In the last manga chapter of One Piece, it was finally revealed who Joy Boy is. Although we haven’t seen the character yet, we know exactly what he is and when he lived. However, it might be possible that we already know a detail about Joy Boy’s appearance.
Beware of spoilers: We will cover all the details we have learned about Joy Boy.
What does Joy Boy look like? The mangaka Eiichiro Oda revealed in June 2007 that he couldn’t wait to draw a pirate with an eye patch. The character is supposed to appear in the final phase of One Piece. Currently, the One Piece manga is nearing its end, so it could be that Oda meant the pirate with the eye patch to be Joy Boy.
The statement was shared by user pewpiece on X:
Pirates are associated with the stereotype that they wear an eye patch. However, there has not been a single pirate with an eye patch in One Piece so far. It would be fitting if the very first pirate were to wear an eye patch.
Oda revealed back then that he couldn’t wait to draw this character. He probably didn’t expect to have to wait a whole 17 years after that statement.
Joy Boy is first mentioned on Egghead Island. The fitting opening for the arc can be found here:
What we already know about Joy Boy
Who is Joy Boy actually? So far, Joy Boy has not been mentioned too often. Thanks to the new chapter, we know that he lived about 900 years ago and was the very first pirate. It is still unclear whether Joy Boy sailed the seas because the world will sink in the ocean.
Otherwise, we know that
- he was supposed to help the Fishmen lift the Noah’s Ark from the seabed about 800 years ago.
- Luffy is the new incarnation of Joy Boy. The giant elephant Zunesha mentioned his name when Luffy awakened his Gear 5 powers.
So far it was unclear whether the Sun God Nika and Joy Boy are the same person. But thanks to the new chapter, we know that Joy Boy only had the same powers as Nika. Therefore, it could be that he was the first Devil Fruit user of the “Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika.” Through it, he could have gained his rubber powers.
Who else could be meant? In the comments under the tweet from pewpiece, fans speculate about another pirate who might have worn an eye patch. Rocks D. Xebec was the captain of a feared pirate crew that included high-ranking members like Whitebeard, Kaido, Big Mom, and Shiki.
So far, Rocks has not been seen in full gear. However, there was already a silhouette seen in the anime that might suggest he still had both of his eyes. Thus, the chance is higher that the pirate with the eye patch is Joy Boy.
However, it could just as well be that the silhouette overlooked such an important detail. Speaking of appearance: Several mangaka have drawn the Straw Hat crew in different styles. Check out how Luffy and the other Straw Hat pirates would look in Naruto, Dragon Ball, and Co.: This is how the characters from One Piece would look in the universes of Dragon Ball, Naruto, and Co.
