JoJo: Steel Ball Run review: The perfect starting point for one of anime's wildest stories

The new Netflix series sets a solid foundation for a bizarre adventure

Over its first six parts, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure told a spellbinding saga about the Joestar family legacy. The franchise’s seventh installment, Steel Ball Run, moves the globe-trotting story to the United States of the 1890s. Araki has created a separate continuity of events that draws heavily from established JoJo lore. Think of it less as a reboot and more like a brand-new adventure that lovingly references the franchise’s cornerstone concepts, such as the use of Stands (entities manifested by a user’s life energy) and the overarching ethos of justice and sacrifice that support the saga. These elements are now enriched by Steel Ball Run's themes of rampant colonization and cultural erasure, which only exacerbate when misguided American exceptionalism is thrown into the mix.

David Production replicates Araki’s most vividly intricate art style to date in Steel Ball Run. Detail-heavy backdrops contrast against delicately drawn characters, who come alive with a competent blend of 2D and 3D animation. The Spaghetti Western influences greet us from the title sequence, capturing desolate wastelands, men on horses, and the eventual violence that erupts in the unlikeliest of places.

Episode 1 opens just like the manga, with the gifted Native American athlete Sandman being hounded by his own tribe, who deem his actions as an affront to indigenous culture. They pursue him on horseback for reading books written by white settlers, but he outruns them on foot without breaking a sweat.

In the original story, Araki uses this cold open to flesh out Sandman’s backstory, but the Netflix anime cuts straight to the Steel Ball Conference, during which event promoter Steven Steel announces a massive horse-racing competition from San Diego to New York City. This new pacing sets the tone for an adaptation that is eager to hook audiences as soon as possible, and the two-part premiere maintains a steady momentum throughout.

The prize money for winning the race is 50 million dollars, which can be claimed by the participant with the highest points who makes it through all the challenging stages. Our JoJo is introduced soon after: Paraplegic ex-jockey Johnny Joestar witnesses a strange brawl near the venue, where the charismatic Gyro Zeppeli emerges victorious with the aid of two spinning Steel Balls. After touching the objects, Johnny's paralyzed legs move for a moment, compelling him to enroll in the race, as he is convinced this mystical rotation technique can help him walk again.

As with previous JoJo protagonists, we get crucial insight into Johnny’s core motivations in the anime premiere. This is conveyed through a brisk but effective flashback, which details Johnny’s glory days as an accomplished horse jockey. Drunk on arrogance and self-indulgence, Johnny antagonized a stranger by cutting in line to enter a theater, and the perturbed man retaliated by shooting him in the spine. His paraplegia put a swift end to his lofty ambitions, isolating Johnny from everyone around him, including his already estranged family. This quick trip down memory lane is essential to our understanding of Johnny’s desperation and the reason behind his single-minded fascination with Gyro’s mysterious Steel Balls, but it doesn't hurt the pacing of the premiere at all.

This long episode perfectly conveys the sense of immense geographic scale presented by Araki in the opening manga volumes, etched in vivid landscapes and vast stretches of dangerous racetracks. A dozen or more characters are introduced in the first race alone, including the capricious Diego Brando and the carefree Pocoloco, who threaten Gyro’s goal of winning with ease. The tense dynamism of this race is conveyed in the anime with great success; it’s easy to lose track of time once you hone in on the intricacies that shape each character.

We’re urged to notice key details about some participants, such as Diego Brando’s uncanny ability to swerve on the racetrack and figure out that Gyro’s horse, Valkyrie, has a tell, which he uses to his advantage to one-up him. While this chaotic horseback conflict between Diego and Gyro unfolds, we see Sandman leaping over a massive chasm without a horse, while Pocoloco keeps being propelled by an uncanny, supernatural luck. Before we know it, the first stage of the Steel Ball Run race transitions to its most climactic segment.

Eccentricity has always been the lifeblood of JoJo as a franchise. No one bats an eye when Pocoloco uses a cow’s carcass to glide down a slope on horseback, or when a determined Sandman runs neck-to-neck with competent horse riders during the race’s final stretch. Johnny isn’t too preoccupied with winning at the moment. His sights are set on proving his worth to Gyro, hoping to gain insights into his mysterious technique.

Those acquainted with Araki’s manga might take issue with the rushed nature of the premiere. Vast swathes of dialogue have been condensed and simplified, and entire sequences are omitted to present a thrilling introduction to a truly bizarre world. It’s too early to write this off as a drawback; Steel Ball Run might choose to revisit them in future episodes as it streamlines the story for a visual medium. We might still get Sandman’s crucial backstory, or see Pocoloco’s Stand (named Hey Ya!) turn up during a significant moment. Moreover, the premiere never falters or loses steam due to its radical restructuring, which bodes well for an adaptation set to bring Araki’s most ambitious story to life.

From a thematic standpoint, Steel Ball Run jumps right into the corrosive impact of colonization, while exposing the hollowness of the American Dream. Greed and corruption are embedded into the premise as soon as Steven Steel announces the race, as it masks sinister motives that are yet to be revealed. Whether the Netflix adaptation succeeds in balancing these broader ideas with the intimate drama of Johnny’s arc remains to be seen, but Steel Ball Run kicks off its journey on a beautiful and vibrant note. As the participants race towards more hostile terrain, the impressive depth of Araki’s worldbuilding will reveal itself like a perfectly concocted puzzle piece. All we have to do is buckle up for an unforgettable ride.

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JoJo: Steel Ball Run’s two-part premiere can be streamed on Netflix.