Summary
- Gecko Moria wasn’t always cowardly and used to fight on par with Kaido in One Piece.
- Gecko Moria’s story shows the importance of ambition and risk for pirate success.
- Pirates in One Piece must prioritize ambition, risk, and protecting what they hold dear to succeed.
Despite being one of the primary villains of One Piece arcs, Gecko Moria isn’t nearly as beloved as his peers. While characters like him, namely, Crocodile, Doflamingo, and Katakuri are hugely popular within the community, Gecko Moria often feels like the main villain with the smallest fan base. Sadly, One Piece’s Gecko Moria never gained the same amount of traction as the others, possibly due to his lack of charisma or sheer coolness that other villains have.
However, there may be another reason that Gecko Moria isn’t nearly as beloved as the other villains in One Piece. Though he has a fair amount of power and an incredible army, Gecko lacks the same passion and drive that most other villains have. In fact, his fateful encounter with Luffy is all thanks to sheer laziness, showing how being driven towards goals and dreams may be one of One Piece’s most important lessons.
Related
One Piece: Brûlée Didn’t Deserve To Suffer In Whole Cake Island
Although she was a minor antagonist in Whole Cake Island, Brûlée didn’t deserve to suffer in One Piece.
Gecko Moria Wasn’t Always Cowardly In One Piece
The Warlord Used To Fight On The Same Level As Kaido
Gecko Moria, despite not being the best One Piece villain, has had an interesting story. Before the events of the series, Gecko Moria was a much stronger pirate. Sporting a strong physique and an overwhelming amount of dreams and passion, the ambitious pirate challenged Kaido, the captain of the Beast Pirates, to a fight. However, Gecko soon learned that his crew couldn’t keep up with him, and was tragically defeated. Now with his whole crew slaughtered, Gecko Moria traveled back to Paradise where he remains, hiding under the title of Warlord of the Sea.
You may have gathered a strong crew, but you’ll lose them all! – Gecko Moria
Here, after losing his human crew, Gecko now refuses to lose another crew mate, choosing instead to make a majority of his foot soldiers zombies, rather than actual people. This way, Gecko can hide behind an army of zombie minions, staying safe and sound on his hidden floating island, One Piece’s Thriller Bark. Due to his now extremely lazy and sedentary nature, Gecko not only lost his perfect physique but also his passion and ambition as a pirate as well, now relying on the strength of his zombies, including the zombified body of Oars, to do his bidding.
Gecko Moria Shows What Happens When A Pirate Loses Passion
Without Risk And Ambition Pirates Fail In One Piece
- Gecko Moria Shows How A Pirate Truly Fails In One Piece
- The Former Warlord Also Teaches What It Takes To Succeed
Firstly, for the characters in the story of One Piece, Gecko Moria is a sign of just how powerful and cruel the New World can be. In a way, while One Piece’s Gecko Moria himself was strong, he lacked the strength to protect his crewmates and friends, leading him to retreat to Paradise with his friends slaughtered. In a way, Gecko Moria, in all his laziness and spite, is almost like a potential future for Luffy. One where the Straw Hat Captain lacks the strength to protect his crew in the New World, leading to their defeat.
Related
One Piece: The Next Step In Usopp’s Journey, Explained
Usopp has gone through a lot in the story, but there are two possible futures awaiting him now that the crew has finally reached Elbaf!
However, in a storytelling sense, Gecko Moria teaches the audience the most important recipe for success when it comes to succeeding in the One Piece world: ambition and risk. When Gecko Moria previously had ambition and was willing to take risks, like fighting an incredibly strong pirate like Kaido, he was near the top of the pirate world, making it as far into the New World as Wano. Although losing his crew was a major setback and emotional moment for the pirate, from here he gave up, losing both his passion and risk. Now, Gecko will no longer risk anything outside of his zombies, leading to a very sad and pathetic pirate career spent mainly in hiding.
Pirates Need To Keep Trying No Matter How Many Times They Lose
Gecko Moria Gave Up And Hid Away From The World
From here, it’s easy to see just how important risk-taking and ambition are to the world massive of One Piece. Without these two things, great pirates become lazy and sheltered. With this also comes the fact that things help them stay motivated. Whether this is a specific dream, greed, or their pirate crew, as Luffy always says, strong pirates in One Piece need to protect the things they hold dear.
If you don’t take risks, you can’t create a future! – Luffy
In the end, while Gecko Moria may not be the best villain in all of One Piece, overall, he’s an extremely important part of the story. Though it’s hard to imagine, Luffy could become Gecko by losing his crew to the New World. However, Gecko also teaches the audience, and Luffy himself, that drive, passion, and risk are the most important keys to becoming a great pirate in One Piece.
