Summary
- Garp acts like Koby is his ideal son, leading fans to believe he loves him more than his biological grandson, Luffy.
- Garp’s intense training with Luffy shows his care for him, despite external perceptions of favoritism towards Koby.
- Garp’s conflicted actions in protecting Koby and Luffy during key moments suggest deep underlying emotions as a character.
Familial relationships in One Piece tend to focus more on the bond shared between characters rather than who is actually related to one another. Due to this, found family has always been an interesting aspect of the series, with many groups, including the Straw Hats themselves, acting as de facto families. In many ways, this element is one of the most wholesome aspects of One Piece, showing that a person’s lineage doesn’t define who they are.
However, sometimes this idea of finding a new family can go a bit too far, with some characters seemingly abandoning their own families to find people who align with their beliefs more. This is especially true for Garp, Luffy’s grandfather. Many members of the One Piece community believe that the Hero of the Navy may not love his actual grandson nearly as much as he loves his new protégé, Koby, who more closely lines up with his personal beliefs.
Related
One Piece: Oda Sets Up Marineford 2.0 In The New World
Marineford marked the end of the first part of One Piece. Oda sets up a huge war, similar to Marinford, in the Final Saga.
Garp Turned Koby From A Timid Boy To A Hero In One Piece
His Training Was Much More Gentle Than Luffy’s Training
In the early stages of One Piece, fans quickly learn of Koby, a young and timid boy who wishes to become a great Marine. However, since he is incredibly weak, he has a lot of training he needs to go through in order to make his goal a reality. Luckily, the Vice Admiral, Garp, recognizes his drive and passion and takes him under his wing. Although Garp is generally a gruff person, it seems that he has taken a liking to Koby and his decision to join the Navy.
You can’t just blame your fate on other people all the time and expect them to solve everything. – Koby
At a much later moment, fans learn that Garp is also Luffy’s grandfather. Garp attempted to raise Luffy to be a strong future Marine. However, since the protagonist of One Piece, Luffy, is a free spirit, he rebelled against his grandfather’s wishes and decided to become a pirate. Although Garp still loves his grandson and respects his power, since neither his son nor grandson decided to follow in his footsteps, at times he feels he failed in properly raising his children.
Fans Think Koby Is The Ideal Son For Garp
Garp Wouldn’t Set Aside His Morals For Ace
- Garp Seems To Do More For Koby Than His Children
- Koby Follows In Garp’s Footsteps More As A Marine
From here, many fans have concluded that since Koby is the ideal son for Garp, and Garp acts differently around him, Garp must love Koby more than his actual grandson. In fact, many fans feel that Koby is fate’s way of apologizing to Garp after the recent children he raised, the Whitebeard Pirate, Ace, and Luffy, wanted to be pirates when they grew up. Additionally, Garp has sacrificed everything for Koby, fighting the Black Beard Pirates on Hachinosu, in order to save his protégé after he was kidnapped. In many ways, this is something that Garp refused to do on Marineford when another son he raised, Ace, was going to be executed.
Related
Why Are One Piece Silhouettes Nothing Like The Characters?
One Piece suffers from a strange phenomena where characters look nothing like their silhouettes.
However, as much evidence is stacked against him, none of this means that Garp loves Koby more than Luffy. In fact, the Navy hero arguably loves Luffy more than any other person in the series thus far. Garp is incredibly proud of Luffy’s incredible power and progress throughout the world of One Piece, and simply morally disagrees with his decision to become a pirate. Although Garp never explicitly shows it, he worries about Luffy straying from the right path, and becoming a more morally dubious pirate.
Garp’s Training For Luffy Was Perfect For The Energetic Child
Garp Is Hard On Luffy Because He Cares About Him
At the same time, many argue that Garp’s aggressive training style with Luffy means that he never loved him in the first place. Additionally, they point out that Koby seemed to have a more traditional training arc with Garp. However, Luffy, being an aggressive and energetic child, required a different form of training from the future powerful Marine, Koby, who is a more meek and gentle character. Garp was especially hard on Luffy because he cared about him and his future. In many ways, this aggressive training shows just how much Garp loved Luffy.
I have no sympathy for criminals, but for my family, I do. – Garp
In the end, although Garp cares for Koby greatly and would sacrifice everything for him, Garp would more than likely do the same for Luffy. Although he struggled with a conflict of interests during One Piece’s War of the Best, Garp doesn’t seem like the kind of person to let his only biological grandson die. However, the deeper aspects of Garp’s character are still unknown in One Piece, making it hard to pin down where the older Marine’s emotions lie.
