English Dub Review: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders “Anubis Pt. 1 “

Pray to Anubis.

Overview (Spoilers Below)

The episode begins as the rest of Team Joestar goes to check up on Kakyoin who needs to spend a few more days in the hospital to heal his eyes with the assurance that he’ll catch up once he’s able to regain his sight. Apparently, if the corneas aren’t cut, there’s still a chance for them to heal. After a comedic scene that somewhat educates Polnareff and by extension the audience at how Egyptian numbers & currency works, the rest of Team Joestar continue across the Nile river on by boat to Kom Ombo. Meanwhile, a young & clumsy farm boy named “Chaka” discovers a mysterious jewel-encrusted sword that only Chaka himself appears to be able to draw out of its sheath. In a disturbing twist, the sword then suddenly moves on its own, killing Chaka’s family members before revealing its identity to be the “Anubis” Stand, who declares Chaka as its master and sends him to pursue Team Joestar starting with Polnareff.

While the deaths excel at being shocking & disturbing, You end up sympathizing with Chaka more when you notice the way his own family members mistreat him for being weak while behaving like unsympathetic alpha-male bullies before they discover the sword. And it feels reminiscent of slasher movies where you root for the killer to slaughter a group of annoying & hateful characters. After finally reaching the village of “Kom Ombo”, Chaka soon comes across Polnareff, who had gotten separated from the others while chasing after Iggy. As the two face off against each other, Polnareff struggles against the sword’s ability to pass through anything to reach its target which excels in the right amount of tension & suspense.

When Chaka (now under Anubis’s influence) attempts to surprise attack Polnareff, he counters Chaka’s attack by using a secret technique which consists of deflecting a piece of Silver Chariot’s sword into Chaka’s neck, leaving him presumably unconscious. Upon inspection, Polnareff checks out the sword for himself and nearly comes close to being swayed by its influence before Jotaro and the rest of Team Joestar show up expressing concern with Joseph suggesting they “travel in pairs” next to be safe, and given the sword’s sinister nature, Iggy seems to be the only one who can sense something dangerous about it. As Jotaro & Polnareff stop by a barber shop on their way to take the sword to the local authorities, the episode ends on an intense cliffhanger when Jotaro falls asleep, while Anubis possesses the barber who prepares to kill Polnareff.

Our Take

This episode has revealed something even I didn’t expect, Stands can have users that not only extend beyond people & animals but also random & specific objects as demonstrated when Anubis as a Sword turned out to have the ability to separate from its user. For all Polnareff assumed during battle, Chaka had a Stand that let him cut through objects with his sword but didn’t think too much about whether the Stand was part of him or the object itself.

I think what Jojo’s creator Hikohiro Araki was going for, is his own interpretation of the myths & legends about cursed & demonically possessed weapons & objects. And in Araki’s case, having the Stand possess an object probably felt the most plausible and would actually make sense within the show’s universe. As for the cliffhanger, Polnareff’s shaving scene was pretty damn intense. And anyone who’s been in a situation where you entrust a complete stranger with any sharp objects (old-style shaving razors, scissors or otherwise), you kinda understand the incredibly vulnerable position you’re putting yourself in.

With Jotaro falling asleep, he better wake up quick because I have a feeling that shit’s about to get real!