JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, a popular manga series that has sold more than 120 million volumes, is celebrating its 35th anniversary. From Part 1 to Part 8, JoJo is loved by fans of all ages. The author of the series, Hirohiko Araki (61), gave us a special interview discussing his favorite moments, such as the creation of JoJo, the origin behind Ghost Ripples (which is pronounced as “Stands”), and the hidden themes present in his work. This introduction to The World of Araki will be released in two parts.
A studio located in an apartment building in Tokyo, a bookshelf full of reference materials, a large well-worn desk, and a sound system hidden away in the corner: This is where JoJo is created. "It's very outdated. This place hasn't changed much the entire time I've been here, and I haven't made any attempts at refurbishing it. I've been using this same drawing board for about 30 years now", Araki says with a smile. On weekdays Araki usually works on JoJo from 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM.
The first part of JoJo ended in late 1986 with an intense battle between the protagonist, Jonathan Joestar, and his most powerful rival, DIO. The story afterward depicts the bizarre fates of their descendants. "The idea wasn't well-received by the editorial department, as it was hard to market to their young male demographic." The setting and main protagonist were also foreign, which was frowned upon. "It just didn't feel right to have a Japanese person in a story featuring vampires. I also wanted the main character to have both initials start with 'J' so that it was easier to remember, like Steven Spielberg (S.S.)," Araki continues while laughing wryly.
The JoJo as we know it now is currently split into eight parts, however, you originally only intended it to be three. This is very similar to the novel East of Eden by John Steinbeck, which was later adapted into a movie starring James Dean. It tells of a family conflict based on the feud between Cain and Abel from the Book of Genesis in the Old Testament. Araki responds, "I was very drawn to the concept of passing the baton from one generation to the next. Since 'inheritance' is the theme of the series, the protagonist no longer had to stay the same. This allowed me to write scenarios where the main character is killed, which wasn't possible in shonen manga."
Today, the title JoJo has become synonymous with Stands, a supernatural power that takes the form of a guardian spirit. Before, the protagonists used the Ripple to attack, but after Part 3, Stands suddenly started popping up. Araki replies, "it all started when the editor in charge at the time jokingly told me, 'Can you stop it with the Ripple? Think of something else.' He also told me to draw something that was easy for readers to understand. So I came up with the concept of Stands that mimic supernatural powers. I always wondered why the guardian spirits in other manga don't throw punches."
The Ripple, which was once formless, had finally been given a humanoid form. For Araki, Stands were clearly meant as an extension of the Ripple, hence the name Ghost Ripple. However, this decision stirred up a lot of problems for the series. According to Araki, "the readers at the time didn't get it all. Even the editors and people working on the manga were confused about the change." It wasn't until about a year later that the readers finally started catching on with Stands. Once he won the reader's trust, Araki was able to get a lot more inventive with his fights. The battles against their archrival, DIO, were no longer limited to just punching and kicking. With this, Araki could create a variety of recognizable battles, such as a dangerous game of playing cards, a struggle against magnetism, and a clash in someone's dreams...
"A strong opponent almost always needs to look cool. But with Stands, even an ugly opponent can be strong. Because Stands are tied to the user's wit, it's possible to create weak characters who are still strong. The possibilities are endless."
Araki created rules as well, since a topsy-turvydom where anything goes would be no good. Usually, Stands cannot move faster than the speed of light. Their power weakens if they wander far away too. “To make sure they didn’t stray away from their orbit around human activity, I was conscious of the bounds of physics.”
The two-dimensional medium of manga also allows for the texture of both humans and transcendental Stands to be in unison. "The drawing material is the same, whether for a Stand liquid like water or a machinery-like specimen. They won’t feel out of place alongside humans as long as you draw them with the same paint. This is the big difference with a live action work.” Speaking of drawings, everything is hand-drawn by him.
Although on the surface the protagonists drawn for the past 35 years keep on inheriting the title of JoJo, Araki is particular about who they are on the inside as well. “In my case I regard the character’s personality as more important than their appearance, or silhouette, or design. An idiosyncrasy, motivation behind behavior, and outlook on lifeーsuch things contribute to the formation of character. For example, the part played by Nobita is someone who has a hard time in Doraemon. And Gian’s job is to steal the inventions Doraemon produces to help him, right?”
Araki creates a personal information form[3] every time he introduces a new character. When he showed me the form, it included height, weight, upbringing, worries the character had, attitude toward women, if the Stand ability matches the character's personality... A total of 60 items in the checklist for characterization were included on just one sheet of paper. This elaborate character profile is the key to forming three dimensional characters.
But, continues Araki. "Characters are vulnerable to the times. They won’t hold up anymore in 10 years." When I asked him what he meant, he answered that "values of the times are reflected in the characters."
The first JoJo took place in a setting with a macho protagonist, the likes of Sylvester Stallone from Rocky or Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star. Araki reflects that by the third protagonist Jotaro Kujo, the main character became a gritty Clint Eastwood type and upon reaching the fifth protagonist Giorno Giovanna, the main character’s existence became true-to-life.
"It was still the Showa period with first protagonist, so men were expected to be manly. But by the fifth protagonist Giorno, entering the Heisei period, the expectations of how men and women should be like no longer differed. By the sixth protagonist (Jolyne Cujoh), a woman finally became the main character as well. It didn't feel wrong for women to beat up men anymore. On the contrary, I don't think characters like the first Jonathan are able to cut it now."
He remarks in passing that the fifth protagonist Giorno was modeled after a woman. "The posing became slightly model-esque from here on as well." It makes sense that the unique "JoJo Posing" exploded in popularity as it did then.
Thus JoJo characters project the period they were written in. What then are the values of the times now? Upon asking him, Araki fell silent for a while after uttering, "it's diverse right now, and there's too much information..." Then he continued like this: "The protagonist can no longer be full of pep. They won’t pass muster now unless they’re sick, physically or mentally. If you forcibly make yourself write an upright character, they'll seem fake.”
In Part 8 JoJolion which started serialization following the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake, the final villain manipulates calamity itself, believe it or not. Araki concludes, "for the protagonists to escape the 'worst outcome' they are forced to make a decision between two ultimate choices. No matter which they choose, they must make sacrifices and pay the price. I must be reflecting the deadlocked times, even if unconsciously." (written by Soji Kawana)
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■Personal Profile
◇Hirohiko Araki
Born in Sendai, in 1960. Debuted as a manga artist in 1980. Serialized JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure over the span of eight parts and inclusion of powers such as the Ripple and Stands, first publishing the story of JoJo in Weekly Shonen Jump from around the end of 1986. 169 centimetres (5.54 ft) tall in height, 58 kilograms (128 lb) heavy in weight. He commented, “my physique has hardly changed since I was young.”
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"I'd Like To Keep On Writing JoJo Forever"[4]
Despite big age differences, comparable to one between parent and child, existing in the readership from a serialization spanning from the Showa period to the Heisei period and up to the Reiwa period, no generation gap divides interest in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventureーa manga which enjoys this unanimous backing. There was a deep connection between Hirohiko Araki (61) who from his early days had his heart set on becoming a manga artist, and the house in Sendai where he was born. The eye-opening reveal of Araki as he really is, theme behind his work, and his thoughts on the here and now after having passed his 60th birthday will be delved into in this second part of our interview.
“My father always returned home by 6 PM, despite being a civil servant. He was a hobbyist and a family manーfishing, shooting pheasants with a gun, and cooking us homemade dishes. He could even make toy boats by hollowing out wood, and he owned many art books as well.”
Araki recalled his childhood spent in Sendai when I asked him why he chose to become a manga artist. He recollected, “my father’s influence might have been significant. Since I was little, I was writing manga under an environment where he did as he pleased. My grandfather would buy me manga when we went to the hot springs, since the shop inside used to always carry manga back then.”
Young Araki submitted his work repeatedly, harboring the dim dream of debuting. However, he was thunderstruck one day by the news of Yudetamago, who was the same age as him, debuting with Kinnikuman. Afterward, teen after teen made their debut, who would eventually become key figures in developing the Golden Age of Shonen Jump as hitmakers; for example, Masakazu Katsura (another contemporary) who is the author of Wing-Man, and Yoichi Takahashi (two years younger) who is the author of Captain Tsubasa. “Manga artists are the same as idols. It hit home that talented individuals make their way in the world straightaway.”
Correspondingly, Araki achieved his debut at age 20 but it took six years for him to hit upon JoJo which was to become his first long-running series. Nonetheless, that work which was regarded as peculiar has continued for 35 years so one never knows what the future has in store.
“[T]his work is about... an ode to humanity”[5] is the comment left by Araki in the first volume of JoJo, and an “ode to humanity” is the theme which still underlies the work, despite being a contemporary horror series which depicts the dark side of humanity as much as the American author Stephen King. “Both antagonists and protagonists live being affirmative, to the fullest, of their course of life. I want to cheer my readers up by showing them that stance. I’ve always kept this intention in mind.”
Although JoJo is considered a singular work, the story being told is actually a classical[6] one. “With stories there exists an enduring classic way, in contrast to characters who reveal vivid traits of the values of the period. A work will surmount the times if you’re able to generate that classic way” he explained.
For example, Araki chose the “roll-and-move board game” format for JoJo Part 3, where the protagonist embarks on a trip together with his party. Instead of straightforwardly fighting with formidable opponents over and over again, this Part unfolds with a group striving to reach a goal while batting foes along the way which bears a resemblance to Shank’s Mare. He exercised his ingenuity with the narrative’s progression in other ways as well, such as revealing the enemies’ stats and profiles bit by bit through short exchanges from conversations first instead of introducing them abruptly.
Together with this, there is the solitary hero and the goddess in JoJo. He claimed that these too have a connection with the house in Sendai where he was born. He went, “my younger sisters have actually influenced my life a lot. They’re twins, four years younger than me. We aren’t on bad terms or anything, but those twins are joined at the hip. As the eldest son I felt cut off. There’s times where you feel more alone by having siblings than being an only child, right?” The perception that heroes are lonely took root in young Araki’s heart, according to him.
Storylines about the selfless love of mothers, ranging from saving mothers who find themselves in desperate straits to mothers devoting themselves to their child are featured in JoJo too. “They say that a family comprised of rebels is a matriarchal one, you know. I wasn’t a rebel, but in the end there’s something in me leaning toward a matriarchal religion. When I had to discuss something important with my father, I always communicated through my mother. To use my sisters’ own words, ‘Mom always ends up taking your side,’ even though I don’t think that’s the case at all.”
A shy smile graced Araki’s lips for the first time during this interview. In addition, he added that his grandfather departing in the beginning of JoJo’s serialization was also what led to him feeling extremely conscious of stories about family: sagas.
Writing about a family while also giving the tale the traditional narrative structure consisting of an introduction, development, turn and conclusion; A hero who retains what is precious to him, solitary as he may be. Indeed, this all follows the classic way of shonen manga.
Espoused as being unconventional by his fans, Araki nonetheless experiences difficulties despite his reputation. He pointed out that the "appearance of the world" of his work gave him the most difficulty. He explained, “you know how in the past there were many people who read manga on the train? I could instantly tell, ‘Hey! That’s Dragon Ball’ just from the corner of a drawing, even when gazing from 10 metres (33 ft) away. That manga has its own ambiance even when you don’t know the exact content of what’s drawn on there. A good manga is one where even children grasp that ambience. This is what I mean by a manga’s appearance of the world.”
To make his manga universally understood with only one glance that this is a work by the one and only Hirohiko Araki. Araki makes a point of performing an exhausting preliminary investigation before writing to achieve this. He reads resources carefully, checks the historical backdrop, and visits the actual location of where his manga will be taking place with his own two feet. He takes great pains to construct The World of Araki, from spatial representation to the scenery of backgrounds on top of all this.
“I actually don’t really like travelling because I get all worried about how much trouble I’ll be in if I were to suddenly get sick or what to do if the food tastes bad. But I’m able to construct the appearance of the world if I see the place and culture of the actual location.”
Araki is in the midst of plotting out his next work now that Part 8 is completed. “Ultimately, I’m thinking all day long on what would be the equivalent of debating who’s stronger: Godzilla or Ultraman. The outcome depends on the conditions like which one is more mentally strong, or if they’re accompanied by comrades or not, the three minute limit of the Color Timer, and the effects of radiation and such” he told me.
When he showed me his notebook which he claimed he had kept on writing in since his debut, it was filled to the brim with small letters. He said he jots down impressions and ideas which come to him after watching movies or reading scientific journals. “It’s stimulating when there’s new discoveries, although plenty of concepts end up being rejected. I find myself thinking ‘what kind of Stand could activate with that?’ even watching leaves fall” he remarked.
Araki has no intention to stop writing the JoJo series despite this year marking the 35th anniversary of JoJo's conception. "If JoJo ends up being the only notable series I work on, I'm okay with that. You know how there are pottery makers who still work even after turning 90? That's something I admire. I'd like to keep on writing JoJo forever."[4]
The solitary hero that is JoJo who continues to push forward throughout the ages. After conducting the interview I came to realize that each manifestation of JoJo projected Araki himself, carving out his own niche and proudly independent. (written by Soji Kawana)
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◇JoJo Trivia
JoJo is famous for distinctive onomatopoeia such as "zukyuun[7]." These sounds are expressing the presentation from the movie Psycho by Hitchcock. Araki offered, “you know that famous scene of the showering woman being stabbed? I want to convey the music playing in that part which fans the sense of danger.” Also, on the newly starring Rock Humans in Part 8. "Calculi built up in my body. I thought, ‘What if I were to keep on becoming petrified' and then they (Rock Humans) were born."
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■Personal Profile
◇Hirohiko Araki
Born in Sendai, in 1960. Debuted as a manga artist in 1980. Started writing JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure in Weekly Shonen Jump at around the end of 1986.
[Translated by Morganstedmanms, Dijeh[6], and JoJo's Bizarre Encyclopedia[4]]
