THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR JOJOS PART 3. Im also assuming that anyone reading this is already familiar with the Stardust Crusaders plot line since explaining it all would be a chore and would also be extremely boring kinda like explaining a dream you had. Anyways The first episode of this anime released in 1993 just a year after the Stardust Crusaders manga wrapped up. Jojos Bizarre Adventure wasnt yet the cultural powerhouse that it is today and it was probably just seen by folks as the next big shonen series of the year and nothing more. I kept that in mind as I was watching these OVA episodes and I was also rereading the manga at the same time which helped me make ample comparisons between the two. My final thoughts: this OVA series isnt a bad adaptation but its also a little misguided and disadvantaged in certain areas. 220https://scontentord53.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.308086/468859249545137371663056153105496167861452n.jpg?nccat=109ccb=17ncsid=833d8cncohc=0bObSQAtyq0Q7kNvwFQwBRQncoc=AdlwdIcVTOtLDKm3LPrur9vidrE4gJUFrOBXJyxLlDutd9ui92AtGDH2tZiN8h0sQMQd8E9flEw4OaRYSk3BQnczt=23ncht=scontentord53.xxncgid=whplmgr28nKmx3y6ambwoh=00AfIBJ2IvnJDA3ZcudglCftTfcC4w26u0ue6XPxlWdwoe=6832F91B Full throttle. To start its inevitably unsatisfying that this series only got to adapt THREE fights from the manga all of which happen in the back half of the story meaning that all character development for the main cast is essentially thrown out. That would eventually be amended when the prequel series came out in the 2000s but as it stands with this series the characters are noticeably flatter and/or duller in certain aspects. Namely Polnareff comes off as more ballsy and sometimes foolishy hotheaded and Iggy isnt given much to do in between Ndoul and Vanilla Ice so theres hardly any sympathy to garner for him. Everybody else is pretty much average. So the characters are a bit of a bust but each stand battle is still pretty entertaining. They overall dont stray too far off the path of the manga and the action and excitement in each one still remains. The only major hiccup is some awkward pacing for the first two battles. Ndouls battle seems slow Darbys seems fast. I ended up getting a little bored at times as a result. Dios battle though thats what we came here for. 220https://static.jojowiki.com/images/c/cb/latest/20210806041344/VJumpOctober1994OVASpread1.png Hiroyuki Kitakubo is the director of this anime. His other directing credits include the classic comedy anime Golden Boy the halfaction halfthriller OVA Black Magic M66 and a particularly offthewalls segment in the exTREMELY underrated anthology film Robot Carnival. In laymans terms Kitakubo knew how to pack a punch into just about any anime he was in charge of. 220https://media1.tenor.com/m/H2pSSdXwKcIAAAAd/hirohikoarakishocked.gif Kitakubo sitting by Araki when disaster struck... And for the last episode he was episode director script writer and storyboard artist. And surprise surprise that last episode is cooking with gas. Episodes 4 and 5 leading up to it both do good in building to Jotaro vs Dio but when it happens in Episode 6 its is on a whole nother level. The atmosphere nearly goes into horror territory which is a direction people dont often associate with Jotaro and Dios battle today. The animation which was already solid throughout each episode goes into overdrive and delivers some absolutely stunning scenes and knockdowns. The entire fight is a gory hardhitting thrill. But ironically its also in this episode that you best see the divide between the anime and the manga. Episode 6 rewrites the Jotaro/Dio battle in order to fit it into one episode. A lot is different but everything still flows nicely. Actually the difference from the manga in this episode that Im focusing on more is a bit of a nitpick. You see the visual approach of the anime looks to be following in the footsteps of Fist of the North Star: impossibly muscular dudes punching and killing each other and looking badass while doing it. To be fair thats also how the earlier parts are in the manga but the manga has still always been very fashionable with its art and character designs. And that aspect frankly appears a little lost on the anime adaptation and its especially noticeable when you see how normal Dio looks in Episode 6. 220https://preview.redd.it/0vsdygj9nk681.png?width=320crop=smartauto=webps=b4c50ad1cdc388afc52befd970c12653d0659b67 220http://rubberslug.s3.amazonaws.com/user/2/307e2af3e404403afedc92ce032b8d5/jjfrnrneabo.jpg Again thats a minor complaint but I notice other little shortcomings like that scattered throughout this anime. Take Iggys death for another example. In the manga Iggy is mercilessly kicked and beaten by Vanilla Ice and then left to die. In the anime Iggy just gets oneshotted by Vanilla Ices Cream and passes on the spot. Both are incredibly dark but one stings a tad bit more. And going back to visuals even the flashiness of the manga altogether seems ignored. Episode 1 at least gives it a nod but no other episode after it does. 220https://pbs.tw.com/media/E6EjhzwXoAInS1p.jpg:large Screencap from Episode 1 obviously DavidPro multiplied this by one thousand. But how is any of this important? It all means that this anime seems more like its just an anime about Jojos rather than a dedicated adaptation of the work. In other words the staff behind this anime dont seem all that motivated to explore the manga deeply and instead theyve gone about it as just another job so it seems like just another OVA from the 90s in a bunch of regards. Is it petty to beg for more out of this older adaptation? Probably. But that doesnt mean I dont want just a little more okay So there this anime isnt the most faithful to the manga but it isnt lame or bad because of that. I still find a lot to like about it. Clearly Ive already talked it up some paragraphs ago but I honestly think its just cool that this anime exists at all. This series was one of the earliest nonmanga additions to the JJBA canon and it not only serves as a neat time capsule in that regard but it also gives a unique retelling of the Jojos story for modernday fans due to its age and the circumstances of its production. Its something different basically. But all in told would I still recommend this? If you had some complaints about DavidPros Part 3 adaptation I think this series is worth a shot and presumably the prequel series too though I havent seen it yet. If not and you just really like the part Id recommend this to you too. If youre just a casual fan with no strong opinions about the series I think just watching the last episode will do. And if you dont like Jojos at all then somethings up. Oh yeah and also a little note on the voice acting: its silly. The sub and dub are both silly. Youll just have to get over it. The soundtrack is good though. 220https://static.jojowiki.com/images/a/a4/latest/20210124185014/StarPlatinumIggyThrowOVA.gif AND STAY OUT