Exploring the Character Design of Johan

Introduction (Read if you want)

Ptj has poured blood and sweat into Johan's character design. It reflects when you analyse his character. When asked about Johan, Ptj replied that he is a character that he always draws with sincerity. It makes sense because Johan was the first Gangism character to kickstart the story (Gun, Goo, James, and Charles were there, but their roles were not defined yet)

In this essay, I will explain some important traits of Johan, including his Identity (Johan Seong and GOD DOG), his dog, and the logo of God Dog. It`s maybe unclear at first, but everything related to Johan has a meaning and purpose in the story.

I am going to reuse a lot of content from other people. I will give my commentary, too. I will give them a shoutout.

The Identity of Johan Seong

Credit to u/Reinvidence

The name Johan Seong is the English translation of Yohan Seong (성요한 Seong Yo-Han). The name ''Johan'' is a Scandinavian and Dutch form of Iohannes, the Latin form of the Greek name  Iōánnēs, the Hebrew name Yochanan, which means, ''Yahew is gracious. Its English Equivalent is John.

The name can be translated as Saint Johan. If you look at his Korean name (성요한), it has a Chinese character (known as Hanja) (성) (the seong surname), which means succeed or accomplish.

성(成)[Seong] 요(有)[Yu/Yo] 한(翰)[han] (翰 can also mean Steal in Korea) <= The way. It could also mean successful stealing in Korean. Johan was a shoe thief, so yeah.

credit to: u/nowwwoo

His Mom gave him a name that is deeply rooted in Christianity, and wished him to live a successful life. Unfortunately, things didn`t go as planned.

I tried to find the denomination of Christianity that Johan followed, but had no luck. Still, the Wikipedia page for the name Yohan mentions that in Korea, Yohan is predominantly used by Catholics. However, there are more Protestants in Korea than Catholics. The Korean raws use the terms 교회 전도사님 (a “church evangelist/missionary/minister” — 전도사 is a Protestant title in Korea). So, maybe he is Protestant.

I am not a Christian. So, if there are any egregious mistakes, forgive me.

Sources: Wikipedia-ChatGPT-Google AI

Credits to

u/Reinvidence

u/nowwwoo

Second Identity

PTJ has designed the God logo with a lot of symbolism. Not only is it badass, but contains hidden meanings, too.

The God Dog

His logo is full of symbolism: a sideways 666(number of the Devil), a sideways cross(God), a dog (his pet), and half a star (himself)

Credit to u/Ok_Mastodon7622

His Gang name, God Dog, is likely inspired by a character in the game series  Fallout (Fallout: New Vegas) called ''GOD and DOG''. It is a single character with dual personality. One is the light, the GOD, and the other is DOG.

Both characters live in a dichotomy, unaware of each other`s existence. The DOG personality of `GOD and DOG` is awakened by Father Eijah, like in Johan`s case, there was a priest to awaken the DOG in Johan`s mom (the violent and merciless personality).

Father Eijah also led a cult like organisation in the games (not sure because I did not play the games).

Eijah is also the name of a prophet in Islam and Christianity, who was at the level of Moses. His name literally translates to ''My God is Yahew. He preached that Yahew was the only true God, and Baal (an ancient Middle Eastern God) was a false God.

It is like the priest in the case of Johan.

Credit to u/SufficientCode6667

Strangely, Johan has named his Gang after the Cult that destroyed his life. But there is a solid reason for it.

I interpreted it as a way for him to reclaim the cult as his, in some way psychologically overpowering the control it has over him by becoming it and giving it a new purpose that he controls. The thing that once controlled him, he now controls

Credit to u/Excellent_Nerve_3462

The Cult`s God

The Cult Worshipped a Dog. It is bullshit, but there is some reasoning for it. In Christianity, the dogs get a bad reputation. They are used as symbols of impurity, sin, and moral waywardness.

Here is a quote from the New Testament: Philippians 3:2: “Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.”

Interestingly, I found some articles that opposed it. There was a reinterpretation that Dogs were seen as healers.

Here it is: No, No, Bad Dog: Dogs in the Bible.

Now coming to the Dogs. The Mascot of Johan`s Ganag logo, his baby Ede, has a lot of symbolism, too. It will blow your mind. You can basically trace the Character of Johan over the Dog.

Eden: The Pungsan Dog

All the credit is due to u/Sweatpants-Rule

The breed is North Korean hunting dog, and purebreeds are extremely rare outside North Korea, so I’m guessing Eden might a bit mixed, which doesn’t seem to be that rare. They are sometimes smuggled to China.

This is hilarious: Pungsan Temperament: These dogs are typically very loyal and protective canines when it comes to their people and property, but they are also more independent than the average dog and may be more aggressive as well, particularly in regards to other animals. If properly socialized, they can be quite companionable with children but as these are extremely powerful dogs, interactions between the two should be supervised. Although they may get along with other canines, particularly those they are raised with, these are not appropriate dogs to have in mixed pet households as their dominant personality and high prey drive can make them dangerous to smaller animals even when socialized. They tend to be standoffish or aloof with strangers as long as their territory is left alone. While they do have strong territorial instincts, they are not prone to barking unless it is truly needed, making them excellent watchdogs and guard dogs. They are intelligent and can learn commands when they choose to but they are also somewhat stubborn and are not particularly eager to please, which can make training challenging..

Thank you for reading.

https://preview.redd.it/5gx8w9x6lzyf1.jpg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=92c8fb60347c1f97358ca45f99e6e3f3bc7084ee