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One Piece had a massive plot twist in the Wano arc with the introduction of Nika, altering the nature of Luffy's Devil Fruit and his abilities. It was revealed that his Fruit's name wasn't the Gum-Gum, which granted him rubber abilities, but rather the Nika, which gave him more abstract powers such as the Toon Force.
That development sparked considerable changes in the story of One Piece, especially regarding Luffy's role and how this impacted other elements, such as Shanks' morality and the actions of the World Government. It also raised questions about why Luffy's Devil Friot was called Gum-Gum at first and why it didn't have the real name of Nika.
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for this series.
Explaining why Luffy's Devil Fruit was called Gum-Gum Fruit at the beginning of One Piece
The reason Luffy's Devil Fruit was initially presented as the Gum-Gum Fruit was due to the World Government's decision to change the name, aiming to avoid suspicion and prevent people from realizing its true value and potential. However, during the events of the Wano arc, it was revealed that the fruit is actually called the Human-Human Fruit Model: Nika, originally belonging to the legendary Joyboy, and Nika is the Sun God in a lot of the series' folklore.
From a storytelling perspective, it's highly likely that the author, Eiichiro Oda, decided to retcon Luffy's powers and origin, which is why his Fruit had such considerable changes. Not only in terms of names, but it also changed powers, going from rubber to "imagination and laughter," and types, going from a Paramecia to a Zoan type.
This twist sparked divisive reactions among fans, leading to multiple discussions and debates regarding its validity. Some viewed it as a genius move by Oda to raise Luffy's status in the series and a reward after years of rising through the ranks in the world of pirates, while others felt that it was a retcon that came too late into the story and presented more problems than benefits to the plot.
The impact of the Nika twist
Regardless of personal perceptions regarding the Nika twist, it's undeniable that this revelation has had significant ramifications for the One Piece series. One of the most prominent consequences was that it undermined the authority of the World Government, which now looks a lot more incompetent because Luffy was always very vocal about his powers and had footage and evidence of him but never realized he was Nika.
This revealed more of Shanks' intentions, considering that he stole the Fruit from them and planned to use it on either Portgas D. Ace or Luffy himself, which begs the question of what his plan is. A lot of people have come up with the theory that he has been using Luffy for his gain as a sort of agent of chaos, but considering the many times the Straw Hats captain was about to be killed early in the story, it does make Shanks look like a very capable planner, either.
There is also the element that Nika, despite having such a prominent role in terms of lore, wasn't mentioned in a significant manner before the twist in Wano. Now there are a lot of attempts on Oda's part to make it a part of the universe, such as with Bartholomew Kuma's past or the Giants mentioning him as well.
Final thoughts
Luffy's Devil Fruit was originally called Gum-Gum in One Piece because the World Government wanted to cover up the truth about Nika and didn't want people to realize the true value of this Fruit. From a narrative perspective, Oda didn't come up with this concept until the Wano arc and had to retcon it, thus why Luffy's type of Fruit went from Paramecia to Zoan-type.
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