One Piece is a bestseller, a record breaker and one of the top-tier series in the shonen genre. From fights to stakes, Eiichiro Oda carefully mapped these elements in the series. But there is an aspect most fans overlook and that is female characters.
There is indeed fan service and objectification in the series, yet Oda didn’t fail to surprise us. This holds for his characterization of Nami and her growth throughout the series. Her development throughout the arcs proves why the mangaka’s female characters are beyond s**ualization.
Nami’s is a well-written character in One Piece
On a surface level, fans seem to judge and hate Nami. This is mainly because of her love for money and everything luxurious. Some went so far as to even call her a gold-digger and a money-minded character. Little do fans realize and comprehend the depth that goes behind making a character.
She is introduced as a selfish and self-serving character in One Piece. Fans couldn’t fathom her abandoning Luffy. They hated her for her antics and for being mostly useless. But does that make her a bad character? Not, especially if her backstory expands on her traumatic experience.
Her transactional pact with Arlong was when Oda burst fans’ bubbles for real. Bell-mère’s death was a turning point where she matured emotionally. And we cannot thank Luffy enough for beating the Fishman to a pulp. It was satisfying but what fans don’t see is her evolution throughout the arcs.
On r/CharacterRant, redditors responded to Oda being faithful to her character. From Arlong Park Arc to Elbaf, Nami’s development as a character is splendid. Her fight in Loguetown Arc and Wano Arc was a turning point that cemented her position as one of the strongest characters.
Strength isn’t mere brute physical strength but also something that involves will. She is a material girl but she knocks sense into the Straw Hats mostly. Her navigation skills, along with weather manipulation, are commendable. This only means that the women in Oda’s series exist beyond fanservice.
Women beyond fan-service in Eiichiro Oda’s series
Eiichiro Oda’s series has faced flak for being saga-esque but nothing comes close to the objectification criticism. Rightly so, the female characters are subjected to fanservice. Be it Nico Robin or Boa Hancock, women are portrayed in a distasteful manner.
However, they are more than the s**ualization and fanservice. They carry stories, layers and depths in their personality. Boa Hancock is praised for her beauty, but her painful past as a slave has a hidden detail to it. Oda’s work reflected on the reality of trafficking through Boa and Toki.
Boa’s character and distaste for men stems from her past experiences and trauma. Yet, she opens up to Luffy when he proves himself capable and worthy of her trust. This also ties in well with Robin’s backstory, which made her rather skeptical of straw hats.
As a survivor of the Oharan massacre, she only grew stronger and chose to retain the knowledge. Her zeal for knowledge coupled with her strength makes her a remarkable character. But these are just few examples of female characters that are well-written and fleshed out in Oda’s series.
That, however, doesn’t justify the mangaka’s fanservice attitude toward the female characters. The distasteful and unsavory portrayal of women in anime has been called into question. Yet, the well-written characters overshadow this criticism majorly.
One Piece is available for streaming on Crunchyroll. The manga is available for reading on Shueisha’s Manga Plus app.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
