One Piece is one of the most beloved anime series of all time. Not only for its fantastic plot line, but One Piece has become a household name for its unique characters.
You might be wondering just how many characters are there in this series. Well, till now, there are over a thousand characters- 1,174 to be exact.
Now, don’t be shocked, as it is only natural for the series to have such many characters. What do you expect from a show that’s been running for more than two decades?
With so many characters, it is obviously tough to keep up with almost everyone, and not many characters were able to leave that hard of an impression on the audience.
However, there were some characters that the fans could just not forget. Among such characters that stood out from the rest was Jinbei, The Fishman.
With his unique appearance and his addition to the Straw Hat Crew, he soon became a fan favorite and gained massive popularity.
So, now you might be curious about this character and want to know more about him. Lucky You! that is exactly what we are here for!
So, let’s dive right into it!
Who was Jinbei?
Known as the “Knight of the Sea,” Jinbei the Fisherman was a proud and skillful warrior of the Ryūgū Kingdom. He was once the Captain of the Sun Pirates and even one of the Seven Warlords of the sea during his lifetime.
After he joined the Straw Hat Pirates, he became the helmsman of the crew and one of the Nine Senior Officers of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet.
Hailing from Fishman Island, Jinbei was a large blue whale shark fish man and a master of both Fishman Karate and Fishman Jujutsu.
Being one of the main characters of the series, he had a very unique appearance with a bulky build, which was similar to that of a sumo wrestler, and a face that was commonly associated with Japanese demons such as the Oni.
His yellow eyebrows, distinct sideburns, lighting-shaped scar, and his two tusk-like conical lower fangs added more to his demon-like features.
The lighting-shaped scar was believed to be obtained sometime between the period of Otohime’s assassination and his encounter with Ace.
The tallest member of the crew, Jinbei, was not only a helmsman but a very integral part of the crew. While he was loyal to his crewmates, he had his own dream: to fulfill his former Captain Fisher Tiger’s dying wish of co-existence and equality between humans and fish man.
Which episode did Jinbei join the crew?
After resigning from his post as the Captain of the Sun Pirates, he joined the Straw Hat Pirates. He was the tenth member of the crew and the ninth member to join.
Luffy, the Captain of the Straw Hat, did invite Jinbei to join his crew at the end of the Isle of Pisces Men Saga, which was in episode 568 of the anime and chapter 648 of the manga.
However, it wasn’t until some time after the two-year time skip that Jinbei finally accepted the invitation and became a part of the crew.
In chapter #998 or episode 1012 of the anime series, the One piece series finally confirmed the addition of Jinbei as the tenth member of the Straw Hat Pirates in the Wano Country Arc.
Although he made several appearances throughout the series, he was officially named a crew member only in the later part of the series.
How did Jinbei meet Luffy?
So, how did they end up together, you ask? To answer that, we need to go a bit further back, 16 years before the current timeline.
A long ago, Jinbei, the master of Fishman Karate, grew up in an orphanage and joined Neptune’s Army.
Soon he resigned from the army and joined the Sun Pirates. He only joined the Sun Pirates because he was impressed by the then Captain of Sun Pirates, Fisher Tiger.
Fisher Tiger was one of the many that believed in peace. He went up against Mary Geoise and freed many slaves that were captured.
By siding with the pirates, Jinbei became an enemy of the World Government. Later his captain, Fisher Tiger, died after getting ambushed by the Marines when he tried to return a former slave, Koala, to her hometown.
After his death, Jinbei took on the spot of his former captain and wanted to continue to fight against oppression and slavery.
He even became one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea at one point, thinking he would get the upper hand in strengthening the relations between humans and Fishman.
Jinbei and Luffy’s encounter was undoubtedly possible due to Ace. Ace was the brother or more a sworn brother to Luffy.
Jinbei first met Luffy during the Impel Down Arc, when Luffy was looking for Ace, who shared the same cell with Jinberi.
To save Ace, Jinbei decided to join Luffy and provide his aid. This was the start of their friendship, but it never indicated that he could become a member of the Straw Hat.
Before ending up in the same prison, Jinbei and Ace went up against each other, which made them bond quickly. While in prison, Ace asked Jinbe to watch over Luffu after his death.
Jinbei refused his plea as Luffy was a stranger and had no obligation to look after him as he owed him nothing.
Ace was taken to Marineford for the execution, where Luffy and his company released Crocodile and Jinbe from their cells. They tried to save Ace and were successful in doing so. However, while trying to save Luffy, he was killed by Admiral Akainu.
After the fight against the Marines, Jinbei resigned from his position as a Warlord. Furthermore, he even protects Luffy against Akainu’s attacks to fulfill Ace’s wish.
Later they became friends and were able to bond after Jinbe talked Luffy through his grief of Ace’s death, as both of them lost an important part of their lives.
How did he join the crew?
After befriending Luffy, two years later, Jinbei joined Luffy and his crew to prevent the New Fish-Man pirate’s battle against the Ryugu Kingdom’s Neptune Royal Family.
During the battle, Luffy was severely injured and lost a lot of blood because of his injuries. A loyal friend, Jinbei gave his own blood to Luffy in a transfusion, which did save his life. Luffy asked Jinbe to join his crew, but Jinbe declined the offer.
It was because Jinbei held it off until he completed his unfinished business. He spoke to the King of Sea, Neptune, about being separated from Big Mom, as she had taken Fish man island into her territory after the death of Whitebeard.
After successfully severing ties with Big Mom during the Whole Cake Island Arc and protecting his crew, Sun Pirates from Big Mom’s wrath, Jinbe returned to the Straw Hats during the Wano Country Arc and officially gained his status as a member of the Straw Hat Pirates.
Was there any special requirement to join the crew?
Not everybody was able to join the crew, as Luffy had set the bars way too high. The first and foremost thing you needed to have was Luffy’s liking, and the second thing you needed was Luffy’s liking.
Got ya! No, but for real, Luffy did set out to find the strongest and wisest individuals for his crew but throughout his journey, none of it really mattered as Luffy recruited the members based on his instincts.
If he liked someone, there you have it! A new addition to the crew. So, we weren’t really joking when we said all you needed was Luffy’s liking, and you’re in!
Why did he join the crew?
Jinbei did join the crew but why?
So, as we told you before, Ace asked Jinbei to look after Luffy, but he wasn’t really down with the idea. However, after Ace’s death, Jinbei befriended Luffy and found what an amazing guy he was.
Just like Luffy’s dream of freedom, Jinbei also had a dream of freeing the slaves and strengthening the relationship between humans and Fishman. Both dreamt about making the world a better place, which also helped them to form a bond.
Furthermore, Jinbei was impressed by Luffy’s recklessness when he broke into Impel Down to save just one life, a feat that not even the strongest man in the world, Whitebeard, could accomplish.
This made Luffy one of the very few pirates who Jinbei actually respected. Jinbei’s respect for Luffy grew more over time, to the point that even Jinbei was unaware of how often he kept talking about Luffy during the two-year time skip.
Was Jinbei friends with everyone in the crew?
Well, the fact that Jinbei actually joined the Straw Hat crew because of Luffy remains true. Still, his relationship with other members of the crew was also good as they were a part of a family.
Jinbei had the utmost respect and loyalty toward Luffy. Jinbei praised Luffy for his courage and skills and similar feelings were reciprocated by Luffy as well when he told his crewmates how Jinbei had saved him.
Furthermore, Jinbei was one of the few people who could talk some reasoning into Luffy as he always acted recklessly and rarely stuck to any plan.
Before joining the crew, Jinbei used to address Luffy as“Luffy- Kun” out of respect, but by the time he reunited with them on the Whole Cake Island, he started to call him Luffy as he became more comfortable around him.
Not only with Luffy, but Jinbei had a good relationship with the rest of the members of the Straw Hats. Although they didn’t interact much, Jinbei got along well with Zoro.
At first, Jinberi did feel ashamed of what Arlong did to Nami’s village, but with time, Nami assured him that it wasn’t his fault. This made him feel at ease, and he was more comfortable around her.
Ussop was afraid of him at first as he was a former member of Arlong’s crew. But later on like the rest of the crew, he opened up and started respecting Jinbei.
The rest of the crew also showed their consent to have Jinbei join the crew and acknowledged his abilities and strengths.
Similarly, Jinbei was also very respectful to the members. He was also not bothered by Brook’s skeletal appearance and was respectful towards him.
With the approval from rest of the crew members, he ultimately kept his promise of arriving in Wano and was warmly welcomed into the crew by Luffy and the rest of the members.
Most members were very supportive of him finishing his business with BigMom which showed us how trusting and understanding the crew was toward Jinbei.
After officially becoming a part of the Straw Hats, Jinbei became one of the most prominent characters of the series, and now with the end of the series soon coming our way, we can expect more of him in the coming episodes.
