It’s cool to see how Jojo as a series progresses over time. The story structure has absolutely gotten more lax and more lax. Phantom Blood being a straight journey to the end with no stops, Battle Tendency having more down time and fun moments, and Stardust Crusaders being all about the fun adventures with the destination almost being an afterthought. However, I find the comedy even more interesting. To compare the parts, I argue Phantom Blood's comedy was in the incidental absurdity and specificity of it all. It rarely felt like the point was to stop and laugh, it was more like chuckling over the unexpected and exaggerated events that were unwinding. Battle Tendency had comedy built into that more guided plot we'd expect from Phantom Blood, it always felt like we were moving somewhere important but Joseph as a character had many intentionally comical antics. Stuff like playing dead against Wham or his short temper and immature pranks. Stardust Crusaders however, along with how the story structure has become something entirely different from Phantom Blood at this point, has arc structures committed to comedy as the focus. Oingo Boingo is a huge example, numerous chapters of pure comedy. But overall, we should expect most arcs to be imbued with large amounts of leaning in absurdity and jokes. Justice comes to mind as one that can be seen as mostly comic relief and this arc here, from magnet slapstick to entering the ladies room is largely the same in that way.
Speaking about this chapter more specifically, I found the potential ego of Mariah to be notable. To announce she was Joseph’s enemy and lead him into a chase felt unneeded. If she could attack from the sidelines and never show herself then she could take them all out through careful placement of sockets and passage of time. However, it does seem like this chase she is creating may be intended to turn everyone into a magnet. That or she’s having some fun with her prey.
