JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has proven to be one of the most eccentric and truly unique mangas of this generation, being one the best-selling in history and spawning a variety of animated and live-action adaptations of its multiple story arcs, along with of course a fighting game called JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: All Star Battle R. Filled with endless references to Western music and fashion icons, and some of the most unforgettable outfits and poses, the multi-part series also features life-or-death battles between Stands, which are psycho-spiritual manifestations with some incredibly creative and often deadly supernatural abilities. While some are iconic for being dangerously powerful and integral to the story, others proved to just be flat-out…well, bizarre. Here is our list of the 10 most bizarre stands in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure.
1. Baby Face
The first Stand on our list is one of the strangest ones found in JoJo’s fifth arc called Golden Wind (or “Vento Aureo” in Italian), which follows Giorno, Bucciarati and the rest of the gang tasked with escorting Trish, the daughter of Passione’s mafia boss, to safety on a remote island off the coast of Italy. Along the way they’re dictated to board a train to their destination, and while on there they encounter some truly obnoxious Stand users. Among them is Melone, who attempts to kidnap Trish using his Stand called Baby Face.
Baby Face is a computer-like humanoid Stand, whose initial form is the one seen above. As a computer it’s capable of generating a secondary, sentient Stand capable of complex development. To do this it requires a human DNA sample and subsequently a “suitable subject”, or rather a female victim, in order to breed the Stand, which is about as creepy and unsettling as it sounds.
How the woman in question is impregnated is never disclosed (thankfully), but the end result is a Stand that contains intelligence but must be taught like a child how to utilize it. It also contains the same personality as its victim, and in the case of this episode it inherits some very hot-headed traits from the unsuspecting female tourist that Melone selects. All of it results in a hilariously bizarre encounter between him and Bucciarati’s gang that of course ends in the latter’s victory.
In classic JoJo fashion, “Baby Face” also of course comes from the Grammy-winning musician of the same name. Such a name for this Stand is apparently supposed to be taken rather literally.
2. Super Fly
This next Stand hails from the fourth arc called Diamond is Unbreakable, which takes place in the peaceful (not really) suburban town Morioh, Japan. With yet another music-related name, Super Fly is encountered by Josuke, his school friend Okuyasu, and a recent yet brief addition to their team Mikitaka Hazekura, who turns out to be an alien.
On the outskirts of town, the three of them accidentally happen upon the Stand, which is actually bound to a transmission tower and has no other physical form. So the Stand itself is, basically, a tower.
The Stand’s user, or rather the one currently trapped by it, is Toyohiro Kanedaichi, a self-proclaimed eccentric hermit proudly embracing his lifestyle upon the tower. In actuality, he attempts to lure Josuke and the others into the affected territory within the tower, as doing so will relinquish the Stand’s control over him and allow him to escape. He intially succeeds, and Josuke and the others engage in a battle to defeat Toyohiro and free themselves.
On top of the tower being essentially invulnerable to offensive Stand attacks as it simply reflects them back out, anyone who is not free to leave risks being turned into metal and absorbed into the tower itself. Thus, the battle that ensues is an unsettling game of who can escape first. Mikitaka looks to sacrifice himself to allow his allies to get free, but fortunately Josuke is able to best Toyohiro before the series’ most amusing minor character is killed off.
“Super Fly” refers to the famous 1972 soul funk album released by Curtis Mayfield. While a bizarre choice of name for the Stand, to go out on a limb it could refer to the tower being a fly trap of sorts.
3. Highway to Hell
This next Stand is encountered near the beginning of the sixth arc called Stone Ocean, where we meet Jotaro’s estranged daughter Kujo Jolyne, the designated protagonist this time around. While serving a sentence for a crime she didn’t commit in a high-security prison in Florida, Jolyne is paid a visit by her father Jotaro, and the two of them are ambushed by the lackey of main antagonist Whitesnake.
Jotaro’s soul/stand and memories are stolen by Whitesnake, which inhabit the form of two CDs (in keeping with the ongoing musical theme of Stands), and he dies before they can be rescued by the Speedwagon foundation. Refusing to abandon her father, Jolyne embarks on a personal mission to retrieve his stolen discs and bring him back to life.
In the process she befriends a fellow inmate named Ermes, who agrees to help her while seeking personal revenge against Whitesnake for the death of her sister. Along the way, Ermes runs into another inmate named Thunder McQueen, who works as a janitor and is completely mentally unstable and suicidal.
Whitesnake provides him with a Stand called Highway to Hell, a unique and bizarre one that has no physical form besides a strange set of four protrusions with propellers on the ends. It also doesn’t have any offensive combat abilities. Instead, in rather disturbing fashion it only has the ability to share damage inflicted on the User. As McQueen is pathologically suicidal, he tries repeatedly to kill himself in various ways despite Ermes’ attempts to calm him.
When he tries to hang himself in a stall she endures being hung and suffocated, the Stand’s protrusions lifting her into the air. When McQueen tries drowning himself the Stand appears as a liquid mass, smothering her nose and mouth as seen in the picture above, in the imitation of forced drowning.
All in all, it makes the Stand quite formidable in the wrong (or right) hands, a suicidal inmate essentially being the perfect choice when trying to target someone. But propellers?
“Highway to Hell” refers to the 1979 song by band AC/DC, and it’s likely is a connotation to suicide being considered a sin in certain scenarios.
4. Love Deluxe
Love Deluxe is another of the truly bizarre Stands found in the Diamond is Unbreakable Arc, and it definitely gives off some Medusa vibes. Its user is high school student Yukako Yamagishi, who it turns out has a huge (putting it lightly) crush on none other than Koichi Hirose. She coerces him to go on a date with her, which he heartily accepts, only for it to end up going a bit stranger than expected.
Yukako’s obsessive infatuation with Koichi inflames severe, even violent mood swings she has for seemingly no apparent reason, given her normally very aloof personality. One moment she’s demure and sweet, the next she’s destroying the table while screaming at the top of her lungs. Koichi knows something isn’t right, but isn’t sure what to do.
She winds up kidnapping him and taking him to a house remotely located near the coastline. There she plans to keep him locked away while brainwashing him into reciprocating her feelings, while also forcibly training him to fit an idealized picture of himself. This is where her Stand finally comes into view, and it turns out that it’s bound to her long, beautiful, jet-black locks of hair.
The Stand was initially bestowed upon her by Keicho Nijimura and his Arrow. Essentially, it gives Yukako’s hair extremely strong, prehensile abilties, allowing her to effectively use it as a deadly weapon. She can spontaneously extend it, even long enough to wrap around the entire house, pick up and hurl heavy objects, and use it to strike or smother her targets. She can even implant strands of it into her victim’s scalp in order to physically control them.
As a whole, it makes this mini-arc of the story disturbingly hilarious, and after being rescued by Josuke and Okuyasu, Koichi reunites with Yukako after the incident and they pursue a mutual relationship.
“Love Deluxe” refers to the fourth album released in 1992 by English band Sade, and the connotations of love are definitely apparent here.
5. Beach Boy
While the encounter with this Stand definitely doesn’t take place anywhere near a beach, the name of it is no less comical, along with the Stand itself which is… yes, a fishing rod. Despite it being an entirely ordinary looking object, it proves itself to be the deadliest fishing rod in existence.
During the Golden Wind arc, Giorno and the others engage this Stand while on the train ride to Florence, where they’re instructed to bring Trish next. The User of the Stand is Pesci, the weak-willed and very eccentric-looking younger brother of Prosciutto. For much of the encounter throught the “Grateful Dead” mini-arc, Pesci follows the orders of his sibling while often succumbing to his insecurities and lack of confidence.
However, his Stand proves to be a formidable weapon as the rod’s hook and fishing line have multiple abilities. It can phase through literally any obstacle to seek out its target, making hiding a limited advantage, and Pesci even uses it to easily cut through a victim’s flesh to pinpoint and destroy vital organs.
Also, the extremely sensitive fishing line can detect lifeforms and their physicalities in any given area it’s cast into, right down to their heartbeat. Destroying the line itself is also out of the question, as any damage inflicted on it will instead reflect back on the target and their Stand.
This all makes Beach Boy quite the threat, despite its otherwise silly and bizarre appearance that would easily make anyone misjudge. Fortunately, Bucciarati and the gang overcome Pesci, ultimately defeating him with his own Stand.
Also, “Beach Boy” refers to the rock band of the same name that was extremely popular during the 1960s.
6. Mister President
This next stand definitely has one of the strangest names yet, and additionally, is hidden within a very unassuming object. Also found during the Golden Wind arc, Mister President is in fact a Stand in the form of a key hidden inside of a very important turtle named Coco Jumbo.
Bestowed as a gift by the Boss of Passione, it serves as a sanctuary for Giorno and the others while they transport his daughter Trish to safety. It has no combat abilities whatsoever, but makes for a very advantageous mobile hiding spot during their travels and dangerous encounters. It resembles the appearance of a semi-luxurious hotel room, albeit with no restroom which makes for some comical moments amongst the gang.
Take a moment to let that sink in: at the instruction of an Italian mob boss, Bucciarati’s gang takes refuge in a fully furnished room, contained within a key atop a turtle. If this was found in any other manga, you would be excused for thinking the author had just put some random phrases into an idea generator. In the mind of Hirohiko Araki, however? It’s par for the course, though definitely on the stranger side.
“Mister President” refers to an artist who sings a song called “Coco Jumbo” in 1996.
7. Pearl Jam
Essentially the only food-type Stand found in all of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is yet another non-combative one that serves an entirely different purpose, and is powerful in an entirely different way. Pearl Jam is encountered in potentially the most hilarious filler episode of the fourth arc, Diamond is Unbreakable.
Josuke and Okuyasu decide to stop by an Italian restaurant found near the edge of Morioh called Trattoria Trussardi. There they meet an exceptionally passionate and professional chef named Tonio Trussardi, the owner of the establishment. He excitedly invites the two of them in for a meal, and guides them through the process of a truly authentic Italian experience. However, there is no menu and Tonio decides on what to cook simply by examining the palms of their hands, somehow identifying any and all ailments they have, from aching muscles to sleep deprivation to constipation.
Throughout the episode, Josuke and Okuyasu feel an air of suspicion around this miraculously gifted chef, particularly given the mysterious murders that have been happening in Morioh (thanks to a certain someone else of course). However, with each meal they eat they find themselves swiftly cured of their aches and pains. Okuyasu’s cavity-filled teeth are ejected from his mouth and two new, healthy ones grow in their place.
With the power of his Stand, Josuke discovers that there are strange-looking organisms bound to the food they’re ingesting. Resembling a cross between a tomato and a pearl onion (hence the name) with faces and arms, they meld with the ingredients of a cooked meal and provide exceptional health benefits, with the ability to cure most ailments.
It’s a stand that’s by and far destined for an ambitious and talented culinarian like Tonio, who only wants to share spectacularly-made food with his customers that can also help them live happy and healthy lives.
“Pearl Jam” is based on the famous grunge rock band that was most popular through the 1990s.
8. Strength
This Stand and its User make it truly one of the most bizarre on this list, and it hails from the Stardust Crusaders arc. Joseph Joestar and the gang first encounter this Stand aboard an ordinary-looking freighter in the South China Sea bound for India. While on the otherwise peaceful cruise, the group discovers an orangutan inside a cage down in the cargo hold.
He appears to be an entirely normal orangutan, until the charade comes down and he reveals a heightened intelligence, enough to cut up an apple, smoke cigarettes, gander at Playboy magazines, and even solve a Rubiks cube. He also dons a Captain’s coat.
It turns out that the orangutan, weirdly named Forever, is another lackey working for DIO. He also possesses a Stand called Strength, named for the Tarot Card of the same name. The Stand itself has taken control of the freighter, and actually morphed it to such a size from a much smaller boat. Having complete psychic control over the bound ship right down to its bolts, Forever confronts the gang, almost killing them outright by encasing them in metal tombs created by the ship’s pipes.
Ultimately the gang outsmarts him, taking advantage of his cockiness, and Jotaro kills him with his Stand, Star Platinum. Forever’s death causes the illusion of the freighter to dissipate, leaving behind only the small boat it had originally been.
“Forever” is a call-back to the album “Wu-Tang Forever” by the Wu-Tang Clan. It’s also presumed that he’s an homage to another malicious orangutan in the 1986 British horror movie, Link.
9. Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is yet another Stand found in the iconic Diamond is Unbreakable arc, and is equal parts bizarre and annoying. Its origin lies with a man named Masazo Kinoto, an architect who is employed by Rohan Kishibe to estimate the costs to repair his house. At the same time he is made an unwilling host to a Stand bestowed by Yoshihiro Kira, with the motive to kill Rohan.
Cheap Trick’s power is parasitic in nature, as it seeks to harm its host/user rather than aid them. Its signature move is clinging to the back of its current victim, and it cannot be removed in any way without them risking death. Sadistic in nature, while attached it will continuously berate and taunt the host in an attempt to disorient and wear them down psychologically.
At the same time it will call out to nearby people, as it’s one of the few stands that can be heard by non-users, and tempt them to look at the host’s back. Doing so will cause Cheap Trick to detach from the host’s back, killing them in the process before attaching to its new victim.
Rohan struggles to find a way to rid himself of the pest-like Stand, eventually running into Koichi who attempts to use his Echoes ACT3 to remove it. Despite Echoes’ immense strength it doesn’t work and the only solution winds up being Rohan making his way to the Ghost Girl’s Alley without his back being seen. The Alley being an interdimensional purgatory, a mass of disembodied hands appear to pry Cheap Trick safely from Rohan, who at the last second uses Heaven’s Door to rewrite its Fate and send it to Hell.
“Cheap Trick” refers to the 1970’s American rock band of the same name.
10. Sethan
The final entry on our list goes to one other extremely bizarre Stand found in the latter half of the Stardust Crusaders arc, while Joseph Joestar and the rest of the gang are in Egypt. As Polnareff and Jotaro go in search of one of two remaining Glory Gods working for DIO, a very eccentric-looking man (what Stand User isn’t though) named Alessi appears to be tailing them.
While he beats up a random innocent child that accidentally runs into him, Polnareff confronts him, accusing him of being the potential target. Alessi tries to play it off but the confrontation ends in him brandishing his Stand named Sethan, after the Egyptian god of chaos and storms.
It appears as a large shadow with unsettling eyes, acting as Alessi’s shadow that’s able to wield any weapon he holds like his axe. Also, anyone who comes into contact with the shadow faces dire consequences.
Polnareff touches it for a mere second and starts to notice something very strange happening. With each passing minute he shrinks physically, not merely in terms of size but age. Before long he’s shrunk all the way down to that of a 3 year old, becoming utterly defenseless. Since Stands attribute their growth and power to that of their User, Silver Chariot is also rendered practically useless.
What ensues from there is a bizarre game of cat and mouse between baby-sized Polnareff and Alessi with Sethan. A young woman named Malena takes Polnareff in from the streets to take care of him, and Alessi chases him throughout the house, using Sethan to try and kill him. Malena accidentally gets caught up in the fight, and after touching the shadow for several seconds is rendered down to an actual fetus. Polnareff gathers her in a towel and flees to a dead end room.
The whole encounter concludes with Polnareff hiding from Alessi in the room just long enough to strike him in the face with Silver Chariot, causing him to fall out of the nearby window. Jotaro happens to be there and accidentally gets grazed by Sethan long enough to shrink down to a young child. However, hilariously enough, Jotaro is still strong enough to beat up Alessi and knocks him out.
That concludes our list of the 10 most bizarre stands in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. We hope that you found this as entertaining as the show itself, and let us know what you think of our choices, or if you feel another Stand should belong on this list.
Also be sure to check out our other news and features about JoJo’s Bizarre adventure, such as our Stand personality quiz.
