History Characters / JoJosBizarreAdventureYoshikageKira

[[caption-width-right:215:[[labelnote:Click here to see him as Kosaku.]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kosaku_kira_anime.png[softreturn]''"I was born with a certain set of desires, so I simply try to make the most of it. Life's better that way."''[[/labelnote]]]]

* AdaptationalAttractiveness: Despite all three of his looks being very attractive in the original manga due to Araki's signature style, the anime makes his original face less skeletal and prettier. Additionally, his Kosaku face is more chiseled and touched-up than in the manga.

* AdvertisedExtra: Downplayed. He's still the overall BigBad, but Kira in his original look only appeared in two arcs before he forcefully switched his face with that of Kosaku, to the point where Kosaku is considered the Part 4 BigBad in ''All-Star Battle'', while regular Kira is relegated to DLC.

** But out of all of them, he is perhaps this the most to Hayato Kawajiri, the boy whose father Kira had murdered and replaced. Hayato's suspicions towards Kira made it more difficult for Kira to acclimate to his life as Kosaku, culminating in Hayato capturing Kira's murder of a couple on camera and being used as a TykeBomb for Kira's Bites the Dust. It was Hayato who thwarted Bites the Dust, and sets in motion the chain of events that would lead to Kira's downfall.

* AxCrazy: A very subdued example. From his debut alone, you should get the hint that there's something horribly wrong with his psyche. Killer Queen also developed out of his desire for murder, and before he gained it, he was especially brutal to his victims.

* BigBad: He is the primary villain of ''Diamond is Unbreakable'' despite not showing up until the halfway point. Unlike most villains in the series, Kira wants to have a "peace and quiet life"; it's when the heroes threaten his desire for a quiet life that he becomes dangerous.

* ChickMagnet: Kira has his share of female admirers who are constantly asking him out despite the fact that most guys consider him "boring" by comparison. He even manages to make Shinobu fall in love with him when disguised as Kosaku, albeit unintentionally so. However, any woman Kira has managed to attract is quickly brushed off by him, and given his tastes, they are better off without him.

* ClarkKentOutfit: Looks pretty unremarkable with an ordinary salaryman-like appearance underneath his suit. But as seen in the shower as Kosaku, he's shown to be surprisingly ripped underneath. Then again, he ''did'' say that he ensures that he's always in good health.

** On top of that, said ambulance rips off the face which he stole from Kosaku, causing him to become another anonymous "missing" person of Morioh.

* DramaticIrony: All he wants is to live, in his words, a "Quiet Life", with his "girlfriends". Once he takes over Kosaku's identity, he gets exactly that with a family and son, but quickly reverts to his old ways. This ends up leading to his defeat.

* DyingAsYourself: After getting his head crushed and appearing in the Ghost Alley, his face transitions back from Kosaku's to his original one as he threatens Reimi, only to get dragged away by the hands of the dead.

* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: As Kosaku, his skin becomes much paler than before.

* EvilCanNotComprehendGood: An unorthodox example; Yoshikage seems to be incapable to comprehend his own potential for good, after being relieved that Shinobu was not too severely harmed by Stray Cat. He becomes confused by the feeling of wanting to keep her safe but tells himself that [[PragmaticVillainy he just needs her for his cover]].

** He's also this to Angelo. Both of them are {{Serial Killer}} Stand users with high body counts, but are otherwise completely different. Angelo is Japan's most infamous criminal who's spent years in prison because he kept getting caught and leaving evidence behind, while Kira covers his tracks very well thanks to Killer Queen's abilities, and by the time he meets his end, only a few people know what he's truly like. In contrast to Angelo's open brutality, Kira conceals his psychopathic tendencies under an affable and sophisticated veneer even when killing his victims. Angelo is also a {{Serial Rapist}} while Kira has no interest in sex beyond satisfying his hand fetish. Angelo only unlocked his Stand recently, whereas Kira had his Stand for years. Lastly, Angelo is the first enemy Stand user Josuke fights, and Kira is the last one he faces.

* ImportantHaircut: Trades in Kosaku's spiky hairstyle for a slicked back look after awakening Bites the Dust. While there isn't an explicit reason given for this change in character design, it seems to be due to Kira slipping more comfortably into his new life thanks to [[ImplacableMan his newfound confidence]].

* LightIsNotGood: In the anime, he wears a white suit as Kosaku, but he is far from good.

* MrFanservice: As Kosaku, he gets a couple of {{ShowerScene}}s where he is totally naked.

* SerialKiller: One that kills women for their hands, which he has a strange fetish for (he thinks of the hands as his "girlfriends" and he seems to show no interest in the rest of the body). He is all the more dangerous because his Stand's abilities leave no evidence and he tries to keep a low profile (killing anyone who comes in between him and the normal life he wants to live).
* TheShadowKnows: In a FreezeFrameBonus of the anime, when Kira-as-Kosaku enters the bath to meet with Hayato, his shadow shows Killer Queen instead of his own with the thumb ready on the trigger.

* ShoutOut: Apart from the ones to both Queen (Stand name and ability names) and David Bowie (appearance), a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMHtzo9YXxY fan analysis]] of the influence of music on the series makes a comparison between the lyrics of their joint work song [[Music/HotSpace "Under Pressure"]] and the later chapter arcs told from Kira's point-of-view after he goes into hiding as Kosaku. And it fits.

* StraightEdgeEvil: Kira fits most of the criteria. He adopts a self-disciplined and temperate lifestyle: he doesn't smoke, only drinks occasionally, and takes great effort in ensuring that he remains physically fit. The only "vice" in his life is his sexual urges, particularly his hand fetish, which in turn drives his compulsion to kill.
* StupidEvil: What makes him so scary is that he takes great lengths to avert this. He avoids conflict when possible and just wants to get the job done. There is only one case where he plays it straight. When he [[BullyingADragon taunts Jotaro.]]

* TeensAreMonsters: He murdered his first victim Reimi when he was around 17, in his late teens.
* TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: What makes Kira so eerie isn't just his killings and appearances, but also how, to an outsider, he seems completely normal. He has a collection of modest achievements that paint him as someone moderately skilled, but not special. He always poses in photos so to not stand out (if he's in the frame, he's in the back of the group), and his routine, minus the severed hands, is completely and utterly mundane. He's practiced this to a degree that it veers into outright WeirdnessCensor territory for other Morioh residents, given his blatant waving about of his "girlfriends" in broad daylight with other people about.

* UnwantedSpouse: {{Subverted}}. ''Kosaku'' was this, having married Shinobu only because they had a kid and then somehow surviving so many years married to her in a dead-end job. Kira, on the other hand, not only repaired the marriage between Shinobu and Kosaku by taking the latter's position, but he officially starts it by doing something so stupidly illegal in order to save himself, he charms and wins over Shinobu's heart. By the time Stray Cat happens, Shinobu is so completely in love with Kira, she's making up excuses to fling herself at him. Kira on his part, despite ignoring her advances while trying to not kill her, starts to grow fond of her as well.

* VillainousCheekbones: Sports a noticeable pair, as himself and even as Kosaku. He's also one of the most unhinged villains in the series.

* WhatIsThisFeeling: As he takes on Kosaku's identity, he starts to develop some feeling of protection for his wife, Shinobu. He's at a complete loss when he protects her from Stray Cat.

* WouldHurtAChild: Kills Shigechi(a middle schooler) and even almost successfully kills his other host body's son(a grade schooler) twice... just because they somehow know that he's a murderer.

''''' [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders Stardust Crusaders]]:''''' [[Characters/JojosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusadersTheJoestarGroup The Joestar Group]] ([[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureJotaroKujo Jotaro Kujo]] | [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureJeanPierrePolnareff Jean-Pierre Polnareff]]) | [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureEgyptNineGloryGods Egypt 9 Glory Gods]]\\

* VisibleVictimology: He targets women with pretty hands. [[{{Squick}} Because he kills them and uses their hands as fetish objects]].

'''''[[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureGoldenWind Golden Wind]]:''''' [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureTeamBucciarati Team Bucciarati]] ([[Characters/JojosBizarreAdventureGiornoGiovanna Giorno Giovanna]]) | [[Characters/JojosBizarreAdventureDiavolo The Boss]]\\

'''''[[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Battle Tendency]]:''''' [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureJosephJoestar Joseph Joestar]] | [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureKars Kars]]\\

'''''[[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureJojolion JoJolion]]:''''' [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureJoJolionTheHigashikataFamily The Higashikata Family]] | [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureToru The Mastermind]]\\

** Also something of an aversion, at least for an Arc BigBad. While Killer Queen is legitimately a top-tier Stand, and Kira ends up with an abnormally large and diverse number of Stand abilities, even with Bites the Dust and Stray Cat it's still not an "ultimate" Stand or ability like Kars' Ultimate Lifeform form, The World[=/=]Star Platinum, King Crimson or Gold Experience Requiem, or Pucci's various Stands. Unlike those Stands and abilities, Bites the Dust has a NecessaryDrawback that prevents it from becoming a StoryBreakerPower for Kira to repeatedly abuse.

** His first death: A serial killer, who wanted to go unnoticed by everyone around him and believed fortune to be on his side, dies as the center of attention thanks to the medical personnel trying to resuscitate him [[DeathByAmbulance bungling the rescue in the worst way possible]] and the gruesome circumstances of his death. Also, his confession that he's Kira in an attempt to activate Bites the Dust incites some gossip after his demise, since Kira "disappeared" several weeks ago. There's also the fact that he was stripped of Stray Cat by a Stand named after his fetish -- Okuyasu's The Hand.

** While Kira is extremely resourceful and a competent villain, he has one glaring flaw: {{Pride}}. Many if not all of Kira's losses are due to his tendency to gloat or overestimating his own capabilities. He believes Sheer Heart Attack is invincible, so much so he confidently believes it would defeat both Koichi and Jotaro. And once he unlocks Bites the Dust, Kira is even more arrogant due to his newly-found ability to rewind time. Kira demeans Hayato and is all but sure that Bites the Dust will kill Josuke and his allies. Hayato, knowing about Kira's pride, goads Kira into revealing his real name to Hayato to mock him, unaware that Josuke was behind him the entire time, causing Kira to out himself and setting up the final battle which Kira ultimately loses. Even his defeat is a result of this; he has the chance to escape with Bites the Dust since all he needs to do is activate it and tell someone his name, but rather then do it, he decides to essentially brag to the paramedic who came to help him about his name and crime. This allows Koichi the chance to use Act 3 to immobilize him and Jotaro the chance to catch up and deal the blow that seals his fate.

* VillainsActHeroesReact: Strongly {{inverted}}. As he says himself, he "just wants a quiet life", and that really shows; never does he make an attempt at stopping the heroes during their search for him unless his life or the discovery of his true nature are at immediate risk.

* ContrastingSequelAntagonist:
** Killer Queen is a contrast to The World in many ways.
*** While The World exemplifies the notions of [[LightIsNotGood radiating golden]] and [[BrightIsNotGood shiny metallic elements]] that signify a divine appearance; Killer Queen is [[DarkIsEvil associated with darkness]] with various skull motifs and has a very skeletal-feline appearance. Justified, as DIO is a god-complex vampire that wants to be well-renown, while Yoshikage Kira wants to hide his true nature in the shadows of society.
*** The World is [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter Star Platinum's superior in terms of stats]]- with Jotaro only winning due to taking advantage of its user's [[SkilledButNaive lack of experience in Stand combat]]. Killer Queen, outside of its Sheer Heart Attack, is always portrayed as inferior in physical prowess to Star Platinum and Crazy Diamond, relying on tricks to get ahead in combat.
*** While the World relies on [[CombatPragmatist its user's unorthodox non-Stand uses of signs, knives and steamrollers as weapons]] to make up for its [[BoringButPractical rather limited physical abilities outside of its time-stop]], Killer Queen relies primarily on innate, bestowed or team-tactic Stand abilities- such as Sheer Heart Attack, Bites The Dust, and Stray Cat- outside of its main power.
*** While The World can continuously use its initial 5-second and eventual, potentially ever-increasing time stop endlessly with no limitations, Killer Queen has [[AwesomeButImpractical specific conditions to use its specific time based power with conditions that can backfire on its initial owner under the right conditions]].

** King Crimson is also one to Killer Queen.
*** Both are powerful, close-ranged Stands with control over time and are equipped with sub Stands to make them more dangerous. However, Killer Queen is not as effective at close combat against those who are physically superior to it and relies mostly on its bomb-making ability and its remote bomb Sheer Heart Attack to be a threat, while King Crimson's ability to both erase time and see the future with Epitaph combined with its immense strength make any attempt at close combat virtually a suicide mission until a means was found to counter it.
*** Killer Queen never emotes and always has a blank, emotionless stare on its face while King Crimson is prone to frequent and unnerving facial expressions. Likewise, Killer Queen never speaks nor has a Stand Cry while Diavolo constantly speaks through King Crimson.
*** While both have time based powers, Bites the Dust turns back time under specific circumstances that can be turned against its initial user, reflecting the idea that YouCantFightFate while King Crimson's time erasure and powers of precognition that normally invincible outside of clever lateral thinking and [[EvenMoreOmnipotent metaphysical power like Gold Experience Requiem]], allow Diavolo to [[ScrewDestiny control fate]].
*** While both embody DarkIsEvil, the two have different aesthetics. Killer Queen has a predatory feline and skull motifs while King Crimson has a demonic undertone to its design.
** It also is similar yet dissimilar to Whitesnake. Both are moderately powerful Stands that are outclassed by the physically superior Stands of the heroes, and have to rely on additional powers, both initially inherent and later power-boosts to get an advantage via outside help- though the end result is drastically different for their respective user. While Killer Queen's arsenal is powerful, it's primarily limited in use to offensive means, works in tandem with Stray Cat for a ranged attack, and its only defensive maneuver, Bites The Dust, is convoluted enough that it can backfire on Kira. Whitesnake is much more versatile, having illusory powers on top of its Stand/Mind disc extraction/insertion- which the latter allows to make minions, remove aspects of himself, and potentially giving him temporally the powers of other Stands- but is primarily a support Stand. When Whitesnake does get its power-boost via the aid of Green Baby, it merges with it to become C-Moon, discarding his earlier abilities for the singular, but deadly gravity inversion and soon after, the StoryBreakerPower of Made in Heaven that allows Pucci to reset the universe via time acceleration, which gives it all the dangerous speed enhancement in combat to deadly effect.

*** While the World relies on [[CombatPragmatist its user's unorthodox non-Stand uses of signs, knives and steamrollers as weapons]] to make up for its [[BoringButPractical rather limited physical abilities outside of its time-stop]], Killer Queen relies primarily on innate, bestowed or team-tactic Stand abilities- such as Sheer Heart Attack, Bite The Dust, and Stray Cat- outside of its main power.

* {{Catchphrase}}: Sheer Heart Attack has one, almost to the level of PokemonSpeak.

** His crimes are loosely based on those of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsutomu_Miyazaki Tsutomu Miyzaki]], a SerialKiller who had gained major publicity in Japanese media in the years leading up to Part 4's publication. Like Kira, Miyazaki's murders were motivated in part by an erotic fixation on his victims severed body-parts, and he was known as a seemingly unremarkable working-age adult living in his parents home while committing his crimes (though Miyazaki was unemployed at the time).

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Official art books and the like commonly list his name as "Yoshikage Kill·A". ''All-Star Battle'' plays with this by naming Kosaku Kawajiri's theme "KILL-A".

** In ''[[UpdatedRerelease All Star Battle R''[='s=] ASB Mode, he has a unique interaction with Anasui, where he derides the "hero" for dismembering his girlfriend out of anger, stating that when he does it, it's at least because he has a fetish for women's hands (as if that's any better).

* ClassicVillain: Fits all of the criteria, embodying Lust, Sloth, and Pride.

** Kira is the black sheep among the villains for many traits that wouldn't be utilized again until [[Characters/JoJosBizarreAdventureStoneOcean Part 6]]; quiet, subdued, dressed moderately, his voice is almost always flat, and even when provoked, he still keeps his head for a large part of his appearance. He also holds a job anyone could get, had a relatively normal childhood, and above all really is someone you could meet on the street. He's also the only main villain to not only try and avoid fighting (as his first plans for Shigechi were to completely ignore him and just grab the bag and run), but also lacks any kind of grandiose plan and simply continued the plot by surviving. He appears mid-way through the story and starts the plot himself and, interestingly, [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight never once looked into what Stands were]] [[HowDoIShotWeb and just assumed he had some kind of special power]]. Furthermore, compared to DIO and Kars, who sought world domination, Kira never had any comrades he recruited himself (until forming an alliance with Stray Cat), and upon showing even the slightest bit of care for someone, he immediately brushed it off as being a result of wanting to seem "normal".
** DIO was explicitly supernatural- as a human turned vampire, blatantly evil with any nuance being hinted as manipulation on his end, extremely powerful even without his Stands, having a boisterous personality, a troubled family life from an abusive father with the loss of a mother that served as a MoralityChain that led him to become worse when she died, a deep connection with his hated Joestar rivals, and eventual universal level-ambitions. Yoshikage on the other hand, is on the surface, a mild-mannered man who doesn't stand out or want anything else than to continue his SerialKiller hobby in peace with no greater aspirations, with some subconscious nuance to his character that he tries to deny whenever he acts altruistic to a degree, an implied spoiled favoritism from his father with a less than stellar relationship with his mother, his relationship with the Joestars being that of a great nuance to his quiet life- though on the same level as the others that oppose him, and doesn't have any aspirations outside of his hometown- while having a versatile Stand to make up for his weaker human body.

* TheSociopath: Despite his AffablyEvil nature, Kira stands out as one of the more depraved villains in the series. The ways he murders his victims are anything but pretty, his paranoia is off the charts, and he proves to be a [[WouldHurtAChild physically ''and'' mentally abusive parent]]. Worst of all, he has no justification for his crimes. He knows murder is bad, but he brushes it off as an [[ForTheEvulz addi]][[ItAmusedMe ction]].

** In VideoGame/JoJosBizarreAdventureAllStarBattleR's ASB Mode, he has a unique interaction with Anasui, where he derides the "hero" for dismembering his girlfriend out of anger, stating that when he does it, it's at least because he has a fetish for women's hands (as if that's any better).

* AbusiveParents: Played with in regards to Hayato, as he isn't actually Hayato's father, but just posing as him. This didn't prevent Kira from ''killing him'', and later [[WhyAmITicking planting Bites the Dust on him]]. Araki also intended for Kira to have abusive parents himself, but chose to make him more of a HateSink and merely ''suggest'' that his parents sheltered him too much, with Yoshihiro's involvement later in the story seemingly corroborating this.

* AbusiveParents: Played with in regards to Hayato, as he isn't actually Hayato's father, but just posing as him. This didn't prevent Kira from ''killing him'', and later [[WhyAmITicking planting Bites the Dust on him]].

*** While The World has its time-based powers from the beginning, Killer Queen only gaining its final power as a miraculous solution to solve his current dilemma.

*** Both are powerful, close-ranged Stands with control over time and are equipped with sub Stands to make them more dangerous. However, Killer Queen is not as effective at close combat against physically superior and relies mostly on its bomb-making ability and its remote bomb Sheer Heart Attack to be a threat while King Crimson's ability to both erase time and see the future with Epitaph combined with its immense strength make any attempt at close combat virtually a suicide mission until a means was found to counter it.
*** Killer Queen never emotes and always has a blank, emotionless stare on its face while King Crimson is prone to frequent and unnerving facial expressions. Additionally Likewise, Killer Queen never speaks nor has a Stand Cry while Diavolo constantly speaks through King Crimson.

* EvilCanNotComprehendGood: An unorthodox example; Yoshikage seems to be incapable to comprehend his own good, after being relieved that Shinobu was not too severely harmed by Stray Cat. He becomes confused by the feeling of wanting to keep her safe but tells himself that [[PragmaticVillainy he just needs her for his cover]].

** And then, [[OverlyLongGag on top of everything else]], having spent his life obsessed with hands, he is dragged to hell by the disembodied hands of the Ghost Alley.

** Another one is {{Wrath}}. Whenever his lifestyle is being threatened, he's prone to giving in to his anger. Rather than finishing Koichi off quickly, he instead wastes time to vent his frustration out on the boy by brutally beating him to near-death due to the public humiliation he suffered earlier, which bought the heroes enough time to catch up to him. After being annoyed by a couple on the train, he loses control of his impulses and murders both of them which was caught by Hayato on camera, and later murders Hayato himself when the boy threatens him with evidence. It's only through a combination of luck and his quick-thinking that he's able to escape the consequences of this bad habit.

** To Jotaro. Both are antisocial Japanese men that are surprisingly resourceful in dire situations with unusually powerful close-range Stands. They are also more popular with the ladies than they would like to be; they even react identically to displays of affection from women. Also, they both awaken new time-related Stand powers by the end of their respective parts out of a dire need: Jotaro from being pressured to the verge of death from DIO, and Kira from the prospect of being unveiled by the Morioh Stand users. Both even got their powers and begun their journey around the same age. The difference between them is that Jotaro is a genuinely good person who voluntarily gave up his normal life in order to save his mother and other prospective DIO victims while Kira has no problem destroying the lives of others in order to maintain his "normal life."

** To Jotaro. Both are antisocial Japanese men that are surprisingly resourceful in dire situations with unusually powerful close-range Stands. They are also more popular with the ladies than they would like to be; they even react identically to displays of affection from women. Also, they both awaken new time-related Stand powers by the end of their respective parts out of a dire need: Jotaro from being pressured to the verge of death from DIO, and Kira from the prospect of being unveiled by the Morioh Stand users. Both even got their powers and begun their journey around the same age. The difference between them is that Jotaro eventually learned to open himself up more and trust in others. Kira, on the other hand, was given the opportunity to live a new life with an ordinary family, but instead chooses to revert to his old ways.

* AdvertisedExtra: Downplayed. He's still the overall BigBad, but Kira in his original look only appeared in two arcs before he forcefully switched his face with that of Kosaku, to the point where Kosaku!Kira is considered the Part 4 BigBad in ''All-Star Battle'', while regular Kira is relegated to DLC.

* TheGenericGuy: Invoked. He deliberately cultivates as unremarkable a public image as possible to avoid any unwanted attention toward his desired quiet life.