One Piece is in the climax of the Whole Cake Island arc in the manga, and with it, came the big confrontation between Katakuri and Luffy in the Mirror World. The fight between the two was long and arduous, but most fans expected the end of it to be different than the final product.
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While Luffy was confirmed to be the victor of the match (and even hints at his possible future as the Pirate King), the way it got to that ending has caused a rift among fans because many had thought Katakuri would win since Luffy’s victory isn’t necessary to move the plot forward.
Many elements have led to the fan split. From the staging of the final moments (as Katakuri standing first paints him as the winner), to the mutual respect between the two (as Luffy covers Katakuri’s mouth to hide his secret), the fight had many high and low moments.
Read on to see what fans thought of the Luffy and Katakuri fight. Tell us what you think in the comments!
@YonkouProd
Luffy vs Katakuri was a satisfyingly refreshing take on a battle that I haven’t seen in One Piece since Luffy vs Bellamy. The motivations and weight of the battle between two men who represent two extremities in their mindsets and how Oda portrays this by the end makes it amazing pic.twitter.com/nhYOdyrOoW
โ YonkouProductions (@YonkouProd) March 5, 2018
@pj3rd
WHAT A FIGHT MAN pic.twitter.com/h0vIikN4Cw
โ #BENSIMMONS4ROTY (@pj3rd) March 2, 2018
@FinalFIash_
Luffy showing respect by covering Katakuri’s mouth. Greatest shounen MC. https://t.co/WJzA6i7H5q
โ Teach (@FinaIFIash_) March 2, 2018
@keruri
Love the mutual respect for one another at the end of the Luffy vs Katakuri fight. Especially this panel. Covering Katakuriโs mouth for him because he knows heโs self conscious about it. pic.twitter.com/MgULWGsvpk
โ keruriฮจ(โแดฅโ)ฮจ (@keruri) March 5, 2018
@dustanreacts
When Luffy beats Katakuri, all the ppl who are at this very moment saying Katakuri will still win this fight, I don’t want you to casually switch up and say “well we all knew luffy was going to win bcuz of plot” foh
โ dustanreacts (@dustanreacts) February 25, 2018
@PachiBoy2
Luffy won over an opponent he shouldn’t have won against. Basically plot armour. Nothing new in One Piece though, so I wasn’t surprised
โ ShinGOATchi (@PachiBoy2) March 4, 2018
@goReborn
Iโm still kind of salty that katakuri lost but thinking about it, it kinda sorta makes sense even tho I still believe katakuri> luffy ? pic.twitter.com/OeY1AqoneX
โ Rebornโ ๏ธโฅ๏ธโฃ๏ธโฆ๏ธ (@goReborn) March 4, 2018
@JoshHoagieLand
With all that being said, Katakuri was hit about 14 times (including stabbing himself) and Luffy was hit about 40 times.
โ Josh Hoagland (@JoshHoagieLand) March 4, 2018
@cloutologist
The katakuri and luffy fight shouldnโt have ended that way ?
โ Marshall D. Teach (@cloutologist) March 5, 2018
@sniperking323
Luffy vs Katakuri had some great moments, but ultimately will probably be my least favorite part of the Whole Cake Island arc.
โ Colton (getting there) (@sniperking323) March 5, 2018
@OnePieceScholar
I would have liked Luffy to land more hits on Katakuri (in past chapters) to justify his victory. It’s probably the thing i liked the less in this fight.
โ One Piece Scholar (@OnePieceScholar) March 2, 2018
But i overall enjoyed it and Katakuri ended as a great character.
Slide 12
Goku vs Jiren and Luffy vs Katakuri are hard straight up brawls that may have been too long, are divisive among their respective fandoms and they’re both among my favorites in their respective series’.
โ Talley -R.I.P Hiromi Tsuru- (@RedScar64) March 4, 2018
