#joshulove

One of the things I love about Joshu is how he is deeply cohesive in his contradictions. Again: I don't think everyone should like him (the fandom would be way less funny if you all did, for sure) but my goal is always to open the haters' eyes to how well-written/designed he is. Araki is a very bold and talented artist and he knows what he is doing. Since I had never seen someone analyze how Joshu's design is deeply attached to his persona, I thought I may as well do it myself.

💱 MOHAWK-BOWLCUT 🫆 Starting with the character's signature, of course: his ridiculous hair. While bowl cuts are usually associated with childhood, goofiness and nerdiness, mohawks are the signature of the punk movement, known for confronting mainstream, taking a lot of attention and bringing a statement to non-conformity. So why not a mix of both these styles, and make it a NATURAL, meaning the character was born that way? Super telling, interesting and fitting with Joshu. Yet controversial and universally (almost, because I love it) hated, Joshu's hair is undeniably his own perfect summary, illustrating the rebellion and the vulnerability living together as a twisted and mostly nonfunctional piece.

💱 TOP-HALF 🫆 Similar to Diamond is Unbreakable, JoJolion's designs are not the craziest in Jojo. Both Joshu and Yasuho, though weird, wear pieces that can mostly be seen in real teenagers or, at least, "costumey" versions of what you would expect them to dress, plus a quite modern and fashionable touch. Josuke's is just an almost regular sailor outfit; Daiya's cute, fluffy outfit isn't at all regular in day-to-day situations, but it's not something absurd to see worn on a teenager who is into kawaii stuff. Joshu's high collar shirt with the bow tie and a queue of side-placed angular, well-defined square shapes that resemble suspenders is such a classical, well-known nerd/geek stereotype, it's not even funny. It is tighter than the average nerd shirt, but still very cartoonishly alike.

But on the side of his sleeves, there's a unique detail: metal pieces that "cut" the shoulder line, as if the sleeves - if not, everything - in his shirt can be detached and attached again, which is super fitting considering Nut King Call's powers.

💱 BOTTOM-HALF 🫆 Depending on the design version, Joshu's pants details can look pointed (manga, mainly) or torn (game); either way, both styles allude to punk, emo or even gothic, and this contrast between the top/ bottom part visually mirrors his internal contradictions well. His square belt is also relatively brusque, as are the rest of his accessories.

💱 SHOES 🫆 While Josuke and Yasuho wear sneakers, Joshu's shoes seem to be "too formal" for his age/personality, giving the rich kid "I don't leave my house that much" appeal. They pretty much look like social shoes, neater and something you'd expect Smartschoolboy9 would use to prove that he is indeed a good boy. And the blucke is big, just like his belt and bracelets.

Notheless, the shoes are also sharp and not that far from looking like goth pikes boots.

💱 BRACELETS 🫆 Joshu's bracelets' format is very similar to the thicker bracelets/wristbands that punks use. They may not have studs or spikes, but they definitely bring a more crude and even aggressive appearance to his look, in comparison to more delicate ones.

💱 FACIAL TRAITS 🫆 Late JoJolion had same face syndrome, yes, but Joshu's face is SO different in the beginning of the part and in Eyes of Heaven, it is facinating.

He has very distinguished features: his eyes are downturned, his nose is quite pointed and upturned, and his lips are bigger and rounder than most other characters. His brows give the impression that he is always furrowing them to understand something; that disgusted expression that kind of gives Okuyasu in the beginning of DIU; the idiotic, over-sensitive tough guy. So, again, it is a curious mix of looking stupid/inoffensive and trying to look "rough". In comparison to Josuke's, his features seem less harmonious, less manly, and more comically proportionate, featuring striking traits that facilitate his role as the comic relief and add drama to the expression of his strong emotions (screaming, being loud in general...).

(Please ignore Josuke's weird lashes in the photo; this was the only MMD model I found and It is based on EOH character models).

💱VOICE 🫆 Let's be real: Joshu's voice needs to be talked about more. I'm a sucker for his dub in both official games and have been ever since hoping they bring Hiroaki Miura back for JoJolion's animation. He did such a good job bringing Joshu's comic side while still sounding realistically dumb... because Joshu does not have a deep, emotionless voice like Jotaro or an imposing, villainous, seductive voice like Dio's; his voice is deep, but overly expressive, drawled and shaky, as if his mannerisms and his mental development were more juvenile than his physical/corporeal self. AND when he laughs, it sounds like both a prick's kid annoying smirk and an unrequited moan. IT! IS! PERFECT! FOR! HIM!

CONCLUSION...

 Everything in Joshu's design leads you to read him as a spoiled rich kid simulating countercultural elements through fundamental geometric shapes the most infantile attempts. He has a rebellious, "street kid" side that, even if emotionally justified by his neglected childhood, isn't externalized organically because he isn't self-aware enough to understand and control his internal world. He has antagonistic behaviors not because he's a countercultural young man consciously involved in protesting against society and its problems, but because he can't manage himself - and he IS part of the very society that punks opposed: a society that raises emotionally immature, luxury-driven, spoiled people with way too many resources in their hands.

Joshu is that spoiled society that is too comfortable to change and use their full potential.