Anime has always been this sort of “disgrace”, surrounded by stigma and stereotypes of the shows themselves and the people that watch them, stereotyped as these obese, pimple-faced nerds who sit in their mom’s basement all day with no life outside of anime.

I will admit, I was very skeptical when my friends in my group started raving about this one anime called “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure” and was very hesitant to watch it. However, I fell into peer pressure and gave it a watch.

I was going into it with very low expectations, expecting to only get through about 3-4 episodes before I’d had my fill. What I got was the exact opposite, however, of an expected mediocre cartoon. What I got was an absolutely unforgettable experience.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure’s Part 1 of the anime was released on October 5, 2012 in Japan and released on October 15, 2016 in the US. Part 1 covers the Phantom Blood and Battle Tendency story arcs, starting off with the original main protagonist, Jonathan Joestar in England during the Victorian era in episodes 1-9 fighting his main rival, DIO,  and finishing off the season with his grandson, Joseph Joestar during the late 1930’s and at the outbreak of World War II. As well as the first season and first two story arcs, there was also two more seasons and story arcs released, Stardust Crusaders in April 2014 and Diamond is Unbreakable in October 2015, with rumors of Part 5, Vento Aureo, being released sometime this year.

As for sales, when the first DVD release of the TV version hit the shelves, it was the fourth best selling animation DVD in Japan, selling from late January to early February with about 4,500 copies sold. It’s Blu-ray disc got much better reception, selling on the same week with about 14,800 copies sold. The remainder of the DVDs and Blu-rays gained about the same as the first release.

The whole series itself is filled with enjoyment, with various pop culture references and memorable moments that my friends and I still reference to this day, despite us watching the show ages ago. Some of our favorite and most memorable characters come from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure because of the legacy and attitude of who they were and what they meant to us. We still talk about moments in the show, describing how epic they were.

In short, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is one of many hidden gems stowed behind the label and stigma behind anime that, at first, deterred me from touching it. But I assure you, the reader, to ignore what everyone has said or will say about it and give it a watch.