The Strange Silence Around Stone Ocean Part 2

Recently, the next 12 episodes of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean went live on Netflix for all the world to see. Up until the day before Part 2’s September 1st premiere, however, there had practically been no effort by Netflix to promote the series at all.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure STONE OCEAN eps 13-24 hit Netflix TOMORROW! https://t.co/Le9p3IYgpg

— Netflix Anime (@NetflixAnime) August 31, 2022

Set in 2011 Florida, Part 2 continues the adventures of Jolyne Cujoh (Fairouz Ai, Kira Buckland) and her comrades as they try to save her father Jotaro (Daisuke Ono, Matthew Mercer) and put a stop to Father Enrico Pucci (Tomokazu Seki, Yong Yea) before he can finish DIO’s work. This is also the latest in David Production’s long line of anime adaptations based on Hirohiko Araki’s longer-running series.

It’s worth noting how massive the hype building up to the first batch of episodes back in late 2021 was, with the kind of fanfare almost on par with the flair in Araki’s manga. Netflix’s efforts this time around, in contrast, are defined by a dearth of promotions of any sort from any of the company’s social media channels, with the notable exception of Netflix France. It’s unclear why there’s been such a jarring shift towards radio silence, especially for a franchise with a strong track record like JoJo. If not for scattered posts by other accounts, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that the latest episodes were coming out at all.

https://twitter.com/Saitamagoated/status/1565029033896996864

This has also rekindled disdain for “Netflix jail“, which originally referred to the tendency to broadcast shows for international audiences several months after the original Japanese airing, and is now used to describe the almost year-long wait between each part of Stone Ocean. Inevitably, such inaction can give the impression that David Production’s work was just dumped online, if not set up to flop. It’s unsurprising, then, why many feel upset over Netflix’s handling of the anime, whether it’s blaming the company for laziness or the platform itself for killing whatever momentum the series had. That the series has another 12 episodes left before its proper conclusion has only reinforced doubts among fans as to whether there will be people around to watch them.

jojo fans after stone ocean’s second batch gets released even though netflix hasn’t said a single thing about it pic.twitter.com/XMgOhevMkc

— karo’s in (@arakisbasement_) September 1, 2022

A bigger fear, perhaps, is that the drama and outrage stemming from this misfire on Netflix’s part can risk overshadowing Stone Ocean itself. Not only could this further dampen any hype left for the show, but it could unwittingly wind up creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. Thankfully, such a dour fate isn’t inevitable. Given how there remains much for JoJo fans and others to enjoy, much as with Jolyne, there’s still hope of breaking through.

https://twitter.com/Saitamagoated/status/1565367257303502849