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NOTE: This page covers Jonathan Joestar from the original continuity. For his alternate counterpart Jonathan "Johnny" Joestar, see here.
There are times when a gentleman has to be courageous and fight, even when his opponent is bigger than he is and he knows he's going to lose!
„
~ Jonathan Joestar
“
I did not take a beating just now for your sake! So whatever you're thinking, stop it! All I want is to conduct myself as a gentleman. I spotted a damsel in distress. A true gentleman has no fear. He'll fight for those who can't. Even knowing it's a fight he has no chance of winning, he enters the fray. Someday... I'll have the strength to win.
The son of George Joestar I and the late Mary Joestar, Jonathan is an honest, kind, and positive man whose life is fraught with tragedy and misery after meeting his adopted brother and arch-nemesis Dio Brando. After Dio became a vampire, JoJo would be trained by Will A. Zeppeli in the arts of Hamon to defeat him.
Despite receiving a seemingly happy ending and marrying his love interest Erina Pendleton, his life would be sadly taken by Dio, who would later take over his body. Despite his death, JoJo's influence and bloodline would continue to live on, with his descendants avenging his death by killing DIO once and for all. DIO would also utilize Jonathan's body to create his own offspring, who all received his Joestar genes, among them, Giorno Giovanna.
In Japanese, he was voiced by Jurota Kosugi, Katsuyuki Konishi (who also voiced Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star, Toshiie Maeda and Naomasa Ii in Samurai Warriors, and Maxima), Hideyuki Tanaka (who also voiced Han Dang in Dynasty Warriors), Kazuya Nakai (who also voiced Xiahou DunDynasty Warriors and Roronoa Zoro in One Piece), and Kazuyuki Okitsu (who also voiced Kenshin Uesugi in Samurai Warriors 5).
Jonathan is a tall and muscular man who, with short dark hair (blue in the anime). Much like the other members of the Joestar bloodline, Jonathan bears a star-shaped birthmark in the area between his neck and shoulders, as it's later seen on DIO's stolen body.
For his outfits, Jonathan is usually shown wearing longer dress pants and tends to roll up his coat sleeves. He also wears a striped team uniform during University rugby games. When he sets out to Ogre Street to find a cure for his father's illness, he dons a deerstalker cap and long coat. During the journey to Windknight's Lot, his outfit is a mixture of his formal and detective-like outfit. In the latter half of the arc, he wears a close-fitted tank top with capped sleeves. In the anime, these sleeves are converted into shoulder pads.
During his childhood, according to the norms of the Victorian era, Jonathan's attire consisted of a jacket, white dress shirt, breeches and a pair of long socks with black shoes. As a nobleman, he wears a ribbon tie and a vest like his father's.
Personality[]
Jonathan is a kindhearted man who is characterized by his deep sense of justice and morals. Ever since he was a child, Jonathan always strived to be a "perfect gentleman" and would often stand up for those who couldn't defend themselves. Although he used to be slightly spoiled due to his rich upbringing and would even occasionally do things like smoking behind his father's back, he nonetheless always showed to be respectful and noble towards others and, as time went on, he would gradually grow up and mature from his corrupting qualities, becoming the kind-hearted gentleman we know today.
Jonathan is also incredibly selfless and is not afraid of putting his own life or well-being on the line for the sake of others, a trait he's carried over ever since he was a young man. Even before his Hamon training with Will. A Zeppeli, Jonathan always showcased having phenomenal inner strenght and a fighting spirit, even before acquiring his iconic Hamon abilities. He was shown as exceptionally strong and talented, on top of having a quick wit, similar to his descendants, that led him defeating Dio in their first fight of him as a vampire, with Jonathan being a regular human being without any special powers of his own at that point.
Jonathan's most prevalent characteristic is his deep compassion which he shows, even towards his worst enemies and even his undead opponents. Jonathan's compassion is also shown to have a positive effect on other characters as well, such as Robert E. O. Speedwagon, a street thug who attacked him and, after a brief conflict, admired his bravery and turned his life around, becoming a rich businessman who organized a Foundation dedicated to studying supernatural phenomena. Most notably, he also helped Bruford, a medieval knight who was revived by Dio as a zombie, briefly regain his humanity in his final moments, in which he acknowledged that Jonathan was a true warrior and commended him for his kind heart, gifting the Luck Pluck Sword. His kindess, however, is shown to be a double-edged sword, as it also allows him to be easily manipulated by others. However, after his experiences with Dio, Jonathan becomes more emotionally intelligent and shedding his naiveté.
Furthermore, to further showcase Jonathan's good heart, even after being put to hell and back by his so-called, brother and actively going out on a quest to kill him in order to stop his ultimate plan of taking over the world, Jonathan nonetheless still loved Dio as a brother, despite the latter being nothing but evil towards him. After seemingly killing Dio in their fight in his castle, Jonathan cried tears for the man he thought to be his brother, despite it all, and in an ultimate act of forgiveness, he embraces Dio's head before his death, saying that even after all the horrible things he did towards him, Jonathan states a part of him still cared for him right before succumbing to his injuries.
Unlike his descendants, Jonathan does not possess any kind of corrupting or anti-heroic qualities, and was ever since remembered after his unfortunate passing as a man with a noble heart and served as a paragon of morality to his subsequent descendants, who in some way or another, always carried with them Jonathan's fierce heroic spirit.
Biography[]
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood[]
Jonathan and Dio's first encounter.
As a baby, Jonathan's mother died in a carriage accident. Despite this, his father, George Joestar did his best to raise Jonathan into a proper gentleman. During his childhood, he met a girl named Erina who he helped from bullies, resulting in him getting beaten up. Some time later, a boy named Dio Brando was adopted by his father. Jonathan tried his best to treat his new brother kindly, only to for Dio to torment him in various ways. This torment eventually lead to Dio forcefully kissing Erina, angering Jonathan greatly who proceeds to finally beat up his adopted brother. This ends with the 2 of them being punished and his dog was later burned alive by Dio.
Jonathan intercepts his brother as he's about to give the poisoned medicine to their father.
A few years later, Jonathan and Dio are now college students and their relationship seems to have improved. Jonathan's father however appears to be sick and after noticing his adopted brother bringing medicine, he decides to confront him. Jonathan was able to trick Dio into confirming his suspicion, prompting him to visit Ogre Street in hopes for a cure. Upon arriving, he is attacked by Speedwagon and a pair of thugs. He was able to incapacitate the 3 before being swarmed by Ogre Street's denizens. Luckily, Speedwagon decides to call off the attack upon hearing Jonathan's reasoning.
Jonathan mourning his father.
Jonathan is later seen in his home, greeting Dio somewhat in disappointment. Dio attempts to gain sympathy from his "brother", only for Speedwagon to call out his bluff. After revealing multiple forms of evidence, the police appear to arrest Dio with Jonathan deciding to handcuff his own adopted brother himself. Dio uses this chance to stab the gentleman, resulting in him stabbing George instead. Jonathan mourns for his father as the police shoot Dio repeatedly.
Dio however has already turned into a vampire and quickly attacks everyone in the mansion. Jonathan was still unable to bring himself to shoot his adopted brother, forcing Speedwagon to do it for him. This proves to be useless as Dio was able to regenerate at high speeds. Out of desperation, Jonathan burns down his home before climbing to the roof. Once the vampire followed him there, he immediately tackled him down a chimney. With a lot of struggle, Jonathan was able to defeat Dio and survive the ordeal.
Jonathan reunites with Erina.
Jonathan's Hamon training with Zeppeli
During his recovery, he was treated by Erina who has grown older. The two restarted their relationship and began to grow closer. During one of their strolls however, they are met by an eccentric man who seemed to be following them around. The man turned out to be Will Zeppeli who offers Jonathan a chance at learning Hamon in order to defeat Dio who turned out to be still alive. Zeppeli provides several demonstrations and explanations of Hamon before finally beginning Jonathan's training.
Some time later, Jonathan, Zeppeli, and Speedwagon began their journey to hunt down Dio. While they passed by a tunnel, they are met by a particularly powerful zombie which Zeppeli dispatches. Jonathan is later tasked to kill said zombie while holding a glass wine. The gentleman was able to do so upon realizing that he could infuse Hamon into the wine, using it as a compass to detect movement. They later exit the tunnel and a few hours later, arrive in a graveyard where Dio was in. Jonathan quickly attacks Dio upon seeing Zeppeli being beaten.
Despite their combined efforts however, the 2 were beaten by the vampire. Dio proceeds to summon a pair of very powerful zombies named Bruford and Tarkus. Jonathan fights off Bruford first, bringing the zombie into the water before using air bubbles to generate Hamon. The two were blasted back to the surface and Jonathan was then tied up. He was however able to break free with a Hamon-infused kick, freeing himself and allowing him to rapidly pummel Bruford.
Jonathan is gifted with the Luck & Pluck Sword by Bruford.
Jonathan faces off Tarkus.
Bruford later expresses gratitude for letting him die as a human before giving Jonathan a sword called "Luck & Pluck". The gentleman later escapes with his group from an angered Tarkus, ending up in an abandoned castle. Jonathan was kidnapped upon arrival and was locked in a room, being forced to fight Tarkus. After the door was unlocked, Zeppeli stepped in and fought off Tarkus, and was then immediately killed. Zeppeli however gives Jonathan the last of his Hamon, allowing the gentleman to kill Tarkus. He then joins his group to give a funeral to his teacher before going to a village. Jonathan was first met by Dire who attacks him with no provocation but was defeated. Dire later reveals to Jonathan that he is a Hamon user and came with 2 more Hamon users who came at Zeppeli's request.
Jonathan (seemingly) defeats Dio.
The group arrive at the castle where Dio hid, fighting off a large zombie. They soon found Dio at the balcony and upon Dire's death, Jonathan stepped in. His fight against Dio was particularly difficult due to the vampire repeatedly freezing whatever was used to attack to deny any damage. After having his fists frozen however, Jonathan was able to burn them to keep them from getting frozen, allowing him to apply Hamon into Dio's body.
Jonathan and Erina's wedding.
Some time later, he got married to Erina and went on a honeymoon on ship. The ship however was infiltrated by Dio and a zombie. The zombies soon began to overcome the ship and Jonathan was able to find Dio who was now a head. Dio quickly attacked the gentleman's throat, causing him to be unable to generate Hamon. With the last of his Hamon however, Jonathan was able to kill the zombie Dio was with. The zombie's body damaged the ship's engine, causing it to begin sinking. With his dying breath, although Erina tells him that she wants to die by his side Jonathan tells Erina to escape with a baby, whose mother had after falling down the stairs of the cellar, using Dio's coffin to escape, using the last of his strenght to take a hold of Dio's head. He finally dies right after and his body was then stolen by Dio, who sneaks inside a secret compartment of his own coffin, that Erina used to escape the exploding ship, with him staying hidden under the depths of the ocean for over 100 years.
Jonathan's death.
Legacy[]
Jonathan's lineage.
In Stardust Crusaders, it's somewhat implied that a part of Jonathan's soul was still alive in essence inside his decapitated body, even after Dio had stolen it, as DIO's usage of the Stand arrow on himself not only awakened his own stand, The World, but it also resulted on ripple effect that led to the awakening of the Stands from the other members of the Joestar family through the body's psychic connection with the rest of his bloodline, including Jonathan's own Stand. Throghout the Part, it's also mentioned by DIO many times that Jonathan's body appeared to be rejecting him in some capacity, which he solved by feasting on more blood to heal the scar on his neck and finally take full control of Jonathan's body.
By using Jonathan's body, DIO also created many offpring who all bore the Joestar birthmark and had Joestar genes, making them, technically, Jonathan's biological children. Although most of them turned out as villainous like their father, one of them, Giorno Giovanna, managed to stand out from the crowd for being a more heroic and honorable individual, despite still being a criminal himself.
Powers and Abilities[]
Enhanced strength: Jonathan had lived a rough past as the son of an aristocrat and was known in his childhood to have been at least a competent boxer. In his college life, he is shown to have played Rugby alongside Dio Brando, and was revered as one of the two stars of Hugh Hudson Academy. Even prior to learning the ripple, Jonathan was shown to have been able to hold his own against three thugs, Speedwagon among them with his sheer might and willpower.
Intelligence: In addition to his strength, Jonathan was also shown as being exceptionally intelligent as well as he was capable of deducing Dio's plan to murder their own father on his own. During fights, he was also shown as having a quick wits and improvising techniques on the fly.
Weapon mastery: Jonathan was shown to have been able to wield various weapons held by the suits of armor in the Joestar mansion. He later wields the Luck and Pluck sword in his fight with Dio with ease, showcasing great swordsmanship.
Athleticism: Coupled with his rugby experience, Jonathan is also shown performing incredible feats of strength, such as jumping from the hilt of a sword and hoisting himself up to the second floor with an arm inhibited by a spear pierced into his pectorals, even doing a flip over the guardrails as he did so.
Hamon[]
“
How my heart resonates! I'm pulsing with heat and life! My very blood is a symphony within me! Sunlight Yellow... OVERDRIVE!
„
~ Jonathan Joestar before using Sunlight Yellow Overdrive on Bruford.
Jonathan's Sunlight Yellow Overdrive
Upon meeting with Will A. Zeppeli, Jonathan was granted with the power of concentrating sunlight and discharging it with breathing techniques, a supernatural ability known as "Hamon". Through Will's training, he also developed several techniques of his own.
Overdrive: The most basic application of Hamon, consisting in the user concentrating the energy into his attacks and make it flow through its targets.
Overdrive Barrage: Jonathan is capable of performing multiple overdrives with his own fists while making a barrage of attacks.
Healing: Jonathan can use his Hamon to heal others by passing its energy into them. He's first seen using this technique on a tree branch, making it sprout flowers.
Sticking Hamon & Repelling Hamon: By transmitting Hamon through his body, Jonathan is capable of repelling and adhering to objects. He's showcased using this technique to walk over on water, by inbuing Hamon in his feet.
Hamon Detector: By concentrating Hamon on a glass of liquid in his hand, Jonathan is capable of spreading the energy through an environment, allowing him to detect people on his surroundings.
Afterimages: Jonathan can use his Sendō technique to move really fast, creating afterimages in the process.
Hamon Hypnosis: Jonathan can use Hamon in order to control the bodies of animals and even other people, such as when he used it on one of Doobie's snakes to make it attack him or when he utilized on Wang Chan's dead corpse in order to stop the ship.
Zoom Punch: Passed down him by Will A. Zeppeli, this technique allows Jonathan to extend and stretch his joints to hit his opponents from afar.
Sendo Hamon Overdrive: A technique invented by Jonathan which consists in a more powerful version of the basic overdrive that is capable of travelling through solid objects, such as walls, and attack anything that is on the other side of it.
Life Magnet Overdrive: By channeling Hamon into his hands, Jonathan can make a magnetic field that attracks organic matter. He utilizes this technique alongside Will in order to create a giant glider using leaves.
Scarlet Overdrive: Jonathan is capable of using Hamon in order to set ablaze his own hand with a Hamon-infused fire, which spreads if he touches his opponent with it.
Turquoise Blue Overdrive: Performed while underwater, which is said to be one of the best conductors for Hamon, Jonathan is capable of sending powerful blasts of pressurized water inbued with Hamon energy towards his opponents.
Metal Silver Overdrive: Jonathan is capable of channeling Hamon energy through metal. It's showcased as a powerful counter against opponents armed with metallic weapons, such as swords.
Sunlight Yellow Overdrive: Jonathan's most powerful move, which allows him to channel Hamon energy as powerful as sunlight itself in a barrage of devastating strikes.
Stand[]
DIO, utilizing Jonathan's Stand.
After stealing Jonathan's body and piercing himself with the Stand arrow, DIO also awakened Jonathan's latent Stand. Jonathan's unnamed Stand is very similar to that of his grandson, Joseph, Hermit Purple, having the appearance of a bundle of purple vines that sprout from the user's hand, and also possesses similar abilities as well.
Spirit photography/Divination: Much like Hermit Purple, Jonathan's Stand is capable of reading minds and channeling psychic visions via other objects, such as cameras, televisions and even crystal balls. It also is capable of creating "spirit photographies" of anyone the user in other to discover their current whereabouts by hitting a camera with it. Notably, unlike Joseph's stand, it does not require him to destroy the camera in the process.
Audio Samples[]
Fukutsu ~Mushin no Sakebi~ (Jonathan's Theme)[]
Trivia[]
Jonathan's nickname of "JoJo" was made because Hirohiko Araki wanted the protagonist of his manga to have same letter initials, similar to that of the famous director Steven Spielberg (S.S.). It was rumored that Araki named him after the japanese restaurant chain Jonathan's Family Restaurant, although he would later debunk that, stating him and his editor only began eating there after Phantom Blood began serialization.
Jonathan is very similar to Kenshiro, the main protagonist of the iconic manga and anime series Fist of the North Star, as they both share similar big and muscular physiques and fighting styles which consist of throwing barrages of attacks towards their enemies. Although Araki never confirmed if this was a real source of inspiration, as he did cite that Fist of the North Star was one of his primary inspirations while writing Phantom Blood, and has frequently collaborated with the series' author Tetsuo Hara, some of his panels were said to have used visual reference from Kenshiro's manga.
Jonathan's act of training martial arts was stated to have been inspired by the tragectory of the main character of the manga, Karate Master.
Jonathan in the series' first opening (up) and his alternate counterpart Dark Determination stare (down).
In the first opening of the series, "Sono Chi no Sadame", there is a close up shot of Jonathan's face, showing a flame in his eyes, which might be a nod his alternate universe counterpart, whose eyes burn in a similar way when he's under the effect of his "Dark Determination" state.
Due to the signature star-shaped birthmark of Joestar family being a concept that was introduced later in the series, Jonathan's birthmark is never shown up until Stardust Crusaders in DIO's stolen body. In the anime, however, his birthmark is visible during his fight with Tarkus.
Given their similar natures, it's possible that Jonathan's Stand could have been capable of transmitting Hamon energy through itself, much like Joseph's Hermit Purple, though this is never confirmed.
While the Stand also does not have a canon name in the series' main continuity, it was referred to as "Hermit Purple" by DIO in the non-canon novel JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Over Heaven, and is given the name "The Passion" in the likewise non-canon novel, JORGE JOESTAR.
The Stand's name in JORGE JOESTAR is a reference to the 2004 movie The Passion of the Christ, with it manifesting itself as a crown of thorns, similar to that of Jesus Christ.
Jonathan Joestar and his arch-nemesis Dio have at least six fights throughout Phantom Blood, which is by far the highest number between two opponents in any part of JoJo.
Jonathan Joestar fought Tanjiro Kamado from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba in the battleboarding YouTube series Death Battle, and won.
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