After the official release of One Piece Chapter 1071, Monkey D. Luffy’s Gear 5 has caused a storm in the world of “One Piece,” with fans excited about this new transformation.
The transformation into Gear 5 is notably different from all previous power-ups of Luffy. Additionally, there hasn’t been any comparable strength or transformation in the broader One Piece universe.
Many anime viewers who do not follow the One Piece manga were quite surprised by the abrupt change during the intense battle between Luffy and Kaido. Luffy’s willingness to sacrifice himself to save his friends from Kaido has generated much discussion, showcasing a moment of vulnerability that left many fans astonished.
The latest episode of One Piece not only altered the animation style but also incorporated sound effects reminiscent of the classic Looney Tunes cartoons.
This is the reason why Luffy’s new power-up feels quite animated. According to the creator Eiichiro Oda, the inspiration behind Gear 5’s animation style stems from classic animated films like Tom and Jerry.
Oda aims to bring back a playful style and expressiveness that symbolizes manga, which has gradually faded over time. The One Piece creator wishes to break away from the increasingly serious tone of battle-centric manga and return to a more lighthearted approach.
In an interview with Gosho Aoyama (the creator of the famous detective manga Case Closed), Oda expressed his desire to maintain a sense of fun in battles and not let One Piece become overly serious.
He wants to combine traditional expressive elements, particularly the exaggerated features of characters when they run, a style that he feels has been lost in contemporary manga.
With Gear 5, Eiichiro Oda has cleverly created a unique identity for One Piece compared to other shounen anime. However, long-time fans of shounen anime can clearly notice that most series tend to follow a similar formula for power-ups for their main characters. After powering up, the protagonist usually appears fierce with a certain aura surrounding them.
In contrast, with Luffy’s Gear 5 power-up, we do not see any fierce presence or aura around him. Instead, Gear 5 appears to diverge from any typical powerful transformations commonly seen in other works.
