Ever since Luffy first unlocked Gear 5 inOne Piece, there’s been an ongoing debate about how, exactly, it’s supposed to work. Every fight with Gear 5 has Luffy doing bizarre things like making objects spawn from nothing or having his eyes pop out of his head, and with every new fight, it’s become increasingly less believable that it’s all justOne Piece’s typical brand of comedy.
Gear 5 has been one of the weirdest powers inOne Piecefrom the moment it first appeared, and the exact nature of its abilities might have finally been defined.One Piececreator Eiichiro Oda recently answered 10 questions about some of the characters in the series, and when answering a question about Luffy,One Piececreator Eiichiro Oda seems to have finally confirmed the true nature of Gear 5’s powers. As is often the case withOne Piecetrivia, Oda kept things notably vague, but regardless, it’s the clearest answer that’s been given about Gear 5’s powers, to date.
One Piece Confirms Luffy’s Gear 5 Is As Bizarre As The Story Makes It Look
The True Power Of Gear 5 Explained
For the first question ofEiichiro Oda’s recent Q&A, Oda was asked about the logic behind Luffy manifesting things from his body in Gear 5 like goggles, paint, and a baseball helmet, which fans have been asking since its debut. Oda’s answer to that was that the clouds on Luffy’s body in Gear 5 were “a gateway to Nika’s fantasy;” a statement like that is blatantly vague, but it does suggest that those moments and others weren’t just visual gags, which means thatOne Piecefinally confirms that Luffy’s Gear 5 fights by weaponizing toon force.
The idea of Gear 5 weaponizing toon force could already be seen not just in its presentation, but from previous comments from Eiichiro Oda, as well. Both the anime and the manga consistently emphasize the cartoonish nature of Gear 5, with the anime adding even more to that through Luffy’s voice acting and the visual presentation, and inEiichiro Oda and Gosho Aoyama’s interview from 2022, Oda likened Gear 5 to him suddenly drawingTom & Jerry, as well.Gear 5 has centered around weaponizing toon force since its conception, and these recent comments from Eiichiro Oda only solidify that idea.
Gear 5’s True Power Captures The True Essence Of One Piece’s Story
Even with all of its action and serious story beats,One Piecehas always been a goofy adventure story at heart, and because of that,Luffy weaponizing toon force with Gear 5 helps maintain the idea thatOne Piecewill always have a lighthearted bend to it. Eiichiro Oda more or less said that was part of the goal with Gear 5 in the aforementioned interview with Gosho Aoyama, and if Gear 5 continues to showcase those sorts of creative abilities, then it’s sure to continue being one of the best additions toOne Piecein recent years.
One Piece
Cast
The One Piece anime began in 1999 and follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy, a boy with rubber-like abilities, as he embarks on a journey to find the legendary treasure “One Piece.” Inspired by the pirate Shanks, Luffy aims to become the King of the Pirates, accompanied by a diverse crew.
