veemonjosh
Stone free, do what I please
Characters
Jotaro Kujo
Voiced by: Matthew Mercer
Stand: Star Platinum
Ability: Strength and Precision
Stats: Destructive Power - A / Speed - A / Range - C / Durability - A / Precision - A / Developmental Potential - A
Namesake: The Star (tarot card)
Joseph’s grandson, Jotaro isn’t one for displaying his emotions and is a man of few words, but deep down has a gentle heart and will protect anybody close to him, especially if he has to beat the crap out of someone. Recently, he gained a mysterious power known as a Stand, his being a powerful one with incredible precision and strength. With his Stand, Star Platinum, he’s now on a journey to Egypt to take down DIO and save his mother.
Joseph Joestar
Voiced by: Richard Epcar
Stand: Hermit Purple
Ability: Divination and Hamon
Stats: Destructive Power - D / Speed - C / Range - D / Durability - A / Precision - D / Developmental Potential - E
Namesake: The Hermit (tarot card)
Joseph Joestar once saved the world nearly 50 years ago, but since then retired from his Hamon training and became a real estate tycoon in America. However, after gaining his Stand, he sprung back into action once discovering that the evil DIO, who had taken his grandfather’s life, had reemerged from his hundred-year slumber. Alongside his grandson Jotaro, his friend Avdol, and high schooler Kakyoin, Joseph is now in a race against time to defeat DIO and remove the curse afflicting his daughter Holly.
Muhammad Avdol
Voiced by: Chris Tergliafera
Stand: Magician’s Red
Ability: Fire Manipulation
Stats: Destructive Power - B / Speed - B / Range - C / Durability - B / Precision - C / Developmental Potential - D
Namesakes: Paula Abdul (Singer) / The Magician (Tarot card)
Joseph’s Egyptian friend, Avdol was the voice of reason and a rather serious individual. He possessed a strong sense of loyalty and duty, determined to eliminate DIO and his minions, while helping the Joestars any way possible using his worldly knowledge. Unlike Joseph and Jotaro, Avdol was born with his Stand, and thus had essentially mastered his own abilities. After an encounter with Hol Horse and Centerfold, Avdol was left with two fatal wounds and died, leaving his allies to avenge his death.
Noriaki Kakyoin
Voiced by: Kyle Hebert
Stand: Hierophant Green
Abilities: Coiled body, marionette control, and Emerald Splash
Stats: Destructive Power - C / Speed - B / Range - A / Durability - B / Precision - C / Developmental Potential - D
Namesakes: Kakyoin (neighborhood in Sendai, Japan) / The Hierophant (tarot card)
Kakyoin originally worked for DIO, having been brainwashed by the vampire while on a family trip to Egypt, but was saved by Jotaro. Being a righteous individual determined to rid the world of evil and to repay his debt to Jotaro, Kakyoin has joined the quest to defeat DIO.
Jean Pierre Polnareff
Voiced by: Doug Erholtz
Stand: Silver Chariot
Abilities: Speed and sword combat
Stats: Destructive Power - C / Speed - A / Range - C / Durability - B / Precision - B / Developmental Potential - C
Namesakes: Jean-Paul Belmondo (actor) / Michel Polnareff (musician) / The Chariot (tarot card)
Polnareff is a chivalrous Frenchman who met the Crusaders in Hong Kong. He was initially a minion of DIO but, like Kakyoin, was rescued from the brainwashing that had been placed on him. He had joined the group to avenge his sister, who was killed by the evil Stand user Centerfold. But after defeating his target, he continues onward with them to Egypt to end DIO’s evil reign and ensure no one else has to suffer.
Anne
Voiced by: Ryan Bartley
Anne is a runaway from Hong Kong who snuck on-board the ship the Crusaders were taking to Singapore, so that she could see the world. Her feisty attitude makes her strong-willed for her age; However, she has no Stand, leaving her vulnerable to the many assassins that are closing in on the Crusaders.
Nena
Voiced by: Johanna Luis
Stand: Empress
Abilities: Parasitism
Stats: Destructive Power - C / Speed - E / Range - A / Durability - A / Precision - D / Developmental Potential - D
Namesakes: Nena (singer) / The Empress (tarot card)
Nena was first seen as a young woman whom Hol Horse had been romancing, and then helped escape when he was cornered by the Crusaders. As the Crusaders traveled to the city of Varanasi, Nena tagged along; With the appearance of a young Indian woman, she distracted Polnareff while her Stand, Empress, did its work. Growing from a drop of her blood that landed on Joseph’s arm, a fleshy growth began to grow larger, gradually gaining a mouth and eyes, and then half a body with extremely strong arms. The Empress Stand proved to be troublesome for Joseph, framing him for the murder of a doctor. However, he was eventually able to defeat it by encasing the Stand in coal tar, freezing it in place, and then tearing it to shreds with Hermit Purple. Nena then exploded much to Polnareff’s surprise, revealing her true form to be that of a toady old woman wearing the body of one of her previous victims, and collapsed dead in front of him.
DIO
Voiced by: Patrick Seitz
Namesake: DIO (Band)
Stand: ???
In the early 1880’s, a lower-class orphan by the name of Dio Brando was taken in by the upper-class Joestar family. With resentment for those of higher social status than him, Dio spent the next 7 years planning to take out the heir to the Joestar family, Jonathan Joestar, and claim its fortune. However, caught at a critical time in his plan, Dio used an ancient artifact the Joestars owned to become a vampire and began a new plot for world domination. Jonathan, along his friends, fought back against Dio, ending in a confrontation on a ship in the middle of the Atlantic which cost Jonathan’s life and sent Dio to a supposed watery grave. However, nearly a hundred years later, he was recovered by an unsuspecting group of treasure hunters, and given life anew in the modern age! Having gained possession of a mysterious Stand ability, the being now known simply as “DIO” wraps his insidious grasp around the world through agents also possessing Stands, in the resurrection of his plot to end the Joestar bloodline and dominate humanity! Jonathan’s body has manifested a Stand similar to Joseph’s Hermit Purple which allows DIO to monitor the Stardust Crusaders, but DIO’s own Stand is something more mysterious and far more terrifying.
Enyaba
Voiced by: Barbara Goodson
Namesake: Enya (singer)
Stand: ???
Enyaba is DIO’s right-hand confidant, operating alongside him behind the scenes to give him advice and coordinate his followers in their attacks on the Crusaders. Following the death of her son Centerfold, she has left the sanctity of DIO’s mansion to intercept the Crusaders herself.
Episode 13 (39)
“Wheel of Fortune"
Chapters adapted: 150-154
Previously on JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure:
Joseph got a nasty wart on his arm after a drop of the woman Nena’s blood got on it. He went to a local doctor to get it examined, but the wart grew a face and teeth, killing the doctor and framing Joseph for his murder. The wart was really a parasitic stand known as Empress, who would grow and grow until it was large enough to kill Joseph and take over his body. As the stand was technically part of Joseph’s body, Hamon did nothing to it, so Joseph frantically ran around the city they were in, trying to figure out a way to get rid of the stand while Empress consumed food like a live chicken, growing arms and a torso.
But it was thanks to Hermit Purple discretely creating a map out of sand that Joseph found his salvation, a barrel of coal tar which caused the Empress to freeze up after it cooled. Using Hermit Purple’s vines, Joseph tore Empress apart, which caused Nena (who was with Polnareff) to explode, revealing her true form to be a toady woman who had been using the skin of a previous victim. That evening, the Crusaders got a car and began the next leg of their journey, leaving India and heading for Pakistan. However, as they left, another car followed not far behind...
But it was thanks to Hermit Purple discretely creating a map out of sand that Joseph found his salvation, a barrel of coal tar which caused the Empress to freeze up after it cooled. Using Hermit Purple’s vines, Joseph tore Empress apart, which caused Nena (who was with Polnareff) to explode, revealing her true form to be a toady woman who had been using the skin of a previous victim. That evening, the Crusaders got a car and began the next leg of their journey, leaving India and heading for Pakistan. However, as they left, another car followed not far behind...
Now:
The Crusaders, on their way to Pakistan, pick up a familiar hitchhiker. Meanwhile, an insane motorist attempts to put an end to their road trip, literally.
JOJO'S JUKEBOX
This week’s Jukebox song is “Arrested for Driving While Blind” by ZZ Top.
Notes:
- The manga chapters which this episode covers can be found in Stardust Crusaders volumes 3 and 4, presently available in hardcover from Viz Media. Alternatively, they can also be found in volumes 4 and 5 of the older paperback releases.
- The first season of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, covering the first 26 episodes, is now available on Bluray from Viz Media and on DVD from Warner Home Video.
- Please, no spoilers about upcoming events and future arcs. Seriously.
