Warning: Contains manga spoilers for One Piece.
Summary
Among the countless mysteries and enigmatic characters inOne Piece,Joyboyis without a doubt the most intriguing and has been the object of innumerable theories since his introduction. The mystery surroundingJoyboy’s identityis almost as thick as that around the Void Century.
Fortunately, Eiichiro Oda has finally begun to delve into Joyboy’s character, kickstarting the Final Saga ofOne Piecethrough the massiverevelations made in the Egghead Arc. All at once, Vegapunk’s broadcast has revealed many interesting details about the mysterious first pirate, and while a lot about Joyboy is still up for speculation, there are quite a few hard undeniable facts.
13Joyboy Was Alive During The Void Century
First Revealed in Chapter #628 and Explained Further in Chapter #649
While the inhabitants of the world ofOne Piecehave only just learned of Joyboy’s existence through Vegapunk’s message, the revelation thatJoyboy lived during the Void Centurywas one of the earliest established facts about him accompanying his introduction in chapter #628. This was apparent from the simple fact that Joyboy had been mentioned on a Poneglyph created during the Void Century.
Of course, King Neptune would later go on to confirm that Joyboy was indeed a figure from the Void Century shortly after in chapter #649, and since then, bothRoger and Vegapunk have also corroborated this fact.
12Joyboy Wrote a Letter of Apology to Fishman Island
First Explained in Chapter #649
One of the first and biggest revelations about Joyboy was made during the Fishman Island Arc, shortly after Joyboy was first introduced in chapter #628. During the arc, Robin comes across aPoneglyph inscribed with an apology from a mysterious figure named Joyboy,and in chapter #649, Neptune explains that the apology was addressed to the Mermaid Princess during the Void Century for failing to keep a promise to Fishman Island.
According to King Neptune, the exact contents of Joyboy’s promise are unknown, but this promise is closely tied to the Noah. Neptune has hinted that the Noah’s purpose is similar to Otohime’s dream of taking Fishman Island to the surface. Thus, Joyboy’s promise likely involved using Poseidon’s ability to command the Neptunians to move the Noah to accomplish something similar to Otohime’s dream. Though there are still many blanks in the story,Joyboy’s apology and promise to Fishman Islandremains one of the few concrete facts known about him.
11Zunesha and Emet Shared A Close Bond With Joyboy
Revealed in Chapter #1040, Chapter #1120, and Chapter #1122
Another well-established fact about Joyboy is that he had aclose relationship with Zunesha and Emet,also known as the Iron Giant. While Zunesha has been referred to as Joyboy’s companion by Momonosuke, Emet, in his own words, has implied having fought for Joyboy in the past.
Both have also had verynostalgic reactions to hearing the Drums of Liberationand seeing Joyboy again with Emet especially expressing how happy he is countless times. The exact details of their friendship with Joyboy are still unclear though fans have speculated that Zunesha and Emet may have been Joyboy’s crew mates, mirroring Chopper and Franky respectively.
It is unclear how Momonosuke learned that Zunesha was Joyboy’s companion. As such, fans can only take Momonosuke’s word for it though he most likely learned of this fact either from Zunesha himself or from Oden’s journal.
10Joyboy Left a Treasure at Laugh Tale That Made Roger Laugh
First Revealed in Chapter #967
While the One Piece was thought to be Roger’s treasure for the longest time, the contents ofOden’s journal have since revealed that the titular treasure actually belonged to Joyboy. Chapter #967 depicts Roger’s journey to Laugh Tale and upon finding the One Piece Roger marvels at the treasure Joyboy has left behind calling it a “tale full of laughs.”
The Egghead Arc has further added to the intrigue surrounding the One Piece with Vegapunk describing it as a treasure that could determine the fate of the world. Vegapunk has also hinted that Joyboy may have intended for a specific person to find the One Piece though anybody other than the individual Joyboy desired can also claim it.
One Piece Confirms That Luffy and Shanks Still Have A Long Way To Go Before Reaching Joyboy’s Level Of Power
Even with the showcases of incredible power from Shanks and Luffy, the end of One Piece’s Egghead arc revealed that their Haki skills are lacking.
9Joyboy Was the First Pirate
First Revealed in Chapter #1114
One of the biggest bombshells in Vegapunk’s message was thatJoyboy was the first piratein the world ofOne Piece.Until this point, little had been known about what kind of person Joyboy had been other than the implication that he sought to make people happy as his name implies.
However, this revelation by Dr. Vegapunk in chapter #1114 effectivelytied Joyboy toOne Piece’s larger themes of freedom and ambition, which are inherently tied to setting out to sea. Joyboy being the first pirate also enforces the sense of legacy tied to the One Piece and the title of the Pirate King.
8Joyboy Belonged to the Ancient Kingdom
Though the Ancient Kingdom and Joyboy were both thought to be connected to the larger mystery of the Void Century for the longest time, it wasn’t until Vegapunk’s worldwide broadcast in chapter #1114 that this connection was finally confirmed. Interestingly, the fact thatJoyboy belonged to the Ancient Kingdomwas also subtly foreshadowed by Rayleigh in chapter #967 when he referred to the One Piece as the vast treasure left behind by the same people who created the Ancient Weapons.
It is unconfirmed whether the Ancient Kingdom did indeed create the Ancient Weapons, though Joyboy’s desire to pass them down and the Ancient Kingdom’s description as a scientifically advanced nation of great power suggests this is most likely the case.
7Joyboy and His Faction Fought Against the Twenty Kingdoms
First Revealed in Chapter #1115
Following the shocking revelation that Joyboy belonged to the Ancient Kingdom, Vegapunk’s message in chapter #1115 also confirmed thatJoyboy had indeed fought against the rulers of the twenty kingdoms during the Void Century, who eventually went on to form the World Government. Rather, as Vegapunk puts it, the twenty rulers formed a provisional army called The Alliance to defeat Joyboy and his faction.
While Vegapunk’s message did cut out right when he was about to talk about themysterious D initial, Imu’s description of the D clan as the World Government’s old enemies that once opposed them hints that theD Clan could very well be Joyboy’s so-called factionor the citizens of the Ancient Kingdom that Joyboy also belonged to.
6Joyboy Was the Previous User of the Nika Fruit
First Revealed in Chapter #1043 and Confirmed in Chapter #1122
Along with the unexpected revelation that Luffy’s devil fruit was not the Gum-Gum Fruit but the Nika fruit,Luffy’s awakening at Wanoalso subtly confirmed that Joyboy was a previous user of the same devil fruit through Zunesha. In chapter #1043, as Luffy awakens the power of the Nika Fruit,Zunesha hears Luffy’s unique heartbeat, or the drums of liberation, andstates that Joyboy has returned, implying that Joyboy too possessed the same power and joyful heart rhythm and had also likely awakened the Nika Fruit.
Dr. Vegapunk further laid any lingering doubts to rest in chapter #1122 when he described Joyboy as someone who fought with a stretchy body like Sun God Nika in his message to the world. Overall, this revelation finally links Joyboy to Luffy with the Nika Fruit and itspowers becoming the physical manifestation of Joyboy’s inherited willthat Luffy may be destined to carry out.
5Joyboy Could Use a Gear Five-Like Transformation
Revealed in Chapter #1043 and Chapter #1115
While Zunesha all but confirmed that Joyboy was a previous user of the Nika Fruit and had awakened it, chapter #1115 finally revealed thatJoyboy too used a Gear Five-like transformation.Though there are a few minor differences, it seems Joyboy likely possessed all the samequirky powers and abilities of Gear Fiveas Luffy, if not more.
It is possible that the silhouette of Joyboy in Gear Five in chapter #1115 is simply how Vegapunk personally imagines Joyboy and may not be completely accurate.
Moreover, according to the Five Elders, the Nika Fruit hadn’t been awakened for centuries until Luffy recently did so at Onigashima, and it is possible that the last person to awaken the devil fruit was Joyboy himself. Considering the twenty kingdoms had to band together to defeat Joyboy, this would explainwhy the World Government was so fearful of the Nika Fruit being awakenedonce again.
4The Void Century Ended With Joyboy’s Defeat
Along with establishing Joyboy’s connection to the Ancient Kingdom and his central role during the Void Century, Vegapunk’s message to the world also shockingly revealed that theVoid Century came to an end with Joyboy’s defeat. It isdifficult to imagine how Joyboy was defeatedat all if he wielded the same logic-defying powers of the Nika Fruit as Luffy as well as what appears to be the most powerful Conqueror’s Haki in the series.
Though Vegapunk does not provide any hints as to how Joyboy was defeated, this revelation suggests that there may still be room for Luffy to grow and get stronger beyond overcoming the after-effects of using Gear Five.
