Warning: Spoilers for Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: The JoJoLands Chapter 20
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Part 9 ofJojo’s Bizarre Adventurehas been a wild ride so far, following Jodio Joestar and his ragtag band as they pull off crime after crime using their Stand abilities. One artifact rapidly became the center of the story, however: the Lava Rock.
The Lava Rock is exactly as it sounds: a piece of volcanic rock that originated from the northern slopes of Hawaii’s Hualalai volcano. It was originallyin the possession of Rohan Kishibe, who was studying the rock’s unusual properties, when it was stolen by Jodio during a home invasion. Jodio was aware that the Lava Rock had unusual abilities, but didn’t really understand what that meant until they began seeing its effects. The Lava Rock is said to draw wealth towards its owner, whomever that may be, and does so in a very literal sense, altering the course of events to allow the valued object to end up in its owner’s possession.
The Lava Rock Manipulates Fortune and Misfortune
The Lava Rock’s Powers are Far Greater Than They Appear
The Lava Rock has been seen in action a few times now, and each time it has become a bit clearer what it’s actually capable of. By experimenting with the Lava Rock, Jodio has been able to determine that anything which the rock touches will be drawn back to it by circumstance, leading tothe item ending up in Jodio’s hands. However, it doesn’t seem to exclusively work on things which it has touched; in chapter 20, a briefcase full of valuable paperwork makes its way into Jodio’s possession, but he didn’t even know about the paperwork to have touched it, suggesting proximity may be sufficient.
The mechanisms by which a valuable object returns to the Lava Rock are complicated, to say the least. It doesn’t just fly towards the rock; instead,the valuable object will be traded, transferred, or otherwise moved between people, until it eventually makes its way to the Lava Rock’s owner. For example, an expensive watch which came into close contact with the rock was bought by a man, who subsequently lost it, leading to it ending up in Jodio’s possession. Sometimes, the path which an object takes to return to the rock is extremely convoluted, and may require people acting subconsciously, as if being controlled by the rock.
One thing that has become clear in chapter 20 is that the Lava Rock isn’t just bringing fortune to Jodio; it’s balanced out by misfortune happening to other people. The man who owned the briefcase full of paperwork, for example, was badly injured in the Stand battle which took place at the hospital, which caused him to lose track of the briefcase and have it mistakenly identified as belonging to Paco. Other smaller moments of misfortune have also occurred, such as Paco getting his $20 back after spending it, due to a bug ending up in his drink and receiving a refund. The more valuable the item, the more deadly the misfortune, it would seem.
The Lava Rock’s Powers Echo Previous Jojo Villains
Jodio’s Lava Rock’s Ability Resembles That of Other Fate-Manipulating Villains
Of course, this is far from the first time an ability that plays with fate has been introduced inJojo. In part 7,Steel Ball Run, the Saint’s Corpse parts are said to bring 1,000 years of good fortune to whomever obtains all 9 pieces, as well as their home country. In part 8,Jojolion, the ultimate villain’s Stand, Wonder of U, causes misfortune to befall people who attempt to harm its owner, which happens in complex ways, much like the Lava Rock.With these kinds of fate-manipulating powers being largely the domain of villains, it’s certainly interesting that part 9’s protagonist would end up with such an ability.
Jodio is far more villainous than most of hisJojopredecessors, what with his criminal lifestyle and self-confessed sociopathic tendencies. It’s also clear that Jodio’s allies, such as his sibling Dragona, are becoming a bit uncomfortable with how the Lava Rock works, as it seems to be causing terrible things to happen all around them. Jodio could be well on his way to becoming a villain protagonist at this rate, driving away his friends and allies in his constant attempts to become wealthy.
The manipulation of fate, and of misfortune and fortune, has played a big role inJojosince the reboot, and it looks like part 9 will be examining this theme much more closely than prior parts did. Does this kind of power have an inherent corrupting effect to it, or is it only likely to be utilized by people who are already corrupt? Knowing that the Lava Rock is essentially a zero-sum game, causing others to lose in proportion to what its owner gains, is it in any way ethical for anyone to use it?
Jodio is Targeting the Worst People–For Now
Jodio’s Attempts at Claiming Wealth Are Aimed at the Powerful
The one thing Jodio has going for him as a protagonist right now is that his ultimate targets, first Howler and now the bank, are both corrupt in the first place, so it doesn’t feel quite so ethically wrong to try to steal from them. However, Jodio can’t control who the Lava Rock affects–it could very well rope a number of innocent people into this scheme and cause misfortune to befall them to get the money from either target to Jodio.
But Jodio’s ambitions are so strong, that he may not even care about the innocent people being caught up in the Lava Rock’s mechanisms. This could very well become a real sticking point for the crew,especially Dragona, driving him apart from his friends and setting him up in an even more villainous position than before. Whether Jodio falls and becomes no better than his targets, or manages to overcome his sociopathic nature and become a hero is looking to be the main story thread in part 9 ofJojo’s Bizarre Adventure, and it will certainly be interesting to see Jodio’s story unfold.
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a Japanese multimedia franchise created by Hirohiko Araki. It follows the adventures of the Joestar family, spanning generations, each with unique abilities and battling supernatural enemies. Known for its eccentric characters, distinctive art style, and creative battles, it includes manga, anime, games, and merchandise.
