Dio Brando is undoubtedly one of the strongest Stand users in all ofJoJo's Bizarre Adventure. His Stand, The World, has about the same power, speed, and precision that Jotaro's Stand, Star Platinum, has but with the added bonus of being able to stop time. DIO'stime stop ability is ridiculously overpowered, so he can probably beat just about any other Stand user, but there are also Stand users he probably can't beat, all Stands are created differently after all.
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For this list, we won't be looking at Stand usersDIO has already faced, so characters like Jotaro and Kakyoin won't be making an appearance. Here's 8 Stand usersDIO can defeat (& 7 he can't)!
Updated by Daniel Kurland on October 28th, 2021: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has introduced some truly dangerous villains throughout its many chapters, but few have held the same reverence as DIO. Many still consider DIO to be the series’ ultimate antagonist, but that doesn’t mean that he’s infallible. It’s quite compelling to contemplate how DIO and his Stand would perform against other exceptional Stand users.
15 Can Defeat: Narancia And Lil’ Bomber Get Grounded By DIO’s Skills
Narancia Ghirga sometimes gets underestimated in Golden Wind due to how he's one of the younger members of Bruno Bucciarati's gang. Narancia makes up for his small stature and disarming size with infectious enthusiasm and a versatile airborne Stand, Lil' Bomber.
Lil' Bomber manifests as tiny airplanes that pack nasty projectiles and feature a helpful radar. Unfortunately, none of this means much when it's up against DIO and his Stand's abilities. Lil' Bomber's radar is useless once DIO manipulates time and DIO also just has the more physically powerful of the two Stands.
14 Can't Defeat: Johnny Joestar And Tusk Act IV Contain Limitless Energy
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure effectively begins a new continuity with Part 7’s Steel Ball Run. Johnny Joestar is an interesting take on the JoJo archetype since he begins as a very passive and clueless individual. Johnny grows into a formidable Stand user after he masters the various stages of Tusk, culminating in Tusk Act IV.
The full extent of Tusk Act IV’s powers have yet to be seen, but they disarm the threat of Funny Valentine in a single blow and can bypass typical dimensional barriers and time manipulation powers, which is what DIO relies on.
13 Can Defeat: Okuyasu Nijimura Is Strong Moral Support For Josuke, But No Match For DIO
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure often turns to fulfilling trends where characters who first appear as antagonists quickly become members of the new JoJo’s inner circle. This is the case with Okuyasu Nijimura from Diamond is Unbreakable.
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Okuyasu and his The Hand Stand have an obscure power where they can scrape away the space between objects. It’s possible if Okuyasu properly developed this power that it could hold its own against DIO, but it’s currently an inferior version of DIO’s own skills. If DIO can defeat Kakyoin and Avdol, then Okuyasu doesn’t stand a chance.
12 Can't Defeat: Domenico Pucci's Weather Report Has A Plan For All Seasons
The grand conclusion to JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure’s Stone Ocean is one of the crazier sequences from the entire franchise. The drastic effects of Enrico Pucci’s Made in Heaven cannot be overlooked, but there’s also incredible power found in Enrico’s brother, Domenico Pucci.
Domenico and his Stand, Weather Report, can manipulate the weather as they see fit, but they also possess the additional Heavy Weather ability. Heavy Weather can turn people into snails and can only be countered by killing Weather Report, which means that it could overwhelm DIO.
11 Can Defeat: Mike O And His Tubular Bells Lose Their Long-Range Advantage
Steel Ball Run highlights some extremely unusual takes on Stands, many of which don't even exhibit the typical humanoid form. One of the weaker Stand users that enters Steel Ball Run’s cross-country race is Mike O.
Mike O's Tubular Bells Stand benefits from how it can canvass a gigantic area and expand its range with its balloon animal gimmick. Tubular Bells focus on the manipulation and inflation of metal, which is too specific to give DIO pause. Once again, The World surpasses this Stand and it's really just Spin-based Stands from Steel Ball Run that can give DIO pause.
10 Can't Defeat: Enrico Pucci And His Stand Can Literally Change The World
First up on Stand usersDIO can't defeat is Enrico Pucci, one ofDIO'smost loyal followers and the main antagonist inStone Ocean. Now, because Pucci's Stand has 3 different versions, for this list we'll be talking specifically about the final and most powerful version, Made in Heaven.
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Made in Heaven doesn't have much in the way physical strength, but it is by far the fastest Stand in the entire series. It also has the power to accelerate time to the point that it created an entirely new universe.DIO would have no way of defeating Pucci because Made in Heaven would counterDIO's time stopping ability by accelerating his time limit.
9 Can Defeat: Jolyne Cujoh Is A Strong Lead, But Not At DIO's Level
First up on Stand usersDIO can definitely defeat is Jolyne Cujoh, who happens to be the daughter of a previous JoJo, Jotaro Kujo. Jolyne's Stand, Stone Free, has destructive capabilities pretty much on par withDIO's The World and also has the versatile ability to turn itself and Joyle into string.
Jolyne would no doubt put up a good fight, but we just can't see any way for her to actually defeat DIO. At the end of the day,DIO'sStand is slightly faster, and Jolyne's string abilities would not likely be a match forDIO's strength.
8 Can't Defeat: Carne's Stand Is A Loose Cannon With No End
Carne fromGolden Windhas a very strange Stand. His Stand, Notorious B.I.G., is fueled by Carne's hate and as such, can only show its true power after Carne dies. SoDIO would be able to easily kill Carne, but that won't he's won. If anything, that's when the true battle begins.
Notorious B.I.G.'s ability is to absorb energy, latching itself to any object to eat away its energy causing the Stand to grow in size. Notorious B.I.G. could absorb energy from living things, Stands, and even automated objects like an engine. Oh, and it's also completely invincible. It cannot be killed. With all ofDIO's power and abilities, there'd be no way from him to actually defeat it.
7 Can Defeat: Rohan Kishibe And Heaven's Door Won't Reveal DIO's Weaknesses
Rohan Kishibe's Stand, Heaven's Door, may lack in destructive power but it more than makes up for it with its arguably overpowered abilities. Heaven's door has the ability to turn people into books, pages unfolding from their bodies. The pages of the book contains all the information and memories of the person in question.
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Rohan has a chance to defeatDIO if he can use Heaven's Door beforeDIO can use The World, then write intoDIO's book that he can't attack Rohan. But that doesn't seem likely. The World is faster than Heaven's Door, soDIO would be able to use Time Stop before Rohan can use his Stand. Since Heaven's Door is much weaker than The World, it'd be no contest.
6 Can't Defeat: Giorno Giovanna And His Evolved Stand Should Not Be Tested
Next on the list of Stand usersDIO can't defeat is his own son, Giorno Giovanna. After piercing his Stand with the Stand Arrow at the end of Golden Wind, Giorno's Stand, Gold Experience, turned into Gold Experience Requiem, becoming the most ridiculously overpowered Stand in the entire series.
Gold Experience Requiem has the ability to revert actions to the state of "zero", nullifying the action and preventing it from becoming real.DIO's Stand ability may be incredibly powerful but it means nothing against Gold Experience Requiem. AnythingDIO tries would just be reverted to zero and cancelled out. Even physical attacks would do nothing to Giorno.
5 Can Defeat: Josuke Higashikata Is Strongest When He's With A Team
Like The World and Star Platinum, Josuke's Stand Crazy Diamond falls into the "punching ghosts" category of Stands. Crazy Diamond has immense strength, perfect for punching criminals or plates of spaghetti, but that's not all it can do. Crazy Diamond has the ability to restore anything it touches to a previous state of being, though he usually uses it for healing.
As strong as Crazy Diamond is, it's unlikely Josuke could defeat DIO. Crazy Diamond could probably match The World in destructive power, but The World's ability to stop time coupled with the fact that Josuke can't use his Stand ability to heal himself means this fight goes to DIO.
4 Can't Defeat: Diavolo's Time Manipulation Powers Surpass Those Of DIO
Araki likes to give his main antagonists Stand abilities that manipulate time in some way, and Diavolo is no different. Diavolo's Stand King Crimson is immensely powerful and has the ability to erase time. It's a confusing Stand ability but basically, King Crimson can erase up to 10 seconds, during which no one but him are able to experience what happened. It just works, okay?
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King Crimson's ability gives Diavolo the upper hand againstDIO and his Time Stop.DIO can stop time for up to 9 seconds so theoretically, Diavolo would just have to use the precognitive ability of his sub-Stand, Epitaph, combined with King Crimson's Time Erasure to defeat DIO.
3 Can Defeat: JoJolion's Josuke HigashikataNeeds To First Find Himself
Josuke makes a second appearance here on the list, and as another Stand userDIO can beat, but this Josuke is vastly different. This Josuke is a fusion between two people, Josefumi Kujo and Yoshikage Kira, and his Stand is that of Josefumi, Soft & Wet. Soft & Wet doesn't have much destructive power but its plundering ability can be used in a wide array of situations.
DIOwould have a tough time of beating Josuke, but he would definitely come out on top. Josuke can use Soft & Wet to plunderDIO's eyesight or the like, butDIO's vampiric healing would likely offset Josuke's plundering ability. It is worth noting, however, that Josuke's Stand has a huge amount of potential yet to be unlocked, so maybe one dayDIO won't be able to defeat him.
2 Can't Defeat: Funny Valentine Makes Time And Space Bend To His Whims
Funny Valentine is the 23rd President of the United States and the main antagonist ofSteel Ball Run. His Stand Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, or D4C for short, gives Valentine the ability to travel between parallel universes. Not only wouldDIO have to deal with Funny Valentine's dimensional ability if they were to fight, but Valentine would have another trick up his sleeve: Love Train.
Love Train creates a wall of light that redirects all misfortune, in this case any attacks, away from Valentine and sends the misfortune to a random place on Earth. Effectively, Funny Valentine is invincible when Love Train is activated, and we just don't see any way forDIO to get around it.
1 Can Defeat: Yoshikage Kira Is A Deranged Mind With A Fallible Stand
Last on our list of Stand usersDIO can claim victory over is Yoshikage Kira fromDiamond is Unbreakable. Kira's Stand, Killer Queen, has the devastating ability to turn anything it touches into a bomb. Unfortunately, that ability would probably have no effect of DIO, who can just stop time before Kira detonates the bomb and defeat him.
Killer Queen's third ability, Bites the Dust, has the ability to create a time loop in order to protect Kira and would be the best ability to use against DIO, but likely only temporary.DIO is intelligent enough to break the time loop and defeat Kira. Failing that,DIO can just throw an ambulance at Kira.
NEXT: JoJo: Every Main Villain, Ranked
