Golden Wind / Vento Aureo, the 5th part, is without a doubt one of the very best parts Jojo has to offer.
The setting is mafia area in Italy. New Jojo wants to stop the corruption, and he joins Bucciarati, who has similar goals, and they plan to make their way up to the top to take it over and overthrow the Boss' reign.
After watching a few episodes of this Part I was skeptical.. it seemed to follow the same format that the last 2 parts did: group traveling; meeting enemy stand user(s); fighting them and hopefully beating them; the story progresses.
Part 1 of Jojo's is unique ofc, Part 2 was too, Part 3 starts over with the Stand system, and Part 4 follows that format with some changes (the enemies joining after they're beaten, etc). Golden Wind starts by following the same format as the last 2 parts, with the main difference being that it slowly shows us the characters' backstories over every couple of episodes. The backstories are really good but I was worried that this would be the fourth anime season in a row of doing the same kind of thing.. ..but it's much more than that.
Once you get to the second half of the show, things change suddenly. The pacing was already really good, and after the first half is done, it takes it a few steps further and mixes up the order of the storytelling, too. There are achronological parts, flashbacks, extra mystery, and the gradual revelations are faster. It picks back up on what was last done in season 1, revealing why alot of things have been happening for 3 Parts now.
I was also worried because this is the second season with a lack of our charismatic Dio and our other friendly local characters that made the show. But it doesn't really disappoint, and the new ones are genuinely as good as the classic ones.
The powers in this season are new, refreshing, and incredible, although almost none of them are revealed at the start. The powers also get development along with the characters. The enemies and all the characters in general are unique in design and personality, capturing attention and there're alot of them.
Obviously, the show has some Jojo logic in it, but the bizarreness is kept pretty toned-down as compared to other parts, so alot of events are things you can actually try and predict, instead of just random.
Some more themes in the show I'd like to focus on are 'manliness', 'words', and 'resolve'. Jojo's has always had these themes, and words and statements have always had special weight, whether it's "the next words you're going to say" or "I warned you I'm going to do this", and it's always bizarre. The weight of words is taken to the extreme, to create enjoyable fights, or show off a character's pure resolve. But this season, while having plenty of the bizarre parts, has alot of parts where words are used more realistically than before, such as "Don't say empty words..", "Is this what you truly resolve?", etc, which are just abit more relatable to us than the crazy twists. They make for some strong, heartwarming / breakingly sad scenes.
Which brings me to my next point: Unlike any other Jojo part, this one actually has wholesome moments ..and alot. They are based on sacrifice and resolve and have fitting, wholesome music to go with them. Of course, it's really sad, being sacrifice ofc, but unlike any other Jojo part, there isn't anything to actually spoil the wholesome moments. That just really surprised me as Jojo's never sticks with pure wholesome moments, so having alot is so new.. the last time I'd seen anything like this was Zeppeli in Part 2.
The finale fight is epic, one of the most compelling parts of the whole series. But the last two episodes are another sudden change, and harder to understand tbh. They especially embody the 'bizarre' of the show. I personally think they're jarring compared to the smooth flow of everything before them, but that's the direction the story chooses to take, and it does a good job to create the emotion it wants with it, so I can respect them.
The cast is a really strong point. The individuals of the main cast each have their own stories / quirks, but a theme is how they try to get over the past to do what's right. The person who brought them together is really amazing, but so are each one of them, even if they're not all your typical 'perfect hero' type (we have a young boy, a criminal, etc. Makes for an interesting group).
The female characters are also done much better than in past Jojo seasons. One of the characters was actually shown as normally as the male cast, with just as much depth and the 'resolve' that I mentioned earlier, and the show has her fight against enemies just like the male cast. This surprised me because, usually, female characters in this series aren't exactly done well, and the one that was done well in a previous part was dead before the part started. So this part does better, and not only with the one woman but all of the female cast.
Now on Giorno:
Spoiler, click to view
He has tendencies similar to those of Dio, yet the fact that it's only gradually shown over time, after his personality is shown more first, is really fitting. I think he's one of the best Jojos.Part 5's animation is undoubtedly the best in the series so far, really capturing the emotions and intensity, taking it a step up from anything we've seen so far. Again, especially in the second half.
I watched it in Japanese (sadly not Italian) but the voice actors are exceptional, even for this series. Narancia's sticks out to me. And Giorno is pretty soft-spoken for a Jojo.
And the music is amazing, that's universally agreed upon. The ost is very detailed, with previous and new leitmotifs, and aside from the that, the Openings and Endings are some of the best, fitting the parts perfectly besides just being some of the best and strongest I have ever seen, with possibly the best Opening of Jojos later on. I highly recommend watching the Openings for that reason (and more).
Before I recommend it, I will remind you that this is Jojos, and this part has the highest level of cosmic horror at the end so far in the series.
My only possible complaints are that and the last 2 episodes, and then the
Spoiler, click to view
Lack of Dio.