Hot Pants

This part of the Steel Ball Run anime covers the second and third legs of a wild horse race across America. Steel Ball Run is the seventh part of Hirohiko Araki's famous manga series JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. The manga first ran in Weekly Shonen Jump in 2004 and then moved to the monthly magazine Ultra Jump, where it ran until 2011. In total it has 95 chapters in 24 books. The anime is made by David Production, the same studio behind the earlier JoJo anime, and it streams on Netflix. It comes out in "stages," just like the race. The first stage premiered on March 19, 2026, and this release of the 2nd and 3rd stages started on September 25, 2026, with new episodes every week. Steel Ball Run is set in a different world from the earlier JoJo stories, so new viewers can start here. The year is 1890. A huge race is held across the United States, from San Diego on the west coast to New York City in the east. Riders on horseback race in stages, and the winner gets a giant prize of 50 million dollars. Hundreds of people from around the world join, each with their own reason for wanting to win. The two heroes are an odd pair. Johnny Joestar was once a star jockey, or horse racer, from Kentucky. After an injury, he can no longer walk, and his life has fallen apart. Gyro Zeppeli comes from Naples in Italy. His family works as executioners for the king. Gyro fights with steel balls that he spins with a secret skill called the Spin. When Johnny sees the Spin in action, he believes it might help him walk again, so he follows Gyro into the race. Their friendship grows slowly, with plenty of jokes and fights along the way. As the story goes on, both men gain Stands. A Stand is a special power that JoJo fans know well: a kind of spirit or ability that belongs to one person and works in its own strange way. In the 2nd stage, the riders must cross a desert about 750 miles wide. Part of it is a place the local people fear, known as the Devil's Palm. Years before, something in the sand wiped out a group of soldiers. As Johnny and Gyro push through the heat, strange and scary events begin to happen. They start to see that the race is much more than a sports contest. Other riders are not just rivals. Some of them are hiding plans of their own, and a few are ready to kill. The show is full of the things that make JoJo special: bold art, dramatic poses, strange powers, and clever fights where the smartest idea wins, not the biggest punch. It also has a real Western feel, with cowboys, deserts, horses, and small frontier towns. The tone can be dark, and there is some blood and violence, so it is better for older teens and adults. Many fans consider Steel Ball Run one of the best parts of the whole JoJo series, and they waited years to see it animated. On AniList, this stage has earned very high early scores from viewers, and it is a strong pick for anyone who likes adventure, mystery, and a story about two broken men helping each other move forward.