Original artwork, not a still
I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!
— One Piece · 1997
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
Pirate King is the title Roger held and then threw open to the world with his dying words, so Luffy's boast is a bet on the whole age of piracy, made by a boy who cannot even swim. The straw hat turns it into a debt: he has to become the person who can hand it back. It is the series' mission statement, and Luffy repeats the vow so often that it stands for the whole franchise.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for One PieceShow the scene
The first chapter of One Piece opens with the pirate king Gol D. Roger's execution, then jumps twelve years to Foosha Village, where the boy Luffy pesters the Red Hair Pirates to take him along. After the captain Shanks loses his left arm saving him from a sea monster, Luffy says he will go to sea alone one day, and Shanks jokes that he can never be a pirate. Luffy answers that he will get a crew stronger than Shanks's, hold the most treasure in the world and become Pirate King. Shanks puts his straw hat on Luffy's head. Ten years on, the 17-year-old Luffy rows out of the same harbour and declares it again.
Sources (1)
- One Piece Wiki: Chapter 1Long SummaryReference checked
Context reviewed
