A lot of anime series have become so popular that their premieres are marked as celebratory events in the community, yet this level of excitement seems to be even more out of control when it comes to Hirohiko Araki’s JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. The sixth major saga in the series, Stone Ocean, has finally made its anime debut and has done an exceptional job bringing Araki’s source material to life.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has a reputation for visually gorgeous and musically addicting opening sequences and Stone Ocean’s opening number, “Stone Ocean,” by Ichigo from KISIDA KYODAN & THE AKEBOSI ROCKETS is no exception. Stone Ocean’s opening is beautiful to watch, but it’s also full of loving Easter eggs that pay respect to all of the previous JoJo installments.
10 Bruno Bucciarati’s Sticky Fingers Stand Receives Representation
Every single opening number from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a visual extravaganza, but there’s an added level of chaos that courses through the Stone Ocean intro sequence. A lot of extra madness gets easily added through the use of graffiti, which doesn’t even come across as feeling out of place due to the season’s prison aesthetic. One of the first Easter eggs that shows up in the opening is a nod to Bruno Bucciarati’s Sticky Fingers Stand. The prison vehicle that’s transporting Jolyne and company to Green Dolphin Street Prison includes a drawing of the zipper on the wall.
9 Jonathan Joestar’s Birth Details Get A Shout Out
The Stone Ocean opening covers a staggering amount of real estate as it zips through Green Dolphin Street Prison and the surrounding area around it in Florida. It feels like any wide open area that’s peppered with graffiti will have some kind of JoJo secret hidden away. One Easter Egg that requires a little more JoJo general knowledge is obscured writing on the wall of a shed that says “1868 England.” This date and location corresponds to Jonathan Joestar’s birth, and ostensibly the beginning of the whole JoJo saga.
8 Erina Pendleton Is Remembered Through Her Cherished Doll
It’s sometimes easy to forget some of the finer details that surround JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure’s opening Phantom Blood story arc since it represents such a brief portion of the series’ huge timeline. Phantom Blood ignites the feud between Dio Brando and Jonathan Joestar, and the chaste Erina Pendleton gets caught up in the middle of their rivalry.
Erina eventually becomes Jonathan’s wife and the grandmother of Joseph Joestar. She may not fight in battle, but it’s nice to see Stone Ocean pay service to her via her most identifiable accessory.
7 Iggy The Fool Gets Remembered As A Stardust Crusaders Standout
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is full of some of anime’s most unique and unusual characters, but Stardust Crusaders takes some extra liberties when it comes to Joseph and Jotaro’s supporting crew of characters. There have been rare cases where animals are Stand users and Iggy is an adorable, scrappy dog with an intimidating metallic Stand known as The Fool. Iggy’s picture is plastered on one of the walls in Stone Ocean’s prison while he shares the frame with fellow Stardust Crusader, Jotaro. Jotaro is also visually referenced through Jolyne’s poses, specifically Jotaro and Star Platinum’s pose in Stardust Crusaders’ “Stand Proud” opening.
6 Leaky-Eye Luca's Shovel Is Another Piece Of Golden Wind Iconography
Golden Wind is an exciting change of pace for JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, both in terms of its protagonist and the series being set in Italy. There are a lot of characters and reference points that could function as Golden Wind mementos, but Stone Ocean includes Leaky-Eye Luca’s shovel, which operates as one of the earliest examples of Giorno Giovanna’s strength. Leaky-Eye Luca hits a frog with a shovel, only Gold Experience transfers the energy to Luca so that he receives the force of the attack. It’s a surprising, brutal display.
5 Josuke’s Crazy Diamond Sneaks In Through Clever Graffiti
Diamond is Unbreakable is one of the most popular chapters from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and it manages to feature three generations of Joestars between Joseph, Jotaro Kujo, and Josuke Higashikata. Josuke is an entertaining protagonist and his Stand, Crazy Diamond, feels both familiar of past Stands, yet still distinctly new.
There’s some well-placed graffiti in Stone Ocean’s opening that places the word “Crazy” in close proximity to a drawing of a diamond. Jotaro also stands between these two graphics, which is appropriate due to his role in Diamond is Unbreakable.
4 Joseph Joestar’s Trademark Walkman Joins The Party
Stone Ocean’s opening is visually overwhelming at many moments, and one of the most crowded sequences involves several odd items that cascade upon the piano that exists within Emporio’s Burning Down the House Stand. The final item that appears here is a Walkman, which connects back to Joseph Joestar. Joseph’s Walkman is a recurring motif that shows up in each of the chapters in which he’s present. Joseph uses the Walkman to listen to music as he reflects on his journey. In Diamond is Unbreakable he even upgrades from the cassette model to the MiniDisc variety.
3 DIO’s Signpost Shows Up To Represent His Undying Feud With The Joestars
There are some incredibly dangerous and memorable villains that show up in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, but DIO largely functions as the major antagonist through the first half of the series. The evolution from Dio Brando into the tyrannical DIO is absolutely chilling, and he resorts to some extremely unconventional methods to exact his revenge on the Joestar family. DIO’s improvisational work with a road roller gets a lot of attention, but he also tries to use a signpost as a decapitation tool. This signpost is one of several JoJo mementos that falls down on Stone Ocean’s piano.
2 The Stone Mask, Red Stone Of Aja, And Stand Arrow Are Featured
There are many touchstones from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure’s history that observant audiences will catch in the Stone Ocean opening, but the sequence concludes with a very nostalgic collection of images. The final moments of the opening when Jolyne’s star birthmark takes shape there are flashes of iconic moments from each of the previous parts. There’s a glimpse of the Stone Mask, the Red Stone of Aja, DIO’s mansion from Cairo, Sheer Heart Attack and Stray Cat, as well as the Stand Arrow. It’s the perfect way to highlight Jolyne’s legacy.
1 Rohan Kishibe’s Pencil Recollects The Fan Favorite Character
Each installment of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure features breakout characters, but Rohan Kishibe’s popularity has led to him receiving multiple animated OVA installments, which have also received live-action adaptations. The egotistical mangaka from Diamond is Unbreakable has built up a large fan base. Rohan typically uses a fountain pen to create his work, but he does make use of a pencil during the first time that Heaven’s Door appears. There’s also the chance that the pencil is meant to be a nod to Hirohiko Araki himself and the tools that he uses to bring the manga to life.