Quick Links
After years of anticipation,JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Runis finally getting an anime adaptation.Steel Ball Runhas always been one of the most popular parts,to the point that people have wanted to see it animated since the anime was first announced, and with how great the anime has been for the past decade,Steel Ball Runwill surely more than live up to its hype.
TheSteel Ball Runanimewill certainly be great to watch, but whether it will have the presentation to match is another story entirely. While a distributor forSteel Ball Runhasn’t been announced, it will likely go to Netflix, as that was the exclusive home forJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean. However, after how things went there,it’s clear thatJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Runwould be better off ditching Netflix if it wants to have any chance of success, and that’s something most fans would agree with.
Stone Ocean Was Doomed By Being A Netflix Exclusive
If there’s any reason why Netflix would be bad forSteel Ball Run, it would be because of howStone Oceanwas handled. Back whenStone Oceanpremiered, Netflix was at its worst when it came to handling anime, as everything would get a batch release where every episode would drop at once with the expectation that people would watch it in a single sitting.Stone Oceanwas no exception, and with each batch of episodes being months apart,Netflix’s release model essentially killed all discussion forStone Oceanand made it the least popular part ofJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure.
Stone Ocean, of course, deserved far better than that. While the overall production appeared to be a step down from its predecessors,Stone Oceanstill had plenty of great art and animation, and overall,JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Oceanis easily one of the best installments ofJoJo’s Bizarre Adventurefor its strong character writing, with Jolyne being one of thebestJoJoprotagonists, by far, all with a story that perfectly bookends the entire franchise up to that point. It was the kind of story that deserved a great release, and it’s terrible that Netflix treated it so poorly.
All of that is why Netflix is probably the worst placeSteel Ball Runcould go. Fans have been anticipating aSteel Ball Runanime for years, with some even looking forward to it from the momentJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure’s anime was first announced, and with that level of hype surrounding it, it deserves to have as flawless a release as possible. That can’t happen with Netflix’s binge model that only keeps discussions going for a few weeks, soJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run’s best chance of success would be to avoid Netflix’s batch release system at all costs.
Netflix’s Recent Handling Of Anime Gives Steel Ball Run Plenty Of Hope
As good as it would be forSteel Ball Runto abandon Netflix entirely, that might not be as necessary as people think. While Netflix is infamous for its batch release system, recent years have seen a great improvement in how they handle anime, with shows likeDelicious in Dungeon,Ranma ½, and2024’sBlue Boxall being released weekly. Granted, not every anime gets that treatment, but it’s still a vast improvement over how things used to work, soJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Runwould be fine on Netflix so long as it’s another weekly release.
Another point to consider is how Netflix isn’t as exclusive as it used to be. While mostNetflix animestream exclusively on Netflix, recent years have seen shows likeDandadan,Dragon Ball Daima, andWitch Watchstream on multiple platforms in addition to Netflix, and they’ve all been some of the most popular anime of their respective seasons, thanks in large part to that. As such,JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Runcan become a major success if it streams on multiple platforms in addition to Netflix, and that, of course, would be great to see.
All of this is hypothetical, of course. Not only has nothing been announced forSteel Ball Runin terms of streaming, but if it were to end up on Netflix, there’s no proof that it wouldn’t end up with another batch release schedule, as their anime are still prone to do.The recent changes Netflix has made to how they handle anime don’t guarantee thatJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Runwill be treated any better thanStone Oceanwas, but hopefully, things will work out for the best, no matter what streaming serviceSteel Ball Runends up on.
Why JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run Deserves The Best Release Possible
What Makes Steel Ball Run Such A Great Story
Much has been said about whySteel Ball Runneeds to get a good release, and it all circles back to how good a storySteel Ball Runis. For starters, whileJoJo’s Bizarre Adventurehas always had great artwork,Steel Ball Runis often seen as the point when the artwork truly became gorgeous, thanks to the extensive detail and realism put into every chapter.TheSteel Ball Runanime could make the magnificent artwork of the manga even better through animation, and a proper release schedule would be the best way for people to see all of that.
The biggest thing to highlight, however, isSteel Ball Run’s masterful writing. Not only is the writing far more serious and mature than previous installments while still having plenty of levity, butJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Runis often seen as having the best character writing of any installment ofJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, with Johnny Joestar’s arc of becoming a better person one of the biggest highlights of the entire franchise.Steel Ball Run’s writinghas done a lot to endear itself to fans, and it’s easy to see why so many people are excited to see it animated.
Few manga in and out of theJoJo’s Bizarre Adventurefranchise have succeeded both visually and narratively to the same extent asSteel Ball Run, and with it finally getting an anime,JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run, more than any other recent anime, needs to have a proper release format to get the recognition its story deserves. Whether it needs to stay as far away fromNetflixas possible to do that is up in the air, but whatever happens, it will hopefully end withJoJo’s Bizarre Adventurebeing in the best shape possible.
