Who Is Joy Boy in ‘One Piece’?

Glory and honor unto Joy Boy. Okay, ya’ll, this is some deep lore shit. One Piece is an anime of Biblical proportions (after all, the manga has been going for 25 years) and the lore is involved. Joy Boy (of which there may be more than one, we’ll get to that) is a messianic figure in the One Piece universe. He’s basically Pirate Jesus. Buckle up, cause it’s gonna get a little religious. So before we begin, let us all bow our heads and greet our neighbors by saying, “One Piece Be With You (and also with you).”

Who is Joy Boy?

Okay, so Joy Boy (like Jesus) is a figure of deep historical and mythological relevancy in the One Piece universe. He is said to have existed in a forgotten era known as “The Void Century,” which occurred 800 to 900 years before the current storyline. The study of the era is forbidden by the World Government of One Piece, but it is said that whoever learns the truth of the Void Century will learn the “true history” of the world.

That’s intense. So as far as we know, Joy Boy lived during this time, played a part in shaping the history of Fish-Man island, and is responsible for leaving behind the titular “one piece”—a fabulous treasure said to rest on the last island along the Grand Line.

How do we know this? Because somebody left a record of Joy Boy’s exploits at the bottom of the ocean in a place known as the Sea Forest (or Ship Graveyard, if you’re a “glass half empty” kinda person). This person literally carved this history onto the side of a Space Odyssey-lookin’ monolith called The Ryugyu Poneglyph. It was also foretold that Joy Boy would return in approximately 800 to 900 years. Maybe as a main character perhaps? I dunno, probably not. It totally probably isn’t our hero, Monkey D. Luffy. That’d be absurd, right? A coincidence of astronomical proportions. Impossible. Unfeasible. Right? RIGHT?

I don’t know, gang. ‘Cause here’s the thing. Joy Boy is technically a title, meaning potentially anyone could be a Joy Boy. Hell, your neighbors could all be Joy Boys, a whole gaggle of them! The criteria for becoming a Joy Boy is never really explained, but it seems like it’s something that’s felt. Like a vibe? When Monkey D. Luffy first awakens his Gear 5 form, after being empowered by the devil fruit he consumed, the island-sized elephant, Zunesha (an old pal of the original Joy Boy), remarks that Luffy’s heartbeat sounds like the “Drums of Liberation,” and proclaims that Joy Boy has returned.

So how do you know if you or your loved one is a Joy Boy? Listen to your heart. It has the answers you seek.

(image credit: ViZ / Shonen Jump)