Fans declare "THE ANIME MEDIUM IS SAVED" after Steel Ball Run anime's official announcement

Saturday, April 12, 2025 saw the highly anticipated Steel Ball Run anime series officially announced at the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure franchise’s JoJoDay event. While fans had anticipated the announcement being made, it nevertheless sent waves throughout both the fandom itself, and the general anime community.

Understandably, many fans are likewise celebrating the Steel Ball Run anime’s announcement and looking ahead to how incredible a series it likely will be. While there are some wary fans who are pointing out potential missteps the adaptation could take, it’s clear that this is done from a place of love and excitement given the verbiage of each.

Steel Ball Run anime’s announcement whips the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure fandom into a frenzy

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For proper context, the Steel Ball Run anime has been something on fans’ minds since David Production initially began their television anime adaptation of the franchise in 2012. This stems from the fandom arguing with itself for years over whether or not the story was adaptable at all. The major roadblock creating such discussions was the story’s basis of a horse race, with horses being notoriously difficult to animate both with and without CGI animation.

Likewise, many assumed that David Production would conclude their adaptation of the franchise with the sixth part, Stone Ocean. While the animation studio has yet to be officially attached to the upcoming anime series, today’s announcement at least confirms that an anime adaptation will be produced. More likely than not, David Production will be officially confirmed as the animation studio as additional promotional material and information is revealed.

Further playing into the excitement surrounding the news is the fact that many fans consider the seventh part of the franchise to be its best overall. Protagonists Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli, shown in character visuals revealed today, are major factors in this sentiment. Fans also cite antagonist Funny Valentine, and new approaches to the series’ power system. In any case, it’s clear that this love for the original manga series remains for its official anime adaptation.

Fan reaction

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Unsurprisingly, a vast majority of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure fandom expressed pure joy at the Steel Ball Run anime’s official confirmation announcement. Many are doing so by sharing what the manga means to them, what they’re looking forward to, or simply by celebrating the announcement itself:

“I can't believe it...

IT'S HERE!,” exclaimed one fan.

“CHILLS HERE WE GO,” said another.

“My top 3 manga ever IS BACK,” posted a third.

“I can’t wait to see Johnny and Gyro race across the screen—those visuals are gonna be insane! [clapping hands emoji],” excitedly anticipated a fourth.

Others instead expressed concern over some potential mistakes the adaptation could make, such as with distribution methods or overall quality. Others still are shockingly saying that the announcement isn’t as exciting given how the franchise approached it:

“We all knew this was coming, but they took too long to announce that im kinda just whatever about it,” lamented one netizen.

“GOD, I PRAY TO YOU FOR A GOOD ADAPTATION AND MY LIFE IS YOURS,” bargained another.

“Hope it doesn't get distributed by Netflix.,” plainly proclaimed a third.

“FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON'T LET NETFLIX RELEASE IT IN THOSE WEIRD BATCHES!!! PLEASE RELEASE IT WEEKLY!!!,” pleaded a fourth.

While some are more apprehensive than others, it’s clear that their caution is based in a genuine and legitimate love for the story. Likewise, those who aren’t outwardly or obviously celebrating the news are likely just worried about what the final product could end up being. In any case, it’s clear that this announcement is one the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure fandom has wanted to hear for quite some time.

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About the author

Joseph has been working as an anime content specialist for Sportskeeda since the past 2.5 years. Primarily covering his core genre, he also contributes to popular culture writing news stories and cult classic features on older series.

Joseph holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Delaware, United States. His love of anime, combined with his background in literature, influenced his interest in engaging readers through the written word. He maintains complete accuracy in his content by verifying each and every piece of information regardless of how long it takes, and ensure that the output is impartial and free of bias.

Chainsaw Man, One Piece, Berserk, Undead Unluck, Re:ZERO, Tower of God, Jujutsu Kaisen, Inuyasha, and Fire Punch are some of Joseph’s favorite animanga. His exposure to 4kids' Sonic X series, One Piece, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Dragon Ball Z on Toonami fueled his enthusiasm for the medium.

When not dissecting anime plots, Joseph likes to cook, play games, work on cars, browse new music, and watch pro wrestling, especially AEW. He also enjoys ocean-based activities - beach trips, fishing, swimming and watersports.

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Edited by Joseph Brogan