With how bizarre Jojo's Bizarre Adventure is, there are a lot of moments where you're left scratching your head at how frustrating it can be. Then there are moments where you're left jaw-dropped and in awe because of just how smart this series can be.
Shonen action isn't just about power levels and blowing up planets; creative and resourceful characters can be a lot of fun to watch, since they can make the most out of any situation and find victory in the jaws of defeat. This also serves to make them less predictable. Who are the smartest characters in the entire JoJo anime? Let's meet them.
Update October 2nd, 2020 by Louis Kemner: With five seasons out and a live-action movie, the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure franchise is going strong, while Steel Ball Run (the manga's seventh story arc) is one of the highest-rated manga series out there right now. This franchise is beloved not only for its cool battle system and stylish visuals, but also its clever and resourceful heroes who win the day through creative thinking, not just maxed-out battle stats. Let's meet five more characters who prove that brains equal brawn in shonen anime.
15 Formaggio
Although the stand-using assassin known as Formaggio doesn't exactly rank among the most powerful stand users of Golden Wind, he is clever and knows how to make the most of his stand, Little Feet. It has the power to shrink people, including himself.
Formaggio snuck up on Narancia Ghirga and shrank him, and despite being outgunned by Aerosmith, Formaggio kept finding ways to avoid the worst of Narancia's firepower, such as moving with some rats so his breathing would blend in with theirs.
14 Koichi Hirose
When it came down to it, Koichi Hirose showed that he is capable of getting himself out of sticky situations. It was against Yukako (during her stalker phase) that we first got to see Echoes Act 2, and right off the bat he was able to use his Stand's new abilities (imprinting sound effects on surfaces) to defeat her.
It was Koichi's idea that saved Jotaro Kujo from Yoshikage Kira and led to Kira's first defeat -- he had Echoes imprint the "sizzle" sound effect to trick Sheer Heart Attack, and he was also the one who helped Josuke find the Stand user Yuya Fungami when he was being chased down by Highway Star.
13 Risotto Nero
Risotto Nero leads a gang of assassins, and being the leader of such a squad in the mean streets of Italy takes some serious expertise. No doubt Risotto is cunning and crafty, being able to maneuver his men and understand his enemies without leaving himself vulnerable.
He also makes creative use of his stand, Metallica, by reshaping the iron in his enemy's body to form blades. He can also coat himself in iron powder to reflect sunlight and appear invisible, which must take some cunning to pull off.
12 Leone Abbacchio
Leone Abbacchio was once a police officer, and it takes some real brains to complete that training and do the job right. He was eventually disgraced and joined Bruno's squad. He is carefully analytical and never rushes recklessly into any situation. He'd rather take stock first.
What about his stand? Abbacchio can use Moody Blues, which can recreate a person's movements and spoken words from moments or hours earlier in a certain location. Many times, Abbacchio has used this unique skill to gain new clues and insights into his enemies, and make good on that data.
11 Josuke Higashikata
Josuke was still pretty much a kid during the Diamond is Unbreakable story arc, a year younger than Jotaro was in Stardust Crusaders, but over the course of Part 4, he's shown his extreme creativity and mastery of his Stand. You'd think that Crazy Diamond was just a defensive Stand given his ability to restore something to a previous state of Josuke's choosing, but with how he uses his Stand he's able to adapt to pretty much any situation and puzzle he's faced with.
He's trapped enemies in bottles and stone, punched and fixed people and objects when he can't avoid them otherwise, and in the end battle with Kira, he creates makeshift homing projectiles with his blood and shards of glass. This kid definitely knows exactly how his Stand works and how to maximize it.
10 Rohan Kishibe
As Stands go, Heaven's Door is one of those whose skill perfectly suits his user, and Rohan Kishibe takes this perfect match and uses it well. In his first few appearances, Rohan took a look at Koichi's story and used what was in it not only to fuel his stories and keep Koichi coming back but also to try and trick Josuke during their fight (emphasis on try, Josuke just went into a blind rage).
Later on, he single-handedly defeats two Stand users with impressive use of his wit, and it was through his investigation that they ended up finding Yoshikage Kira's new location and identity.
9 Robert Speedwagon
Robert Speedwagon didn't prove his intelligence by creating clever combat moves or using a stand. Instead, he is an observer who can accurately gauge any situation and determine a way out of it. He's a vital ally for both Jonathan Joestar and Joseph.
More importantly, Speedwagon founded his own institution, which provides logistical support for the Joestar family and anyone else in need. He was a highly successful businessman in the early to mid 20th century, and his legacy is secure.
8 Bruno Bucciarati
There's a reason that Bucciarati was the leader of the crew in Vento Aureo. Throughout the whole part, he's shown his capability to strategize in a pinch, identify the strengths of the people in his team, and utilize these in his plans. Among other feats, he's saved his entire team (and loads of passengers) by removing Prosciutto from a train which effectively put a stop to his Stand's aging ability, he pulled a page out of Jotaro's book and stopped his heart to trick Beach Boy into thinking he was dead.
He also had enough foresight to ask Giorno to give him a lucky charm before meeting up with the boss (it was really a tracker just in case something bad happened, which it did.)
7 Kars
Kars is one of the rare Jojo villains that managed to achieve his nefarious goals to an extent. He created the Stone Masks what later on led to Dio becoming a vampire, and wiped out the entirety of the Pillar men when they disagreed with his plan to get to the ultimate form. In Battle Tendency, he showed a different strategy than other antagonists when he refused to fight Lisa Lisa, tricking her into thinking that he had won and getting to a point where he almost killed her.
His adaptability also showed in the moments where he used his opponents' strategies to his own advantage, like when he used Stroheim's UV light to spark the Red Stone of Aja and turning him into "Ultimate Kars". In the end, he pretty much outsmarted all who stood in his way, with his "demise" only coming by chance with him being sent to the one place that he could not escape -- space.
6 Giorno Giovanna
Throughout Vento Aureo, Giorno Giovanna's problem-solving skills have gotten him and his crew out of a lot of predicaments. With a lot of the Stand users that they encountered, it was Giorno's analytical skills that lead to the discovery of many stand abilities and how to get around them, sometimes risking his own life in the process. An example is when he infected himself with Purple Haze to bring it into Man in the Mirror's dimension.
He was also the one who figured out that Diavolo was hiding inside one of them, was the chosen one to wholly accept Requiem, and at the end of the part became the boss of Passione.
5 Noriaki Kakyoin
For someone that started off as a bad guy brainwashed by DIO, Kakyoin turned out to be a very helpful addition to the Stardust Crusaders. Although he spent part of the adventure out of commission, his intelligence came into play when it counted the most. Multiple times throughout, he was the one that fount the key to their enemies, ultimately leading to their success in defeating them.
An instance of this was when he carved the words "baby stand" into his arm in Death Thirteen's dream world, and eventually managing to bring Hierophant Green in, leading to their triumph. He was also the one who figured out The World's abilities and, with his dying breath, managed to pass on what he learned to Joseph Jostar and Jotaro.
4 Yoshikage Kira
He is the villain of the Diamond is Unbreakable story arc, a serial killer with a charming face. Yoshikage Kira has been killing innocent women for years, but he somehow hid this side of himself from society at large, despite being an active part of society.
He also knows how to use his stand, Killer Queen, to deadly effect, and he's good at tracking people and covering his own tracks. Finally, it was he who set an elaborate trap for his enemies near the end of that story arc, using the power of Bites the Dust to protect his identity. It seemed like there was no way out.
3 Jotaro Kujo
With his doctorate in Marine Biology, on paper, Jotaro Kujo is probably the smartest guy on this list, but beyond that, he's also a pretty quick-witted person. In probably two of the most stressful non-action encounters in all of part 3, Jotaro was the one that managed to outsmart both Darby brothers, with his bluffing and cheating skills, whose games threatened the souls of the Stardust Crusaders.
He stopped his own heart to trick DIO into thinking he was dead already, and during the last battle, he also tricked DIO into thinking that he could not move in frozen time. He also had his moments in Diamond is Unbreakable, one of note being when he investigated the button that Yoshikage Kira left behind, eventually leading to Kira having to change his identity.
2 Dio Brando
The first and arguably most iconic of many bad guys in this bizarre series, Dio Brando is an example of scheming and conniving pettiness. As a child, his hatred led to his poisoning of his father, and he wins over the heart of George Joestar (who he later attempts to also poison like his dad). His petty schemes revolved around tormenting Jonathan.
Dio embarrassed him by beating him in boxing (he cheated, of course), stole Erina's first kiss just so that it wasn't Jonathan, and even incinerated his dog, Danny. Further down the line, he planned and nearly succeeded in creating a zombie army to take over London, and thought his way out of death by severing his own head before the Ripple reached it and, ultimately, stealing the body of Jonathan Joestar.
1 Joseph Joestar
Although it was a lot at times, Battle Tendency was riffled with many "Your next line is. . ." moments care of Joseph Joestar. It may be a comedic line, but it shows his foresight when it comes to the situations he finds himself in. He was the first person to wound Wamuu with his own Ripple-infused clackers, he outsmarted Esidisi and was able to pass his Ripple through that Esidisi though he'd already cut, and at the end of the part, he was the one who defeated Wamuu.
He was also a vital part of the Stardust Crusaders and did some outsmarting there too (anyone remember the battle against the Empress?). Not to mention how he used his stand, Hermit Purple, to track the miniature stands batling inside someone's head.