One Piece Proves the Series May Have a Huge “Traitor” Problem

One Piece’s Elbaf Arc is finally taking off with the newly introduced Holy Knights mounting their attack on the land of the Giants through the most unexpected means. At the same time, Loki threatens to destroy his pristine homeland from within with fire and lightning, adding to the chaos unfolding on Elbaf. Amidst all this, fans have begun to theorize about the presence of a potential traitor on Elbaf, and it isn’t someone you’d initially suspect. That said, while these theories do have some substance to them, they also confirm a rather concerning pattern emerging in One Piece’s latest arcs.

Warning: Spoilers Ahead for One Piece Chapter 1142!

The events of One Piece Chapter 1142 have led many fans to suspect that Ange, the librarian of the Owl Library and the language teacher at the Walrus School, could be a traitor who facilitated the Holy Knights’ plan that was put into motion in the latest chapter. That said, while there is some merit to this theory, there is only circumstantial evidence to support these suspicions so far. Moreover, Ange is the third character to be suspected by fans of being a traitor in the Elbaf Arc so far. The first of these was King Harald, while the other was Jarul, the Hero of the Giants whose suspicious behavior was also called into question not too long ago. These recurring traitor theories go to show that perhaps One Piece has led fans to expect a betrayal in every arc from overusing the traitor trope in every arc since Wano.

One Piece Fans Suspect a Traitor on Elbaf… Again

Most of the suspicion surrounding Ange has arisen from One Piece Chapter 1142, wherein the Holy Knights, through some mysterious devil fruit ability, put the Giant children to sleep and turn their worst nightmares into a reality, bringing many fearsome beasts to life. Coincidentally, Ange happens to recognize these monsters attacking Elbaf as those from an activity she had happened to conduct with the children earlier that day, which involved them drawing their greatest fears. The theory about Ange hinges on the fact that it is far too much of a coincidence that Ange happened to conduct this drawing activity with the children on the very day that the Holy Knights set their plan into motion.

The children’s drawings have coincidentally given the Holy Knights the perfect nightmare fuel to work with as the beasts attacking the island are picked up straight from these illustrations. The chapter also includes one of the children, Ylva, claiming that she was going to have nightmares from the exercise, adding to the suspicions surrounding Ange. That said, in Ange’s defense, the Holy Knights’ original plan was to recruit Loki and assume control over Elbaf through him. Shamrock only pivoted to using the children in Chapter 1138 after Loki refused to comply, and there could have been no way for Ange to know about the Holy Knights’ plan.

Fan theories have also pointed out that Ange was in full support of the late King Harald’s reforms for Elbaf, who is also suspected to have betrayed Elbaf, though this is once again a circumstantial argument at best. Regardless, the fact that fans continue to point fingers at a character suggests that One Piece may have taken the trope too far over the last few arcs and it could grow into a troublesome issue for the series.

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One Piece’s Traitor Trope is Getting Old

When One Piece’s Wano Arc first used the concept of a traitor with Kanjuro in the Wano Arc, it made for one of the most chilling betrayals the series had ever seen. A few fans had already suspected Kanjuro’s betrayal since his introduction on Dressrosa and the events that unfolded on Zou, and the big revelation in Wano finally addressed the inexplicable sense of unease fans had long felt about Kanjuro in a very satisfying manner.

However, the subsequent Egghead Arc went on to use the traitor trope once again, this time in a much more clear way. York’s betrayal was much more central to the Egghead Arc than Kanjuro’s, and in this instance, the reveal almost completely took fans by surprise, with fans most commonly suspecting Shaka or Lilith instead. While using the same plot element two arcs in a row isn’t necessarily all that bad, a consequence of doing so is that fans have now come to automatically expect a traitor in every new arc. The traitor theories have arguably spun out of control since the Egghead Arc, with some even suspecting there could be a traitor amidst the Five Elders.

The Elbaf Arc alone has already given birth to multiple traitor theories ranging from King Harald secretly siding with the World Government, to Jorul being suspected of hiding something regarding Loki and the late king’s death. Ange seems to be the newest victim of these speculations and while there is a chance that fans’ intuition could be right about her after all, it would be far better if One Piece left behind the traitor trope for a change.

One Piece is available to read from Manga Plus and Viz Media.