 Death. The end of one's life. A common plot device used across all fictional media, and one which has particular significance and purpose in One Piece. Hello my Nakamitachi, this is Joygirl and today we're going to be discussing Death in the World of One Piece, which is a pretty heavy topic in itself, but is a particularly layered and deeply meaningful phenomenon which Oda uses in his story. And if you would like to discuss various other topics present within the series, whether it be as heavy as this one or as light as Usopp's 5-ton hammer, please do subscribe. I should also mention to anime-only fans that this video is relatively spoiler-free or I will at least warn you before discussing any manga-only material. But back to today's video. Death is an interesting element used with a very particular meaning and intention in the story. And there are a few main elements to this topic, all of which are interesting and can even be controversial points of discussion, such as what death means and how it is used throughout the series, as well as the unavoidable question regarding the lack of deaths in One Piece, including the much-heated topic of Oda's use of fake-out deaths, and the mangaka's own thoughts and feelings about using death in the series. Starting with the first question, how is death used in One Piece? Unless you are very new to the series, you will have likely noticed that death is seemingly not a commonly featured plot development. And I say seemingly because although it is true that we rarely witness the death of a character on screen and in the present timeline, there are plenty of deaths that have occurred and have been relayed to us through the use of flashbacks. Which seems to illuminate Oda's intentions when it comes to the decision of killing off a character. Death is not simply a plot device used by the mangaka to shock his readers and grab their attention as it is used in other pieces of fiction. Death is specifically used for practically a single purpose, a catalyst for further developments. And this is true in regards to plot developments as it is to characters. One Piece as a series literally opened with death. As we witness the execution of Goldie Roger. The Pirate King's death spurred the entire story with his final words, inviting the world out to look for the treasure he left at sea and in turn sparking the great age of pirates. Roger's death continues to have an effect today as inspired by his words, pirates all around the world including our main character, journey and battle to find the One Piece and claim the title of Pirate King. Also as one of the very few deaths of the current timeline, Whitebeard's death was a groundbreaking moment in the series. Similarly to Roger, Whitebeard in his final moments confirmed the treasure's existence, thus paving the way for the new age of piracy. In a period where the age of pirates and pirate's dreams had begun to decline with some pirates even mocking the idea of the One Piece, Whitebeard's final words reinvigorated the spirits of pirates and enticed the many to venture out to the new world. In addition to this, the death of the strongest man in the world had a monumental impact on the plotline of the series. With the world having relied upon the balance of powers between the world government and the Shichibukai against the Yonko, Whitebeard's death resulted in a major upset to this balance, having huge repercussions all over the world and thus sparking further plotlines and developments. A perfect example of this is the ongoing feud between Luffy and Big Mom, which could be considered as an indirect but still related consequence of Whitebeard's death. This bitter enmity between the two started after Luffy challenged the Yonko's rule over Fishman Island. This arguably only occurred as a result of islands and nations formally under Whitebeard's protection left vulnerable in the wake of his death, which forced Fishman Island to become affiliated with Big Mom. And despite us witnessing Whitebeard's death over a decade ago, the aftermath has continued still today in the Wano arc. Speaking of which, the events of Wano, and arguably, much of the post-timescape era, insofar as it concerns Kinemon and Momonosuke, whom we met in Punk Hazard, is fuelled by the death of Odin, whom his scabbards have vowed to avenge by defeating Kaido and fulfill Odin's dreams of opening up Wano's borders, which leads us to the discussion of character development. Arguably, the best example of how death is used for this purpose is seen through our main protagonist, Luffy. The death of his brother, Ace, is perhaps the most illuminating use of death to further develop a character, especially as it is one of the very few on-screen deaths which occurred in the present timeline. The impact of Ace's death was huge, not just on a shockingly emotional level for us, but for Luffy as it served as the final straw for what he had started to realize after the Saabori arc when he failed to save his friends from Kuma. For Ace to die whilst protecting his brother, who had come to Marineford to save him, it became excruciatingly clear that Luffy was simply not strong enough. Ace's death, paired with whitebeards, served the purpose of further developing Luffy's character, resulting in his entry to the New World as a much stronger pirate. But Oda, being the brilliant mangaka that he is, adds another layer. At the beginning of the Wano arc, it was revealed that Ace had also visited Wano and promised Tama that he would make Wano a country where she could eat until she was full every day. The same promise Luffy made to the aspiring Kunoichi, revealing a theme that is heavily present throughout the series and one which becomes even more poignant through death. Inherited Will Whilst throughout the series we have been viewing Luffy as having inherited Roger's will, it was revealed at Wano that Luffy now also carries on Ace's will. Having failed to save Ace at Marineford, he must now save the memory of his brother by fulfilling their promise to the citizens of Wano. Over the course of the series, almost every prominent character's motives and actions are inspired by the passing of those important to them. All the Straw Hat crew members have dealt with the loss of a loved one, which was used to advance their stories by shaping their personalities and goals. Witnessing the tragic backstories of our crew through their respective flashbacks help us in understanding the characters and the motivations behind their actions and dreams. The focus on this concept in the series then leads us to the next question. What does death mean? And I don't mean the rules or guidelines set by the fan base like if we see the deceased body of the character then that likely confirms death, which admittedly only came about because of the number of miraculously missed deaths in the series, but more on that later. What I mean by this is that as a result of the notion of inherited will, death can take on a fundamentally different meaning when viewed in one piece terms. When does a man die? Is it when he's shot in the heart with a pistol? No. When he's stricken with a deadly disease? No. When he eats soup made from a deadly mushroom? No. It's when he's forgotten. As explained beautifully by Dr. Hero look, one's physical death is of little consequence in the series. Death takes on such a more poignant and layered meaning. In a series where individuals take their lives to live out their dreams, death has more to do about one's spirit and will than physiology. We have seen this different meaning of death sprinkled throughout the series such as Roger's parting words to Rayleigh. The former pirate king is indeed the perfect embodiment of Hero look's words. Through the legacy he created, Roger lives on and his presence is felt throughout the series. One of my favourite examples of this is the past on will of Mary's, whom yes, I do consider a living character in her own right. Not only did the death of the Going Mary spark various plot and character developments, Oda softened the heartbreak of the ship's death by introducing us to the Thousand Sunny, who carries on the soul of Going Mary. And now, for this next example, anime-only fans will have to skip ahead to the time shown on the screen as we're going to discuss something which hasn't yet been animated. For everyone else, let's discuss that epic death of Kazuki Oden. Oden said something in a similar vein moments before his death, when to Kaido he claimed that his spirit will live on as a story to accompany people's drinks, as a legend. And Kaido experienced Oden's lingering presence firsthand when he was flooded with images of Oden during the Scabbard's attack, showcasing their inheritance of Oden's will. This deeper meaning behind death establishes the notion that one never actually dies so long as they remain in the memory of others. Whilst this is indeed beautiful and meaningful, there is however another layer to this idea that no one dies in one piece, bringing us to one of the most contested aspects of the series, the fakeouts. For a series that does so well by its fans, to say that Oda's decision to bring back seemingly deceased characters hasn't been so well received is a great understatement. The first controversial use of this plot device was when Pell somehow miraculously survived the bomb explosion in the Alibasta arc, which the mangaka had previously done for Igaram's character in the same arc. Since then, Oda has also used this for other various characters. Whilst in the post timeskip era, Oda has included more deaths such as Yasui's heartfelt sacrifice, this trope of characters surviving deaths throughout the series has even led to the joke of Will of P to refer to the long line of characters whose name starts with P who have survived their seeming deaths. And whilst the majority of this has concerns side characters, when the mangaka just seems unable to part with, fakeouts have even become part of the main storyline such as the reveal of Sabo still being alive. And understandably, this plot device angers a substantial portion of the fan community. It is argued to take away from the tension and the gravitas that the seeming death established in the first place and make readers suspicious of any future deaths. I mean, I'm still holding out to see whether Pedro actually died or whether he'll continue the Will of P and come back to witness the new dawn for himself. But personally, I don't think that this lingering doubt of whether Pedro is actually dead is necessarily something that detracts from my enjoyment of the series nor do I think it takes away from the sacrifice that he made because it was still an epic and heartfelt decision to which he dedicated his life regardless of the outcome. Also, after we experienced the shock of the death of Ace and Whitebeard, proving that Oda does have the capacity to kill his characters when necessary, ever since Marineford, the mystery of whether characters are dead or alive has created a new sort of tension that I actually enjoy, but in saying that I do understand that not everyone feels the same way and why some may have felt cheated from the emotional depth associated with character deaths as a result of these fake outs. And so whilst it may be hard to understand why Oda would choose to use this controversial plot device, it does seem like he has his reasons, which he has either directly commented on or alluded to throughout the years. Indeed, Oda explained this in the fourth volume of SBS. When asked why Luffy doesn't kill his opponents, the mangaka answered that in an era where everyone uses their lives for their dreams, their failure in achieving such is as painful as death. A widely touted but in reality a myth that exists in the community is that Pel was written to die, but considering the context in our real world where Pel's death was released very close to the 9-11 attacks in America, Oda and his editors thought that having Pel die from a bombing would be insensitive and thus wrote his survival back into the series. Whilst this theory is certainly plausible when we consider the dates between the chapter and the real life attacks, it does remain a theory. In saying that, let's examine Oda's actual response to the 9-11 attacks. In the 44th issue of Shonen Jump, Oda commented that there are adults who kill others in the name of holy war or justice, and this is something that kids witness growing up. One piece is a series which will continue for quite some time, all the while praying for world peace. What this seems to imply is that for the mangaka, killing in the name of justice is not something he wants kids to grow up believing. So as for his own story, it's not an element which he will be endorsing, which does seem to contradict the existence of characters such as Akainu, though this could explain why Akainu is portrayed as a villain and thus not a celebrated character to be looked up to. Aside from this, Oda has also revealed his belief that death or killing shouldn't be taken lightly. In SBS Volume 57, Oda commented that his grandma once told him that using the word kill is not a good thing to say, which is partly why he chooses to limit the use of this word in his series. It seems that Oda is reluctant to feature death so frequently or to use this word due to the risk of such a word being treated flippantly. Although it is evident that this has now changed, back in 1999, Oda also once admitted in the Asahi Evening newspaper that he doesn't kill any characters because he wishes for his readers to leave the arc satisfied. And this could be understood in conjunction with another illuminating comment made in 2012 during an interview featured in the Shonen Jump Alpha blog. Oda said that when writing One Piece, he only has one reader in mind, himself as a 15 year old. And as such, he makes his decisions based on how he believes his 15 year old self would react to an event. And whilst the reality of the fact that One Piece as a series which has been running for over 20 years means most fans are older than 15, the fact remains that One Piece is ultimately a Shonen series. Whilst Oda wasn't actually answering a question about death specifically, his view of his readership does somewhat explain his reluctance in killing characters which may feel too dark or heavy for his perceived young fan base. From all of this, it seems that Oda only kills his characters when there's an absolute need to, where the story would not make sense otherwise. For example, whereas Ace's sacrifice and resulting death was necessary to catapult Luffy's development and growth, Pearl's decision and actions of sacrifice were sufficient. There is no need for Pearl to have remained dead in the same way for Ace, as the arc, nor the future of One Piece, depends on Vivi's character development. Which also seems to relate to another comment Oda has made, this time specifically regarding death. In 2007, in a Shuisha Playboy magazine, Oda revealed that resurrecting a dead character wasn't his style and a plot device he has never enjoyed even as a young reader. As such, he is careful not to actually kill off any of his characters who may still have a future story to tell. Which may seem odd because resurrecting a dead character or miraculously saving a presumably dead character without much explanation may seem more or less the same. But nevertheless, it seems the two are distinguishable, at least in the eyes of our beloved mangaka. And that brings us to the end of today's discussion. Please let me know your thoughts on this heavy but meaningful topic by leaving a comment below, please also like and share if you enjoyed today's video, and please also don't forget to subscribe to join us for more One Piece discussions. This is Joygirl and I'll see you again soon.