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yamabuki-inori · 3 months

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Chapter 58 - Kaato's Return

I try to avoid long, speculating posts for my Jojolion liveblogging BUT Chapter 58 has my mind racing with ideas and I'm so excited for the Higashikata family drama that I need to get this out of my system. This single chapter has more character intrigue to me than other entire parts of Jojo, that's how much I love this stuff 😭

This post is really, really long and messy and probably more headcanon than actual analysis and will not be very polished. It'll likely age poorly and be very wrong but this is legit some of the most enjoyment and interest this franchise has ever given me. To avoid spamming the tags, I'm shoving a lot of ideas into this single post so I apologize in advance.

Kaato

One thing I've had spoiled about Kaato is that she isn't the main villain but that everyone wanted her to be. So I'm already really excited for her character but I'm not sure what to expect. Given how Jojo is written, I'm expecting there to be more to the child murder. Her intro referenced Jolyne a lot, soooo I'm thinking she was pressured by someone / set-up.

Maybe I'm just falling for her scheme like I did with Damo, but her grief and pain here feels genuine to me. If there is more to the murder, then this is a tragic situation for Kaato - she was separated from her children and has been iced out of her own family. There must be a reason she could never tell them the truth too, maybe she's still in danger?

This series tends to neglect mothers in the narrative so I'm enjoying their focus in Jojolion, plus there's some sort of parallel with Holy being established. I'm trying really hard not to stan her before knowing the full story in case it's absolutely fucked up but god is she iconique. I'll talk about her in passing in other character's sections, there's already A LOT to say and already she is a very high tier character to me.

Josuke and Kei

Poor Josuke man.....I was not expecting the hospital scene and it really got to me 💔 I'm so glad Jojo has been exploring it's protags' internal lives more in later parts, I would say since Jolyne it's felt more introspective and emotional. I'm glad poor Josuke is getting to have his grief explored and shown, it makes the storytelling so much more impactful to me at least. I must ask why Kei wasn't at the hospital, surely she must know of Holy's condition and should be involved too. Have her and Josuke even really spoken since early Jojolion? I need more of Kei as Holy's condition becomes more and more important.

What on Earth does Josuke feel seeing Kaato show up? We don't get an answer in this chapter BUT I am hoping him and Kaato will interact in the future and this will be brought up. There's just a lot of directions to go with this dynamic and I hope we get it explored. He was pretty passive during Kaato's scene, I kept hoping she would point him out and question his presence but fair enough. Also, it was interesting how him and Kei were the two outsiders during this scene - as their mother is dying, the mother of the Higashikata family appears and is clearly involved with Jobin who is also vying for the miracle cure that they need too. Crazy potential here with these characters.

Norisuke

Not to be a Kaato apologist already but I have some things to say about this man. I'm assuming that, if there is a deeper secret to the murder, he's unaware of it, but I really have to ask why Kaato wouldn't tell him?

I get that telling your two youngest kids that their mother was in jail for killing a child would be rough but GODDDDD he couldn't even tell them when they got older or at least keep his story straight? Also, evidently Jobin and Hato never told their siblings about their mother - how did that conversation go? Norisuke had to be the one to enforce that rule and I'm sure it was not an easy process.

Did Norisuke ever talk to his eldest children about their mother leaving? Because with how Hato phrases it, it seems like he brushed it all under the rug. And while it's obviously sad the two young ones never knew about her, imagine what the two eldest kids felt having known her then watching her be dragged away????? He never even showed the little ones a photo of her, that is insane and just next level to me. Was Kaato's crime not widely discussed in the town? How did neither Joshu or Daiya ever hear about it somehow?

This section originally spiraled into a HUGE theory / headcanon / speculation discussion on how the Kaato situation might've led to a divide in how the eldest siblings and youngest siblings were raised, but I'm gonna wait on that thought until I know more and give it it's own post in the future sometime.

Jobin

Jobin was a pure menace this chapter and I fucking loved it. He really let his convicted-murderer mother into his family's house, didn't inform anyone of her release, and shows up as soon as she leaves to casually drop that he orchestrated this whole thing. And then he rocked up like this -

I'm guessing he watched / listened to the whole ordeal from afar and just chose to watch the chaos? I have a lot of thoughts and theories about how Jobin views his younger siblings and this chapter doesn't help lol. Why did he do this? What did he gain from this? Absolute deranged menace behavior lmao

I'm now thinking that Jobin and Norisuke's issues with each other may have originated from Kaato. Jobin is clearly close with mommy dearest and seems to take her side over his dad's. I'm not.......the biggest fan of potentially blaming Kaato for Jobin's issues and I hope this isn't just an 'evil mother turns son against poor father' situation because I am not a fan of that trope.

Kaato briefly mentions that she's helped the family's success so I'm wondering if she is behind Jobin's philosophy of advancing the family's greatness beyond Norisuke's smaller ambitions. You know that other trope of women in patriarchal systems using their cunning and male relatives to exercise great power from the shadows, a la Agrippina and Nero? Yeah.

Anyway, him and Kaato are obvs scheming and I am so fucking keen and ready - Jobin has been a great antagonist so far and I am here for the fucked up mother-son team taking on Norisuke. The Higashikata family drama has hooked me from day one and I really enjoy the focus on their dynamics. Norisuke's final line this chapter is incomplete as he ponders something about Jobin, I love the mystery set-up with what could be going on. I adore how character-driven this story is and how personal the stakes are - I've ALWAYS wished the series explored the Joestar family more in-depth and, while it's obviously different, this part is making me veryyyyy happy with the Higashikatas. A++++ content for me and Jobin remains both compelling and really fucking funny.

Daiya

Not too much to say but this shit is so sad to me. Her entire life, Daiya's father and two eldest siblings never told her about her mother, to the point she seems surprised to even have one? Maybe this is just meant to be a joke about her being dumb / she's more surprised her mother is alive but still. Norisuke couldn't show her a photo, or give her closure or anything? A memento to think of her? Even a story so she could at least know something positive about her own mother who she surely must have wondered about before?!?! Norisuke is on thin fucking ice istg.

I could easily see Daiya latching onto Kaato moving forward and maybe even taking her side over Norisuke. Ofc she loves her dad but she's also a teenager finding out this critical bit of info has been hidden from her her entire life and is clearly so, so excited to have a mum 💔 Imagine how impactful it would be if Kaato managed to win over 2 of their 4 kids, the eldest and the youngest? I don't wanna get into speculating too much though.

Also - it was very sweet to me how Daiya was the one person who tried to approach Kaato and clearly wanted to help her up when Joshu tripped her. Regardless of Kaato's trustworthiness, I just thought that was very sweet of Daiya even if it maybe was naive 🥺

Joshu

Hate him and need to see him die rn. Kaato was completely justified and very based for attacking him and I hope she kills him with her bare hands. Literally the dinner table scene from Hereditary. What the fuck kind of parenting does Norisuke even do? Kaato's here for 5 minutes and puts Joshu in his place, while Norisuke just seems annoyed by him and has nothing to really say about him sexually assaulting Kaato in front of the entire family.

I don't want to imply that a strict mother would entirely fix Joshu's issues but holy shit, at least she would actually do something to discourage his behavior besides sighing and looking embarrassed. Is Joshu the way he is, in part, because Norisuke is a lousy dad who has implicit biases and an acceptance of his son's horrific behavior? Maybe. In an alternate world, could Kaato have whipped him into shape growing up and saved us all? I can dream.

Hato 👑

Fuck!!!!! I love Hato sm and am so so so happy she got a little spotlight this chapter 🥺. Initially this post was just gonna be about her because I'm in my Hato-obsession era so hard rn, but I had too much to say about everyone else. This will be a long section so I saved it for last but I will def return to some of these ideas when I've finished Jojolion.

From a writing standpoint, Hato is so valuable in this chapter. She fulfills a role that really no other character could and its cool to see - Hato is the only character who could realistically convey info to Josuke, and therefore the audience, about Kaato. The parents are too caught up arguing with each other and wouldn't want to tell the whole room about the murder. So who; a) knows about Kaato and her actions and b) has a good enough relationship with Josuke to convey this info to him? Hato. And what's cool is that Josuke knows this.

Josuke is perceptive enough to realize that Hato recognizes this woman and quietly asks her who she is. Despite how personal and emotionally-difficult this moment would've been for Hato, she opens up and tells him (and thus the audience) this family secret.

This next point is probably a bit more fanfic than analysis, but Hato would easily be the closest person to an ally Josuke has in the Higashikatas besides his complicated dynamic with Norisuke. It's really understated and maybe not even intentional, but Josuke and Hato logically should trust each other.

Jobin and Joshu just have an all-out antagonistic relationship with Josuke and have actively clashed with him multiple times. Josuke is on good terms with Daiya and Tsurugi, but not only did both begin by attacking Josuke, but they are both young and cannot always fulfill an equal role to Josuke because of this. Mitsuba and Kaato are currently unknowns, leaving Hato.

Unlike Norisuke, Hato has never antagonized Josuke. She has never gone after someone he cares about and, critically, is uninvolved in her family's shady stuff. She's not in the position to hide vital info from Josuke or scheme against him. All around, Hato seems pretty pleasant honestly and doesn't ever hurt others the way her siblings all seem to do - her eccentricities are harmless and Josuke doesn't judge her the way he judges other characters. In a house full of shady and bombastic people, I can see Josuke really appreciating Hato (Kei should really fulfill this role too).

In the Vitamin C arc, he specifically wants her permission before he kills Damo. Josuke can be ruthless at times, Damo is actively killing the family and it would be very justified for him to just kill the guy BUT he waits for Hato's approval. To me, that really says something - that he respects and likes Hato enough to go out of his way to consult her. Then, Hato and Josuke work together to defeat Damo, both using their stands to overcome Vitamin C. And Josuke's words on Damo being a threat and needing to be defeated helps Hato in her emotional journey - helps her reach the point where she fights back.

They're paired together a lot in this chapter and it's sweet seeing Josuke actually have a nice and healthy bond with someone in this goddamn family 😭 They really play off each other in a compelling and dynamic way, they're open to what the other says and they just generally seem to be on the same wavelength. I just see endless potential in them working together and getting along and maybe becoming like actual siblings and I hope we see more because I can see The Vision and I love them.

Focusing back on Hato, I desperately need to see more of what her childhood was like. What was her and Kaato's relationship? The only thing Kaato says to / about Hato is that she's "as beautiful as ever" and then a little quirk she had as a child. This doesn't give us a lot so I don't have a clear idea of their dynamic outside of wild headcanon. More importantly, Hato knows her mother well enough to anticipate her retaliation against Joshu. This makes me think that maybe Kaato was a stern mother who never took any disrespect and that she potentially had her stand even in Hato's childhood. There's so much potential here but it's too early to know anything.

While I know it likely stems from Araki not really intending for Hato to be a major character, from a Watsonian perspective it amazes me that Hato is as well-adjusted as she seems to be. The amount of disruption she faced as a child, losing her mother and then having her father give conflicting info is insane. Again, how did she rationalize all of this?

And then, worse of all, for her to have to look up her mother's crimes herself and find out about the murder herself - I am begging for a flashback to that event. Did she confront her father? Was Norisuke ever planning on breaking the news to her? Did she ever talk to Jobin about the crime?

I'm not gonna dwell on this too much, but this reveal makes the lack of Jobin + Hato moments so far really stand out. With their father having to raise the young ones and trying to brush everything under the rug, did the 2 eldest siblings ever confide in each other? It doesn't seem like it, their large age gap and Jobin's shadiness around Kaato gives me little hope Hato could find much solidarity with him but I might be wrong. I would love to have a scene of the 2 talking about this or really just interacting in a meaningful way.

This is much more fanfic-y and is my feminist lens coming in, but I can't help wondering if Hato took on a sort of 'motherly' role after Kaato's arrest. I'm not saying Norisuke like demanded she help raise her siblings buuuuuuuut I could see societal expectations and their family's situation causing Hato to take on this role regardless. Jobin was nearly an adult when Kaato left and seemed to go off and start his own family / pursue his own ambitions. He doesn't seem very close with his siblings and, with how much Norisuke has on his plate, I could see some responsibility and expectation falling onto Hato's shoulders. A maid could've helped but it is unfortunately a thing that eldest daughters in a family are burdened with these duties even when older sons are in the family. And with her mother gone and her male relatives set to run the family business, it just feels very likely. Would the eldest daughter even have a chance to run the business?

Hato is close with her younger siblings, she playfully teases Joshu and looks out for Daiya. While she has her own quirks, she is generally much more mature and responsible than most of her family. As the inheritor of the family curse and the business, a lot of focus would've been on Jobin growing up. Norisuke wanted to act like Kaato never existed and Jobin is distant, clearly knowing more. Hato would've been the primary female figure in both Daiya and Joshu's upbringings, she had to lie to them and keep the secret of Kaato for their entire lives. But she's not included in all the other secrets of her family, she's left out of a lot of subplots and the idea of her being involved in the business is never even suggested. Most likely, she'll remain a minor character, but god would I love for all of these intricacies to be explored. There's just sooooooo much juicy potential here, so much family drama and character arcs and social commentary and thematic stuff here and I know I'm overthinking this but idc I love Hato and her unique role in the story and this chapter has really opened my mind to a lot of ideas and possibilities.

Lastly, I just wanna point out Hato's current feelings towards Kaato and how she seems to be distancing herself from her mother. She seems distrusting and literally looks down on here in the panel above - please God give us some interactions between these two, I am so intrigued to see more of what Hato thinks about her. If there is more to the story of Kaato allegedly killing a kid, how will the family react if it comes to light? I hope we see lots more family drama and I am begging for more Hato focus especially, love her so much.

#jjba #this is the jojolion analysis I’ve always needed!

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