The Unparalleled Advantages of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Parts 5 & 6 – A Must-Read!

The time gaps between each release of the anime adaptations of Jojo's Bizarre Adventure are quite significant. One notable difference between Parts 3/4 and Parts 5/6 lies in their English dubs. With various OVAs and movies produced in the nineties, along with a lesser-known 2007 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure movie that has become lost media, it's safe to say that the series has enjoyed popularity throughout its existence. The nineties OVAs were dubbed by Super Techno Arts, while Viz Media took on the task for Parts 1 and 2. These dubs were deemed quite faithful to the original work in terms of quality, but things took a significant turn afterwards.

For Phantom Blood and Battle Tendency, dub director Kevin McMullan exerted great effort in the production. However, subsequent parts became increasingly longer and delved into darker thematic elements. This, perhaps, led to the decision to bring in a new director: Tony Oliver, who helmed the anime from Stardust Crusaders through Golden Wind. Another significant change occurred with the quality when Netflix took on the task of dubbing Part 6 and released it in a unique format called "batches," where entire sections of the story were made available in chunks. This release model had not been seen before in the history of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventures Parts 5 & 6 Have Better Dubs Than Parts 3 & 4

When it comes to accessibility, individuals with vision or processing impairments often benefit from being able to listen to dubbed versions in their native language. A key factor in creating a successful dub is having voice actors who can accurately match a character's voice and energy. To fully realize the potential of a dub, the distinct vocal characteristics and tones of a character must be adapted to a different cultural context. Unfortunately, there were some instances of mismatched performances for the main characters in Parts 3 and 4, making those dubs challenging to watch. However, the dubbing process for the latest season of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has been taken over by Netflix, which brings hope for improvement.

An example of significant mismatched casting can be seen in the voice of Joseph Joestar in Parts 3 and 4, as the dub did not capture the essence of his old and mischievous character. The way Jotaro spoke about his grandpa differed greatly from how he actually sounded, creating a disconnect that made it difficult to connect with Joseph's character. Notably, only Parts 3 and 4 were set in Japan, which makes the dubbing process even more crucial. Having the liberty to translate dialogue into lines that convey the same meaning is of utmost importance. In Parts 1 and 2, characters had accents and distinctive traits that matched their respective nationalities.

Parts 3 and 4, being solely Japanese characters, could not achieve what Part 5 managed. Despite sharing the same director, Part 5 was uniquely situated in Italy and featured a brand new cast of characters. Consequently, new voice actors had to be selected. Additionally, the involvement of Netflix in the dubbing process introduced fresh talent to JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, resulting in Part 6 arguably having the best dubbing in the series thus far. This effectively restored the high-quality dubbing standard that fans anticipated from a popular show like JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.