- Eyes: Gold
- Hair: Blond
- Outfits:
Originally a man of low birth but peerless ambition, Dio is a cunning villain of little conscience and an insatiable hunger for power. After becoming a vampire, Dio sets out to conquer the world with an army of zombies at his command, bringing a lifelong feud between himself and his brother by adoption, Jonathan Joestar, to a head. He later becomes a Stand user wielding the all-powerful The World, and is responsible for setting many of the series's major events in motion. His legacy and influence persists throughout the first six parts of JoJo, with many characters either being related to him or inspired by his charisma and malice.
Originally a man of low birth but peerless ambition, DIO is a cunning villain of little conscience and an insatiable hunger for power. After becoming a vampire and later a Stand user wielding the all-powerful The World, DIO gathers many minions around him and sets many of the series's major events in motion. His legacy and influence persists throughout the first six parts of JoJo, with many characters either being related to him or inspired by his charisma and malice.
He is also the main protagonist of the light novel OVER HEAVEN, the main antagonist of JORGE JOESTAR, and a postmortem primary antagonist in the spin-off manga Crazy Diamond's Demonic Heartbreak.
When he first arrives at the Joestar Mansion as a young child, Dio wears a typical formal boy's attire from that era; a blue coat, white dress shirt, a tie, suspenders, breeches, and a pair of striped socks. He has blond hair and three moles on the lobe of his left ear. When boxing, he wears a shirt with folded sleeves, overalls, and boxing gloves.
Aside from replacing his coat with a vest, as an adult, Dio's attire hasn't changed much. However, his overall physique and height increase significantly. During the events where Jonathan sets out to find the antidote for his father's illness, Dio dons a top hat and a new, flamboyant-looking cloak that has feathers jutting out of the shoulders. However, Dio undergoes drastic physical changes upon using the Stone Mask to transform himself into a vampire. His formerly clean hair becomes messy and unkempt, his eyes become sharper and adopt a darker outline, and he develops fangs. His clothing has changed quite a bit as well after his first battle with Jonathan; most noticeable is the scarf around his neck. He wears an ornate dual-colored shirt and matching breeches, a large pair of boots, vambraces, and two suspenders attached to a band around his waist.
In an interview, Araki describes how the movie Blade Runner had influenced his work back when it premiered. He mentions Dio's blond hair and muscular build in particular as being influenced by the Blade Runner character, Roy Batty.[13]
A formal uniform made up of a dress shirt, suspenders, breeches, striped socks, and shoes. This outfit is seen at the start of Phantom Blood when Dio and his father interact on the latter's deathbed. In the anime this is Dio's main attire as a child, but without the coat and tie.
Trenchcoat and scarf worn over his previous clothing, Dio wears this while visiting his father's grave.
Same outfit as before but without a coat and wearing boxing gloves for a ring match with Jonathan.
Similar to his first outfit but without suspenders. The left shoulder gets ripped after kissing Erina.
A dark coat with feathers on shoulders. Initially seen with a hat. After becoming a vampire he loses the top portion of his suit making him expose his chest.
At the start of Part 3, DIO doesn't have a visible face as an effect of the shadowy darkness of his mansion. He has shoulder-length blond hair and is often topless, exposing Jonathan's muscular body (on which his head is attached in place). Due to prolonged attachment, Jonathan's body has become pale, so pale that it seems transparent.[14] He wears pants with suspenders, boots, shiny cuffs on both wrists, and heart-shaped knee guards. This form of DIO is commonly referred to as Shadow DIO (影DIO) or Evil Incarnate DIO (邪悪の化身ディオ, Ja'aku no Keshin DIO), the names having originated from its appearances in JoJo's Venture and Heritage for the Future respectively.
Due to his nature as a vampire, DIO is often stated to be a very attractive being, described by Avdol as exuding a bewitching sensuality, speaking with a deeply soothing voice and possessing a piercing gaze.[15] Many of his subordinates describe him as handsome,[16] beautiful[17] or awe inspiring in some fashion. Attacking his visage even severely enrages Vanilla Ice, one of his most loyal underlings.[18] Supernatural charisma helped DIO build his army and despite the fear that his mere presence instills, many of the people who encounter him feel a bizarre sense of calm from it.
Once revealed, DIO dons a jacket with a tight tank-top underneath, as well as chaps with an exposed crotch. His face is now in full-view, and on his head is a heart-adorned circlet to match his knee guards. This is his form during the beginning of the DIO's World story arc. In most depictions of him, DIO's outfit is tinted orange or yellow. He also wears a necklace covering his neck scar and heart motifs above his feet and on his pant legs, but he quickly stopped sporting them after his first stairway confrontation with Polnareff. When pursuing the Joestar group, DIO donned a cloak that he ended up discarding during his confrontation with Kakyoin.
After draining Joseph Joestar's blood, DIO's appearance changes again, but remains similar to his revealed form, minus the jacket and the heart-shaped headband that was destroyed by Star Platinum's attacks. He now sports a deranged and homicidal look and mannerisms, having lost his suave touch. His hair is disheveled and mostly oriented upwards, while his lips are darker and seem adorned with lipstick. This is his main form during the final part of the DIO's World story arc, often called High DIO (ハイDIO) or High-Voltage DIO[19] in Japanese media.
Outfit DIO wore throughout the majority of Stardust Crusaders. Pants with suspenders, boots, shiny cuffs on both wrists, and heart-shaped knee guards. Exposed top and face covered in darkness except in episode 44.
Outfit primarily during the DIO's World story arc. Jacket with a tight tank-top underneath, as well as chaps with an exposed crotch. After leaving his mansion is seen with a cape up to his fight with Kakyoin.
Dio is consistently manipulative and violently domineering, and has repeatedly shown a lack of conscience and empathy. He is described by Hirohiko Araki as essentially being a parasite, concealing his true nature to infiltrate the Joestar family, and taking everything he can while plotting a takeover.[8]
Dio's most recognizable characteristics are his boundless ambition and his love of power. Abused by his father and having lived in the most miserable living conditions,[20] Dio sets for himself the goal of becoming the richest, then the most powerful being on Earth. To do so, Dio uses anything or anyone that he can to further his goals, disregarding any kind of morality that would restrain the range of actions available to him. Using either manipulation, seduction, or plain violence, Dio constantly seeks to become more and more powerful. Dio enjoys being in a position of power[12][21] and has repeatedly stated how great he felt being in a dominating position. On the contrary, Dio never considers anyone to be able to stand up to him or equal him in power and becomes enraged and deeply disturbed at the thought.
Throughout his life, Dio surrounds himself with witless cronies and minions, who are attracted by his natural charisma. He prefers attracting those he deems as particularly evil, claiming that evil people aren't bound by rules such as honor[22] and thus are stronger mentally. This belief culminates in including the absorption of 36 souls of sinners, or, as he claims, particularly strong souls, to unlock a power greater than that of his Stand, The World.
Naturally, Dio is incredibly selfish, focused solely on his own interests—at best ignoring those of others, and at worst, trampling them underfoot. Due to his composed nature, Dio can and will manipulate and take what he can from all sorts of people, using any method, as long as the person suits his present desires or he is interested in their capabilities. Dio is the type who is incapable of loving another person wholeheartedly.[23] The only people he can be said to have held some type of affection for are Jonathan Joestar and Enrico Pucci, as Dio comes to recognize Jonathan's worth as equal to his own and deems Pucci as a friend. Still, Dio steals the former's body, and his friendship with the latter is proven nonetheless beneficial to a grander plan to further himself.
When interacting with someone, Dio will constantly try to manipulate them and sway them into his side, using a veneer of gentleness and his natural charm to make people admire and like him. For instance, he acts as the model son and popular charismatic friend to Jonathan's father and entourage to better isolate him, and as a vampire, his charisma only increases as he appears as a charming mysterious individual. However, his natural arrogance leads him to openly insult and belittle his enemies, notably disparaging their insignificant strength before his vampiric or Stand powers. He is the type who is comfortable being with a man or woman, but will do anything to get what he wants and would "absolutely never pour 100% of his love into a specific person."[23]
Dio approaches obstacles and problems in several ways, depending on the situation and his mood. Before his vampiric transformation, Dio is careful and methodical in trying to break Jonathan's spirit, and slowly poisons George for a sizeable time, only being thwarted due to unlucky twists of fate. As a vampire, Dio at first lets his arrogance get the better of him and takes a laissez-faire approach, only sending subordinates to kill Jonathan's party while he rests and recovers. However, his defeat by Jonathan teaches him to be wary of the Joestar family in its entirety, and so he later ambushes Jonathan and company. During the events of Stardust Crusaders, he sends his minions to delay the Joestars as much as possible to recover strength. In the final battle with Jotaro, his wariness, tactical acumen, and arrogance clash as DIO alternates between meticulous approaches and overconfident attacks.
In Phantom Blood, Dio is ambitious, selfish, arrogant, callous, and megalomaniacal, seemingly able to do anything to achieve his aims.
His natural ruthlessness is exposed very early when plans to exploit the Joestar family despite them being kind enough to adopt him.[24] To better position himself to replace Jonathan Joestar and seize the Joestar family fortune, Dio resorts to the most underhanded tactics to break him mentally. These methods include humiliating Jonathan in public sport fighting, ostracizing him from his friends,[12] and finally stealing Erina Pendleton's first kiss to drive a wedge in their budding relationship.[25] When he is eventually foiled, Dio opts to slowly poison George Joestar I and kill Jonathan with the Stone Mask to make both deaths seem natural and accidental.[20] Dio shows a remarkable determination to reach his goal, never losing his drive despite the numerous defeats he suffers throughout Phantom Blood and always trying to find a way to get back at Jonathan for them.
Dio's lack of empathy is also apparent, as despite living for years with the kind Joestars, he never thinks of them as anything more than obstacles, and is hinted to utterly resent the upper class he frequents. As a human, Dio maintains a facade of a charming and agreeable person to everyone aside from Jonathan, and yet never becomes close with anyone. At the end of the part, the only person Dio appreciates is Jonathan Joestar himself, begrudgingly acknowledging his valor as his archenemy,[26] attempting to "grant" him a painless death, and even being shocked at his death.[27] Overjoyed to have changed into a powerful vampire, Dio spends his later battles in the part taunting various humans about their weaknesses and belittling them in favor of the apex predator vampires. Dio also sadistically changes a mother into a zombie just to watch her devour her baby. When in a position of strength, he also tends to torment them further, such as sneakily sticking his thumb into Jonathan's eye during a punch.[12]
Dio shows a lack of restraint in his violence, and is prone to murderous outbursts even as far as his childhood, notably trying to stab Jonathan when he beats him up, and violently slapping Erina.[21] He is also incredibly cruel to Jonathan's dog, Danny, going so far as kicking him on their first meeting.[24] When Dio is defeated by Jonathan, Dio secretly has Danny incinerated. He is shown to be utterly enraged when someone stands up to him, which is the cause of his outbursts. He acknowledges that his anger was a weakness,[28] but remains unable to truly control himself throughout his life.
Dio's personality may be explained by his poor childhood and the abusive relationship he shared with his father, Dario Brando. Speedwagon, however, rejects this as the cause of Dio's personality, claiming that Dio was simply born this way and that his poverty has nothing to do with it. True to that, Dio, already an immoral person, openly relinquishes his humanity in favor of becoming a vampire upon being cornered by the police.[29] He trades his underhanded scheming persona for a more arrogant and hedonistic personality that is dismissive of humanity and revels in evil. Nonetheless, Dio respects determination and sees Jonathan's determination as equal to his own, earning him the dubious honor of serving as Dio's new host after being reduced to a head.[26]
Dio has expressed hatred for dogs, considering them vermin.[12]
Reappearing in Stardust Crusaders, DIO shows little change since his burial at the bottom of the ocean for one hundred years, as he remains a remorseless and murderous megalomaniac. Nonetheless, he has matured a little by recognizing valor in others, and is generally more calm and level-headed.
DIO does not appear frequently in Stardust Crusaders until the end. However, he is seen discussing various philosophies with Stand users he wishes to recruit and his already-loyal followers, particularly Enya the Hag, who serves as his main adviser. It seems equally likely that DIO does this to manipulate and persuade them as he believes what he says, but he nonetheless acknowledges the power and valor simple humans can have, notably respecting one's willingness to die for his goal. Wishing to quickly dispose of the Joestars, he listens to Enya and quietly rests in his mansion to gain more strength. Furthermore, DIO ceases to underestimate his opponents, being particularly careful around the Joestar bloodline. He nonetheless sneers at other Stand users' efforts to fight him, most notably Kakyoin's, whose discovery ended up being crucial in his defeat.
Perhaps due to knowing that his Stand The World is far above anyone's reach, DIO is more tolerant of people resisting him and does not react to Polnareff's taunts and insults. He even seems to appreciate Hol Horse's insubordination, seeing it as confirmation of the mercenary's strength. However, DIO is still callous about human life and will kill anyone who fails him, even Enya, his closest adviser. The usually confident and cunning gambler Daniel D'Arby is driven to madness under the pressure of possibly revealing DIO's Stand ability to Jotaro.
True to his personality, DIO enjoys the fact that he wields the most powerful Stand in his organization, being unconcerned by the heroes' seemingly meaningless effort to discover his power. When Jotaro reveals himself to be able to move within the stopped time, DIO is initially very distraught but recomposes himself quickly, devising other plans to get rid of Jotaro by exploiting his advantage. The full scale of his insanity is visible when overjoyed to have completely fused with Jonathan's body and being at full power, DIO declares that he is experiencing "the greatest high" and delightfully drills his index finger into his skull.
DIO’s final speech exposes that he is still willing to use any method to win and despises any concept of honor or revenge, ultimately using a cheap trick to blind Jotaro momentarily. However, this is all for naught, as DIO ultimately meets his end at Jotaro's hand.
In flashbacks to events before his death, DIO demonstrates a burgeoning ability to form genuine relationships in numerous conversations with Enrico Pucci. Intrigued by Pucci, who lets him be despite him suspiciously hiding in a church, DIO heals his crooked foot and gives him the head of an Arrow, which would later awaken his own Stand, Whitesnake. During these flashbacks, DIO can open up with him on multiple subjects, confiding to Pucci that the priest's company could bring him peace. He even dares Pucci to steal his Stand, and upon the latter's refusal, admits that he fears the thought of Pucci betraying him.
It is debatable how good a friend DIO truly is, considering Pucci's good-willed nature during his youth gives way to a willingness to adopt DIO's skewed morals. DIO's friendship with Pucci also serves him by furthering his ambitions of achieving "heaven," as described in his diary, which calls into question how sincere it was.
OVER HEAVEN offers an interpretation of Dio Brando's character by mixing elements present in the original material and plot points introduced by the light novel, which serves as the real-life interpretation of his diary.
In the novel, DIO has seemingly matured past his megalomania and, due to his mother's kindness and influence on him during his younger years, developed an extreme fixation on the concept of "heaven"—an idea he revisits when he becomes embroiled in the world of Stands. After discovering the power human souls possess, as well as the possibility that these souls can be harnessed and controlled for one's benefit, DIO devises a plan to use Stand power and human souls to bring about his idea of heaven.
Throughout the events of Stardust Crusaders, DIO holds meetings with Enrico Pucci while devising his plan to go to heaven. Ultimately, he concludes that to achieve true victory and witness heaven, DIO must guide Pucci to heaven, not the other way around. Between these musings and his dealings with his servants are all sorts of tangents, including thoughts of his past life as a human and later on a vampire, the intricacies of the Stone Mask, the generational feud between him and the Joestar family, the life his parents had in the slums of London, and various philosophical matters.
For what it's worth, DIO appears to genuinely care about Enrico Pucci, and even more so about his plan to go to heaven. As DIO states outright, he is willing to sacrifice his organization, his vampiric abilities, his Stand, everything—to achieve his goal of creating heaven on earth.
DIO is one of the most powerful characters in the series. As a human, he is already brilliant, but over time he manages to acquire further power, eventually becoming both a vampire and a Stand user.
DIO's Stand is The World, a close-ranged Stand with comparable if not superior strength and speed to Jotaro Kujo's Star Platinum.
About a year after gaining his Stand, DIO discovered its signature ability of stopping time. At first, he could only do this for a very short amount of time, but by the end of Part 3, he is able to stop time for a maximum of 9 seconds.[30] It is implied that this duration would further increase if not for DIO's death. When stopping time, DIO gives the impression that he is teleporting or otherwise moving at impossible speeds.
The ability is best known for DIO's activation and cancellation phrases, "The World! Time, stop!" (
Having had ample time to rest and train with The World, DIO is shown to have been thorough in exploring his Stand's abilities; it was during an experimental session during which DIO sought to test the limit of The World's speed and power that he discovered its time-stop ability.
To give himself an advantage, DIO keeps The World's ability a closely-guarded secret, only using it at key moments to psych out an opponent and perform incomprehensible sneak attacks. He only entrusts his Stand's secret to a few confidants such as Enya the Hag, who he will not hesitate to eliminate as soon as a remote chance of informing his enemies of his power appears. However, as soon as the Joestar group understands his ability, DIO drops his former secrecy and shows a great degree of confidence in the supremacy of his power, ultimately not caring about his secret due to his conviction that no one can overcome it. Thus, he begins to liberally stop time against Jotaro. Thanks to the free time-frame of action granted by The World, DIO is able to instantly reposition himself to avoid attacks or set himself up to attack, kill enemies instantly, or even displace his opponents to toy with them.
DIO demonstrates a high degree of control over The World, using it to battle Jotaro's Star Platinum to a stand-off, but showing superior technique in hand to hand combat by using low kicks and feints to outmatch Star Platinum. However, his vampiric constitution allows DIO to disregard any of The World's defensive uses, as he can easily regenerate any wounds he sustains by sucking the blood of others.
Unlike every other enemy Stand user in Stardust Crusaders, DIO actively seeks to improve his Stand's capabilities. He notably awaits the Joestar group's arrival, eager to suck the blood of a Joestar and fully synchronize with Jonathan's body to bolster his powers further. Araki himself has stated that DIO has the potential to stop time indefinitely.
Moreover, DIO searches for a way to unlock a power even more powerful than The World, using esoteric knowledge to divine a plan to create another, even mightier Stand.
When DIO awakens The World, Jonathan's body also awakens a Hermit Purple-like Stand power with semi-precognitive abilities.[32] Similar to Hermit Purple, it can produce psychic photographs by striking a camera or a crystal ball, which DIO uses to track the Joestars and their friends' current location to send Stand users after them. DIO is even able to tell when Joseph uses Hermit Purple to take a psychic photograph of him, and instinctively knows that his acquisition of a Stand has also awakened Stand abilities in Jonathan's descendants.
In the light novel OVER HEAVEN, this Stand shares the same name as Hermit Purple and is called "Hermit Purple #2." In JORGE JOESTAR, this Stand is instead named "The Passion". It takes the form of a crown of thorns and also has the ability to watch the futures of anyone related to Jonathan by blood.
By taking over Jonathan Joestar's body, DIO shares a spiritual connection to the Joestar Family and bears the Star Birthmark. After DIO's reemergence, the spiritual power inside the Joestars awakens and causes the living descendants to develop Stand powers. This also means that DIO is able to sense their presence and vice versa, though according to Joseph, DIO can only sense their presence and isn't able to pinpoint their location or tell them apart.[33]
Becoming a vampire as a young adult, Dio Brando displays a broad range of fantastic, supernatural abilities, explained as expressions of the full, unbound potential of the human body. However, he is consequently severely restricted by his vulnerability to sunlight and the Ripple.
As part of its immortality, the body of a vampire forfeits natural decay, essentially preventing the host from dying of old age. Those transformed at a younger age will naturally preserve their looks, while those who are older will rejuvenate their bodies and take on the appearance of a young adult.[34] This characteristic allows DIO to retain his youth and survive at the bottom of the ocean for a century. Even over 100 years after his birth, DIO continues to appear as though he is in his 20s.
Dio appears to have senses beyond human levels, as demonstrated when he places his head on the ground to hear Jotaro's heartbeat from a few meters away.[37]
All vampires, including DIO, consume the blood of living creatures to sustain themselves. Unlike traditional vampires, they suck their victims' blood with their hands, digging the fingers directly inside the target to suck their blood. Blood consumption will strengthen a vampire and heal them if they were weakened before. In a weakened state, a vampire will instinctively crave blood and may attack any victim to regenerate.
Dio is able to hypnotize living people into obeying his commands, visually represented by beams appearing from his eyes. The effect is shown to wear off if the hypnotized person is struck with Ripple energy. Dio uses this ability to convince Jack the Ripper to become his servant, and later to lure Jonathan's group into a graveyard trap by having Poco steal their luggage.[22][38] Later in his life, DIO develops a supernatural charisma that, when combined with buds made of his own flesh, renders his hypnosis abilities all but redundant.
By vaporizing the moisture in his body, Dio can absorb heat from any living being he comes into physical contact with, freezing them and stifling their blood flow.[39] This ability can be circumvented if Ripple energy is channeled through items or fire.
In the light novel OVER HEAVEN, DIO claims that he is unable to use the technique due to the nature of Jonathan's body, and that he considers it a relic of the past regardless.[40]
Dio destroying Dire's frozen body
Having extensive knowledge on the anatomies of organic beings, Dio can graft the body parts of different beings together. Initially, he uses this ability to create hybrid animal chimeras that he keeps as pets, as well as deformed zombies such as Doobie, Page, Jones, Plant, and Bornnam. Dio later utilizes this power to graft his own head onto Jonathan's body.
Dio is able to pressurize bodily liquid in his eyeballs and then create small openings in his pupils, unleashing two fluid jets with enough power to slice through stone. This ability is later referred to by Straizo as "Space Ripper Stingy Eyes."[41] Dio can also aim this attack to some degree, as he targets Jonathan's brain when he uses it in his final confrontation against the Ripple user.
It is unknown if DIO is able to use Space Ripper Stingy Eyes after taking over Jonathan's body, as he never uses it in Stardust Crusaders. However, he does utilize the ability in JoJo's Venture and the drama CD adaptation of Stardust Crusaders.
DIO is able to manipulate his hair to create parasites, which he can then insert into a human's head, to control even those that he cannot otherwise manipulate. Usually inserted beneath the victim's hair, these flesh buds pierce through the skull into part of the brain, making the victim especially compliant to DIO's charisma. As explained by Joseph, the parasite will then begin to gradually consume the victim's brain.
If anyone besides the victim attempts to remove the bud, it sprouts tentacles in an attempt to invade the intruder's brain as well.[42] The spore's tentacles can also be activated directly to kill its host by any organism capable of manipulating life at a cellular level. The spores come with an additional side effect if DIO himself ever dies: according to Keicho Nijimura, DIO's cells mutate his father into an unkillable animalistic form upon DIO's death.
The parasite does have weaknesses - while the parasite cannot be removed by a normal human, as any inaccuracy can cause irreparable damage to the victim's brain, it can be removed with extreme precision such as that of Star Platinum,[43] though the person operating needs to be wary of the bud's tentacles. Once it is removed, since the bud is made of vampiric cells, it can then safely be disintegrated by either a Ripple user[44] or the sun's light.[45]
In the light novel OVER HEAVEN, it is stated that flesh buds limit the power of their host's Stand.[46]
Dio possesses the ability to heal other people's wounds, as demonstrated when he completely cures Pucci's twisted foot by simply touching it.[47] The process is shown to be quick and painless, as Pucci does not notice the result until after the process is complete.
Dio is naturally intelligent, displaying cunning and perceptiveness as well as imagination repeatedly.
As a child and teenager, Dio Brando manages to achieve academic excellence with ease, apparently planning to graduate from university as a top law student.
Dio is otherwise a cunning villain and proficient tactician in combat. Dio almost manages to get away with two murders, biding his time in order to have a perfect alibi and only being discovered by accident. Within six years after his resurfacing from the bottom of the ocean, DIO builds a powerful criminal empire spanning over several continents that brings him many riches. In a fight, Dio is particularly cunning and perceptive, his ruthlessness allowing him to exploit dishonorable and downright inhuman tactics to get ahead, such as leading his enemies into a trap, using hapless civilians as projectiles and sources of energy, or using plain sneak attacks. Dio also has a habit of analyzing his opponents and quickly determining counters to their strengths, such as freezing blood in order to stop the flow of the Ripple or throwing multiple knives to force Jotaro to use up his movement in stopped time.
Naturally ambitious, Dio constantly seeks to improve himself and meticulously studies his abilities to make the most of them. As such, he develops a freezing power akin to the Pillar Men's Modes soon after becoming a vampire, and later devises a feasible plan to fuse several souls with his own Stand in order to create the ultimate Stand. Dio also experiments with fusing two organisms with his vampiric abilities, later using that knowledge to steal Jonathan's body.
Though he doesn't show it often, Dio is a natural philosopher, arguing about the human condition with multiple people.
Dio was created as an extension of B.T., the protagonist in Cool Shock B.T., though Dio is much more evil.[52] When writing Dio, Araki was inspired by wondering about the motivations of serial killers and also because FBI psychological profiling was a popular topic during that time.[1]
Hirohiko Araki personally wanted to draw Dio the most and developed his character design first, with Jonathan created as the character that would counter him. Dio's visual design and family background were also created to contrast with Jonathan. Since Jonathan has black hair, Dio was made to have blond hair. Moreover, since Jonathan was the son of a nobleman, Araki made Dio be raised in a poor, miserable family.[8] He wanted to depict Dio as someone who always surpasses Jonathan. The first thing he thought of was to make him embody the "attractiveness of evil", as it was a shonen manga tradition to have attractive villains. He took inspiration from foreign singers to design how Dio looked like, making him a "beautiful, attractive young man."[8]
Dio's name was chosen to contrast with "JoJo", going for letters that didn't make a rounded sound and using many voiced consonants. The name carries the nuance of "god" from Italian, but also felt familiar to Araki because of Ronnie James Dio.[8] In Phantom Blood, Dio's name is written normally in Japanese. From Stardust Crusaders onward (and occasionally in Phantom Blood[26][53]), he abandons his last name and his first name is spelled in English as "DIO" (
While Phantom Blood was being serialized, Araki hadn't actually prepared a weakness for Dio and had difficulty coming up with a way for him to be defeated.[1]
Araki pondered in deciding what would be the scariest factor Dio would have, and decided that "evil from the past" coming to get the present descendant would be the most frightening thing.[52] When DIO returned in Stardust Crusaders, Araki was eager to finally be able to draw him again. However, his editor, Ryosuke Kabashima, advised against it. He warned Araki that if he were to reveal DIO too soon, then readers would solely focus on the final boss, rather than the enemies in front of them. Consequently, Araki chose to have DIO's face remain in shadow until the Joestar Group reached Egypt, where the final showdown takes place.[54] Araki stated that if he were to depict DIO in the modern era, he would likely delve deeper into what made him so evil, including more of his upbringing and family relationships.[55]
Takehito Koyasu is the voice actor for Dio Brando in various media. He's also voiced Diego Brando (as well as Parallel World Diego) and Heaven-Attained DIO in All-Star Battle and Eyes of Heaven.
When reading the Phantom Blood manga, Koyasu reads it from Dio's point of view instead of Jonathan's. He mentions that he barely read the script and would read the manga instead. He also mentions that recording the lines for Episode 3 felt a bit unusual for him, as he experienced an illusion which he never felt in his 26 years of voicing. He actually felt as if the studio was engulfed in flames and that he had become Dio fighting Kazuyuki Okitsu who had become Jonathan. He felt a rush of adrenaline during these scenes, mentioning that he had a runner's high.[56]
Language | Name | Usage
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JoJo's Bizarre Adventure | |
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Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan | |
Other Araki Works | |
Light Novels & Misc |
Leadership | |
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Zombies and Other Undead | |
Stand Users | |
Egypt 9 Glory God Users | |
Agents of Pucci | |
Non-Canon Agents |
Supernatural Beings | |
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Vampires | |
Zombies and other Undead | |
Pillar Men | |
Ghosts | |
Rock Organisms (Rock Humans) | |
Miscellaneous |
Phantom Blood Characters | |
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Main Characters | |
Minor Characters | |
Groups |
Stone Ocean Characters | |
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Main Characters | |
Minor Characters | |
Groups |
Dio Brando (ディオ・ブランドー, Dio Burandō), known simply as DIO (
Originally a man of low birth but peerless ambition, Dio is a villain of little conscience, vast cunning, and an insatiable hunger for power. After becoming a vampire and later a Stand user, Dio has gathered around him many minions and is responsible for many major events of the series, from the death of Jonathan Joestar to the Joestar Family's sudden acquisition of Stand power, and his legacy persists throughout the series.
Dio is the father of Giorno Giovanna, the protagonist of Vento Aureo, as well as a handful of other illegitimate offspring.
1 Appearance |
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1.1 Phantom Blood |
1.1.1 Color Schemes |
1.2 Stardust Crusaders |
1.2.1 Color Schemes |
2 Chapters / Episodes |
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3 References |
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4 Site Navigation |
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When he first arrives at the Joestar Estate, Dio is seen wearing typical formal boy's attire from that era; a blue coat, white dress shirt, a tie, suspenders, breeches, and a pair of striped socks. He has blond hair and a handsome face. He also has 3 moles on the lobule of his left ear.
Aside from replacing his coat with a vest, Dio's attire hasn't had much change. However, his overall physique and height have increased significantly. During the events where Jonathan sets out to find the antidote for his father's illness, Dio dons a top hat and a new, flamboyant-looking cloak that has feathers jutting out of the shoulders.
Dio undergoes drastic physical changes upon using the Stone Mask to transform himself into a vampire. His formerly-clean hair becomes messy and unkempt, his eyes become sharper and adopt a darker outline, and he develops fangs. His clothing has changed quite a bit as well after his first battle with Jonathan; most noticeable is the scarf around his neck. He wears an ornate dual-colored shirt and matching breeches, a large pair of boots, vambraces, and two suspenders attached to a band around his waist.
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DIO does not have a visible face as an effect of the shadowy darkness of his mansion. He has shoulder-length blond hair and is topless, exposing Jonathan's muscular body (on which his head is sewn in place) He wears pants with suspenders, clogs, shiny cuffs on both wrists, and heart-shaped knee guards. In the game JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Heritage for the Future, his voice is also distorted (an effect created by the developers to add a sense of mystery). This form of DIO is also called "The Evil Incarnation DIO".
Incorporating his previous outfit, DIO's dons a jacket with a tight tank-top underneath, as well as chaps with an exposed crotch. His face is now in full-view, and on his head is a heart-shaped circlet to match his knee guards. This is his form during the beginning of the DIO's World story arc. In most depictions of him, DIO's outfit is tinted orange or yellow.
He also wears a necklace covering his neck scar and heart motifs above his feet and on his pant legs, but he quickly stopped sporting them after his first stairway confrontation with Polnareff.
When pursuing the Joestar group, DIO donned a cloak that he had discarded during his confrontation with Kakyoin.
DIO nears his physical peak after draining Joseph Joestar's blood. His appearance now is similar to his revealed form, minus the jacket and the heart-shaped headband that was destroyed by Star Platinum's attacks. He now sports a deranged and homicidal look and mannerisms, having lost his suave touch. His hair is now disheveled and mostly oriented upwards, while his lips are darker and seem adorned with lipstick. This is his mien during the latter half of the DIO's World story arc, often called his 'High' or 'Awakened' form.
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