One Piece: Has Luffy Become Too OP With New Transformation?

Chapter 1044 of One Piece is making waves thanks in part to Luffy undergoing a brand new transformation, with his battle against Kaido once again entering a new phase. With Monkey gaining his pinnacle form and his Gear Fifth form, many fans have been left wondering whether or not the new power in the hands of the Straw Hat Captain might be too much for the boy who once seemingly could only stretch his body parts. Looking at the latest chapter, we here at Comicbook.com thought now was the perfect time to dive in and discuss whether Luffy is now too over-powered.

Luffy has effectively become the new Joyboy, with his Devil Fruit bringing him into line with the Sun God Nikia. As Cipher Pol explains in the latest chapter, Luffy is now only constrained by his imagination when it comes to the powers at his disposal. The captain of the Straw Hat Pirates is able to show this off in the early moments of this new transformation by creating a giant fist and spinning around Kaido, the captain of the Beast Pirates as if both combatants were a part of a cartoon starring Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. So what can Monkey now do with the extent of his powers?

Well, as explained in the chapter, Luffy is apparently only held back by his own imagination, though the Straw Hat certainly hasn’t been a powerhouse in the brains department. While the implications of this could mean that Luffy might be able to manipulate his environment in wild new ways, this new power isn’t necessarily far above many of the other Devil Fruit powers that we’ve seen in the past. Don Flamenco for example could transform any object into strings that he could control, Edward Newgate, aka Whitebeard, could theoretically destroy the world using his mastery of Shockwaves, and even Trafalgar Law has a power that essentially can kill people from a distance with his teleportation mastery. 

While we haven’t seen the full extent of Luffy’s new form, as it stands, it seems like his Devil Fruit abilities are still in line with the rubber powers he’s displayed in the past, albeit he has a much higher level of control over his own body, as well as the environment around him. Considering this has been a staple for many other swashbucklers that we’ve seen on the Grand Line, this is more about evening the playing field than flat out making the Straw Hat the strongest being around. It’s not the fruit that has made Luffy all-powerful, but rather, Monkey’s ingenuity and desire to achieve his dream.

Do you think Luffy’s new transformation is too powerful for the Straw Hat? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of the Grand Line.