11 May 2014: Symphogear and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure are basically the same thing
A man is only as serious as his hat.
I'm inclined to say I don't fully understand why fans of JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Stardust Crusaders like it so much, but I think maybe I actually do. There's a certain childlike appeal to the show and its preposterous, burly heroes. Perhaps watching the show invokes the kind of imagination-fueled fun viewers likely enjoyed as young boys while playing with action figures.
Yes, even this hat.
Indeed, based on the commercials helpfully included during the first season's fansubs, it appears the intended audience for JoJo's Bizarre Adventure consists of young boys (or at least male viewers who are young at heart). Just as boys have a lot of fun playing with action figures—enlisting them in superhuman battles—I think boys surely enjoy JoJo for its increasingly surreal fights. They're basically the fights boys have their action figures brought to life. However, Symphogear fights are not okay because they are basically perverted versions of wholesome action figure fights—like ones using dolls.
Manly men drinking girly tea.
Only girls play with dolls. But it's totally okay for boys to play with action figures, okay? Action figures aren't dolls. Action figures are totally different. For one thing, they have muscles and they fight because they're supposed to fight. Because action figures are radical. Dolls? I dunno, dolls are supposed pretend to drink tea and keep the house clean or something.
Is this pose manly enough for JoJo fans?
This is not to say that JoJo's Bizarre Adventure does not have female fans. I haven't researched any of the actual demographics, but there are probably girls and women of all ages who love JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. That said, I suspect female JoJo fans who obsess over it as much as Masuzu did in Oreshura are exceedingly uncommon. That's just a guess.
Calm your tits, toots.
So what does this have with Symphogear? Well, both shows are about characters with crazy powers who resolve all of their problems by fighting. Both shows have diabolical antagonists with magic powers who never quite seem to die. Music is also very important in both shows. Admittedly, the characters in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure break out into song much less frequently than the Symphogear characters. Maybe JoJo is more like Precure?
This is what happens when people don't hug Chris enough.
Okay, it's not, really. These types of comparisons break down pretty easily once you start pressing the details. Just a couple more points, though: It seems to me that viewers who self-identify as fans of Symphogear (and of Pretty Cure) are much more likely to also enjoy JoJo's Bizarre Adventure than the inverse. In fact, I've encountered multiple fans of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure who are absolutely scornful of Symphogear and Pretty Cure.
What about this pose? Still not manly enough?
More to the point, these are vocal JoJo's fans who disdainfully insult (male) Symphogear and Precure fans. Perhaps these vocal critics are actually channeling their inner action-figure-loving boyhood personas. Maybe they view male fans of Symphogear and Precure the way they would have viewed schoolyard boys who dared played with dolls, even if ol' Barbie spent all her time judo-chopping her multi-cultural plastic friends in the neck.
How about now?
Personally, I think there's room to enjoy both Symphogear and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. Then again, I also self-identify as a Pretty Cure fan. Or at least I do on the Internet. I don't play with dolls, okay? But I do think anime fans who feel compelled to add "only shows like JoJo's Bizarre Adventure" caveats should lighten up and give Pretty Cure a try. Heartcatch Orchestra is basically a Stand, all right? P.S. Spoilers.
