Summary
Monkey D. Luffyonce told Arlong that there are many things he can’t do but that the rest of his crew can - like cooking or navigating - but there’s one thing that only he can achieve: defeating the villainous pirate. This one iconic moment perfectly encapsulates both Luffy’s personality and the dynamic he has with the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates.
InOne Piece, there’s a perfect balance between this iconic crew becauseeach one of them specializes in a specific area of expertise, but there’s a reason Luffy is their captain: Thanks to his special abilities and his eccentric personality, he has been able to perform monumental feats that no one else in the crew would be ever able to do. There are many examples of this to choose from, but the following are the most remarkable ones in the entire series so far.
8Defeating The Main Antagonist Of A Story Arc
He Can Always Take Care Of The “Final Boss”
Most of the Straw Hat Pirates are extremely proficient at fighting, with Zoro, Sanji, and Jinbe being some of the biggest standouts. Needless to say, all of them are extremely strong and have successfully taken down some really powerful side characters, butthemain antagonistof each arc(who’s usually the captain of a rival pirate crew) will always be Luffy’s opponent, like Crocodile, Gecko Moria, Doflamingo, Kaido, etc.
Of course, the other crew members have occasionally clashed with the main antagonist (like when Zoro fought Hody Jones or when he fought Kaido), but Luffy will always land the final hit that will put an end to their evil deeds and lead to the arc’s long-awaited conclusion. Of course, since he’s both the strongest member of the Straw Hats and the main character of the series, it makes perfect sense that he would be in charge of this one important task.
7Awakening His Devil Fruit
Unlocking The True Potential Of His Power
Only four (out of ten) members of the Straw Hat Pirates have eaten aDevil Fruit, including Luffy himself. While Chopper, Robin, and Brook have honed their incredible powers and were able to pull off some impressive and powerful moves with them, none of them are on the same level as their captain, whoawakened his Devil Fruit during the Wano Country Arc.
After all, Devil Fruit awakenings are very rare and hard to achieve, so the fact that Luffy is one of the few people in the series who did it is a testament to how incredibly strong, skilled, and resilient he is. Thanks to this unique power-up, he was able to unlock his newGear 5form, which was extremely useful in his battles against Kaido, Kizaru, and the Five Elders.
6Using The Three Advanced Versions Of Haki
He’s The Only Member Of The Crew Who Has Fully Mastered Haki
Hakiis the secondary signature power system ofOne Piece, which is notorious for being divided into three categories: Armament, Observation, and Conqueror’s. Some of the Straw Hats can’t use any form of it, others can use either one or two of them, but only Luffy and Zoro can use the three different types. On top of that, Luffy has learned how to use the advanced versions of the three types of Haki.
Zoro can coat his swords with Advanced Conqueror’s Haki, similarly to how Luffy can imbue his fists with the same power. This is obviously very impressive, but he still pales in comparison to his captain, who can also use Advanced Observation Haki to predict the immediate future and Advanced Armament Haki to damage opponents without touching them. At this point in the story, Luffy is definitely one of the most skilled Haki users in the entire world, and there are very few characters that can surpass him in that regard.
5Hearing The Voice Of All Things
He’s Able To Use One Of The Rarest Abilities In The Entire Series
TheVoice of All Thingsis a mysterious powerthat lets people communicate with inanimate objects and animals, not to mention that it’s so rare that only a very small number of people in the world have the ability to hear it, and Monkey D. Luffy is obviously one of them. Momonosuke, Oden, Roger, and Zunesha are among some of the other characters that were blessed with this unique ability, and half of them are already dead.
The caaptain of the Straw Hats is the only one in the crew who has been able to hear the Voice of All Things. This explains why only he could hear the Sea Kings on Fish-Man Island, Zunesha in Zou, and Emet in Egghead.
4Being Immune To Blunt Physical Damage
His Devil Fruit Gives Him A Significant Advantage In Battle
Luffy’s Devil Fruit, theGomu Gomu no Mi(which is actually the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika) grants his entire body the properties of rubber, and thus, he has been able to achieve some incredible things with these power. However, he has one special advantage over the rest of his crew, and it’s his immunity to blunt physical attacks.
If Luffy is hit by someone, his rubber body will absorb and redirect said damage, meaning that he’s both very strong and very durable in combat. Of course, he is weak to people using blades or Haki, but this is still a highly valuable immunity, especially in the first arcs of the series. While his rubber body also makes him completely immune to any electric attacks, he’s not the only Straw Hat with this ability; Brook’s skeletal body is also unable to conduct electricity.
3Eating Food Comically Fast
Nobody Else In The Crew Is As Gluttonous As Their Captain
Monkey D. Luffy loves three things more than anything else: piracy, beetles andfood. As a result,many comedic scenes in the series revolve around himtrying (and succeeding) to eat large amounts of food in just a few seconds, which he’s able to achieve by combining his absurd levels of hunger with the stretchy properties of his Devil Fruit.
This may seem like a minor but fun gag, but it actually is a key aspect of his character. Whenever the entire crew is feasting (like when they celebrate at the very end of a story arc), the other Straw Hats are both impressed and terrified by their captain’s over-the-top eating abilities. Luffy’s love for food has gotten so bad that Sanji had to take special measures to ensure that he wouldn’t eat the crew’s entire food stock during the night.
2Leading The Crew
There’s A Reason He’s The Captain Of The Straw Hats
Every single member of the Straw Hat Pirates has an assigned position, like cook, doctor, navigator, musician, etc.Luffy’s role in the crew is that ofcaptain, which he clearly deserves, and this is not only because he’s the person who founded it. After all, he’s in charge of leading everyone else, telling them where to go and what they’re going to do next, and he has been doing a surprisingly good job at it.
Of course, some members (like Brook and Jinbe) have prior experience with being captains, but neither of them would be able to lead a crew as unique as the Straw Hats. Luffy doesn’t just want to sail the seas; he wants to become the next Pirate King, meaning that he has to take huge risks, navigate treacherous waters, face dangerous opponents, and even recruit the perfect person for each role. He may not be all that smart, but his passion, strength, stubbornness, and kindness made the crew go very far, which explains why everyone is so incredibly loyal to him and his cause.
1Becoming The Next Pirate King
He’s The Focus Of The Goal The Entire Crew Is Working Toward
Everyone in the crew has a dream, but Luffy’s is obviously the biggest one, since it’s also the main focus ofOne Piece’s narrative:He not only wants to become the nextPirate King, but he’s 100% sure that he’s going to achieve this. This means that he and his crew will have to gather the four Road Poneglyphs, reach Laugh Tale, find the One Piece, and defeat anyone who gets in their way, whether they’re pirates or marines.
The entire story revolves around Luffy becoming the Pirate King, meaning that he’s the only character in the series who should get this prestigious title before the story reaches its conclusion. Of course, it’s not like the other Straw Hats would even want to take that away from him in the first place, since they’re all so loyal to Luffy that they’re actively working towards helping him achieve this unbelievable goal. While only their captain will be the Pirate King, they will all be part of the Pirate King’s legendary crew, which is also a huge honor in and of itself.
