“Wrists at a right angle. Then with the right hand having a one-finger delay behind the left, bend the fingers. And then, with another one-finger delay... open them again. He~~w. Done. Warm-up no. 2: complete.”
Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan is a canon spin-off series to JoJo's Bizarre Adventure that takes place in Morioh, the setting of Diamond is Unbreakable. Rohan Kishibe is the protagonist, and Kyoka Izumi is the main antagonist[1]. The villainous faction are the various Yokai and creatures Rohan encounters.
It is an anthology series featuring Rohan Kishibe as the protagonist/ narrator throughout every chapter, set in a sort of "floating timeline" meaning the stories simultaneously are told across both JoJo continuities. The stories deal with other supernatural abilities besides Stands, including the likes of ghosts, avatars of Greek Gods, Yokai, and ancient cursed doppelgangers.
Chapters release infrequently and have released over the course of seven different magazines. Four chapters have released in Weekly Shonen Jump, three in Ultra Jump, two in Jump Square, and one each in Spur, Shonen Jump+, Bessatsu Margaret, and JoJo Magazine.
Starting in 2016 TSKR began being adapted into an OVA by David Productions. The episodes released between 2017 and 2020. The English dub was released on Netflix in 2021. As of now only four out of the thirteen TSKR chapters have been adapted.
Starting in 2020 Thus Spoke Rohan Kishibe has been adapted into a live-action-drama series that make up 4 seasons. They adapt the main series, as well as arcs originally from Diamond is Unbreakable and the Rohan Kishibe Short Story Collections. In May 2023 a film adaptation of Rohan at the Louvre based on the drama series released.
A second movie set in the TSKR drama continuity was announced and is set for release on May 23, 2025. It is titled At a Confessional, and is set to adapt the first chapter of the Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan manga, the origin of the series.
The series' first two volumes were released in English in 2022.
Official Description[]
Netflix Description[]
A popular manga creator becomes enmeshed while conducting research: Stand User Kishibe Rohan visits Italy, goes bankrupt, and more.
VIZ Media[]
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a groundbreaking manga famous for its outlandish characters, wild humor, and frenetic battles, and this spin-off featuring the popular Rohan Kishibe continues the tradition!
Debuting in the same deluxe hardcover format as the hit JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure manga is a standalone series featuring everyone’s favorite manga artist, Rohan Kishibe! Rohan has freed himself of Josuke Higashikata, but that doesn’t mean his life is going to be easy! No, now the supernatural has come knocking, and Rohan must contend with an all-new level of bizarre adventure…
Summary[]
Rohan Kishibe, famous manga artist featured in Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable, details his findings of supernatural phenomenon. He is joined by Kyoka Izumi as he discovers a village of millionaires that has very strict rules on who can live there, details the story of a vengeful spirit in the forest of Mutsu-Kabe Hill, reminisces on his rivalry with the Avatar of the Greek God Hermes, and describes to Koichi Hirose the time he visited Italy and heard the story of a vengeful ghost.
Episodes[]
Chapters not in episode format[]
| Chapters | Volume Name | Cover | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan |   |
 November 19, 2013
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Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan Vol. 2 |   |
July 19, 2018
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Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan Vol. 3 |   |
May 19, 2025
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Drama original episodes[]
These are episodes of the TSKR TV drama that are not based on the original TSKR manga. Episodes that are not wholly original are noted.
| Episode no. | No. in series | Image | Episode name | Airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.02 | 2 |   |
"Kushagara"[5] | December 29th, 2020
|
| 2.02 | 5 |   |
"From Behind"[6] | December 28th, 2021
|
| 3.02 | 8 |   |
"Rock-Paper-Scissors Kid"[7] | December 27th, 2022
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| 4.02 | 9.5 |   |
"The Other Poaching Seashore" |  May 18th, 2024
|
Cast[]
Landon McDonald
Brittany Cox
Jessica DiCicco
Suzie Yeung
Aleks Le
Christopher Bevins
Stands[]
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| Heaven's Door
Rohan Kishibe |
Pearl Jam
Tonio Trussardi |
Gucci Bag Stand
Unnamed artisan |
Unnamed Camouflage Stand
Mao Katahira |
Box of Happiness[8]
Chinami Gozan |
  |
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| Cheap Trick[9]
Masazo Kinoto |
Boy II Man[9]
Ken Oyanagi |
Music[]
Original Soundtrack[]
Opening Song[]
Media[]
Key Visuals[]
International Releases[]
Japanese
English
French
Italian
Spanish
German
Indonesian (Unreleased)
Brazilian (Unreleased)
Chinese
Thai
Korean
TaiwaneseVariations[]
Digital ColorSpin-Offs[]
| Rohan at the Louvre (2010) | |
|---|---|
| Another addition to the Rohan saga, this is a non-canon story that acts as promotion for Araki's artwork being shown at the Louvre in Paris. It tells the story of Rohan visiting this art museum and discovering some dark secrets about some of the contents in this facility. It is confirmed to be non-canon because it conflicts with the information already provided to us in the official JoJo lore.
Rohan at the Louvre received a film adaptation in 2023, twelve years since the original release in Japan. The film is based on the Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan TV Drama series that has been releasing since 2020, and Issey Takahashi and Marie Iitoyo reprised their roles as Rohan Kishibe and Kyoka Izumi respectively. The film was released officially with English subtitles on September 22, 2023. The Rohan at the Louvre film received a novelization written by Ballad Kitaguni that released alongside it in May 2023. |
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| Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan: Short Story Collection (2017 - Ongoing) | |
|---|---|
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A light-novel of a group of short stories written in the style of the Thus Spoke Rohan Kishibe series by Ballad Kitaguni and other authors. They are first released in monthly Ultra Jump in smaller booklets with 2-3 chapters in them, and later on in 2018 the three original booklets were compiled into two volumes with an additional chapter only for the book release added. The stories released within the first two volumes were Kushagara, Blackstar, Blood-Stained Bookmark, Censored Equation, Okami-Sama, Box of Happiness, Yuyaganidai, Symmetry Room, and Gleanings of Paradise.
In April 2024 a fifth short booklet of chapters released in Ultra Jump with two additional chapters titled The Doll Without a Past, and Pair Repair. These two chapters, with the addition of two new stories titled, "The Unseen Ritual" and "The Case of the Fan Happeita Kaburaki" were compiled into a fourth volume in December 2024. |
| Rohan au Louvre VISUAL BOOK (2023) | |
|---|---|
| An official picture album book by the Rohan au Louvre film production committee, released alongside the film. Featured in it is concept art, interviews and looks at the film behind the scenes. It includes thousands of carefully selected photographs showcasing the passionate performances of the main cast, off-shots, and valuable backstage moments.
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| Rohan Kishibe Jump (2025) | |
|---|---|
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A collection of manga and novel chapters related to the Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan TV Drama released in a Shonen Jump sized magazine. It is set to include all chapters adapted into the drama, including the Part 4 arcs adapted and a chapter from the short story collection, Kushagara. "Let's Go Eat Italian Food" is absent, even though it was partially adapted into the "Poaching Seashore" episode. |
| At a Confessional (Movie Novelization) (2025) | |
|---|---|
| A novelization of the 2025 live-action film of the same name, and by extension an adaptation of the one-shot At a Confessional. Written by Ballad Kitaguni and based on the script by Yasuko Kobayashi, the novelization is planned to be released alongside the film on May 23, 2025.
The manga artist Rohan Kishibe overhears a terrifying confession from a masked man within a church in Venice. The confession pertained to a curse that was placed on him after he accidentally killed a homeless man, causing him to experience despair at the peak of his happiness. Rohan becomes absorbed in the strange confession, but soon realizes that the "curse of happiness" is coming for him as well... Venice, where a sinful "confession" brings the finest in suspense. |
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Attractions[]
| At a Confessional - Another Confession (2025) | |
|---|---|
| A "story game", escape-room type event based on the live-action film adaptation of At a Confessional. The attraction is a collaboration between ImmersiveLAB, an experienced developer of murder mystery games. The game seeks to immerse players in the world of the film while putting them in the leading role. You, a reporter, ask Rohan Kishibe for an interview about his stay in Venice, but he flatly turns you down. Your only lead is a rumor that he entered a confessional booth. Following in his footprints, you reach a quiet church. There are no signs of any priests around. You grip the curtain on the priest's side, which is normally off-limits, and enter the confessional booth. What awaits you there might just be the very "curse" that Rohan experienced. |  |
Creation & Development[]
The Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan series originally started out as an unrelated one-shot asked for from Araki by the Shonen Jump editorial department, and it was requested that it not have any JoJo series characters in it. However, as the story developed, and it turned into a Rohan story, Araki was able to convince them to let it be a spin-off of the JoJo series.[10]
Trivia[]
- The spin-off series Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan (in Japanese "Rohan Kishibe Does Not Move") is titled that because the stories are meant to be about Rohan as an onlooker to the events portrayed, so he "does not move," because he is merely telling the story.
- Hot Summer Martha and Drip Painting Style are the first canon pieces of JoJo media to take place post-Stone Ocean (being in 2021 and 2022).
- It is theorized that TSKR takes place in a "floating timeline" due to some minor inconsistencies, such as the map of Morioh in Poaching Seashore being the same as the Morioh from JoJolion. In these two chapters as well, Rohan is seen with a collection of figures in his room, some of which resemble Stands that only exist in the new universe such as Soft & Wet.
- Rohan Goes to Gucci, which was originally included in Volume 1, is absent from the English release.
Iconography[]
The most common piece of imagery used for this spin-off is Rohan's iconic fountain pen. It is a symbol used on all of the volume illustrations in both manga volumes, and is most associated with Rohan, not only because it is his item of choice to write and draw manga with, but also because it is what he uses to draw in midair to summon his Stand. The tip of a fountain pen is also embedded in many of Rohan's various outfits he is seen wearing throughout all of his appearances. Rohan's iconic earrings are also in the shape of the tip of a fountain pen.
Not as common, but semi-frequently used instead of the fountain pen, is the paintbrush. Most likely due to the fact that Rohan is an artist, other than being a writer, but the paintbrush is depicted on and around Rohan in both of the volume arts released for the spin-off.
Logos[]
| Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan logos | |
|---|---|
 Official logo  OVA logo  TV Drama logo  VIZ Media English logo |
Continuity[]
- The first story, At a Confessional, reveals where Rohan learned Italian from and how he was able to teach it to Koichi in Part 5.
- Tonio Trussardi, who previously was introduced in the Let's Eat Italian Food arc in Part 4, appears as a major character in the chapter Poaching Seashore. It is revealed in this chapter that Tonio is from Amalfi, Italy, and he has a girlfriend there with a brain tumor that Pearl Jam can't heal. It's revealed that he came to Morioh in the first place to catch abalones to incorporate into his cooking in order to heal her.
- Hot Summer Martha and Drip Painting Style are the first two stories to be canonically placed in the timeline after the events of Stone Ocean.
- The Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan series may be implied to take place in a sort of "floating timeline," meaning it takes place across the two JoJo continuities simultaneously, as well as featuring a character who moves through time and yet does not age.
- Due to this, an error seemingly exists in Hot Summer Martha- While the events of this chapter take place in 2021 and 2022, Kyoka is mentioned to still be 25 years old, which was originally said to be her age in Millionaire Village. At this point she should be around 34 years old.
- Other inconsistencies include the map of JoJolion's Morioh appearing in the Rohan series, as well as Rohan alluding to "an invader" at his villa in Hawaii a year prior to a chapter.
- The twelfth episode of the series, Bruschetta, introduces a new species of evolved moth that has the pattern of a Stone Mask on its thorax. This is based on the real-life version of deaths-head hawkmoths, which appear to have a depiction of a skull on their thorax. It's unknown how this moth evolved to show the Stone Mask on its face, which was the main object of importance in the first two parts of the series, but it's possible that due to convergent evolution and other supernatural forces it came upon this resemblance.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ Araki jokingly suggests Izumi hinders Rohan's progress, making her the true villain - Hirohiko Araki's New Manga Techniques
- ↑ Adapted into the episode "Poaching Seashore" in the TV Drama. This episode also partially adapts the "Let's Go Eat Italian Food Arc" from Diamond is Unbreakable
- ↑ Adapted into the episode "Deoxyribonucleic Acid" in the TV Drama.
- ↑ Adapted into the episode "Hot Summer Martha" in the TV Drama
- ↑ Adapted from Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan: Short Story Collection Volume 1
- ↑ Adapted from the "Cheap Trick Arc" in Diamond is Unbreakable
- ↑ Adapted from the "Rock-Paper-Scissors Kid is Coming! Arc" in Diamond is Unbreakable
- ↑ Novel only (TSKR Short Story Collection Chapter 6: "Box of Happiness")
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Drama only
- ↑ "I was asked by the Weekly Shonen Jump editorial department to write a one-shot under the condition that spin-offs weren’t allowed. In other words, I wasn’t supposed to use any JoJo characters. But because of how the story developed, I had no choice but to include the character of Rohan, a manga artist, and ended up breaking that rule. That’s how this series began." https://x.com/jojo_wiki/status/1921998780238344622
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| JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Series | |
|---|---|
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Phantom Blood ∙ Battle Tendency ∙ Stardust Crusaders ∙ Diamond is Unbreakable ∙ Golden Wind ∙ Stone Ocean ∙ Steel Ball Run ∙ JoJolion ∙ The JOJOLands |
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|
Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan ∙ Deadman's Questions ∙ Crazy Heartbreakers |
|
Jonathan Joestar ∙ Joseph Joestar ∙ Jotaro Kujo ∙ Josuke Higashikata ∙ Giorno Giovanna ∙ Jolyne Cujoh ∙ Johnny Joestar ∙ Josuke Higashikata (Part 8) ∙ Jodio Joestar | |
|
|
The Passion ∙ Hermit Purple ∙ Star Platinum ∙ Crazy Diamond ∙ Gold Experience ∙ Stone Free ∙ Tusk ∙ Soft & Wet ∙ November Rain |
|
|
Dio Brando ∙ Kars ∙ Yoshikage Kira ∙ Diavolo ∙ Enrico Pucci ∙ Funny Valentine ∙ Toru ∙ Acca Howler |
|
|
The World ∙ Killer Queen ∙ King Crimson ∙ Whitesnake (C-Moon, Made in Heaven) ∙ Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap ∙ Wonder of U ∙ Acca Howler's Stand |
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|
|