DIO

Name: DIO. Full name: Dio Brando. Age: 120121. Alias: Lord DIO (DIO-sama) (By his followers), Stone Mask Man (By Zeppeli) Birthday: 18671868 (self-reported). Birthplace: Northeast London. Gender: Male. Height: 185 cm (6 ft 1 in). Nationality: British. Favorites: Food: Red wine/Human blood (as a vampire). Hobbies: Reading. Species: Vampire, Human (formerly). Hair Color: Blond. Eye Color: Green. Eyesight: Good, acute. Voice: Soft. Dislikes: Dogs. Goals: Ascending to the top. Fears: Getting old. Handedness: Right-handed. Relationships: Dario Brando (father), Unnamed mother, George Joestar (adoptive father), Jonathan Joestar (adoptive brother). Affiliation: Agents of DIO (leader), Enrico Pucci (protégé). Dio Brando later known simply as DIO, is the main antagonist of the first and third parts of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure series, Phantom Blood and Stardust Crusaders, as well as the first main antagonist of the series overall. He is also a primary antagonist in the sixth part of the series, Stone Ocean.

Originally a man of low birth but peerless ambition, Dio is a cunning villain of little conscience and has an insatiable hunger for power. After becoming a vampire and later a Stand user, wielding the all-powerful The World, Dio has gathered many minions around him and is responsible for many major events of the series. His legacy and influence persists throughout the first six parts of JoJo, with characters either being related to him or heavily inspired by him.

DIO doesn't have a visible face as an effect of the shadowy darkness of his mansion. He has shoulder-length blond hair and is often topless, exposing Jonathan's muscular body (on which his head is attached in place). Due to prolonged attachment, Jonathan's body has become pale, so pale that it seems transparent.[15] He wears pants with suspenders, boots, shiny cuffs on both wrists, and heart-shaped knee guards. This form of DIO is commonly referred to as Evil Incarnate DIO or Shadow DIO

Due to his nature as a vampire, DIO is often stated to be a very attractive being, described by Avdol as exuding a bewitching sensuality, speaking with a deeply soothing voice and possessing a piercing gaze.[16] Many of his subordinates describe him as handsome,[17] beautiful[18] or awe inspiring in some fashion. Attacking his visage even severely enrages Vanilla Ice, one of his most loyal underlings.[19] Supernatural charisma helped DIO build his army and despite the fear that his mere presence instills, many of the people who encounter him feel a bizarre sense of calm from it.

Once revealed, DIO dons a jacket with a tight tank-top underneath, as well as chaps with an exposed crotch. His face is now in full-view, and on his head is a heart-adorned circlet to match his knee guards. This is his form during the beginning of the DIO's World story arc. In most depictions of him, DIO's outfit is tinted orange or yellow. He also wears a necklace covering his neck scar and heart motifs above his feet and on his pant legs, but he quickly stopped sporting them after his first stairway confrontation with Polnareff. When pursuing the Joestar group, DIO donned a cloak that he ended up discarding during his confrontation with Kakyoin.

Dio is consistently manipulative and violently domineering, and has repeatedly shown a lack of conscience and empathy.

Dio's most recognizable characteristics are his boundless ambition and his love of power. Abused by his father and having lived in the most miserable living conditions, Dio set for himself the goal of becoming the richest, then the most powerful being on Earth. To do so, Dio used anything or anyone that he could in order to further his goals, disregarding any kind of morality that would restrain the range of actions available to him. Using either manipulation, seduction, or plain violence, Dio constantly sought to become more and more powerful. Dio enjoys being in a position of power and has repeatedly stated how great he felt being in a dominating position. On the contrary, Dio never tolerated that someone could stand up to him or equal him in power, and was enraged and deeply disturbed at the thought several times.

Throughout his life, Dio has tended to surround himself with witless cronies and later minions, who were attracted by his natural charisma. Not thinking much of them at first, he then selected those he deemed as particularly evil, claiming that an evil person wasn't bound by rules such as honor and thus were stronger mentally. This belief culminated in including the absorption of 36 souls of sinners, or, as he claims, particularly strong souls, to unlock a power greater than that of his Stand, The World.

Naturally, Dio is an incredibly-selfish person, only looking over his own interest and overlooking those of others at best, trampling them on the ground at worst. Due to his composed nature, Dio can and will manipulate and take what he can from all sorts of people, using any method, as long as the person suits his present desires because he is primarily interested in their capabilities. Dio is the type who is incapable of loving another person wholeheartedly.

The only people he can be said to have held some type of affection for were Jonathan Joestar, and Enrico Pucci; Dio recognizing Jonathan's worth as equal to his own, and having been friends with Pucci. Still, Dio stole the former's body and his friendship with the latter was proven nonetheless beneficial of a grander plan to further himself.

When interacting with someone, Dio will constantly try to manipulate them and sway them into his side, using a veneer of gentleness and his natural charm to make people admire and like him. For instance, he acted the model son and popular charismatic friend to Jonathan's father and entourage to better isolate him, and as a vampire, his charisma only increased as he appeared as a charming mysterious individual. However, his natural arrogance would lead him to openly insult and belittle his enemies, notably disparaging their insignificant strength before his vampiric or Stand powers. He is the type who would be comfortable being with a man or woman; however, he will do anything to get what he wants and would "absolutely never pour 100% of his love into a specific person."

Dio approaches obstacles and problems in a number of ways depending on the situation and his mood. When he was human, Dio was careful and methodical in trying to break Jonathan's spirit and slowly poisoned George for a sizeable period of time, only being thwarted due to unlucky twists of fate. As a vampire, DIO at first let his arrogance get the better of him and took a laissez-faire approach, only sending subordinates to kill the Joestar Group while he rested and recovered. However, his defeat by Jonathan taught him to be wary of the Joestar Family in its entirety, thus he would later ambush Jonathan. During the events of Stardust Crusaders, he would send his minions to delay the Joestars as much as possible to recover strength.

During his final battle, his wariness, tactical acumen and arrogance would clash to make Dio alternate between meticulous approach and overconfident attacks.

DIO did not change much since his burial at the bottom of the ocean for one hundred years, as he remained a remorseless and murderous megalomaniac, but nonetheless he had matured a little by recognizing valor in others and being generally more calm and level-headed. DIO does not appear frequently in Stardust Crusaders except towards the end, but is seen discussing various philosophies with Stand users he wishes to recruit, and with his already-loyal followers, particularly Enya the Hag who serves as his main adviser. It seems equally likely that DIO does this to manipulate and persuade as that he believes what he says, but nonetheless acknowledges the power and valor simple humans can have, notably respecting one's willingness to die for his goal. Wishing to quickly dispose of the Joestars, he listened to Enya and was told that she'd already sent agents to deal with them, and quietly rested in his mansion to gain more strength. Furthermore, DIO learned his lesson and stops underestimating his opponents, being particularly careful around the Joestar bloodline. He nonetheless sneered at other Stand users' efforts to fight him, most notably Kakyoin's, whose discovery ended up being crucial in his defeat. This time, DIO is far more calm and collected. Maybe due to knowing that his Stand The World is far above anyone's reach, DIO is more tolerant of people resisting him, and didn't react to Polnareff's taunts and insults. He even seems to appreciate Hol Horse's insubordination, which confirms the mercenary's strength, and let him go try to assassinate Jotaro. However, DIO is still callous about human life and killed anyone who would fail him, even Enya—who was, again, his closest adviser.

The usually confident and cunning gambler Daniel D'Arby was driven to madness when he couldn't handle the pressure of possibly revealing DIO's Stand ability to Jotaro. True to himself, DIO is enjoying the fact that he is wielding the most powerful Stand in his organization, being unconcerned by the heroes' effort to discover his power as he thinks they are meaningless. When Jotaro reveals himself to be able to move within the stopped time, DIO is initially very distraught but recomposes himself quickly, devising other plans to get rid of Jotaro by exploiting his advantage. The full scale of his insanity is visible when, overjoyed to have completely fused with Jonathan's body and being at full power, DIO declares that he was experiencing "the greatest high" and delightfully drills his index finger into his skull.

DIO’s final speech exposes that he is still willing to use any way to win and despises any concept of honor or revenge, ultimately using a cheap trick to blind Jotaro momentarily. However, this was all for naught since DIO would ultimately meet retribution by dying at Jotaro's hand.

DIO's Stand is The World; a close-ranged Stand with comparable, if not superior strength and speed against Jotaro Kujo's Star Platinum.

About a year after gaining his Stand, DIO discovered its signature ability of stopping time. At first, he could only do this for a very short amount of time, but by the end of Part 3, he is able to stop time for a maximum of 9 seconds.[29] This duration would have continued to increase, had DIO not been defeated. When stopping time, DIO gives the impression that he is teleporting or otherwise moving at impossible speeds.

The ability is best known for DIO's activation and cancellation phrases, "The World! Time, stop!" and "Time resumes".

Having had ample time to rest and train with The World, DIO is shown to have been thorough in exploring his Stand's abilities. Case in point, it was during an experimental session during which DIO sought to test the limit of The World's speed and power that he discovered his time stop ability. To give himself an advantage, DIO has tried to keep the ability of The World a secret, only using it at key moments to psych out an opponent and perform incomprehensible sneak attacks, as well as only trusting its secret to a few confidants such as Enya the Hag and not hesitating to eliminate her as soon as she remotely risked to inform the Joestars of his timestop power. However, as soon as they understood its ability, DIO dropped the secret and showed a great degree of confidence about the supremacy of his power, ultimately not caring about his secret as he was convinced that no one could do anything about it. Thus, he began to liberally stop time against Jotaro. Thanks to the free time-frame of action granted by The World, DIO has made it possible to instantly reposition himself to avoid attacks or set himself up to attack, kill enemies instantly, or even displace his opponents to toy with them.

DIO has shown a high degree of control over The World, using it to battle Jotaro's Star Platinum to a standstill, but showing superior technique in hand to hand combat by using low kicks to unbalance Star Platinum or feints to out-punch Star Platinum. However, his vampire constitution means that DIO never showed the same care at using The World defensively at he preferred to avoid being hit at all and regenerate by sucking blood. Unlike every other enemy Stand user in Stardust Crusaders, DIO actively sought to improve his Stand's capabilities.

He notably wanted the Joestar Group to come to him so that he could suck the blood of a Joestar and sync himself up with Jonathan's body to bolster his powers further. Araki himself has stated that DIO had the potential to stop time indefinitely.

Moreover, DIO had searched a way to unlock a power even more powerful than The World, using esoteric knowledge to divine a plan to create another mightier Stand.

When DIO awakened The World, Jonathan's body also awakened a Hermit Purple-like Stand power with semi-precognitive abilities.[31] Similar to Hermit Purple, it can produce psychic photographs by striking a camera or a crystal ball, which DIO used to track the Joestars and their friends' current location to send Stand users after them. DIO was even able to tell when Joseph used Hermit Purple to take a psychic photograph of him, and instinctively knew that his acquisition of a Stand also awoke Stand abilities in Jonathan's descendants.

By taking over Jonathan Joestar's body, DIO shares a spiritual connection to the Joestar Family and bears the Star Birthmark. After DIO's reemergence, the spiritual power inside the Joestars awakened and caused the living descendants to develop Stand powers. This also meant that DIO was able to sense their presence and vice versa; according to Joseph, DIO can only sense their presence and isn't able to pinpoint their location or tell them apart.

DIO is able to manipulate his hair to create parasites, which he can then insert into a human's head, to control even those that he cannot otherwise manipulate usually. These flesh buds pierce through the skull into part of the brain, making the victim compliant to Dio's charisma. As explained by Joseph, the parasite will gradually consume the victim's brain. If anyone external attempts to remove the bud, it will sprout tentacles in an attempt to invade the intruder's brain as well. If necessary, DIO can give permission to someone to activate the spore's tentacles from a close distance. The spores possess another effect in case DIO himself ever dies: according to Keicho Nijimura, DIO's cells mutated his father into a greenish unkillable animalistic form upon DIO's death. Presumably, this is a side effect of the flesh buds that all Stand users containing flesh buds suffer from.

The parasite does have weaknesses - while the parasite could not be removed by a normal human, as any inaccuracy could cause irreparable damage to the brain, it can be removed with extreme precision, such as that of Star Platinum, though the person operating needs to be wary of the bud's tentacles. Once it is removed, since the bud is made of vampiric cells, it can then safely be disintegrated by a Ripple user, or by sunlight (as the bud is always seen to be obscured by the host's hair).

Dio is naturally intelligent, displaying cunning and perceptiveness as well as imagination repeatedly.

As a child and teenager, Dio Brando managed to achieve academic excellence with ease, having planned to graduate from university as a top law student.

Otherwise, Dio is a cunning villain and proficient tactician in combat. Dio almost managed to get away with two murders, biding his time in order to have a perfect alibi and was only discovered by accident. Upon his return from the bottom of the ocean, DIO built in six years a powerful criminal empire spanning over several continents and which brought him many riches. In a fight, Dio is particularly cunning and perceptive, his ruthlessness making him able to exploit dishonorable and downright inhuman tactics to get ahead, such as leading his enemies into a trap, using hapless civilians as projectiles and sources of energy, or plain sneak attacks. Dio has the habit of analyzing his opponents and determine quickly a counter to their strengths, such as freezing blood in order to stop the flow of the Ripple or forcing Jotaro's bluff by throwing multiple knives from all directions so that he's forced to act during the stopped time.

Naturally ambitious, Dio constantly seeks to improve himself and meticulously studies his abilities to make the most of them. As such, he developed a freezing power akin to the Pillar Men's Modes in just a month, and in six years, discovered enough about Stands to be able to fuse several together with souls in order to create the ultimate Stand. Arguably his most successful move, Dio experimented with fusing two organisms with his vampiric abilities, later using that knowledge to steal Jonathan's body.

Though he doesn't show it often, Dio has become a natural philosopher, arguing about the human condition with multiple people.

Resilience: All prior to becoming a Vampire, Dio was already an able bare-handed fighter; a skill he says he developed in the slums of London. A good amateur sportsman, during a rugby game as a young adult, he is shown to have developed high athletic ability (as well as fantastic muscle mass). Charisma: Dio is a cunning and charming individual. In addition to Stand users, whom Avdol and Joseph suggest he recruits through charm or charisma, he has seduced many women throughout his life. Knowledge: Throughout both his humble youth and tempestuous maturity, Dio is often seen reading. During his pre-teens, he is seen playing chess with adults. In Stone Ocean, in conversation with Enrico Pucci, he is shown to have accumulated some wisdom within the world of Stands. Importantly, Dio is able to concoct a plan, contained in his diary, incorporating vast, unknown information as to the deliberate creation of Stands of perfectly specific abilities. Spiritual Connection: After stealing Jonathan's body, DIO began to share a spiritual connection with Jonathan's living descendants. He notably was instinctively aware of their presence and their well-being, allowing him to track them across Cairo. Joseph mentions that DIO probably cannot distinguish between him and Jotaro, and only feel their presence.

Vampiric Body: Dio Brando's powers, however, are all at the expense of having a body sustained by sheer willpower alone, rather than vital energy. A sufficiently powerful force of vitality - specifically sunlight or the Ripple - will negate the sustaining force's presence and disintegrate his long-unliving body. Jonathan's Body (formerly): When DIO first acquired Jonathan Joestar's body and resurfaced from the ocean, he was unable to use the full power of his Stand and heal effectively as he did before, thus needing to acquire blood from a live Joestar to compensate and fully synchronize with his new form. Once he negated this weakness by absorbing Joseph Joestar's blood, he, along with his Stand, managed to grow significantly stronger, being able to stop time for more than 5 seconds and recover from injuries quickly.

Dio was born in Northeastern London around 1867 to 1868 to Dario Brando, an alcoholic and abusive father who he secretly despised—in part for having caused pain to his mother. For ten years, Dio lived in squalor and was beaten by his father, having to live through the death of his mother. One day, as Dio tried to give his father medicine, Dario beat him for not buying the alcohol he wanted and told him to sell his dead mother's dress to buy more booze. Disgusted and furious, Dio decided to covertly murder his father with a poison he secured from Wang Chan, learning from his dying father of George Joestar's debt while told to take advantage of and seize the Joestar fortune.

Dio met Jonathan Joestar immediately after arriving at the Joestar Mansion and immediately antagonized him by kicking his dog, Danny. Unimpressed by Jonathan, Dio enacted his plan to wear down Jonathan's spirit through psychological torment. Firstly, Dio victimized Jonathan behind George Joestar I's back, for instance beating him, insulting him or stealing his stuff. In a boxing competition organized by the local youths, Dio challenged Jonathan at a boxing match and wagered their monthly allowance; thanks to his superior experience in fights, Dio easily beat Jonathan, deprived him of his allowance for the month and also took the time to stick his thumb in Jonathan's eye in the middle of a punch. Impressing the local kids with his footwork and technique, and showing them how to make fireworks, he then badmouthed Jonathan to isolate him from his peers.

Nonetheless, Jonathan found happiness when he became Erina Pendleton's boyfriend. Dio decided to shame Erina by forcibly stealing her first kiss, gloating over his devious scheme. However, his joy was cut short as Erina washed herself with some muddy water on the road, the implication of this act making Dio furious to the point of slapping her. Dio's plan eventually backfires when Jonathan learns of it. Furious, JoJo confronts Dio. Dio held the advantage at first, but Jonathan finds the strength to beat him up, bringing Dio to tears. Dio takes out a knife but George interrupts the fight and punishes the boys before it escalates further. During the fight, Dio notices that spikes have sprouted from a Stone Mask on the wall of the mansion but thinks nothing of it at first.

Later, Dio ties Danny up, hides him in a box and throws him in the mansion's incinerator so that the butler accidentally burns the dog down. Nonetheless, Dio notes Jonathan's mental strength and realizes that his plan won't work. Dio decides to play nice and act as if he was Jonathan's friend from then on.

Seven years later, both boys attend Hugh Hudson Academy, where Dio intends to graduate as a top law student. Their studies is capped by a rugby match where Jonathan and Dio cooperate to score a crucial try. Dio speaks of friendship in front of the university's reporters but privately still loathes Jonathan. During that seven-year span, he had acted brotherly and friendly toward Jonathan to lull the latter into a false sense of security. Now an adult, Dio decides to make his move and take the Joestar fortune by secretly poisoning George with the same poison he used to kill Dario. Jonathan realized Dio's plot after reading Dario's letter to his father and confronts his half-brother as he brings another dose of poison to George. Jonathan takes the dose and Dio tries to stop him and claims that he's putting their friendship at risk. In response, Jonathan asks Dio to swear on Dario's name that he's being honest and Dio becomes furious as Dario never had any honor. Dio punches JoJo but Jonathan is now a grown man and tosses Dio to the first floor, declaring that he'll prove Dio's crime. Jonathan then leaves for Ogre Street to seek the source of the poison.

Determined not to be stopped, Dio plans to subtly kill Jonathan by staging an accident with the Stone Mask. But upon learning that Jonathan entered Ogre Street, Dio mused he would not need to kill Jonathan himself. While wandering the streets of Liverpool, Dio is still anxious and drinks from the bottle, disgusting himself. He encounters two drunkards, who insult him. Provoked, Dio decides to test the mask anyways. By slitting the throat of one while using the mask on the other, Dio unwittingly transforms one of the drunkards into a Vampire who nearly kills him were it not for a timely sunrise obliterating his attacker. Returning to the Joestar estate, Dio finds Jonathan waiting for him.

Dio tries to gain time by begging but Robert E. O. Speedwagon and an ensemble of constables appear to arrest him for attempted murder. Cornered and with nothing left to lose, he tries to kill Jonathan but deals a fatal stab wound to George instead and uses his blood to activate the Stone Mask. The constables shoot Dio repeatedly through a window, only for him to come back to life as a vampire and slaughter them.

Luring Dio away from Speedwagon, Jonathan battles the Vampire. JoJo grabs a spear but Dio easily bends it and plunges its tip in Jonathan's shoulder. Dio loses time making an elaborate landing but and when he turns back, he sees that Jonathan has disappeared, surely hiding somewhere. He sees blood dripping behind a curtain and lifts it, but is surprised that the other side is on fire. JoJo plans on setting his home aflame in the hopes that the fire will counter Dio's regeneration. Unfazed, Dio digs his feet into the walls of the mansion and walks his way up to Jonathan. After a short scuffle on the rooftop, Jonathan tackles Dio into the inferno. Dio breaks Jonathan's ribs and grips the stone, but the gentleman luckily retrieves the spear tip and uses it as a makeshift pickax before using his belt to tie Dio's leg and yank him down. Jonathan stabs Dio, who breaks his arms, but JoJo holds his grip on the Vampire. Dio is sure that he can withstand the flames long enough to escape but then Jonathan kicks the walls, impaling him on a statue of the goddess of love; the combination of such a severe injury and the surrounding flames overpowers Dio, who seemingly burns away.

However, a few days later when Wang Chan visits the charred remains of the house to find items to sell for profit, Dio resurfaces and drains his blood while vowing vengeance against Jonathan. After recruiting Jack the Ripper, Dio moves to the rural village of Windknight's Lot where he feeds on the populace to heal his body while building an army of zombies with the intent to take over London.

Having sent Wang Chan to assassinate the supposed still recovering Jonathan, Dio is surprised when Wang Chan returns wounded and learns of the only thing besides sunlight that can destroy him: The Ripple.

When Jonathan, his Ripple teacher Will Anthonio Zeppeli, and Speedwagon reach Windknight's Lot, Dio hypnotizes a local boy named Poco who lures them to a graveyard filled with the undead. Dio reveals himself at this time, has mostly healed his body, and overwhelms Jonathan and Zeppeli by bypassing their Ripple attacks with his freezing ability. He then summons his strongest zombies, Bruford and Tarkus, to finish them off as he takes his leave. It is revealed later that Dio had also taken Poco's Sister, whom he attempts to bribe to join his undead legion. Unsuccessful, Dio leaves her at the mercy of Doobie, but Jonathan intervenes before anything grave happens. Finally, confronting Jonathan and the rest of his group, Dio steps in to personally kill Jonathan. Nonetheless, Dire battles Dio first. The Ripple warrior is easily bested by Dio's ice techniques and his body is disintegrated, but Dire manages to injure Dio's eye before expiring. This drives Dio off the edge, summoning his zombies to kill the intruders, while he proceeds to fight Jonathan.

In the battle that ensues on a balcony, Jonathan uses Luck & Pluck to sever Dio's right arm and nearly cleave him in half. Dio retaliates by freezing Jonathan's hands through the sword and threatens to cut Jonathan's carotid. Fortunately, Jonathan had plunged the tip of his sword into a flame behind Dio, and the heat transmitted through the metal weakens the freezing effect. Jonathan breaks free, and Dio breaks Luck & Pluck. As Jonathan is reduced to fighting barehanded, Dio's freezing powers give him the advantage once again. However, Jonathan sets his own fists on fire and Dio, unable to freeze Jonathan's punches, cannot defend himself and is hit on the chest by a powerful Ripple-infused blow. The impact sends Dio flying down a cliff and the Ripple disintegrates his body. Yet Dio manages to sever his own head before the Ripple reaches it and survives the fall; a little later, his head is taken to safety by Wang Chan.

Two weeks later, Dio's head infiltrates the cruise ship the newly married Jonathan and Erina use to travel to America and celebrate their honeymoon. Hidden in a booby-trapped coffin, Dio has Wang Chan cause a zombie epidemic on the ship to lure Jonathan to him. Once making himself known to Jonathan while admitting to having an epiphany that their fates are deeply intertwined, Dio reveals his intention to take Jonathan's body as his own. Dio then shoots beams of eye humor at Jonathan's throat in an attempt to instantly kill him, but the attack only fatally wounded Jonathan with his stopped breathing preventing him from using his Ripple. Regardless, Jonathan uses his remaining Ripple to sabotage the ship to explode in a final attempt to end Dio for good. After putting Erina inside the coffin to protect her from the engine's explosion, Jonathan holds Dio's head in his arms. Dio begs Jonathan to let him live while tempting him with eternal life but realizes too late that Jonathan had died. The sinking ship explodes, though Dio succeeds in taking Jonathan's body and sinks into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean.

In 1984, Dio's casket is recovered off the coast of Africa by treasure hunters, who are implied to have been killed by him shortly after. Dio then seems to travel a great deal, ranging from Egypt to Japan. Around July 1984, he impregnates a Japanese woman who goes on to give birth to Giorno Giovanna. Around 1985 to 1986, he also impregnates the future mother of Donatello Versus.

In 1986, he meets Enya the Hag and gains a Stand power, The World, as a result of the Bow and Arrow. Dio had his servant fire a shotgun at him to test The World's power and speed. When The World attempted to catch the bullets, Dio noticed that time had stopped for a split second. At some point, Dio managed to evolve his power further and could stop time for longer, as he felt the wheels of time and The World became intertwined with each other.

Later that same year, Dio encounters Jean Pierre Polnareff and brainwashes him. In 1987, he first meets Enrico Pucci while hiding in a church waiting for the sun to set. DIO heals Pucci's disfigured foot and gives him a Stand Arrow, speaking about the gravity which draws people together. He then tells Pucci to seek him out using the Arrow if he wishes to learn more. Around 1987 to 1988, he impregnates the future mothers of Ungalo and Rikiel. In July 1988, he goes on to encounter Muhammad Avdol in Egypt. In August, he meets Noriaki Kakyoin while the latter is vacationing in Egypt and brainwashes him as well.

After a series of unfortunate events that leads to Pucci being stabbed by the Arrow and gaining a Stand, he turns to DIO. The two would spend a considerable amount of time together, each traversing to the other's location across the world and discussing ways to turn their philosophies into reality. During one of DIO's visits, he suddenly brings up his interest in reaching an ideal heaven, revealing that he had written the plans to do so in a notebook and that he would need Pucci's help in doing so.

However, DIO questions Pucci's loyalty to him, pondering why the latter doesn't use Whitesnake to remove The World from him. Pucci explains that he loves DIO as he loves God, and thus worships him too much to betray him. Ensuring that he wouldn't completely fade, DIO leaves one of Jonathan's bones in Pucci's care. On one occasion, DIO was asked by Pucci on what he believed to be the weakest stand and DIO answered that it was Survivor believing that it only makes people angry, which would cause internal fights in a group with no benefit. Pucci then asked him if he could have it, believing that it might be useful some day to which DIO allowed.

The awakened Dio Brando, now referred to as simply "DIO", begins his next moves within the later months of 1988. For much of this time, DIO remains in shadows and the question of exactly what his stand "The World" does is a mystery to the Joestars and their companions. DIO's ambition is to create a perfect world for him and his servants. In the interim, he seeks to drain for himself the blood of the Joestar lineage, which will help him to fully fuse with Jonathan's body and take better control of The World. Despite his knowledge that Joseph Joestar and allies are looking for him, he does not make any effort to go confront them himself and instead chooses to remain in his mansion reading or feeding on the blood of women.

When Hol Horse reports on the defeat of Alessi and Mariah, DIO questions him about his ability to fight. Feeling humiliated, Hol Horse attempts to shoot DIO from behind but DIO uses The World to disappear and reappear behind the gunman. However, DIO spares Hol Horse as he is impressed and gives him one last chance; for his part, Hol Horse realizes that he's hopelessly outmatched and swears loyalty to DIO.

Not long afterward, the Joestar Group finally arrives at his Mansion. When Vanilla Ice comes to inform him of Telence T. D'Arby's defeat, Vanilla volunteers his life to complete DIO's assimilation of Jonathan's body and subsequently slices off his own head. DIO then utilizes his own blood to revive Vanilla as a Vampire.

Dario Brando: Dio hated his father and saw Dario only as a stepping stone in his path to ascend in society. Dio's hatred stems from the abuse Dario dealt Dio's mother with his alcoholism, as well as Dio himself, to the point where he secretly poisoned to death and tricked Dario into thinking he was sick. He emphasizes this by spitting on his father's grave before leaving for the Joestar mansion. Dio's Mother: Though most of his contempt was reserved for his father, he resented his mother as well for devoting herself to such a horrible man. However, Dio still showed signs that he cared about her and was upset about her untimely death, as he was brought to tears when his father ordered him to sell her dress for alcohol money. Even as an adult, he responded with rage and attacked a vagrant that mocked his mother. Giorno Giovanna: DIO is not shown to have interacted with his son, Giorno, although Giorno keeps a photo of him in his wallet. It is unknown where Giorno got it from or if he knows of the kind of person his father was. Also of note is that DIO would drain Giorno's mother of her blood, had he not been killed himself by Jotaro. Ungalo, Donatello Versus, and Rikiel: Similar to Giorno's case, the mothers of all three men were left alive. However, none of them inherited Jonathan's spirit. All three only learned of their true father's identity after their fated encounter with Pucci.

Enrico Pucci: DIO's encounter with Pucci is presumably the most prominent example of humanity displayed by him, having healed Pucci's foot when they first meet. Through the time he spends with Pucci, DIO comes to trust him enough to allow Pucci into his plan to obtain heaven, and later inherit it after his own death. At one point, DIO forced Pucci's hand into his head and nearly had his Stand DISC removed to test Pucci's loyalty to him, having feared losing him and gave him a bone of his as a sign of apology. Vanilla Ice: While the former is fanatically loyal to his cause, even willing to chop off his head to prove his worth, DIO annoyingly notes that Vanilla Ice often forgets about the doors after he uses his Stand, Cream, to travel via making a hole in the wall. Still DIO highly respected Ice's abilities, refusing to use the blood of someone of his caliber to heal himself. Wang Chan: While at first a provider of his secret poison that was crucial in killing Dario and attempting to kill George, after becoming a vampire, Dio used him as a scout and aide once his head is chopped off. Despite his dependence on Wang Chan, Dio doesn't take his insults to Jonathan lightly and threatens him for it. Cabbage and Stark: The two bullies were swayed into Dio's side as part of his plan in ruining Jonathan's life. While Dio had little interaction with them, the two have a high level of respect for him, expressing their admiration of him forcefully kissing Erina. Hol Horse: DIO looked down on Hol Horse, viewing him as a coward for failing to kill the Joestar Group twice and threatening to kill him if he does so again. Initially intimidated by DIO, Hol Horse grew to loathe the vampire and attempted to shoot him, only for DIO to use his power to intimidate Hol Horse into submission again, impressed by his courage. Pet Shop: While not much is known about their relationship, DIO personally selected Pet Shop as the guardian of his temple while he was in Egypt.

Enya the Hag: Enya was one of DIO's most loyal followers and supporters, having introduced him to the concept of Stands and giving him his own with the Bow and Arrow. Despite her loyalty, DIO had Steely Dan secretly implanted her with a flesh bud to ensure her secrecy. N'Doul: DIO was the first person to see N'Doul's worth which caused N'Doul to admire DIO. N'Doul was so loyal to DIO, that he killed himself in order to prevent himself from leaking valuable information. Nukesaku: DIO had no respect for Nukesaku despite his loyalty, viewing him as disposable in his battle with the Joestar Group. When Nukesaku attempted to open DIO's coffin, assuming that he will save him, DIO used The World to dismember Nukesaku before placing him in the coffin to intimidate the group. Johngalli A.: While there is no on-screen interaction between them, Johngalli was highly loyal to DIO, as shown when he framed Jolyne for murder and attempted to kill her and Jotaro to avenge him.

Jonathan Joestar: One of the most impactful relationships Dio ever had was with his adoptive brother, Jonathan Joestar. He initially viewed his adoptive brother as a stepping stone and pest to be driven to despair and abused in order to gain the Joestar family fortune. After being beaten once, he viewed him as more of a threat, feigning brotherly bonds in public, while secretly poisoning George Joestar in order to get his fortune quicker. He intended to kill Jonathan with the Stone Mask, but upon discovering the hidden power to unlock the vampire powers of man, he decided to use it on himself in order to become one. After another failed attempt to kill his adopted brother, due to his ego, Dio decides to have others face him rather than turn Jonathan into a zombie himself. After being bested by Jonathan, he quickly changes his mind, only to be thwarted once again. In their final confrontation, Dio admits he respects Jonathan in a twisted sense (to the point of scolding Wang Chan for taunting him) and is genuinely shocked when Jonathan dies. Dio would use Jonathan's body as a host, defining the destiny between him and the Joestar Family for centuries to come. Will Anthonio Zeppeli: Due to Dio having used the Stone Mask and becoming a Vampire, Zeppeli immediately viewed Dio as an enemy once he learned about the incident at the Joestar Mansion and due to his own father using the same mask to become a Vampire himself. Dio himself is dismissive of Zeppeli's hatred towards his vampiric ways and connection to the Stone Mask, only viewing Zeppeli's mastery of the unfamiliar Ripple as nothing more than magic tricks.

Robert E. O. Speedwagon: After hearing from Jonathan what Dio was doing to George Joestar I, Speedwagon decided to help with finding the man that sold Dio the poison. Dio openly declares that after killing Jonathan, he would dispose of Speedwagon as well for being involved. After everything that had happened at the Joestar Mansion, Speedwagon went along with Jonathan and Zeppeli to defeat Dio, knowing that he was too dangerous now as a vampire to be left running around. George Joestar: While George has always treated Dio with kindness and respect, Dio only saw George as a stepping stone in his quest for wealth. Thus, Dio feigned being the perfect ward to George, and even called him father despite having no such views. After Dio was exposed by Jonathan and Speedwagon for poisoning George, Dio saw no point in concealing his treachery and prepared to kill Jonathan to activate the Stone Mask, only for George to take the blow instead. Erina Pendleton: Discovering that his adopted brother Jonathan had been going out with Erina, Dio decided to steal her first kiss to break Jonathan's spirit, only for his pride to be wounded when Erina washed her face with muddy water, prompting him to angrily slap her. Eight years later, Dio would later encounter the newly-wed Erina again during his invasion of the ship to finish off her husband Jonathan, taunting her with the threat of taking over Jonathan's body. Inspector Archer: Dio thought lowly of the inspector, seeing him and the police as obstacles in his path to achieve greater power. After failing to convince Jonathan when he called the police, Dio decided to use the Stone Mask, murdering his adoptive father and forcing the police to gun him down. Upon awakening as a Vampire, Dio immediately decapitated the inspector.

Poco: While the two never directly interacted, Dio saw Poco as nothing but a pawn, hypnotizing him into luring Jonathan and his allies into a trap. Once Jonathan freed Poco from his clutches, Dio saw no use for the boy and sicced his minions onto Jonathan, Zeppeli, and Speedwagon. After surviving, Poco confronted Dio in his castle, who summoned his zombies to kill him and the rest of Jonathan's allies. Poco's Sister: Upon capturing Poco's sister, Dio initially acted cordially in her presence, mockingly referring to her as "mademoiselle". When Dio offered to grant her immortality by turning her into a vampire, the sister refused and slapped the vampire, calling him a monster. Amused by her defiance, Dio summoned Doobie to kill her before taking his leave. After being saved by Jonathan, she later confronted Dio, who summoned his zombies to kill her and the rest of Jonathan's allies. Dire, Straizo, and Tonpetty: Being Ripple Warriors, the three knew the dangers of the Stone Mask and viewed Dio as an enemy because of his use of it. Out of the three of them, Dire was the one who really wanted to defeat Dio on his own, due to having been a friend of Zeppeli's for many years and Dio having a role in his death. While Dire fell at Dio's hands, he posthumously gained Dio's ire by wounding his eye. At the time, Straizo knew that defeating Dio was important. However, many years later, he would admit to the older Speedwagon that he was envious of Dio due to the fact he would never age while Straizo would. This envy became so much that he would later use the Stone Mask on himself just so he could become young again.

Wilson Phillips: DIO thought very little of Phillips, seeing him as a tool for him to chase after Joseph and Kakyoin while psychologically tormenting him. For example, he repeatedly threatens the senator with death, uses The World to prevent him from escaping, and forces him to run over a crowd of civilians as a shortcut. Initially addressing DIO in a carefree manner, Phillips began to fear for his life after being pressured by the vampire's threats, eventually snapping when DIO decides to kill him anyway. DIO then disposed of Phillips by throwing him at Joseph and Kakyoin, forcing them to retreat to the rooftops. Joseph Joestar: DIO needed Joseph in order to complete the merger of his head with Jonathan's body, secretly manipulating his minions to bring him closer and closer in order to drain his blood. At first, Joseph was unaware of his existence due to Speedwagon making sure to keep the secret of the Vampire's existence prior to his battle with Straizo. His hatred for DIO intensified, however, when he learnt the whole truth and that he had stolen the body of his grandfather, Jonathan Joestar, to use as his own. This hatred got to the breaking point when DIO's very existence threatened the life of Joseph's daughter Holy. Figuring out that since DIO was the cause of all the Stands in the Joestar family activating, it was more than likely that killing him would save Holy. That plan in mind, Joseph, along with his grandson Jotaro, his old friend Muhammad Avdol, and new ally Noriaki Kakyoin, decide to go to Egypt where DIO had gone to hide, and kill him.

Noriaki Kakyoin: Having met DIO on a holiday in Egypt with his family and then put under his control with a Flesh Bud, Kakyoin was loyal to him and would do anything he wanted. However, upon having the bud removed by Jotaro and seeing the harm DIO was causing towards the innocent Holy Kujo, who had shown him kindness as he was recovering at the Kujo residence, Kakyoin decided to go with Joseph, Jotaro, and Avdol to Egypt to defeat DIO. Upon confronting Kakyoin again, DIO saw him as a mere obstacle to eliminate, eventually killing him when he attempted to discover The World's power. Jean Pierre Polnareff: Like Kakyoin, he too met DIO and was placed under his control. After having the Flesh Bud removed by Jotaro, Polnareff decided to join the team, though at first for his own goals, as Polnareff theorized that DIO would know where his sister's killer would be. Even after he avenged her sister's death, Polnareff chose to stay with the group to defeat DIO. After the deaths of both Avdol and Iggy, Polnareff vowed to defeat DIO no matter what. Confronting Polnareff, DIO offered him the chance of joining him again while using The World to intimidate him, only for Polnareff to refuse and engage the vampire himself, moments before his allies arrive. During the battle between DIO and Jotaro, Polnareff lunged at DIO to kill him, only to be stopped by The World before being knocked away. Muhammad Avdol: Unlike Kakyoin and Polnareff, Avdol recognized who DIO was upon meeting him, due to having heard about DIO from Joseph. As such, Avdol knew the man was an enemy immediately and managed to escape from him before he could be put under his control. With DIO threatening Holy's life due to him activating all the Stands in the Joestar bloodline, Avdol, along with Jotaro, Joseph, and Kakyoin decided to journey to Egypt to defeat Dio.

Jotaro Kujo: Despite DIO viewing Jotaro as nothing but an extension of Jonathan, DIO was fully aware how much of a threat Jotaro was. While Jonathan was an opponent DIO respected, Jotaro was an opponent DIO slightly feared—since Jotaro could move in the stopped time—before growing to despise him. Jotaro himself, however, saw DIO as nothing but a necessary evil he has to defeat in order to save his mother. After DIO had apparently killed his grandfather Joseph and absorbed his blood right in front of him, Jotaro's hatred for DIO finally intensified to where, for the first time, Jotaro was visibly enraged and acted on anger. After being outwitted by Jotaro in a long and grueling fight, DIO, moments before his death, expressed his hatred of Jotaro, viewing him as an insult to his ego and an obstacle to his desire for victory.