Oda reveals why he doesn't revive dead characters

This article contains spoilers from the Elbaf arc of One Piece.

Key takeaways

• Oda killed some characters pre-timeskip, but many died post-timeskip.
• Oda has strict rules against reviving dead characters in a piece.
• Death will increase in the final saga, but with purpose and not for shock value.

Eiichiro Oda, author a pieceThere are many rules when it comes to writing his manga. By following these rules, Oda created what may be considered the greatest manga of all time and, for many people, the greatest story ever told. a piece is special in many ways, and Oda has managed to make it special only by adhering to what appealed to his childhood self. One of these is the idea of ​​denying character resurrection in his story.

As fans know, a piece It doesn't actually see characters being brought back from the dead. There is a big reason for this and Oda has already talked about it in detail, which is discussed here.

One Piece's many dead characters

• Oda killed very few characters before the timeskip
• More characters are starting to die in the post timeskip one piece

in between a piece Fans, a common belief is that Oda doesn't like to kill off his characters. This is partially true, and Oda himself has talked about the fact that he doesn't want to kill off his characters. But, that doesn't mean Oda doesn't kill his characters, and it doesn't mean the piece lacks intensity in any way. For example, in One Piece's pre timeskip, the two major deaths of Whitebeard and Ace rocked the entire One Piece world. Oda's deaths are important and the impact they have on not only the ongoing arc but the following arcs is incredible. This is why Oda chooses to kill off characters that affect the overarching plot in many ways, and shakes up the entire world.

In the post-timeskip of One Piece, Oda has killed several characters. It essentially shatters the notion that he doesn't kill off his characters, and when that fake outs happens in one piece, a significant portion of the characters die in one way or another. For example, fans saw Virgo and Monet die early in Punk Hazard. In Whole Cake Island, Pedro dies, and in the following arcs, more characters continue to die. In Wano Country, fans saw Izo and Ashura die along with Shimotsuki Yasui. Meanwhile, Yonko Kaido and Big Mother's whereabouts remain unknown after the events of the Wano arc.

In the final saga, Oda kicks things up a notch and kills more characters than ever before. In the Egghead Island arc, Oda manages to kill the original Vegapunk body, St. Donquixote Majosguard, King Cobra of Arabasta, Vegapunk's satellites, and even St. Saturn. Apparently, Oda is more serious than ever about killing off his characters, and of course that will continue as the series gets more intense than ever with the Elbaf arc.

When one talks about killing off characters, the idea of ​​reviving them also comes up. Often, fans find themselves deeply connected to multiple characters in a particular story. When they get killed off, they feel like a big part of what makes them a series is taken away from them and so many of them want the characters to come back. However, in the case of One Piece, Oda strictly forbids the characters from returning. Characters whose fates are mysterious may return later in the series, as was the case with Saul, but those who actually die never really come back.

Oda reveals why he won't bring back the dead characters

Oda doesn't want dead characters to come back

Oda has already talked about the characters he killed, and said that he had to kill characters at some points but he didn't like to do it too often. This is because, at the end of the day, he wants to attract big parties following each arc a pieceAnd if characters die left, right and center, there won't be any point in having any feasts. Oda wants to end a piece In a big party, and if all the good characters die, Luffy's journey will be for absolutely nothing.

At the same time, Oda has also stated that character resurrection for the dead is strictly out of the question and here's his reason:

Question: Why didn't you make a manga like other manga where dead characters come back to life?

Oda: Human regeneration isn't natural, is it? (Laughs) If the mangaka brings the dead back to life, he shouldn't have killed the character in the first place. My characters don't die even when thrown into a hopeless situation.

Besides, I've hated resurrecting dead characters since I was a kid. It made me doubt the mangaka, like “this mangaka revived a certain character so maybe that character became popular…” I don't do what I doubted as a child and I will do whatever the mangaka wants. to do

It's been 10 years since the OP started, but my standards haven't changed that I have to satisfy my 15 year old self. – Run away

More deaths are on the way in the final saga of Why One Piece

The final saga will see more characters die than before

The last saga of a piece has officially begun and, as evident from the Egghead Island arc, the deaths are now more than ever. Egghead alone saw Oda kill more than five characters, which is unheard of. This means that as the story continues, more characters will die and the series will see more important characters die, such as Whitebeard and Ace. That said, fans shouldn't get too excited, as Oda still won't kill off characters that the story needs to lighten up.

At the end of the day, a piece Manages to create incredibly exciting plotlines and does it without needlessly killing off characters. A significant portion of fans feel that death makes the story more mature and, consequently, better suited for adult tastes. Of course, this childish way of thinking is completely absurd, because death does not make a story good or bad. Whether characters don't die in a story or die a lot in a story has little to do with whether the story itself is good or whether the world itself is rich and compelling. a piece Oda will continue to follow the formula established years ago, and regardless of whether the characters die or not at the end of the day, a piece Maintaining a heartwarming and positive tone, the story ends with a huge feast, as Oda has said before. It will never die just for its sake a pieceDespite what many fans wanted.

A piece is available to read through Viz Media. Series fans can read the series officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and Manga Plus apps. The release date for the next chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1132 is set for December 1, 2024.