In 6 Ways, One Piece The most effective shonen transformation is Gear 5.

Gear 5 will go down as one of the most iconic anime transformations.

The main character of One Piece and one of Shonen history’s most recognisable figures is Monkey D. Luffy. One Piece, the most well-known shonen manga ever created, has given rise to amazing characters after phenomenal characters, but Luffy, the protagonist of the series, is a perfect embodiment of everything that Oda wants his readers to experience.

One Piece, like many shonen series, features a tonne of power-ups and transformations. Luffy’s Gear 5, which he most recently used in the Wano arc, is one of the most important ones. Getting new transformations is nothing new for any series, but the way that Oda handled Gear 5 makes it such and simultaneously elevates it to the status of being the greatest Shonen transformation ever.

1 Toon Force

Gear 5 is essentially Luffy channelling the infantile abilities of toon force, which may be problematic for certain fans. Given that even Kaido says that Luffy seems to be a figure that has been brought to life from a comic strip, Luffy starts to resemble a cartoon character, which is canonical. When spreading his talent to his adversaries, Luffy can make his eyes pop out or cause his enemies to do the same. Luffy can even run through the air and perform other feats that are only imaginable in cartoons for kids.

At his core, Luffy has always been a kid. Since Luffy’s imagination is what gives Gear 5 its strength, he essentially manifests the world he has imagined in his head. Because of this, Luffy is at his very best in Gear 5, both in terms of strength and personality. Without allowing any unfavourable feelings to enter the picture, Gear 5 brings out the best in Luffy in every manner. Gear 5 portrays Luffy as the Warrior of Liberation, the person who makes everyone around him smile, and the one who inspires his readers to do the same. This is undoubtedly one of the finest makeovers that has ever taken place; it is also undoubtedly the most exceptional and, in some ways, the best.

2 The Epitome Of Freedom

Simply because Gear 5 is a form centred on freedom, it is another reason why it is the finest transformation in Shonen. Oda has made it a point to depict Luffy as someone on the hunt for independence from the very beginning of One Piece. Luffy said that he wanted to be the freest person possible and not accomplish anything when Rayleigh asked him what he wanted to achieve. At his core, Luffy craves freedom, and he wants to give it to all of his pals.

Although Luffy does not care much for strength or power in general, he is aware that in order to secure freedom for himself and his comrades, he would unavoidably need to outperform everyone else. Gear 5’s decision to make him the Warrior of Liberation is unquestionably a stroke of genius by Oda because the character has never sought strength and has only ever desired freedom.

3 Power Up Exists To Display His Ingenuity

In Shonen, power-ups are primarily used to strengthen the character, which is why they are even included. For Gear 5, it cannot be stated the same. Not simply because Luffy has to gain strength does Gear 5 exist. Instead, Gear 5 serves as a showcase for Luffy’s creativity, which he uses to mould his body and overcome the challenges he faces.

Gear 5 serves to further the concept that Luffy is the most liberated person on the seas—something he has always aspired to be—by demonstrating how he can adapt to any circumstance with his amazing creativity and limitless freedom.

4 Based On Luffy’s Imagination

Luffy has always been a figure who greatly relies on fantasy. Oda has demonstrated from the very first chapter of the series that Luffy has limitless inventiveness, despite the fact that at times he may appear to be an idiot. Luffy always uses his boundless creativity to generate the most original transformation-related ideas. For instance, Luffy created Gear Second after seeing CP9 utilise Soru, and since he possessed a rubber body, he was able to replicate that action. When he wanted to strike harder, Luffy came up with a creative solution to expand his hand by expanding his bones, giving him the size of a giant, once again displaying his inventiveness.

When it came time to defeat the creatures on Ruskaina, Luffy combined the Haki he had learnt with his amazing Devil Fruit and developed a form capable of fighting with these formidable predators. He chewed his way through Cracker’s biscuits and blew him off. He switched to Gear Fourth and toned it down to a version where he could use amazing speed to counter Katakuri’s extraordinary Haki. Gear 5, the culmination of all of this, is what makes this change so spectacular because it gives Luffy the freedom to use his creativity in ways that are genuinely limitless and makes him the freest person on the oceans.

5 True to Luffy’s Character

Simply put, Gear 5 works so perfectly with Luffy’s unique attitude that it has become so iconic. Shonen protagonists are often highly silly people with a lively demeanour. When they shift, they leave all that behind and instead show their strength via wrath and/or anguish.

While it is always interesting to observe, it ultimately deprives the character of their very own independence and transforms them into something that not even they could have imagined for themselves. This has never been the case with Luffy. Luffy has never had a change that differed from who he is as a person. Every single one of Luffy’s changes has already occurred.

6 Not a Manifestation of Grief or Pain

The bulk of shonen transformations, like the Super Saiyan, are caused by sadness or anguish. This is a trope that has shown often in almost all shonen shows. After experiencing a significant emotional trauma or pain, the main character advances to the next level and transforms into an infuriated entity who is then empowered by their wrath to defeat the evil. That isn’t always a negative thing, but there is never much originality and they are virtually always the same.

In the process, they deprive a character of their actual identity and reduce them to a shell of who they really are. In essence, Luffy’s Gear 5 flips the script on this and is devoid of any anger or suffering at all. Because Oda does not plan to depict a metamorphosis in his happy narrative for a character who is carefree and has only ever sought freedom, Luffy has never in his entire life experienced a transformation brought on by loss or anguish.