One Piece has one of the biggest casts in the anime/manga industry. Eiichiro Oda’s magnum opus has introduced over one thousand different named characters, all with their own individual designs, abilities, personalities and motivations.
However, not everyone can have a key role in this long and complex narrative, so naturally, many of them end up being deemed unimportant by fans. This leaves a very small collection of characters that are often considered the absolute most important ones in all of One Piece, mainly due to their role in the story and the ever-lasting impact they had on the history of its massive world.
Gol D. Roger
The Pirate King Who Kick-Started The Golden Age Of Piracy
- Debut: Chapter 1 (Manga) Episode 1 (Anime)
Of course, Gol D. Roger is one of the most important characters in One Piece: not only is he the person responsible for kick-starting the entire plot of the series, but he’s also the first named character to be introduced, seeing as he appears in the iconic prologue of the manga’s first chapter and the anime’s first episode.
Simply put, the story of One Piece wouldn’t even exist without Roger. He’s the original Pirate King, the person who discovered the legendary treasure that gives the series its title and one of the historical figures that inspired many people to become pirates, including Monkey D. Luffy himself. Additionally, as the story would reveal much later, it seems that he and his crew also uncovered some important secrets about the world they live in.
Monkey D. Luffy
The Future Pirate King And The Warrior Of Liberation
- Debut: Chapter 1 (Manga) Episode 1 (Anime)
Monkey D. Luffy is arguably the most important character in all of One Piece, seeing as he’s the protagonist of the series and the person that audiences have been following around for thousands of chapters and episodes. He and his loyal crew, the Straw Hat Pirates, have already done a lot in just two years, like defeating three different Warlords of the Sea, declaring war on the World Government, infiltrating Impel Down, participating in the War of Marineford, etc.
But Luffy’s significance within the story grew even more after he defeated Big Mom and Kaido in Wano and officially became one of the new Four Emperors as a result. On top of all that, he recently awakened his Devil Fruit and unlocked the powers of the Sun God, Nika, which basically means that he’s the reincarnation of the Warrior of Liberation. Needless to say, Luffy is destined to find the One Piece, become the new Pirate King, overthrow the World Government and free all those who were oppressed by its corrupt authoritarian rulers.
Shanks
Luffy’s Role Model And The Only Remaining Old Emperor
- Debut: Chapter 1 (Manga) Episode 1 (Anime)
Gol D. Roger may have partially inspired Luffy to become a pirate, but his ideals and his personal philosophy were shaped by Shanks, the captain of the Red Hair Pirates. By sacrificing his left arm in order to save this young boy's life, Shanks bet on the future generation and left a huge impact on Luffy’s life, not to mention that he also gave him his iconic straw hat.
Shanks’ actions in the first chapter had already cemented him as an important figure in this world but, much to the surprise of both Luffy and the audience, he kept doing things that had a big impact on the narrative, like becoming one of the Four Emperors, fighting Kaido, putting an end to the War of Marineford alongside his crew and trying to find the One Piece. It’s also important to point out that Shanks is currently the only Emperor from the previous generation who’s still active, since Whitebeard, Kaido and Big Mom were recently defeated and/or killed.
The Straw Hat Pirates
Luffy Would Have Gotten Nowhere Without His Loyal Crew
- Debut: Chapter 5 (Manga) Episode 3 (Anime)
One Piece is a story about friendship, teamwork and camaraderie (among many other things), so it’s safe to say that Luffy would never have been able to get so far in his journey if it wasn’t for his trustworthy crew, which is something that even he himself has explicitly stated on multiple occasions. Every single member of the Straw Hat Pirates plays a key role and has been of great importance in this long story.
Chopper is in charge of healing everyone's injuries and ailments, Nami decides where to go next and which path to take, Franky built and takes care of their ship, Jinbe drives it across tumultuous waters, Usopp takes out enemies from a distance, Robin is slowly unveiling the secrets of the Poneglyphs, and Brook plays music during crucial moments. Nevertheless, the two biggest standouts of this crew are obviously Zoro and Sanji, who are the Wings of the Future Pirate King and have helped Luffy take down some of their most powerful enemies.
Portgas D. Ace
The War Of Marineford Literally Revolved Around Him
- Debut: Chapter 154 (Manga) Episode 91 (Anime)
The Summit War of Marineford was a huge world-changing event that redefined the public’s perception of both pirates and marines. And at the center of it there was Gol D. Roger’s son, Portgas D. Ace, who the Whitebeard Pirates were trying to rescue when they decided to charge into battle against the forces of the World Government. Based only on the impact this conflict had on the One Piece world, it’s safe to say that Ace is an extremely important character.
But that’s not all, because his abrupt death at the hands of Akainu not only marked the beginning of the end for the Whitebeard Pirates but also changed the life of his little brother, Monkey D. Luffy, by inspiring him to become stronger before going into the New World. Curiously enough, Ace’s influence kept changing history even after his death, since Doflamingo held a massive tournament at Corrida Colosseum, and the prize was the legendary Devil Fruit he left behind, the Mera Mera no Mi.
Marshall D. Teach (Blackbeard)
The Evil Mastermind Who Murdered Whitebeard And Took His Place As An Emperor
- Debut: Chapter 223 (Manga) Episode 146 (Anime)
Needless to say, Ace only became a prisoner of the World Government because he was defeated, captured and surrendered by Marshall D. Teach (AKA Blackbeard), who was named Warlord of the Sea as a reward. This wasn’t much of a surprise, because this former member of the Whitebeard Pirates is a brilliant strategic mastermind who spent years waiting for the Yami Yami no Mi to resurface and didn't hesitate to murder one of his fellow crewmates just to acquire it.
Blackbeard would go on to kill Whitebeard at the very end of the War of Marineford, steal the Gura Gura no Mi from him and become the first and only person in the world who can wield two Devil Fruit powers at the same time. With this immense and dangerous combination of abilities, he was able to become one of the Four Emperors, take over Hachinosu and is now slowly building a massive army of powerful pirates that will help him find the One Piece. Considering that he’s the son of the legendary Rocks D. Xebec, he will most likely become one of the final antagonists of this story and one of the final obstacles on Luffy's journey.
Imu
The Mysterious Supreme Ruler Of The World Government
- Debut: Chapter 906 (Manga) Episode 885 (Anime)
The World Government is the main antagonistic force of this series and, for many years, its corruption was represented by a collection of characters, like the Five Elders, the Admirals, Cipher Pol, the Celestial Dragons, etc. However, its malicious nature was finally given a face during the Levely Arc, when it was revealed that a mysterious entity named Imu sits on the Empty Throne as its Supreme Ruler.
Not much is known about Imu so far, but it seems like they have been alive for thousands of years and, as a result, they have been directly (and indirectly) responsible for almost every single horrible thing that has happened in this world, like the Ohara Incident, the sudden Erasure of Lulusia Kingdom and the Void Century. They are now actively participating in the plot of the most recent story arc, which has further cemented Imu as the most likely candidate to become the final villain of One Piece.
Rocks D. Xebec
The Infamous Captain Of The Rocks Pirates
- Debut: Chapter 957 (Manga) Episode 958 (Anime)
Naturally, many important historical figures in One Piece are pirates, like Whitebeard, Kaido, Big Mom or Shiki, and all of them were part of the same legendary crew at one point: the Rocks Pirates. Their captain was none other than Rocks D. Xebec, one of the most powerful, violent and infamous pirates in the world, who also became one of the biggest enemies of the World Government.
Aside from being the former captain of some of the world’s most infamous and most powerful pirates, Rocks was also the star of the God Valley Incident, where he was defeated by Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp, with the latter being named “Hero of the Marines” as the result of this victory. Rocks’ backstory has only started being disclosed in the manga very recently, but what has been shown so far has already made it clear that his influence and his actions left a huge mark on this world.
One Piece
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- October 20, 1999
- Network
- Fuji TV
Cast
-
Mayumi TanakaMonkey D. Luffy (voice) -
Kazuya NakaiRoronoa Zoro (voice)
WHERE TO WATCH
