Warning: Spoilers for Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Crazy Diamond's Demonic Heartbreak chapter 9The latest chapter of the Jojo's Bizarre Adventure spinoff Crazy Diamond's Demonic Heartbreak sees the story taking elements from deep within the series' past, finally tying the somewhat disconnected beginning parts into the greater narrative of the Joestar family.
In the popular consciousness, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure is intrinsically tied to the iconic idea of spirit-based Stand powers, so it may surprise some casual fans to learn that Stands weren't present in the series from the beginning. Part 1, known as Phantom Blood, deals with Dio becoming a vampire, and the first Jojo, Jonathan, having to master sun-based powers known as Hamon (or "Ripple") to defeat him. Hamon again plays a role in part 2, Battle Tendency, where the creators of the vampiric Stone Mask artifact are revealed. However, these creators, the Pillar Men, bear no relevance beyond part 2, and after Dio is defeated, the vampires and Hamon abilities never come up again. As a result, fans will debate whether parts 1 and 2 are even worth engaging in, or if newcomers should simply start with part 3 to get a better idea of what the franchise is like as a whole.
As a spinoff with a new author, Kohei Kadono, Crazy Diamond's Demonic Heartbreak has aimed to resolve this disparity in its latest chapter by bringing these earlier installments into the fold. While Demonic Heartbreak is set just before part 4, it has primarily followed Hol Horse, a character from part 3, as well as part 4's Jojo, Josuke Higashikata. As it turns out, the newly revealed villain, Kazuki Karaiya, received vampiric powers from his grandfather, a soldier who was present for the villain Kars' ascension to the ultimate life form in part 2 and who became a vampire then. This was all accomplished using the Stone Mask (or more accurately, another one like it) from part 1, which Kars thoroughly understood how to use as its creator. Kazuki ends the chapter also in control of Petsounds, a Stand-using parrot raised by DIO in part 3, and the physical Stand Tohth, a manga that predicts the future and also appeared in part 3. It also seems to be implied that Petsounds is obeying Kazuki specifically because his vampiric nature is reminiscent of DIO's and thus familiar to the bird.
Giving a modern antagonist powers derived from those early parts really helps to keep them relevant in a way that they simply haven't been thus far. Without knowledge of Hamon, how will Jojo's Josuke and Hol Horse deal with a vampire? Vampires can have Stands of their own, as DIO proved, but so far Kazuki doesn't appear to have one; instead, he'll have to rely on these borrowed Stands, which can always backfire or fight entirely with his vampiric abilities in a way that hasn't been seen since part 2. And, since Joseph doesn't know of Josuke's existence at this point (and vice versa), there's no way for them to learn about Hamon. Josuke and Hol Horse are simply going to have to find their own vampire-fighting tactics. This turn of events may even offer a new idea as to why the Stand Arrows were created--as an alternative way for humans to battle vampires and Pillar Men.
With a writer as knowledgeable about Jojo's Bizarre Adventure lore as Kohei Kadono, fans who love to see these intricate connections built up are certainly in for a treat. The future of Crazy Diamond's Demonic Heartbreak is quickly becoming unpredictable even for Tohth, and that's a great thing for readers.