy in its own right, but Iroh is basically a side character all throughout the final season, which blows because he plays such an important role in Zukos development, but hes not really there for when Zuko finally gets things together. I guess in a way he was no longer necessary for the plot, but Iroh is one of the most underappreciated characters of all time imho.
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Avatar is just a really special show. I dont think many Western shows have captured the anime feel in quite the same way, while also proceeding to be better than 98% of anime. I do think it has a few things that kinda suck, like the ending being pretty rushed. A lot of people love how Azula was handled concerning her stress and psyche being her downfall, but it just kinda wrapped that up out of nowhere. Ozai was basically a nothing villain until the very end, and he felt way more threatening as an idea than as an actual human. And then theres the giant turtle, which is one of the more bullshit deus ex machinae out there. I do like that it exists as a way for Aang to remain pure, and to promote the idea of straying from violence as a means to accomplish your goals, but it felt pretty shoehorned. I also think it was the first instance of me being mad about shipping, before I even knew that was a thing. Katara/Zuko wouldve been way better than what ended up happening. Aang and Katara just didnt have a ton of chemistry to me, and Aang just feels so childish in comparison, partly due to the age gap. I also think Mai is the only character in the show that I dont like, so seeing uko with her hurts my heart. Either way, this show is pretty fantastic, and it leads into The Legend of Korra, which might be just as good on the whole. Shame the property is published by Nickelodeon, and they have some f the most moronic business practices when it comes to promoting shows that arent SpongeBob. So glad that Miraculous got sold to a real company.
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> Anime
> Avatar

REeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
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Avatar 7/10 show pretty good but inferior to Korra in every way
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Iroh is awesome. I still get chills when he shuts down that commander who tried to maim Zuko after he lost a fire duel to the boy.
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Zuko one of the greatest fictional characters of all time tbh. Though:

Katara/Zuko wouldve been way better than what ended up happening

Either way though the show is absolutely fantastic imo. I'll get around to Korra one of these days maybe.
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man I've been terrible about commenting...

I loved watching anohana as it aired but I'm not sure how much I'd like it if I ever rewatched it. so much of it for me was in the spectacle of what was going to happen next.

avatar is great, it would be among my favorite "anime" too. I watched season 1 of korra, was really underwhelmed, and never watched the rest.

I like one punch man but I never quite understood its popularity. I guess maybe it's just because animation quality will never make a show for me... the story mostly just feels like a mindless superhero comedy to me which is fine but yeah. maybe it's that aspect since I pretty much never like comedy series on the same level as drama. (in any medium.)
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Avatar is incredible, yeah. I was really impressed with its coherence.

Korra delves into some really interesting themes but it half-asses a lot of them because of how transparently arc-based it is. TLA is one giant story instead of four mini-stories, and that makes it amazing. Its cast is also vastly superior to Korra's, though Korra herself can compete with TLA's crew for sure.
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ok down to only anime left finally
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Bump
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Hey so I will get one up tonight and the rest up tomorrow maybe
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4. Baccano! (2007)
Turnsniper (1/5)
https://i0.wp.com/sparkanime.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Baccano-Featured-Image.jpg

For the longest time, I felt that Baccano! Was my favorite anime of all time. This is mainly because I dont really ever take the time to compare my favorite shows when they dont really have much in common with one another. Baccano! Is a great show, and possibly the show that vaulted me into becoming so engrossed with the medium (I know Ive said this about a number of shows, but I think Baccano! Had the biggest influence due to sheer quality, rather than any form of emotional attachment). It takes place in the prohibition era of the United States. You have three different timelines to follow, all compounded onto each other, switching between segments when needed. The main plots are Firos storyline, which follows a young man on his journey to acceptance within a mafia family, the Flying Pussyfoot, which chronicles the events of a train massacre resulting from three different criminal groups hijacking it at the same time, and the story of Eve Genoard, and her search for her missing brother. Its a combination of crime drama and fantasy that works far better than it probably should.

Baccano feels unique to this day simply because of its presentation. The story structure is chaotic to match each individual storys own chaotic nature. Its a show that requires you to pay pretty close attention to the intricacies of the plot in order to understand it. It wasnt a problem for me, since I loved the story and direction, and I can pretty much breeze through the show on any given viewing. Theres just so much to like about the show, but it mostly rests with its characters. I think the entire cast is worth getting some love, but my favorites are Isaac and Miria, Luck, Ladd, Jacuzzi, and, of course, the greatest villain of them all, Claire Stanfield. Honestly, the Flying Pussyfoot does stand out as the pretty clear high point compared to the other parts, but its all so great.

And really, the anime is one of those instances where the adaptation is leagues better than the source. Thats not to say that the light novels are bad, since theyre not, but without the pacing existent within the show, the books do get a little dry. The stories feel so short in comparison, as theyre not being told at the same time. This renders the brilliant pacing lended to the anime through the constant cutting between action nonexistent. The stories work so much better when put together as a singular entity, and its crazy how it works that way. Perhaps Im the only one who thinks that, though. Its a shame well likely never see any more of the story get the animation treatment. The anime does leave a ton of plotlines unfinished, and theres plenty of room for more quality storylines to be built on top of it, but the novels just wont be able to capture that same magic for me. As is, Baccano is a masterpiece, and deserves to be on everyones watchlist.
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I agree that the baccano anime is better than the light novels
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Baccano!'s pacing is really something. It's incredibly inaccessible for like two episodes and then it just starts building a fantastic sense of momentum throughout the rest of the series. Love its OP too.
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Isaac and Miria by far the best Baccano characters

Ladd sucks, only character worse is Czes

I'm reading the light novels now. It is weird reading these after seeing the anime just because you're not rotating between events.
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3. JoJos Bizarre Adventure (2012)
FL81 (1/5)
https://i1.wp.com/www.criticalhit.net/images/2017/03/Jojo-4.jpg

So I specified in the nomination period that JoJo should probably be separated, mainly because I expected them to all get nominated, and I was pretty interested in talking about each of them. Unfortunately, I dont think anyone read this part, and the only thing nominated was JoJos Bizarre Adventure, without any notification toward which version. Nobody else nominated the other editions of the franchise, and I was slightly disappointed, until I realized that this was probably meant as a nomination for the entire series, and it probably lost potential nominations because everyone viewed it as such, or at least thats the story my head cannon created. So screw it, Im just gonna write about every part in smallish detail, and explain why I love this wonderfully weird series.

The first part chronicles the sibling rivalry of Jonathan Joestar and his foster brother, Dio Brando. What starts as Dio simply being an asshole quickly turns into a murder plot, and eventually leads to a crisis that could affect the entire world. This is considered the weak point of the franchise by most people, but I feel thats unfair. The way it sets up the world, and introduces the over-the-top nature that everyone loves is absolutely brilliant. The writing is a bit awkward at points, specifically when Dio steals Jonathans girlfriends first kiss, and then side characters begin to explain in detail how she would rather wash her mouth with dirty water than be kissed by Dio. I mean, there are other instances of this, but that was just the first I thought about. The writing in general lends itself more to manga, and this is the only part where Ive actually preferred the manga. But I still quite enjoy this part. Dio, as a villain, is so much better here than later. We get to see him in a more personal role, where the danger he poses goes from miniscule to gargantuan, and that development is such a fantastic way to do a villain. While I think Part 4 has the best villain, Dio in Part 1 is awesome, and makes Phantom Blood what it is. Ripple power is pretty dull, however, and Im so glad this got shafted after Battle Tendency. Also dull is the main character, Jonathan, who only really works in comparison to others. Hes an upper class, gentlemanly British man, who doesnt really have any unique traits. It creates a fun dynamic between him and the rugged, violent Dio, and it works especially well in introducing us to the main character of Battle Tendency, but on his own, he kinda sucks. I know a lot of people like Speedwagon, but eh, I never got much out of him. Phantom Blood is significantly different from any other story this series has seen, at least in animated form, as I havent read past Part 5. It has all the great things JoJo is known for, though. Youve got magnificent character art, hammy vocal delivery, and a bunch of unique fights revolving around strategy, rather than sheer strength.
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But any qualms one would have with Phantom Blood should be quelled with Part 2: Battle Tendency. Battle Tendency removes itself from the slow pacing and odd style of writing that makes Phantom Blood a bit weak, and presents us a story that has immediate thrills and intrigue. We follow the story of Joseph Joestar (The best JoJo), a rude New Yorker with the Ripple ability, who uses it more for personal reasons, rather than heroic, like his grandfather, Jonathan. This changes when a new supernatural force of superhumans, called the Pillar Men, begin to plot the resurrection of their leader and take over the world. This part does kinda suck during the set-up phase, but thats pretty damn short, and features just enough ridiculous sequences and vocal delivery to get you through. But once the battles with the Pillar Men begin, it hits a level that Phantom Blood simply couldnt reach. This is where the creativity with the powers and fights begins to hit its stride. My favorite power, off the top of my head, is AC/DC using hi blood vessels to attack. And dont forget about the final battle with Cars, which is seriously some of the best action ever conceived. Reading the manga, Im shocked it made the transition to animation as well, and as improved, as it did.

Stardust Crusaders is where the franchise shifts in style, introducing a new power, called Stands, in order to keep the battle concepts fresh. It works quite well in this regard, too! This follows the story of Jotaro Kujo (The worst JoJo), who is summoned by Joseph to travel across the world in order to stop Dio, who has been revived into a lame villain. So yeah, Im obviously not super into this part. It does some great things, and manages to remain intriguing for the most part, but so much of it just kinda sucks, and heres my theory why. Stardust Crusaders went for a more episodic plot when compared to the previous two. It prides itself on the creation of Stands, and presenting interesting ways to bring them into battle. Each stand represents a tarot arcana, and each power has at least some minor correlation with the arcana. Each of them, beyond the main characters, are villains hired by Dio to kill the Joestars before they can reach him. But heres the thing: They only have 50 days to accomplish this task. So we have a plot that is presented in an episodic manner, but immediately gives the characters a constraint in the form of a time limit. This absolutely ruins the pacing. When it comes down to it, barely any of the battles these characters are involved in truly have plot significance. Theyre merely obstacles on the path to Dio. But because of the time limit constantly in the back of our minds, it has this added layer of pointlessness. The main group doesnt even seem to care too much about the time limit either, as its rarely brought up as they consistently waste time fighting random lackeys. By the end, it feels like the plot involving Jotaros mother may as well not exist, because its taken nearly as many episodes as days in the story to get through. This had no reason to be 48 episodes long. It only adapted 4 more volumes of manga than the 26-episode first series, which had near perfect pacing. Its a shame this major flaw gets in the way of fantastic cinematography, art direction, vocal performances, and some truly creative battles, but I just cant get past how pointless most of the story feels.
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But my goodness, all of my problems are addressed with a warm embrace from part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable. This is the story of Morioh Town, a seemingly quiet place that houses a dark secret: One of the most disturbed and unknown serial killers in history. But this plot isnt really addressed much early on beyond some foreshadowing. It starts with Jotaro meeting Josuke, the new JoJo, and his half-brother, and investigating a few strange happenstances in the city. So the plot involving the main villain, Yoshikage Kira, is never really brought forth in a worthwhile manner until quite late into the story. Hell, the main characters dont even find out who the killer is until the final confrontation. This makes the episodic structure an actually sensible decision! Theres not much of a rush to find the killer, because theres not much knowledge of him, and even so, theres no personal attachment for anyone. It doesnt become a major plot point until Yoshikage kills a relatively minor character acquainted with our heroes, and at that point, everything feels like it contributes to the overall plot. Villains are no longer just minions in the way, they have actual information for our main characters, and sometimes even serve as allies. It makes the cast feel so much more dynamic, since theres more to having a Stand than just fighting for the good guys or bad guys. I also love how youll get characters that just have Stands they use for fun, without any need or reason to battle. One of the greatest parts of the show is the Tonio episode. We hadnt really seen Stands beyond their combat potential, so when we get this guy who uses his Stand to create food, a lot of warning flags begin to go off. The food is causing Okuyasu to go through some extreme bodily changes, and the entire situation feels dangerous. Its presented as this weird body horror, but after each dish, Okuyasu states how refreshed he feels by everything. The viewer has been taught by the way every story has gone in this series to distrust a mysterious Stand user, and when it finally reaches the point where shit looks about to go down, it completely turns these thoughts around with a joke about how Josuke shouldnt enter a kitchen without washing his hands. Tonio is not an evil guy, and has no idea why his Stand works the way it does. He just wants to make good food, and thats all there really is to him and his powers. You get a few more like this, but Tonio was my favorite in this regard. Honestly, I could probably talk for a few more paragraphs about why I love Diamond is Unbreakable, but Ive been writing this for about an hour already, and Im starting to get hand cramps. If it werent for the previous seasons, Id probably rank DiU as #1 on the list. I seriously love it that much. Its honestly the greatest shounen ever created in my eyes. But anyway, the series as a whole is magnificent, and I am greatly anticipating its continuation.
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Bump
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Still have to watch part 3 and 4

Baccano! is a fun ride
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