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In JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood, series antagonist Dio Brando owes his incredible supernatural abilities to an ancient Aztec mask previously owned by the Joestar family. Bandai Spirits -- a Bandai offshoot that specializes in high-quality crane toys -- will soon introduce this iconic artifact to its expanding collection of Jojo-themed prizes.

According to Bandai Spirits' official website, the company's exclusive "Stone Mask Plush Toy" will be added to official Bandai Spirits crane games starting in January 2025. As illustrated in Bandai's official promotional image, the mask can be attached to the wearer's face via the "bone needles" along the sides, which resemble the ones shown in the JoJo anime and manga. As further detailed on NetLab, this novelty product will join Bandai Spirits' JoJo collection alongside a new Sofvimates vinyl figure for "Iggy," Joseph Joestar's New York-savvy canine companion.

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Hirohiko Araki,...

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure's combination of intense action and over-the-top characters has resonated with manga fans, transforming it into one of the most instantly recognizable modern franchises. However, unlike similar franchises like Dragon Ball and One Piece, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has had a complex and often chaotic history regarding adaptations. Since it started, the series has been adapted many times across various mediums. But out of all these adaptions, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood is the most fascinating.

2007 was a massive year for the JoJo franchise. It marked the 20th anniversary of the first chapter's publication in the pages of Weekly Shnen Jump. The year was also Hirohiko Araki's 25th year as a manga artist, making it an even bigger milestone. Because of this, several special projects were released that year, including the Phantom Blood PS2 game, the Adventure Battle Card trading card game, The Book ~jojo's bizarre adventure...

The author and illustrator behind JoJo's Bizarre Adventure -- one of the longest-running ongoing manga of all time -- has denied popular fan theories of his immortality in a recent press conference.

As part of an unveiling for his first-ever public art installation at Jr Osaka Station, "The Fountain Boy," the 64-year-old Hirohiko Araki made his first in-person official media appearance in some time. Via Japanese news and entertainment outlet Oricon, the JoJo's creator responded to long-held fan theories about his apparent eternal youth, among which some have claimed he could be a vampire, as he "appears to get younger with each passing year."

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JoJo's Bizarre Adventure's Hirohiko Araki Shares...

The official website of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure Stage Musical unveiled a brand new promotional video on March 20, 2024. The video provides fans with a sneak peek into the cast performances as they bring Hirohiko Araki’s manga to life.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood opened on Feb 12, 2024, and will run until Feb 28, 2024, before moving to Hokkaido’s Sapporo Cultural Arts Theater Hitaru from March 26 to 30, and then to Hyogo Performing Arts Center – Kobelco Grand Hall from April 9 to 14.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood musical was originally scheduled to kickstart its performance from Feb 6, 2024, at the Imperial Theatre in Tokyo. However, the performances from Feb 6-8, 2024, were cancelled due to the team needing additional time for preparations than originally anticipated, thereby, making it difficult to perform the musical in an ideal condition.

Nei Hasegawa directed the musical, with Tsuneyasu Motoyashi in charge of the scripts. Dove Attia composed the music.

Cast...

The official website for the ongoing musical adaptation of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood , the first arc of Hirohiko Araki's long-running JoJo's Bizarre Adventure manga series, posted a "Stage Movie Version" special trailer today. The three-and-a-half-minute clip introduces the main cast members' performances and how the original manga's atmosphere was recreated on stage. The protagonist, Jonathan Joestar (JoJo) is double-cast by Yuya Matsushita and Shotaro Arisawa, while Dio Brando, JoJo's mortal rival, is played by popular voice actor Mamoru Miyano (Setsuna F. Seiei in Mobile Suit Gundam 00 ). JoJo's Bizarre Adventure "Stage Movie Version" Trailer Related: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood Musical Unveils Main Cast Visuals The musical was originally scheduled to perform at the Imperial Theatre in Tokyo first from February 6 to 28, 2024. However, the first five-day performances were canceled because "it took longer than expected to prepare for the opening of the show, making it difficult to deliver the performance in perfect condition.

In an unexpected turn of events, the much anticipated musical adaptation of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood has announced the cancellation of its performances scheduled from Feb 6-8, 2024.

The decision to cancel was due to the team needing additional time for preparations than originally anticipated, thereby, making it difficult to perform the musical in an ideal condition.

The production team expressed their apologies to the fans and ticketholders for the the inconvenience caused.

Details regarding rescheduled performances, refunds, and information about shows that are scheduled from Feb 10, 2024 will be revealed on the official sources of the stage play and Toho Theater website by Feb 8, 2024.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood musical is set to premiere at Tokyo’s Imperial Theater until Feb 28, 2024, before moving to Hokkaido’s Sapporo Cultural Arts Theater Hitaru from March 26 to 30, and then to Hyogo Performing Arts Center – Kobelco Grand Hall from April 9 to 14.

Nei Hasegawa is directing the musical,...

One of the anime industry's biggest problems is its lack of media preservation. Although some anime series and films were lost to circumstances beyond the animators' and studios' control, most of them were buried or deliberately made inaccessible by executives who didn't value the artistic value of anime.

Unfortunately, even anime that were pivotal to the medium's history or just really well-loved were not safe from being lost. Some anime were lucky to be released on video or streaming once and never again, while others never got a release. These anime have become "legendary" among anime archivists and collectors of physical media.

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Zoids: Chaotic Century

Zoids: Chaotic Century was its franchise's most beloved entry, and one of the rare toy tie-in anime that was actually good. Despite the enduring love for it among older anime fans, Chaotic Century only had one video...

Anime villains oppose their respective heroes both physically and ideologically. Instead of simply being evil, these villains oppose everything their rival heroes stand for. Their goal is to disprove the heroes' hopes and dreams and to show that evil always wins. However, there are times when they end up doing the opposite.

These villains' best efforts to ruin the hero only exposed how self-absorbed and pitiful they were this whole time. What's more, all they achieved was strengthening the heroes' resolve and willpower. This was often a direct result of a villain's hubris and, in some unique cases, the villain's admitted failing as a person.

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Spoilers ahead.

Cell (Dragon Ball Z)

When Cell arrived in Dragon Ball Z, his way of taking over Earth was to host a fighting tournament. Cell was confident that he would win easily, even against the likes of Goku.