Phantom Blood


 * For the Anime adaption, see JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: The Animation. For the Movie adaption, see JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood (Movie).
 * "This story depicts the mysterious Stone Mask from Mexico and its raveling of the destinies of two youngsters and their bizarre adventures!"

- Narrator, Chapter 1

Phantom Blood (ファントムブラッド) is the first story arc of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, published in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1987 for a total of 44 chapters. Originally known as, it debuted in Shonen Jump double issue #1-2 on December 2, 1986. It was licensed and released in North America by VIZ Media.

The story follows Jonathan Joestar as he matures with and eventually combats his adoptive brother, the cunning, merciless Dio Brando.

Plot Summary
"Put simply, the theme of this work is 'living'. Through the two main characters, I want to examine two ways of living. It's all about singing the hymn of the battle between 'human' and 'non-human' ..."

- Hirohiko Araki, author's note, Vol. 1

Dio the Invader


Between the 12th and 16th Century A.D., an Aztec tribe performs a human sacrifice during which a man donning a Stone Mask drips his Mask in a murdered maiden's blood. The Mask activates and many spikes pierce the man's skull, giving him the ability to suck another's blood with his finger and superhuman strength. It is revealed that this tribe tried to take over the world, but was somehow stopped.

Centuries later, on a rainy night in the year 1868, a carriage carrying a couple and their infant child had fallen down a cliff. A thief named Dario Brando, along with a companion he acquired from a tavern, assumed everyone died and helps himself to the valuables which includes a Stone Mask. But as the companion noted the infant was still live after his mother lost her life. Dario finds the child's father, George Joestar, also alive as the man assumed Dario saved him and offered to repay the debt. Twelve years later, Dario is on his death bed as he told his son Dio Brando of Joestar's misguided debt and to take advantage of the Joestar family. Dio, revealed to hate his father with much passion while visiting his grave, leaves London for Liverpool.

Known by his friends as JoJo, young Jonathan Joestar lived a peaceful life at his family's wealthy estate and strove to become a gentle man. But Jonathan's life was turned upside down the day Dio moved into the Joestar estate as Jonathan's adopted brother. Despite Jonathan's initial attempts to befriend him, Dio instead tormented Jonathan by ostracizing him from his peers and earning George's favor so that he can become the sole heir to the Joestar fortune. When Jonathan finds solace in a relationship with Erina Pendleton, Dio decided to rob Jonathan of true love by forcing Erina to kiss him. But this proved to be Dio's undoing as Jonathan retaliated and overpowered Dio, the scuffle result with drops of Dio's blood to splatter on the Stone Mask. Only Jonathan and Dio witnessed the stone's reaction before George breaks the fight. Dio secretly discovers that Jonathan is tougher than he thought and, after burning Jonathan's dog Danny to death in an incinerator as revenge, decide to bide his time and try to earn Jonathan's trust.

The Stone Mask


Seven years later, in the year 1888, both Jonathan and Dio have become top students and are about to graduate in their respective fields. Despite the apparent ceasefire, Jonathan is still unwary about Dio who decides to finally make his move to take the Joestar fortune. When George fell ill, Jonathan suspected that Dio has ulterior motives about looking after their father. While in the library to gather intel on the Stone Mask, having deduced it to be some sort of torture device, Jonathan finds an old letter Dario Brando wrote to his father. While Jonathan reads the letter and finds Dario's symptoms identical to Lord Joestar's ailment, he realizes that Dio is poisoning George.

Following a confrontation with Dio to confirm what he learned, Jonathan leaves his father in the care of trust-worthy physicians and lives for London to find a cure. Dio decides to dispose of Jonathan before he is exposed, stealing the Stone Mask from Jonathan with intent to kill him in a way that makes it appear to be a research accident. Even after learning that Jonathan ventured into Ogre Street, Dio was anxious if the Joestar survived or not. It while wandering the streets drinking that Dio encountered a pair of drunk beggars and decides to kill one of them while subjecting the other to the Stone Mask. But Dio finds that the exposure to the mask turns the wearer into vampire. Dio was able to survive when the vampire is reduced to ash by the morning sun.

Returning home, still shaken from the recent events, Dio finds Jonathan waiting for him with police constables. With the aid of the honorable criminal Robert E. O. Speedwagon, Jonathan tracked down the Chinese merchant Wang Chan, who provided Dio with the poison, and acquired the antidote. With nothing left to lose, Dio attempts to stab Jonathan but hits George instead, and dons the Stone Mask before he is shot down by the constables.

After George expired tells Jonathan to forgive Dio, the latter comes back as a vampire and slaughters the constables. A tense fight between Jonathan and Dio ensues, with the former forced to burn down his family home to kill the seemingly invulnerable creature Dio has become. With great difficulties, Jonathan escapes the inferno while managing to skewer Dio into the Statue of the Goddess of Love. Soon after, Jonathan is hospitalized and rekindles his relationship with Erina Pendleton. Three days later, Wang Chan tries to steal the Stone Mask, but is grabbed by a badly burnt Dio who drains his blood.

Jack the Ripper and Zeppeli the Strange
At this time, Jonathan meets William Anthonio Zeppeli, an Italian baron and with a strange power called Ripple (波紋), subsequently revealed to be a martial arts technique that allow the user to focus bodily energy into other kinds of energy via proper breathing (primarily the energy of sunlight, which is effective against vampires). After teaching Jonathan how to use the Ripple, they set out to seek and defeat Dio, accompanied by Speedwagon.

In a tunnel leading to the town of Windknight's Lot where Zeppeli knows Dio is hiding in, the group is attacked by a zombified Jack the Ripper. Zeppeli manages to drive Jack away but then tells Jonathan to finish him off as a lesson.

Ripple Overdrive
In the tunnels, Jonathan learns to use the Ripple in other ways than simply destroying Vampires. He manages to detect Jack the Ripper through a wall and kills him.

Out of the tunnel, a boy named Poco steals the group's luggage, and they have to follow him. Ambushed by Dio's army in a cemetery, Jonathan and Zeppeli discover with shock that Dio developed a counter to the Ripple, and Zeppeli's arms are now frozen.

Tarkus and the Dark Knight Bruford
Dio reveals two exceptional zombies, Bruford and Tarkus, two legendary knights who fight Jonathan as Dio leaves, assured of his victory. Bound by his pride, Bruford challenges Jonathan alone but Jonathan manages to injure the knight with the Ripple.

Sleep as a Hero
Bruford is killed, but not before befriending him and giving him his sword Luck & Pluck.

Tarkus then challenges Jonathan.

The Knights' Ruins
Zeppeli still weak and Jonathan exhausted, Tarkus forces the group to flee using leaves as a glider.

The Medieval Knights' Training Ground for Murder
Zeppeli explains his tragic past shared by the history of the Stone Mask and how he came to learn the Ripple.

Tarkus jumps toward the group, causing them to crash into a castle serving as a training ground for knights. Jonathan is trapped and collared inside a room with Tarkus while the rest is stuck outside.

Pluck for Tomorrow and the Successor
Jonathan is unable to breathe properly and is in great danger. However, Poco manages to sneak inside the room and allow Zeppeli to enter. Zeppeli recognizes a prophecy foretelling his death but sacrifices himself nonetheless, transferring his life force to Jonathan who overpowers and kills Bruford.

The Three from a Faraway Land
Zeppeli's Ripple master, Tonpetty and his two disciples Dire and Straizo then show up to help Jonathan and Speedwagon. The group then confronts Dio, but Dire, trying to fight the Vampire alone, is killed.

Fire and Ice, Jonathan and Dio
The clash between Dio and Jonathan begins. A close quarter fight ensues, but Dio has initially the advantage due to his ice powers. However, Jonathan manages to defrost himself with the fires surrounding them and deals a direct hit to Dio, who is sent into a cliff.

However, Dio tears off his own head before the Ripple power could reach it. Jonathan and company destroy the stone mask the next morning, having protected the town. Shortly after the events in Wind Knight's Lot, Jonathan marries Erina and while on board a ship to America, notices Wang Chan and follows him straight into a trap by Dio (now nothing more than a severed head), who had snuck on board the ship within a special coffin. Dio reveals to Jonathan that he plans to kill him and attach his own head to Jonathan's body before arriving in America. Although Dio manages to mortally wound Jonathan in front of Erina, Jonathan uses the last of his Ripple to destroy Wang Chan's head, causing his body to jam the ship's engine and trigger an explosion. As he urges for Erina to flee, Jonathan is further wounded in the ensuing explosions by shrapnel from the engine. In a final attack, Dio ensnares Jonathan with tendrils from his neck and attempts to decapitate him, only for Jonathan to stab him with the shrapnel and thwart his assault. Jonathan holds Dio's head in his arms, reflecting on their fate as the ship begins to sink. Dio demands to be let free, only to find that Jonathan has already died from his wounds. The ship explodes with both men inside as Erina escapes in Dio's coffin, pregnant with Jonathan's child and protecting a surviving infant whose parents were killed in the attack on the ship, thus setting in motion the events of the entire series.

Characters
For others, see Minor Characters and Unnamed Characters.

Chapters
Phantom Blood consists of 44 chapters, compiled into Volumes 1 to 5 of the Jump Comics collected editions. The left column uses the titles from the bunkoban edition released in 2002. The right column uses the titles from the original serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump. The volumes use the Weekly Shonen Jump titles.

Animation

 * An animated movie adaptation by Studio A.P.P.P. was released on February 17, 2007 in Japanese theaters.


 * A TV anime by David Production aired in Japan in 9 episodes between October 5 and November 30, 2012.

Video Games

 * An action-adventure video game adaptation was released in Japan by Bandai for the PS2 on October 26, 2006.


 * Included as playable in fighting game All Star Battle (PS3) are Jonathan, Zeppeli and Dio; with Dio's Mansion representing the Part 1 stage.

Trivia

 * Araki has stated that his inspirations for Phantom Blood were the manga Fist of the North Star and the novel Bram Stoker's Dracula.