Best Characters Introduced In Cover Stories In One Piece

Cover stories are somewhat overlooked when one considers their exact importance to the narrative of One Piece. Existing to give tabs on characters not immediately relevant to the story, these one-panel entries can fill the holes in the main story. One may forget that the original versions of plot points, like Koby working his way up through the marines and Buggy encountering Alvida, began as cover stories. Sometimes cover stories will go a step further, and help debut certain characters who will become relevant to the primary narrative. Here are some of the best characters who were introduced through this method.

5 Baburu

Debut: Caribou’s Kehihihihi in the New World, Vol. 15 (Chapter 690)

This sweet old lady is first seen nursing Caribou back to health after he ends up on an island in the midst of a storm. When one considers his own cruel nature, it remains no surprise that he was still willing to rob the woman who may have saved his life. Nonetheless, she is hospitable to him, and tries to get him to escape the island, saddling him with meat pies for the trip. Caribou discovers revolutionaries being decimated by Scotch, one of Kaido’s subordinates stationed on the island.

Caribou later discovers his resemblance to the deceased Gaburu, the grandson of Baburu, who she appears to think is the same person as him. He also discovers Baburu’s house has been ransacked for harboring him. Caribou eventually reconvenes with his crew, including his brother and co-captain, Coribou, who notes their grandmother’s wish for them to get along. In a rare act of kindness, Caribou leads his crew to act as revolutionaries, and ultimately defeat Scotch. However, Caribou himself ends up apprehended by X Drake, which leads to his eventual imprisonment in Wano.

Despite his own penchant for trickery, Baburu pulled the wool over his eyes, as she visits Gaburu’s grave, revealing she knew they were different all along. Nonetheless, Baburu’s involvement in the cover story showed a different side of Caribou, priming the pump for him to return in a more heroic (albeit equally selfish) manner in Wano. Although Caribou will likely be a full-on villain when he returns, the story still added to his character.

4 The Automata

Debut: Enel’s Great Space Operations, Vol. 4 (Chapter 433)

These robotic beings bare more than a resemblance to Chopper, and are only somewhat less adorable than the reindeer man. Enel first discovers one of them (First Lieutenant Spacey) defeated at the hands of the Space Pirates, an intergalactic crew of aliens resembling various animals. Using his electric powers to revive the defeated automaton, he discovers that they were on the moon for revenge. Their creator, Dr. Tsukimi was killed by choking on a dumpling while being shocked at an explosion on the moon. Despite being only machine, the automata were deeply affected by their creator’s death and traveled to the moon for revenege.

Enel himself made it to the moon as it was the Fairy Vearth of Birkan legend. After Spacey led Enel to his defeated comrades (Sergeant Cosmo, General Galaxy, and Colonel Macro), the two were attacked by one of the pirates. This led to Enel enacting vengeance on the Space Pirates and destroying their ship. He later revived the automata and deputized them as his subordinates. Eventually, Enel discovered even more automata underground, these having been created by the apparent ancestors of Birkans as well as Skypeians and Shandorians. All the automata decide to act as his servants out of gratitude. While it is unclear if any of these characters will have relevance to the greater story, they do provide an interesting bit of background lore for the series.

3 Hina

Debut: Jango’s Dance Paradise, Vol. 36 (Chapter 171)

This rear admiral was inarguably responsible for saving the friendship between Jango and Fullbody. With the former a pirate and the latter a marine, the pair planned to forget one another as their dance-forged bond damaged Fullbody’s career, as he had to sacrifice his rank of lieutenant to get Jango pardoned. However, both were smitten by the then-captain, Hina, and decided to enlist as seamen (the lowest ranked form of marine) in her unit, the Black Cage Corps.

Since then, Hina has cropped up as a supporting character in various arcs which involve the marines. Her Devil Fruit, the Ori Ori no Mi, allows her to apprehend most criminals, and is a natural fit for a marine. Under her guidance, Jango and Fullbody are both currently lieutenant captains, and seem to have maintained a great rapport.

2 Camie and Papag

Debut: Hatchan’s Sea-Floor Stroll, Vol. 12 (Chapter 195)

This mermaid and her starfish pet/mentor were first seen escaping a sea-boa, which Hatchan helped rescue them from. Unfortunately, the fish-man traded her for a treasure map to former friends of his in the slave trading business. After believing himself to be tricked, Hatchan inadvertently freed Camie by destroying their ship. He later discovered he wasn’t tricked and used the treasure to make takoyaki for a group of starving headband fishes. Although Hatchan’s crush, Octopako, tried to persuade him to give the last of it to her, he instead gave it to the starving elder fish, who was late to arrive. In gratitude, the headband fishes built a takoyaki stand, which Hatchan and his friends operated.

Camie and Papag later gained relevance within the main plot, after Luffy freed them from a Sea King, who once again swallowed them up. They eventually aided Hatchan in developing a friendship with the Straw Hats, despite their past animosity. Hatchan’s friendship proved essential to the Straw Hats, as it led to the crew meeting a coating mechanic, who would allow them to traverse underwater. This mechanic was also the legendary first mate of the Roger Pirates, Silvers Rayleigh, who also acted as a mentor to Luffy, allowing him to greatly improve his haki during his time on Amazon Lily.

Hatchan himself later aided in the defense of the Thousand Sunny during the timeskip, alongside the likes of Bartholomew Kuma and the Rosy Life Riders. Thanks to their collective efforts, the marines failed to capture the crew’s ship while it was docked in their absence. The continued support of Camie not only allowed the Straw Hats to befriend a previous enemy, but also led to them developing further connections, showing that the goodwill built up by the crew is an invaluable aspect of their progress.

1 Monkey D. Garp

Debut: Diary of Koby-Meppo, Vol. 9 (Chapter 92)

Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp was the mentor to a number of marines, including characters like Kuzan, Koby, and Helmeppo. He is also related to some of the most infamous criminals at present, namely his grandson; Monkey D. Luffy, one of the Four Emperors, and his son; Monkey D. Dragon, the leader and founder of the Revolutionary Army, who was himself a former marine.

Garp is no less stubborn than either of his relatives, and his physical strength is the result of years of intensive, dedicated training. Like Luffy, he can use every type of haki, and he is steadfast in his beliefs. His philosophy diverges from that of his descendants, as his desire for marine control is directly against that of his son’s goals of overthrowing them, and his grandson’s desire for “freedom.” He often appears in opposition to his grandson or other powerful pirates, more often than not displaying skills that rival even admiral. However, he refuses regular offers to be promoted to this position, believing he would be more directly under the control of the World Nobles, who he despises.

With the many facets of his character, one may be quick to forget he too debuted in a cover story, which established his role as the eventual mentor to the likes of Koby and Helmeppo, who both trained under him to reach their current level of capability. He took special interest in the pair, seeing how they dealt with “Axe-Hand” Morgan’s escape, which also resulted in the temporary capture of Helmeppo. Ultimately, Garp himself decided to get involved in their training, and continued to be a mentor to them even after they became capable fighters in their own right.