JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken Part 8: JoJolion

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Jojolion is probably going to go down as the most controversial part of Jojo. It has the most complex part of Jojo by far and therefore has the most missteps of any part by far. There are quite a few plot points that are "dropped" throughout the story of the part and while some people won't mind that, some will.

There are also some other story decisions, espcially in the later half, that are GOING to be a deal breaker for some people.

Not only that, but it was also the first jojo part that was released monthly with the western audience so there was a ... HEAVY level of scrutiny and theorizing throughout the parts run which warped people's view of the part when things went the way they did.

AND THEN it also came after the inarguable most loved and praised part of Jojo in the west, part 7. So going into it expectations were super high.

I personally think the good outweighs the bad but that is only if you have a certain mindset going into Jojolion.

Jojolion is a story about identity and purpose through the eyes of the main character, Josuke. It's his story. If you buy into his story and journey, and look at the entire part in this way, I think you will like Jojolion.

Jojolion has some of THE HIGHEST highs in the entire series while also having some of the biggest, inarguable, flops, and I say this as a 100% jojolion and Jojo apologist. That's why it feels so much worse for some people when the things that have been problems throughout the series rear their head in the worst possible way in this part of Jojo, even though nothing about araki's writing style has changed.

It's a 10/10 at what it tries to do but if you were expecting something else it will feel much worse.

Part 8 is the worst part, and even more than that, an awful part, just awful. All the reviews here are extremely positive, of course it's their opinion, but the love for this part is something that i don't get and probably never will. I'm giving this a 1 because that's how i truly feel about this part. I went to this with high expectations because of how amazing part 7 was, and i can't believe that this is the next part, i just can't. The drop in quality is big on this one. I'm really disappointed.

At the start, this part was kinda enjoyable (although ... the story begins with the main character waking up with amnesia which is an annoying plot convenience, it makes the story more intriguing because it's jojo at the end of the day). It started out really weird and kind of unique even for something like jojo. the main protagonist was mysterious and i was really hyped to see where it would go from there. well, it did go, all the the way to trash can. Right after Jousuke was taken in by the Higashikata family, it just got worse and worse. The plot itself felt so forced to start as a "mystery" because when you eventually find out who Jousuke really is, the whole thing about the start being a "mystery" feels so stupid and unnecessary, This is just a trick to make the plot itself look better or smarter, when it's really not. And it is getting worse form there, because now, the element of "mystery" is gone, and the whole plot is so slow and not engaging that i stopped paying attention at certain dialogues. What does it matter, they're about those boring fruits anyway. It doesn't need to be that slow. If you look at the plot as a whole it's really not something that inspired or game changing, it's just another generic plot, and that's crucial here because the plot in this part is more relevant than any other part's plot. One of the two things that can save jojo at this point are the fights of course, that's what jojo is all about after all (except for this part i guess). are they good? no, not really, they're kinda bad, like, really bad. It's just fight after fight, stand after stand, that makes me question my love for jojo. EVERY STAND IN THIS PART IS BAD. HOW?? Every time a new stand is introduced, it's less of a real fight and more of a fight about which stand is trying his hardest to be more boring than the other. And i swear, if there are people who give a pass to that beetle fight...

That's it for the plot. Now, the characters? Like the stands, worst ones in the series so far... forever... we'll see. The protagonist, Jousuke, is the worst jojo ever. I don't get the love for him. His design is kinda boring (except for the hat), he has a boring personality with an awful stand. Like, how do people like his stand? It's literally the most unspecific stand ever which makes it boring as hell. Such an uninspired character. Even after he understands who he is, he's just the same unfunny and empty character as he had always been. Now, the girl that's with him, well, she's just trying her best to be the most irrelevant character in this part. Can't say she failed, good for her.
The Higashikata family are as boring as Jousuke. Every introduction is more pathetic than the other. and the youngest member, don't even know what's the point of her, she's just there. same goes for the other chick. Now, Joubin has a nice design, I like his outfit and those spikes, but then the fight with the beetles came and i was getting kinda scared that he will became another boring character. well, he did. boring personality, boring stand, boring objective (he makes the plot even worse). Every part, even if it was a mediocre one, had at least a couple of good characters. Here? None.

In one word? Boring. This is what this whole part is, and it's a shame because it's coming from someone who considers part 4 and 7 masterpieces. This is a great example of something going in a different direction and failing miserably at that. Araki is more uninspired here than he had ever been. He had always been inconsistent for me, but this is just something else. I love jojo, but this part is probably one of the worst mangas/animes that i have ever read/watched. It's frustrating. I hope the next one will be better, that's all i can say.


and remember guys, this is just my opinion :)

This review contains my thoughts up to chapter 66. There is an update at the bottom containing my thoughts up to chapter 95... And now another update with my (non-spoilery) thoughts upon reading the final chapter.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has been running almost constantly for 30 years now. It has been able to achieve because of the very nature of it's structure. JoJo is not one story but in fact 8 and counting stories. Regardless of this, you'd still think that mangaka Hirohiko Araki would inevitably have run out of ideas by this point, and telling someone the premise of this part would make them think ... that this is the case. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 8: JoJolion follows Josuke Higashikata as he solves a mystery in the town of Morioh. This is a virtually identical set-up to Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable, yet somehow, this part manages to feel so fresh and new. This part had a very tough act to follow, Part 7: Steel Ball Run was phenomenal and many western fans consider it to be Araki's magnum opus, but I'm starting to think that JoJolion just might have it outclassed.


Story: 9
To be more specific than my previous synopsis, JoJolion follows an amnesiac who goes by the name of Josuke Higashikata, and the girl who found him, named Yasuho Hirose, as they work to uncover the mystery of Josuke's identity and along the way begin to uncover a much larger conspiracy. Every JoJo part could be described as being a different genre. Part 2 is an adventure, part 4 is slice-of-life, part 7 is a race, and Part 8 is a mystery. So far, JoJolion has been one of the best paced mysteries I've ever experienced. New information is revealed basically every arc, yet you always feel like there's so much that you don't know and every twist and turn is engaging without feeling like it's out of nowhere. The story is also very versatile. One moment you're watching the main characters participate in a stag beetle fight, and the next they're getting chased by a mini tornado. Each arc feels unique while still being a major part of the overall story.

Art: 8
The art in Part 8 is overall very good, but not outstanding. The issue of every character's faces looking the same up-close, which was rampant in Part 7 is mostly gone, but other than that, it's only as good as any other JoJo part.

Character: 10
The characters in Part 8, so far, are some of the best in all of JoJo. The main character, Josuke, manages to be even more entertaining than the protagonist of Part 4 with whom he shares his name. In fact, I'd venture as far as to say that he's as entertaining as Part 2's Joseph Joestar. Yet despite his sense of "fun" he still manages to be a somewhat deep and engaging character, something that Joseph and the other Josuke failed at. This is why'd I'd consider him to be tied with Part 7's Johnny as the best JoJo. The side cast is also very strong. Yasuho, unlike most JoJo love interests, actually has a stand of her own and participates in the action. Lastly, the Higashikata family are a strange bunch of characters. Daiya is absolutely adorable, if a bit underutilized, Joshu is one of my favorite examples of a "love to hate" type of character, Tsurugi absolutely hilarious to watch once you know more about her (which I won't spoil), Norisuke is very intriguing and morally grey, and saying anything about the eldest sibling, Joubin would be a spoiler, but just know that he's a very interesting character and I can't wait to see more of him.

Enjoyment: 10
If there's one word to describe this part of JoJo, it is "enjoyable". The main character's very fun, the side characters are all fun, the stands are all fun, and the situation that the characters get put in are all very fun. Several of my favorite non-main-villain-fight arcs of JoJo come from this part.

Overall: 10
After reading Steel Ball Run, I though there was no way anything afterwards could top it, but JoJolion has honestly made me reconsider that. I don't think I'm ready to call it my favorite part until it's finished, but it's absolutely one of the best and well-worth reading.


UPDATE (March 2020)
This part has really hit its stride in the past few years so I felt that I should update this review as I now consider this to easily be my favorite part. The arcs that have occurred since I initially wrote this review have been some of my all time favorites.

As the story approaches its climax, some major changes have been happening to the characters and without spoiling anything I think this part contains some of the best character arcs of the entire series. It is now clear that the main theme of this part is identity and the question of how one should choose to define oneself. The way that each of the main characters embodies a different angle to this question is simply brilliant. I love how so many of the characters (especially the antagonists) define themselves based on their profession (i.e. what they are) rather than who they are. The main two protagonists, Josuke and Yasuho, in contrast don't really have a strong sense of what they are and as a result struggle to answer the question of who they are. This becomes one of the biggest internal conflicts for these two and the way that it develops over the course of the story is brilliant.

Overall this part just feels a lot more measured and intentional than any previous part. This is the first part to be released entirely on a monthly schedule and I feel that Araki really took advantage of this to put a lot more thought into where he was going with this story than he ever has before. Characters and elements that were set up years and years ago are suddenly coming back and becoming integral to the plot in a way that feels very intentional and natural. It's satisfying to see these things that were introduced so long ago finally reveal their place in the larger narrative like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle finally coming together.

A lot of people seem to be bothered by the fact that there is not really a central "main villain" in this part, or at least not one that is clearly the final boss that the heroes must take down, but I really don't see this as an issue. It's not like there are no threats or antagonistic forces opposing the heroes. It's just that those antagonistic forces can't be attributed to a single, evil, bad guy and I think that's a lot more nuanced and interesting than having a tradition main villain.

This part would have to seriously drop the ball on the ending in order for it to not be my favorite part by the end. I truly think this is the greatest work Araki has ever put out. JoJolion is an absolutely masterful piece of storytelling and it's one that will stay with you for years to come.

UPDATE (August 2021)

It has been just over 4 years since I originally wrote this review and the final chapter of JoJolion has just been released.

The most pressing thing I feel the need to address is that almost immediately after I wrote my chapter 95 update, the story started to go downhill. In the past few months, sentiment towards JoJolion has very much turned towards the negative, so I'd like to give my thoughts on this without spoiling the events that caused this negativity.

In my original review, I wrote "So far, JoJolion has been one of the best paced mysteries I've ever experienced." It is definitely true that upon seeing the conclusions to the mystery, I was left a bit disappointed. The initial setup for the final arc was absolutely masterful and it looked to be hinting at a truly grand final mystery. However, that setup ultimately falls flat with a vague and incomplete payoff. However, I don't think this ruins the part like a lot of people claim that it does.

I think that in a general sense, we place too much weight on endings in determining how good a piece of media is. The first 95 or so chapters of JoJolion are still a truly amazing story. I still stand by everything I said about them in the first two parts of this review. And it's not that the last 15 chapters are really all that bad. They still have a ton of great moments and payoffs to things that were set up long before. I would just say that they are a bit messy. They don't quite provide the clear and satisfying resolution that a lot of people were hoping for.

So I came out of this still loving JoJolion. My overall rating is still a 10 out of 10. To me, a 10 is not a perfect piece of media but one that is able to affect me on a personal level in a way that can't really be quantified. For JoJolion in particular, I think it comes down to the way that the themes resonate with me. In my chapter 95 update, I talked a lot about the way that this part handles the theme of identity. And the handling of this theme is something that remains consistently excellent throughout the entire story and it is wrapped up in a very satisfying way at the end. To me, this is the heart of JoJolion and any unresolved plot threads are very much secondary to the thematic resolution.

What I'd like to do now is to reevaluate JoJolion in each of the categories of Story, Art, Character, and Enjoyment. While my overall score is still a 10, my ratings in some of these categories have changed.

Story: 9
As I said, the story remains consistently great through the first 95 or so chapters (about 86% of the part overall). After that, the story is still good but it becomes noticeably more messy. It still has a lot of good moments, but it feels like Araki doesn't know how much time to spend on each aspect. Some sections are overly dragged out while others are frustratingly brushed passed. All of the pieces of a good finale are there, but they don't quite come together into a satisfying whole. However, that is just the second half of the last arc. I can't state enough how powerful and exciting and intriguing the rest of the story is. My opinion of the story has gone down, but not by all that much because the stuff that I loved in the first place is still there and it is most of the part.

Art: 10
One thing that actually got better in the final arc is the art quality. Araki really stepped up his game in the final battle. There are so many absolutely beautiful panels and iconic poses. I always thought it was good, but the final arc really made me realize just how great the art in this part has always been. This is probably the best looking part of the series. Araki just continues to get better and better at his craft.

Character: 10
I stand by everything I said about each of the characters in the original review so I'd like to talk here about how I feel about each of their character arcs.

With knowledge of the ending, it is clear that Josuke has a full character arc that is on the same level as that of Johnny Joestar from part 7. Prior to these parts, Araki tended to give his main characters more subtle and understated arcs, but for both Josuke and Johnny, their arc is one of the main focuses of the story and as a result they feel like the two most relatable and nuanced JoJos.

Yasuho Hirose is also an absolute gem of a character. She is in many ways the POV character and her dynamic with Josuke is one of the highlights of the part. The story is not as much about her arc as it is about Josuke's but she is still given a ton of focus and development.

These two are clearly intended to be the main duo of the part and as a result they have the most involved character arcs. Some might disagree, but I would not consider the rest of the Higashikata family to be main characters. Every single member of the family has some sort of character arc, but the prevalence and scope of those arcs are proportional to the character's role in the story. Characters that are more important like Tsurugi and Jobin have more involved arcs while characters like Daiya and Hato are less important to the story so they have smaller arcs that are mainly confined to one section of the story. Overall, I think they are all good characters.

Enjoyment: 10
I still greatly enjoy this part, but not really for the same reasons that I originally did. In the original review, I used this section to talk about how fun this part is. It does continue to have lots of fun moments throughout, but now I more enjoy things that I didn't really notice before like the art quality, and lots of little quirks that some of the characters have. In this part in particular, Araki really has a knack for conveying character through visual details, which can be easy to miss if you aren't looking for them. On first readthrough, I never really noticed just how much personality Araki is able to put into the small moments and subtle details. Especially for the characters of Karera Sakunami and Rai Mamezuku. These two in particular really come alive in the details of how they go about their lives.

So those are my thoughts on JoJolion. It's crazy to me that I have been following this story for almost 5 years now. I don't expect that I will make another update to this review. But the final chapter did just come out a few hours ago so if my opinions on this part change significantly, I may make another update.

This review is intended for those who have finished the part and are aware of the plot. It’s impossible to do this manga justice without easily saying too much. Jojolion is one of the most easily spoilable manga in existence and you should go into it absolutely blind.

For those who want a spoiler-free review, here it is: It’s the best manga I’ve ever read and you should definitely read it, too, if you have read parts 1-7, that is. Just trust me, bro.

Jojolion is ending. I can’t believe it. I’ve spent the last four years reading it on a monthly basis and now….it’s finished and ... there are like ten major plot points that we haven’t even begun to touch upon. I am not at all a fan of the rushed conclusion. There is potential for up to ten more volumes worth of content in the story in order to explain everything.

Let’s address the “ending”:

If all of these last few chapters, as well as all of the random unexplained plot points in the part, were simply as a build-up that would segway into part 9, I might actually end up liking them more for that. I have always been on board with what Araki does. Some JoJo “fans” only like some of the parts and completely bash on others or even tell newcomers to skip parts, which, on top of meaning that they would miss some amazing stories, completely ruins the impact of the story and misses the whole point of JoJo. These are not real fans and you should enjoy every part of JoJo for what it is. Each part is very heavily thematic. JoJo doesn’t need to wrap up every single thing at the end. It doesn’t need a Naruto-style narration and look into what the characters end up doing after the conflict is finished. It isn’t about bringing closure, it gives you more information than you need and leaves things to your imagination. From this perspective, if part 8 is about breaking a curse, it should end as soon as the curse is broken, right? The only problem is that by part 8, the writing has become so intricate, that leaving things out just isn’t right, nor what you’d expect from Araki. Random characters not coming back in no way affects the quality of part 3 since it doesn’t matter, but in part 8 it is a big deal, considering up to this point the part has relied on very intriguing mystery that requires extreme attention to detail. When you bring up small details back in a grand way constantly in a story, it makes the story a lot more enjoyable, but also makes the times you fail to do so so much worse, given that the audience has already acquired high expectations from you as a writer. Back to what I was saying, I’ve never been disappointed of any of the fights, the twists and turns or whatever is included into the story…..up until now. I’ve loved JoJo since episode one and has been my favourite series ever since the end of part 1. I like every chapter of Jojolion, even the last few. There is nothing wrong with them as chapters. The only bad thing about them is that Araki decided to make them the last few, despite the fact that they don’t feel like something that should be an ending to anything at all. I can remember when first starting part 4, I was really put off by the change in style and thought to myself “Really? A slice-of-life? No way that can be as interesting as the previous parts.” and at the beginning of part 7 I was thinking “Really? A western? I don’t think that’s gonna work with JoJo.” but Araki made it work brilliantly well. Since then I’ve always put blind trust in Araki during part 8. “Whatever this man’s doing, he knows what’s best more than I do. I shouldn’t criticize him. Just trust the plan!” Well now my faith had been shaken. At least with some other series that ended abruptly, their popularity had been declining for a while, so the publication forced their mangaka to wrap up the story quickly, like what happened to Bleach for example. This cannot possibly be the case here. JoJo parts 7 and 8 have been by far the most popular Ultra Jump titles and everything else on Ultra Jump is straight up obscure by comparison. Ever since Jojolion began its publication, most Ultra Jump covers have simply been a copy of the most recent monthly Jojolion chapter. It would make more sense for Jojolion to be the most milked part than to end abruptly. Furthermore, the last thirty or so chapters have all been very slow paced, with minimal dialogue, containing bits of dialogue that are not vital to the plot at all like Tooru’s “wireless charger” idea and have contained a lot of pages of nothing but art and detail to every single motion, showing that Araki still enjoys drawing as much as ever. Meanwhile, chapter 108 was incredibly rushed for no apparent reason, almost to the point where it felt like a fake-out. Why would Araki stall for 30 chapters and then go a mile a panel in third-to-last chapter? No matter how much I try to rationalize his decision, I can’t come up with any reason why he would voluntarily choose to end part 8 here in such a rushed ending, followed by a random flashback to a completely new storyline and setting, other than prepping up for a potential part 9. JoJo seems to operate in trilogies, where the first part in each trilogy is the setup, the second one is the more removed one from the story and the third is the payoff/resolution with very climactic ending. I’m talking about parts 1, 2 & 3 and 4, 5 & 6, and, potentially, 7, 8 & 9. Perhaps Araki wanted to leave out the resolution to part 8 to be a small part of part 9, adding to its epicness. If Araki can pull that off well, part 9 will be the best, but enough wishful thinking!

If, however, there really ends up being no part 9 and chapter 110 of Jojolion is the end of JoJo, it will be the biggest disappointment of my life and that’s not an exaggeration in the slightest. It would honestly be even worse and even more underwhelming than the ending of Bleach. It’s like if on chapter 1021 or whatever in One Piece you had some of the Strawhats fight and defeat some minor villain and go do something else afterwards and everything from the story to the art was excellent, but for some reason the chapter ended with a text of Oda saying “Next chapter is the last one. I’m wrapping up the story here” and the fans will never even see the full resolution to the arc, let alone the story or THE one piece. I’m not caught up to One Piece and just used it as an example, because I’m sure that the fans would be absolutely devastated by that. Jojolion feels like it’s been building up and building up to something amazing and it was exciting to read it the whole time, but then it never pays off the hype. However, an underwhelming ending does not make this a bad part. I’ve always scratched my head at why people seem to believe that a bad ending can make or break a story. If you read 110 excellent chapters and have a great time all throughout it, why would a bad ending undo all of that? It wouldn’t. Would a bad ending undo all the laughter and feels you got so far? No, it wouldn’t. Part 8 is easily my favourite JoJo part and there is literally nothing that could happen at the end that would change that.

EDIT: The last chapter is finally out and it was great. I think I’m depressed now, not just because this story is ending, but because of the uncertain fate of certain characters like Holly and Josefumi’s family, as well as the giant loss that the Higashikata family had to endure. Also, we got an anouncement for part 9, so fingers crossed it answers at least some of the things that Jojolion left out.

Story: 10+/10

Let’s start with the writing. It’s the best. In existence. In all of history. In all of manga. That I’ve read. Which is not much, I guess. But still, it’s unlikely to be easily topped by anything.

At the beginning we get a narration from this beautiful bae, explaining how not too long ago the small Japanese town of Morioh got hit by this bizarre natural disaster (or calamity, if you will….) where unexplained seismic activity caused the ground to rupture near the beach at the river delta and create these sharp cliffs, that devastated some houses that happened to be built over that area, and that people there called the “wall eyes” for some reason. Yes, this is the same Morioh as in part 4….well, kind of, but it’s set in the SBR universe. Going from 1890 to 2011 is by far the biggest part skip in JoJo and changing the setting from a western taking place in America in the same time period as part 1 to a repeat of part 4’s setting in the same time period as part 6 is a decision which leads to part 8 intentionally seeming very vastly separated from the events and continuity of part 7. That beautiful bae I talked about is actually an alternate version of Koichi, so it makes sense for her to be the first character we see, right before she “bumps” into a JoJo. We start off the story with the protagonist, who we’re gonna call Gappy, because of the enormous gap in his teeth, that makes him look like a gay sailor reimagining of Spongebob Squarepants on DeviantArt, being found buried in the ground by hot Koichi, who later goes into a will-they-won’t-they type relationship with him. He of course has the Joestar birthmark, making it obvious that he will be the main JoJo of the part, but also has these weird bleeding bite marks around it, and from the birthmark comes a soap bubble. He asks who he is, setting up the amnesia trope, but for the main character at the beginning of a JoJo part? Oh, and he’s wearing a sailor hat even as he comes out of the literal ground. Then hot Koichi’s ugly and weird boyfriend comes out of nowhere looking for her and sees her with a naked man right behind the wall eyes (which I imagine might be a very weirdly romantic spot for couples) and understandably gets the wrong idea. He tries to get into a fight and picks up a large rock, but is quickly bodied by Gappy. When the soap bubble bursts, the ugly dude’s eyes do so as well. Later, they are somehow restored perfectly. Hot Koichi calls an ambulance, but they end up only carrying some other guy, who was also buried with Gappy, but we never get to see. Mind you, this is only the first chapter….and it ends with hot Koichi explaining how Gappy very clearly has four testicles. Weird start, but okay. I think we can officially call this part, the sequel to Steel Ball Run, Four Ball Run. Terrible joke, I know. Are confused yet? Don’t worry, it will get much more confusing than this. Even if you didn’t feel the “bizarre” vibe during this 103 volume, 7 part adventure so far, Jojolion will definitely slap that label in it for you, too.

After the incident, Yasuho (hot Koichi) tries to retrieve Gappy from hospital to learn more about him. Here, his incredible intelligence is shown by the fact that he can instantly identify animal species just by looking at them and give us some encyclopedia-style facts about them. This is a nice set up to show us that, while this character does act silly due to his lack of awareness of his surroundings and strange behavior, he is still a JoJo, so he still has the innate ability to come up with completely out-of-the box ideas to get out of situations any non-genius, real life person would probably just give up on life in. We also see that this is not your typical amnesia plot, but Araki in fact goes all out to show us that this character is truly lost in this world. He doesn’t simply not know who he is, but he doesn’t even know how to chew properly. In other words, he doesn’t know how to human. He’s like an alien. Societal norms don’t apply to him, which leads to some pretty hilarious antics. It simultaneously creates visual and narrative gags that make the part really enjoyable to read early on, sets up for (even more than usually with JoJo) unorthodox solutions to problems posed onto him, that make the part really engaging to read midway through AND unseen character growth, that makes the part rewarding to read in the late game.

Looking for clothes that match his hat, they enter a shop, whose owner tells Gappy that he looks identical to the man who bought the matching sailor outfit, Yoshikage Kira. They break into Kira’s house, there they find molds of human hands and there is even a picture of the Mona Lisa on the wall. Then they find a woman naked in the bathtub, but she isn’t casually washing herself. She calls for help and show Gappy a picture book of her and/or other women being treated with some seriously weird and intense BDSM crap by this man, Kira, who looks just about identical to Gappy. Upon this sight Yasuho understandably gets the wrong idea and runs away while crying. What ensues is an unusual stand fight, where traps set up by someone else, such as needles in the bath towels and flip flops nearly cause Gappy to injure himself, and on the occasion that he does, his limbs with cuts on them start acting according to someone else’s puppeteering. Gappy summons his stand, shows off his ability in two very clever ways, by removing the friction from the ground on the floor below and the ability of the wall to make any sound, even when being smashed, and bombards the user with an “ORA ORA” rush, after which Yasuho turns back grieving and with the guilt that she left without giving Gappy a chance to speak. Gappy proceeds to tell Yasuho to look in some random direction before smashing the perpetrator (Ojiro)’s face in. Gappy thinks Ojiro is the real Kira and Ojiro thinks Gappy is Kira, since he looks exactly alike.

Question: What did we learn from these few chapters?

1)Yoshikage Kira exists in this universe and is still a hand freak and possibly a real danger. This will obviously come back later.

2)Gappy is most likely Yoshikage Kira, who somehow lost his memories. The idea that they are just two people who happen to look identical, except for the haircut and wear the same clothing, seems ludicrous. The story has to, at some point, go back to this.

3)Some woman is being held captive and the signs on her hands indicate a stand ability is at play.

4)This is a more R-rated part than previous ones.

5)Yasuho is a sensitive and kind person who cannot tolerate cruelty. This will come back later for her character.

6)Gappy’s stand design and ability. My favourite stand ability of any main JoJo based on its broad and cool potential applications, which will be explored later in the part.

7)Gappy is another genius JoJo, who knows how to utilize to the full extend the capabilities of his stand and we’ve only gotten a little taste of that. We will see more of it later into the part.

8)Stands and stand abilities in Jojolion are a lot more intricate, specific and, usually, less overpowered in a broad sense, but more so in a well thought out scenario. Stand battles will also be a lot more abstract and feel less and less like battles. The barrages are mainly used as a finishing move more so than the means by which one defeats an enemy. If you are here mainly for action and action sequences, you can leave. This is the part in JoJo that is the least “action” based and the action tag takes a back seat to other genres to be finally fully explored within JoJo. This will be the case for all the fights in the part and will be important to remember later as some of the most bizarre sequences in JoJo ever will unfold.

9)Yasuho is ALWAYS willing to give others a second chance. This will come back almost at the end of the part.

10)We introduced a character, seemingly a minor villain who, believe it or not, will come back 90 later.

11)Everything so far was just bait. The story will go back to it later.

12)Kira has gone missing….duh! Of course we’re gonna find out what exactly is going on with Kira/Gappy….later.

13)Gappy, despite seeming goofy as hell with his actions, innocence and SpongeBob teeth, is actually really violent towards his enemies. Kira confirmed??? Well….you guessed it. This will come back later.

Not only can we learn SO much from these few chapters, which will likely be adapted into just one episode in the anime version, right at the beginning, but none of it is useless information or information that will only serve the current arc or defeating the current obstacle. It is all vital to the plot of the part on a fundamental level. It gives you ALL the context you need to be invested in the mystery and characters of this part. It gives you just enough information to make you excited about what you’re in for with this part, but just short of enough information in order to fully grasp what’s going on and where the story might be heading in the future.

And all of that is without even discussing things like the fact that Gappy somehow instinctively knew how to use his stand, signifying that in one form or another, he has used it before, or things like the man Gappy envisions in a vague flashback-like sequence he gets out of nowhere, despite having no other memories whatsoever, which is still an enigma to this day, even as Jojolion just finished. It is a sequence so minor that you probably completely forgot about after your first reading, since you already have so much to take in with what’s going on, but simultaneously so major that ten years later people, myself included, are hardcore theorizing on those four panels, that it could even be the final villain of the JJBA, appearing and being fleshed out in the next part.

After this, Yasuho tries to introduce him into the Higashikata family. He also takes up the name Josuke, after Yasuho straight up tells this mofo that he looks like a dog, and couples with the surname of the Joshu’s family, it all comes together to reveal who he is supposed to be an alternate universe version of……sorta. After the fight, where he proves to be a good guy to Yasuho and clearing up the misunderstanding by defeating the current enemy at stake, this feels earned for Gappy, but he has yet to earn his position as a family member in the eyes of each one of the Higashikata family members. His interactions with Joshu are already set up to be interesting, but we have yet to see the interactions with the other children, who he has to take on, in a non-combative way, one by one.

We can also draw an easy mind map of the events as they unfold:

Naked amnesiac -> naked body and hat -> misunderstanding -> fight -> ability -> injury -> hospital -> ability again -> hat again -> store -> identity -> location of residence of the identity aka old home -> hostage -> dark past -> red herring enemy -> ability, in full form this time -> revelation -> new home -> new family -> new conflicts and new bonds -> new things to laugh and cry about

The only issue with having a supernatural series where random people all over the world have unique superpowers, where the main characters have to fight a central villain and all the henchmen he puppeteers is that the only way to do it is with the “enemy of the week” forman or, in this case, “stand user of the week” format. Now, I LOVE this story structure and it’s for the same reasons I love tournament arcs. It’s just an easy convenient way to have as many fights one after another with minimum filler in between. But I’ve heard a lot of complaints from a lot of different people, who have a strong distaste for this format and I can see how it can get repetitive for them. This is one of the most common criticisms of JJBA as a whole, as every part in it has this structure to some extent. But you can already see, with this setup, that Jojolion is different. In fact, it is the furthest from this narrative structure that JJBA has ever been the plot progression is unpredictable, yet so smooth, you rarely even notice that we’ve changed the scene un until the setting intervenes with the story. Arcs blend into one another, despite having a very distinct feel to them.

Obviously I didn’t think about all of this while reading it, but breaking it down to its elements and revelations about the story elements like now solidifies this introduction arc as the best not just in all of JoJo for me, but in all of manga. I’ve never seen a first arc this gripping. Not only did I read the first two volumes in, what feels like, a heartbeat or a single breath, but I subconsciously absorbed all of this information, that takes far more time for me to write about in this paragraph than to experience while reading the manga.

Sometimes it’s just fun to read the most recent chapter of an utterly unpredictable series, be confused, put on a tinfoil hat and theorize endlessly about what’s going to come next in the story and how it’s all gonna tie up together at the end. Typically, those theories are far too grand, because we imagine what we most hope for, these series being as good as possible for our particular tastes, but also way off, because at the time of coming up with them, we miss and have to assume essential information that we’re not supposed to have, that the author has yet to reveal. I assure you, there is no better series for this than Jojolion. For the first half of Jojolion, the big question is “What is Josuke’s true identity?”. As it already did with Kira, it will give you red herrings, it will confuse you. He obviously has the birthmark, therefore he must also be a Joestar. Him reading the family tree and history in the basement of the Higashikata house is another thing that puts you off, as not many potential candidates are there, and there are even unnamed or not shown characters, who are canonically in the family tree, possibly setting up future characters. The family’s maid even has an excellent arc, that gives a partial explanation to Josuke’s bizarre anatomy, but things aren’t fully revealed up until the end of the Vitamin C arc, one of the greatest arcs in all of JoJo, that simultaneously concludes Josuke’s identity arc, Hato’s arc, the oldest daughter of Norisuke and Kato, two new, yet old, characters, shows the last of the Higashikata children’s stand ability AND somehow does all of this without contradicting any of the previous, seemingly self-contradictory evidence, AND still leaves room for speculation on certain things to do with Josuke’s past, all while providing an excellent battle, frightening new threat, both stand and stand-user-wise, and a heartbreaking backstory. On top of everything, this arc hits even harder when you listen to Vitamin C and read the lyrics carefully. For the second half of Jojolion, the big question is “Who is the main villain?” This one is even more of an enigma while you’re reading it, with even more red herrings, plot twists, tinfoil hat theories and speculations. It didn’t help that by the time I was caught up with the series, the Vitamin C arc had already concluded and we were just scratching the surface with this second half of the story. It was all up in the air to where it could go. Is it gonna be Jobin? Damo? Kato? Flashback man? Tsurugi? Poor Tom? Norisuke? Toru? Joshu??? No ultimate villain/free for all?

I’ll admit I was a hardcore devout “Jobin final villain” fan-theorist ever since he was first introduced and it was all the way up until chapter 95 that circumstances forced me to drop that worldview. In hindsight, that was really dumb and embarrassing, but for the time being, it’s more credit to Araki for making the part so well that literally anything goes for an ending and every scenario still has seeds planted early on, except possibly what he actually ended up doing.

Steel Ball Run is usually regarded as the best part, and I can kind of see why, though I can’t see why anyone would think it’s surpasses other parts by more than just a small margin. Again, every part of JoJo is masterful, but I do have my favourites. I can guess as to why most people wouldn’t put this one over SBR. For one it’s not as “epic”. The first three parts of JoJo are absolutely epic, which is what made me fall in love with the show in the first place. Part 4, in contrast, is much smaller-scaled that the previous parts, which is also what put me off of it at first. Like I also said, once I gave it a chance I was pleasantly surprised. Part 7, being an alternate version of the first three parts, is also grandious and epic in story and execution. It may be just crossing the US instead of going from Japan to Cairo, but it’s still a crazy journey. Part 8, being an alternate version of mostly part 4, is likewise very similar in scale and, in fact, identical in setting to part 4 for the most part. It’s the least epic part. It’s even less so than part 4, as it doesn’t even keep to just the town of Morioh, but it spends most of its run in the middle of nowhere in rural Japan, which is one of the most anticlimactic settings you could do. Like I said, I fell in love with JoJo because of how intense it was, so the fact that where it is now is still 10/10 but for a completely different reason is insane to me. JoJo has changed so much over its 35 year run so far in both the storytelling and artistic departments, that it’s basically done a full 180, and still manages to not lose its readers’ interest and retain an essence that keeps it unique, though I can definitely see why a minority of people would be put off of what it has become. Its weak setting, combined with its confusing narrative and next level “bizarreness” can make Jojolion a love-it-or-hate-it type part, while for others it’s up there, but has to take a back seat to something more universally enjoyable like Steel Ball Run.

The best way to describe Jojolion is that it’s like putting together a puzzle and each chapter of the series is like a new piece of the puzzle, but no piece is monochrome and actually adds more line work, more details, and even completely new things within it. However, you are not even given the box that the puzzle came in until halfway through, so you don’t even know what you’re building, and when you are finally given the box with the picture on it, you realize two things:

1)The picture on the box has a central part of it damaged and obscured, so it’s still not recognizable. You have to find out what it is by completing the puzzle yourself. At least now you have the general shape of the image you’re trying to put together.

2)The puzzle is actually composed of 5000 pieces, not 1000 like you initially thought, and up until now you’ve only worked on a small part of it, which you thought was the entirety.

I have experienced great mysteries and have been caught up to many serializing shows, but have never experienced this level of writing, where each chapter adds context to not just one character or minor event, but the story as a whole. I have been caught up for four years now, and on a monthly basis, every chapter of second chapter has fundamentally changed my understanding of the plot. After each chapter I come up with pretty solid-sounding theories for what’s gonna happen next and I look up prominent theories online and believe the more believable ones with strong confidence, and each next chapter completely destroys that. And if every chapter changes everything I thought was gonna happen in the future, then every second chapter also changes my understanding of what was happening in the past and present. I’m gonna keep reiterating this until I’ve driven the point home: on an almost monthly basis, my fundamental understanding of what this part is even supposed to be about has changed drastically.

Characters: 10/10

Jojolion features the best overall ensemble of a character cast in JoJo. I will detail a few here.

Josuke

When your main characters start at their lowest points, they are open to the greatest change and it is the greatest accomplishment and fulfillment to watch the process of their character development.

When we see him for the first time, we know absolutely nothing, just like him. In fact, we adopt his perspective for nearly the entirety of the series (minus the flashbacks and narration). This has allowed the reader to most easily relate to Josuke’s woes and reactions and to easily go along with anything that he does, even if his actions do involve the usual JoJo bizarreness, he always has a goal in mind. We feel sympathetic towards this character that woke up knowing nothing and it immediately thrown in a situation where he is cut with needles and razor blades and has to fight off a stranger with the ability to control his limbs and being bitten by snakes, only to then have to prove his worth to his adoptive family and constantly be dragged into “calamities”. He never wished for this, he never went on a big journey to stop some bad guy, knowing there were gonna be painful road blocks in the way. He just wants to live a normal life and find out who he is and what his place is in the world. While having zero knowledge on how the world around him works, he still retains the usual JoJo ability of outsmarting his opponents in unbelievable ways. Much like some of the previous JoJos, especially Giorno, he has his two sides to him. Normally, because of his amnesia, he acts like an innocent child, but when fighting an enemy stand user, he becomes violent, brutal, merciless. As I already stated, his interaction with Ojiro early on proves that and heavily foreshadows how future fights will play out. He is definitely not a “catch and release” (or “retire” as they did in part 3) type fighter. He is an effective rock human killing machine.

The early JoJos tended to start with strength, intelligence, looks and luck all maxed out. While Josuke has all of those (he has a ripped body, is very clever and has a harem almost immediately) but you only really get to see his true badass personality emerge during the fights and slowly over the many arcs it fully replaces the goofy weirdo. Him being able to find his footing is an incredible process to watch and turns him into a character that is almost impossible to hate.

After learning about his past and the only person he can consider a blood relative, Holly Joestar Kira, he goes on to do just about anything in order to harness the fruit’s ability, which is the only hope of healing her sickness. This is obviously mirroring how the driving force behind part 3 was Jotaro trying to save his mom and Joseph – his daughter, however the difference here is that Josuke doesn’t know Holly – he’s only seen her once, and he was already just as determined as Jotaro or any other JoJo was in protecting her before they even met.

Jobin

The reason I so heavily favoured the idea that he is the main villain, aside from the fact that he is an absolutely amazing character and would be a much better final villain, is just that he emanates this insanely cool villain aura. His whole character is a lot of fun and he is possibly the best minor villain in JoJo, unless you count Speedwagon or Stroheim. His introduction arc, which fans dub “Beetle Tendency” is surprisingly hype for what it is.

Kato

How many characters in fiction do you know that would talk about Inca no mazame potatoes in the middle of a fight and carry their crossdressing grandson in their pockets? Truly a great GILF.

Joshu

I absolutely loved Joshu from the start. I don’t think he’s a good person and he clearly isn’t supposed to be a particularly likeable one, and there are some actions of his that I will definitely not even try to defend. That’s not what I’m talking about. Nearly every scene in which Joshu has ever appeared has been hilarious and he does have a lot of redeeming moments and times to shine. I love his stand, I love every instance of him using it and I love his weird antics during the part. His little arc where he ended up getting more and more money by “chance” because of a curse that was placed on him was one of the most fun mini arcs I’ve ever red in anything. Despite his horrible haircut, there is a sense of “coolness” about him and whenever he does actually help in one way or another or accomplish something, he is somehow really badass. I can’t really explain why, but I absolutely adore this character.

Yasuho

What’s not to love about Yasuho? She is literally perfect, or at least impossible to dislike. She is incredibly kind to everyone and shows forgiveness and humility even to people who are clearly a threat. This leads to her only character flaw being that she might be a bit too trusting and naïve.
Josefumi and Kira’s story is treated almost like a mythos in Jojolion, with her being the only thing linking it to the current events and characters.

Tsurugi

Extremely clever child, albeit a bit weird and creepy at times. Definitely not someone to underestimate and a very morally gray/questionable character that really had us there for a long time thinking he was gonna break bad - full on - because of the flash forward.

Art: 8/10 when in black & white and 9/10 when in color

Art has never been the strongest aspect of JoJo. It’s never been bad, but it’s the only aspect of JoJo, where I’m willing to admit that there are many series that beat the JJBA manga. In terms of detail in his drawings, Hirohiko Araki is obviously far surpassed by authors such as Yusuke Murata, Inio Asano, Kentaro Miura, Inoue Takehiko, Kaoru Mori and many others, so I cannot, with an honest look, tell you that JoJo is in that “best of the best” category. However, in terms of pure style, memorable character designs, good paneling and sheer ability to make anything epic, memable and memorable, Araki is definitely in the “best of the best” category.

Araki really goes ham on (pun seriously not initially intended) the art in some specific chapters, typically after a hiatus when he had twice as much time to draw out stuff just how he wanted it to look like. When I think of great artwork in JoJo, I always think of chapter 99 of JoJolion. It all looks great but there is one panel in particular where the more I look at it – the more details I notice with the landscape. Generally not a whole lot of detail is put into the characters, except when they are first introduced or on covers, and instead most of the ink work is focusing on the background art. The art is bizarre (pun fully intended) and honestly doesn’t feel like manga at all. It takes some time getting used to, but it really is in a realm of its own. It looks almost like he goes directly to inking and skips the pencil or shading process.

Araki really likes to draw things out – the first five to ten pages of every chapter usually have zero dialogue. The whole head doctor/dangerous pursuit/endless calamity arc is about 8 volumes in length, but will most likely be adapted in 15 episodes or less as there is so much emphasis on every movement and detail in the art and so little dialogue. Unlike other authors, he hasn’t really complained about creative or artistic burnout or overworking himself because of a packed schedule. He must have used the stone mask on himself, because he seems just as youthful as ever and his stories are just as fresh and exciting as ever, even more so in recent years.

Conclusion

I believe Jojolion is the most well-written story I have ever experienced thus far in my life. Reading it has been some of the most mind-boggling experience of my life. I have probably, nay, definitely overhyped this manga to such an extent that no one will really agree, but I don’t care. I wanted to express how I feel now that it’s finished after ten years, four of which I have been strictly following it.

Not only is this my favourite manga, but it’s something that I’m certain will adapt really well into anime form and be my favourite anime ever as well. Not only that, but there are several ways in which I think the anime will most likely improve from the manga.

I am incredibly excited to be there on a monthly basis starting a new story in part 9. And, who knows, maybe after it's done I'll write an even more massive essay of a review.

See you there.

Godspeed!

What is there not to love about JoJolion?It has a great story and it takes place in the SBR universe.
The main JoJo overall is pretty good,I can't say he's the best because even he doesn't know who he is.He doesn't really have a "thing"or an outstanding feature that's exclusive to him.
I really love how JoJolion pretty much ditched the stand fight after stand fight formula,The character development is pretty good, Yasuho is a fucking babe and a great character,the artstyle is well,it doesn't even look like a manga tbh.
The story is really great not only because its nothing like we have seen in previous parts ... but its really interesting,I mean I already know the biggest spoiler and i still enjoy it.
The only issue I have personally is that the Stand designs are mostly weird as shit(especially the Higashikata family Stands) but then it gets balanced out by some great designs like Paisley Park, Paper Moon King,Soft&Wet


P.S Araki incuded nipples in this one and porn jokes soo bonus points for that

- "This is a story about breacking a curse" -

Here we are, after 10 years this part of JoJo is over. As usual Araki improves from part to part, and this is certainly his peak.

Story: 8/10
Araki said "Let's take the atmosphere and style of Diamon is Unbreackable and make it even more interesting by putting some weird fruit" and it worked. I really loved the fourth part, and JoJolion was no exception. We start with the mystery of Josuke's identity, then move on to the rest of the HIgashikata family ... and his curse. Just like the Joestar ... curse. A family that for generation was persecuted by the strange phenomeno of Stands. But in JoJolion there's more than this, there are the rock men, the wall of eyes, all connected at the end with Stell Ball Run.
The storytelling ability of Araki manages to capture the reader and excite him as in SBR.

Art: 10/10
I just love the Araki's artstyle and in this part it gets even more creative.

Characters: 9/10
In the first universe of JoJo the protagonist is always shown as he is, and his past and character are immediately understood.
Instead from SBR the protagonist becomes the most mysterious character, which we discover as the story continues. And so it also happens in JoJolion.
At first Josuke seemed to me in some moments very similar to Shinji Hikari from Evangelion. Both in search of their identity, but Josuke has two. He does not know which of the two to be, and in the course of the manga many memories of Kira and Josefumi surface. Eventually he realizes that he has now become a Higashikata, and accepts his identity.
I also loved Jobin's character, a little left out in the finale but still his backstory is very interesting.

Oh and, MAMEZUKU MY BELOVED

Overall: 9/10

I absolutely enjoyed this part. It became my favorite. I loved the setting of part 4, and this part makes it even better.

Sooo, we're at the end of the review! Thanks for reading and sorry if it's not really good but i made this just after I finished reading the last chapter.

See you in JoJoLANDS!

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure Part 8: Jojolion. What else can I say but, wow! This is a masterpiece. People like to point to Steel Ball Run as the definitive "best" Jojo part, and while it was definitely amazing, I prefer this part (and even Stone Ocean) to the western, horse-racing, Jesus-body-part-searching, action-adventure, battle seinen. I guess I'll start with the story.

Story (8/10)
I'm leaving this at a tentative 8 out of 10 instead of a 9 or a 10, not because I think it is undeserving but simply because Jojolion hinges a lot on its mystery and the set up for things to come in the future, ... and, to be honest, I'm not sure if I should feel worried (because of High Voltage) or excited (because of Made in Heaven). In any case, so far it has been amazing. The first stretch in and of itself is really good. The slow introduction to the various members of the Higashikata family as well as the Damokan group, slowly giving hints to Josuke's past all the while showing off Yasuho and her abilities as well as plot points the rest of the story revolve around.

One of the big points is the Rokakaka fruit, as well as the New Rokakaka and Rokakaka 6251 (Locacaca? Also pretty sure I messed up that number). The progress of showing off more and more of the Rokakaka is incredibly well done, and its connection to the Wall Eyes. The Wall Eyes is also a mystery in and of itself, and if executed properly, its connection to Josuke's past and Johnny Joestar can be really compelling. But we'll see. The second half is just now building up to the climax, and the setup so far is phenomenal. But we'll see. Basically, I really like the story, and can't wait to see where the mystery goes.

Characters (10/10)
We'll go one-by-one.

Josuke - An amazing protagonist. His slow discovery of who he is as a person is amazing probably because it is fully shown in one of the best arcs in the entire series. Him trying to understand who he is as a person, as an individual, even after he has technically already knowledgable about who he is is a journey that has an incredibly satisfying journey, and is setting up an incredibly exciting pay-off.

Yasuho - She is just amazing. Her innocent and kind-hearted nature while not being very clearly definitely good girl of pure morally righteous justice all the time is just so good, and her development through the story is done so well. Her recent disagreement with Josuke just adds a lot to both of their characters. Can not wait to see what Araki has in store for her.

Mamezuku - He is less of an amazing character as he is a fun one, and one that I would hate to see die, please Araki. To me, he sort of just is a better Rohan, and his bullshit antics are funny every single time. Even so, I fear for his life, considering he is a dog(gy style) and is named after a not so subtle song that raises many death flags. Please. Please no.

Jobin - He is such a compelling villain. He is just a human who hasn't fully grasped how much his actions can have consequence on the people around him, and when he messes up, you can see him do it. His motivation is childish but also understandable, and he is a really unique flavor of villains not yet seen in Jojo. Very cool, hope he is the main villain.

Others - Tooru and HD are cool in concept and have a pretty solid motivation. Can't wait to see what happens. Kyo is underutilized, Joshu is underrated, and Daiya is underage. Norisuke is super cool, the minor villains I really like (especially Aisho and Poor Tom), Hato is interesting, though not really used, Tsurugi is really compelling and I enjoy him a lot, Kaato is just Jobin but not as prevalent and childish, and I really like Mitsuba, she's sort of a wild card who might or might not be a villain.

Art (9/10)
Just look at it. It is good. At least in my opinion.

In conclusion, read Jojolion. I really liked it, though I know the slow mysterious build-up isn't for everyone. Still, easily the best Jojo part, at least in my eyes.

(this is a quick review, I didn't really feel like going into huge detail about every point I make)

Honestly, the part isn't that bad, it's just the fandom that really gets to me. I hate how everyone who has read this part seems to think that this is the best part ever. This part is very bland, it takes out all of the life that Morioh had in part 4. It tried to do what part 5 did with its main villain, except instead of it being some big important figure it was just some guy. All of the side characters were extremely unlikable ... besides the dad of the family. The main Jojo is leagues worse than OG part 4s Josuke. The main villain's stand is overhyped to shit. The ending is as cheesy as "It was friendship all along." A good amount of the stands are lame. There are no big "hype" moments that Jojo is well known for, and the one time there is about to be one you are practically cock blocked. The story does not know what it wants to be with a constant change in the mood every chapter. The whole main point of this part was to figure out Josukes main identity which is a decent concept that was executed so unbelievably poorly. You find out about 98% of Josuke's identity in the first 30 chapters or so, and afterward, it's clearly evident that Araki does not know where to go with the story.

With Jojolion having concluded after 10 years of publishing I finally feel comfortable putting my thoughts down and writing this review of what has been the most engaging part of Jojo for me.

I caught up on Jojolion a little more than a year ago with the series already being in it's last arc and final battle. The story of Jojolion feels like it is split into two halves, kind of like how part 4 of the series is structured.
My overall enjoyment of both halves is about equal, though maybe I liked the first half a little better as the main drive of the story ... hit more with me.

A lot of the strength from the manga comes from it's protagonst, Josuke, his indentity is a mystery and just like Josuke himself, we as the reader also want to learn his identity and are compelled into his goal. I feel like this approach to the story worked really well to immediatly get you engaged and interested to find out more about the mysteries surrounding it.

Josuke's chartacter is also shaped by the people surrounding him, Yasuho especially who is the first person Josuke ever meets. Following them and their relationship is an absolute joy, and even though they might get forced apart or things get inbetween them, they always come back together and seeing them together will never fail to make me smile. The Higashikata family also plays a big part on Josuke's character, Josuke's relationship with the family evolves throughout the part and the conlusion to this relationship gets beatifully displayed in the last scene of the manga.

In the final arc of Jojolion, Josuke's group, Jobin and the rockhumans are all after the same thing, but the biggest element here is the stand of the rock human's leader: 'The Wonder of U' . Jojo's ending battles have always been very unique and engaging and The Wonder of U is no exception. This arc, which ends the second half of the story, and the Vitamin C arc, which ends the first, are probably some of my favorite arcs in all of jojo.

While some of the questions throughout the part are still unanswered in the ens or were dropped along the way, the overal theme and story have been concluded very well in my opinion. And the ride there has been incredibly fun. Having a new chapter to look forward to every month and speculating about Jojolion was a big part of where my enjoyment of the manga came from, as well as seeing the story and the characters unfold. I'm really going to miss this story and it's characters. And I am so thankful that Araki has shared his story with us and plans to keep doing so.
I can't wait to see what he plans to tell next in JOJOLANDS.

Thank you for reading!

[Updated, check the end for the new part]
Some people love this part, and of course they have every right to, but I just don't get it. This part has zero appeal, the story is boring and beside the usual weirdness it doesn't feel like JoJo at all.

Story: Pointless (1/10)
The climax of this part is people waiting fruits to grow. You never know what this part is about, and fans talk like it's the best thing ever, but do you really enjoy reading a story that goes nowhere for years? Most fights are boring and feel to take forever to end, and it's one of the ... reasons why it's so hard to read this part, since this is a battle-seinen manga. The only good ones were Vitamin C and Ozon Baby that I remember. The worst is obviously the beetle fight arc, that people enthuse about and say it's one of the best, but I guess it's just a meme, like some people ironically like the movie "The Room".

Talking about fights, Soft & Wet is one of the worst stands we have for a Jojo. Its design is awful and shows zero personality (I guess it suits well its user, then) and it's so overpowered that he can pull anything out of his ass during fights and bullshit his way to victory. Remember in the beginning when it took Joshu's eyesight and then he never used that trick again? Well, it got to be nerfed at least a little, otherwise all fights would last like 10 seconds. Not that being stupid is something exclusive for Soft & Wet, since most stands here are either useless or overpowered, the worst case of this being Paper Moon King. Still, there are a few decent ones like Speed King and King Nothing, but they are very rare.

The only thing that sticks you to the story is the mistery about Josuke's identity. You hype for it to be something big, when it actually is so stupid and unnecessary that it could be brought in the first chapters. Because he already knew he was Kira since the beginning and the part that was missing was Josefumi, who is also a boring and uninteresting character who adds nothing to the plot. Still, it was dragged on and overhyped as something important, but nothing changed.

After Josuke recognizing his identity he often states that he is a fusion, but in practice he is just Kira. Norisuke adopted him because he is Kira. The damokan were after him because of Kira. He meets Kira's sister, and is doing a giant effort to help Kira's mother, while he didn't even think about researching Josefumi's life or caring if he has a family who is missing him.

After that, the plot starts revolving around the rokakaka fruit, which might be the worst artifact in the series. Compare it to the stone mask: It could transform you into a vampire and it was made by pillar men, later Kars used it with the stone of aja to achieve his goal.

Now, this dumb fruit: It can bring you something you want but you have to give away something in return, it could end there but they introduced the New Rokakaka and didn't give us a clue what that was about and later the Locacaca 6251, and again nothing about it. We don't know what it does and why is it so OP.

Anyways, having the plot of this part being about fruits is ridiculous. The previous ones had amazing ideas, like finding pieces of a holy corpse that could give you powers, trying to stop the end of the universe, searching for a serial killer blended in a small town, and so it goes. I have my own opinion about them as well, for example I dislike part 5 more than part 8 for various reasons, but fighting gangsters to become the boss of the mob seems like a way better story than collecting fruits.

Another terrible aspect of Jojolion is how terrible the stand battles are. And this is a main point, since we're talking about a fighting manga that gave us amazing battles in previous parts. Here they're done in the worst way possible.

I already mentioned the beetle fight, but we have more examples later on, like Jobin and Yasuho's last confrontation. You could have Jobin punch her with his stand and burn her, instead he damages a phone Paisley Park is in, by throwing it in a toilet. That's it, the JoBro of this part almost dies like a joke. We came from Caesar's epic fight with Wammu in part 2 to this, a main character having her last confront and almost dying in a toilet because she was searching for a fruit.

Art: Mostly ok (6/10)
Araki has improved his art skills throught the years and part 8 have some of the most detailed shots. But since the story is based in the same town, we don't see anything out of the normal being drawn.
Yet, the character design is dull. Yasuho's is gorgeous, but the rest is boring, like Josuke's sailor outfit. Some others like Josefumi, Tsurugi and Joshu are just awful and bad looking.

Character: (1/10)
This part also has some of the worst characters in all of the series, and I eventually will get to it.

Let's talk about the protagonist, Jo2uke. His personality is totally flat and has almost nothing likeable. In 94 chapters we know nothing about his own goals or motivations, and the only time he shows any characterization is when he helps his/ Kira's mother. He is the total opposite of the original Josuke.

Yoshikage "K2ra", as the name says, is this universe's version of DiU's main villain. Yet he doesn't look anything like Kira besides the name, has nothing of the original Kira's coolness and is just boring as Jo2uke. People love to say he is the SBR version of Jotaro, but he also has zero similarities with him, and so is his sister Kyo Nijimura.

By the surname, you could say Kyo is this universe version of Okuyasu, but besides looking like a JoBro in the first chapters, being the one to reveal Josuke's identity, she vanishes and does nothing for the rest of the part. I mean, HER BROTHER whom she says to care about is in a certain way alive and is the protagonist of this part, looking for a way to defeat the rokakaka organization and save their mother, but she rather clean the Higashikata house than help him?

Some characters we get to know are recurring, but they don't take any part in the story besides always showing up. Like the Higashikata sisters, Daiya and Hato.

What we see is Joshu, a character people see as meme when he shouldn't exist. He is abusive, disgusting and literally tried to rape Yasuho. And after that he gets his own arc and gets to do a lot of other shit during this part. I mean, what the hell Araki?

Not that molesting Yasuho is only his thing. Wu Tomoki also did it, and also Tsurugi. Jobin's child competes with Joshu for who is the worst character of the part. After the retcon that change his age from 2 to 10-11, this kid has been nothing but nuisance. The entire plot revolves about getting those fruits to him so he could heal his sickness. Everyone feels they need to help him, and not only his family, but also Josuke and Yasuho.

And how does he retribute? Like I said before, molesting Yasuho, trapping her in a nightmare world, and also bringing enemies to the protagonists. His stand is ridiculous and no one can explain how it works, so he basically can teleport people from a point to another, fake his and his father's death and instant kill people around him. There is no fight, he just does whatever he wants and that's it. That's a main villain's stand right there, and it belongs to an annoying child we are supposed to care about.

The only good characters in this part are Mamezuku, Norisuke, Yasuho and possibly the Head Doctor.

Norisuke also suffered a retcon. He wanted to kill Josuke, but then became his ally. What happened to that? That apart, he is one of my favorites and one of the few characters in this part that aren't annoying, and the only one worth of something in his dumpster fire family that we are forcedly supposed to care about. Too bad, because I really like Hato and her development, she was a badass when defeating Tamaki Damo after being used by him. Yet, she suffers the Kyo Nijimura treatment and is forgotten for the rest of the part.

About Mamezuku, I can say for sure that he is the best character of this part. He gives a classic JoBro vibe (besides Yasuho being the main JoBro here), has a cool stand that is interesting to see in fights and does a good trio with Josuke and Yasuho. His late introduction is something disappointing, as he only first appears in chapter 65, I mean, we never had a major ally introduced after almost 3/4 of the part before! Imagine if he had appeared earlier and sticked with Josuke for the rest of the part, if the second fight was against him and not useless Daiya, and if it was him to help Josuke in Shakedown Road and in EoH instead of fucking Joshu? Anyway, at least his character was created.

And Yasuho, maybe the most mistreated character in this part. Can't say she wasn't annoying in the beginning, because she was. In one day after meeting the protagonist she is already in love with him. Their relation is forced and I can't take it seriously, nor ship it. I mean, by the second time they meet in their life, they are crying as they were super close friends who don't see each other in years.

Besides being a submissive light-headed waifu to Josuke, she is a cool character later in the part, as we know more about her and she shows her skills. She becomes a great character and deserved to be in a better part than this one, maybe in Koichi's place in part 4.

Enjoyment (1/10)
I think I already defined it. Jojolion has a boring story that goes nowhere, almost all of the characters are annoying and the fights are mostly running away from something until the enemy gets defeated. You can get enjoyment from this as a lot of people on these reviews do, but I didn't manage to do it.
For me the best part of Jojolion was the flashback of Johnny Joestar and Rina Higashikata. Not only because I love Johnny, but it also gave this part more context and connection with the previous one.

[Chapter 110 Update]
Overall (1/10)
I'm giving it a 1 but I don't think that Jojolion is the worst manga in the world. It's just that, for Jojo standards, this part is very weak, disappointing and has a lot of terrible aspects.

If it isn't the worst part of JoJo, it's surely one of them. I personally hated part 5 and 6 more, but because of the frustration I got from them in the second half and in the end, respectively. With part 8, it's.... just boring from the beginning. Jojolion got better when Mamezuku first appeared to form the main trio, and you could skip the beginning and start there, because nothing happens before that.

And when the part was improving with the doctors' arcs, that made Jojolion interesting, the manga once again chooses the worst options for the ending. They did all the character building and focus for Kaato and Jobin so the latter could be the main villain that actually made sense, but it was all discarded and he dies in a stupid way.

The main villain that we got was the Head Doctor, and his idea, his power and his design were very interesting. That was, until the retcon that made him a stand of Yasuho's boring ex-boyfriend. And there were many situations before that showed that he was clearly not a stand, like other people seeing him, him looking as a rock human, him and the stand form appearing at the same place at the same time, and so it goes.

The fact is that this part's ending was so messed up that Araki didn't know what he was doing with it. Like him not knowing how to make the final fight against The Wonder of U, so he resorts on throwing random rock animals to have more conflict.

And Tooru himself may not be the worst villain we had, but he is indeed one of the weakest. He put all that work for years just so he could sell some fruits that supposedly make you immortal but all they actually do is make you steal body parts from the others. And that power may be good but it's not worthy of being hyped for half of the series. So, Tooru's motivations were basically selling fruits to make money and trying to get Yasuho back, that's what part 8 gives us for this universe's version of the pillar men.

And the last chapters also tried to pull this part's own Sleeping Sleeves with the random, unrelated flashback in the end. The fact is that the Sleeping Sleeves flashback in part 5 doesn't deserve the hate it gets, it's actually well placed and reflects Bruno and Mista's roles in the part and their endings. Here we have Lucy, the damsel in distress from part 7, appearing in Japan in the middle of WW2 to talk to a bridge.

The time spent on that could be used for something better, like giving Mamezuku a decent farewell. Or explaining to us why tf the flashforward of Tsurugi dragging Norisuke's body didn't happen. Or where was Kato for the last 50 chapters.

I don't know what happened to JoJo. All parts have their flaws, but this part itself is a flaw. Part 7 was amazing and one of the best of the series, so I don't understand what happened to Araki when he decided to do this one. I guess he should forget this part even existed, so if a part 9 happens it will be better.

Coming after several successful years for Araki and the continued rise of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure with its anime adaptation, Jojolion is a bold and ambitious entry in the series. It tries many new things and, as with Stone Ocean, proves to be very hit-or-miss: those willing to engage with its deeper themes will find a masterpiece, while others may find themselves disheartened.

The difference here is that the work itself invites deeper thought and what is mostly in the way is an expectation of it to be somewhat like previous parts, notably parts 4 and 7.

With that said, let’s explore Jojolion—its themes, structure, and how ... it compares to other Jojo's parts. We'll also touch on whether its beginning is misleading and how it fares against the series’ overall legacy.

So, what is this show about?

Each part of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure revolves around a central theme—often connected to karma and the broader concept of how our actions shape fate, family, and community. While each part introduces unique themes, they all fit into this overarching framework.

In the first trilogy, Araki explores heroism. The second trilogy, while loosely connected, continues to explore karma. Steel Ball Run starts a new trilogy focusing on identity, outwardly exploring the world. In contrast, Jojolion goes in the opposite direction—its protagonist has everything he needs from the beginning but must look inward to find himself.

It's important to distinguish Jojolion from Part 4. Though both parts take place in a town, Part 4 doesn't offer the same introspective focus. The original Josuke doesn’t engage in the kind of self-reflection that defines Jojolion’s Josuke. Those looking to relive Part 4 will likely be disappointed.

First things later, let’s talk art direction.

Araki’s artistic prowess continues to evolve in Jojolion. His compositions, often surreal and intricate, demonstrate his growing global recognition and creative confidence. With each part, Araki pushes the boundaries of his artistry, and Jojolion is no exception.

While the "Spin" system from Steel Ball Run is absent here, the stand abilities in Jojolion take on a new degree of freedom. The static, familiar setting of Morioh allows for a deeper exploration of the stands’ potential, contributing to unique, imaginative battles. The more introspective nature of the story aligns perfectly with this shift in stand dynamics.

So, how does it start?

At first glance, Jojolion can seem like a mystery manga, which isn’t entirely accurate. Mystery elements are prominent in the first half, elevating Josuke’s journey of self-discovery. However, as the story progresses, Josuke’s focus shifts from searching for external clues to uncovering his own identity. Once this transition occurs, the narrative moves away from its mystery framework.

What about the characters?

The characters in Jojo's Bizarre Adventure often feel like hidden gems, full of depth that may not be immediately obvious. They enter and exit the narrative, sometimes without completing their arcs, which adds to the sense that they exist in a larger world beyond the scope of the story. This gives the series an authenticity, as though Araki is recounting events from a real world, where people have their own lives that occasionally intersect with the main plot.

The stand battles in Jojolion are less about direct combat and more about solving puzzles, often revealing the inner complexities of the characters involved. Josuke, unlike Johnny, isn’t focused on growth in a traditional sense. His journey is more about self-discovery, and Araki handles this thematic shift with great care, creating some of the most intricate character-driven moments in the series.

What about the story itself?

Like other parts, Jojolion maintains an episodic structure, with each “episode” feeling more like a mini-arc. Each antagonist plays a crucial role, not just driving the plot forward but also adding layers to the overarching themes. The pacing, while deliberate, gives each encounter ample room to breathe, allowing the story and characters to develop naturally.

One of Jojolion’s unique strengths lies in its introduction of two elements rarely seen in the Jojo’s universe: a romantic interest integral to the plot and multiple factions working independently, each with its own motivations. These additions bring a new level of complexity and emotional depth to the narrative.

Then, what did I think of it as a whole?

Jojolion is, without a doubt, my favorite manga. While Steel Ball Run appeals strongly to Western audiences and is often cited as the best part of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Jojolion has earned significant recognition in Japan. It is a masterpiece in its own right, though its bold choices will inevitably turn some readers away.

Many approach Jojolion expecting something like parts 4 or 7. But doing so is a disservice—Jojolion isn’t trying to replicate those stories. In fact, it goes in the opposite direction, offering a new take on the series’ themes and structure. For those open to its deeper themes and introspective nature, it is an unforgettable experience.

Anyone who ever got into Jojo decided which part was their favorite, at some point. Some people like the sleepy and hometown-y feeling of Part 4, some people enjoy the over-the-top bravado and the bizarre race of the Pillar Men from Part 2, some people really enjoy Part 7 for his "going back to the roots" idea of basically rebooting Part 1 and Part 3.

And then comes Jojolion, the 8th part of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, an installment in the series that is for those who want a little bit of all of the above, taking the best from Part 2 and Part 4, using the ... iconic formula and style that Araki achieved in the past decade.

We're back to a familiar city, Morio-cho, where a young, naked boy with no name and no memories of his past emerges from a rocky hill after the Tōhoku earthquake, happened in 2011. As he discovers his power of "stealing" (and it's not mere stealing, we're talking about stealing immaterial things, like people's eyesight, or ground's friction), he's quickly introduced to his new life, his new family, his new love interest and a series of deadly foes that want his and his new family's heads, as he tries to bring back his past and to find out who he truly is.

The art style and the designs are masterful, probably the best Araki ever made. While we still have a little "same face syndrome" from Part 7 and a couple too many blank backgrounds, we can't deny the breathtaking designs of the characters, the stands and the overall sleepy world of a more country-sided Morio-cho. Like a true Rohan Kishibe follower, Araki takes what he can from the real world and twists it into a new, personal and fascinating universe.

Josuke, or as I like to call him, Gappy, the new Jojo, is really different from the one we've seen in the past. While he still recalls a couple of important traits from his ancestors, he's his own character: a cute, innocent and sometimes awkward teenager whose unusual personality (for the Jojo standards) breathes new air in a series that always saw violent macho-men and merciless, fabulous criminals as main characters.

We could divide the manga into three different "phases": the one where Gappy and his newfound family and friends fight with their stands, the one where Gappy explores Morio-cho and tries to found out clues about his past and the one where he just hangs out and interacts with the other characters. These three phases blend perfectly into each other, giving us the right amount of action and strategy from the fights but also enough time to learn and get attached to the characters, both the good ones and the evil ones.

The story isn't finished yet, but what else is there to say?
Jojolion is a new, fantastic installment in the +30 years running shonen masterpiece that is Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, that is both able of attracting new fans and keeping the old ones stuck to the most recent tankobons.

Like I said in the introduction, every Jojo fan has their favorite part. But despite which one is yours, you will love Jojolion.

Jojolion is a difficult pill to swallow for some. All the bizarre components of the series are present, but in a darker and more story oriented method. The themes and the thrill of mystery carry this part more than any action pieces. Some of the action is quite nice and gory but it is not Part 5 (I mean, white album alone is more memorable than most jojo fights). But what are those themes?

In Jojolion we are immediately introduced to a conflict. A man is naked and alone without any memories of who he is and what he is meant to be. His "Identity" has ... been taken. Through the story we meet the Higashikata family and at various points in their interactions we hear about "paths" and "happiness" within the world. Without getting too spoiler-y, The patriarch (Norisuke) believes happiness lies in family, Daiya believes happiness is love and the ability to share experience, Joubin believes it is to rise above where one was at birth. Every character is pursuing happiness, a path to follow. But this is different, Josuke (our MC) doesn't even have his identity, how is he to know what can bring him "happiness" when he has nothing. Alongside him is Yasuho, a young girl who has her memories but still feels the dread of a lack of "identity" and latches on to helping Josuke completely on instinct. Together they try and find their "identity" and from there can work towards "happiness by following ones path."

These ideas of happiness are very "human" so naturally the antagonists of this part are people who would either step on others happiness or are not human at all. The rock humans are isolated creatures devoid of the warmth of emotion and love that humans have the capacity to feel. Araki has long made characters who experience no love to be villains (remember Dio's childhood?). Here these rock humans live long lives and often have stands, their age is slowed and their strength is constant, but without warmth they are alone. Josuke has no memories but moves forward with the "flow" that is present in life, hoping to find his path. The rock humans in their quiet lives of secrecy are afraid that all they are is memories and dreams, the only paths to follow are those born out of those anxieties and angers.

"Happiness"

"Path"

"Identity"

"Memories"

These themes help create the most existential part of Jojo yet, but not wallowing in self pity and sadness like most other manga do. Overall, this is uplifting. In a world of calamity (Japan had gone through natural disaster at the start of serialization, and experiences crippling Covid infection now at the end of it), this manga does not ignore the ugly, but tries to affirm that choosing a path, and choosing the right one, is what humans do regardless. It's all we can do.

I'll keep this as spoiler free as possible. I'm not very active on MAL and this is my first review too........ so.

This part is the pinnacle of Bizarre

I'm sure you read the synopsis and other reviews so I'll keep this short too.

The story follows Josuke Higashikata who is a man with 4 balls 4 eyes and 2 tongues. Too bad he doesn't have 4 nipples.
AND you cannot and absolutely must not hate it just because you think its directionless. We are following the journey of a man who not only lost his memories but has no identity as well. He is Directionless and drives the ... part and hence it feels directionless, it makes sense. Don't complain.

The characters are well written. I think none of the characters outshine Josuke in any way contrary to a few other previous jojo parts..
Could there be a main antagonist for this part? I don't know. I'm not sure. I think every villain in this story is a main antagonist in their own way. Ignoring the fact that the final villain still suits their role as the 'Main antagonist' well. They're not driven by the fact that they want to rule the world, or act like the dudes who spam "we live in a society" but not as a joke. They're pretty simple and realistic in my opinion at least which is why I like them.

The art is wonderful, not much to say.

For Jojolion specifically. I don't think it's ever boring. It feels like every chapter is a damn cliffhanger and well that's it

Spoilers ahead. Don't read if you haven't finished the manga.

Jojolion proved to be very disappointing in many regards. I had high hopes after reading Steel Ball Run and was excited to see the direction Araki was going with the story in the new SBR universe. While Jojolion undoubtedly had the most complex and thought-out underlying story out of all parts, it suffered from a fatal flaw--it was boring as all hell. The plot about the fruit smuggling and overcoming curses was an interesting concept but I felt it was too dragged out and could have been told in a much better way. Certain arcs ... just went on and on and didn't accomplish much (eg. Blue Hawaii).

Jojolion lacks many good, well-written characters. The only truly memorable characters in my opinion are Jobin and Rai Mamezuku. The protagonist, Josuke, feels very one-dimensional and static despite the fact that he is a mixture of two people. Josuke’s goals also strike as some of the weakest goals a main JoJo has had, with Jobin's goals of securing a better future for the Higashikata family being much more just and desirable. The minor villains are for the most part lackluster and have terrible arcs aside from Tamaki Damo’s Vitamin C. In particular I found the Aphex Twins to be some of the weakest and least interesting characters in the entire series.

I also thought the stands in this part were particularly boring. Rai Mamezuku is one of my favorite characters from the part but his stand is literally just Stone Free 2. Stand abilities in this part were usually either too vague and confusing or too limited. However I do think that the stand of the main villain, Wonder of U, is one of the greatest and most terrifying stands in the series. It’s too bad Tooru, the user, showed up way too late in the part for him to feel all that menacing. On the other hand, I really dislike Josuke's stand, Soft and Wet. Especially in the final arc with Go Beyond. It's literally just a deus ex machina because there was no possible way to defeat Tooru. In other parts, gaining a final ability to seize victory made sense, with Jotaro's realization of the similarities between Star Platinum and The World, Giorno’s acquisition of Gold Experience Requiem, and Johnny's constantly evolving Tusk combined with mastery of the Spin. Josuke, on the other hand, just ends up having these invisible bubbles. It was extremely dissatisfying and further contributed to the lack of development Josuke got throughout the story.

Now onto my least favorite aspect, the Rock Organisms. The Rock Humans just don’t feel like they were necessary. As the Jojolion “counterpart” of the Pillar Men, they lacked the menacing nature and personality that the Pillar Men had. I feel like if they were just regular humans, they really wouldn’t change much. Continuing from that, the Rock Insects are probably my least favorite things in all of JoJo. They just felt like ass pulls and didn’t really add anything to the situations they were in, and they really only served to prolong the Wonder of U arc. In addition, the significance of Yasuho’s hair pin being a rock insect is never explained or brought up after we see it the first time. The Rock Insects were overall just a really bad addition to Jojolion which already had too many unnecessary things happening.

Overall, Jojolion really failed to meet expectations. Of course, the art was brilliant, I’d never expect less from Araki. But the story’s interesting premise was thrown out the window by the poor character development and terrible stands and action sequences. Jojolion contains some of the best JoJo has to offer, like Wonder of U, and some of the absolute worst, like the Rock Insects. Jojolion had a lot of potential to be the best part of JoJo, but it ultimately fell flat because of its flaws.

As for Part 9, I would love to see character development from Joshu, as I think he was an underutilized character in Jojolion. He never had a real chance at redeeming himself from being a creepy and cringy comic relief character, despite how he really stood out in the Milagro Man arc. I would also like to see a fully new story without all these "new universe counterparts" Araki keeps doing. It was interesting in SBR but I heavily dislike how every character in the original universe has got to have a counterpart in the SBR universe. I am also hoping that Part 9 isn’t just “Jojolion 2,” and we get to see a new setting and new characters while keeping some returning characters from Jojolion.

And how could I forget the greatest Araki Forgot of them all. Araki forgot how to draw dogs.

10 out of 10 across the board;

If there was any moment of doubt in my heart that JoJolion would be at all inferior to any of the previous parts then, my God, Araki you have proved me a fool once again. JoJolion is perhaps the pinnacle of fictional narratives in just about every respect.

I will admit that the story starts about as obtusely as any JoJo story, but through recent events in the manga it's clear as crystal that every left turn the story takes was masterfully crafted from the genius that is Araki's mind. And that's why we all love JoJo right? ... It subverts our expectations in new and often uncomfortable ways. Araki asks: "what would the dynamic be in a big, Brady Bunch family of JoJos?" Through the strange, yet very real interactions between the protagonist Josuke and his adoptive family we learn more about his surprisingly complex character. I especially love the dynamics between Josuke and Joshu, and Josuke and Norisuke. Yasuho is a fantastic supporting character as well, and adds a wholesome, "coming-of-age" vibe to Josuke's character progression. There's a subtle scene where Josuke is daydreaming about buying Yasuho steamed buns and is practicing what he is going to say in his head, and this is the kind of thing that makes him relatable. Who hasn't had a moment like that?

The art. Oh god the art. It's beautiful. With inspiration from surrealist artists like Renee Magritte, Araki once again furthers his unique style.

The story is as wild as it gets, taking a lesson from each of the previous parts. The supposed main villain's ability is perhaps the most enigmatic thus seen in the series, and is bound to be a source of further character progression for many of the main cast.

Perhaps taking direction from Part 2's "Pillar Men," Araki has introduced enigmatic "Rock Organisms" as a central plot point in Part 8. For the majority of the story thus far, the reader got small details of the Rock Organisms' nature at random sections in the story. A recent chapter has greatly expounded upon the already known details, and sealed the deal on Part 8 being Araki's greatest work. Without spoilers, the chapter introduced a lot themes related to the Rock Organisms, including their evolution, apparent evolutionary purpose, and most importantly, the concepts of Christian and Buddhist rebirth mixed with Greek mythology (Pygmalion).

Is JoJolion perfect? Yes; in my eyes it is Araki's most prodigious work and is anything BUT messy. Every detail feels incredibly intentional and ominous. Is it for everyone? Probably not, in the same way that works by Edgar Allen Poe aren't for everyone. JoJolion is incredibly thematically rich and rewarding for those who have an open mind and patience.

Now in 2011 Japan, right after the infamous earthquake, we find a mysterious character buried in mysterious hills... When this review was written, 94 chapters were out.

Story: A modern setting with some fictional twists make it interesting to begin. Then a lot of mystery makes this thriller an amazing experience. I'm really enjoying the writing in this part, it's potentially one of my favorite pieces of media out there: Interesting fights, multiple perspectives, mystery to the point that there's no known villain...

Art: What can I say, I love Araki's style. His character and Stand designs consistently show great creativity and skill.

Characters: The number of characters ... involved in the current arc, all the development they went through and the fact that no one knows the goals of the others makes this an exciting, thrilling story.

Overall enjoyment: The only negative factor is that there's a whole month between releases. Everything else is just perfect. The pacing may feel slow to some, but I love it.

Jojo's part 8 has a super interesting theme, I didn't expect Arakai to write about medicine and equivalent exchange, I really enjoyed it. The protagonist has a different drama, he doesn't know who he is, in the end he finds out about the joining of Yoshikage Kira and Josefumi Kujo, someone "abandoned by his own mother". This problem is not resolved, as his memories do not come back, he is a totally new person, I dare say he is a better protagonist than Jhonny. We have a lot of interesting characters, especially Joubin and Yasuho.

Joubin has an unshakeable conviction about taking his family to prosperity, ... because of that he finds himself in several extreme situations, the best one being when Joubin is forced to pass out his own father in front of the family.
Yasuho in turn is the best female character in history, since the beginning we have indications that she is emotionally unstable, this is proven several times throughout the story, making her a "second protagonist".

The mystery itself is solved pretty fast so I don't give it a 10, Tooru is not a good villain and his convictions are mixed, at least his booth is very creative. In my opinion the real villain was the "Rokaka", as they were not good medicinal options.

The design as always was excellent and the setting epic, with the nostalgic city of Morioh. The characters from the Higashikata family are a lot of fun and Holly gave us sad moments, well, a great part of Jojo, possibly one of the last.

One look at my profile pic and you can probably already tell how I feel about this part without even needing to look at my review scrore. However, I should probably elaborate on my opinion anyway (I would have just left it at that, but myanimelist wouldn't let me right such a small review).
When I first began reading the jojo's bizarre adventure manga series, I would occasianlly see a sailor character in the line up of the JoJo's who appear throughout the series and the first time I saw this JoJo I feel in love. It was both a mix of araki's beautiful part ... 7/8 art style and the saillor outfit that gave him such a unique look that made me have have such an infatuation with this character. though I was only on phantom blood at the time, I wanted to speed through the rest of the parts just to meet this JoJo that the fans had dubbed "gappy".
This took me a while (about a year and a half to be exact) but when I got there, after the dissapointing, but still well written steel ball run, I began to read chapter after chapter of this work until I got all caught up. Now that's enough back story, onto the actual review.
Art
I have always loved Hirohiko Araki's art style, the amount of detail and work that has gone into some of his panels is truly astounding and always left me wondering how he kept up a weekly schedule with such beautiful art. Though I thought his art was great while he still published in weekly shonen jump, his move to a monthly seinen magazine and an art style evolution somehow improved on it's beauty.
Story
The story of this part is quite different than the other parts in the sense that it is a mystery story where we know next to nothing about the JoJo from the beginning of the series and don't learn a lot until quite a few chapters later and information is slowly drip fed to the reader throughout the chapter, makign the reader want to read on impulsively just to know more about what's going on. Oh, and its set in morioh, that same place from diamond is unbreakable and it was really fun seein all these new characters being mirrors of those from past parts.
Characters
As this is JoJo's bizarre adventure you can expect the characters to be both well written and, of course, bizarre and araki doesn't dissapoint, offering up a wide variety of interesting people to meet in this new morioh town. Such as, the higashikata family who's members each have their own distint bizarre personality (joshu being my favourite0 or gappy himself who's amnesiac trait gets him into some hilarious and bizarre situations.
What I love about both this part and the previous one, sttel ball run, is that nearly every character is morally grey, rarely do you find a character who is doing evil just for the sake of it *cough*DIO*cough* or any character who can be seen as the perfect hero. Araki's writing is at a master level in these last two parts.
What I didn't like
Now, from all the praise I have given this , you probably think I would have hardly any complaints...and you would be right! However, I do have one complaint which is probably the only thing I think araki could improve on in this point in his career and that is his forgetfullness. There are a few moments throughout the whole JoJo's bizarre adventure series where I have thought "wait, what happened to *insert cool/mysterious thing that never shows up again or never ends up getting explained*?" and this part is not free from those moments but there were fewer than past parts which helped.
In summary: part 9 will have to try really hard to top jojolion and steel ball run has nothing on this masterpiece...

First review!

Story: 6
While I did enjoy the bizarre nature of the mystery and understood the themes of the story, It lacked focus. The story meanders around a bit too much, with many arcs that add little to the main plot or contribute anything in the future. The story would have benefited a lot from using these one-off arcs and spreading them into the main conflict. For example, using the Higashikata family and their abilities more. We got prolonged arcs introducing them, so they could sit outside the plot.

(Just to clarify: I don't mind when characters do things outside the plot like in part 4, ... but in part 4 it was firmly established as a slice-of-life)

It can be said that because Josuke has amnesia and feels lost, so should the story as well, to which I say, fair point, but if that is the case then at least have something interesting happening.
Generally, the story had a very strong beginning that brought up questions with lots of intrigue, to which the answers we were given didn't live up to the expectations of the set-up. The flashback chapters and the ending were also a breath of fresh air, because the story finally felt tensive and there was a strong narrative driving the characters.

Art: 9
Araki's art style will always be one of the best for me, I just scored it 9 instead of 10 because it felt like a step down from the beautiful character designs of part 7.

Characters: 5
This is honestly where the biggest problem lies for me. The themes of the story revolve around the Higashikata family, and most of the time they are irrelevant. Either knocked out or just unaware of what's happening around/inside their house. The only ones with screen time are Jobin and Tsurugi, which makes sense because the curse affects them the most, however, it really shouldn't have been the case when there was so much potential for the other family members.

Relatability was also sadly lacking, I couldn't feel sympathy for a lot of characters since they were so unlikeable, I never felt close with any of the characters in the Higashikata family or felt like I could cry for any of them.

As for Josuke the jojo of the story, and Yasuho, the other protagonist, thankfully they carried the story, with fantastic moments and cool characterization. They both grew a lot and their arcs were satisfying. Jojo in particular, got his closure and his amnesiac plot concluded not in a neat bow, which for me feels more realistic. I just wish there were more scenes of Gappy and Yasuho together in a more slice-of-life setting so I could get sold on their romance faster, because it blossomed way too quickly.

Enjoyment: 6
It fluctuated a lot. Starting absurdly high in the beginning, to very low in the middle, to good again in the final stretch.
A thing I'll say is that the story was supposed to be read monthly and it shows. I read it when all the chapters were out and the amount of times it repeats itself is staggering. In almost every new chapter Araki has to remind you what's happening, the motive, the scene, the battle, everything. It is one of those things that lowered my enjoyment as well.

Overall: 6.5