10 Essential Episodes Before ‘JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run’

Ask any fan of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure (2012) about which of the six animated parts is their favorite, and you tend to get a variety of different responses. Some prefer the small town vibes of Diamond Is Unbreakable, while others gel with the homoerotic energy of Golden Wind. Each part can run for dozens of episodes, and the creativity on display in the show’s 190 episodes means that while it can be easy to choose a favorite season, choosing a favorite episode is a bit harder. 

With the seventh part of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Steel Ball Run, on the horizon, what essential episodes should newcomers interested in diving into the show but aren’t able to watch all 190 episodes watch in order to truly understand it? After all, each part is so radically different, and when browsing the series on Crunchyroll and Netflix, it may be hard to single out which episodes are the best. These 10 episodes, however, stand apart from the crowd. Whether it’s because of their creativity, comedy, action, drama, or outright weirdness, in a series beloved by many, these 10 episodes stick out as peak Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure.

10) Six Bullets Appear Part 1 (Season 4, Episode 7)

By all accounts, “Six Bullets Appear Part 1” is a fairly standard episode of Golden Wind. Giorno Giovanna and his mafiosi buddies defeat an enemy, then leave to make contact with an informant. However, what makes “Six Bullets Appear Part 1” such a strong episode is the infamous torture dance.

Known throughout the entire Jojo community, and even through memes beyond it, the torture dance is a disturbing yet beautiful spectacle. What was once a goofy four-panel routine in the manga has become a full-blown musical number, complete with psychedelic imagery that makes you feel like you’re watching an episode of Superjail! (2008) on acid. No other animated sequence in the series even comes close to the torture dance, and you can tell David Production spent a ton of money making it look as good as it does. The rest of the episode is fine, since it’s impossible to hate Mista’s adorable Stand, Six Bullets, once they’re introduced, but “Six Bullets Appear Part 1” is all about that depraved dance.

9) Bastet’s Mariah (Season 2, Episode 30-31)

Stardust Crusaders established the formula that would come to define future storylines in Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. Two-parters would introduce a villain of the week, complete with a mysterious Stand utilizing some supernatural force to confuse our heroes, only for them to learn the Stand’s weakness and confidently declare victory. It’s a formula that works, but rarely is it as funny as it is in “Bastet’s Mariah.”

The Stand in question, Bastet, is an unconventional one. It’s an electric socket that magnetizes anything that touches it, and it causes two of Stardust Crusaders’ supporting characters, Joseph and Avdol, to become magnetized together. That alone has the potential for some good comedy, and the show relishes putting the two into as many comically uncomfortable situations as possible. It’s like Together (2025), only with way more sexual innuendos. Even when the situation gets dire, it ends in such an over-the-top spectacle that viewers will laugh at how brutal it is. Stardust Crusaders can be one of the lighter Jojo parts, and if you want to understand the type of humor that defined this era, “Bastet’s Mariah” is your best bet.

8) New York’s Jojo (Season 1, Episode 10)

The first two parts of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Phantom Blood and Battle Tendency, tend to be overlooked because they don’t feature the franchise’s iconic Stands. It’s understandable to an extent, but if you do, then you’ll be missing the introduction to the best and most lovable member of the Joestar family, Joseph Joestar.

“New York’s Jojo” starts with a time skip from Phantom Blood’s ending, and while it is nice to see old characters like Robert Speedwagon return, this episode is all about establishing Joseph. In one episode, we see just how clever, brash, and confident the man is, and it’s impossible to hate him. He’s just so damn cocky, giving off the same roguish charm that fans of Indy from Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) will love. Seeing him boldly predict the future never gets old, and even when faced with supernatural enemies, he faces them with reckless abandon. The comedy of the episode isn’t quite as strong as it was in “Bastet’s Mariah,” but “New York’s Jojo” makes it abundantly clear why Joseph is the man.

7) Notorious B.I.G (Season 4, Episode 24)

For all the ridiculous and creative abilities on display in the series, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure rarely, if ever, dips into horror. But for one episode, Golden Wind presents viewers with a Stand that’s quite literally unbeatable and is monstrous in every sense of the word that monster lovers will find irresistible. 

The premise of “Notorious B.I.G” is actually pretty simple. Our heroes are stuck on a plane flying to Sardinia, and the Stand, Notorious B.I.G sneaks on board. The problem for our heroes, and the viewers, is that after three seasons of establishing what Stands are, Notorious B.I.G breaks every single rule. Its introduction is slow and methodical, and the confusion and fear it creates among our heroes goes beyond even what the main villain evokes. The paranoia, as well as Notorious B.I.G’s flesh-like appearance, turn the episode into a small-scale recreation of The Thing (1982). While the following episode, “Spice Girl,” may provide a convenient solution to defeat Notorious B.I.G, which does undermine its placement, that introduction alone is terrifying enough to warrant a place on the list.

6) The Mystery of King Crimson (Season 4, Episode 21)

Speaking of compelling introductions, while the introduction of Joseph in “New York’s Jojo” established him as one of the show’s best heroes, the introduction of Golden Wind’s primary antagonists, Diavolo and King Crimson, is on another level.

After spending the first half of the season building up the enigma that is the boss of Passione, “The Mystery of King Crimson” offers a tantalizing tease of who Diavolo is and what he’s capable of. In short, they’re frightening beyond reproach. The episode is less of a fight between King Crimson and Bucciarati and more of Bucciarati trying to find a way to escape King Crimson’s clutches. In just one episode, we witness just how formidable his ability is and how difficult it will be for our heroes to defeat it. It also becomes clear with “The Mystery of King Crimson” that the tone of the series has forever shifted. Now our heroes, at least the ones that stick around, are on a suicide mission à la The Suicide Squad (2021), where it’s clear not everyone will make it out by the end. It’s a thematically strong episode, and the point where Golden Wind shifts into high gear. 

5) Yoshikage Kira Just Wants To Live Quietly (Season 3, Episode 21-22)

What happens when one of the most well-liked antagonists in the series meets one of the franchise’s most hated supporting characters? You get the excellent two-parter “Yoshikage Kira Just Wants To Live Quietly.”

What makes Diamond Is Unbreakable stand apart from the other parts in the series is how understated it is, and that idea perfectly encapsulates its villain, Yoshikage Kira. Through this two-parter, we perfectly understand who he is, his motivations, and his desire to live a simple life. It handles the villain reveal slightly better than “The Mystery of King Crimson” and, thanks to a particularly effective monologue, may even make the viewer sympathize with him in the same way fans of Death Note (2006) sympathize with Light Yagami. It also helps a lot that Yoshikage Kira puts Shigechi, one of the most selfish and unlikable characters in the series, in his place in the most spectacular way possible. Villain introductions are rarely handled as well as they are in “Yoshikage Kira Just Wants To Live Quietly,” but leave it to Diamond Is Unbreakable to outclass them all.

4) Beneath a Sky on the Verge of Falling (Season 4, Episode 28)

Golden Wind knows how to create character drama. It may have a small core cast like in Stardust Crusaders, but they’re far more fleshed out and, given the much more dire stakes, you’ll root for them harder when they’re faced with conflict.

That conflict comes to a head in “Beneath a Sky on the Verge of Falling.” While it doesn’t feature a new villain of the week for Giorno and his friends to fight, it’s instead a game of cat-and-mouse between our heroes and Diavolo. Diavolo is weakened from a previous battle, but with our heroes inches away from discovering his identity, he has to use every trick in the book to stop them. The results are tragic, and feature a death that is just as tragic and hefty as the death of Fredo in The Godfather (1972). Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure rarely puts a tear in your eye, but “Beneath a Sky on the Verge of Falling” does. If you want proof that the series isn’t just goofy action, this episode should be Exhibit A.

3) Let’s Go Eat Some Italian Food (Season 3, Episode 10)

If “Beneath A Sky On The Verge Of Falling” was a bit too dark for your liking, then nothing quite compares to the comedy of “Let’s Go Eat Some Italian Food.” It’s arguably Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure at its strangest, which is saying something, but it’s simply irresistible.

The episode focuses on Diamond Is Unbreakable’s lead, Josuke Higashikata, and his best bud, Okuyasu, going out to eat at an Italian restaurant. And… that’s about it. There’s no violence, no malevolent Stand users looking to kill our heroes, just some pleasant Italian food. Granted, the food they eat does come with the side effect of grotesque body horror that evokes The Fly (1986) by way of The Menu (2022), but at least it tastes good. What also makes “Let’s Go Eat Some Italian Food” unique is that it’s a one-and-done episode, which is very rare for the series. In theory, you can show the episode to anyone, and they can still have a good time. Not only is “Let’s Go Eat Some Italian Food” a fun and nonsensical bit of comedy, but it’s a great microcosm of what makes Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure as creative as it is.

2) It’s A Wonderful World (Season 5, Episode 38)

Stone Ocean is very uneven. While people are torn about whether part six’s prison setting and experimental Stands were strengths or weaknesses, one thing that most fans can agree on is that its ending is fantastic. 

“It’s A Wonderful World” is unlike any other ending in the show for several reasons. It serves as the conclusion of the original series’ continuity, wrapping up plot threads that tie into nearly all of the early parts of the series. That alone is noteworthy, but what helps separate it is the melancholic tone. There’s all the bombast you would expect from a final fight, but when the fighting’s all said and done, the realization of what just happened begins to sink in, and the air of finality begins to settle in. One can argue that this is a happy ending, but then again, maybe it isn’t? It carries the same weight that Dragon Ball GT (1996) had when that marked the canonical end of the timeline for Dragon Ball. It’s an ending that feels definitive in every sense of the word, and even if Stone Ocean was choppy, “It’s A Wonderful World” ended it on a high note.

1) D’Arby The Gambler (Season 3, Episode 34-35)

Placing “D’Arby The Gambler” as the best episode of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure shouldn’t come as a surprise to fans. Despite bucking a lot of the tropes one would expect from the series at this point, it stands apart by just how compelling its premise and execution are. 

In “D’Arby The Gambler”, our heroes meet Daniel D’Arby, a gambler who plays against Jotaro and his allies in various games of chance. Unlike virtually any other episode in the series post-Battle Tendency, Stands are rarely used. The two-parter almost entirely revolves around a high-stakes poker game between D’Arby and Jotaro, with the souls of Jotaro’s friends on the line. The tension it generates is palpable and makes the game as compelling as the best moments of Ocean’s Eleven (2001). The bluffs, calls, cheats, and tricks employed by each side make this a great game that any poker fan will be on the edge of their seat for. Stardust Crusaders excelled at creating memorable moments, but nothing in all of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure compares to “D’Arby The Gambler.”