#JOJO BIZARRE ADVENTURE JONATHAN SERIES#
Because Araki wanted the series to move on with new characters in the Joestar family, Jonathan was specifically written as "the first Joestar" that would function as a symbol of purity and dignity, and not as a unique character. Jonathan was designed to be a symbol for the story and setting, something Araki would continue doing with later protagonists in the series. Araki also made use of black and white in his art to further contrast the two. Jonathan and Dio, the protagonist and antagonist, were created with the duality of light and shadow in mind, with the intention to have them contrast against each other: Dio was depicted as an embodiment of evil, and Jonathan as "fundamentally virtuous" and just. While calling it a gamble, he called this passing of the torch a positive that enables the extreme negative of killing the first protagonist. Despite following the rule of the ever-progressing hero, Araki decided to bend the rule and have Jonathan die to save his wife and child: he acknowledged that dying is as far negative as a hero can go, and called it unthinkable to do such a thing in a shōnen manga, but said that since he wanted to pass down the Joestar family's lineage, he needed Jonathan to die, and for his blood and spirit to be passed to Joseph, the protagonist of Battle Tendency, the second part in the series. Araki implemented a similar growth curve for Dio, although with him rising towards evil. Manga author Hirohiko Araki noted that due to the weekly format of the series, Jonathan's initial regression when Dio turns Jonathan's happy life into hardships meant that Jonathan's growth remained in the negative for a few weeks after the series' premiere, leading to a negative feeling that Jonathan always loses. Hirohiko Araki had issues with writing Jonathan due to poor popularity. Jonathan embarks on a journey, meets new allies and masters the technique of Hamon (波紋, "Ripple") to stop Dio, who has made world domination his new goal. When Dio's attempts are thwarted by JoJo, he transforms himself into a vampire with the use of an ancient Stone Mask and destroys the Joestar estate.
In late 19th-century England, the young son of a wealthy landowner, Jonathan Joestar, meets his new adopted brother Dio Brando, who loathes him and plans to usurp him as heir to the Joestar family. Jonathan is the main protagonist of the series' first story arc, Phantom Blood. Jonathan Joestar ( Japanese: ジョナサン・ジョースター, Hepburn: Jonasan Jōsutā) is a fictional character in the Japanese manga series JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood #44, "Fire and Ice, Jonathan and Dio, Part 6" (October 26, 1987) JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood #1, "Dio the Invader" (January 1, 1987) Jonathan Joestar, as he appears in Phantom Blood, drawn by Hirohiko Araki.