Maruo Kaido’s “Ora, Ora, Ora” battle cry in Ayashimon not only reveals the influence of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure on the manga, but also cheekily suggests that Maruo is creator Yoju Kaku’s interpretation of that most iconic of Jojo characters, the Stand.
In Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Stands are described as physical representations of a person’s energy or fighting spirit. They usually appear in times of stress “standing” next to the person they are connected to or who has manifested their presence. While Stands perform a variety of tasks, one of their most important jobs, which is common to them all, is to defend their users from threats. Stands often act as the last and most important personal bodyguard to their users. While the variety of Stands is only limited by the diversity of people who are able to manifest them, one element that is common to most of them is their “Ora, Ora, Ora” battle cry when fighting.
The story in Ayashimon is decidedly different from Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. Rather than being focused on the centuries-old battle of one family against the forces of evil, it focuses on the adventures of one young man with over-powered fighting skills. He claims to have obtained these skills from reading manga and then relentlessly practicing the techniques he came across while reading the stories of his favorite characters. Interestingly, one manga charactes he admires and hopes to emulate is Jotaro Kujo, one of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures‘ most popular heroes. As fans know, Jotaro was the first character in the manga to generate a Stand. Moreover, Jotaro’s Stand, which goes by the name Star Platinum, is one of the most powerful in the saga.
Maruo’s adventure begins as he is contemplating whether he should continue his efforts of trying to become a manga hero. Sitting in an alley, a young lady being chased by gangsters runs past him. He intervenes and appears to save the lady from harm. Impressed with his skill and passion, the lady, whose name is Urara, hires Maruo to be her bodyguard. She is, however, far from harmless. Indeed, as the leader of an alien gangster organization, she can take care of herself when the need arises.
In Ayashimon chapter 9, in an effort to protect Urara from a demon, Maruo attempts to knock him out with a flurry of punches. Initially, the demon is able to subdue Maruo quite easily. However, he soon recovers and counter-attacks screaming the “Ora” battle cry. Unable to repel the rain of fists, the demon retreats.
Based on how Ayashimon’s story has developed to this point, several facts suggest that Maruo is tKaku’s interpretation of a Jojo Stand. Much like a Stand, Maruo’s focus is on servicing his benefactor, especially in terms of providing her with security and protection. Additionally, in Jojo, Stand users are generally quite adept on their own. For instance, even without his Stand, Jotaro Kujo is quite capable of taking care of himself. In Ayashimon, while Urara is quite different from Jotaro, she has the ability overcome most threats without assistance. Finally, once Maruo agrees to take the job as Urara’ protector, his normal location is as near to her as possible, just like a Stand.
It is an open secret that manga tend to recycle stories and themes from each other. Ayashimon embraces this point by making the origin story of its protagonist based on the fact that he is a manga fan whose favorite titles include Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures. Accordingly, it would not be a stretch to think that Ayashimon‘s creator drops an Easter egg indicating its influence on Maruo by making him an interpretations of a Stand.
