GW Episode 29

Destination: Rome! The Colosseum (目的地はローマ!コロッセオ) is the twenty-ninth episode of Golden Wind and the one hundred forty second episode of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure anime. The episode covers from Chapter 551 to the first half of Chapter 554 of the original manga.

After finding out the Boss's face, Team Bucciarati is contacted by an unknown ally. Showing them the Arrow, the unknown ally promises to give the team a way to defeat the Boss if they manage to reach Rome.

Summary
Having made a of the Boss's face and fingerprints from the negatives left by Abbacchio, Team Bucciarati leaves the beach while Giorno begins researching the fingerprints. Although Trish realizes that the Boss was nearby, Bucciarati is against seeking him at the moment; new enemies must be gathering and they still aren't certain of the Boss's identity. However, the team's efforts to investigate all possible databases of fingerprints - from criminal records to death records - come up empty.

Suddenly, someone directly calls the team through the laptop, declaring that they're allies both trying to defeat the Boss of Passione: Diavolo. After proving that they are actually working against Diavolo, the caller invites Team Bucciarati to meet in Rome, showing a picture of the Arrow and claiming that there is another hidden potential that can be acquired, the likes of which could defeat King Crimson. While suspicious of the offer, Bucciarati accepts the deal and the team leaves Sardinia on boat. However, Diavolo has been observing the team from afar and correctly guesses that they are up to something. He orders Doppio to pursue the rogue Passione members and to call in his organization's most dangerous and depraved Stand Users: Cioccolata and Secco.

Meanwhile, Team Bucciarati's mysterious ally explains the origin of the Arrows; the items are made from a meteorite that crashed in Greenland, which was rediscovered in 1987 by a team of surveyors. The surveyors all fell ill and died, but one developed extrasensorial powers in the process. In truth, a virus contained in the meteorite is infecting people; somehow, it makes those who survive it into Stand users. The Arrows were created long ago to proliferate Stands in the world, but the caller refuses to elaborate on their "hidden potential" until the team meets them in person. When Bucciarati asks where they should meet precisely, the caller instructs them to go to the Colosseum in Rome.

Night has fallen as Team Bucciarati arrives at a small coastal village near Rome; Mista and Narancia go on the lookout while everyone else remains inside Coco Jumbo. Soon, the drunkards on the seaside promenade are affected by a strange substance eating at their body. Seeing the grey goo eating at all the people nearby, Mista understands that they are under attack. However, when he draws his gun, he realizes his hand has been somehow infected. Unbeknownst to the Team, Cioccolata and Secco are filming them from a vantage point. Cioccolata has just deployed his Stand, Green Day, which spreads a sinister miasma in the air.

A flashback reveals that Cioccolata, age 34, is a murderous former surgeon. In his youth, he tortured the residents of a retirement home; as an adult, he became a doctor in order to murder his patients under the guise of medical malpractice. His only goal is to observe the death and suffering of others, which he records on tapes to peruse later. On the other hand, Secco is one of Cioccolata's former patients, who became his human pet for unknown reasons. The two currently form an exceptionally deadly team within Passione. In the present, Doppio has boarded a plane toward Rome, being instructed to rein in the two psychopaths before they cause too much damage.

Meanwhile, Team Bucciarati realizes that the whole village is being devoured by a strange mold. Unable to detect the enemy, Narancia decides to retreat; the moment he jumps into the boat, mold appears all over his body and Coco Jumbo. As the mold spreads to Giorno and Trish, the former guesses that the Stand attack is triggered by downward movement, being inspired by existing types of mold that specifically prefer low altitudes to disperse their spores. Giorno theorizes that the enemy Stand has a constantly-expanding range, using its victims as vectors for the mold's spread.

With his whole body decomposing rapidly, Narancia tries to throw Coco Jumbo back to Mista; unfortunately, his hand falls apart mid-throw. Thinking quickly, Mista shoots the boat's engine to make it explode, sending Narancia and the turtle up to the shore and saving the team. Bucciarati gets out to replace the wounded Narancia, sending him to the turtle to be treated by Giorno. Deciding that the priority is to reach Rome, Bucciarati and Mista choose to ascend some stairs to reach a parking lot.

Seeing the team having survived their ordeal, Cioccolata is somewhat impressed.

Commentary
"Doppio used an ice cream cone as a phone. Viewers are surprised whenever Doppio finds a new object to use as a phone, but it felt normal for me! And the mystery man - how exciting! But he was credited properly in the ending credits, and viewers were like, "That just gives him away!" It made me laugh, because they're totally right."

- Soma Saito, Blu-Ray limited edition commentaries

"As someone who worked on Stardust Crusaders, the mystery man's appearance was emotional. I was given freedom with the scene where Giorno and the others add more details to are talking to him. I thought to the monitor screen that shows up in the manga, and incorporated images from the second ending."

- Kazuhiro Yamada, Blu-Ray limited edition commentaries

"1. Enter The Mystery Man

Giorno and the gang may have lost Abbacchio, but they did not lose hope. Before them appears a mystery man who had been waiting for them. His symbol was called an "icon" amongst the staff. Director Kubo thanks the 3D and post-production teams for their work on the icon.

2. The Origins of the Arrow

The mystery man informs the team of the arrow's origins. The arrow's ominous presence looms over the flashback scene, embellished with an old film effect and a different art style. "The animator Yuta Shinohara created a beautiful layout by making full use of pencil-like brush strokes."

3. The Two Monsters

The Boss explains Cioccolata's past in the manga, but the anime fleshes it out further. Kubo was told by Director Hideya Takahashi that the key to this episode was how horrific this scene could be made. And Cioccolata's repulsive, electrifying madness came to life in the hands of Chief Animation Director Shunichi Ishimoto.

4. "Right where I want it!" Mista and Narancia are attacked by Green Tea's mold. Kubo thanks the animation team, including Action Director Kanta Suzuki, Yasutoshi Iwasaki, and Firearms Animation Director Yukitoshi Houtani, for the completed second half. Kubo particularly loves the end, when Mista shoots at the boat."

- Yusuke Kubo, Blu-Ray limited edition commentaries

Trivia

 * The Toonami premiere of the English Dub of the episode was set to air on June 7, 2020 at 2:00am, but was put on hold due to production delays caused by the . The episode was replaced in the lineup by the first episode of . The episode was later meant to air on August 1, 2020 at 12:30am, putting JoJo's Bizarre Adventure back into prime time.