Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Part 5: Golden Wind vol. 2

This latest arc of “Jojo” got off to a slow yet solid start as new protagonist (and son of Dio) Giorno Giovanna took his first steps to achieving his lifelong dream of being a mafioso.  He takes a few more steps here after settling things with Polpo and formally joining Bruno’s gang.  Its members, Abbachio, Mista, Narancia, and Fu are also Stand Users and we get to see three of them in action over the course of this volume.  It starts off with the gang heading to the island of Capri to secure a hidden stash of gold and gems that, once turned over to the Family, will make Bruno a proper Capo.  This is assuming that they all live through the attack by the Stand User who decides to pick them off one by one in order to convince Bruno to give up the location of the treasure while Abbachio tries to stop him.  Then there’s the shadowy figure on the island who matches wits with Mista and his assassination-based Stand, and another who decides to take on young Narancia in the hopes he’ll tell him what the Family has planned for the gang.

With the introduction out of the way, the action picks up significantly in this volume.  Not only do we get a clearer picture of where the story is going to go for this arc, but the new additions to the cast make a favorable impression here.  Chief among these being Mista and his Stand who get the volume’s longest and most successful storyline.  There is cause for concern, however, as Giorno’s Stand still feels like it’s a narrative “Get Out of Jail Free” card without properly defined limits.  The struggle on the ship also comes off as feeling a little nonsensical as it’s unclear how the bad guy was able to pull off his big plan.  I’ll say that the jury’s still out on Narancia’s encounter as he faces a threat that’s imposing, yet also a little tame by “Jojo” standards.  Still, vol. 2 is a step in the right direction for this arc as it still delivers the kind of crazy strategizing I like to see from this series; though, not without a few hiccups this time out.