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Over its nearly 40 years in Jump magazines, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has covered a lot of ground. Its manga is currently on its ninth part (The JoJoLands), and Steel Ball Run‘s anime is just around the corner. All told, Araki’s storytelling has been remarkably consistent over the past four decades. At the very least, it’s been far more airtight than the ubiquitous “Araki forgot” meme would have one believe.
Warning: Spoilers below for Steel Ball Run. It’s the third item, so keep your eyes peeled and scroll past to number four if you’d rather avoid it.
Airtight or not, the simple fact is that Araki often loves to leave things to the imagination—a challenge fans have taken up fiercely for its entire run. Some of the fan theories below hold water; some, not so much. At the end of the day, any serious JoJo fan should have some fluency with them all, since they’re basically evergreen in conversations about the series.
1) Josuke’s Savior
One of the most enduring JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure fan theories considers the mysterious delinquent who, once upon a time, saved Josuke and his mother. In the midst of a blizzard, a sick Josuke and his mother are stranded in a broken-down car on the way to the hospital. Out of the black of the night, a bloodied delinquent appears—and he sure looks an awful lot like Josuke does. Hence, the theory holds that the delinquent is actually Josuke himself, returning in time to save himself.
A few problems make this theory very unlikely: first, Josuke’s uniform is just a school uniform; second, Josuke’s hairstyle (inspired by the delinquent savior) was in fashion with the Japanese delinquent subculture at the time; third, Araki himself has called any relationship irrelevant beyond the fact the delinquent saved Josuke, becoming a life-long inspiration in turn.
2) Shizuka Is a Kira Victim’s Daughter
Shizuka Joestar is a focal point of early Diamond is Unbreakable. During Joseph’s time in Morioh, he and Josuke happen across a baby with a Stand power granting her invisibility when she’s frightened. Although his trip was nominally motivated by the need to locate the user of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Shizuka’s plot causes Joseph and his illegitimate son Josuke to bond. Joseph adopts Shizuka—much friendlier than the last Stand-using baby JoJo fans see him encounter—before leaving Morioh.
Many fans think Shizuka was a Kira victim’s daughter, since a young single mother would slot perfectly into his mode of operation. However, it doesn’t explain how/why she received her Stand, nor why she and her mother separated in the first place. It’s never been addressed by Araki in an interview, but if this was his subtle intention, it would make for a stellar piece of subtle world-building.
3) Jesus, the First JoJo
Although this straddles the line between canon and fanon, Jesus Christ’s JoJo status is nonetheless a well-loved tidbit. Long story short: Steel Ball Run revolves around an unnamed saint’s magical corpse. This saint’s background is similar to one Jesus Christ of Nazareth, but despite heavy allusion, he was never directly confirmed as the Saint. However, there’s one tantalizing hint that stands above all others: Jesus’ Hebrew name, “Yeshua bin Yosef”.
Since this would be roughly equivalent to “Joshua, son of Joseph”, a patronymic in line with “Joshua Josephson”, fans have fun with the idea that Araki intentionally positioned Christ as a JoJo—in turn implying part 7’s Stand powers, which come from the saint’s scattered corpse, to be miraculous in nature.
Of course, Steel Ball Run also makes the Mormon idea of Christ’s American pilgrimage canon, but that’s a story for another day.
4) Jotaro has Ptsd
The events of Stardust Crusaders are excruciating to imagine through the eyes of Jotaro Kujo. Several friends die in front of him, and he faces an all-but-unstoppable enemy in DIO. When you consider that Jotaro was also only 17 at the time, the severe mental toll becomes even worse. Many JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure fans theorize that Jotaro developed PTSD as a result of Stardust Crusader‘s narrative. JoJo‘s best fight wouldn’t come without a big price.
There’s an interesting foundation for this idea. For example, Jotaro voluntarily lets his time-stop fall out of practice and avoids battle when he can. He also only screams two times in the entire series: the first, when DIO sucks out Joseph’s blood; the second, when Pucci throws a volley of knives at Jolyne, just as DIO himself had done many years before. Altogether, Jotaro’s clear desire to put the past behind him makes a convincing case that he’s severely traumatized if not outright dealing with PTSD.
5) The World Copies the Stands of Living Joestars
Speaking of The World, some fans have speculated that DIO’s Stand’s ability is actually copying the Stand abilities of living Joestars. It’s an interesting inversion of how events are presented in Stardust Crusaders where, obviously, Jotaro copies DIO’s time-stop. The gist of the theory is this: DIO, rather than possessing Jonathan’s Hermit Purple-like Stand powers and DIO’s own Stand with the agility and power of Jotaro’s Star Platinum alongside a time-stop power, instead has a Stand that simply copies the Stands of living Joestars.
It’s interesting to imagine since it would imply that Star Platinum always had a latent time-stop ability, and it would cancel out speculation around Jonathan Joestar’s Stand power. However, certain plot points make this theory unstable: the alternate universe Diego Brando in Steel Ball Run possessing a time-stopping The World, for one, and also the explicit canonical confirmation of Jonathon Joestar’s Stand being very similar to Hermit Purple.
[RELATED: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: With Steel Ball Run Coming, It’s Time to Remember Stone Ocean’s Original Ending]
6) Mikitaka Is an Alien (and All It Implies)
One of the most interesting fan theories connected to Diamond is Unbreakable is based on something quasi-canonical, precisely because of how it might play into other tangential parts of JoJo’s lore. Mikitaka is the self-professed alien who Josuke and crew first run into during the battle with Super Fly, a Stand power bound to a pylon. Although he has a harmless transformation ability, it’s unlikely to be a Stand power since Mikitaka can’t see Stands himself.
Well, it’s technically possible that he can, but he has no reason to lie about it outside of a hypothetical chuunibyou complex. Araki likes to tease that thought, never having confirmed whether Mikitaka is an alien or simply very silly. If Mikitaka is taken at face value, though, it offers a tantalizing connection to other extraterrestrial JoJo storylines; with Diamond is Unbreakable being the first to prominently feature Stand Arrows, it makes a possible connection seem all the likelier.
7) Speedwagon Was Gay
This particular theory is straightforward, but given it was never confirmed canonically, it’s worth mentioning. Many JoJo fans are of the opinion that Robert E.O. Speedwagon, first introduced in Phantom Blood and a continuing force all the way through the original universe to Stone Ocean through his massively powerful Speedwagon Foundation, is a gay man (who may have been in love with Jonathon Joestar). His organization, founded in Battle Tendencyeven finds a counterpart in JoJo’s new continuity as a sponsor of the Steel Ball Run race.
Needless to say, JoJo wouldn’t be JoJo without Speedwagon. Although he never plays a part in the series’ many conflicts himself, he became close with Jonathan and remained a lifelong friend to his beloved widow Erina. Speedwagon never sought a partner of his own, though, and the fact he’s referenced as a “lifelong bachelor” has raised eyebrows. After all, “confirmed bachelor” was a coded phrase to refer to gay men in the 19th and 20th centuries.
8) Joseph Faked His Cognitive Decline
Something about Diamond is Unbreakable rouses fans’ imaginations like no other era of JoJo. One frequent target is Joseph Joestar, multi-part JoJo mainstay. Some fans believe Joseph faked his cognitive decline in order to escape the ire of his wife, Suzy Q after it’s revealed that the part’s protagonist, Josuke Higashikata, is his illegitimate son.
Some fans say that faking cognitive decline would be out of character for Joseph, but we don’t know that we agree—after all, cheating on Suzy Q is “out of character” to begin with. On one hand, there’s some compelling evidence that Joseph’s mind is a little more sound than he lets on; his quick reflexes when it comes to Shizuka are an oft-cited example, alongside his mental acuity as his role in the part comes to an end. On the other hand, Araki directly attributes his mental revival to taking care of Shizuka.
9) Diavolo’s Original Personality
This particular JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure theory can swing in either of two directions, both speculating on the original personality of Diavolo/Doppio. In reality, the idea of an “original personality” is psychologically complicated, to say the least. Whatever preceded “Diavolo” and “Doppio” would have most likely really been a combination of both personalities. In the realm of fiction, though, we’re free to dig in a little further and speculate. Either Diavolo or Doppio being the original personality would have extreme implications.
On one hand, some say a personality more consistent with Diavolo would have been their mutual predecessor, since “doppio” means “double” in Italian; Doppio, a childlike regression, emerged from Diavolo’s trauma in Sardinia. But there’s an equally compelling case to be made that Diavolo’s aggression and Stand powers—as many ways to predict and avoid damage as to inflict it—could be a young Doppio’s psychic reaction to assert total control, brash and immature in its scope, devastating in its power.
10) The Trilogy Theory
One of the theories that checks out most on a surface level also, unfortunately, ventures into the unfalsifiable—at least, until The JOJOLands is finished up. With JoJo‘s über-dedicated fanbase and decades-long story, it’s only natural everybody wants to know when and how the series will end. One major reading is the trilogy theory: JoJo’s parts make up a trilogy of trilogies:
- The first (Phantom Blood, Battle Tendencyand Stardust Crusaders) centers on Dio as a primary antagonist.
- The second (Diamond is Unbreakable, Golden Windand Stone Ocean) centers on the long-term fallout of Dio, his travels around JoJo‘s world, and the Stand Arrows.
- The third (Steel Ball Run, Jojolionand The JOJOLands) establishes a parallel continuity in another universe, complete with its own unique ideas like Rock Humans.
If it’s true, it means The JoJoLands will be the series’ last part. Fans cite Araki’s age (currently, he’s in his mid-sixties) and the dominance of the trilogy format so far. On the other hand, Araki’s getting up there in age, sure, but he shows no signs of slowing down―whether physically or creatively. After all, anime-only fans will soon see JoJo hit its creative peak, and it’s worth noting the spry mangaka hasn’t given up altitude since Steel Ball Run‘s debut.
For our part, we hope he’ll be around to provide us with dissectible goodies for a long time to come. How about you? Do you have a favorite JoJo theory we missed? Drop it in a comment below!
