SC Episode 42

The Miasma of the Void, Vanilla Ice, Part 1 (亜空の瘴気 ヴァニラ·アイス その1) is the forty-second episode of Stardust Crusaders, the eighteenth episode of the Egypt Arc, and the sixty-eighth episode of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure anime. It covers the second half of Chapter 236 through half of Chapter 240 of the manga.

Summary
The game of baseball continues as it seems D'Arby can read Jotaro's mind yet the student decides to announce his pitches. Unfazed, D'Arby uses Atum to peer into Jotaro's soul, asking yes or no questions to guess what is Jotaro's next move. D'Arby reads that Jotaro is completely sincere about wanting to shoot straight high to the outside and plays accordingly. However, he is completely taken by surprise when the ball flies into a curve and D'Arby misses his mark. Jotaro's team takes the ball. Thinking to himself that would be impossible for Jotaro to have such control over his soul that he can fake intentions at this level, D'Arby suspects that Jotaro is cheating somehow. Jotaro keeps declaring his pitch sincerely but still plays different throws. Eventually, D'Arby becomes nervous and tries to discover the way Jotaro cheats but is unable to discover his method. He ultimately breaks down as the gap in points widens without him being able to do anything and he inadvertently releases Kakyoin's soul. Having lost, D'Arby then sees that it has been Joseph who was remotely playing in Jotaro's place using Hermit Purple. Shocked at such a simple trick, he is then put back in his place when Jotaro points out that Daniel would have seen through it. The game is over and Star Platinum hands out a well-deserved pummeling to D'Arby, who flies into the sky and crashes into the fake ceiling, revealing the island to be merely a well-disguised room. Jotaro, Joseph, and Kakyoin then decide to advance further. Meanwhile, DIO's last servant Vanilla Ice reports D'Arby's defeat to DIO. Entering DIO's room, Vanilla Ice is asked to cut off his own head to provide the Vampire with the blood needed to complete his assimilation of Jonathan's body. He obliges and decapitates himself with his Stand, Cream. A satisfied DIO resurrects his loyal servant by giving him some of his blood in return and orders him to kill the Joestar Group, expecting great results after seeing his devotion. Vanilla strangely himself gets eaten by Cream, which in turn eats itself until it completely disappears and rushes out of the room, making a hole in the wall.

Meanwhile, Polnareff, Avdol, and Iggy decide to venture inside the mansion instead of burning it down. Beforehand, Avdol warns his companions that the stakes are now too high for them to save each other in case of danger and that they must fend for themselves from this point on. Understanding, the trio promise each other to have a good dinner when their deed is accomplished. The trio shortly arrives at an eldritch hall full of labyrinthine stairways and bridges. However, Avdol conjures a radar of magical flames that allows them to detect a hidden enemy. Iggy then sniffs out the Stand user named Kenny G. who was creating the illusions and defeats him in one blow. Avdol suddenly sees a message carved out on a pillar stating that they will die shortly. He sees Cream, which has managed to remain undetected by both his radar and Iggy and pushes his allies out of the way. Shoved to the ground Polnareff then only sees Avdol's severed hands and panics, ignorant of what has happened to his companion. Cream reappears with Vanilla Ice in his mouth, declaring that Avdol has been disintegrated and that Polnareff and Iggy are next. Polnareff shouts in anger as he prepares to fight Vanilla Ice.

Commentary
"Here we are at the "YES YES..." part you all have been waiting for. I know a lot of people wanted to see this scene which has a cult following, and it was a priority for us during the episode's production.

The famous "You're going to "ORA ORA" me, won't you ?!" at the end of the fight cannot be missed, and Telence gifts us with a completely grotesque but brilliant face.

It is after this fight that finally, Vanilla Ice appears. At this moment, the plot picks up the pace for the last final sprint, and nothing will stop it. This sinister character remains fascinating.

The red lights are flashing for Avdol and his inevitable death. It's him who finds the scribbled message on the wall. Let's ignore that it's a message written in Japanese inside an Egyptian building. Please don't laugh, it's not the time. (laughs) And thus, Avdol is definitively eliminated. As Polnareff said it so well, it was really too sudden. This is all the more unbearable for him as it was again a sacrifice to save him from death at the last moment.

Avdol's death leaves no doubt about Cream's dangerousness, and even Iggy is terrorized at the sight of this Stand."

- Naokatsu Tsuda, Blu-Ray limited edition commentaries

Trivia

 * Despite the title, Vanilla Ice himself does not appear until 11 minutes into the episode and only very briefly.
 * When Telence discovers Jotaro and Joseph's trick, the camera pans up on Jotaro with Kakyoin in the background. The camera then quickly zooms out but Kakyoin is gone.