One Piece May Have Just Dropped a Fist of the North Star Nod
The latest entry of the War For Wano in the pages of One Piece's manga had plenty of hard-hitting moments between the Straw Hat Pirates' cook, Sanji, and the Beast Pirate Queen, but it seems that Shonen creator Eiichiro Oda was able to slip in a few nods to the classic anime franchise, Fist of the North Star. With Oda being a big fan of the post-apocalyptic saga which saw the brutal adventures of Kenshiro arrive in 1983 and use his deadly hands to punch his way through swaths of enemies along the way.
Over the years, Fist of the North Star might not have hit the same levels of popularity as the Shonen series of One Piece, but that hasn't stopped it from becoming an instrumental part of the medium of anime. Having spawned numerous television series and video games, the story of Kenshiro is definitely not for the faint of heart, but it's definitely one that became endearing to Eiichiro Oda. In the latest chapter, we have the villain Queen deliver a line to Sanji that has become the trademark threat of Kenshiro in "You're Already Dead," which he will usually utter before a villain succumbs to his blows seconds after.
Twitter User Sandman AP shared this crossover between One Piece and Fist of the North Star, that not only uses a traditional line of Kenshiro, but also notes that the character of Queen looks strikingly similar to one of the most physically imposing villains in the older series in Mr. Hart:
Queen's line to Sanji "You're already dead." might be Oda's homage to Fist of the North Star, one of his favorite mangas considering its protagonist's signature phrase is also "You're already dead". BTW, Queen looks a bit similar to a villain named Heart-sama in FNS. 😋 pic.twitter.com/QIcVmNWYH5
— sandman (@sandman_AP) October 11, 2021
Surprisingly, there hasn't been a new anime series for Fist of the North Star since the 1980s, though the series has lived on in its video game entries over the years. While we don't expect the two franchises to ever crossover, like the Straw Hats have done with the Z Fighters in the past, it's interesting to see which manga series become the favorites of those that create the printed stories.
As the War For Wano rages on, it would seem that Sanji is set to unlock a hidden power that might be the key in claiming victory in his battle against Queen.
What do you think of this sneaky crossover? 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.
