How Did Monkey D. Garp’s Story End in ‘One Piece’?

I know why you’re here. You’re wondering if Garp died in One Piece. Wow, y’all. How about some sensitivity here? That’s a man’s LIFE we’re talking about. Garp (Monkey D. Garp to you) is the protagonist’s GRANDAD. SHOW SOME RESPECT.

Who exactly is Monkey D. Garp?

Monkey D. Garp, the man whose mortal coil is in question, is a world-renowned Marine Vice Admiral. He’s the father of Monkey D. Dragon, one of the world’s most famous and powerful men, the Supreme Commander of the Revolutionary Army. He’s also the grandad of an even MORE famous and powerful person: Monkey D. Luffy, Captain of the Straw Hats, one of the Four Great Emperors of the Sea, and Shonen Protagonist Extraordinaire.

Did he kick the bucket?

… is the question I would ask if I was an insensitive clod. But I’m not. I respect my elders. Therefore I’ll ask “Did the esteemed Monkey D. Garp, pass away from this mortal realm?”

Before we get into that, we need a little bit of context. So remember when the young Marine Koby offered himself up to the evil Marshal D. Teach (aka Blackbeard) in place of the other eight hundred Marines on a battleship that Teach was holding hostage? Garp was pretty upset about that. After all, Koby is his protegee! To save his young ward, Garp personally went to Hachinosu Island, the skull-shaped bit of land where the Blackbeard Pirates took lil’ Koby.

Garp proceeded to clean house.

He and the elite fighting force SWORD wiped the floor with the upper echelons of the Blackbeard Pirates. Totally one-sided. Garp and the gang managed to reach Koby and spring him from bondage. Victory was all but assured! Then tragedy struck. One of the Ten Titanic Captains of the Blackbeard Pirates, a sneaky dude named Shiryu of the Rain, used his Devil Fruit’s invisibility powers to sneak up on Koby to give him a fatal blow with a sword. Garp wasn’t gonna let that happen. Sensing Shiryu’s attack, Garp managed to throw himself in sword’s way at the last moment. He saved Koby, but took a katana through the torso.

Did that stop Garp? Hardly.

Garp managed to put the smackdown on Shiryu and then continue fighting even when his ex-protege-turned-bad-guy Kuzan showed up to assist the Blackbeard Pirates. Garp and Kuzan traded blows, but Garp was able to use his Galaxy Divide attack on the island itself, splitting apart and allowing the rest of SWORD to escape with Koby in toe. A more noble hero there never was. The last we see of Garp, he’s lying on the ground with a sharp rock through his chest while the rest of the Titanic Captains look on in glee. It’s not looking good for Garp. Not good at all. In Garp’s mind, he framed this attack as a suicide mission and sacrificed himself to allow his team to escape. Garp was ready to die for the squad. But did he? At this point, we just don’t know.

It’s possible that this is the end of Garp, but it’s also possible that he could shake off the possibly not fatal wound and continue to serve the plot, even if that means unwillingly serving the Blackbeard Pirates in the process. After all, this wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen a legendary figure shrug off this level of damage. The World’s Strongest Man Whitebeard managed to survive hundreds of bullet and stab wounds and dozens of cannonballs to finally die standing up. If the Captain of the Whitebeard Pirates can survive hundreds of potentially fatal blows before finally giving up the ghost, surely the legendary Garo could survive one?

Moreover, we didn’t actually see Garp die. We were shown a panel of the old man in a very vulnerable position, sure. But One Piece characters have gotten out of worse scraps. I mean … it doesn’t help that Aokiji started freezing Garp with his Time Capsule power in the last panel we see him. But maybe it’s a “cryogenically frozen” sitch so the Blackbeard Pirates can use Garp as a bargaining chip later on? For the grizzled old Vice Admiral, I’m sure death would be preferable.

(featured image: Toei Animation)