 Etchero Oda has been showing us what Luffy's final form will be ever since the beginning of the series when Luffy first acquired his devil fruit and we just didn't know it. A form that's more hype than gear second, more meaningful than gear fourth, and even crazier than gear fifth and all we have to do is follow the clues. Ever since Oda introduced us to Luffy's devil fruit and the fact that he can utilize it to transform into different forms, awaiting our rubber boy's next move has been one of the most exciting parts of the series. The reveal of gear second is probably up there as part of every one piece fan's favorite Luffy moments and more recently, the highly anticipated gear fifth was an earth-shattering reveal that broke the series and while it may seem premature to be already eagerly anticipating Luffy's next form, the prospect of our main character getting even cooler and stronger as he continues to develop into his final endgame form is all too exciting. But is it possible that we ourselves are able to figure out what that form will be? Well, keep watching and you'll find out. But first, this video is sponsored by Zen Market. Zen Market is a shopping service that allows you to buy from over 10,000 Japanese stores from the comfort of your own home, with stores like Amazon, Rakuten or even premium Bandai. If there are items you can only get in Japan, for only 300 yen per item and international shipping, Zen Market will make that purchase possible. Say there's a special Zoro figure, but you can't find it in your home country? Lucky that Zen Market's here to help. Here's my page full of one piece goodies that I can't wait to get my hands on. You can purchase one piece items from Japan's official one piece store, Mugiwara, the Toei store through Zen Market. Zen Market has also recently added online flea market Rakuma, meaning you can get great deals and savings. And if you get in quick, you can even take advantage of some of the Black Friday specials they have available on their website. Zen Market is your one stop shopping cart for all your Japanese goodies. It's easy to use, auto translates and it's free to register an account. Plus, they give you 300 yen as a gift for new members, which is the equivalent of getting your first item free of a service fee. So what are you waiting for? The first key to finding out Luffy's final form is understanding that all of Luffy's previous forms to date has each told a story. Each form we have seen throughout the series represents a particular point in Luffy's journey, not only in a physical and literal sense, but also, and arguably more importantly, in a meaningful and metaphorical way. Like Luffy's first robbery body post-consumption of the then known to be Gomagobonomi, for example, it's a perfect representation of the beginning stage of Luffy's journey. Just like the physical manifestation of his first form, Luffy as an individual was a boy with his values not yet formed. The elasticity of Luffy's body symbolizes the flexibility in his ideals and values. As a young boy with little pirating experience, he was still malleable and impressionable, hence his time with Shang's was so critical in shaping his character and the man we see before us today. The lessons he was taught during these early, bendy days would prove to stick with him as his ideals formed and hardened. Luffy's gi second is a form that involves him increasing his blood flow at an extremely fast rate to send more oxygen and nutrients to his body part. A transformation of his devil fruit that allows him extreme speed and mobility. If we think about the stage of Luffy's journey in which he developed this form, the physicality of it makes so much more sense. Gi second first appearing in Enneas Lobby, an arc centered around the retrieval of Niko Robin, one of Luffy's Nakama. Up until this point, Luffy had faced both dangerous and infuriating situations, circumstances where his friends were threatened or an entire kingdom was being oppressed, but this was the first time that a friend, someone who was already a part of his crew was being taken away from him, therefore eliciting anger on another level and Luffy's fury is physically palpable in the form that his power up takes, a gear that involves him furiously working past the normal limits of speed. His emotional state shown physically when we see the heat emanating from his body. Of course, Enneas Lobby was an arc where we saw two power ups in quick succession, witnessing Gi third soon after the reveal of Gi second. And even this makes sense within the context of the story and Luffy's development. The best way to describe Gi third would be to say that Luffy inflates parts of his body so that his limbs become gigantic but that this isn't extended to his entire body. It's differentiated from the previously seen balloon technique in that Gi third involves his limb being hardened as it's his actual bone being blown up to increase the overall size of the limb and the metaphorical significance of this power up lines up with the actions Luffy and the straw hats took during the Enneas Lobby arc. While Luffy has never had any qualms about opposing marines, this was the first time that he openly challenged the world government to this level, setting fire to their flag in symbolic public defiance on a scale much greater than his previous localized acts of rebellion or retaliation. Again, the physical element of Gi third, Luffy's limbs becoming as large as that of a Giants represents his growing influence in the world. Luffy metaphorically becoming a Giants, that this only being possible for select body parts and not yet his entire body perfectly demonstrating his then level of influence, this event still occurring relatively early in his journey. Nightmare Luffy goes on to continue this trend. Now before you accuse me of being selective in choosing certain forms over others, for example, it's hard for me to view Afro Luffy as a form in and of itself because while it did certainly give him a newfound power, that was a purely external prop that he utilized as opposed to him physically transforming his body. Because Nightmare Luffy did involve a physical transformation and what a transformation it was. Especially as a symbolic representation, it is shocking to realize how the mechanics of this form was actually a foreshadowing of what was to come. Nightmare Luffy was achieved by implanting 100 shadows into the rubber boy, giving him greater powers and transforming his physical state and while it was enough in the fight against ores. The nature of his transformation was an illustration that Luffy at this point in his journey was still not strong enough on his own even if we didn't realize it at the time. Ultimately Luffy needed the shadows of others or in other words the help of others. In fact, that theme of teamwork ran very heavily in the combat scenes of that arc even including a Team Straw Hat fight and the arc then closing with trusty Zoro effectively saving Luffy from Kuma and while these scenes will be forever remembered and immortalized as some of the greatest moments in the series, looking back they also serve to demonstrate that Luffy himself needs to get stronger to fight the foes he will continue to face on his journey. That it's not enough if he has to rely on others. Because this is exactly what's shown to us in the next couple of arcs. Both the Straw Hats and Luffy personally suffer massive blows. Losing to Kuma, Kizaru and Akainu in such quick successions. For Luffy the loss of his crew or his brother and for a period even his determination. Looking back in retrospect it's chilling to think that Nightmare Luffy was so quickly followed by a series of Nightmarish events for Luffy. When we return post timeskip before we get the next gear there is an awesome technique that we just have to mention in use of gear 2nd. Finally the Gomu Gomu no Red Hawk. This is a classic example of an attack where it's physical manifestation represents a particular juncture in Luffy's story. Having lost his brother and then training for two years afterwards it's fitting that Luffy developed a form that honors his late brother. In memory of Ace also known as Fire Fist Ace, Luffy's next major power up takes the form of a Fire Fist. This can be made as to how such a thing is physically possible. The combination of gear 2nd with the extremely fast hardening through armament haki causing enough friction to generate fire or perhaps Red Hawk even being a hint of the true nature of Luffy's devil fruit which was to be revealed much later. At the end of the day it's inarguable that Luffy's Gomu Gomu no Red Hawk is the embodiment of Ace's will. Gear 4th similarly packs a whole lot of meaning when we consider its various forms. Bound men being the first gear 4th, this involves Luffy again changing his body's proportions whilst coating his arms, legs and upper torso with armament haki. This composition allows him to bounce into the air almost in flight whilst the armament haki provides him with enhanced defense. However because of his proportions most of the time Luffy's unable to control his landing and needs to keep bouncing for balance. Then matching his physical capabilities to the deeper, more meaningful significance Luffy's use of haki to coat himself shows us what he's learned from his recent failures. He needs to develop his defensive capabilities to be better at protecting those he loves but no matter how much he had developed Luffy at this stage was still facing off a shichibukai with awakened devil fruit powers. While this wouldn't technically be the first instance Luffy will afford against devil fruit users with awakened abilities, Doflamingo was the first character whose awakened fruit powers played a significant learning point in Luffy's journey. And this really shows because although he's gained much greater power and skills during the time skip, Luffy is still unstable in terms of his status and capabilities amidst the wider context of the one piece new world, hence his imbalance. Eggman is a form we've only seen in very very limited circumstance but even still something can be said about its form and meaning. From what we can see the major utility of this form comes down to its durability. With majority of the inflation happening in his torso, it increases Luffy's ability to deflect or in other words tank attacks. This is fitting for an arc where Luffy's primary goal in Holcake Island wasn't to take on and defeat Big Mom to completely take her down, but just enough to infiltrate her kingdom while leaving with his crewmate safely, or in other words when Luffy just needed to be able to endure and deflect attacks just so that they could escape. On the other hand, fighting Katakuri was a whole nother game. Being the battle where Snake Man appeared, it's easy to see why. This sleeker gear forth form doesn't just come down to the aesthetics or even physicality when comparing to Luffy's other gear forth forms. Rather than the great inflation we saw with Boundman or Tankman, Snake Man is only slightly larger than his usual body proportions and it follows that rather than a focus on defensive capabilities Snake Man is heavily geared towards offensive powers. And this makes sense in the context of the Katakuri battle where when all said and done that battle came down to willpower and determination. It also involved Luffy piecing through Katakuri's mental barriers. And to do this, he needed pointed attacks, not just blunt durability, attacks that can break through and break down his opponent's psychological defenses, which is exactly what happened during that battle. That battle for Katakuri was as psychological as it was physical, in fact perhaps even more so. Luffy's metaphorical role in affecting Katakuri in this way is reflected in his physical form, which brings us now to the long anticipated gear fifth. Another extraordinary representation of the physicality being in perfect harmony with its symbolic meaning. Luffy with his gear fifth form was finally able to defeat a Yonko. Gear fifth being the result of Luffy awakening his devil fruit, previously known to be the Gomu Gomu no Mi, but actually being the Hitohito no Mi model nika, assumedly giving him the powers of the sun god and making him the warrior of liberation, the long awaited joy boy. And the ridiculous ability is granted with this awakening, alongside Luffy's trademark grit and determination being enough to finally defeat Kaido, the much feared Yonko and strongest creature in the world. This is all symbolically shown in Luffy's form. His giant size, this time being able to expand his entire body and not just limbs, showcasing the extent of his huge influence in the world. His ability to affect not just his own body, but things external to him, meaning his threat level now is that of someone who is truly able to seriously impact the world around him. Someone who is now to be truly taken seriously by the world government, hence why they only chose that moment to kill him, instead of prior, despite the knowledge of him possessing the devil fruit all along. And of course, perhaps the most obvious metaphor, the drums of liberation. Luffy's rhythmic heartbeat, described to be the drums of liberation, fits perfectly. An arc centered around so much oppression and tragedy, giving birth to the warrior of liberation. To joy boy. Ideas which have become so embedded into Luffy's identity. And in the grand scheme of things, it hasn't been that long since Gear 5th shocked us all. It was a power-up that elevated Luffy's status in the eyes of the audience, as well as within the One Piece world, granting him his Yonko status. And it definitely meant Luffy had reached a new level, one on par with the other legendary individuals in the series, Kaido himself comparing Luffy to the legends of old. But now that the series is now and truly in the final saga, and with huge developments dropping in every chapter, it's only a matter of time before we'll find that Gear 5th is not enough for Luffy to take on and defeat his final foe. We've just recently seen the insane island-zapping ability of Imus, and while Luffy's awakened sun god form against Kaido was certainly a fearsome sight to witness, his capabilities wild impressive, just don't generate the same level of apprehension or fear that Imus power instills. Which is to say that another form will be necessary for Luffy to beat Imu, or whoever ends up being the final enemy. And what is currently developing right in front of our eyes right now may be perfectly poising us to realize this final form of Luffy's. Vagapunk's much anticipated entry opens up so many possibilities when it comes to Luffy's development as a character, a genius scientist with expertise when it comes to the mechanics and workings of devil fruits. Vagapunk could be the answer to helping Luffy achieve a form beyond that of an awakened Gear 5th. In fact, Vagapunk may be the only one able to assist Luffy in doing this. It may even be the reason why the CP-Zero agents are now tasked with killing Vagapunk, the mastermind behind the recent successes and growth of the Marine Force. After all these years, Vagapunk is suddenly a cause of concern for the world government. Admittedly, it seems that the cause behind the target placed on Vagapunk may be because of his knowledge about the days of future past, but is it possible that rather than because of anything that Vagapunk himself has done, the world government has called for his death because of external factors and movements that makes Vagapunk a bigger threat. If we think about what has recently occurred on the global scale in the One Piece world, Luffy's Awakening is an event that truly startled the Gorosei, whom up until that point did not believe that awakening the fruit would even be possible, but now that Luffy has achieved this. This means that the threat of having an individual like Vagapunk around, a genius with extensive devil fruit knowledge who could help unlock the true nature and extent of the capabilities of Luffy's devil fruit, this is a threat too great to ignore. And despite all the helpful work the scientist has done for the Marines, it's safer to kill him than risk his knowledge coming into use. But how does this answer what exactly Luffy's final form will be? Well, based on what we've seen so far throughout the series, we have a few pointers. On a purely physical level, it will obviously involve much greater powers than we've seen to date. It's fair to suspect it will have something to do with the simultaneous use of his Awakening as well as his conquest Haki. To the best of my knowledge, Luffy is one of the only very very few people shown to have achieved or possessed both a devil fruit Awakening and Conqueror's Haki. The fact that Conqueror's Haki will be very important in the arcs to come was heavily suggested by Kaido during the tail end of Wano, with the Fallen Yonko emphasising that Roger was able to conquer the Grand Line through his proficient use of Conqueror's Haki and then shanks soon after getting some crazy highlights focusing on his mastery of Conqueror's Haki. But of course, the point of the story is that Luffy needs to surpass both shanks and even Goldy Roger. It's not enough that Luffy perfects his use of Conqueror's Haki, but the good news is that Luffy already has something up his sleeve, his ridiculous devil fruit and the insane abilities that come along with its Awakening. Powers when combined and maximised to its fullest extent will allow him to reach heights even greater than anyone who's come before him. Abilities that will be enough to defeat Imu who has some insane powers up their own sleeve. What does this look like? Perhaps Luffy will be the first individual to achieve a form past an Awakening. A double Awakening. What will it mean? If all of Luffy's forms so far have each represented a part of his story then his final form will also reflect Luffy's progression and the completion of his journey to become the Pirate King to achieve his dream. Which though not yet known, we can assume to be closely associated with his ideals of achieving freedom for everyone. An ideal not yet possible under the oppressive rule of Imu and the world government. Or in the case against Blackbeard, Luffy's desire to cast out darkness and bring light and joy into the world. And based on the information currently available to us, it seems that Joy Boy was the original or at least a previous user of the Nika Devil Fruit. In fact, it's even possible that in the same way that it happened for Luffy, it was the same unlocking of the Awakening of the Devil Fruit that granted the previous Joy Boy his status. Or perhaps it's the spirit and powers of Joy Boy that became locked away in the Devil Fruit for someone to access and embody in the future. Either way, the abilities and powers that were available to Joy Boy is what Luffy now holds. But the point of the story and indeed the point of Luffy's journey is that he must now surpass the previous Joy Boy if he is to bring about the New World Order. Whatever Luffy unlocks as his final form will be a feat that no one in the history of the One Piece World will have ever achieved before. Not Roger. Not even Joy Boy himself. Luffy is the second coming. The promised one. The one who will fulfill all debts and promises that the previous Joy Boy left behind unfulfilled. This means that Luffy has to go beyond his current powers and the abilities of the Awakening. Beyond that of the previous Joy Boy if he is to become the Joy Boy who will give birth to the New Dawn. A form and corresponding abilities that not only reflects Luffy's state physically but also meaningfully. A form that represents him worthy of not only becoming the next pirate king but even beyond this. Perhaps something that even metaphorically represents his yet to be divulged dream. Meaning Luffy's final form is also very likely to represent freedom. And not just on the scale that we've seen with Gear 5th which allows him the most ridiculous abilities. But again, beyond this. Because by the time Luffy achieves his final form, this will be the end game. The final stage. A closing act to an epic tale. Luffy will achieve and conquer. Except in his case, this simply means achieving absolute freedom. Meaning that Luffy's final form, this will be something never seen in the history of Manga before. And what a sight that will be to behold. But those are just my thoughts and expectations of a final form based on the analysis of Luffy's all previous forms. And I would love to hear your thoughts on this matter so let me know by leaving a comment below. Please do subscribe for more One Piece discussions. You can also join our Joyfleet Discord server or even become a channel or Patreon member. And I do want to thank all our executive officers for help supporting this channel. This is Joygirl and I'll see you again soon.