This WMG page is for theories pertaining specifically to Stardust Crusaders. For theories regarding the series as a whole, click here. For theories for other parts, visit one of the following pages:
- Phantom Blood
- Battle Tendency
- Diamond is Unbreakable
- Golden Wind
- Stone Ocean
- Steel Ball Run
- JoJolion
- The JOJOLands
Plus, Holly IS Joseph's daughter, so it would make sense.
- This is actually quite more likely than you may think. In the JoJonium volume 9 interview, Araki says that there is a correlation between the vine-like appearance of Joseph's stand and his role as a Ripple user, to the point of heavily implying that Hermit Purple is actually the Ripple itself manifesting as a stand (he even goes as far to say that if a stand user like Jotaro travelled back in time to his battles with the Pillarmen fifty years ago, he could see Joseph fighting with Hermit Purple), this also explains why Jonathan's unnamed stand is identical in appearance and the swirly purple designs on Star Platinum (latter one confirmed by the JoJoveller stand commentaries). Since the Ripple was inherited by Joseph in a Lamarckian manner, it's not too far-fetched to assume Holly might have had some potential to awaken its abilities, which explains the appearance of her stand.
- Except Dio stopped time several times, even when Jotaro was not present (against Abdul, Polnareff, Hol Horse, etc...). A more valid theory that is circulating is that Dio's / Jonathan's stand can replicate any Stand power of other Joestar family members that are alive at the time. That would explain both his Star Platinum-like abilities (and the humanoid shape of his Stand), and his Hermit Purple-like abilities (and the vine-like shaped Stand that we got a glimpse of). Jotaro's Stand had started manifesting before the story starts, so even if Dio's Stand needed Star Platinum to be active to copy it (which is not necessarily true), it's believable that it already was when Dio first faced Abdul.
- The World's power is actually most likely the powers of all living Joestars. The official explanation about the Hermit Purple-like Stand is that it is Jonathan's Stand, but a flashback in Part 6 has Dio healing Pucci's foot. Either Jousuke or Giorno are alive at this point, and both Crazy Diamond and Gold Experience can heal others.
- Neither Crazy Diamond nor Gold Experience are capable of the healing that DIO did to Pucci's foot. Crazy Diamond can only return things to previous states, but Pucci's foot was deformed for well beyond the time limit (Which the final Kira fight shows was never that lon to begin with). Gold Experience heals by creating perfect donor flesh which then heals naturally, which is obviously not what happened to the foot at all. DIO was able to heal the foot because of his vampire abilities, which have always been to manipulate the structure of bodies, such as with DIO's chimeras in part 1, his own and Vanilla Ice's heads in part 3, and most obviously with the pillar men in part 2, especially Wham's daisy chain of nazis whose hands he fused together.
- It has the power to copy other stands. Stands are generally shown to be both unique even among family (Joseph and Josuke's have literally nothing in common despite being father and son) and based on one's personality so it makes very little sense that Dio and Jotaro's stands possess the exact same powers despite being vastly different personalities, nor would it make sense for Jonathan's body to possess an exact copy of Hermit Purple since he and Joseph are almost exact opposites, so the most likely option is that those aren't Dio/Jonathan's stands. They literally are Star Platinum and Hermit Purple copied by The World. Due to the mentioned spiritual link between Dio and the Jostars it would make sense their abilities are the first copied. What better ability is there for the selfish egotistical sociopath than to have the power of every stand in The World at his fingertips?
- Plenty of people have very similar stands to each other, including the D'Arby brother's soul theft, Terrance D'arby and Joseph sharing telepathy, Wheel of Fortune and Strength being very similar as well. DIO and Jotaro are not as different as they appear, and neither were Jonathan and Joseph.
- It's also possible The World can replicate other Stands but not more than one at a time. Once Dio realized the potential of time stopping he promptly forgot the others existed. He didn't use his vampire powers much in this part so it would be in character to forget the more niche powers.
Lying and cheating fits Daniel J. D'Arby perfectly as well, though it might be harder to justify this for Terrence.
Alternatively...
I say Terrence might have been the vampire because Daniel is sitting out in open, very much legitimate sunlight in his chapter with no ill effects, and said sunlight plays a role in his chapter as well. As for Terrence being in open daylight? Remember that the room Terrence and the heroes had their battle in was an illusionary room created by Kenny G's Stand which cracked when Terrence was sent flying into the "horizon" by Star Platinum, and dispersed when Kenny G was beaten, so the sun seen in that room was a harmless illusion, giving off no UV rays or vampire-killing rays of light or what have you.
- Bucciarati is much more similar to Zeppeli and is the same nationality. Kakyoin doesn't have all that many similarities to the Zeppelis other than dying while imparting information.
- It wouldn't be completely out of the realm of possibility for Kakyoin to be related to the Zeppelis: Caesar had many siblings, so one of them could've married a Japanese person and had a child who would go on to have Kakyoin. That Kakyoin often travelled abroad with his family (he had gone to Egypt before the start of Part 3) makes this all the more probable. In addition, consider the Capcom fighter. While Avdol and Iggy both survived in their endings when they died in the manga, Kakyoin (both versions of him) ultimately died in their endings. Definitely echoes of the Zeppelis' curse: helping another at the cost of their own life...
- I'm not opposed to this theory, but there's one problem: the Zeppeli family children we saw were all blondes. Kakyoin is shown to have pink hair—while it's possible he dyed his hair, if it's natural, then he should have some shade closer to strawberry blonde as opposed to pink (as shown by genetics, explained here).
- Why does he need to be a Zeppeli just because he fulfills a similar role to them? What would that add to the story? Is being a kind-hearted, self-sacrificing person something that only the Zeppelis can do? It's just a Recurring Element, nothing more.
- Wasn't this implied or even confirmed when DIO uses a Hermit Purple-like stand himself without smashing the camera?
- This kind of thing seems to be hereditary in the Jojo-verse. Compare with Jotaro and Jolyne (father and daughter, both use Ora Ora Ora) or Dio and Giorno (father and son, both use Muda Muda Muda).
The Stinger for Stardust Crusaders will cut to the late eighties Morioh, where Tomoko Higashikata will hear that her little boy Josuke has miraculously recovered from the fever that had plagued him for nearly the past two months.
- Jossed. Stardust Crusaders ended with no licensed music, and the Diamond is Unbreakable adaptation wasn't even foreshadowed until months later.
- Plus Joseph wasn't there to watch or unaware of all the events listed. Death 13 is dream-based and removes all memories he would have of his experience with him. Both of Boingo's fights with the Crusaders bounced around Joseph, and the Pet Shop/Alessi fights didn't involve him, the later was during the same time as when Joseph was having trouble with Mariah.
- However, you mention Joseph didn't want to mention he fought an orangutan, but Forever was in the OVA. Also, I'm pretty sure Joseph wouldn't mix up details such as where they met Polnareff or who was there when Avdol and Iggy died. He was also there for both of the D'Arby brothers, so how could he forget one but remember the other? Then again, Joseph is, in fact A. old, and B. could've fabricated a lot of things.
- The whole story arc is them travelling across the the globe, and the cast itself is pretty racially diverse, so it's possible all of them know how to speak another language.
- Jotaro is fluent in Japanese and can also speak English since he talks with DIO (see below) and also has some Gratuitous English lines.
- Joseph can speak English, Italian possibly from spending time with Caesar and Suzie Q, Japanese since Holly is married to a Japanese man and possibly learned how to speak it from him, and possibly Cantonese Chinese because he said once that he stayed at Hong Kong once long enough to be able to read a restaurant menu.
- Kakyoin can speak Japanese, English for similar reasons as Jotaro in addition of writing "Baby Stand" on his arm in English, and also possibly Cantonese Chinese since he's the only character besides Joseph to talk to the residents in Hong Kong (although the scene was anime exclusive) and happens to know a few cultural trivia of Hong Kong, implying that he once traveled there long enough to learn the language.
- Polnareff can speak French as it is his native tongue, English, and also possibly Italian since he appears in Part 5, where the setting is in Italy and the majority of the cast is Italian.
- Avdol can speak Egyptian Arabic and English since he talks with Joseph and English is a commonly learned foreign language in Egypt.
- DIO however can only speak English as he very likely knows no Japanese since he spends 100 years in the ocean and lived his life mostly in England.
Magician's Red has a developmental potential stat of D, meaning that Avdol had learned a grand majority of what it could do, but there was still some things left over that he had yet to discover. Now the Magician card's symbolism is that the figure depicted is usually holding a wand pointed towards heaven, and the gesture is said to symbolize the magician's ability to bridge the gap between the heavens and the earth. If Avdol had learned to "bridge that gap" provided his Stand was capable of it, there might've been a chance that Avdol could bridge said gap by granting his stand independence, therefore having it traverse the earth even after the day he'd eventually pass on, similar to Anubis.
- It's probably worth noting that J. Geil inherited one of his deformities — his second right hand — from his mother, Enya. If the above WMG about his father is true, it's not too much of a stretch to assume that J. Geil's maternal grandfather had those proclivities as well. That in mind, it's no wonder J. Geil grew up to be a Complete Monster — the men on both sides of his family tree were just as bad as him.
- Alternatively Enya is a rapist. She's not that better than him and despite him being Obviously Evil she treats him like an innocent. Maybe they have more in common than we'd want to think about.