Having run for several decades, very few manga series have had as much time in the public eye as Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. In all that time, there have been countless ways the series’ path could have diverged. While most will never come to light, there are a few alternative versions of JoJo whose remnants can still be seen today.
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Alternative Adaptation
While the Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure anime is a cultural mainstay these days, it took a surprising amount of time for the series to receive an official adaptation. The current anime series launched in 2012, with anime studio David Productions using their love of the franchise and technical expertise to make it the success it is now. Considering Jojo first released in 1986 however, it took 26 years for the iconic manga to receive the adaptation, despite some manga like My Hero Academia getting adaptations after as little as 2 years.
It’s unclear why it took so long to give Jojo an anime, but it likely had something to do with creative disagreements behind the scenes. In 1993, there was one attempt at a Jojo anime, via a heavily abridged OVA(straight to video) adaptation of the series’ 3rd part, Stardust Crusaders. Considering that part 3 has the most iconic scenes from the series, it made sense to focus on that section of the story, but the OVA series offered little conext for newcomers to the series, skipping over most of the material in the manga.
The studio that animated it also later made a film based on Jojo part 1 in 2007. This film has sadly become nearly unwatchable, so it’s hard to find any information on its quality. These two animated attempts at the Jojo story ended up going nowhere, but had they been more faithful, high quality adaptations, the Jojo anime airing today might look completely different, with a much different tone and voice cast as well.
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Alternative Sand Powers
Stands are the power system that makes Jojo stand out. From their wildly varied designs to their bizarre abilities, they have become emblematic of Jojo as a franchise. As with any action story, the powers of individual characters can have massive effects on how the story progresses. Part 3s version of Dio Brando for instance, famously has the ability to stop time via his stand, The World.
Eagle-eyed viewers might notice however, that Dio also exhibits some unexplained abilities. Most importantly, there are scenes that show him using an ability similar to Joseph Joestar’s stand, Hermit Purple. Fans have long theorized that this may be a stand belonging to Jonathan Joestar, who’s body Dio stole before the events of part 3. Another rumor however, says that in the early stages of the story’s development, Dio was intended to have a copycat ability, allowing him to use the stands of every other character in the story.
Had this been the case, the events of part 3’s final battle could have taken on a much different form, with Dio throwing every stand the heroes had faced so far at them at once. Since Jotaro’s Star Platinum is revealed to have the same powers as The World, he too could also have developed this copycat ability. While it would certainly have made for a bombastic final clash, it’s very obvious why this didn’t become the case, as the power levels in the series would’ve been thrown way off course. For now, it seems like Dio’s other ability may have just been a plot hole.
Alternative Character Relationships
Keeping to part 3, there is another alternative story that seemingly got closer to being a reality. During the fight against the villains Hol Horse and J.Geil, Mohammed Avdol is famously killed, sending the protagonists into a period of mourning and self-reflection. Later in the story, however, Avdol is revealed to have been alive the whole time, hiding on an island while his injuries healed. Fake-out deaths are nothing new, but something about this one always felt somewhat off.
Many theorize that originally, Avdol’s death was meant to make way for Hol Horse to join the main party as his replacement, leading to his eventual sacrifice to redeem his character. There are certain hints to this, including art by Araki depicting Hol Horse with the main party, as well as Avdol’s lack of contribution in the later fights. This has never been confirmed, but many fans have taken to treating it as fact.
Lastly, going all the way to Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean, the character Anasui’s first appearance in the manga depicts him extremely differently. Specifically, he appears to have been a female character at first, before later being male in all other appearances. Considering his romantic feelings for Jolyne, some speculate that the two were originally going to be in a same-sex relationship before Shonen Jump editors requested a change. While JoJo does feature strong LGBT+ undertones, this would have been the first appearance of an explicitly LGBT+ protagonist in the series. While many still consider Jolyne to be bisexual due to this change, it is currently not canonical.
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