Pirates Who Hate Their Fathers

Summary

• Pirates in One Piece often have daddy issues, leading to tension and narrative depth.
• Inherited will can transcend bloodlines, causing tension and division between fathers and sons.
• Characters like Sanji, Ace, Doflamingo, Drake, and Yamato demonstrate hatred or longing for their fathers.

A common theme in One Piece is pirates having some serious daddy issues. The impetus is not always clear, but it likely boils down to the need for some narrative tension. Inherited Will and its ability to transcend bloodlines is another theme that is often explored.

Another concession, then, is that something so transcendental may not always pass down through conventional means. In some instances, this can mean that the basic ideals of fathers and sons can serve to drive the two apart. Here are some pirates in One Piece who outright hate their fathers.

5

Sanji

Son of Vinsmoke Judge

• Crew: Straw Hat Pirates (Cook)

The Vinsmoke clan was a deeply divided household. Vinsmoke Judge wanted his sons to be unfeeling supermen, while his wife, Sora, wanted them to have normal childhoods. Judge tampered with Sora’s pregnancies, to mold his sons the way he wanted. Sora took a counteractive drug, which ended up later causing her death due to certain complications.

Unfortunately, three of their four sons were unaffected by the drug, and were powerful and cruel from a young age. The sole outlier was Vinsmoke Sanji. Upon Sora’s passing, Judge allowed his other sons to abuse Sanji however they pleased. Reiju, Sanji’s elder sister, helped him escape, and is the only living member of his family he does not view negatively.

Sanji later became an apprentice cook on a ship that was raided by a pirate captain named “Red Leg” Zeff, in whom he found a father figure. Despite his distant persona, Zeff cared for Sanji. He later took on Sanji as an apprentice of his own, teaching him both cooking and combat through tough love. Sanji eventually joined the Straw Hat Pirates and served as their cook.

Sanji’s hatred of Judge is due to the abuse he suffered, but also his unrepentant, selfish behavior. In more recent times, Sanji has discovered he is not free from the superhuman abilities instilled in his siblings, but makes an effort to maintain his humanity regardless.

4

Portgas D. Ace

Son of Gol D. Roger

• Crew: Spade Pirates (Captain, former; absorbed into Whitebeard Pirates), Whitebeard Pirates (2nd Division Commander)

Gol D. Roger is the most famous pirate in One Piece, due to his indisputable status as the King of the Pirates. Nonetheless, he was not without his detractors. One major example is his own son, Portgas D. Ace. Roger’s lover, Portgas D. Rouge, was willing to die shortly after childbirth, by somehow managing to extend her pregnancy to 20 months. Ace, born Gol D. Ace, neglected to use his father’s surname. Instead, he took his mother’s, claiming he owed her a debt due to the pregnancy.

Roger’s sentencing for execution (as well as the fact that he was dying of an incurable disease) meant he could not serve as a father to Ace, but he requested that his longtime rival, Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp, look after him. Roger claimed he trusted Garp as much as any of his crewmates, and he wanted to make sure that his own sins would not follow his son.

Ace was raised as a brother to Monkey D. Luffy, who was also the son of an infamous criminal, Monkey D. Dragon. Ace decided to become a pirate, forming his own crew, before later joining forces with Whitebeard. Whitebeard was an orphan who treated his crewmates like family, and Ace grew to view Whitebeard as a father figure.

Ace’s animosity towards Roger was rooted in the stigma he passed onto his son, despite Roger wanting to avoid this. Ace’s negative feelings were also likely rooted in the neglect he felt from Roger, compared to Rouge, who not only died for him, but spent the remaining moments of her life loving him. However, Ace is not very different from Roger in terms of ideals.

3

Donquixote Doflamingo

Son of Donquixote Homing

• Crew: Donquixote Pirates (Captain)

The World Nobles are the corrupt ruling class of the world in One Piece. They take slaves, have the marines dedicated to protecting them, and know nothing about struggling. The privileges afforded to those born into such a lifestyle seem difficult to refuse. It takes a truly moral man to reject their birthright when it affords them such luxury.

Donquixote Homing was one such man. He chose to remove himself, his wife, and their two sons from this detested class. Unfortunately, said excommunication had little positive reception from the common folk. Due to how horrid the World Nobles had made their lives, the new neighbors of Homing and his family turned against them. Homing tried to at least save his family, but was rejected. His wife died of an untreated illness during their exile.

Homing had hoped to re-educate Doflamingo, seeing how negatively the lifestyle had shaped him. Unfortunately, after their dismissal and the hardships that followed, Doflamingo had no love left for his father. After receiving a pistol and his Devil Fruit, the Ito Ito no Mi, from Trebol, he assassinated Homing at the age of 10. Doflamingo subsequently made use of Trebol and his allies, who declared they would serve the boy after discovering his Conqueror’s Haki.

Doflamingo claimed he forgave his father once he had shot him dead. Nonetheless, he has dedicated his life to gaining power, possibly even the kind which could transcend the World Nobles. If he succeeds in massacring them, he may once again claim forgiveness.

2

X Drake

Son of Diez Barrels

• Crew: Drake Pirates (Captain), Barrels Pirates (former), Beasts Pirates (former; double agent)

X Drake grew up idolizing his father, Diez Barrels, who was a marine of some renown. Unfortunately, Barrels turned traitor and became a pirate, forcing his son to join him in their schemes. He grew more abusive to Drake during his time as a pirate. When Barrels was eventually killed by Doflamingo, Drake mentioned he held no ill will towards the latter.

After the destruction of the Barrels Pirates, Drake was rescued by Tsuru and looked after by Sengoku, who helped him become a marine. Drake eventually achieved the rank of rear admiral, before seeming to betray the marines to become a pirate once more. He led the Drake Pirates, and later joined the Beasts Pirates, becoming one of Kaido’s Flying Six.

However, Drake’s return to piracy was actually part of his efforts as the captain of SWORD, a marine-run black ops organization where marines who resigned “on paper” could engage in activities that the marines could later disavow if need be. It is possible Drake was attached to this role due to his own experience of being forced to act as a pirate for his father.

Due to Drake’s father being his role model as a marine, and later a far worse parent as a pirate, he likely internalized his own preconceptions about each group. That said, Drake was willing to temporarily form an alliance with Monkey D. Luffy once his cover was blown. For the moment, Drake’s next steps and how he reconciles his pirate crew with SWORD remain unclear.

1

Yamato

Son of Kaido

• Crew: Beasts Pirates (former)

Yamato was the son of the Beasts Pirates’ captain, Kaido. Despite this, he grew to admire his father’s rival, Kozuki Oden, eventually seeking to emulate the legendary samurai. Kaido punished his child and put explosive shackles on Yamato’s wrists, which were triggered to explode if he left Wano Country. Kaido also starved Yamato and trapped him in a dark cave. Despite being held hostage by his father, he was able to befriend Ace, who made him aware of Luffy’s existence.

Yamato eventually met Luffy and expressed interest in traveling with the Straw Hat Pirates, much like Oden’s own journeys with the Whitebeard and Roger Pirates. Yamato became known to the Ninja-Pirate-Mink-Samurai Alliance at large, and was part of the concentrated effort to dethrone Kaido.

After an attack by Admiral Aramaki, leaving most of Wano’s top soldiers badly injured, Kozuki Momonosuke elected not to open Wano’s borders, despite it being a long-held dream of his father. Yamato chose to stay in Wano a bit longer, supported by the Kozuki clan to complete a pilgrimage in the place of Oden. It is presumed after this is completed, Yamato will make an effort to travel the world, like his idol did.

Kaido is deeply abusive to his son, but recognizes his power. Kaido considered Yamato a viable candidate to replace Kurozumi Orochi as the Shogun of Wano. After being abused by Kaido, Yamato became intent on disowning him once he realized the explosive handcuffs were not a bluff. Although Yamato suffered abuse at the hands of his father, he also seemed to hope a more agreeable side to him would surface.