I've been repressing a lot of vitriolic opinions of Jeff as a critic and a business owner but no matter what I think about the man now I can't just sweep away the literal years of laughter he gave me both directly and indirectly. Hope things work out for him in the end.
I always love how much this series has the passion for fashion. Keep in mind the Pillar Men awakened wearing practically nothing and yet both of these dudes went to the trouble of updating and accessorizing their wardrobe before actually pursuing the stone. Joseph's just meant to be as rude as possible to literally every person he meets, it's like his default mode. I believe he's meant to come across as the complete inverse of his grandfather Jonathan, from the pinnacle of gentlemen to the rudest dude on the street. The only trait they really share are their anger issues.
I'm following the podcast but not watching along so I don't remember if it's as explicit in the anime. I believe the concept of Space Ripper Stingy Eyes is supposed to be body fluid being projected out of the eyes via vampire physiology and then simultaneously flash freezing it the way we've seen Dio do it in the past. So they're not exactly lasers but more like frozen blood skewers, which is metal as fuck.
As a resident of Southern California the Santa Ana winds are indeed an ongoing concern particularly during brush fire season. I've lived here long enough now that I can tell when they're blowing through before actually seeing a weather report.
The depiction of the pillar man has always been an incredibly cool spin on the vampire mythos, which is an impressive thing to pull off in the late 80's when most mainstream media more or less had the general rules of vampirism set in stone. In JoJo you can see that they're depicted as absorptive heterotrophs. So when you consider that, a weakness to direct sunlight, and its almost spongy body composition the pillar man probably has more in common with fungus than it has with mammals despite their humanoid form. As someone who doesn't really like mushrooms I find that comparison even more upsetting.
And yeah Joseph rules, I loved him when I first read the comics and they really do him justice in animated form. Sugita Tomokazu does an amazing job voicing him in spite of the fact that he already plays one of the best main characters in all of anime in Gintama.
Thanks for the podcast. I use to like posting about cartoons and anime in the main forum thread but not so much anymore. What I love about the big exposition of shounen manga is how operatic it feels. Characters reciting, almost singing their feelings and actions back and forth. It's even more apt when it becomes anime because then you have an actual musical score and voice acting to go along with it. I'd almost recommend people stick with the anime exclusively. I love the comic and I love his art but Araki's earlier art in particular can feel rough and abstract to the point that it can be hard to tell what exactly is happening in fights, and that becomes a problem when the fights are one of the main draws. Now some thoughts of the story within these episodes:
Something I like about about this opening arc are the interpersonal conflicts of the primary characters. It is a true battle of gentlemen and who can maintain that poise over the other without sullying their reputation. The great thing about Dio here is how his main conflict isn't necessarily against the Joestars at first but instead trying to defeat/denounce what he views as his own dirty bloodline and make a name for himself.
In a way Dio truly loses the moment he puts on that mask and throws away his humanity. It is him admitting that he can't win with his own power and that he is every bit the scumbag as his dad who would commit any evil deed to survive. Thus going forward the conflict is not really JoJo fighting against Dio Brando but rather it's him fighting against the legacy of the stone mask, which just so happened to fall into the hands of the worst possible person to hold a grudge against him.
I have no interest in ASG but you know what? I think I might listen to this impending show. I was half-expecting to write this feature off but I'm actually more receptive now that I know JB and Lucy are the ones being led through it. I've loved JoJo for a long time and was overjoyed back in 2012 when it was finally getting the production it so richly deserved. The first part in particular is quite excellent when you understand that it really is an 80's anime with 2012 animation.
So a dude who has notoriously made videos about the creative decline of long running franchises is gonna do some work for Giant Bomb of all places? I like John and think he does good work, but the irony here is palpable. Aside from that this is an amazing list of games.
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