GW Episode 12

The Second Order from the Boss (ボスからの第二指令) is the twelfth episode of Golden Wind and the one hundred twenty-fifth episode of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure anime. The episode covers from Chapter 478 to Chapter 481 of the original manga.

Giorno, Abbacchio and Fugo are sent to Pompeii to retrieve a key. On the way there, Fugo looks at a mirror and notices the assassin Illuso behind the group, but Fugo mysteriously remains the only one who can see him.

Summary
Giorno, Fugo, and Abbacchio are on their way to the famous ruins of Pompeii, an ancient Roman city that was buried under scalding ejecta when the nearby Vesuvio erupted, preserving many details of a typical Roman settlement and making it a precious archaeological site. One of Giorno's remark upsets Fugo who almost snaps but Abbacchio intervenes to calm him. They then finally reach Pompeii. As the trio walks among the ruins toward the famous dog mosaic, Fugo sees a mirror and spots a new enemy barely hiding behind a column: Illuso, one of the assassins from La Squadra Esecuzioni.

Fugo immediately warns his teammates but confusion ensues when Giorno and Abbacchio keep asking where the enemy is even though Illuso can be easily seen. Moreover, when Fugo turns to point at the enemy, he sees that no one is behind them. Confused, Fugo sees Illuso summoning his Stand and when Giorno says that he cannot see anyone even if the man is in front of him, Fugo understands that the mirror is linked to the enemy. Fugo pushes his partners out of the way as the enemy Stand attacks, but sees them disappear. Finding himself alone, he is attacked by Illuso and his Stand, Man in the Mirror. The assassin takes out his files and reads out loud Fugo's resume, revealing that he was a highly intelligent teenager whose temper ruined his career when he got thrown out of the university for beating a professor with an encyclopedia and he entered a gang instead. Pointing at Illuso to ask where his teammates are, Fugo notices his wristwatch on the wrong side; his entire surroundings have been reversed and he understands that he's been dragged into a mirror world. For their part, Giorno and Abbacchio do not know what happened to Fugo but Giorno remembers that Fugo was obsessed with the mirror and examines it. When Illuso demands that Fugo reveals Trish's location and the reason for their presence in Pompeii, Fugo refuses, confident of the enemy's impending death in front of his Stand. Yet, Fugo is unable to summon it.

In the real world, Abbacchio suddenly orders Giorno to stay clear. A new Stand has appeared but Abbacchio explains that it isn't an enemy: it is Purple Haze, Fugo's Stand, which is staying idle without its user. Meanwhile, inside the mirror, Fugo is helpless against Illuso, who smugly reveals that he can isolate people from their Stands in the mirror world and beats him bloody with Man in the Mirror.

Fugo's past is clarified. Born in a wealthy and prestigious Neapolitan family, he was heavily pressured by his parents into excellence to the point he had urges to kill them but controlled his impulses at this point. Entering a university at the age of thirteen, Fugo became the target of a seemingly pedophilic teacher and when he began to harass him, Fugo defended himself and beat up the teacher with an encyclopedia, finally letting out all the accumulated anger and frustration. However, his reputation was ruined and he was thrown out of the university. Thanks to his parents' money, Fugo was judged not guilty by a court but was disowned and lived in the streets from now on. One evening, Fugo met with Bruno Bucciarati who welcomed him at his side and accepted him despite his violent impulses.

In front of Purple Haze, Abbacchio becomes uncharacteristically nervous and as the Stand goes berserk and punches a nearby wall, Abbacchio flees without second thoughts. In the mirror world, it is revealed that Fugo punched the wall on purpose to propel the debris toward Illuso, but Man in the Mirror easily deflects them toward Fugo. Suddenly, Illuso sees a dead crow falling in front of him, followed by a whole murder of crows somehow rapidly decomposing into nothing. Abbacchio finally explains that Purple Haze's ability is to release a deadly flesh-eating virus from the bulbs on its fists, although the virus is destroyed by light, limiting its range. By punching the wall, one of the bulbs cracked, releasing the virus into the air. Although Abbacchio states that Purple Haze mostly embodies Fugo's violent side, the Stand demonstrates a small quirk of personality when it humorously tries to swipe its own drool off it.

Since it is separated from its user, Abbacchio is convinced that Purple Haze is now acting at random, but Giorno doubts it. Indeed, although Purple Haze appeared to punch the mirror by accident, it was ordered by Fugo in a futile attempt to escape the mirror world. Abbacchio decides to prioritize the and leave Fugo to his fate, but a dispute ensues, Giorno wanting to defeat the enemy and help Fugo first. Angered, Abbacchio leaves Giorno and runs toward the dog mosaic. At the same time, Illuso is on the verge of finishing off Fugo.

Commentary
"This episode had me on the edge of my seat! A half hour went by in a flash. Purple Haze was scary at first, but its drooling was cute. Those growls and gurgles are also voiced by Junya Enoki, although his voice is tweaked in post. He does a lot of shouting and screaming in the next episode, so that's something to look forward to!"

- Daiki Yamashita, Blu-Ray limited edition commentaries

"I actually really love Fugo's character. Purple Haze is pretty demonic, but it's also pretty awesome. How the group handles a virus Stand is the big question for this episode and episode thirteen. And Junya Enoki stood brilliantly against the pressure of recording alongside the veteran Ken Narita, who voices Illuso."

- Daiki Shirakawa, Blu-Ray limited edition commentaries

"1. Fugo's Childhood

Illuso simply reads Fugo's history out loud in the manga, but the anime makes sure to flesh it out visually. The staff spent time contacting Hirohiko Araki for details to create the scenes. Tsuda recalls, "This was where we spent the most time going back and forth with Araki Sensei. I hope it lived up to everyone's expectations!"

2. Purple Haze

Purple Haze is known for its aberrant, frenzied behavior and vicious abilities. Tsuda states, "I'd be happy if Purple Haze's sinister character got through to fans. But its impish side is creepy-cute, don't you think?"

3. The Abbacchio-Giorno-Fugo Trio

Episode twelve splits Bucciarati's team in two and features the newbie Giorno with Abbacchio, who still has reservations about him, and Fugo, who seems to be constantly annoyed at him. "Their ways of thinking will connect directly to what happens next in the story." "Tsuda points out, "so keep your eyes peeled!

4. Illuso from the Hitman Team

Illuso's Stand, Man in the Mirror, drags its opponents into its mirror world. Stardust Crusaders also featured a Stand that moves within reflections, but Man in the Mirror is much more direct. "It's really easy to mess things up when animating a flipped world, so there might be some mistakes if you look for them... On second thought, please don't look for them.""

- Naokatsu Tsuda, Blu-Ray limited edition commentaries