Summary
Eiichiro Oda is known as one of the greatest mangaka of all time. He has constantly shown that there is no one who can match him in terms of storytelling. Oda is also responsible for the creation of some of the greatest manga characters of all time.
He has created all sorts of interesting personas that fans have grown to adore over the years. But sometimes even Oda has been thrown off by the sheer number of characters in the story. Naturally, he cannot give all of them the same care. Due to this reason, some of the characters are handled in a less acceptable manner. With that in mind, here are all the characters that were misused by the One Piece author.
5Big Mom
Unprecedented Loss In Wano
Big Mom is the first name that comes to mind when people talk about wasted characters. She wasone of the Yonkowho ruled the seas of the New World. Big Mom was incredibly powerful, and she had the strength to compete against Kaido, the strongest creature in the world. Big Mom possessed the Soru Soru no Mi, a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that allowed her to control and manipulate the souls of other individuals.
She also had access to all three types of Haki, making her part of a special list. In the Wano Country arc, Big Mom had to fight Trafalgar Law and Eustass Kid. The two supernovas were able to damage her using their Devil Fruit awakenings. But it was truly perplexing that Big Mom did not use Conqueror’s Haki even once. If she had, the young pirates would never have survived. So Oda purposely stopped Big Mom from using Haki and gave her character a rather sad end.
4Yamato
Suddenly Decided Against Chasing His Dream
Yamato was one of the maincharacters in the Wano Country arc. She was a big fan of Oden, which inspired her to be like the samurai and rebel against her father. Like Oden, Yamato also had a strong sense of adventure. She wanted to travel around the world, but her father held her captive.
Fortunately for her, Luffy and the other pirates came to Wano and defeated Kaido and his minions. Fans were sure that Yamato would join the Straw Hat Pirates. Surprisingly, she decided against going with the crew and stayed back. This particular move felt rushed, and it is possible that Oda wanted to get done with the arc as quickly as possible. After all the chapters insisting on leaving Wano, Yamato’s decision to stay back came off as bizarre. Many fans complained that the time invested in Yamato could have easily been given to someone else who would play a role in the future.
3Carrot
Completely Sidelined In Wano
Carrot decided to travel with the Straw Hat Pirates after the conclusion of the Zou arc. She was a part of Luffy’s group that had to rescue Sanji from the clutches of Big Mom. Carrot was heavily involved in the Whole Cake Island arc, where she even usedher Sulong transformation tohelp out the Straw Hats. Carrot also shared a rather emotional moment with Pedro, who sacrificed himself willingly for the sake of a brighter future.
Everything was going well until the crew landed in Wano, where Carrot got completely sidelined. She played almost no part in the story, and even her fight with Perospero was nothing special. Many fans thought at least Carrot would join the Straw Hats after the arc was over, but Oda had other plans for her. Nekomamushi and Inuarashi decided to name Carrot the next ruler of the Mokomo Dukedom. This effectively stopped Carrot from going with the crew, as she had a big responsibility. Carrot had expressed no desire for such a role, so it’s obvious that she was shoehorned into it.
2Usopp
Stagnant Since Timeskip
Usopp is thesniper of the Straw Hat Pirates, and he joined the crew back in the East Blue Saga. Usopp has always been a coward, but he always tries to step up when it matters. Before the time-skip, Usopp had his moments where he contributed to the success of the crew. Ever since he rejoined the crew after the two-year break, Usopp has been somewhat of a passenger.
His biggest moment since the time-skip came in the Dressrosa arc, where he took out Sugar before she could turn Law and Luffy into toys. Unfortunately, he has been extremely lackluster in the subsequent arcs. Even in Wano, Usopp was unable to secure a noteworthy win, which severely disappointed the fans. The good news is that, since he is among the main characters, Usopp will have a few more chances, unlike the rest.
1Smoker
Vanished After The Timeskip
Smoker is a Marine vice admiral who was introduced in the Loguetown arc, where he almost captured Luffy. He was forced to let the young pirate go because of Dragon’s intervention. Smoker has tried to capture Luffy many times, but he has always met with failure.
While Smoker appeared frequentlybefore the time-skip, his screen time has been severely limited since. He appeared in the Punk Hazard arc, but he was completely outclassed and humiliated by first Law and then Vergo. Considering his debut in the series, there is no denying that Smoker has become almost obsolete. Unless Oda decides to use Smoker for something important in the Final Saga, he will go down as a severely misused character.
