Summary
There’s no denying thatthe concept ofOne Piece’sCover Stories is both unique and brilliant, as these supplemental side stories that are told within the first pages of different chapters let Eiichiro Oda slowly flesh out this fascinating world in ways that no other manga can.
While some uninformed fans may initially dismiss Cover Stories as random filler not worth catching up with, they’re actually extremely crucial to the main story of the series. From exclusive introductions of important characters to unbelievable world-changing events, the following moments from Cover Stories have made a huge impact on the overall plot ofOne Piece.
1Koby And Helmeppo’s Growth After Training Under Garp
Diary Of Koby-Meppo
When Monkey D. Luffy said goodbye to his new friend Koby at the beginning of the series, this aspiring Marine was small and weak but had big dreams. But, the next time the Straw Hat Pirates met up with Koby,both he and Helmeppo had evidently grown a lot, both physically and emotionally, after going through ruthless training under Luffy’s grandfather, Monkey D. Garp.
Koby’s sudden change may seem to come out of nowhere, but all of this was covered in his own dedicated Cover Story,Diary of Koby-Meppo, in which readers get to see him and Helmeppo earn Garp’s trust and begin training with him. Curiously enough, this was one of the very few Cover Stories to be adapted into the anime, but avid watchers may have mistaken it for a random filler arc and missed it.
2Hatchan’s Partnership With Camie And Pappag
Hatchan’s Sea-Floor Stroll
Near the beginning of the Sabaody Archipelago Arc, the Straw Hat Pirates meet the mermaid Camie and her talking starfish, Pappag, who ask them for help in rescuing their friend and business partner, Hatchan. This bumbling octopus fish-man used to be part of Arlong’s crew, and he was supposedly imprisoned by the Marines. So, how did he get out? And why was he suddenly selling takoyaki alongside a random mermaid?
All of these questions were answered in the Cover Story titledHatchan’s Sea-Floor Stroll, in which readers can see Hatchan fleeing a marine ship, saving Camie from being eaten by a giant sea monster, and opening a takoyaki stand together. This means thatCamie the mermaid is one of the fewOne Piececharacters who was introduced in a Cover Storybefore she appeared in the main story.
3Wapol’s Unexpected Appearance In The Levely
Wapol’s Omnivorous Hurrah
Wapol is definitely one of the goofiestOne Piecevillainsand, since he first appeared early on in the series, most fans were not expecting to see him ever again. However, and much to their surprise, Wapol did end up making a surprise appearance in Levely Arc, where it was revealed that he is now the wealthy monarch of the Evil Black Drum Kingdom.
Wapol’s Omnivorous Hurrahtells exactly what happened to him after he was exiled from Drum Island. It turns out he began eating random stuff on different islands, got arrested, and fled his imprisonment. One day, he used the powers of his Devil Fruit to create toys that were a surprise hit with children, so he began selling them. And if his successful business wasn’t enough, scientists discovered that Wapol accidentally created a durable shape-memory alloy named Wapometal, which led to the World Government giving him an entire kingdom of his own. That’s not the only impact of this Cover Story, however, since Franky’s General Franky is made entirely of Wapometal.
4CP9’s Recovery And Promotion To CP0
CP9’s Independent Report
MostOne Piecefans agree thatCP9 is one of the deadliest and strongest groups of enemies that the Straw Hat Pirates ever faced. So, naturally, most of them were shocked to discover that Rob Lucci and his allies not only survived the Buster Call on Enies Lobby but also got promoted to CP0. When did all of this happen?
The answer, obviously, is in their own Cover Story, titledCP9’s Independent Report. In it, readers are shown how Blueno rescued all of his teammates with the powers of his Doa Doa no Mi, how they all traveled to St. Poplar and began earning money to pay for Rob Lucci’s hospital bills. The climax of this Cover Story shows the World Government trying to capture CP9, but failing due to the team’s immense strength. While it is not explicitly stated, it is heavily implied that this is the reason behind their promotion to CP0, especially since this Cover Story also shows that Spandam survived getting his spine broken by Nico Robin.
5How Caribou Ended Up In Wano
Caribou’s Kehihihihi In The New World
The pirate known as “Wet-Haired” Caribou has been following the Straw Hat Pirates since his initial appearance in the Return to Sabaody Arc. Even though it initially seemed that Luffy and his crew had finally gotten rid of him after the Fish-Man Island Arc,Caribou made a sudden comeback in the Udon Prison segment of the Wano Country Arc, where he became a temporary ally to the main character.
How did Caribou go from Fish-Man Island to Wano? This is all explained in theCaribou’s Kehihihihi in the New WorldCover Story. After being captured by Jinbe, he escaped, abandoned his crew, and arrived at a mysterious island, on which an old woman mistakes him for her revolutionary grandson, Gaburu. As a result, Caribou poses as Gaburu and defeats Scotch, who is part of the Beasts Pirates. In response, X-Drake defeats him, captures him, and takes him to Wano to sentence him. The anime tried to sum up this weird story with a brief flashback sequence, but it did not do this lengthy Cover Story justice.
6Bartolomeo’s Feud With Shanks
The Stories Of The Self-Proclaimed Straw Hat Grand Fleet
One of the most shocking scenes in all ofOne Piecejust transpired within the pages of the manga: when Shanks and his crew sank Bartolomeo’s ship, as punishment for burning the Red Hair Pirates’ flag on an island in the New World. For most readers, especially those who recently began reading the manga, this unexpected development came out of nowhere, but this was established in one of the best Cover Stories:The Stories of the Self-Proclaimed Straw Hat Grand Fleet.
This Cover Story tells readers what every member of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet did after the Dressrosa Arc, and Bartolomeo has always been one of the most intriguing ones since it’s shown that he immediately burned the Red Hair Pirates’ flag because he was trying to replace it with the Straw Hat Pirates’ flag. This was shown seven years ago, so it’s quite mind-blowing that this revelation paid off in the main story very recently.
7The Introduction Of The New Giant Warrior Pirates
But Bartolomeo’s tragic fate is not the only recent story development that was previously established inThe Stories of the Self-Proclaimed Straw Hat Grand Fleet.Current manga readers recently caught up with the New Warrior Pirates during the Elbaf Arc: Goldberg the chef, Gerd the doctor, and Road the navigator. This last one stood out because he kidnapped half of the Straw Hat Pirates, placed them in a big diorama, and began calling himself the “Sun God.”
As expected, a bunch of characters as unique and extravagant as these didn’t come out of nowhere, and they were introduced in the aforementioned Cover Story. It is shown that they were all part of Buggy’s Delivery, but Hajrudin convinced them to quit and join the Straw Hat Grand Fleet instead. Fun fact: the remaining member of the crew, Stansen the shipwright, is the same giant that Rayleigh rescued from the Auction House during the Sabaody Archipelago Arc.
8How Blackbeard Kidnapped Charlotte Pudding
Germa 66’s Ahh… An Emotionless Excursion
Among the many heinous things that Blackbeard has done in recent chapters of theOne Piecemanga,one of them was the sudden abduction of Charlotte Pudding, who can seemingly decipher the Poneglyphs for him with her third eye. While the anime tried to fill in the blanks with a brief flashback sequence, this was established during the Germa 66 Cover Story, titledGerma 66’s Ahh… An Emotionless Excursion.
Just as Niji and Yonji escape Whole Cake Island, Kuzan and Van Augur arrive, defeat Cracker, and take Pudding with them. What’s especially fascinating about this event is that it took place in the cover of Chapter 1064, which later showed Pudding on the ship of the Blackbeard Pirates while they were fighting against Law and the Heart Pirates. This means thatGerma 66’s Ahh… An Emotionless Excursionholds the record for the Cover Story that took the least amount of time to make an impact on the main plot of the series.
