Despite occasional complaints about his pacing, One piece is often agreed to be one of the most well-written Shon manga, not only in terms of its story, but also its world-building, well-rounded characters, complex themes and backstories. That said, one unexpected character best encapsulates the beauty of Eiichiro Oda’s writing, and it’s not what fans might expect.
Episode #1116 of One piece New light awaits Buggy, who, despite being a pathetic gag character for the majority of the series, is finally portrayed in an admirable light. The episode Highlights Buggy’s dreams and aspirations As well as the hidden tragedy in his character, adding an unexpected layer of complexity to him and also making him seem almost respectable for the first time in the series. More than anything, this episode portrays just how good Eiichiro Oda can be Recontextualize and flip perceptions of a character With just a simple scene.
The latest saga of One Piece completely recontextualizes the character of Buggy
Chapter #1082 and Episode #1116 highlight Baggy’s most admirable trait
Despite being one of the first real antagonists of the series, Buggy the Clown has gradually devolved into one of One pieces longest-running gags. Through a series of hilarious misunderstandings, Buggy has continued to fail upwards, unwittingly keeping up with Luffy since the beginning of the series. His constant failures coupled with his cowardice make him A character that is hard to take seriously, And he spent most of One piece Being a one-note pompous clown.
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However, fans see a new side of Baggy in chapter #1082, when, even at his lowest, having been completely degraded by Mihawk and Crocodile, Baggy holds fast to his ideals of what piracy should be. This is one of the first instances that fans see the influence of traveling with Roger on Buggy. Chapter #1082 makes it clear that Buggy disagrees with Crocodile and Mihawk’s business-minded approach to piracy. To him, piracy and going to sea are all about pursuing one’s dreams and aspirations, which are values ​​strongly espoused by Luffy and the Straw Hats.
Baggy not only defends his beliefs, but he even declares his intentions to become the King of the Pirates. His epic declaration inspires the Cross Guild members as well as fans who win A newfound sense of respect for Baggy. In the anime, the scene even features the same music that plays when Luffy or one of the Straw Hats explain their dreams, further pushing the importance of the moment for Baggy’s character.
Buggy’s flashback with Shanks reveals a sad side to his character
Baggy’s character is surprisingly more tragic than fans think
Since Buggy was first introduced, he has been known to hold a grudge against Shanks and although the grudge was shallow at first, the flashback in chapter #1082 expands on Buggy’s complex feelings about Shanks. Roger was known to be a father figure to both Buggy and Shanks, but as the flashback reveals, Shanks seemed to be the golden child from the beginning, who “boasts with potential,” as Buggy puts it.
Baggy was forced to accept this at a very young age He would never be able to compete with Shanks And easily the saddest part of the flashback is when Buggy is even seen looking at Roger and Shanks from a distance with a mixture of frustration and sadness on his face. As such, Buggy instead gave up on his own dreams and chose to live vicariously through Shanks and see his dream fulfilled through Shanks.
Judging by Buggy’s conversation with Shanks at Roger’s execution, Buggy fully believed that Shanks would become the next King of the Pirates. Baggy never mentions taking his own ship to Lakh Tail, which implies He intends to be part of Shanks’ crew Even before the latter could ask.
however, Shanks went back on his wordThis also on the day when Bugis’s whole world fell apart. As such, Buggy begins to resent Shanks for taking away his ability to swim, his treasure map, and even the chance to see his dream vicariously fulfilled. This is why, when Buggy was first introduced, he was seen pathetically terrorizing helpless civilians in Orange Town. That is, until Luffy comes around and seemingly reignites the spark of ambition in him. That’s why it’s all the more painful when Bagi finally chose to follow his dream again, and with that he reignites the same ambition in his followers.
Overall though he may not be the most likable or the most complex character in One piece Still, it’s still nice to see Baggy finally elevated to more than a gag after all these years. Fans have long joked that Buggy might end up beating Luffy for laughs and now that he has so seriously decided to chase his dream, Buggy might actually be a serious contender for the title of Pirate King with more fans rooting for him than ever before .
One piece is available from Crunchyroll and Netflix.