JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Over Heaven

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As with any of my light novel reviews of this series, I will begin with a location to read the English localization for yourself, given that at the time of writing this there is no official translation that can be purchased.
https://archive.org/details/manga_Jojos_Bizarre_Adventure_Over_Heaven

Also, it should be noted that there was somewhat of a pause for my reading of this book, as I began reading it as I would retread my way through the Stardust Crusaders manga (I had already seen the anime in its entirety), I discovered that a significant portion of this book is in reference to plot regarding as well as the main antagonist ... of Part 6: Stone Ocean. Therefore, I would recommend (from experience) reading this as side-material after having already progressed through the entirety of the main Jojo canon, Parts 1-6.

As for the plot, it was nothing mind-blowing, but an interesting read. It is in a diary format, in very many short, digestible chapters. It is from the perspective of Dio who is using the notebook to jot down various thoughts. Some of it is his history with Jonathan, some of it is his discussions with Pucci about "Heaven", and along we way we make note of where the Stardust Crusaders are along their journey.

Personally, there are some aspects to "Heaven" and the creation of what would later become to Stand "Made in Heaven" that remain unclear to me in how Dio came to these conclusions, but it does provide drive and information to Pucci himself during the later arcs of Part 6 and expands on some of the ideas somewhat, so there is purpose to how it is brought up here.

As I very much blew through the latter two-thirds of this book, it may have been my easiest read of the series yet and my favorite light novel so far.

I've always been a huge Jojo fan, and the light novels were always something that I had been intrigued by, but never something I had felt super inclined to check out. However, when I heard that NISIOISIN, the author of the Monogatari series, wrote Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Over Heaven, I just had to give it a shot. My bias is right there, as both a fan of Jojo and a fan of the author's works, but still I tried to go in with as open of a mind as possible.

Over Heaven is a non-canon representation of DIO's Diary in the main series. It aims to ... give insight on DIO's inner thoughts and perspective, something we rarely see much of in the main series. This as a work is a neat concept, but it would only really appeal to people who've read up to Part 6 in Jojo - the question is, does it work well enough to warrant fans reading it?

One of my biggest complaints with this light novel is that at times, it really doesn't feel believable at what it's trying to accomplish. The timing of certain entries was just awkward at times, and the light novel especially struggles to make itself seem believable as DIO's Diary in the later chapters. One major cause of this is the fact that the bulk of Over Heaven is DIO telling us his perspective through Part 3 while also reminiscing on Part 1. While I do think it makes sense for DIO to be writing about his past, it does make for some rough jumps back and forth between times, not to mention most of this would be something the reader already knows - the story is just Parts 1, 3, and leading into 6 of the main story. Because of this, it feels like a giant recap episode sometimes, and him pretty much just describing what went on exactly how it did in the series made for the most boring parts of this book. That being said, I'd still say I enjoyed most of it. DIO's different levels of obsession, his surprisingly introspective thoughts, and his erratic nature made for an overall engaging experience for me.

Characterization was also a major concern of mine going in - would DIO feel consistent with the actual series? In this case, I'd honestly say yeah, it does. DIO getting this complexity doesn't feel out of place. There are those few questionable moments bordering into fanfiction territory if you look into it far enough, but for the most part, I think that most of this book fits well with the main story. The novel is at its best when DIO is delved into deeper - it's at its worse when he decides not to add anything of worth commentary wise and just retells his past in a way that doesn't really differ much from his rivals' perspectives.

Overall, I'd say I liked this LN quite a bit. It has its bumps and hiccups along the way, and it definitely isn't perfectly paced or a masterpiece, but I'd say if you're interested in giving DIO more depth or something that can pass off as DIO's Diary, it's worth checking out. I'm not sure if it'd be the best piece of side content there is to offer, considering a lot of it is just a recap of parts you've already seen, but as long as you don't hype up your expectations and go in ready for what it is, you'll probably be fine.

6/10, would recommend if you want DIO's (sometimes barebones) perspective on the story you already know. Steer clear if you hate recaps or want an entirely new story.

I’ll assume anyone wanting to read this has read up to the end of Stone Ocean, and as such this review has some spoilers for parts 3 and 6.

It was certainly entertaining. Not my favourite version of Dio and doesn’t feel like canon but for the most part the changes could work out or are interesting aspects to consider.

The story ends up following the plot of part 3, however the plot relevant for part 6 seems to have been altered. I always had the notion that Pucci and Dio met well before the crusaders’ trip started but that’s not the case in here.

What I do ... appreciate the most in this fake diary however, is all the theories that were created to explain various plot points. Why those specific requirements for achieving ‘heaven’, what ‘heaven’ is really meant to be and why Dio wants it, how the fleshbuds actually affect people. Although I don’t agree with many of these bizarre explanations and would rather leave such things unexplained, they nonetheless spark theories of my own.

And, if it’s worth anything, I had a good laugh with this novel. Be it due to some especially outlandish explanation for something better left a mystery, or Dio getting unexpectedly emotional over some petty thing.