pikabot | In which I babble on at great length about One Piece

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In which I babble on at great length about One Piece

This time instead of squealing over a given character I'm going to put my srs business hat on and talk about sexism! Or rather, the lack thereof, because this meta is about how I don't think the Arlong Park and Enies Lobby arcs are sexist.

It's a pretty commonly-held opinion that the Arlong Park and Enies Lobby arcs of One Piece are mildly sexist, and it's pretty easy to see why. After all, both of those arcs are about a crew either composed entirely of, or almost entirely of men, rescuing a female crewmember from a deadly fate. It's a classic set-up for a damsel-in-distress scenario, and indeed both Robin and Nami seem pretty impotent in the face of their enemies.

Something about that assessment has never quite rung true for me, though. Although I can understand the argument, it's never seemed quite right for me, but I've never really been able to articulate why. Well, I've figured it out now, and so I present for your reading pleasure:

Three Reasons Why Arlong Park and Enies Lobby Are Not Sexist

1. Nami and Robin are not unique.

The reason why damsel-in-distress scenarios are sexist is because it paints a picture of women as inferior to men: The woman, unable to fend off whatever terror is stalking them, and need a big, strong man to come save them from it. However, in One Piece, damn near every member of the crew needs saving before they come aboard.

Luffy needed to be saved by Shanks. Zoro needed to be saved from Captain Morgan and Helmeppo. Usopp needed to be saved from Kuro and the Black Cat pirates. Sanji needed to be saved from Don Krieg and his pirate armada. The list goes on.

So what sets Nami and Robin apart from the others? Only two things:

1. They needed rescuing after joining the crew, not before it. This point is actually debatable, because you could very easily argue that they didn't really join the crew until after their arcs were over: the crew joined them, but not the other way around.

2. Their enemies were ones that they'd fought since childhood, not sudden threats like the others. Note that this is distinct from Brooke, Chopper, and Franky, where they'd had the enemy since childhood(or in Brooke's case, a damn long time ago) but had not actually been fighting them that whole time.

These are the only differences between Nami and Robin's arcs, and those of the male straw hats. And neither of those differences constitutes an inferiority. Indeed, the fact that Nami and Robin needed a rescue puts them on equal footing with the other Straw Hats.

2. Nami and Robin are not portrayed as weak.

It's easy to look at Arlong Park and Enies Lobby and see that Nami and Robin were unable to defeat their enemies, and dismiss it as a sign of weakness and thus, sexism on the part of the writer. There's a few problems with that assessment.

First, it completely ignores context. Both Arlong and Rob Lucci were enemies that none of the Straw Hats, save Luffy, could stand against. Canon makes that painfully clear: Arlong was able to effortlessly defeat Sanji and Zoro with nothing more than a handful of water, and if Lucci's demonstration of power in the Water 7 arc wasn't sufficient proof, note how easily he took down Franky. In fact, in Lucci's case even Luffy could barely keep up: to defeat him, Luffy had to use experimental and body-damaging techniques, and go all out, and even then by the time he'd won he was completely unable to move, he was injured so badly. At the end of the arc, it's Robin who saves Luffy, by tossing him clear of the tower and into the ocean.

And second, the present is not the only thing the arcs are about. Those arcs are also about the past.

They described Robin's twenty-year long Hell, of having everything around her burned to ashes by the World Government, of running and hiding from bounty hunters starting from the age of eight, of betraying and being betrayed by everybody around her. A life of isolation, and of loneliness. The hardest life imaginable. But, in the end, she survived. And as I've already said, I think that makes her pretty damn strong.

They also describe's Nami's life: forced to serve under the man who killed her mother, toiling for eight long years, suffering in silence, never letting anyone from her village know, enduring their rejection and criticism, all so that she could steal one hundred million Berries and buy her village back from Arlong. She willingly subjected herself to a life of hell to save her village and the people she loved from life under Arlong's rule. And when Arlong turned the tables on her, found a loophole and cheated her when she was just shy of the amount needed, what did she do? She approached the villagers and begged them to let her give it another try. She begged them not to take up arms against Arlong's pirates, to let her carry the burden for the entire village.

What is that sort of determination called? Strength.

And in those same arcs, Nami and Robin are forced to face up against the enemies that have dogged them since they were children, Arlong himself and the Buster Call. These had been sources of terror for Nami and Robin from the time they had been small children: the one thing in the world that frightened them the most. And by the end of the arc, what do they have to say to it? "I've come here to kill you," Nami said as she walked back into Arlong Park for the last time. "I'm not afraid any more," Robin said, on the Bridge of Hesitation. Even though they knew intimately the power that their enemy held, and the terror it could inspire, they stared them straight in the face and refused to back down.

And what do you call that? Courage.

Far from being about Nami and Robin's weakness, Arlong Park and Enies Lobby highlight their strength. The amazing will and grit that saw them through their painful lives, the courage that allowed them to face down their fears.

Even though they did not strike the finishing blow themselves, they were willing to turn on the powerful villains who had been controlling their lives, and fight them to the end. Does that sound familiar to anyone else? Because it sounds pretty familiar to me.

3. Nami and Robin tried fighting alone.

It can be argued that yes, Nami and Robin fought well against the fishmen and the World Government...but in the end, they lost and needed rescuing. That's weakness, right?

Well, even ignoring the first point I made in this piece, which is that they are hardly unique in that, I don't think that's correct at all. They didn't lose against Arlong and the World Government because they were weak. They lost because they were fighting alone.

The importance of friends or nakama is a major, pivotal theme in One Piece. No one character can do it alone, no matter how strong they are. This is a theme that appears over and over throughout the manga (and the sixth movie, but that's a subject for a completely separate meta), and I don't think it's a coincidence that Oda had Luffy give the following speech during the Arlong Park arc:

"Of course I don't know how to use a sword! I don't know anything about navigation, either. I can't cook. I've never even told a lie! I know that I can't survive without people around me to help!"

Nami pushed everybody away from her so that they wouldn't try and rescue her. She fought alone against Arlong, but she couldn't defeat him on her own. It wasn't Robin's choice to be alone for her entire life, but when a ship full of true friends did come along, she pushed them away from her so she could try to take the Wolrd Government on herself, but the best she could do was sacrifice herself to get them off of the Straw hats' back for a little while. Both of them thought that they didn't have a choice but to try and do it on her own, that they couldn't depend (or couldn't allow themselves to depend) on the people around them. But they were wrong. Luffy, and the rest of the crew, was there to help them shift the load, and it was only through working with them that they could be freed.

In other words, Nami and Robin being incapable of throwing off their shackles on their own isn't a sign of weakness: it's thematic consistency. Nobody can survive on their own. No matter how strong you are, you need to have people around you to help. That goes for Nami, that goes for Robin, that goes for Luffy, that goes for Zoro, that goes for all of us. If you fight on your own, you're going to lose. Fight together with your friends, and you can do anything.

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Only skimmed cos of spoilers... but I really don't see the sexism and I'm boggled that people do. Though it's interesting that both Nami and Robin are about fighting the past - but that's really not linked much to gender at all.

A lot of people do, and it's always been sort of confusing to me too. But I've generally kept quiet when I saw it because I didn't have a coherent response detailing exactly why it isn't.

Now I do. XD

Yeah, I agree entirely with you, although Nami and now *spoilerscamiespoilers* have both been damsels in distress since then lol, not that im complaining

Okay, you keep doing this thing. It's this thing where you write things, and I read them, and the whole time I am nodding in agreement and usually at the end I say something like "THANK YOU, GOD. YES. THAT."

Apparently you are just that awesome.

Have you linked this to the main comm? You should.

I haven't as yet, no. I'll do so in a few days, giving my flist time to look it over and point out any spelling mistakes and logic failures and the like.

I never got a sense of anything but Nami's strength from the Arlong arc. I don't really see any sexism in it.

I never though about sexism in one piece. but apparently i agree what you wrote((: the females are strong ;DD

Oh bravo! I'm actually one of those who always thought the similarity between Nami's and Robin's (and Vivi's) situation was a little fishy. They're three of the strongest fictional characters I've come across, and yet it's always bugged me that Luffy had to go rescue each one of them. Good to get this bit of perspective!

Guess I'm out of the loop--I'd never known people thought those arcs were sexist!

Luffy had a whole speech (during Arlong, right?) about how he needed everyone around him--he can't swim, cook, lie, navigate... he has people to help him. And he helps them back.

Nami and Robin, weak? The girls who were basically tortured into believing they were going it totally alone since childhood... and still kept going? Feh. The Enies Lobby roof scene is my favourite moment in the series so far. If you rejigged it to make Robin a male "serene, mysterious tortured-past archeologist" I can't see it having played out any differently (save for Sanji's fawning, I guess).

I think it's more a case of "lol the women cried so you see they were damsels in distressed." Everyone in One Piece freaking cries. Zoro has, Sanji, Usopp, Luffy... (let's not mention Franky, that's too easy.)

Minor arcs are sort of annoying for damsel-in-distress stuff (and the movies), but Robin's already been acknowledged as one of the crew powerhouses. Remember the episode where they meet Brook, and the gag about drawing straws to see who does across? And Nami, Usopp, and Chopper are all desperate to stay behind, and only have the ones who want to go leave the Sunny. and Zoro's all like "uh, okay then," and everyone EXCEPT Usopp, Chopper and Nami is up and ready to head out. LOL. I guess Nami will never be one of the badasses of the crew, but that's not her role.

Besides, the weakest on the crew is Usopp, by Oda's own admission, to keep someone on the crew who is somewhat close to normal. And he was the "guy in distress" in Water 7, the guy that the rest of them went on a vengeful rampage on behalf of.

Of course, Usopp peeled himself off the floor, fought Luffy, and then showed up as Sogeking, and Nami went one on one with Kalifa and kicked her ass, so... Well, that's why I love the Strawhats, hehe.

Well, anyway, I agree with you.

What the hell? I mean.. Nami and Robin are AMAZING, and how could someone think that Nami was WEAK in the Arlong Park arc? She was NOTHING but determined and strong willed, trying to do EVERYTHING in her power to save her town. What are peoples PROBLEM?? I've got to admit I usually don't like female characters in Shounen titles simply for the fact that they're downplayed and weak. Well well well, I'd say Robin and Nami are two of the most awesome women in manga history.

Thankyou for this article, I get SOOOO PISSED when people just don't like Nami and Robin because they're not as strong as the guys, or just because they're not hot sexy guys. THANKYOU!!!

Excellent job. I always used to think there was something odd about how Nami, Vivi, and Robin all needed Luffy's help to defeat their problems, but after reading this, it seems that every Strawhat needed Luffy's help to get them out a situation before they were able to join (not sure about Franky though).

I would never have called it sexist; cliched perhaps but my edge on that side is fading. I also never thought it meant any of the woman were weak. I'm thinking here of one of the scenes you referenced, when Nami goes to face Arlong and says she'll kill him...she chooses to resist and break free regardless of the consequences. I've always appriecated that this happened before Luffy beat Arlong.

Anyway, it's a great thoughout piece. It's seems to strike at some really valid points.

Edited 2008-06-23 06:47 (UTC)

I'll admit, there were times I wondered if Oda was a bit of a misogynist because the women in One Piece were in general manipulative or violent, but I think overall what he is trying to show is that in the One Piece world, it's harder for women to get ahead (not unlike the period of pirates in our world - female pirates had to disguise themselves as men to even get on a ship sometimes!). To completely treat them as equals might be too naive.

Basically, he compensates for Nami and Robin's lack of physical strength by making them extremely intelligent. In both of their pasts, they managed to survive by their brains and street smarts, however, it finally gets to a point where this is not enough and a physical confrontation is required to permanently escape the situation.

It's worth noting though, that both Robin and Nami were reluctant to seek outside help - not only to avoid appearing weak, but because they believed they had handled the situation in the only possible way and that there was nothing else that could be done.

It also makes sense to point out the fact that everyone else had to be "rescued" before joining the crew.

Edited 2008-06-18 01:38 (UTC)

I do agree with the points you made, and I've used point #1 several times myself while debating the sexism in the Arlong Arc. Nami, Robin, and yes, even Vivi display a great amount of courage, determination, and perserverance under unimaginably difficult circumstances, which is a large part of the reason why I love them.

However, that isn't to say that I don't find other aspects of OP sexist, because unfortunately, I do. It's nothing that isn't in nearly every other form of entertainment out there, and it sure doesn't keep me from enjoying OP, but it is in there.

Edited 2008-06-18 01:50 (UTC)

This is a lovely essay and you definitely sum up nicely how Nami's and Robin's actions/behavior during the two arcs should be read as strength, not weakness. However, I wonder a little about how you're using "sexist" in this essay, and generally what OP reader audience you're responding to. There hasn't been too much discussion about gender or sexism over at

one_piece (that I remember, in the short time since I've joined). The stuff around the AP forums, that I've seen, don't seem to complain about sexism in the story so much as using Nami's and Robin's behavior as arguments for their weakness. I do, in fact, find a lot of fans' attitudes and readings toward Nami and Robin sexist, and using the Arlong Park and Enies Lobby arcs to back up their arguments. Can you point to some places or discussions where readers have called out the story and characters in those arcs on charges of sexism?

I also have trouble getting on board with the statement "Arlong Park and Enies Lobby arcs are not sexist", because One Piece, while better than most shonen manga, contains many sexist elements as a whole, and the AP and EL arcs must be considered within the context of that sexism. I know you're responding to specific aspects of sexism, but unfortunately sexism (both in general and in OP) is not confined to characterizations of weak/strong and roles of rescuer/victim.

Like I said, as a defense of Nami and Robin, this essay is wonderful, and it's always awesome to see positive things written about them on the 'Net, since they're generally so underappreciated. I would just suggest thinking through the use of the word "sexism" a little more, as it comes from many sources both in the story and in the fandom, and is carried out in many ways.

I'll join everybody in nodding along and screaming 'OH HELLZ YEAH!' Especially as Nami and Robin are two of my favourites.

Personally, I would've loved to see Nami kick a bit more ass during the Arlong Arc. But I do also realise that, with everything that happened leading up to the fight, she physically and mentally burnt herself out.

And your 'nami is fucking awesome' tag brings a very large smile to my face.

I was nodding my head along the whole time I read this. I couldn't agree more. I actually never thought of those arcs as sexist, if any arc had the 'damsel-in-distress' element I think it would be the Thriller Bark arc. But then again, I guess that could also be written off as classic horror movie plot.

And really, if the ladies weren't with the crew there wouldn't be a crew. They are certinally the brains of that operation.

I think my main problem with the Enies Lobby Arc was Kalifa. It was directly stated that she was the weakest of the group. She wasn't even a challenge for Sanji, who only lost due to his sense of chivalry. The weakest SH fighter, Nami, had to fight the weakest CP-9 fighter. Nami only has any fighting ability in the first place due to the special stick Usopp made for her. So while I do love Robin and Nami and think they are strong characters, there are still sexist elements in One Piece (as with most shonen manga).

So, by using a weapon she's weaker? (I apologise for butting in, I'm just curious in the meaning of this comment)

Sorry, I feel the need to butt in here and offer my two cents on the Clima Tact. Yes, Usopp made it for her, and she wouldn't be in the fighting league she is without it, but what I think people tend to overlook is how she uses it. Usopp even said at one point that he hadn't intended for her to use it in the way that she does, which is far more effective. I don't see this as being any different than Zoro being stronger than most of his opponents with the swords, which were all made by other people. His creativity and strength are what make the weapons effective, not necessarily the weapons themselves. So on that point, I don't have a problem with Nami's tact or how it reflects on her strength, in fact I think it emphasizes one of her strongest points: her brain.

That's all, sorry to interrupt.

Not because she uses a weapon, but because most of the weapon's strength comes from Usopp's design, rather than any fighting prowess of her own.

Really. And here I thought that as a weapon it was virtually useless (designed for party tricks), and it was only through Nami's ingenuity and intuitive knowledge of weather systems that she was able to do anythign with it.

Huh, how about that.

Yeah, how about that. It's especially clear when Usopp upgrades it and that's how Nami gets her power boost in Enies Lobby.

And in any case, my comment about Nami's stick was just a side note. My main point was about Kalifa.

i think i understand where you're coming from, with the kalifa vs Nami battle, and to a certain degree I do agree. However, I must also state regardless of the 'kalifa is the weakest member' she DID defeat Sanji even if it was because of his chivalry/whatever (i'm sorry sanji, I love you? ^__^*)A loss is still a loss, and by taking a strawhat out (probably the third strongest? depending on your view) is still a compliment. And in a battle of Enies Lobby calibre, especially that early(ish) in is a devestating blow.

I thought that her defeating him because of his own chivalry was even more insulting. She was obviously weaker and I just found it really annoying. I guess I've just been waiting for a really good female adversary and Kalifa was what we got :P

Well, yeah, but its more Sanji's issue than Kalifas. She was just smart enough to exploit it.

And Its still early yet! There's more enemies to come! ^___^

Isn't that the point of using a weapon in the first place? As an extension of your own abilities? If she hadn't won (using a prototype in the first battle) then I think there *might* have been a case for being weak, but then again, by the same token it *was* a Prototype. If anything, the Climatact says Ussop has complimented her (with a brilliant idea) and improved upon, thus enabling her to be able to take on Kalifa later on, regardless of if Kalifa was the weakest or not.

When I saw the post about this on

one_piece I found myself all ready to go and memory this piece unread. Because after your earlier Robin essay I just knew it was going to be good.
I got ahold of myelf and didn't, but I was of course right about that, and now I will.
Thank you.
Also, thank to thoughtful commenters chiming in!

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In which I babble on at great length about One Piece

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