Stone Ocean is a fairly faithful anime adaptation from the manga. Most anime seasons of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure are as close to the manga as possible. The same is true for Stone Ocean. There are a few things that are switched around or changed altogether.
The first part of this season gets a little into volume six of the manga, or chapter 50. There are 17 volumes of Stone Ocean meaning there might be at least two more parts unless the second half truncates more of the story. When that second, or last part will go up online is unknown. For now, let’s go through the changes between the anime and manga in a spoiler-filled discussion.
6 Hero Stand Changes
The Stand names of the heroes are the most noticeable changes in the anime. Jolyne‘s is called Stone Ocean but it is Stone Free in the manga. This is a reference to the Jimmy Hendrix song of the same name. That’s why her Stand and the others were changed. It is to avoid legal trouble with song names and bands. Another example is Gwess. Her Stand is called is Cry Cry Dolls but it is Goo Goo Dolls, the band, in the manga.
She was at first a villain but became a background ally after that. She doesn’t assist in fighting though unlike F.F. They were also a villain. In the manga, they are known as Foo Fighters: a reference to the band. The anime gets off easy with the abbreviation. Ermes has Smack over Kiss, Emporio has Burning Down over Burning Down the House, and Weather Forecast was changed from Weather Report. Kiss and Weather Report are more bands but Burning Down the House is a song by the Talking Heads.
5 Villain Stand Changes
The Stand names for the actual villains were changed as well. Johngalli A has Downtown Transfer which was changed from Manhattan Transfer in the manga. It’s a band. Father Pucci’s became Pale Snake over White Snake which is close enough but not as cool of a name to the actual band. McQueen was changed from Freeway Thru Hell over Highway to Hell.
That is both an album and a song by AC/DC. Funnily enough, there was a character named AC/DC earlier in the series when it was still about vampires. One of the funniest changes was for Miraschon‘s Stand. It became Mary Lynn Manson instead of Marilyn Manson. It doesn’t feel like the translators tried very hard to change the famous artist's name. Finally, the last new Stand to appear in part one of the anime belonged to Lang. It’s called Jumping Jack Spark over Jumping Jack Flash, which is a Rolling Stones song.
4 Jolyne’s Prison Entry
Jolyne’s arrival at the Green Dolphin plays out a little differently in the manga. When she is taken out of court, she is put into a straight jacket. This was cut out of the anime which is confusing because it leaves a lot of questions unanswered. One, she is shown removing it in the anime but in a brief flash. The device is never shown being put on her.
Two, when she gets to the prison, the air conditioning starts to restrict the jacket. It’s so tight that she can’t even breathe anymore. This is how she figures out a way to use her powers to kill her lawyer. The anime just has her figure it out with herself. There’s also a missing examination scene by a doctor after she strips in the manga.
3 Jolyne’s Flashback
This example is a case where the anime added something in. Right before Jolyne goes into the visitation office to see her father, she has a brief flashback to when she was 14. She remembers her mom and dad arguing over Jolyne getting in trouble but Jotaro didn’t seem to care.
He had other business to take care of. Jotaro’s face and voice are different in two separate scenes in this flashback. One of them is rather goofy looking. While it wasn’t a necessary thing to add, it does help show viewers how conflicted Jolyne is at meeting her father. They are so estranged that she doesn’t even remember his voice or face clearly.
2 Ermes’ Meeting With Emporio
The chapter of the manga that begins with Ermes waking up in her bed up until the staircase wherein she meets Emporio is the same in the anime. However, this is where the two interpretations differ. In the manga, Emporio takes her into his ghost room wherein she meets the two other strangers. He explains what stands are and how he can’t eat anything in that room.
This scene is shown with Jolyne instead in episode ten of the anime. In the manga, when she finally does go into a ghost room with Emporio, she only meets Weather Forecast. The anime, getting back to Ermes, has Emporio explain briefly what Stands are before Ermes takes off to fight McQueen again with Smack. This is all on the staircase.
1 Ermes Gets Her Tooth Ripped Out
There is one tiny alternation in episode nine. When Ermes cheats in the ball-throwing game, Mary Lynn Manson moves in to collect its debt. The first cut is the same between the manga and anime, showing the Stand cut open her hiding place in Ermes’ chest.
After that, the Stand removes a gold tooth, says it’s only worth $30, and then removes the liver. The anime goes from the chest straight to the liver. Again, it is a minuscule alteration that thankfully doesn’t divert the original text. Showing a tooth ripping scene would have been brutal but worth it.