Many manga and anime see their leads overcome obstacles not just with their strength, but with their wits. Death Note, Kaguya-sama: Love is War, and Dr. Stone, among others, were about working smarter instead of harder. But when a strip/show features some of the most bizarre situations and predicaments the medium can offer, its characters need to think creatively to get around them.
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure lives up to its title, pitting its players against flesh-melding rats, soul-swapping spirits, and curious villages where the lives and livelihoods of one’s loved ones rely on how well they know their etiquette. To get around these problems, and more, its characters had to prove their smarts as well as their strengths, and these familiar faces are some of the smartest characters in the series.
10
Rohan Kishibe
A Sensei at More than Just Manga
- Debut: Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable.
- Pros: Meticulous eye for detail, pays attention to the smallest details to form effective plans or figure out mysteries, and is good at thinking on the fly.
- Cons: Egotistical to a fault, and his hyper-focus can keep him from catching the bigger details.
If the Jojo anime adaptations started 10 years earlier, Rohan Kishibe would’ve fit in nicely with other edgy smart Alecs like Scrubs’ Dr Cox and House. Instead, he had to settle for gaining his own spin-off comic, which had its own novels and two different TV adaptations. That, and he managed to come back in Part 9: The Jojolands without a radical redesign. Not bad for someone who started off as a villain, where he used his stand, Heaven’s Door, to turn Koichi Hirose into a literal textbook for reference for his manga.
Still, his meticulous eye for detail helped the gang tighten the net on Yoshikage Kira, and Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan saw him outwit the master of the Millionaire Village, uncover the mystery of a cursed painting at the Louvre, and outpace the avatar of Hermes. Though like Jojo‘s villains, his ego often became his undoing, like when he goaded Josuke into a literal blind rage, which made him immune to his Stand’s ability. It wasn’t until after Josuke beat several shades out of him that he started being a (sort-of) good guy and got in on the hunt for Kira.
9
Giorno Giovanna
Making a Dream Come True
- Debut: Part 5: Vento Aureo.
- Pros: Knows botany and zoology well, is good at thinking on the spot, and turning situations to his advantage via his Stand, often via ruthless means.
- Cons: Often doesn’t think ahead, putting himself at risk.
It takes some brains to go from being a humble thief robbing tourists in between college lectures to becoming the head of an entire organized crime network. That, or a lot of self-confidence. Giorno Giovanna managed to have both as he made it his destiny to become a ‘gang star’ and shut down Passione’s drug smuggling business from within.
His ability to turn inorganic matter into organic matter and back shows he has a wide knowledge of botany, zoology, etc., as he used these powers to not only outwit Baby Face, but kill its user, Melone. Though his best skill is being able to think fast, as he figured out how to inoculate himself against Fugo’s Purple Haze on the go, how to heal himself and others in the Baby Face fight, and get the Stand arrow out of King Crimson’s grasp.
8
Kars
The Oldest and Smartest Pillar Man
- Debut: Part 2: Battle Tendency.
- Pros: Has a keen scientific mind, can learn whole languages in minutes, tricked Lisa Lisa and the Nazis into getting what he wanted.
- Cons: Wasn’t too good at thinking outside the box, became a victim of his own ego, and his intelligence was limited to natural science.
Each member of the Pillar Men was technically a super-genius, given they could learn an entire language just from hearing a few words, and could reduce whole parties of Nazis to fleshy wastes through the power of body horror. But the smartest of the bunch was Kars, whose ambitions led him to find a way to overcome their one weakness: sunlight. When the other members of his race disagreed, he killed them, save for a few allies who believed in his cause.
From then on, he took a scientific approach to the problem of overcoming the sun, using his Stone Masks to experiment on humans until he figured out the right method. He just needed the Red Stone of Aja to give them the right force to affect Pillar Men, too. By tricking Lisa Lisa to get the stone, and the Nazis to provide the burst of light, he succeeded and became the Ultimate Lifeform. Shame there was a lowly human around to use his hubris against him.
7
Robert E.O Speedwagon
Working Smarter Instead of Harder
- Debut: Part 1: Phantom Blood.
- Pros: Great judge of character, and his keen business sense helped him get rich and stay rich.
- Cons: Easily scared when things go wrong.
Giorno’s rise through the criminal ranks in Part 5 was rapid, though it’s arguably not even the best rags-to-riches tale in the series. Robert E.O Speedwagon went from being a Peaky Blinders-esque hoodlum from London’s Ogre Street, to being an oil magnate and head of a vast medical and conversation organization. One doesn’t manage to achieve that without having some wits about them.
Still, that would just be an intriguing background detail for one of the more colorful characters from Part 1, if it didn’t have far-reaching consequences. By striking black gold in the US and investing his funds wisely, his Speedwagon Foundation would provide life-saving aid and intel for the Joestar Family descendants right up to Part 6: Stone Ocean. Even after his time was up, he still found a way to be the Joestar’s best ally.
6
Jotaro Kujo
Sharp as a Tack and Tough as Nails
- Debut: Part 3: Stardust Crusaders.
- Pros: Has quick wits that have outsmarted many of his foes, and isn’t afraid to think outside the box (e.g., throwing Iggy at N’Doul), acted as a good mentor to Josuke and co. in Part 4, has a Ph.D. in oceanography.
- Cons: Not particularly emotionally intelligent, as his distant, moody persona made his familial relations difficult, and left him open to manipulation by later villains like Pucci.
It seems odd to put Jotaro Kujo above the meteoric rises of Giorno and Speedwagon, or an uber-genius like Kars. But he is canonically the only Jojo to have a Ph.D., and has wits as quick as his stand, Star Platinum. They may be too quick, too, as he’s been able to pull all sorts of tricks out of nowhere, like developing Starfinger to dispatch Dark Blue Moon, or developing his own time-stopping powers when he figured his stand was the same ‘type’ as Dio’s.
Still, his smarts paired well with his nerves of steel, as he defeated Daniel J. D’Arby by calling his bluff, and tricked Enya the Hag into revealing herself with nothing but a false signature. He informed his ‘uncle’ Josuke about Stands, helped take down Kira, and prepared Jolyne for life in prison with a pendant hiding a tracker, and an arrow chunk to let her develop her own Stand. As a father and a person, he’s rough around the edges, but his heart and mind are ultimately in the right place.
5
Enrico Pucci
Succeeding Where Dio Failed
- Debut: Part 6: Stone Ocean.
- Pros: Manipulated the Kujos into getting what he wanted, and kept them and their friends at bay with a host of Stand users. Actually succeeded in their goals.
- Cons: Was easily rattled when things didn’t go his way perfectly, underrated his rivals, and was only saved by luck when cornered by Weather Report.
It’s only fair that the one Jojo villain to technically succeed gets a spot on this list. Enrico Pucci, the priest who went from following God to worshiping Dio, managed to stay one step ahead of his enemies. He successfully framed Jolyne for a crime she didn’t commit, which drew out her father, Jotaro Kujo, and set him up in the right spot for his Stand, Whitesnake, to rob him of his memories by turning them into a disc.
From that disc, he was able to discover Dio’s plans to achieve godhood and, convoluted as they were, follow them to a tee. Even after Jolyne and the gang broke out of prison and chased him down, his manipulations, strategy, and luck always put him out of their reach. Still, even the smartest people can be tricked, and it only took one trick for his house of cards to fall apart.
4
Funny Valentine
Funny by Name, Not-So-Funny By Nature
- Debut: Part 7: Steel Ball Run.
- Pros: Well-read in history and politics, knows how to use those around him, good at using force and his words to sway people to his side.
- Cons: Ambitious to a fault, and can’t handle those who see through his schemes well.
With the Steel Ball Run anime in production, it’s hard to talk about what makes Funny Valentine a genius without spoiling the proceedings. Like Pucci, he had a wider master plan in mind to help him expand his role as US president, and funded the titular cross-country race across the USA to put it into motion. Though he had a more enigmatic personality than his peers.
Valentine doesn’t revel in being evil like many of Jojo‘s villains, because he doesn’t see himself that way. He’s just using his resources to make America better, and is a true believer in his cause. It’s almost enough to sway readers to his cause, as he does try to use reason to get his way as well as force. But they don’t hold up to scrutiny, as their ends don’t justify the means, nor their human cost.
3
Yoshikage Kira
Don’t Lend Him a Hand
- Debut: Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable.
- Pros: Book-smart and athletic, but sharp enough to stay under the radar, letting him avoid suspicion for decades. Knew his hometown well enough to discover where other Stand users were, and used them to take on a new disguise and life in the town.
- Cons: He didn’t account for more persistent figures like Josuke, or his alias’ son Hayato, and his ego snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.
Intelligence is hard to measure, as it takes more than IQ or school grades to show how smart one is. For example, Yoshikage Kira spent his youth as a middling student with average grades and average prizes. Anyone would think he was just another salaryman, with nothing to make him stand out over anyone else beyond his dress sense and Asian David Bowie looks.
But this was all a carefully planned veneer to make it easier for him to indulge in his darkest desires: killing women for their hands, and ‘dating’ them until they went off. Even when he got caught out the first time, he used his knowledge of Morioh and its denizens to gain a new disguise and resume his peaceful life. If he hadn’t let his ego get ahead of him, he might’ve succeeded in his goals. But instead, it led to his downfall.
2
Dio Brando
Intelligence and Ego in Equal Measure
- Debut: Part 1: Phantom Blood.
- Pros: Plotted his way into the Joestar family and turned others against Jonathan, built a wide fleet of followers through charm and manipulation, was well-read, and had a keen eye for detail.
- Cons: His ego led to his downfall, making him overlook flaws his foes could use to their advantage (e.g., not fully healing before fighting Jotaro).
Funny Valentine is more sly, and Pucci succeeded where his master failed, but Dio Brando is the series’ most iconic villain for a reason. He showed the same smarts and self-confidence as his son would, if not more so, by successfully scheming his way into the Joestar family in Part 1. If he hadn’t let his ego get in the way via his blunter, bullying approach towards Jonathan, he might’ve succeeded in taking their fortune for himself.
Though from the start, he had a devilish charm that helped him impose his will on others. As soon as he was brought back for Part 3: Stardust Crusaders, he formed a giant party of true believers who were willing to follow his credo until their dying days. Not everyone fell for it, as they required mind-controlling flesh buds. But the likes of Vanilla Ice, Pucci, Mariah, and Hol Horse fell in line because he knew how to turn them to his side, be it with the figurative carrot or the stick.
1
Joseph Joestar
Hiding a Sharp Mind in a Goofball Persona
- Debut: Part 2: Battle Tendency.
- Pros: Outsmarted the Pillar Men, tricked Nena, Mariah, and Terence D’Arby, figured out how Dio’s Stand works, saved Shizuka the invisible baby.
- Cons: Not all of his plans work. He was out-bluffed by Daniel J. D’Arby. Only acted as backup in foiling Terence D’Arby, and required a clue from Kakyoin in figuring out Dio’s secret.
Is Joseph Joestar the smartest character in the series? He doesn’t have the book smarts of his grandson, while Dio and other villains in Part 3, like Daniel J. D’Arby, managed to get one-up on him, and senility left him a shadow of his former self in Part 4. Yet he took on the Pillar Men, possibly the strongest Jojo foes in terms of raw strength, and took them down with his smarts.
His false net trap reduced Esidisi to his nervous system. Quick thinking and a dose of luck saw him shoot Kars into space via a volcanic eruption. Even when he got old, he was still able to outwit Nena’s Empress, Mariah, and Terence D’Arby. He also followed in Speedwagon’s footsteps and got rich via investing in New York real estate, so there’s more to him than colorful curses and goofy disguises.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure
- Release Date
-
October 6, 2012
- Showrunner
-
Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu
- Directors
-
Naokatsu Tsuda
-
Kazuyuki Okitsu
Jonathan Joestar
-
Tomokazu Sugita
Joseph Joestar
About The Author
