Despite being one of the best series that the shonen genre has to offer, One Piece is not immune to criticism, and none is as persistent or as frequent as the fake-out deaths. The latest chapter shows that this problem will not go away for a long time, which is disappointing considering the series is heading fast into a war of incredible magnitude.
One Piece chapter #1134 featured some great and interesting moments, such as the reveal of Elbaf's library and a Shanks lookalike, but there was another moment that wasn't received very well. After Vegapunk Lilith introduced herself to Saul as Vegapunk, she asked Jimbei to hand her a large box. This is where she revealed that it contained a perfect replica of her original body. This means that Vegapunk's death in Egghead is basically undone, removing a lot of emotional weight and meaning from this moment.
Vegapunk's Return Is A Bad Sign For One Piece's Future
The Final War Should Have Higher Stakes
While technically Vegapunk's original body was killed and destroyed in Egghead, the fact that he miraculously has a backup replica with the same memories, personalities, and more, is basically the same as the original Vegapunk coming back from the afterlife. This dilutes the sacrifice he made to broadcast his message to the world. Furthermore, Kizaru's emotional moment where he cries for his dead friend is now made much less impactful given his tears were for nothing, and that Vegapunk is still out there. This development has a lot of consequences, and it is mostly for the worse.
Another thing this return does is it makes the events at Egghead much less grim. Initially, it seemed the heroes were facing an insurmountable wall when the Buster Call was authorized. With CP-0, the Five Elders, multiple Vice Admirals, Pacifistas, Seraphim, and hundreds of marines against them, the situation looked impossible, and it made sense that the Vegapunks were killed, given the severity of the attack. However, now that it has been confirmed that all the Vegapunks are alive and Stella is getting a perfect new body, it dampens the tension and stakes at Egghead massively.
One Piece's Insistence On Undoing Deaths Is Still Annoying
The Fakeout Deaths Are One Of The Most Controversial Aspects Of One Piece
One Piece has had a long history of refusing to kill characters even when situations call for it. The only time major side characters died was in Marineford with Ace and Whitebeard, and this was applauded by fans. However, since then, many characters have been spared even after seemingly being dead or suffering injuries that should have killed them. Kin'emon, Saul, Sabo, Jack: the list keeps going on and on, and recently it has only been increasing.
With the world of One Piece becoming more dangerous lately, the lack of deaths of important characters does not line up with the drama and stakes of the story. While it is understandable that Eichiro Oda wants a happy party at the end and to have all the characters celebrating, it still takes away from the tension that is desperately needed. The latest fake-out death is just another disappointing moment that could persist until the end of the series.
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One Piece
Created by Eiichiro Oda, One Piece is a multimedia franchise that began as a manga series and follows the adventures of the Straw Hat Pirates as led by Monkey D. Luffy. Luffy, an enthusiastic pirate with a thirst for adventure, is afflicted by a mysterious curse that gives him various powers he uses to protect himself and his friends. The manga eventually gave way to the anime series, with the two being some of history's longest-running anime and manga series. Along with over fifty video games made over the years, the series entered the live-action world with Netflix's 2023 adaptation.
English (US) ·