The Straw Hat Pirates are central to the world of One Pieceas the protagonist of the series, Monkey D. Luffy, leads this group created in East Blue. The Straw Hat Pirates have come a long way, having now established themselves as one of the strongest crews in the entire world. It goes without saying that Oda will continue to give special attention to the Straw Hat Pirates even in the final saga of the story, and each Straw Hat will have their personal character arcs fulfilled.
Some characters, such as Luffy, Robin and Sanji, have their dreams directly tied to the history of the world and the Void Century. Others have dreams related to strength, like Zoro, who aims to become the world's strongest swordsman. There is one character whose dream may actually require him to die. It is possible that before the end of One Piece, a Straw Hat can end up dying to fulfill his dream properly, and this character is everyone's beloved sharpshooter, Usopp.
Fans thought Oda planned to kill a Straw Hat in one piece
The Going Merry was finally killed
About two decades ago, a very popular idea was spread stating that Oda originally planned to kill a Straw Hat. This was not entirely wrong because Oda wanted to kill a member of the Straw Hat crew. He just didn't specify which member of the crew he wanted to kill later. After the events of the Enies Lobby arc, it was revealed that this member of the crew was none other than Going Merry. The Merry was a family member of the Straw Hats, and for the fans to say goodbye to her was very difficult indeed.
After Merry's death, it was obvious to the fans to see that no more Straw Hats would die. But if you just take a look at Usopp's personal character arc, it's pretty clear that he could very well end up in the final saga of One Piece. Usopp's death wouldn't serve the purpose of shock value or just undermine fan expectations. It is imperative for him to die because it will allow him to fulfill his dream and become fully realized as a brave warrior of the sea.
Usopp could die before the end of One Piece
Usopp's dream is connected to death
When Usopp reached the Little Garden with the Straw Hat Pirates, it became clear to fans that his dream was directly connected to the pride of the Giants of Elbaf and becoming a brave warrior. Usopp has always claimed that he wants to be one of the bravest on the seabut the truth is that he is actually already brave. When push comes to shove, Usopp always steps up and proves that he is indeed reliable. In fact, it's only when you're scared that they can really be brave, and Usopp shows that through his character.
One Piece fans can feel close to Usopp because the characters around him are too strong. Hopefully he will continue to be the weakest Straw Hat to join the crew in the future. And I hope Chopper will forever be fooled by his lies. — Eiichiro Oda
In many ways, Usopp has already fulfilled part of his dream, but that doesn't mean there isn't some progression for his character to go through still. Usopp's pride means he must die a death he deems worthy of immortalization. Usopp doesn't want to disappear into nothing after his death. Just as the giants fight to the death and are immortalized in history forever, Usopp wants his end to be something similar. This is something Usopp has claimed before, and according to him, he wants to die a brave warrior of the sea.
Usually everything Usopp says ends up coming true in One Piece. Oda even specifically highlights his lies and then makes them come true in some pretty humorous ways. Likewise, Oda could very well surprise fans by fulfilling Usopp's dream of dying as a brave warrior of the sea. That doesn't mean Usopp will fall into the final saga immediately.
It could simply happen at the end of his journey and after he has fulfilled his true dream, or possibly even after the disbandment of the Straw Hat Pirates.
Usopp's death will fix his character forever
Usopp needs more attention from Oda
In a way, Usopp's death could actually go on to fix his character forever. So far, in the story's post-time jump, Usopp is one of the most underwhelming members of the Straw Hat Pirates. He certainly had his moment in Dressrosa, harnessing the power of Observation Haki and, more than that, saving Luffy and Law from being turned into toys by Sugar. Since then, however, he has been largely underwhelming. Even Elbaf, who is supposed to be his arc, has been underwhelming for him, and he hasn't contributed to it in any significant way.
I want to die an honorable death and become a brave warrior of the sea! — Usopp
Fans are getting frustrated with Usopp's character arc, but if he actually continues to die, it would take his overall character to a whole new level. This isn't just because Usopp will be cut from the story. It's because Usopp's death will actually make him a hero and ensure that his dream of becoming a brave warrior of the sea is fulfilled. It will give Usopp a moment of immortality and ensure that his name recurs throughout the annals of history. Usopp will get the conclusion he really wanted, and fans will get some sense of satisfaction knowing he's not being ignored in the story anymore.
Of course, Usopp's death doesn't necessarily have to come before Luffy's journey ends. It could simply happen at the end of One Piece, many years into the future. Fans could simply be shown that Usopp successfully managed to fulfill his dream of becoming a brave warrior of the sea and die a death that would make him proud. He could then go on to be remembered in history as one of the bravest warriors to ever exist, as well as one of the strongest.
Fans really can't wait to see Usopp's character rise even higher in the final saga and for him to be useful to Luffy on his journey to becoming the Pirate King. So far he's been a disappointment, but it's only a matter of time before Oda starts paying attention to him again and completes his character arc.
- Release date
-
October 20, 1999
- Network
-
Fuji TV
- Directors
-
Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Ma Shihi Endo, Toshihiro Ma Shihi Endo, Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
- Author
-
Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shouji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Uesaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda
-
Mayumi Tanaka
Monkey D. Luffy (voice)
-
Kazuya Nakai
Roronoa Zoro (voice)
