A special event for October 2018 anime JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Golden Wind was held at the Italian Cultural Institute in Tokyo on 5 July 2018. The event not only premiered the first episode of the anime but also announced the main cast members.

The new series is based on Part 5 of the popular manga series JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken). Part 5 is set two years after the events of Part 4 and takes place in Italy. The teaser PV, in which the six main characters Giorno, Bucciarati, Abbacchio, Mista, Narancia, and Fugo appear, was screened and the cast members were announced afterward. The cast members are: Kensho Ono (Giorno Giovanna), Yuichi Nakamura (Bruno Bucciarati), Junya Enoki (Pannacotta Fugo), Daiki Yamashita (Narancia Ghirga), Kosuke Toriumi (Guido Mista) and Junichi Suwabe (Leone Abbacchio)

The fans at the venue, who were fortunate enough to win tickets for the premiere from among more than ten thousand applicants, were thrilled to hear the announcement and gave a huge round of applause when Kensho Ono (Giorno) and Yuichi Nakamura (Bucciarati) appeared onstage.

Ono greeted the fans with a nervous voice: ‘My heart is pounding just like when I was offered Giorno’s role at the audition.’ Nakamura, who was watching the announcement from the wings, joyfully said, ‘I’ve been waiting for this moment for ages.’

Regarding their thoughts from when they were told they would be appearing in the series, Ono said: ‘I thought that if I were suited to a character in the series then it would surely be Giorno. I hope I can preserve the passion and world of the JoJo series which was put in place right from Part 1.’ Nakamura told us that he had been given the opportunity to audition for roles for JoJo right from Part 1, but was unable to do so for a variety of reasons, including catching a cold. He said, ‘I really appreciate for being able to play a role in Part 5 because it’s my favorite part of the series. I think I was destined to catch a cold on the day of the first audition.’ Ono said, ‘It must be the golden wind that brought you a cold.’ his remarks made the fans laugh.

The cast members who portray team Bucciarati, whose names were revealed at the beginning of the event, appeared on a video and delivered their messages. The fans were impressed by their passion towards the characters they portray and towards the anime series.

Furthermore, messages were read out from the previous cast members of the titular JoJos: Kazuyuki Okitsu (Jonathan), Tomokazu Sugita (Joseph), Daisuke Ono (Jotaro), and Yuki Ono (Josuke). Okitsu pointed out that part the latest 3 parts, the surname of the voice actors who portray the protagonists have all been Ono. His message said, ‘It’s a bizarre coincidence that JoJo becomes the story of the Ono Clan!’ Sugita touched upon the topic by introducing himself with, ‘I’m Tomokazu Ono. I portrayed Joseph Joester from Part 2.’ The venue was filled with applause and laughter.

At the end of the event, the creator of the original manga, Hirohiko Araki, delivered his video message to the fans: ‘Giorno and the others are characters alienated from society. I would be glad if viewers could follow along with their development and sorrow.’ He also addressed the cast members, ‘I appreciate your commitment to making more people become JoJo fans.’

Episode 1 of the new series was screened at the venue after the event, which was the world’s first advance screening. As the two directors of the series, Yasuhiro Kimura and Hideya Takahashi, told us during the event, every single chapter of Part 5’s manga will be adapted into the anime series. Episode 1 already proved that the series will exceed our expectations. You can await the TV broadcast in October in anticipation. It’s going to be fantastic!