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

Prologue
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.

In Liverpool, England, 1880, the young Jonathan Joestar, known to his friends as JoJo, is peacefully living at his father George's wealthy estate. Another young boy, Dio Brando, is adopted by them due to having recently lost his father, Dario. George believed that he and his infant son were rescued by Dario during a stagecoach accident, in which his wife lost her life, when in fact, Dario was trying to loot their corpses. Jonathan attempts to befriend Dio, unaware of his plan to break his spirit through constant bullying and earn George's trust so that he can become the sole heir to the Joestar fortune.

Dio Brando the Invader
As part of his scheme to torment Jonathan, Dio violently beats him in a boxing match and turns his friends against him while presenting himself before Jonathan's father as a better gentleman and student than his adoptive brother. When Jonathan finds solace in a relationship with Erina Pendleton, Dio steals his girlfriend Erina's first kiss.

This one affront makes Jonathan angry enough to openly confront Dio, but fighting for his girlfriend also gives him the strength to beat Dio for the first time. 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.

A Letter from the Past
A little over seven years later, in the year 1888, both Jonathan and Dio have become top students and are about to graduate in their respective fields. Unfortunately, George has been ill for some time. Jonathan becomes suspicious of Dio's excessive care for him and is certain that he has ulterior motives, especially after discovering an old letter written by Dario Brando on his deathbed requesting Lord Joestar to care for Dio. In his letter, Dario described his symptoms, which were identical to Lord Joestar's mysterious ailment. Jonathan believes that Dio must have poisoned his own father and plans to do the same with his father. Jonathan confronts him about his suspicions, and Dio decides to dispose of Jonathan before he is exposed.

The Stone Mask
During one of their initial scuffles soon after Dio's arrival at Joestar Estate, a few droplets of blood splattered onto an ancient mesoamerican stone mask Lord Joestar had acquired and left hanging from a wall in his vast mansion. When touched by blood, the mask extruded several bony hooks which, had anyone been wearing it, would have pierced his skull at several points. Only Dio and Jonathan witnessed the fact and while the former maintained it to be nothing more than an instrument of torture and death, the young Joestar began pursuing research in the fields of Archaeology and Ethnology to find the history behind the artifact. Dio reasoned that if he made Jonathan wear the mask and then activated it in the manner previously described, his ensuing death could have been written off as a research accident due to his known interest in the artifact.

However, to be assured of the lethal effect of the mask, Dio experiments with it on a drunken beggar he finds in the dilapidated London boroughs he frequents to replenish his stash of poison. To his horror, the exposure to the mask's bony hooks not only does not kill his test subject but instead rejuvenates and transforms him into a vampire. Dio is saved from the monster's attack when it is bathed in sunlight and dies. Returning home, still shaken from the recent events, Dio is surrounded by police constables summoned by Jonathan, who, in a daring investigation in Ogre Street, managed to befriend the honorable criminal Robert E. O. Speedwagon and obtained from him the address of Chinese merchant Wang Chan, who provided Dio with the poison. Cornered, Dio attempts to stab Jonathan but hits George instead, and dons the Stone Mask, and is then shot down by the policemen.

Youth with Dio
As George expires and tells Jonathan to forgive Dio, the latter comes back as a vampire and slaughters the policemen. A tense fight between Jonathan and Dio ensues. Jonathan, attempting to find a way to kill the seemingly invulnerable creature, resorts to burning down his whole mansion and trap Dio inside. With great difficulties, Jonathan manages to skewer the Vampire into the Statue of the Goddess of Love and escapes.

The Birth of DIO
After the battle, Jonathan is hospitalized and rekindles his relationship with Erina Pendleton. Meanwhile, Wang Chan tries to steal the Stone Mask, but Dio, who had survived, stops him.

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.

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.