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One Piece readers just witnessed the last curtain on the Wano arc. After achieving a fantastic victory against the Beasts Pirates, Luffy, Zoro, and the other Strawhat Pirates are ready to enter the decisive phase of their adventure in the search of the One Piece. The new bounties were revealed, and it seems that there's a Strawhat who has not given the deserved credit. Follow this thread to find out more details.
Key highlights of the article
The new bounties of the Strawhat Pirates
(Spoilers ahead)
Despite the relatively low number of members, the Strawhat Pirates are the strongest rookie crew. They disrupted the balance of the Three Great Powers, proving themselves to be one of the most dynamic forces in the One Piece series. Summed together, their current bounties reach an amount of almost nine billion berries, proving the level of threat they pose to the World Government.
Luffy, who has just been declared one of the Four Emperors, is the captain of Strawhat Pirates. His bounty is 3.000.000.000 berries. Luffy's right-hand man is Zoro, the most powerful pirate right after him, and has a bounty of 1.111.000.000 berries. Below him rank two strong fighters, Sanji and the former member of the Seven Warlords, Jinbe. Their bounties are 1.032.000.000 berries and 1.100.000.000 berries, respectively.
Despite being far from the strength of the four strongest Strawhats, Franky, Nico Robin, and Brook are all remarkable individuals on their own. Franky has been awarded a bounty of 394.000.000 berries, Nico Robin has a bounty of 930.000.000 berries, and Brook's bounty amounts to 383.000.000 berries.
Finally, the so-called Weak Trio. Nami, the navigator, has a bounty of 363.000.000 berries. Usopp, the sniper, has been awarded a bounty of 500.000.000 berries. Chopper, a reindeer who ate the Human-Human Fruit and became a medician, earned himself a bounty of 1000 berries. The reason for Chopper's bounty being so dramatically low is that the World Government mistook him for the crew's pet.
Franky is a character who doesn't get enough credit
Immediately after chapter 1058 of the One Piece series revealed the new bounties, fans started criticizing some unsatisfying aspects. Among the most blamed choices was Franky's bounty. He is a cyborg who joined the Strawhat Pirates after the Enies Lobby Arc, becoming their shipwright. Most One Piece fans consider him to be the fifth strongest individual in the crew.
Franky is a powerful individual who has great physical strength and advanced bionic enhancements. He emerged victorious in many fights against remarkable opponents. Franky is also threatening because of his knowledge. Previously possessing Pluton's blueprints, he is the only person who could have recreated the fearsome Ancient Weapon of mass destruction.
However, the World Government doesn't seem to be giving Franky enough credit. After burning Pluton's blueprints and defeating Nero and Fukuro, two CP9 agents, they awarded him his first bounty, which amounted to 44.000.000 berries. After the timeskip, Franky defeated Senor Pink, an officer of the Donquxote Pirates. This earned him a bounty of 94.000.000 berries.
In the Wano arc, Franky defeated Jaki, an ancient giant, with a single blow. He further proved his strength by defeating Sasaki, a member of the Tobi Roppo. This is an elite group that encompasses the six individuals with a higher hierarchy in the Beasts Pirates, only below the three All-Stars and Kaido himself. At the end of the arc, Franky's bounty rose to 394.000.000 berries.
However, his bounty is relatively low compared to his accomplishments. The World Government is underrating him, considering him to be no more than a mere side member of the Strawhats Pirates. Then again, most of the time bounties aren't awarded based on an accurate estimate of the criminal's feats, but merely depending on the general achievements of the group he is a member of.
A testament to this is when after the events of the Dressrosa arc, most Strawhats, except for Luffy, Zoro, and a few others, got the same upgrade of 50.000.000 berries on their bounty, no matter what their achievements in that arc were. Even the crewmembers who weren't in Dressrosa received the same upgrade.
The same happened after the Wano arc, with most Strawhats receiving the same standard 300.000.000 berries upgrade, regardless of their feats. In both cases, this seems to be very disrespectful to Franky. In Dressrosa, he fought and defeated one of Doflamingo’s officers and yet got only a mere bounty increase of 50.000.000 berries. He would’ve gotten the same if he hadn’t been in Dressrosa.
In Wano, Franky defeated a Beasts Pirates' officer and yet again he got nothing more than the standard upgrade. He would have earned the same if he didn't defeat such an opponent like Brook, or if he defeated him in a team fight because of external involvement like Nami. Franky's bounties seem to underplay his achievements. In fact, that's just the outcome of a weird system.
Bounties don't mean strength in One Piece
Most One Piece fans' disappointment regarding the bounties comes from the incorrect perception of what they really stand for. Contrary to what might seem to be a rushed assessment, bounties don't measure the strength of One Piece characters but the level of threat the World Government assumes they could pose.
Strength is the only factor that comes into play when bounties are issued or increased. The amount of bounties also depends on the level of opposition against the World Government and the criminal acts committed. Moreover, the leader of a group will always have a bounty far higher than his subordinates.
Bounties are awarded depending on what is known about the criminal in question. Sometimes, the World Government doesn't want the public to know about events or feats, so they don't consider them in the bounty. For the aforementioned reasons, it's feasible for some characters to receive a bounty lower than they deserve.
As a matter of fact, bounties are not meant to be power levels. They don't equate to strength, and they may not even necessarily reflect the true threat of a person, possibly overstating or understating it. Throughout the One Piece series, there are countless examples of this. As previously mentioned, Franky's bounty seems disrespectful compared to his accomplishments.
Nico Robin has had a very high bounty since she was a child just because she is a fugitive from Ohara. Usopp was awarded a particularly high bounty because the Marines mistook his actual worth as a fighter. Sanji's bounty was artificially raised due to the Vinsmoke's involvement with the World Government. Zoro's bounty still seems so low compared to the feats and the strength he has shown in battle.
Luffy, Kid, and Law share the same bounty, which doesn't make much sense considering Strawhat's previous bounty was far higher than the latter two, and his superior feats during Wano arc should have earned him a greater increase. Furthermore, Luffy has a far stronger crew and remarkably more outstanding achievements. From any point of view, he is just on a completely different level than them.
The bounties system has many flaws and inconsistencies. Franky is one of the most disrespected characters in the series; however, he is not the only one who gets undersold. At this point, bounties seem like a way to tease fans rather than a reliable tool to compare different characters.
Final thoughts
Bounties are not to be taken too strictly, but the unrightfully low bounty is not the only aspect of Eiichiro Oda's treatment of Franky that One Piece fans criticize. What is even worse is his wasted potential. Despite his enjoyability, Franky is consistently ranked the least popular Strawhat due to the low screen time and spotlight he receives.
With the One Piece series nearing its end, other more prominent characters will likely fill most of the screen time, relegating Franky to the sidelines even more. Hopefully, before the series ends, Franky gets some focus or at least some flashy and unmissable cool moments that will also help the World Government develop a better acknowledgment of his worth.
