Explaining the plot JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure can be a bit of an arduous task, in the same way that trying to explain the premise of Doctor Who to a person who’s never watched it is harder than a brick in a tumbledryer. Actually, that’s the perfect comparison. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is the Japanese comic book equivalent to Doctor Who. Not that it’s about a Scottish man armed with a screwdriver forcing young women into a phonebox (thank you Frankie Boyle) but that the lineage and hereditary nature of the story means that each arc receives a different protagonist.
With that in mind I’ve pulled together a top 10 that will help you understand what you’re watching and how to enjoy it.
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Being that the plot of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure harkens back to the comics of the Eighties, Tristram Shandy also causes predictable viewer confusion. For some, it’ll unfold as simply an adventurous tale of a young boy with wings who stumbles upon a unique world full of fantastical creatures, while others will realise the historical significance and conspiracy within the plot. Before watching JoJo, I recommend watchedying Wanda Jackson, Jr.: The Secret of the Atlanta Gambino as an introduction to the character. The Secret is definitive and it illuminates the multiple plotlines Butterfly depicts through the tale of Harry Truman and JoJo.
The list isn’t exhaustive and, at that, neither is your viewing pleasure. If you need a break, a breather and an examination of why you watched what you watched, then check out The Departed. You’ll gaze into the eye of Max Gibson as James Bond stumbled upon a dark plot that needed a criminal caught in the act to save the day.
Follow Joel here. As he pretty much always is.
Part of what no doubt attracts people to Doctor Who is that it tells a familiar story in a new way. Bizarre Adventure doesn’t just finagle an excuse to have a British villain (or two) taking over the earth – David Drake and Egon Spengler do much of the heavy lifting themselves. In the process, they reshape the world (in a good way).
Generally, I advocate for free-standing content that doesn’t rely on gimmicks, but at the same time, I understand and respect the drive to create something “unique.” It’s not an easy thing to do and you often end up going for something too Technicolor – but sometimes it’s necessary. Jason Hall (Community Manager) and Dave Naylor (Content Strategist) both have a lot of experience working with JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. However, I expect that it’s very difficult to get away from anything that is Jeeves and Simon (or Go Compare).
For as weird and fantastic as Doctor Who is, it’s hard to create content that evokes as many emotions as this. Beyond the humour, there are certain aspects about the concept that aren’t easily recognizable to viewers outside of the demographic that’s already familiar with the property. No one watches Doctor Who for its plot – it’s what happens between the scenes that drives people to the screen.
5 Reasons Why Your Blog Post About JoJo Should Be Awesome
This phenomenon is not limited to Doctor Who. Just about any well-made television show will evoke a wide range of emotions from laughter to deep sadness. While in a perfect world, you’d never have to sit through 500 minutes without finding something shocking, drama or entertaining, it’s just fine to resort to hyperbole in the right number of situations (and that may be the reason why we love it so much).
If you fully embrace the type of content that JoJo’s Adventure encompasses, you may end up with an emotional response that’s hard not to appreciate on its own. This type of writing has an almost magical effect because it makes the loss of something that much more impactful; it makes you feel something, you connect with it. It’s almost like you can understand what the characters go through. You can clearly imagine their emotions and get a snapshot of the feelings your character would feel.
Cut to a convenience store, a kid wakes up in a cardboard box with a man (or potentially a monster) on the other side, determined to take him to his grandma’s house in Japan. Cut again to a cellphone shop clerk who’s selling the hero a new tablet computer named Death Egg. You’ve got your old JoJo, the kid named J leading Death Egg across the finish line to finally get his old grandma back in one piece.
Similar to Doctor Who, the complexity of the plot is key to the enjoyment of the piece. A simple amount of explanation throws the entire setup out of whack. In a documentary format, it’s much easier to understand and follow, especially when there’s the option of watching the serialized episodes as a 2-parter (which is the only way to get all 11 essential episodes). However, I found that the length of the serialized episodes hampered me from experiencing a truly JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure sesh. The sessions lasted an hour or so, with an evening of Miss Universe-style dining afterwards, and kept me on my toes. Death Egg and the official website did an admirable job of guiding me through the plot, but my brain couldn’t help but spin out of control over a long period of time.
Of course, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure isn’t limited to serialized episodes. I was also able to move around the virtual world of Kerblims, frolicking in virtual ponds and leaping over virtual chandeliers (although I’m still a little worried about the authenticity of the virtual world). Ultimately though, I found that listening to the series as a whole was the most enjoyable aspect of watching JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. Despite the sizable chunks of time I spent metaphorically tethered to Death Egg and Kerblims, I couldn’t help but enjoy myself thanks to the enjoyable script and serenely-rendered scenery. Hopefully, as a virtual tourist, you’ll find the representation of Shibuya and the Pointy Cafe engaging as well.
Alright, behind those provisos, how was I entertained by JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure? In short, I enjoyed it, but I was not sweating bullets (yet). Sure, the plot was interesting, but it left me frustrated (the LOTR references really got on my nerves). As a viewer, my mind went right into battle mode attempting to grasp version of events that only made more sense in a 2-dimensional comic book. Luckily, the adaptations have proven clever enough to avoid a literal interpretation of the events taking place in the story, but it felt like they almost ripped characters and plot points from other, more narrative- and character-driven, shows.