Kujo Jotaro. He possesses a purple ghost—stunning revelation, I know.
‘ahem’ Stardust Crusaders is probably the most iconic JoJo part by a margin and might be the start of the franchise being one of the most iconic Shounen series ever. It introduces an ambitious yet impactful concept that’s unlike any other anime/manga series, and it has been a prevalent element ever since. Some viewers might have started it as their first part because of those things as well as the shitposting that still hold up to this day. Anyway, this was the one part I was interested in the most when it was announced. Parts 1 and 2 were already strong enough to catch and hold my attention, but Part 3 might be on a different level when it comes to major and unique gimmicks. But with all of this being said, how does this part hold up? To that, I answer, pretty nicely, actually. While there are major flaws, which we will tackle on, for the most part, it’s pretty good.
This part begins after Joseph’s victory against the Pillarmen and their army of vampires, as well as a follow-up to Phantom Blood. Jotaro ended up in prison because his supposed evil spirit ended up hurting people. But Joseph and Holly, his grandfather and mother respectively, convince him with the important shit as well as that evil spirits are stands and while he tries to not give a damn, Avdol hurts him enough to make him accept it. Jotaro, Joseph, and Avdol are on a hunt on DIO, a version of Dio where he stole Jonathan’s body and faked his death, which led him to sleep in a coffin for 100 years. DIO haunts the Joestars with his influence so much that he even attempted to kill Holly by manipulating her stand. It’s for Jotaro and crew to travel to Egypt, which is where DIO hides in, as well befriending some other stand users to stand a chance against what evil comes in their way. If you ask me, this plot is straightforward. It’s about heroes fighting against evil in order to save someone they love and/or admire, or whatever, a story you see many times.
But even with that, part 3 does a solid job at that. The central plot of the franchise is keeping the Joestar family protected while they learn valuable lessons that would motivate them to fight evil. It’s also worth noting that each part’s portrayal on it are pretty unique to one another, especially regarding personal struggles. Jonathan wants to be a true gentleman, but his occasional brattiness, as well as the presence of Dio, can get in his way. Joseph likes to be silly but can get out of hand at times in serious situations. Jotaro acts edgy but he’s (possibly) more of a dorky introvert when you know more about him. Alongside that major element, it also tackles the relationship between the Joestars and DIO nicely. DIO has been manipulating and using the family as his source of success, and it makes him more out of hand when his ego gets in the way. Despite all of this, he actually had a valuable respect for Jonathan because of how he overpowered him. That is why when his body gets disintegrated, he stole his body, which then affects the family in more ways than one. In turn, though, the Joestars also signal what DIO has up to his sleeves. Jonathan’s unique body, despite being stolen from DIO, virtually messages his descendants.
Another thing this part excels at (like any other part, for that matter) is the occasional tomfoolery. JoJo is known for showing some of the most wack junk you can ever find in a Shounen, and part 3 is no exception. Joseph’s American accent, Polnareff’s fear of toilets, Kakyoin licking some cherries. There are a lot of jokes to find here, and I think they’re funny and don’t get in the way of the story’s progression. …mostly. The last aspect done well here is the power system and world-building in the form of stand powers. The stands are actually well-crafted as they have simple powers that are added with a variety of certain things based on a user’s strategy. Magician’s Red, for example, is based on the simplistic and classic pyrokenisis but is also stretched to track certain things. Not only that but the stands being based on Tarot cards is a genius move. The Hierophant stands for tradition and convention, and it fits well with Kakyoin’s formal behavior and Hierophant Green’s controlling skills (controlling someone isn’t really formal, but whatever). The Hermit reclaims one's individual authority and acts with integrity, and this fits well with Joseph’s leadership and vision on the future of the crusaders’ journey, as well as Hermit Purple’s tracking abilities. The Emperor is about fertility, creativity, and nurturing, and this reflects well on Hol Horse’s charisma and ricocheting effect of…well, The Emperor. There are more stand and tarot card relationships I could bring up as examples, but all in all, it’s done quite nicely.
But like most other parts, I have to complain. The pacing leaves a bit to be desired. While there are elements this part tackles nicely, the exposition kinda holds it back. JoJo takes on a balance between conversations between characters and fights, with the latter being something we will tackle later. Parts 1 and 2 excel at the balance well, even if they’re not too amazing in that department. Part 3, not as much. Now, I still think it’s fine. There are buildups that show what will happen admirably. But the road to a climax for each major scenario feels a bit too long and can be stale at times. Speaking of stale, another problem to point out is the repetition. Again, not a bad thing by any means. It’s just that the plot feels a bit too formulaic. Let me clue you in. Jotaro and crew venture into their journey, see a bad guy, fight, put them into a mental breakdown (sometimes, I think), and beat them up like they’re the Wandering Trader. This has been repeated for most of this part. While not necessarily fully addressed, thankfully, this problem was countered in the battle in Egypt half by adding more variety, like the poker situation, Polnareff being possessed, etc.
On the topic of variety, let's take a look at the fight scenes. From my personal view, JoJo is one of the few series, even for non-action standards, that greatly benefit from choreography for storytelling. The fight scenes are interesting because the stands are also used to represent what each user is capable of. Again, some examples include Star Platinum having super vision with fantastic potency and versatility within physical close-range combat on top of it, Hierophant Green shooting emeralds paired with manipulation, and Silver Chariot using his sword for not only striking but also stirring gas and plasma. The characters have a lot of strategies in their pockets, but while they do use them efficiently, there are moments where strategies aren’t used or other times, they are but aren’t really used properly in the narration. This falls into a similar case as the story progression where they’re held back by exposition and repetition, while the second half of the part counters that. I won’t list a lot of examples, but there are 2 fights that stood out.
The first is the fight against elder D’Arby. This is a unique case, and might even be the most unique one here, because you aren’t exactly fighting him. You are playing against him in a game of blackjack. This one is far from the ordinary because he’s a cheater. Jotaro is the only opponent who would stand up to him in his game. Because D’Arby cheated, Jotaro had no choice but to use his stand for further speculation. Jotaro even had the balls to put his belongings at risk as HIS BETS, and that alone cornered D’Arby. Jotaro was smart enough to be aware of the entire blackjack. This shows and proves to us that Jotaro is not only a great fighter but also a clever strategist. Another standout fight is the clash against Vanilla Ice. Take what the average fights have, but make it pretty extreme. Avdol’s tracking powers don’t work on Cream, and because Cream is an indestructible void, he had to sacrifice himself to save Polnareff and Iggy. Both Polnareff and Iggy tried so hard to come up with more consistent strategies despite both of them being goofballs as well as bruting their way to victory. Of course, Iggy had to die because he went all out to expose Ice. Polnareff is the only one surviving in this situation and his rage successfully wiped Ice out of existence. This fight was great because not only does it have a lot of tension, but Vanilla Ice is a prime example of how threatening a villain-of-the-week foe can be in a lot of circumstances.
There are arguments that the final fight also deserves to be part of the standouts, but let’s save that for our last.
The characters are weird. This part’s take on the cast is more or less a mixed bag. First, our main cast consists of Jotaro, the main JoJo; Joseph, the mentor; Avdol, the mentor’s assistant; Kakyoin, the gamer; Polnareff, the French bread who hates toilets; and Iggy, the dog that plays with sand. I’m more mixed on Jotaro. He is more interesting than one meets the eye, though. He is edgy, but at heart, he is an introverted dork who still knows about combat and shit. He’s always aware that his family needs to be protected at all costs. But my problem with him is that he doesn’t get as much character development as intended, and generally, he doesn’t feel like a protagonist. Also, the way he treats his mother is annoying. I get that you’re not fond of your mother, but do you need to shove that right in our faces? Joseph is a good character, especially considering his role as a mentor, and while his humor overstayed its welcome despite still being funny, he remains consistent overall.
Avdol, Kakyoin, and Iggy are characters that aren’t really as appealing. It is true that they have their own personalities and they have their own moments, but they’re criminally underused throughout the whole part, especially with Avdol, who was mostly part of the main cast just because of his stand power. And, of course, who would have guessed? Polnareff steals the whole show, and you know it. He’s the true protagonist of this part, and while that’s not partially what we asked for, he has the most development out of any character. His struggles and his wackiness, whether they serve as his weaknesses or he wants to goof around, are both well-created and relatable. Not to mention, he arguably has the most chemistry with any character out of the crusaders.
The villains are decent and handle the villain-of-the-week formula well. They have their own narrative roles and they do have tactics on their behalf. However, with a lot of side villains, some are bound to be better or worse than others. Hol Horse is good because of his wacky yet debatably believable statement, as well as how he’s paired with J. Geil and then Boingo. Enyaba is a puppet and that’s about it. The D’Arby brothers are the best villains here because of their games serving as incredible changes of pace. I did mention that Vanilla Ice is a great example of being a terminator, but I’ll be honest: he’s mostly served to give Polnareff and Iggy more character. He is the biggest simp for DIO and the biggest simp in the whole series, and while that makes sense, it can get ridiculous at times. While the side villains are mixed, they’re still pretty nice to have in our character batch
And who could have forget? The most important villain AND character. DIO. The mastermind who got called out for manipulating the Joestar family and then used his anger to demolish them. DIO is one of the most interesting characters due to his charisma and history with the Joestars. DIO is probably a changed villain, and while he still wishes to be on top of everyone, he actually spreads insightful wisdom towards anyone he either recruits or manipulates as his henchmen and even towards anyone else, even those who dare to oppose him. While he is more interesting than his part 1 counterpart, he’s not really as fleshed-out as a character. The reason why Dio Brando is such a good character and villain is that not only is he a massive threat for the entirety of part 1, but he also has a very endearing relationship with Jonathan, and he both puts him into malice while still respecting him. By comparison, DIO kinda does fuck all when he’s supposed to be on his buildup and even when he reached his peak, he was more of a final boss than a fully engaged villain.
And that leads us to the finale of part 3, where the remaining crusaders go all out when they see DIO. They think of strategies, but DIO’s stand, The World (or Za Warudo), was just too strong for them, and he’s effective at using time stop. Notice how I said “effect”, but more on that. When DIO finally confronts Jotaro, their fight begins. Surprisingly for DIO, Jotaro is the only one who has learned about DIO’s power, but there are limits, so he has to use his escape tool wisely. Although DIO is stronger, he technically doesn’t use his power as efficiently as intended, but the reason for that is because Jonathan’s body still contains some good, so it’s used to hold DIO back. Although that is excusable, the dynamics between Jotaro and DIO barely are. While their beef is strong, their chemistry is a bit more on the weaker side. That is because both weren’t really that expressive towards each other despite being on the biggest conflict they can find themselves in. For this reason, the dynamics between DIO and Joseph were more personal than this one.
And you want to know what becomes a bit more idiotic? The moment when DIO finally got his hands on Joseph’s blood. He becomes higher than a turtle that ate a huge-ass jellyfish for breakfast, and his signature time stop is more durable. DIO may not be that great of a character, but my problem with the fight doesn’t come from DIO himself. Nah, it comes from how Jotaro stole time stop. The issue here is that his rage is weak and was more of an excuse to end the part (this situation was done better in the OVA). Either that or there was no indication as to how Jotaro even does it in the first place. To be honest, the latter is a clearer answer here. Either way, how Jotaro beats DIO in that fashion is a pretty stupid asspull, probably even more bullshit than part 2 Joseph defeating ultimate Kars. This is why I think the final battle, while reasonably iconic, isn’t particularly that strong. It has its highs, but it is watered down by an asspull. It’s kinda saved by the celebration being bittersweet.
Alright, let’s yap about the visuals and sounds. Both the character and the stand designs in the manga are among the most iconic designs in every Shounen, and while I obviously don’t judge something based on iconicity, they’re actually iconic for very good reasons. They match their powers and personalities well while looking really pleasing on top of it. While the anime kinda does this, it’s ruined by the fact that the shading looks pretty ugly. The art style of parts 1 and 2 is very pleasing and just as good as their manga counterparts, while this one is a downgrade because of that. The animation looks a bit too choppy, but it doesn’t look terrible. The music, sound design, and voice acting, on the other hand, are all equally legendary. They’re unique, and they reflect on a scenario just as well.
And those are my thoughts on part 3. You can weigh the pros and cons as much as you like, but I’d put it on the same level as part 1. Both are equally problematic but still equally decent, nonetheless. It is the most iconic part throughout the whole franchise, and I greatly respect its influence. The stands, especially are special with how much variety they bring into the story. But generally speaking, it’s held back by exposition and repetition, as well as the arguably underwhelming finale. But it still has its moments that are still strong to carry this part and impactful enough to justify the 6/10 rating.
