Yusuf Al-Kaysani

Yusuf al-Kaysani, primarily called Joe, is a character from The Old Guard. In the 2020 Netflix adaptation, he is played by Dutch-Tunisian actor Marwan Kenzari.
==Canon Overview==
Joe fought in the First Crusade, as an soldier in the Fatimid army. He first died during the Siege of Jerusalem in 1099. In modern-day combat, he is seen carrying a scimitar (saif) in addition to firearms.
He appears to be a skilled artist, being able to quickly sketch a likeness of Nile Freeman after dreaming about her.
A Netflix promotional poster from Thailand gives his birthdate as 1069, making him 33 years old when he gained immortality. A video featurette accompanying the release of the film states that prior to this, Joe was the scion of a merchant family from the Maghreb region of Africa.
==Common Tropes==
* An Incurable Romantic - following the "He's Not My Boyfriend" speech in both the comics and film, many fans have speculated on other over-the-top declarations of love and feeling Joe has made over the years
* The backwards baseball cap
* In works focused on Yusuf's faith he is sometimes portrayed as a Shia Muslim, while others do not identify which branch of Islam Yusuf practises.
==Pairings==
The canon slash pairing of Nicky/Joe is largely the biggest component of works featuring Joe. Even those works focused primarily on him tend to feature the pairing in the background.
==Fan Reactions==
A significant amount of meta has been written within the fandom regarding Yusuf/Joe, with a great number of fans weighing in to help reconcile inconsistencies or contradictions from canon; explore his relationship to Nicky; and to avoid perpetuating harmful or racist tropes including those related to his race, ethnicity, and religion. The meta can be roughly categorized as discussing:
* Details about and interpretations of Joe’s full name (Yusuf ibn Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Al-Kaysani) 
* Joe as being from the Maghreb, and specific terminology surrounding ethnicity
* Medieval history about the Crusades and how Middle East / North Africa (MENA) cultures were affectedA historical overview of the term Saracen and its implications: a primer for the TOG fandom by figure8/lgbtmazight
* Joe’s potential social role or backstory, especially around 1099 CE when he became immortal
* Expressions of emotion, and how they can be framed in light of the Old Guard’s position as warriors and fightersJoe as instinctively protective by spooky-scary-nicolo, accessed 2020-11-03
* Arabic, and languages Joe may use in pre-canon or modern-era fics
* Religion and faith
* Homosexuality 
* Avoidance of harmful stereotypes Some Points about writing Joe from a Muslim/Arab by ElephantOfAfrica
* Joe’s love of, and skill with, creating art 
It is important to note that the legitimacy and accuracy of meta written by lgbtmazight, one of the meta writers referenced above, has been called into question following a post by anonymous Tumblr blog lgbtracefaker.
Overall, fan responses to Yusuf are overwhelmingly positive with many fans delighted by Marwan Kenzari’s nuanced portrayal of a gay Muslim man in a mainstream film.
===Controversies===
Fandom controversies have arisen on a couple of occasions between different participants in the fandom. One type of controversy is with respect to Joe’s portrayal in fanworks as angry, hotheaded, passionate, and violent in stereotypical or exaggerated ways, and when those portrayals become problematic. Early analysis appreciated the nuance with which the canon treated Joe as both a warrior and a deeply kind, empathetic man. Some fans spoke out against early portrayals in fanworks that they felt ignored the softer parts of Joe’s personality or exaggerated his violence
. One blog reminded users early that purity culture tactics should be avoided even while “don’t be a racist” should also apply. A popular fandom blog that regularly hosts discussions between fans pointed out to an anon that many conversations taking place were specifically trying to defuse and prevent bad habits from being formed early while creating fanworks. Additional fan commentary over time encouraged well-rounded portrayals of Joe that didn't ignore his anger, skill as a warrior, or need for growth. Despite many of these nuanced discussions, the fandom has also had conversations on an ongoing basis disputing the validity of certain presentations of Joe, arguing over interpretations and different readings of canon, and trying to determine when a complex portrayal veers into a problematic or racist one.
Another extensive imbroglio, which some fans feel has devolved into fandom wank, is with respect to sexual positions. See Top!Joe (trope).
==Notable Fanworks==
===Fanfiction===
* Kidnapping for Dummies by Amiril - Post-Canon. Summary: A group is hired to kidnap Joe. It doesn't turn out how they expected. - (based on the "you don't have him, he has you" meme.)
===Fanart===
* WIP of Mr. Al-Kaysani because guess who just watched The Old Guard for a third time ?? by mr-arainai
===Meta===
* 
==Communities==
* Top!Joe Discord
==Archives & Links==
* Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani works on Ao3
==References==
Category:The Old Guard Characters