Eiichiro Oda is a master at creating a diverse range of characters. Luffy, the iconic protagonist of One Piece, is a testament to Eiichiro Oda’s genius. His slow and steady progression since eating the Devil Fruit at the beginning of the series has awed fans.
While fans are eager to see Luffy’s final form and can’t wait for its debut, it is Luffy’s training and the challenges he has overcome throughout more than a thousand chapters and episodes that make One Piece so interesting.
Eichiro Oda Compares Luffy to a Controversial One Piece Character to Show the Disadvantage of an OP Protagonist
In the Sound Recording magazine (2012), a comment by Eiichiro Oda was published regarding the nature of One Piece‘s protagonist. Oda explained that Luffy worried him the most since the author would have to defeat the antagonists immediately unless the author stalls him before he can face off against the villain.
So, when you create a protagonist in manga, it is not a good idea to make him too strong. For example, if Akainu became the protagonist, he is so strong that ONE PIECE would come to an end within a year.
-Eiichiro Oda
Oda also explained that an overpowered character could bring the downfall of a series pretty soon. The author definitely believes in creating characters who grow over time rather than introducing a protagonist who is too powerful. Indeed, if Luffy was as powerful as some other characters like Kuzan and Akainu, he would have climbed the stairs pretty soon. In fact, some of the most interesting arcs of the series would never take place as Luffy would quickly rise to the top.
Eiichiro Oda used Akainu as an example since he is a pretty powerful character. On top of being a Marine Admiral who has a lot of influence and political sway, he has also consumed the Magu Magu no Mi Devi Fruit, which gives him the ability to create, control, and transform into magma. Thankfully, his evil personality is not really the protagonist type.
How Eiichiro Oda’s Statement Was Twisted to Form a Myth
Eiichiro Oda stated that if Akainu was the protagonist of One Piece, the manga and anime franchises would have ended in a year. However, his words have been twisted by fans to make it seem like Oda was alluding that Akainu could have found the titular treasure of One Piece in under a year.
Under no circumstances has Oda stated Akainu would achieve the One Piece sooner than anyone else. Instead, he wanted fans to focus on the fact that Luffy is the protagonist due to his slow development. Rather than saying Akainu is a competent protagonist, Oda was simply explaining why Luffy is the ideal guy to lead the franchise.
Akainu is definitely a strong character, but he is so powerful that a gradual development of powers can be hard to portray. It is due to Luffy’s several failings as well as training and battle scenes that fans can relate to the character so much. But Akainu would snatch away the sentiment with his strength as he can just one-shot his enemies.
One Piece manga is available to read on Viz Media, and the anime is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.
