J. Geil


 * The character featured in this article is commonly referred to as "J. Geil".

J. Gail is an antagonist appearing in Part III: Stardust Crusaders.

Appearance/Personality
J. Gail spends most of his time hiding from plain sight, preferring to have a partner in which to rely on. This made him a perfect candidate for Hol Horse, who liked him and believed that they should work in pairs. J. Gail would hide in the shadows while Horse broke the glass needed for his stand to work; occasionally they would do a combination attack, such as Hol Horse breaking glass and J. Gail attacking while Hol Horse shot a bullet from his Stand, the Emperor, locking the enemy in a mortal circle. He shared a special link to his mother, who received the same innjuries he had moments before dying. He had a twisted and perverted personality, raping many girls during is life.

Like his mother he had a deformity that gave him two right hands. In the past he used to have a long hair and a muscular body, but now is bald and hardly is seen standing up, probably due to age.

History
J. Gail is the man responsible for the murder and rape of Sherry Polnareff, earning him her brother's desire for revenge. He also tried to kill Sherry's friend, but failed. It is later implied that he raped inumerous girls before Sherry, as he says that he had many girls who "loved and admired" him, Sherry being just one of them.

Stardust Crusaders
He first shows by making his stand appear in front of Polnareff and forcing him to separate from the rest of the group, making him an easy target for him and his partner Hol Horse. After a short confrontation between The Emperor and Silver Chariot, Mohammed Avdol joins the fight but is quickly disposed of by a combination of the antagonists' Stands.



Polnareff is blinded by anger, and is almost killed in the same way, but Noriaki Kakyoin manages to save him in time. The two escape with a jeep, but The Hanged Man follows them and destroys the vehicle. At this point, Polnareff discovers J. Gail's stand's true nature: it is made of light and can move between reflections at high speed and attack from there. Having guessed its nature and direction, Silver Chariot manages to stab it, revealing J.Gail's position.

However Polnareff and Kakyoin are once again tricked: J.Gail gathers a crowd of people and makes its Stand enter their eyes. The trick is spoiled by Kakyoin, who focuses the people's attention on a coin, allowing Polnareff to strike the final blow. J.Gail falls and accidentally hangs himself upside down on a gate.

Stand
There's almost no relation betwen J. Gail and the Tarot Card Hanged Man, represented by his stand. The card symbolises sacrifice, acceptance, renunciation, inner harmony and conformism, none of those J. Gail shows at any moment. He is, however, not afraid of sacrificing others to save himself and trick his enemies. Another virtue represented by the card, patience, is briefly shown by his initial plan to separate Polnareff from the the group before attacking. Kakyoin notes that there's at least one relation between them: J. Gail's ironic dead, his body  ending up being hanged by its feet on a gate, similar to the image in the Tarot Card. In some Decks the Hanged Man Tarot Card is called Il Traditore (The Traitor) – hanging a man from his feet was, in fact, a way of punishing traitors in Italy, one particularly painful and humiliating, a type of punishment that Polnareff wanted (and accomplished) to give J. Gail.



Trivia

 * In the First Edition of the Italian version of the manga, J.Gail actually had two left hands. This happened because in the 90's, manga chapters were mirror-printed in Italy, a standard procedure made to appeal the public accustomed to American comics. From Part V onwards, mirror-printing ceased, therefore in the new Italian version of Part III, J.Geil has two right hands.
 * When J. Gail is first mentioned, Polnareff tells the group about how the rain was bouncing in some sort of invisible field around him, leaving the man completelly dry. This strange ability is never mentioned again, leaving the question if it was another ability of Hanged Man or not unknown.