Anime

One Piece: A New Character’s Debut Teases a Shanks Bombshell

After decades on the scene, One Piece still has fans puzzled over its biggest mysteries. From the secret of Gold Roger’s treasure to the Devil Fruits itself, there is much to One Piece we don’t know. Of these mysteries, one of the biggest is Shanks’ history as fans know very little about the man. However, that all may be changing soon thanks to a new chapter of One Piece.

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Yes, that is right. It seems the One Piece manga has set the fandom ablaze, and we have some newcomers to thank for the drama. This week, the world was introduced to the top fighters of the World Government as Imu’s army came to light. It was there we met St. Figarland Garling, and that name should be somewhat familiar to us by now.

Why is that? Well as pointed out online by newworldartur, the name Figarland ties back to Shanks. During One Piece Film Red, it was implied Shanks hailed from a powerful family and was born at God Valley. As a natural-born Celestial Dragon, Shanks had it all at birth, and it seems the boy came from the Figarland family before he was tossed to sea as a child. Luckily, Roger saved Shanks from the waves, but we’ve been given hints about Shanks’ powerful bloodline for some time now.

One Piece made it clear to fans that Figarland was important, and now it has come up in a big way. St. Figarland Garling was the former king of God Valley, and his scarred features have drawn comparisons to Shanks. It seems likely One Piece just introduced us to a man from Shanks’ past, but the question remains how the pair are related. Whether father or uncle, St. Figarland Garling is somehow tied to Shanks, and we are sure the Yonko will spell out how before long.

If you are not caught up with One Piece right now, you can always read up on the series. Viz Media has made the One Piece manga available through the Shonen Jump app. So for more details on the series, you can read its official synopsis below:

“As a child, Monkey D. Luffy was inspired to become a pirate by listening to the tales of the buccaneer “Red-Haired” Shanks. But Luffy’s life changed when he accidentally ate the Gum-Gum Devil Fruit and gained the power to stretch like rubber…at the cost of never being able to swim again! Years later, still vowing to become the king of the pirates, Luffy sets out on his adventure…one guy alone in a rowboat, in search of the legendary “One Piece,” said to be the greatest treasure in the world…”

What do you think about this One Piece theory…? Do you feel like Shanks’ past is about to catch up with him? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.