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Jan 31, 2022
When I first saw Rohan Kishibe and his Stand, Heaven's Door, in JoJo Part 4, I thought, "This guy sucks!" After that, though, I grew to love him. For that reason, I was very happy to get into the OVAs dedicated to him. I was admittedly a bit disappointed by some elements of it, but it was a very good concept - an "Illustrated Man"-like account of the many experiences of and stories surrounding Rohan's everyday adventures - and I enjoyed it a lot.
STORY
I very much appreciate Araki delving more into horror for this series, and it makes for some engaging well-executed moments (e.g., the
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ending of "The Run" and almost the whole of "At a Confessional"). That said, there were other moments that I thought were a bit too ridiculous (e.g., Gunpei's death in "Mutsu-kabe Hill") as well as some hard-to-understand moments (e.g., the ending of "At a Confessional" and the climax of "Millionaire Village"). That said, it was overall presented very well.
ART
The artstyle across the entire series was great; everything splashed greatly with color. One thing I feel I should bring up that didn't actually bother me so much but may bother others is the inconsistency between each episode's artstyle (as these OVAs were produced over a few years); by "At a Confessional", it appears like something straight out of Part 5 (not a bad thing, again, but possibly jarring). In general, though, the art looked excellent, as JoJo always does.
SOUND
When beginning the series, I was under the impression that Vic Mignogna was still voicing Rohan, but it was actually another VA, Landon McDonald. It should be obvious why this is the case, but we're not here to talk about that. Landon did an excellent job portraying Rohan if you ask me. Outside of that, though, no new voices stood out to me (although I quite liked Aleks Le's voice for Youma in "The Run").
CHARACTER
I think Rohan was the perfect character to base an OVA series around. He did appear quite a bit already in Part 4, but I felt that one could always use more of him. Dare I say, he was even better here than in Part 4. Besides Rohan, all of the characters from Part 4 have good roles here (except for Josuke, who doesn't even say a single word). On the other hand, none of the one-off characters stuck with me.
ENJOYMENT
Although some aspects of the stories were ridiculous (even for JoJo standards), I still had a great time watching this series. I always particularly looked forward to seeing the other characters at the end of each episode (well, 3 out of 4).
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
Overall, I think this OVA series is totally worth a watch. I implore everyone to at least give it a try after finishing Part 4; even if it isn't exactly to your liking, it's a great opportunity to see one of the best characters in Part 4 and a nice anime to watch in one day (even though I didn't do that myself). I do hope they make more episodes someday. Overall rating: 6.7/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jan 16, 2022
This is where it all began.
From the standpoint of Stardust Crusaders, Diamond is Unbreakable, and the like, it's hard to believe Phantom Blood is actually JoJo, but hark - Araki went for a simpler approach before dipping his toes in the world of Stands and homoeroticism. Anyway, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Phantom Blood, while a bit predictable at times, is highly enjoyable and a great start to this wonderful series. I almost forgot just how much I enjoyed this story from watching the anime.
STORY
The story of Phantom Blood, which follows Jonathan Joestar in his battle against his childhood friend, Dio Brando, is overall
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a very typical Hero's Journey story. Jonathan has a goal and intends to see it through - you can't get more textbook than that. However, Araki decided to throw in obstacles for JoJo and his gang and twists for the reader that ultimately enhance the story. There are a few rough spots, to be sure, but the presentation of Jonathan's journey ultimately makes Phantom Blood an enjoyable read.
ART
One thing that has always been typical of JoJo, whether in the manga or the anime, is the near-refusal to hold back on showing whatever it needs to in order to tell the story right, and I fully commend Araki for this. And beyond the blood and gore, the art is still amazing. The characters and settings are drawn in a way that emanates the vibe of an R-rated Archie comic - very primitive when it comes to manga, yet it comes at no cost to the reading experience. Combine all of that with the superb digital coloring job by Shueisha Inc. (if you choose to read it that way), and you'll see just how much of a treat to the eyes Phantom Blood ends up being.
CHARACTERS
Phantom Blood has great control of its characters. At its center, we have Jonathan Joestar, a protagonist with perhaps the biggest heart of any JoJo I have seen. Despite Dio effectively being his adopted brother, he knows exactly what he has to do to save his people. On the other hand, however, he also laments the situation, wishing it had never come to all of this. Opposite Jonathan, we have Dio Brando, an antagonist who is truly evil yet, in some moments, has you cheering him right on. Past these two individuals is a lovable cast of supporting characters, such as Robert Speedwagon, Baron Will Zeppeli, Dire, Straizo, Tonpeti, Poco, and Erina Pendleton, who all aid Jonathan in his fight in some way. Archetypal as they may be, all of these people put together make Phantom Blood that much better.
ENJOYMENT
While Phantom Blood may not be the deepest of stories, and it has a few rough spots, as mentioned earlier, I very much enjoyed this - maybe even more than I liked the anime adaptation (which I already enjoyed quite a bit).
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS
My purpose for reading Phantom Blood in the first place was simply to refresh myself on the story after not having seen the anime in several months. That said, whether you are an anime-only JoJo fan who is entirely caught up with the series in that regard, or you are someone who has never touched JoJo in your life, I would very much recommend this story as I believe it is something pretty much anyone can enjoy. My rating: 7.3/10
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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