get-out-of-jail free card might have been a bit too much, but I rarely ever felt some actual tension whenever Jotaro was the main character of the episode, because the show does go out of its way to amplify Jotaro's apparent (hidden) strength more often than not. There are exceptions of course, but I just find him as a character somewhat boring. Joseph, while being highly intelligent, got into situations where he seemed to be clearly outmatched, making me ask "How is he going to get out of this situation", whereas with Jotaro I more often go "When is he going to get out of this situation".(he even loses one fight)
Yoooooo, that's actually pretty sick!
The D'arby fights are exactly what you want then.