They say that a story's only as compelling as its villain is strong. The Jojo's Bizarre Adventure franchise certainly lends credence to that claim, as the series is full of iconic and insanely powerful antagonists; foes like DIO Brando, The Pillar Men, Yoshikage Kira, and Diavolo - the enigmatic leader of Passione.

RELATED: JoJo: Every Main Villain Ranked, According To Strength

Thanks to his psychopathic Stand King Crimson and his ingenuity, Diavolo bested numerous Stand Users with ease! Hell, Diavolo could probably beat other opponents from different sagas if he put his demented mind to it. Today, we're going to analyze five of the strongest Stand Users that Diavolo could defeat, and five that would mop the floor with him.

10 Vanilla Ice (Can Beat)

Cream in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.

Vanilla Ice was one of the most overpowered foes that the Stardust Crusaders faced in Part 2. This tacky douchebag killed two of our favorite protagonists and didn't even bat an eye! Polnareff barely edged out Vanilla Ice by thinking on his toes, though the battle left him scarred for the rest of his life.

But Diavolo wouldn't struggle against Vanilla Ice and Cream - he'd use Epitaph to see into the future, learn Ice's game plan, and then wait. Once Cream comes charging at him, Diavolo would activate King Crimson and trick Ice into flying out into the sun. The second that Ice comes out to see what's going on, he'd turn into kitty litter! Ice and Cream were a strong duo, but they were never particularly bright.

9 DIO (Can't Beat)

Despite his body count, Vanilla Ice was only a pawn to a far greater foe - DIO Brando! Arrogant, sadistic, and irresistibly charming, DIO was the main villain of Part 2, as well as one of the strongest Stand Users in the series. Only one man managed to battle DIO and live to tell the tale - Jotaro Kujo! And let's not kid ourselves; Jotaru only defeated DIO because he learned to stop time in his eleventh hour.

Diavolo won't be so lucky; he can use Epitaph to scout ahead and make King Crimson skip time as much as he'd like - DIO would freeze time as soon as he sensed that something was off. Afterward, he wouldn't have any trouble dropping a steamroller on the petrified Passione boss.

8 Jolyne Kujo (Can Beat)

Jolyne inherited many traits from Jotaro, like his strength, speed, cool-factor, and bad attitude. However, she didn't gain the ability to stop time - something that'd prove invaluable against the likes of Diavolo. Don't get us wrong, Stone Free's an incredibly versatile Stand, but it simply can't compare to King Crimson.

Here's how we imagine things going down; Jolyne and Diavolo square off. Cujoh uses Stone Free's string powers to strike Diavolo from a distance, but she hits nothing but air. About ten seconds later, a gilded red hand bursts through her chest - a hand that belongs to King Crimson.

7 Pucci (Can't Beat)

In fairness, most other Stand Users would get trounced by Enrico Pucci's final Stand, Made in Heaven. Not only can this weird, centaur-thing control time, but it can also create new universes! For context, the combined might of Jolyne Cujoh, Ermes Costello, and Jotaro Kujo were powerless against Made in Heaven!

RELATED: JoJo: Stands We Wish Were Real (& 5 We're Glad Aren't)

Pucci can also specifically nullify time-altering Stands thanks to Made in Heaven, meaning that Star Platinum, The World, Killer Queen, and King Crimson become significantly weaker in the twisted priest's presence. What does it matter if you can skip time when someone can erase the very concept of chronology?

6 Kira (Can Beat)

Yoshikage kira with his stand in jojos

Yoshikage Kira's one of the most fascinating villains in Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, as well as one of the most powerful. On the surface, Kira's a normal guy who's trying to live one day at a time. But underneath his milquetoast exterior is a deranged killer that will do anything to keep the law off his tracks.

With Killer Queen, Bites the Dust, and Sheer Heart Attack at his disposal, Kira's nearly unstoppable. However, Kira also has to touch a foe with his Stand (or an air bubble created by his Stand) for maximum damage, then manually detonate his "bombs." What's to stop Diavolo from skipping past the detonation, popping up behind Kira, and snapping his neck like a twig?

5 Giorno (Can't Beat)

Giorno Giovanna and Gold Experience Requiem in Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind.

The proof is in writing with this entry. We're willing to bet that Diavolo would probably soil himself if he even heard Giorno's name. Or, even worse, if he heard Gold Experience Requiem's Stand Cry! For all of Diavolo's cunning and ruthlessness, he got flattened by a 15 yeard old boy!

RELATED: Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: 5 Things That Make No Sense About King Crimson (& 5 About Gold Experience Requiem)

To make matters worse, Giorno placed Diavolo in Limbo when he killed him - forcing the villain to relive his death over and over again, for time immemorial! King Crimson can give Gold Experience Requiem the stink eye all he wants, but he can't do Jack to Giorno Giovanna.

4 Josuke (Can Beat)

Vaporwave Josuke Higashikata from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure.

If Diavolo can beat Yoshikage Kira, then it stands (we'll be here all week) to reason that he can defeat Josuke Higashikata as well. After all, the highschool student barely managed to edge out Killer Queen - despite the aid of other Stand Users like Jotaro, Okuyasu, and Koichi!

Looking at this match-up objectively, we don't see any way for Josuke to counter Diavolo's extensive toolkit. Even if you want to argue that Josuke could heal from one of Killer Queen's devastating karate chops, we don't see how he'd ever stop Diavolo from time-skipping his way to victory.

3 Weather Report/ Emporio Alnino (Can't Beat)

So this is a little confusing because Weather Report is the name of both a Stand and Pucci's long-lost brother. As for Emporio Alnino, that's the child that beat Pucci at the end of Stone Ocean - after inheriting one of the most OP Stands in the series!

Weather Report is one of the only Stands as overpowered and insane as Made in Heaven is. Not only does Weather Report look amazing, but he also possesses immense strength and speed. But that's standard fare in JJBA. What sets Weather Report apart from other Stands is his ability to essentially alter reality - after unleashing the full might of Heavy Weather, this Stand can turn people into friggin snails! Try skipping time when you're escargot!

2 Cioccolata (Can Beat)

green day jojo

Cioccolata is one Diavolo's subordinates, so we'd figure that this fight would result from an attempted coup. We also figure that revolt wouldn't get very far, as Diavolo can easily beat most of the villains that work under him.

Cioccolata can rot and decompose anything that Green Day's spores touch. However, he has no counters against King Crimson - especially when it's working in tandem with Epitaph. As far as we're concerned, King Crimson would fix Cioccolata's screwed up haircut with one Hell of a karate chop.

1 Johnny Joestar (Can't Beat)

Jojo's Bizarre Adventure - Johnny Joestar Part 7

When it comes to JJBA protagonists, Johnny Joestar is possibly the quintessential underdog; not only is Johnny crippled below his waist, but he also spends most of Part 7 working with a very weak Stand. On top of all that, Johnny has very little confidence in himself, prompting Gyro Zeppeli to take the lead most of the time.

By the end of part 7, however, Johnny comes into his own - gaining mastery over his Stand Tusk and gaining incredible power! In short, Tusk Act 4 has the power to do anything - including trapping Diavolo in one place, similarly to Gold Experience Requiem. Never judge a book by its cover and never count out the underdog.

NEXT: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: The Top 10 Companions