Disclaimer: The article might contain spoilers about JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind.
Studio: David Production
Episodes: 39
Screenwriter: Yasuko Kobayashi
Producer: Naokatsu Tsuda
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Supernatural
Summary
Set in 2001 Italy, the story follows Giorno Giovanna and his dream to rise within the Neapolitan mafia and defeat the boss of Passione, the most powerful and influential gang, to become a “Gang-Star”. With the aid of a capo and his men, and fueled by his own resolve, Giorno sets out to fulfill his goal of absolving the mafia of its corruption.
What you need to know about JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind
1. The anime is an adaptation of the fifth arc, Vento Aureo which literally translates to “Golden Wind”.
2. The plot is set 2 years after the previous season, Diamond is Unbreakable.
3. Giorno Giovanna is the son of DIO Brando, the main antagonist of Phantom Blood and Stardust Crusaders. But since DIO merged his head with Jonathan Joestar’s body (as seen in Stardust Crusaders), Giorno is part of the Joestar bloodline.
4. The Jojo in Giorno’s name comes from GIOrno GIOvanna, which makes him the only Jojo that is romanized as GIOGIO.
Trivia
1. Giorno’s Stand, Gold Experience, is named after a Prince album, The Gold Experience. Araki has repeatedly expressed his love of Prince through homages such as Prince being Josuke Higashikata’s favorite musician.
2. Ladybugs being Giorno’s motif is a reference to the scarab of Egyptian mythology, tying with his identity as DIO’s son.
3. The theme song is sung by CODA, who previously did the theme song of Battle Tendency.
4. Yasuko Kobayashi, the main scriptwriter for Golden Wind and all previous Jojo anime, is also a prolific tokusatsu screenwriter, most notably for Kamen Rider Amazons.
5. Vento Aureo being set in Italy is also due to Araki’s love of Italian culture. This is reflected in real life collaborations with Italian brands such as Gucci.
Verdict
Being an enormous Jojo fan, of course I was hyped for the latest Jojo anime after about a yearlong hiatus. Despite the fact that Vento Aureo is in my bottom three Jojo works (Yeah nothing beats Steel Ball Run, fight me), I enjoyed the premiere episode immensely.
You can very clearly see that David Production spent more money on animating Vento Aureo compared to Diamond is Unbreakable, likely due to the fact that Vento Aureo has consistently been ranked the top fan-favorite part in Japan. This naturally puts a lot of pressure on David Production to create something that will appeal to the massive fanbase.
For an introductory episode, the plot is very solid. It quickly establishes Giorno’s characterization, builds the world by introducing Leaky-eye Luca and Bruno Bucciarati, a major player in the coming plot. There are also various throwbacks to previous parts, like DIO’s picture and a picture of the Stardust Crusaders, so there’s something for every fan.
In conclusion, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind is definitely a must-watch for shonen anime fans, and skipping it is…
“MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA!!!!!”
