One Piece’s New Gear 5 User Bonney Proves Luffy Still Has a Lot to Learn

Warning: Spoilers Ahead for One Piece Episode #1151!

The odd and wonderful world of One Piece may be in increasingly desperate peril with Vegapunk’s revelations, but that doesn’t stop the power of hope in a free future. As Egghead is torn apart by the terrifying Five Elders, and the Straw Hats mount their retreat, Luffy’s Gear 5 form alone wasn’t enough to stop their enemies.

While it might be fair to assume Luffy was the only Gear 5 user in One Piece, that’s not strictly true. While the Gears are his own naming scheme, the invocation of Nika, in his case being the awakening of his Devil Fruit, can come from other means. As shown in One Piece episode #1151, Bonney has cracked that code.

One Piece’s Anime Debuts a New Gear 5 User

The Drums of Liberation Grow Louder

In One Piece episode #1151, after Luffy’s rapid recovery thanks to the giants’ onboard cook, the Straw Hats captain moves to quickly stop a transformed Marcus Mars from stopping their seaward escape. As Bonney witnesses the Drums of Liberation, and the giants do as well, Luffy assumes Gear 5, and invites Bonney to help him fight, confident she knows how.

While Luffy’s Gear 5 was the result of his awakened Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika, Bonney used her Age-Age Fruit in a creative way to become her own vision of Nika. Using her ability to embody any possible future self, she thought of the perfect way to do so, creating “Distorted Future: Future Where I’m the Most Free”.

Not only is this shocking for the characters bearing witness, especially for those like the Five Elders incredulously seeing two Nikas; it’s a surprise for the fans. Luffy’s “Gears” are his own construct; Gear 5 is his alleged pinnacle, but he doesn’t have to be the sole avatar of Nika, and Bonney, a perfect candidate, understands its gravitas.

Bonney’s “Gear 5” Moment Is More Important to the Story Going Forward

A Cathartic and Eye-Opening One Piece Scene

Bonney knew the impact of this transformation immediately, and what’s even more cathartic is Kuma, even in his current form, being able to witness it. The giants know who Nika is, and this will become especially important in Elbaph. Finally, the Five Elders, the highest-ranking World Government officials below Imu, see this as a blatant act of defiance.

It’s also the culmination of everything Bonney was taught by Kuma, and subsequently what Kuma was taught by his father. Nika was to come to save the downtrodden from their oppressors, and Bonney being able to assume that form to save the Straw Hats, is an important moment. It elevates the impact of the moments briefly depicted in chapters #1118-1119.

As shown in One Piece chapter #1044, the Five Elders fear Luffy’s power as the most ridiculous in the world. With the World Government’s active suppression of knowledge about Nika, and now this new form, perhaps another layer to this is that they fear Nika will inspire powerful imitations like Bonney’s, setting off a revolutionary ripple effect.

Bonney’s Nika-inspired form is basically mimicry, but it’s a tangible form that gives her the power and courage to fight even in the most dire circumstances. The encouragement of Sanji and Franky empowered her to help stop Mars. Now it’s a matter of whether One Piece will bring “Gear 5” to other characters as the final arc unravels.

But as Emet awakens from the depths once more, the final moments of One Piece’s Egghead Arc are coming soon. While Bonney’s new “Gear 5” form is depleted, leaving her similarly helpless to Luffy when his power runs out, this massive robot, propelled by the Drums of Liberation and Joyboy’s words, has emerged to save everyone one last time.

Release Date

October 20, 1999

Network

Fuji TV

Directors

Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou

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  Mayumi Tanaka

  Monkey D. Luffy (voice)

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  Kazuya Nakai

  Roronoa Zoro (voice)