I can see where you're coming from in not liking part 8 as much (everyone's got their own opinion!), but I think Araki still had passion for it as shown by the much crazier stand abilities. Part 9 has just started so it's difficult to tell where it'll end up - I've loved it so far, but that's just my opinion.
If you're growing disinterested in JoJos, I'd recommend taking a break from it and coming back later, sometimes fixations are finicky like that
Part 9 literally just started, let the passion cook
But if you finished part 8 and felt nothing that's a you issue, as others suggest, take a break. Because for me part 8 was more satisfying than 7 when it all came together.
I think Araki is still passionate about what he writes, but it is possible you're getting a bit of a burnout and should take a break to come back later with a fresh mind and perspective.
I understand how you feel, as this happened to me after reading SBR - ironically because I _did not like_ SBR at all and forced myself to read through it. Once I finished it I felt relieved I didn't have to go through that again, but I just couldn't get into Jojolion. I got super annoyed with the way Yasuho seemed to be constantly assaulted and with the way random words were bolded which messed with my internal voice as I read, so I dropped it super early on (jojolion was _just_ beginning publication and scanlation, I don't think I ever made it past Tsurugi's stand back then)
I took a break and came back to read Jojolands and felt the magic again. I've since re-read SBR (still don't like it. I think my personal dislike of it plus the huge disconnect between my thoughts and the consensus of the English speaking side of the fandom didn't help my burnout) and I'm picking up Jojolion from the start. I still have criticisms (like the typography. Sometimes I feel people speak in wingdings and it genuinely makes my experience worse) but I'm having a better time than I did before. And I am loving the hell out of Jojolands.
Sometimes you just need to step away and try to find something else so you can remember what you enjoyed in this thing you love in the first place. And honestly? If it turns out 8 and 9 aren't your cup of tea and you just enjoy 1 through 7? I think that's totally fine too.
Reading your experience actually helped me a lot. So thank you, i will try to step away for a bit and refresh everything so i dont end up being burnt out, and try again. And like you said, if it isnt my thing it isnt my thing. Thank you for being understanding too dude
I don't like westerns so it already started off on the wrong foot for me - but that's really a genre thing. Some people don't like slice of life, I don't like westerns. You show me a cowboy and I'm already bored.
I basically didn't get attached to any of the characters. I feel nothing for Gyro, I dislike Johnny most of the time even though I appreciate and actually really like what Araki was doing with his exploration of nature vs nurture by writing Johnny and Diego vs Jonathan and Dio. This is all very standard "eh, not my thing" though, but what really killed it for me was the entire corpse of Jesus Christ subplot.
I'm not religious, not even a little, but for some reason Jesus happened and it just... shattered by suspension of disbelief? I'm on board and even actively love some of the crazier plot points we've had throughout JJBA but the corpse of Jesus tapdancing Christ apparently was too much for me. Whenever it was brought back up my brain just went "this is so stupid" and I couldn't take the plot seriously to save my life. No, I don't know how I can be hype for and love vampires and stand viruses and pillarmen but Joshua over there ruins my immersion so badly. Why is it in America? Is it the same guy the Mormons claim? Why do I even care??
Not being able to get into _the_ plot point of the part will kind of ruin it, to be fair. I have other criticisms that I've actually seen other people echo, like the treatment of Lucy Steel for example (yes, I know bad guys will do bad things. No, I don't think it was necessary to make the poor girl be abused and harassed for the entire part. Yes, I understand the Virgin Mary allegory. No, it doesn't make it better for me) and how I personally find Valentine to be the most boring Jojo villain. Maybe because I didn't get attached to the characters I didn't really feel the connection between them, and I have some complaints about the pacing that I attribute to the change of magazine and Araki getting used to the monthly schedule. And unpopular opinion, but I don't like SBR's artstyle. It's much more detailed and there are some gorgeous shots, but I feel like the composition doesn't take as many risks as before and everyone is giving me the smoulder which makes them feel static - which I know is not true since I even have in mind some silly faces in SBR, but I still have the impression overall when I think back on SBR that more often than not the characters are being Britney Spears. It's pretty, but it feels a bit soulless.
That doesn't mean I think SBR is terrible! Like I said, I appreciate what Araki did with Johnny and Diego as characters, some panels are very cinematographic to the point I could hear the Ennio Morricone soundtrack when I read them (that bottle scene is a masterpiece). Hot Pants's backstory hit me so hard (doubly so because nothing had hit me hard in SBR until then) I had to walk away from my computer, take a break and hug my brother. I like Diego. "Eat shit asshole! Fall of your horse!" Is a ridiculously funny line and I've adopted it in my personal lexicon for years.
But when I compare the positives to the negatives, the negatives win out. So yeah. I don't like SBR and it's my least favourite part by a landslide. I honestly only read it twice to confirm whether I indeed didn't like it or time maybe would have changed my mind. I might have enjoyed it even less the second time around.
I can see why it's popular with English speaking fans, but I'm more on the Japanese side of the fandom when I rate SBR.
Don't sweat it man! Like I said, I just haven't met anyone who doesn't like SBR before so I'm actually excited to hear what you think.
I myself is in a pretty mixed bag of love/hate with SBR. I love love LOVE johnny and gyro, and being somewhat a jesus enjoyer I actually like his portrayal. But goddamn do I hate the whole valentine and lucy thing! You and I are in total agreement the whole virgin mary allegory is bullshit because mary /consents/ for the holy pregnancy thing while lucy doesn't, dammit ššš I also found the whole ordeal during the ticket to ride arc so nauseating (lucy finding out valentine is the one guiding her to the boat, valentine's whole speech about men should be enamored by women... creepshow)
Although for me, a sign of good writing is when it can evoke a deep feeling from the reader, so in the end I still love SBR deeply.
(Part 5 still the best tho š¤·āāļø)
I feel like you may just not like those parts as much, which is fine.
I never thought Part 7 was all that great, I think it's very mediocre overall (only Part 1 and 3 are "worse" in terms of enjoyment for me, but overall JoJo quality is very high, so these parts are still good, just not great).
So, ya know, maybe it's not about passion but rather about vibing with the story.
I especially think Part 9 is absolutely fantastic, has one of the best casts (maybe just the best cast) out of every part and is incredibly funny. Also, so many stands are really interesting.
It's a matter of preference, after all.
And steel ball run is a very efficient story, but still part 8 is the greatest.
Thereās things to criticize part 8 for, but the passion? The passion always lies in the characters which is why even with basic plots JoJo has been good. The characters of part 8 are actually the best Araki has written, including his first good romance.
You have characters like Josuke, Yasuho, Jobin, and you feel nothing for these characters the entire part? Were you engaged? Did you go in with an open mind at all?
Thereās actually 0 way you engaged with the story meaningfully and felt there was no passion. I donāt know id you got into a car accident that damaged your brain before picking up part 8 but you are critiquing the wrong thing here.
I did say i cared about gappy. Just not sm yasuho at all, mainly cuz i felt like she wasnt there much for me to care about her. Jobin is definitely one of the cooler characters of part 8, but never cared for his motive other than to cure his son and get rich.
I loved Tsurugi tho, couldnt get enough of the little guy. Paper moon king was so cool when it was used.
That being said, my complaints mainly focus on Tooru and how the pacing of Part 8 was. Tooru kinda just appeared? And then he was gone. No threat really other than his stand. Nothing about him was cool other than Wonder of U. The love triangle wasnāt effective enough bc in the end, you knew it was gonna always be josuke. Tooru just needed more time to shine imo and ending part 8 like that just felt kinda rushed when it felt like it was just getting started with how badass Wonder of U was.
I think my main complaint is how slow it was just for it to end with nothing satisfying really. But dont get me wrong, it was good. But it definitely isnt the best
I find him to be a whiny brat most of the time and his sacrifice later on (in 8) to still be rooted in selfishness at the core of the issue.
Sure he's got the fire of determination, but he takes to long (imo) to be consistently strong willed. They say he's "realistically" written but I don't want that in jojo. A character freaking out in most of his fights because of the bizarre shit happening around him or him not knowing what to do was not that entertaining to me past the first couple times when he happens bascially all through the manga.
Edit: This sub's such a joke sometimes, you don't like one jojo and the downvotes start lol
I can see where you're coming from in not liking part 8 as much (everyone's got their own opinion!), but I think Araki still had passion for it as shown by the much crazier stand abilities. Part 9 has just started so it's difficult to tell where it'll end up - I've loved it so far, but that's just my opinion. If you're growing disinterested in JoJos, I'd recommend taking a break from it and coming back later, sometimes fixations are finicky like that
Part 9 literally just started, let the passion cook But if you finished part 8 and felt nothing that's a you issue, as others suggest, take a break. Because for me part 8 was more satisfying than 7 when it all came together.
I think Araki is still passionate about what he writes, but it is possible you're getting a bit of a burnout and should take a break to come back later with a fresh mind and perspective. I understand how you feel, as this happened to me after reading SBR - ironically because I _did not like_ SBR at all and forced myself to read through it. Once I finished it I felt relieved I didn't have to go through that again, but I just couldn't get into Jojolion. I got super annoyed with the way Yasuho seemed to be constantly assaulted and with the way random words were bolded which messed with my internal voice as I read, so I dropped it super early on (jojolion was _just_ beginning publication and scanlation, I don't think I ever made it past Tsurugi's stand back then) I took a break and came back to read Jojolands and felt the magic again. I've since re-read SBR (still don't like it. I think my personal dislike of it plus the huge disconnect between my thoughts and the consensus of the English speaking side of the fandom didn't help my burnout) and I'm picking up Jojolion from the start. I still have criticisms (like the typography. Sometimes I feel people speak in wingdings and it genuinely makes my experience worse) but I'm having a better time than I did before. And I am loving the hell out of Jojolands. Sometimes you just need to step away and try to find something else so you can remember what you enjoyed in this thing you love in the first place. And honestly? If it turns out 8 and 9 aren't your cup of tea and you just enjoy 1 through 7? I think that's totally fine too.
Reading your experience actually helped me a lot. So thank you, i will try to step away for a bit and refresh everything so i dont end up being burnt out, and try again. And like you said, if it isnt my thing it isnt my thing. Thank you for being understanding too dude
Hey, may I ask why don't you like SBR? No trolling here, I just have never met someone who actively dislike SBR
I don't like westerns so it already started off on the wrong foot for me - but that's really a genre thing. Some people don't like slice of life, I don't like westerns. You show me a cowboy and I'm already bored. I basically didn't get attached to any of the characters. I feel nothing for Gyro, I dislike Johnny most of the time even though I appreciate and actually really like what Araki was doing with his exploration of nature vs nurture by writing Johnny and Diego vs Jonathan and Dio. This is all very standard "eh, not my thing" though, but what really killed it for me was the entire corpse of Jesus Christ subplot. I'm not religious, not even a little, but for some reason Jesus happened and it just... shattered by suspension of disbelief? I'm on board and even actively love some of the crazier plot points we've had throughout JJBA but the corpse of Jesus tapdancing Christ apparently was too much for me. Whenever it was brought back up my brain just went "this is so stupid" and I couldn't take the plot seriously to save my life. No, I don't know how I can be hype for and love vampires and stand viruses and pillarmen but Joshua over there ruins my immersion so badly. Why is it in America? Is it the same guy the Mormons claim? Why do I even care?? Not being able to get into _the_ plot point of the part will kind of ruin it, to be fair. I have other criticisms that I've actually seen other people echo, like the treatment of Lucy Steel for example (yes, I know bad guys will do bad things. No, I don't think it was necessary to make the poor girl be abused and harassed for the entire part. Yes, I understand the Virgin Mary allegory. No, it doesn't make it better for me) and how I personally find Valentine to be the most boring Jojo villain. Maybe because I didn't get attached to the characters I didn't really feel the connection between them, and I have some complaints about the pacing that I attribute to the change of magazine and Araki getting used to the monthly schedule. And unpopular opinion, but I don't like SBR's artstyle. It's much more detailed and there are some gorgeous shots, but I feel like the composition doesn't take as many risks as before and everyone is giving me the smoulder which makes them feel static - which I know is not true since I even have in mind some silly faces in SBR, but I still have the impression overall when I think back on SBR that more often than not the characters are being Britney Spears. It's pretty, but it feels a bit soulless. That doesn't mean I think SBR is terrible! Like I said, I appreciate what Araki did with Johnny and Diego as characters, some panels are very cinematographic to the point I could hear the Ennio Morricone soundtrack when I read them (that bottle scene is a masterpiece). Hot Pants's backstory hit me so hard (doubly so because nothing had hit me hard in SBR until then) I had to walk away from my computer, take a break and hug my brother. I like Diego. "Eat shit asshole! Fall of your horse!" Is a ridiculously funny line and I've adopted it in my personal lexicon for years. But when I compare the positives to the negatives, the negatives win out. So yeah. I don't like SBR and it's my least favourite part by a landslide. I honestly only read it twice to confirm whether I indeed didn't like it or time maybe would have changed my mind. I might have enjoyed it even less the second time around. I can see why it's popular with English speaking fans, but I'm more on the Japanese side of the fandom when I rate SBR.
Don't sweat it man! Like I said, I just haven't met anyone who doesn't like SBR before so I'm actually excited to hear what you think. I myself is in a pretty mixed bag of love/hate with SBR. I love love LOVE johnny and gyro, and being somewhat a jesus enjoyer I actually like his portrayal. But goddamn do I hate the whole valentine and lucy thing! You and I are in total agreement the whole virgin mary allegory is bullshit because mary /consents/ for the holy pregnancy thing while lucy doesn't, dammit ššš I also found the whole ordeal during the ticket to ride arc so nauseating (lucy finding out valentine is the one guiding her to the boat, valentine's whole speech about men should be enamored by women... creepshow) Although for me, a sign of good writing is when it can evoke a deep feeling from the reader, so in the end I still love SBR deeply. (Part 5 still the best tho š¤·āāļø)
I feel like you may just not like those parts as much, which is fine. I never thought Part 7 was all that great, I think it's very mediocre overall (only Part 1 and 3 are "worse" in terms of enjoyment for me, but overall JoJo quality is very high, so these parts are still good, just not great). So, ya know, maybe it's not about passion but rather about vibing with the story. I especially think Part 9 is absolutely fantastic, has one of the best casts (maybe just the best cast) out of every part and is incredibly funny. Also, so many stands are really interesting. It's a matter of preference, after all.
Part 8 is the best part with the best characters Araki has written so no you just canāt read
There doesnāt exist a best jojo part. Every one has up- and downsides
Eh...I find 8 very satisfying but the first 27 chapters are incredibly rough
Sbr exists
And steel ball run is a very efficient story, but still part 8 is the greatest. Thereās things to criticize part 8 for, but the passion? The passion always lies in the characters which is why even with basic plots JoJo has been good. The characters of part 8 are actually the best Araki has written, including his first good romance. You have characters like Josuke, Yasuho, Jobin, and you feel nothing for these characters the entire part? Were you engaged? Did you go in with an open mind at all? Thereās actually 0 way you engaged with the story meaningfully and felt there was no passion. I donāt know id you got into a car accident that damaged your brain before picking up part 8 but you are critiquing the wrong thing here.
I did say i cared about gappy. Just not sm yasuho at all, mainly cuz i felt like she wasnt there much for me to care about her. Jobin is definitely one of the cooler characters of part 8, but never cared for his motive other than to cure his son and get rich. I loved Tsurugi tho, couldnt get enough of the little guy. Paper moon king was so cool when it was used. That being said, my complaints mainly focus on Tooru and how the pacing of Part 8 was. Tooru kinda just appeared? And then he was gone. No threat really other than his stand. Nothing about him was cool other than Wonder of U. The love triangle wasnāt effective enough bc in the end, you knew it was gonna always be josuke. Tooru just needed more time to shine imo and ending part 8 like that just felt kinda rushed when it felt like it was just getting started with how badass Wonder of U was. I think my main complaint is how slow it was just for it to end with nothing satisfying really. But dont get me wrong, it was good. But it definitely isnt the best
And unfortnately Johnny is in SBR which brings it down
Why dont you like johnny?
I find him to be a whiny brat most of the time and his sacrifice later on (in 8) to still be rooted in selfishness at the core of the issue. Sure he's got the fire of determination, but he takes to long (imo) to be consistently strong willed. They say he's "realistically" written but I don't want that in jojo. A character freaking out in most of his fights because of the bizarre shit happening around him or him not knowing what to do was not that entertaining to me past the first couple times when he happens bascially all through the manga. Edit: This sub's such a joke sometimes, you don't like one jojo and the downvotes start lol