Jinbe would be the best fit. Taking the wheel when the captain is away is what a first mate does and I feel the fishman stays behind/steers the most. Plus, he's experienced!
Vice Captain is a football rank 😹 On a Pirate Crew Captains are acknowledged or Eletected but may not know jackshit about running a ship or Crew which is where the Pirate Quartermaster comes in Pirate Quartermasters are acknowledged or elected by the Crew and with the Strawhats Nami is the acknowledged Pirate Quartermaster that assigns Zoro to watch duty cause he can use observation Haki to keep watch even when sleeping (plot aside in a few cases)
Yeah - I think even though Luffy is the captain and everyone respects him as such, he also respects that his crew often have better ideas than him. He leaves the smart thinking to the smarter crew members, he trusts them to function without him. I think this contrasts with other pirate crews, where it really seems like the captain does all the thinking and the others just do as the captain says. The Strawhats are a team!
Sanji kicked Luffy before he even drew that line in the sand as if to say.. "watch your next words they are important" I also think Zoro is the first mate to be fair, but I could see how he wouldn't be considered that.
6:14 People just don't get it, zoro was never meant to be in the color spread. Oda meant to draw ussop there at first, but then zoro accidentally get there on the way to his training room.
@Austenite75 and if people think zoro Is there becuase of strength, oda said he put the no. 2 as who he sees fit, he is there becuase of bounty, oda don't powerscale between sanji or zoro, when he was asked who is stronger between zoro and sanji is purposely started talking about dick fight in sbs lmao 🤣.
Your point about the Straw Hats just being able to take orders from whoever is best suited in any situation just holds true. Franky just made an executive decision in the latest chapter. The Strawhats have 3 former captains and they all know how to get things done. Franky, Jimbe, Brook. And then Zoro and Sanji have everyones clear respect. And everyone defers to Nami, Chopper, and Robin when dealing with their expertise. Usopp is the character with the fewest if these moments imo and I hope he gets a big one in Elbaph.
Which is saying usopp out of everyone is the worst possible answer for vice captain which makes zoro the default vc since all the other straw hats have there roles/jobs on the crew
@@FRAAANKYSUUUPER never officially stated, but he did take over as the second captain after Yorki and the other sick crew members left to not infect the others. They were an old crew though, so having a normal crew structure would make sense.
I love how the world of One Piece acts pretty much like the fandom when it comes to this matter. They see the second highest bounty and immediately assume that he is the vice-captain.
There are newer Strawhat Vivre Cards, which say that Zoro is a swordsman and that he often acts as a Vice-Captain. Fun Fact: Sanji is called Cook and sometimes acts as a "Military advisor".
I think that in cannon, the only character to refer to Zoro as anything like Firstmate is Bartolomeo, and even he admits that it's an opinion held by him. And as much as I love Bartolomeo, it should be noted that he, much like the One Piece fans, is blinded by the fanboyish feelings.
Fun fact about Usopp being originally the vice captain, after he joined while on the way to baratie there’s a scene where Usopp calls himself the vice captain and he tells Luffy that if he ever shows weakness he’ll take over, which Luffy respons saying he’s fine with that.
He gives off VC vibes imo, but yeah I can't think of a moment where he's actually called or acknowledged as VC or 2nd in command. I think the scene where Roger recruits Rayleigh made me think of Luffy recruiting Zoro a bit and subconsciously pushes my mind in that direction.
@@johnnydepp665 that's what he considered but we all know Zoro had a greater contribution than him during the war even he is actually stronger than sanji even the world government knows :)
I think in regards to the Zoro live action, the turning point I believe was meant to be when Zoro defended Luffy while tied up with Cabaji. To me that scene was written as the point where he goes from "not a crew" to "first mate". Despite that I definitely agree that the episode writers needed better communication to keep it consistent throughout.
I think the other reason Oda doesn't really talk about First Mates or Vice Captains is there an implication of power behind them, as seen by everyone assuming Zoro has that title. But if you go by what is expected of them the Straw Hats' First Mate is clearly Nami, despite us only thinking of her as the navigator. Whenever the crew is at sea she has supreme authority over everyone as we have seen countless times. That definitely sounds like first mate material to me. Also for each time Zoro or Sanji seems to be second-in-command I'd argue Nami is given that job far more often as Luffy delegates to her constantly.
For the longest time I thought of Nami, Sanji, and Zoro as the first mates with the rest of the crew filling in occasionally. Those three seem to take charge the most, in my mind, with Nami and Sanji taking the command role, again in my mind, the most often. But it's a toss-up and I like how anyone in the strawhats can step up and take command and everyone's cool with it.
Mosty I see it as Nami being the one who understands situations better than almlost everyone because, and this is anaspect I'm sad isn't shown more, but the seas in this world are INSANE. Reminder they need to avoid storms that canspawn IN THE WATER. LITERAL WATER HOLES, GYRES THAT SPAWN IN THE AIR, MONSTERS THE SIZE OF CITIES, AND 1 KM TALL WALLS. Without Nami they'd be 100% done and dead, no question and she gets this and also cares about them. If they don't hear her words that's the end.
I sorta agreed with this until we reached Dressrosa/Zou. When the crew didn't have Zoro or Luffy aboard, it was Sanji who took control, not Nami. Sanji who asked for permission to fire on Big Mom's ship, who coordinated the attack, and who made the decisions. Nami unfortunately mostly did nothing, which surprised me. They were even called the Curly Brow Pirates by the narrator I think. I think Nami-in-command was more early One Piece and these days she doesn't seem to make decisions like that.
theres 3 i think of being the v.c 1 sanji 2 nami sanji bc he litterally did everything zoro did loyalty wise is the second strongest in the crew and he has alright iq nami because she was the OG nd smart with HEAVY iq
From wiki: the 1st mate is responsible for the safety and security of the ship. Responsibilities include the crew's welfare and training in areas such as safety, firefighting, search and rescue. i think the usopp water 7 situation and the "nothing happened" scene pretty much sums up his role as the 1st mate. he's also the one that's usually in guarding the ship while the crew lands.
The issue with that definition is that most straw hats fill that role in some capacity so everyone is applicable. Its like how Syndrome said in the incredibles, "When everyone is first mate no one will be" or something
I see the water seven situation more as Zoro being a friend to Luffy and giving him a reality check. Moreover the nothing happened situation is more because Zoro knew he was the only one durable enough to survive it and didn’t want the crew or Luffy to feel guilt for what he did.
@@cyanocitta3728 Water 7: zoro is discipling the crew, making an example out of usopp: you have to respect the captain even if you disagree with him, without respect this crew will crumble. Nothing happened: zoro is saying to sanji: you're responsible for the food, I'm responsible for you and everyone else's safety
nothing happend scene also goes for sanji because he cares for the crew he even cared about zoro he also tried to take luffys pain but zoro did a cheapshot enels el thor to save ussop and nami mr prince saving the strawhats and getting info from croc and another mr prince for saving them AGAIN and basically cooked up corcs whole idea he sacrificed himself for the big mom pirates untill he saw puddings fine shyt but still saved the crew he tried to save vp but he did save bonney he saved franky n em from nusjuro i think sanji is better then zoro for the crew and for luffy
It turns out that first mate thing is something that happened in real life history. In a lot of pirate crews in the past they didn't adhere to any specific hierarchy, other than a captain. Some pirates didn't give a shit about standards or tradition in that sense. They just did what fit them. Some pirate crews were mainly out there because they were some kind of minority who was descriminated against by royalty or the church and were escaping to see to live a better life.
The strawhats don't really have any traditional roles like officer. They have roles like doctor, and cook. If we were trying ti assign roles by definition, nami is the first mate
@@AhmedHussain-ju6xd when they are on the ship logically navigator take a lead or we need gag from her being mad on boys otherwise Zoro like in Water 7 for example ...
I think it’s there are no formal rankings in the crew besides Luffy as Captain. That said, there is an informal hierarchy the crew has with one another. I will say Nami also has some strong authority as the unofficial quartermaster.
I love how this whole concept was tied together with how good of a character luffy is and how he accepts his crew on such a deep level. That’s my goat fr
This vid really reminds me just how much early Usopp fought with Luffy over the Captain title as we're reminded of in the live action, and how his original prototype design hinted at the idea of him claiming he was already an experienced captain and keeping up that facade much more strongly and centrally to his character than Usopp ended up doing, and much more properly fitting into the role of 'vice captain'. I'm actually kind of wondering if Oda's still keeping that in his back pocket and perhaps Usopp will actually reach that role finally after becoming confident enough post-Elbaf or whenever, though this vid did a good enough job at making me not really 'need' the role to be defined anymore too.
translation: Oda unintentionally made Zoro the first mate, didnt like that and now avoids the topic almost entirely except to clarify that he isnt. essentially Zoro is functionally the Vice-captain following the example of most other vice-captain he just doesnt officially have the title
I feel like Sanji and Zoro being described as the “wings of the pirate king” are a perfect label for them. I’ve always had them as equals slightly below luffy and everyone else at a level below
4:00 I don't think this is necessarily a plot hole. I think what this scene really means is that even though Nami and Zoro refuse to say it, they actually do feel like they're a crew. Nami claiming Zoro to be the first mate and Zoro accepting her logic basically expose how they really feel about that. But it could actually just be a plot hole though, I guess.
Some Zoro fans need him to be VC or first mate for some reason when he is not . We seen time and time again when others take on what those titles mean beside zoro like sanji on egghead .
@@andygundam clearly he is even tho he does not have that title he is he fits the role even if oda does not like to say it he clearly did this on purpose and just doesn't like it so he refuses to say so
No fans need him to be everyone knows he doesn't have the title we just call him that because he does most things a Vc or first mate does it's actually pretty simple
Other characters are able to step up in roles of responsibility other then it always falling on the VC, Zoro is 100% written as the VC and this video is bait. He's the only Straw hat other then Luffy to become a SuperNova (Worst Generation) 2nd highest bounty on the crew, First to officially join the crew, And Luffy's most trusted companion. On top of regularly getting the fight with who ever the 2nd command is on the opposition & He usually keeps the other straw hats in check when they fall out line. Not to mention numerous characters in the series referring to Zoro as the First mate / Vice Captain / 2nd in command, some even mistaking him for the captain pre time skip.
During the dispute with Usopp at Water 7, Zoro did firmly state to Luffy that if the latter does not put his foot down and show his authority as captain of the Straw Hats, he will outright quit. Even Sanji, who normally argue with him, agrees with Zoro about it. And even after Enies Lobby event, Zoro said that Usopp will not be welcomed back to the crew if the latter doesn't sincerely apologize to Luffy.
I have an interpretation for the live action issue. Zoro and Nami are not officially part of the crew but they need to work a somewhat of a crew if they wanna survive, so she appoints Zoro as the first mate because she doesn't want to be it, since she knows she'll betray them at some point and he seems to be the strongest/most mature of the whole bunch. But personally i think it's far more obvious that Usopp is the vice Cap, just because of the way he acts at the start, calling himself Captain Usopp ect. dunno if it makes sense but thanks for coming to my ted talk !
I’ve always thought of Zoros role as “chief security officer” more than first mate. FWIW, the live action Zoro himself refers to as the first mate in episode 6 after his duel with Mihawk. He says “you’re my captain Luffy and I’m your first mate.” I think it’s intentional because it’s the LA version of his joining the crew moment, and he takes the role much more seriously from that point on. He even has a real talk with Luffy in the next episode, so I believe that progression is why the writers put those lines where they did.
@@desmondcook2196HAHAHA like how the showrunners bothered him about using Garp until he gave up and let them do what they wanted? Oda's "approval" is just marketing kiddo.
@@laurentbergeronmusic who does he discipline outside of the "Before we welcome Usopp back the first thing out of his mouth needs to be an apology" moment that he actively gave Usopp leeway around anyway? When they're on the ship the man's either sleeping or lifting weights, he doesn't have authority over anyone. If anything Nami runs the ship. Can't even think of a canon period the crew was split off and he took charge while Luffy wasn't present like Sanji did between Dressrosa and Zou. He usually does cool action stuff in the rare scenarios he's with a splintered off portion of the crew but is never a "serves as acting leader" type.
and the best part was whenever robin called someone in the crew (pre enies lobby) she always refer them as their role and she always called zoro a swordman
what i feel like what is also proving your point is when, way back then, luffy was freeing zoro in shellstown, zoro was like: "i sail with you if you let me do my own things" so in fact zoro is just a friend sailing around with them. lol but in fact: if zoro had more responsibilities, he couldnt focus on his own way. luffy understands this (in manga and anime).
But to go off that also plenty of times zoro takes responsibility more than any other crew member and also pushes luffy to make hard decisions and makes sure he is respected as the captain that sounds like a vice captain to me he doesn't have to be called first mate or vice captain but that's what he is regardless of speculation he plays the part and does his own thing usopp has never stepped up or even played the Parr of a vice captain and tbh he's not vice captain material not because of strength but more because of mentality zoro understands how to lead usopp cannot do that roll and no matter how much oda originally planned it that plan didn't work out so he changed the first mate and vice captain roles because he realizes usopps character would not fit in this role so honestly zoro is still the vice captain and first mate its already in the story cementing it as fact when usopp acts like a first mate and vice captain then I will believe this nonsense
Ussop having the role of first mate also would make the whole Water7 debuckle make even more sense, as stereotypically first mates tends to start mutinies in media. And we know Oda loves his tropes so much, he keeps them for special occasions. And that was very special occasion
I guess us humans just naturally like to find a pattern in everything to try to fit everything we see into the small box of what we understand, but instead we should accept and see things as they are. Even if the majority naturally come to the same conclusion of that same small box. IMO Liam did a great job on this video topic
I don't agree with that logic if the masses have legion knowledge can 1 person see everything that legion can see collectively that's wrong way of thinking no matter how you put it and nah its very biased to say usopp is the vc because of oda saying that was originally his plan but he scrapped it when it finally came out now usopp is not the vc because of zoro that clearly igknowledges him as vc/first mate since he's the reason usopp is not .
Man I already love this man's content, but this may be his best phrased and reasoned video to date. I hope to continue watching him talk about one piece for years to come.
I think part of the confusion comes from the fact that Bartolomeo says that Zoro is considered by others to be the first mate, or something along those lines when he meets him.
@@tobiaswedinyou guys literally don’t know what your talking about? A character thinking Zoro is the first mate doesn’t make him the first mate if oda says he’s not.
@@JayB-hz8rhthat's not the only reason have you watched the anime and read the manga 1000+ it's pretty clear zoro is the first mate that's the reason Barto said that and why people in the op world said that there's alot of reasons name somone who doesn't currently have a role that's better suited than zoro usopp is the only other Canadite and he just does not fit this role no matter how much you want him too now they might not have given the title to zoro but he's most likely the vc he's definetly the first mate in the meaning and the word itself
@@desmondcook2196 You are so hung up on deciding between the options "Zoro is the first mate" and "Usopp is the first mate" that you seem to be completely blind to the third option: "there is no first mate of the Strawhat pirates". Which, canonically, is the case. No one has ever been officially designated that title by Luffy. Speculation by non-Strawhats is utterly irrelevant to this matter.
honestly i contemplate Zoro's functional role in the crew. beyond being occasional muscle to do some heavy lifting, he doesn't really do much while they're out at sea other than train relentlessly and sleep even more relentlessly. HOWEVER, every group of co-workers has that one guy who doesn't do much until its time to kick ass and take names with brutal efficiency. that's Zoro! he's the reliable guy during a crisis.
Honestly, if we're taking who had the most power outside luffy, it would realistically fall on Nami, since she takes over even sometimes when luffy is there
@@nandu0070 He's not wrong. Zoro is the most loyal crewmate to luffy, In one of Oda's interviews he confirmed if Luffy asked him too Zoro would kill any of the other straw hats without a second thought.
@@Feastia I agree that Zoro is the most loyal, but that thing about Zoro killing whoever Luffy says It's a false quote, Oda never said anything like it, it doesn't even make sense, Zoro would never follow someone that orders him to kill his friends, think
Fun Fact: In the US Navy, the 2nd in command of a vessel is known as the "Commander" - regardless of their actual rank. It's a position of authority that means "2nd in Command" - behind only the Captain of the vessel. "Commander" is also a rank, though. (CDR) O5. But a Lieutenant (LT) O3 can hold the position of "Captain" or "Commander" despite not being the rank of "Captain" or "Commander." Seemed relevant.
Edit: The idea that Zoro was originally going to be a deuteragonist alongside Luffy and be a "traditionally cool" character because Oda worried Luffy would be too goofy to appeal to readers explains so much about early One Piece and Zoro in particular. It also explains why Zoro feels so different now than back then, like he still has his cool moments, but he's also more prone to being a dumb meathead, similar to Luffy, just more "serious" about things, because I guess Oda is more comfortable making him a more comedic character from time to time. Original comment: I still think it's funny that the live action Netflix show officially has Luffy declare Zoro to be his first mate, and how everyone takes it as a given that Zoro's the first mate, even people who don't know the Straw Hat Crew personally in-universe within the manga, despite neither the crew nor Oda himself ever specifying that Zoro is, in fact, the first mate... Maybe he acts the part sometimes, it's not really at title he officially has. I'm also trying to think of moments when the crew themselves ever deferred to Zoro like he's the second in command, but aside from his spiel about not letting Usopp back so easily in Water 7, I can't think of any. He feels more like a strong guy who gives advice, and whether or not the crew take that advice is up to them, it doesn't quite feel like the same respect they'd give to Luffy, who yeah, they don't take that seriously when he's being a goof most of the time, but when times get tough they take him at his word. Maybe they'll defer to him whenever Luffy isn't around, but then again, I feel like they'd defer to Sanji in a similar way, given that he's also one of the strongest crewmembers... Of course, Sanji DOES have an official title among the crew, which is the ship's cook, while Zoro has only ever been officially referred to as... the swordsman? A Swordfighter? Something to that effect, which gets weird when you consider Brook is also a swordfighter. It's all very strange, I've found.
Only for the people who don't know what a first mate does Zoro at water 7, thriller bark and immediately after wano he makes decisions that a VC or first mate would make mfkas know he don't have the title officially it just how he carries himself within the crew
I first thought this video was going to make me mad at first. However, you not only made valid points but also made me reevaluate my standing on this topic. Well done.
The Strawhats having an atypical crew structure and not the classical hierarchy is honestly one of the coolest things. Like you said, any Strawhat can cake on the role at any given moment.
Usopp being Vice Captain does add up when you remember he’s the one constantly claiming he’s the captain early on and his 8000 men claim which would normally only be a number of people someone with a rank like Captain would command.
Here is what the issue of "is Zoro first mate" comes down to for me: Throughout naval history, whether on navy ships or pirate vessels or even cruise ships, the most important job of a first mate, vice captain, executive officer, "number one," whatever term you want to use, the part of that job that comes before anything else, is that the first mate bridges the gap between the captain and the crew. The first mate makes sure the crew follows the captain's orders. The first made advocates on behalf of the crew to the captain. The first mate makes sure the crew follows protocol, and the first mate makes sure the captain fulfills his responsibilities to the crew. That is the most important part of a first mate's job, and that is the job Zoro does on the ship. He's the one who makes sure Luffy takes his responsibilities as Captain seriously. He's the one who takes care of the weaker members of the crew while also expecting them to shape up. He performs the most important duties of the first mate. Therefore, he is the first mate. This is my reasoning.
I can get behind your logic, especially the Only 8 First Mates fact that caught me by surprise. That said, I think Zoro does take on a lot of the more difficult duties on a ship that might usually fall on a First Mate, like being a hardass on the crew when it's needed (see Water 7 Usopp situation). Also, looking at actual sailing duties, Nami is usually in charge of all that a lot. Luffy says "Let's go there!" and Nami barks the orders on how to get there alive.
Not just the water 7 comment guy. When kuma came in thriller park. Zoro knocked out sanji even tho sanji was healthier than him at the time. But it just shows that even if its unconsciously the straw hats know that zoro is the 2nd in command even zoro himself feels that responsibility.
@@quin0000 he did which was why he can normal Diablo his leg and withstand the fire 🔥 he says its the passion flame but cmon he can cook enemies and not himself even his clothes burn dude. It just got enhanced even further with the use of haki and kinda fully activated or at least 80% when he wore the suit
@@zeekiy9901 Idk his previous showings, other than the diable jambe which is a valid point, he looked like he just had regular strong pre timeskip durability and it was never stated or implied how he’s tougher than most. That zoro hilt hit before the “nothing happened” moment should’ve NOT knocked him out if he was healthier and has some sort of exoskeleton when zoro was weakened (along with sanji which is why he got knocked out; no exoskeleton). especially when at the time it’s not at all given that zoro is far stronger than sanji for him to be able to beat a ‘healthier’ sanji with an ‘exoskeleton’ low level or not (not once in the story other than maybe in wano rooftop was that arguable). it just shouldn’t happen which is why I believe he didn’t have the durability function of exoskeleton but some fire resistance and in the future his passion or love comment about his resistance could be rooted in reality sort of
Honestly the whole Vice Captain discussion seems pointless to me, because actual Pirate crews didn't have first mates or vice captains. The only two named roles on a pirate ship were Captain and Quartermaster. Everyone else was essentially equals.
Zoro isn’t what he is because he wasn’t intended to be before the story came out and put him in that position where others confuse him in the main story itself for the spot he has but it’s never been said by the creator that he is what characters in his story suggest while nobody else on the crew has anyone saying such about them in the story? No, I’m pretty sure we are right about Zoro being the first mate because he literally by all reasonable metrics just simply is based on what the story itself currently exists as. Remember, Oda has not said he is but also hasn’t said he isn’t while everything Oda has put to page has shown he is. Talking about intent before a story is out is non cannon just like smoking Chopper. That might have been the intent at first but it’s not the facts of how it turned out..,
That's exactly what I'm saying, but Liam consistently does this to drum up more engagement, it's actually kind of scummy given how often Liam does this to his fans..
I agree. Even if Oda somehow hated Zoro, his actions have made Zoro first mate. Unless Oda redraws the story from day one and makes Luffy meet Usopp first, Zoro is first mate. This video is very poor gaslighting
But that's like saying zoro is the first mate because he made usopp not the first mate that's how that sounds so zoro is the first mate no matter how you try to make it sound
@@bibinmohanan3117 he never gave the title to anyone but he is the first mate based on how he wrote the character regardless of what he says oda clearly doesn't want usopp to be the first mate so defacto zoro is
Regarding Live Action, i always kinda seen that moment as Zoro going "fiiiine, someone HAS TO do it i guess, might as well be me" rather than "You're right, that is my role".
Liam I am so thankful for your insights and fun. I'm learning to love One Piece in more and more ways despite following weekly for at least 12 years. Cheers!
If anyone is the first mate of the strawhats it’s Nami, she’s the one in charge of money spending and stocking supplies along with her duties as a navigator, she’s the one calling the shots whenever Luffy isn’t, she’s the one keeping the monster trio in check, and the entire crew listens to her without question (which is the result of either respect or fear)
Fun bit of trivia. I actually owned the video game "One Piece: Grand Battle" for the GameCube here in the US. This is back when 4Kids was still dubbing it. If you played Usopp's Story Mode and one of your randomly generated enemies was Crocodile, Usopp specifically calls himself the "First Mate of the Straw Hat crew" to Crocodile, in an attempt to try and work through the fear of fighting him. I wonder if this was a nod to the original prototype Usopp or what. 🤔
nah, there's a color spread of Zoro along with all the other number 2's and vice captains. he's the vice captain, doesn't matter if they don't call him that.
Did you not watch the video? Oda made a comment on that specific colour spread, and said that it was just the number 2s in terms of strength, not authority with a crew, which is why Bepo is there and not Bepo/Sachi/Penguin.
The Zoro v Sanji tally is not as close as you depicted: what about when ussop wanted to rejoin the crew, or when Zoro has to tell Luffy to get serious on punk hazard or ROOFPIECE or the fact that zoro has beaten more right hand men than sanji. No way they have the same amount of Vice captain moments
Love how you brought up a color spread then used a mistranslation that has been debunked numerous times, and just simply moved on. Great video as usual man
Just like Silvers Rayleigh who was First Mate to his captain and previous Pirate King Gol D. Roger, Roronoa Zoro is First Mate to his captain and future King of the Pirates, Monkey D. Luffy.
Whitebeard did have a member of his crew, a commander, whos role was greater to him than just being one of his sons: Oden. 2nd division commander and Whitebeard's brother. This is his "first mate/vice captain" To add to this, Big Mom asked for King to join her, Kaido's number 2. Shanks asked Marco to join him Whitebeard's 2nd strongest at the time Roger asks for Oden to join him, Whitebeard's second stringest at the time. This is a pattern that has occured with top tier pirates running into each other.
You don't need cannon material to reach the conclusion that Zoro is first mate/vice captain. Zoro has acted like VC enough times for it to be clear, like Water 7 and Vivi disappearance..
that misses the whole point of the video even if he's one of the most reliable people on the ship that still doesn't make him a VC/first mate bc those traditional pirate roles aren't really used in the strawhats it's really just whatever they want to be and zoro wants to be the greastest swordsman
Zoro is gonna get the Vice Captain title sooner or later anyway One day ! Probably after they found the One Piece ! Everybody can see the parallels with Rayleigh who was the Vice Captain of the Roger pirates !!
People always talk about Luffy and Ussop's friendship but Luffy and Zoro have a greater friendship. They trust others, are immensely loyal to each other, and have the best teamwork of the strawhats. Ussop is like a traditional friend who is overshadowed by his other friend while Zoro is the trustworthy friend who is immensely loyal and always has his friend's back. Except matters on the sea( Which is definitely Nami's ground), if Luffy isn't able to act or give orders, as in a fight where luffy is defeated, Zoro is the one who steps forward and commands the crew. He is the one who understands how important Luffy's role as the captain and later an emperor is the most and is willing to go to great lengths for it as shown in water 7, when he acted as the leader of the other half of the crew when first meeting vegapunk, stopping Lucci as he didn't acknowledge Luffy as a yonko. The straw hats are just the straw hats to luffy. He doesn't care about any titles and its luffy story so we don't see nor care about the titles. Most of the time when the others straw hats focus on emotional impulses such as after the ussop fight or after they find out about cobra's murder, Zoro is the one who thinks rationally even though he cares a lot of Ussop and Vivi. Zoro is the swordsman and the strongest member so he takes charge when luffy can't fight. Nami is the best at navigation so she handles navigation and Nami, Robin, Jinbe handle most of the strategies and stuff even if they never use them. Brook and Franky are the ones who support the others straw hats in their roles literally as Brook keeps up morale while Franky keeps them afloat. Chopper is the doctor. Pretty obvious. Sanji is the cook and in a fight scenario where Luffy can't fight, Zoro and Sanji together are basically an unstoppable force. And Ussop is pretty useless as his best talent is sniping and while he is exceptional at it, its not that useless unless fighting someone like blackbeard and his crew since the other fighters have good enough long range attacks for most of the snipers and the only ones who could be troublesome, Van Augur and Yassop can also be defeated by some of the other straw hats working together. But the straw hats are a group of friends. They don't care Ussop is useless. He is their friend So if he can't do something, they will help him. And that trust and friendship is what makes Ussop's best moments shine such as freeing Robin, Burning the flag of the wg, freeing all the toys. All of these were moments where ussop abandoned his cowardice bc of the trust of his friends. Especially Robin which people never seem to talk about.
In the English translation of chapter 723 Bartolomeo refers to Zoro as “Mr Luffy’s capable right hand man and reliable the first mate to the rest of the crew” but in the SBS on the color spread Oda doesn’t say explicitly that Zoro ISN’T the first mate. He just says that Bepo isn’t.
I know that 1st Mate is a title for the 2nd in command on a Ship but cuz of the Strawhats non hierarchal structure I like to call Zoro 1st Mate as literally being the 1st crewmember and basically redefine it to its linguistical meaning
Bull, plain and simple nonsense. Zoro is especially the first mate. Whenever Luffy isn’t there Zoro is the one everyone looks to. Their crew works as everyone is in charge of their specialty. Zoro is the only check outside of a specialty. You keep saying what Oda originally meant and then describe how Zoro is that role. So Zoro isn't the the first mate but that is exactly what his role is.
There is one character who refers to Zoro as the First Mate, but it's Bartolomeo, which seems more like a commentary on the fact that fans call him that, with Bartolomeo kind of being a meta commentary on the fandom itself.
Well, he might not be first mate in a name, but he is in a role. Zoro: -Second strongest member of the crew. -Supports the autority of his captain and enforces it on others. -Functions as both protector, and a commander, when his captain either is not around, or cant issue the orders. -Dealing with other first mates and figures alike -Has second biggest room at the sunny, as well as second biggest dream. -Is the only person to not act against Luffyy EVER in the series. Despite this, actually the only person out of the crew who actually fought with Luffy on all out. -Inforces discipline on board, when its needed. Thats pretty much perfect firstmate material by the OP standarts. And almost by the IRL standarts. This is how other firstmates in the series acted. All of them.
By the definition of the first mate, I’d consider Nami the first mate. She has the most authority at sea, she makes the decisions how to get from island to island, whereas Zoro more so takes on the role of captain when Luffy is incapable of doing so, Nami fits the role of first mate description quite well
I’d like Luffy to just randomly drop that Brook is the Vice Captain. 🤣
Musician was the member he wanted most
Damn, that would be like so unfunny
No, it's sanji. He values food above everything else
Jinbe would be the best fit. Taking the wheel when the captain is away is what a first mate does and I feel the fishman stays behind/steers the most. Plus, he's experienced!
Vice Captain is a football rank 😹
On a Pirate Crew Captains are acknowledged or Eletected but may not know jackshit about running a ship or Crew which is where the Pirate Quartermaster comes in
Pirate Quartermasters are acknowledged or elected by the Crew and with the Strawhats Nami is the acknowledged Pirate Quartermaster that assigns Zoro to watch duty cause he can use observation Haki to keep watch even when sleeping (plot aside in a few cases)
Mr man on the Internet, your the one who convinced me that Zoro was the vice captain in the first place
I was looking for this comment. Pretty sure in the video I’m thinking of he even uses Zoro as the voice of reason during the Luffy vs Ussop situation.
LoL 🤣🤣
The DonQuixote Family seems more of a organized crime family than a pirate crew
That seems to be the same in one piece
Pretty sure that was aesthetic goal of the crew
@@TooFresh902 of course it is, you have listened to the who Smile plot, right?
I am pretty sure that’s the point
yea but they sail and r bad so automatically pirates
When the stawhats all placed their foot in a round barrel, it remained me of the table of Arthur, where no one was above another.
Yeah - I think even though Luffy is the captain and everyone respects him as such, he also respects that his crew often have better ideas than him. He leaves the smart thinking to the smarter crew members, he trusts them to function without him. I think this contrasts with other pirate crews, where it really seems like the captain does all the thinking and the others just do as the captain says. The Strawhats are a team!
Thats like the world goverment but then Imu appears
When Zoro drew a line in the sand about Ussopp having to apologize to rejoin the crew is the moment I saw him as the first mate.
Sanji kicked Luffy before he even drew that line in the sand as if to say.. "watch your next words they are important" I also think Zoro is the first mate to be fair, but I could see how he wouldn't be considered that.
Agreed
I like ussop for standing on buisness but thats totally fair. Plus he apologized.
Too bad after hes been a constant disappointment most of the time.
💯
6:14 People just don't get it, zoro was never meant to be in the color spread. Oda meant to draw ussop there at first, but then zoro accidentally get there on the way to his training room.
that sounds like bs
@jaroslavmihok740 no, trust me dude. My cousin's uncle second removed worked with oda when he drew the color spread.
@Austenite75 and if people think zoro Is there becuase of strength, oda said he put the no. 2 as who he sees fit, he is there becuase of bounty, oda don't powerscale between sanji or zoro, when he was asked who is stronger between zoro and sanji is purposely started talking about dick fight in sbs lmao 🤣.
@@jaroslavmihok740 bro did not get the joke💀💀
@@jaroslavmihok740 /Woosh
Your point about the Straw Hats just being able to take orders from whoever is best suited in any situation just holds true. Franky just made an executive decision in the latest chapter. The Strawhats have 3 former captains and they all know how to get things done. Franky, Jimbe, Brook. And then Zoro and Sanji have everyones clear respect. And everyone defers to Nami, Chopper, and Robin when dealing with their expertise. Usopp is the character with the fewest if these moments imo and I hope he gets a big one in Elbaph.
Which is saying usopp out of everyone is the worst possible answer for vice captain which makes zoro the default vc since all the other straw hats have there roles/jobs on the crew
Wasn't Brook the first mate?
@@FRAAANKYSUUUPER never officially stated, but he did take over as the second captain after Yorki and the other sick crew members left to not infect the others. They were an old crew though, so having a normal crew structure would make sense.
@FRAAANKYSUUUPER he was Captain after Yorki got sick
@@13vatra feels like it doesn't really count to be honest, everyone dropped pretty quick after that.
Zoro names himself the 1st… as he was the first one to return to Sabaody 🫢
The only right answer
thanks perona
😭😭😭😭@@illuminoeye_gaming
I love how the world of One Piece acts pretty much like the fandom when it comes to this matter. They see the second highest bounty and immediately assume that he is the vice-captain.
That's what made Queen calling Sanji number 2 so great, because at that time he was the second highest bounty 🤣
People still thought Zoro was the first mate after Alabasta, when Robin had the 2nd highest bounty on the crew.
@ I’m calling misogyny.
Funny you mention that cause the fan letter episode did dig deeper into that
@@laurentbergeronmusicwe all know that Robin was a special case
The official stance of each crew on first mates and strigent hierarchies is, "We don't have one. (WINKS LOUDLY)"
There are newer Strawhat Vivre Cards, which say that Zoro is a swordsman and that he often acts as a Vice-Captain.
Fun Fact: Sanji is called Cook and sometimes acts as a "Military advisor".
Zoro and sanji were called luffy’s left and right arms during wano which further proves this
@@TauntersTonguesanji wasn’t called the left hand man in wano lol
I think that in cannon, the only character to refer to Zoro as anything like Firstmate is Bartolomeo, and even he admits that it's an opinion held by him.
And as much as I love Bartolomeo, it should be noted that he, much like the One Piece fans, is blinded by the fanboyish feelings.
Urouge also calls his the first mate (or maybe vice-captain).
I think having a first mate on the crew defeats the purpose of the crew just all taking the lead wherever is apropriate to do so
GLR's bravery in making this video is as endless as the Zoro first mate discussions.
Fun fact about Usopp being originally the vice captain, after he joined while on the way to baratie there’s a scene where Usopp calls himself the vice captain and he tells Luffy that if he ever shows weakness he’ll take over, which Luffy respons saying he’s fine with that.
Ye but uusop is uusop ... He's always saying things like that and up playing his position xD
"Zoro is simply Zoro."- a line most Zoro fans don't understand.
O contraire. Man's so lost he jumped the line of appearance. Lol.
Almost like Buggy failing upwards, Zoro gets lost into the perfect scenarios.
Most Zoro fans don't participate in cringe debates on who the first mate is
@@Outerringfuelgod yeah they do
⚔️🗡🟢
@@Outerringfuelgod bro as a zoro fan nope you don't know our kind
He gives off VC vibes imo, but yeah I can't think of a moment where he's actually called or acknowledged as VC or 2nd in command. I think the scene where Roger recruits Rayleigh made me think of Luffy recruiting Zoro a bit and subconsciously pushes my mind in that direction.
You forget to mention that Lucci called Zoro the Number 2 of the Straw Hat !
strength wise
That's because he is the one who is considered as the 2nd strongest in the straw hats .
Queen referred to sanji as the number 2 in onigashima
@@johnnydepp665 that's what he considered but we all know Zoro had a greater contribution than him during the war even he is actually stronger than sanji even the world government knows :)
because of bounty he is no. 2
5:00 we all gotta remember: Oda signed off on every live action episode
I think in regards to the Zoro live action, the turning point I believe was meant to be when Zoro defended Luffy while tied up with Cabaji. To me that scene was written as the point where he goes from "not a crew" to "first mate".
Despite that I definitely agree that the episode writers needed better communication to keep it consistent throughout.
I think the other reason Oda doesn't really talk about First Mates or Vice Captains is there an implication of power behind them, as seen by everyone assuming Zoro has that title. But if you go by what is expected of them the Straw Hats' First Mate is clearly Nami, despite us only thinking of her as the navigator. Whenever the crew is at sea she has supreme authority over everyone as we have seen countless times. That definitely sounds like first mate material to me. Also for each time Zoro or Sanji seems to be second-in-command I'd argue Nami is given that job far more often as Luffy delegates to her constantly.
That was mainly in early One Piece. Currently we see Luffy clearly deciding what happens on his ship.
For the longest time I thought of Nami, Sanji, and Zoro as the first mates with the rest of the crew filling in occasionally. Those three seem to take charge the most, in my mind, with Nami and Sanji taking the command role, again in my mind, the most often. But it's a toss-up and I like how anyone in the strawhats can step up and take command and everyone's cool with it.
Mosty I see it as Nami being the one who understands situations better than almlost everyone because, and this is anaspect I'm sad isn't shown more, but the seas in this world are INSANE. Reminder they need to avoid storms that canspawn IN THE WATER. LITERAL WATER HOLES, GYRES THAT SPAWN IN THE AIR, MONSTERS THE SIZE OF CITIES, AND 1 KM TALL WALLS. Without Nami they'd be 100% done and dead, no question and she gets this and also cares about them. If they don't hear her words that's the end.
I sorta agreed with this until we reached Dressrosa/Zou. When the crew didn't have Zoro or Luffy aboard, it was Sanji who took control, not Nami. Sanji who asked for permission to fire on Big Mom's ship, who coordinated the attack, and who made the decisions. Nami unfortunately mostly did nothing, which surprised me. They were even called the Curly Brow Pirates by the narrator I think. I think Nami-in-command was more early One Piece and these days she doesn't seem to make decisions like that.
theres 3 i think of being the v.c 1 sanji 2 nami sanji bc he litterally did everything zoro did loyalty wise is the second strongest in the crew and he has alright iq nami because she was the OG nd smart with HEAVY iq
From wiki: the 1st mate is responsible for the safety and security of the ship. Responsibilities include the crew's welfare and training in areas such as safety, firefighting, search and rescue.
i think the usopp water 7 situation and the "nothing happened" scene pretty much sums up his role as the 1st mate. he's also the one that's usually in guarding the ship while the crew lands.
Hmm, you see, in the One Piece community, that logic applies when other characters do it. If Zoro does it, it often means nothing.
The issue with that definition is that most straw hats fill that role in some capacity so everyone is applicable.
Its like how Syndrome said in the incredibles, "When everyone is first mate no one will be" or something
I see the water seven situation more as Zoro being a friend to Luffy and giving him a reality check. Moreover the nothing happened situation is more because Zoro knew he was the only one durable enough to survive it and didn’t want the crew or Luffy to feel guilt for what he did.
@@cyanocitta3728
Water 7: zoro is discipling the crew, making an example out of usopp: you have to respect the captain even if you disagree with him, without respect this crew will crumble.
Nothing happened: zoro is saying to sanji: you're responsible for the food, I'm responsible for you and everyone else's safety
nothing happend scene also goes for sanji because he cares for the crew he even cared about zoro he also tried to take luffys pain but zoro did a cheapshot enels el thor to save ussop and nami mr prince saving the strawhats and getting info from croc and another mr prince for saving them AGAIN and basically cooked up corcs whole idea he sacrificed himself for the big mom pirates untill he saw puddings fine shyt but still saved the crew he tried to save vp but he did save bonney he saved franky n em from nusjuro i think sanji is better then zoro for the crew and for luffy
Who needs a First Mate when you have the Wings of the Pirate King (and amazing supporting crew)
It turns out that first mate thing is something that happened in real life history. In a lot of pirate crews in the past they didn't adhere to any specific hierarchy, other than a captain. Some pirates didn't give a shit about standards or tradition in that sense. They just did what fit them.
Some pirate crews were mainly out there because they were some kind of minority who was descriminated against by royalty or the church and were escaping to see to live a better life.
Ussop is actually vice captain, this was explained by Luffy when he and Ussop argued who would be captain.
The strawhats don't really have any traditional roles like officer. They have roles like doctor, and cook. If we were trying ti assign roles by definition, nami is the first mate
By your own rules, and by definition, Nami is the navigator and nothing else.
@@strykervirus1724i kinda meant by if we assume those roles, namis the ine constantly taking charge. I feel I should've clearer though
@@AhmedHussain-ju6xd when they are on the ship logically navigator take a lead or we need gag from her being mad on boys otherwise Zoro like in Water 7 for example ...
I think it’s there are no formal rankings in the crew besides Luffy as Captain. That said, there is an informal hierarchy the crew has with one another.
I will say Nami also has some strong authority as the unofficial quartermaster.
Technically by definition Zoro is the first mate he does almost everything a first mate does
This was a really good video. I really liked how you talked about Luffy's principle of freedom shapes his crew's structure and makes it better.
I always thought of the “first mate” bit in the live action is more of gag. Not Nami actually acknowledging Zoro second in command.
I see it as Nami being happy to be a "lower" rank so she's less of a target
I love how this whole concept was tied together with how good of a character luffy is and how he accepts his crew on such a deep level. That’s my goat fr
0:01 Liam: "Zoro is not the First Mate."
Everyone: "HE IS TO US!"
thats copium
@@meenalmishra1804 Nice profile picture :D
He isn't tho
This vid really reminds me just how much early Usopp fought with Luffy over the Captain title as we're reminded of in the live action, and how his original prototype design hinted at the idea of him claiming he was already an experienced captain and keeping up that facade much more strongly and centrally to his character than Usopp ended up doing, and much more properly fitting into the role of 'vice captain'. I'm actually kind of wondering if Oda's still keeping that in his back pocket and perhaps Usopp will actually reach that role finally after becoming confident enough post-Elbaf or whenever, though this vid did a good enough job at making me not really 'need' the role to be defined anymore too.
when the anime remake comes out it actually makes sense for him to say his phrase "In all of The One Piece"
translation: Oda unintentionally made Zoro the first mate, didnt like that and now avoids the topic almost entirely except to clarify that he isnt.
essentially Zoro is functionally the Vice-captain following the example of most other vice-captain he just doesnt officially have the title
@@_Sage967_ exactly these 5-anji fans and usopp fanatics don't understand this for some resiculous reasons
Ussopp can't be second in command...he's too busy being a god and badass.
No he’s to busy being a loser
Ussop is destined for the Empty Throne.
Correction, Usopp is a god. Zoro is the king of hell, a devil.
I feel like Sanji and Zoro being described as the “wings of the pirate king” are a perfect label for them. I’ve always had them as equals slightly below luffy and everyone else at a level below
4:00
I don't think this is necessarily a plot hole. I think what this scene really means is that even though Nami and Zoro refuse to say it, they actually do feel like they're a crew. Nami claiming Zoro to be the first mate and Zoro accepting her logic basically expose how they really feel about that. But it could actually just be a plot hole though, I guess.
Some Zoro fans need him to be VC or first mate for some reason when he is not .
We seen time and time again when others take on what those titles mean beside zoro like sanji on egghead .
@@andygundam clearly he is even tho he does not have that title he is he fits the role even if oda does not like to say it he clearly did this on purpose and just doesn't like it so he refuses to say so
No fans need him to be everyone knows he doesn't have the title we just call him that because he does most things a Vc or first mate does it's actually pretty simple
Other characters are able to step up in roles of responsibility other then it always falling on the VC, Zoro is 100% written as the VC and this video is bait. He's the only Straw hat other then Luffy to become a SuperNova (Worst Generation) 2nd highest bounty on the crew, First to officially join the crew, And Luffy's most trusted companion. On top of regularly getting the fight with who ever the 2nd command is on the opposition & He usually keeps the other straw hats in check when they fall out line. Not to mention numerous characters in the series referring to Zoro as the First mate / Vice Captain / 2nd in command, some even mistaking him for the captain pre time skip.
During the dispute with Usopp at Water 7, Zoro did firmly state to Luffy that if the latter does not put his foot down and show his authority as captain of the Straw Hats, he will outright quit.
Even Sanji, who normally argue with him, agrees with Zoro about it.
And even after Enies Lobby event, Zoro said that Usopp will not be welcomed back to the crew if the latter doesn't sincerely apologize to Luffy.
"if the first thing he said isn't an apology, then we'll not welcome him"
usopp: hey let's go fishing
Zoro & Luffy: i didn't hear anything
Being a mentor isnt the same as being a Vice captain. You don't need a title to still mentor people who you know have no clue wtf they are doing
@@ToTheStarsSBhe was vice capitan In this moment
If that would make him a vicecaptain, what is Nami then? She tells him what to do ever since they met.
Ok, but is that a rebuttal to the video?
I have an interpretation for the live action issue. Zoro and Nami are not officially part of the crew but they need to work a somewhat of a crew if they wanna survive, so she appoints Zoro as the first mate because she doesn't want to be it, since she knows she'll betray them at some point and he seems to be the strongest/most mature of the whole bunch. But personally i think it's far more obvious that Usopp is the vice Cap, just because of the way he acts at the start, calling himself Captain Usopp ect. dunno if it makes sense but thanks for coming to my ted talk !
I’ve always thought of Zoros role as “chief security officer” more than first mate.
FWIW, the live action Zoro himself refers to as the first mate in episode 6 after his duel with Mihawk. He says “you’re my captain Luffy and I’m your first mate.” I think it’s intentional because it’s the LA version of his joining the crew moment, and he takes the role much more seriously from that point on. He even has a real talk with Luffy in the next episode, so I believe that progression is why the writers put those lines where they did.
Exactly oda allowed it so he must believe it
@@desmondcook2196HAHAHA like how the showrunners bothered him about using Garp until he gave up and let them do what they wanted? Oda's "approval" is just marketing kiddo.
The first mate's job is to lay down crew discipline and Zoro definitely does that more than anyone else.
The first mate, is the chief security officer.
@@laurentbergeronmusic who does he discipline outside of the "Before we welcome Usopp back the first thing out of his mouth needs to be an apology" moment that he actively gave Usopp leeway around anyway? When they're on the ship the man's either sleeping or lifting weights, he doesn't have authority over anyone. If anything Nami runs the ship. Can't even think of a canon period the crew was split off and he took charge while Luffy wasn't present like Sanji did between Dressrosa and Zou. He usually does cool action stuff in the rare scenarios he's with a splintered off portion of the crew but is never a "serves as acting leader" type.
I've been telling people that Usopp was Luffy's right-hand for ages now and they just make fun of me lol.
Same here. We know the truth
and the best part was whenever robin called someone in the crew (pre enies lobby) she always refer them as their role and she always called zoro a swordman
@@sabargultom6324 but tbh that's more of fighting title than a pirate job title
@@desmondcook2196cope
what i feel like what is also proving your point is when, way back then, luffy was freeing zoro in shellstown, zoro was like: "i sail with you if you let me do my own things"
so in fact zoro is just a friend sailing around with them. lol
but in fact: if zoro had more responsibilities, he couldnt focus on his own way. luffy understands this (in manga and anime).
But to go off that also plenty of times zoro takes responsibility more than any other crew member and also pushes luffy to make hard decisions and makes sure he is respected as the captain that sounds like a vice captain to me he doesn't have to be called first mate or vice captain but that's what he is regardless of speculation he plays the part and does his own thing usopp has never stepped up or even played the Parr of a vice captain and tbh he's not vice captain material not because of strength but more because of mentality zoro understands how to lead usopp cannot do that roll and no matter how much oda originally planned it that plan didn't work out so he changed the first mate and vice captain roles because he realizes usopps character would not fit in this role so honestly zoro is still the vice captain and first mate its already in the story cementing it as fact when usopp acts like a first mate and vice captain then I will believe this nonsense
@desmondcook2196 nami by far takes most of the responsibility she is the navigator FFS.
@@desmondcook2196 tl;dr sry
Then again, he referred to luffy as his captain many times, basically saying he's part of the crew and not "just a friend sailing along with them"
Oh my god, I remember getting into an argument about this in the comments under a previous video of yours. Thanks for validating me.
Ussop having the role of first mate also would make the whole Water7 debuckle make even more sense, as stereotypically first mates tends to start mutinies in media.
And we know Oda loves his tropes so much, he keeps them for special occasions.
And that was very special occasion
I guess us humans just naturally like to find a pattern in everything to try to fit everything we see into the small box of what we understand, but instead we should accept and see things as they are. Even if the majority naturally come to the same conclusion of that same small box.
IMO Liam did a great job on this video topic
I don't agree with that logic if the masses have legion knowledge can 1 person see everything that legion can see collectively that's wrong way of thinking no matter how you put it and nah its very biased to say usopp is the vc because of oda saying that was originally his plan but he scrapped it when it finally came out now usopp is not the vc because of zoro that clearly igknowledges him as vc/first mate since he's the reason usopp is not .
Man I already love this man's content, but this may be his best phrased and reasoned video to date. I hope to continue watching him talk about one piece for years to come.
I think part of the confusion comes from the fact that Bartolomeo says that Zoro is considered by others to be the first mate, or something along those lines when he meets him.
or just they read 1000 plus chapters and it kinda fkn obvious without anyone even saying anything...
@@WuMyth Yeah this video wasn't reasearched that well tbh.
@@tobiaswedinyou guys literally don’t know what your talking about? A character thinking Zoro is the first mate doesn’t make him the first mate if oda says he’s not.
@@JayB-hz8rhthat's not the only reason have you watched the anime and read the manga 1000+ it's pretty clear zoro is the first mate that's the reason Barto said that and why people in the op world said that there's alot of reasons name somone who doesn't currently have a role that's better suited than zoro usopp is the only other Canadite and he just does not fit this role no matter how much you want him too now they might not have given the title to zoro but he's most likely the vc he's definetly the first mate in the meaning and the word itself
@@desmondcook2196 You are so hung up on deciding between the options "Zoro is the first mate" and "Usopp is the first mate" that you seem to be completely blind to the third option: "there is no first mate of the Strawhat pirates". Which, canonically, is the case. No one has ever been officially designated that title by Luffy. Speculation by non-Strawhats is utterly irrelevant to this matter.
honestly i contemplate Zoro's functional role in the crew. beyond being occasional muscle to do some heavy lifting, he doesn't really do much while they're out at sea other than train relentlessly and sleep even more relentlessly. HOWEVER, every group of co-workers has that one guy who doesn't do much until its time to kick ass and take names with brutal efficiency. that's Zoro! he's the reliable guy during a crisis.
Zoro's alcohol tolerance is actually a lot lower than most people might think that's why he sleeps so much
Honestly, if we're taking who had the most power outside luffy, it would realistically fall on Nami, since she takes over even sometimes when luffy is there
I like to think Zoro is first mate because he is more loyal to luffy than the other crew members.
U don't deserve one piece!!!!!
@@nandu0070 He's not wrong. Zoro is the most loyal crewmate to luffy, In one of Oda's interviews he confirmed if Luffy asked him too Zoro would kill any of the other straw hats without a second thought.
@@Feastia I agree that Zoro is the most loyal, but that thing about Zoro killing whoever Luffy says It's a false quote, Oda never said anything like it, it doesn't even make sense, Zoro would never follow someone that orders him to kill his friends, think
Fun Fact: In the US Navy, the 2nd in command of a vessel is known as the "Commander" - regardless of their actual rank. It's a position of authority that means "2nd in Command" - behind only the Captain of the vessel.
"Commander" is also a rank, though. (CDR) O5. But a Lieutenant (LT) O3 can hold the position of "Captain" or "Commander" despite not being the rank of "Captain" or "Commander."
Seemed relevant.
Edit: The idea that Zoro was originally going to be a deuteragonist alongside Luffy and be a "traditionally cool" character because Oda worried Luffy would be too goofy to appeal to readers explains so much about early One Piece and Zoro in particular. It also explains why Zoro feels so different now than back then, like he still has his cool moments, but he's also more prone to being a dumb meathead, similar to Luffy, just more "serious" about things, because I guess Oda is more comfortable making him a more comedic character from time to time.
Original comment:
I still think it's funny that the live action Netflix show officially has Luffy declare Zoro to be his first mate, and how everyone takes it as a given that Zoro's the first mate, even people who don't know the Straw Hat Crew personally in-universe within the manga, despite neither the crew nor Oda himself ever specifying that Zoro is, in fact, the first mate... Maybe he acts the part sometimes, it's not really at title he officially has. I'm also trying to think of moments when the crew themselves ever deferred to Zoro like he's the second in command, but aside from his spiel about not letting Usopp back so easily in Water 7, I can't think of any. He feels more like a strong guy who gives advice, and whether or not the crew take that advice is up to them, it doesn't quite feel like the same respect they'd give to Luffy, who yeah, they don't take that seriously when he's being a goof most of the time, but when times get tough they take him at his word. Maybe they'll defer to him whenever Luffy isn't around, but then again, I feel like they'd defer to Sanji in a similar way, given that he's also one of the strongest crewmembers... Of course, Sanji DOES have an official title among the crew, which is the ship's cook, while Zoro has only ever been officially referred to as... the swordsman? A Swordfighter? Something to that effect, which gets weird when you consider Brook is also a swordfighter. It's all very strange, I've found.
It’s also fun to note that in the current Elbaph arc, Franky is now the one calling the shots aboard the Sunny
Ben beckman being the firstmate is also very contradicting to how people justify zoro being the first mate as Shanks met Yasopp first.
Only for the people who don't know what a first mate does Zoro at water 7, thriller bark and immediately after wano he makes decisions that a VC or first mate would make mfkas know he don't have the title officially it just how he carries himself within the crew
I first thought this video was going to make me mad at first. However, you not only made valid points but also made me reevaluate my standing on this topic. Well done.
Saw zoro name in my notifications and I clicked instantly , never clicked this fast in my life😭💚
Same bruhhh😂
The Strawhats having an atypical crew structure and not the classical hierarchy is honestly one of the coolest things. Like you said, any Strawhat can cake on the role at any given moment.
9:07 Ace, lol
Usopp being Vice Captain does add up when you remember he’s the one constantly claiming he’s the captain early on and his 8000 men claim which would normally only be a number of people someone with a rank like Captain would command.
0:17 this is just wrong bro... One Piece Ch. 499 Pg. 17 Zoro is explicitly referred to as the First Mate of the SHP by Urouge
Yeah by Urouge
Urouge's gotta be right
That's just an in world view. One persons perspective. Barto also called him vice captain in dressrosa. Doesnt mean it's the actual order.
@@Leith-u4p Yep, that's my point. He was stated first mate in canon material.
@@Honerkamp Perhaps not, but to say he is never called first mate in canon material is false/incorrect.
Here is what the issue of "is Zoro first mate" comes down to for me:
Throughout naval history, whether on navy ships or pirate vessels or even cruise ships, the most important job of a first mate, vice captain, executive officer, "number one," whatever term you want to use, the part of that job that comes before anything else, is that the first mate bridges the gap between the captain and the crew. The first mate makes sure the crew follows the captain's orders. The first made advocates on behalf of the crew to the captain. The first mate makes sure the crew follows protocol, and the first mate makes sure the captain fulfills his responsibilities to the crew. That is the most important part of a first mate's job, and that is the job Zoro does on the ship. He's the one who makes sure Luffy takes his responsibilities as Captain seriously. He's the one who takes care of the weaker members of the crew while also expecting them to shape up. He performs the most important duties of the first mate. Therefore, he is the first mate. This is my reasoning.
Never been this early to a GLR video
I can get behind your logic, especially the Only 8 First Mates fact that caught me by surprise. That said, I think Zoro does take on a lot of the more difficult duties on a ship that might usually fall on a First Mate, like being a hardass on the crew when it's needed (see Water 7 Usopp situation). Also, looking at actual sailing duties, Nami is usually in charge of all that a lot. Luffy says "Let's go there!" and Nami barks the orders on how to get there alive.
Not just the water 7 comment guy.
When kuma came in thriller park.
Zoro knocked out sanji even tho sanji was healthier than him at the time. But it just shows that even if its unconsciously the straw hats know that zoro is the 2nd in command even zoro himself feels that responsibility.
Sanji wasnt healthier lol he took full blows against absalom and orz zoro was healthier cause he only fought zombie ryuma
@@johnnydepp665 nah u can tell he was healthier besides his exo skeleton can take it
@@zeekiy9901 he did not have exeskeleton pre timeskip
@@quin0000 he did which was why he can normal Diablo his leg and withstand the fire 🔥 he says its the passion flame but cmon he can cook enemies and not himself even his clothes burn dude.
It just got enhanced even further with the use of haki and kinda fully activated or at least 80% when he wore the suit
@@zeekiy9901 Idk his previous showings, other than the diable jambe which is a valid point, he looked like he just had regular strong pre timeskip durability and it was never stated or implied how he’s tougher than most.
That zoro hilt hit before the “nothing happened” moment should’ve NOT knocked him out if he was healthier and has some sort of exoskeleton when zoro was weakened (along with sanji which is why he got knocked out; no exoskeleton).
especially when at the time it’s not at all given that zoro is far stronger than sanji for him to be able to beat a ‘healthier’ sanji with an ‘exoskeleton’ low level or not (not once in the story other than maybe in wano rooftop was that arguable).
it just shouldn’t happen which is why I believe he didn’t have the durability function of exoskeleton but some fire resistance and in the future his passion or love comment about his resistance could be rooted in reality sort of
Honestly the whole Vice Captain discussion seems pointless to me, because actual Pirate crews didn't have first mates or vice captains.
The only two named roles on a pirate ship were Captain and Quartermaster. Everyone else was essentially equals.
Zoro isn’t what he is because he wasn’t intended to be before the story came out and put him in that position where others confuse him in the main story itself for the spot he has but it’s never been said by the creator that he is what characters in his story suggest while nobody else on the crew has anyone saying such about them in the story?
No, I’m pretty sure we are right about Zoro being the first mate because he literally by all reasonable metrics just simply is based on what the story itself currently exists as. Remember, Oda has not said he is but also hasn’t said he isn’t while everything Oda has put to page has shown he is. Talking about intent before a story is out is non cannon just like smoking Chopper. That might have been the intent at first but it’s not the facts of how it turned out..,
That's exactly what I'm saying, but Liam consistently does this to drum up more engagement, it's actually kind of scummy given how often Liam does this to his fans..
What do you mean he literally said he is not the first mate in the sbs😅
I agree. Even if Oda somehow hated Zoro, his actions have made Zoro first mate. Unless Oda redraws the story from day one and makes Luffy meet Usopp first, Zoro is first mate.
This video is very poor gaslighting
But that's like saying zoro is the first mate because he made usopp not the first mate that's how that sounds so zoro is the first mate no matter how you try to make it sound
@@bibinmohanan3117 he never gave the title to anyone but he is the first mate based on how he wrote the character regardless of what he says oda clearly doesn't want usopp to be the first mate so defacto zoro is
Regarding Live Action, i always kinda seen that moment as Zoro going "fiiiine, someone HAS TO do it i guess, might as well be me" rather than "You're right, that is my role".
Nami is the de facto vice-captain, probably even co-captain on the ship
And how ? Like it's not even mentioned anywhere
No nothing close it would be Zoro as he does the first mate vice captain things
For a moment I thought the thumbnail was Zoro about to slit Dekus throat
Liam I am so thankful for your insights and fun. I'm learning to love One Piece in more and more ways despite following weekly for at least 12 years. Cheers!
If anyone is the first mate of the strawhats it’s Nami, she’s the one in charge of money spending and stocking supplies along with her duties as a navigator, she’s the one calling the shots whenever Luffy isn’t, she’s the one keeping the monster trio in check, and the entire crew listens to her without question (which is the result of either respect or fear)
Children's debates whether Zoro is first mate or vice captain of straw hat pirates, legend's debate on how Zoro is actually a MC 😂
Fun bit of trivia. I actually owned the video game "One Piece: Grand Battle" for the GameCube here in the US. This is back when 4Kids was still dubbing it. If you played Usopp's Story Mode and one of your randomly generated enemies was Crocodile, Usopp specifically calls himself the "First Mate of the Straw Hat crew" to Crocodile, in an attempt to try and work through the fear of fighting him. I wonder if this was a nod to the original prototype Usopp or what. 🤔
Zoro is the first mate in my heart
9:29 Every time I see Big Mom as Jabba, I snort-laugh. Kudos to your animator!
nah, there's a color spread of Zoro along with all the other number 2's and vice captains. he's the vice captain, doesn't matter if they don't call him that.
Did you not watch the video? Oda made a comment on that specific colour spread, and said that it was just the number 2s in terms of strength, not authority with a crew, which is why Bepo is there and not Bepo/Sachi/Penguin.
Shonen fans really aren't beating the media illiteracy allegations
@@LenxaidSulong? We've all seen what he did to Augar.
6:10 Listening while watching a video must be hard.
Watch the video bruh
The Zoro v Sanji tally is not as close as you depicted: what about when ussop wanted to rejoin the crew, or when Zoro has to tell Luffy to get serious on punk hazard or ROOFPIECE or the fact that zoro has beaten more right hand men than sanji. No way they have the same amount of Vice captain moments
I think this basically confirms it. Zoro is not the Vice Captain. He is the Captain and Luffy is the jester. Case closed.
This content is award-worthy!
Love how you brought up a color spread then used a mistranslation that has been debunked numerous times, and just simply moved on. Great video as usual man
Just like Silvers Rayleigh who was First Mate to his captain and previous Pirate King Gol D. Roger, Roronoa Zoro is First Mate to his captain and future King of the Pirates, Monkey D. Luffy.
According to whom
@wisdommanari6701 me.
Watch the video or read the manga
Whitebeard did have a member of his crew, a commander, whos role was greater to him than just being one of his sons: Oden. 2nd division commander and Whitebeard's brother. This is his "first mate/vice captain"
To add to this, Big Mom asked for King to join her, Kaido's number 2. Shanks asked Marco to join him Whitebeard's 2nd strongest at the time
Roger asks for Oden to join him, Whitebeard's second stringest at the time. This is a pattern that has occured with top tier pirates running into each other.
You don't need cannon material to reach the conclusion that Zoro is first mate/vice captain. Zoro has acted like VC enough times for it to be clear, like Water 7 and Vivi disappearance..
that misses the whole point of the video even if he's one of the most reliable people on the ship that still doesn't make him a VC/first mate bc those traditional pirate roles aren't really used in the strawhats it's really just whatever they want to be and zoro wants to be the greastest swordsman
He literally brought up that if you tally up the times where zoro and sanji acted as the “VC” in the story, they come to equal or sanji having more
the art of luffy mimicking the yelling at cat meme (11:53) is amazing
Zoro is gonna get the Vice Captain title sooner or later anyway One day !
Probably after they found the One Piece !
Everybody can see the parallels with Rayleigh who was the Vice Captain of the Roger pirates !!
Rayleigh is a combination of zoro and sanji on purpose which is why he acts as the sole right hand for Roger
@@quin0000nope Gaban was also there !
6:39 oda hit bepo with the sukuna speach💀
here i am
You are the first
Literally everyone else in One Piece including Zoro acknowledging it himself "right hand of the future pirate king"
Zoro fans in shambles after this. Zoro isnt the VC, he is the swordsman. Thats what Zoro want to be, let him be.
So Sanji the kicker? Brook the swordsman...?
@WuMyth Sanji is the cook, Brook is the musician. Hello????
@@kvakq ... exactly...
@@WuMyth ?
@@kvakq you said 'he the swordsman' like thats an official role lmao.
People always talk about Luffy and Ussop's friendship but Luffy and Zoro have a greater friendship. They trust others, are immensely loyal to each other, and have the best teamwork of the strawhats. Ussop is like a traditional friend who is overshadowed by his other friend while Zoro is the trustworthy friend who is immensely loyal and always has his friend's back. Except matters on the sea( Which is definitely Nami's ground), if Luffy isn't able to act or give orders, as in a fight where luffy is defeated, Zoro is the one who steps forward and commands the crew. He is the one who understands how important Luffy's role as the captain and later an emperor is the most and is willing to go to great lengths for it as shown in water 7, when he acted as the leader of the other half of the crew when first meeting vegapunk, stopping Lucci as he didn't acknowledge Luffy as a yonko. The straw hats are just the straw hats to luffy. He doesn't care about any titles and its luffy story so we don't see nor care about the titles. Most of the time when the others straw hats focus on emotional impulses such as after the ussop fight or after they find out about cobra's murder, Zoro is the one who thinks rationally even though he cares a lot of Ussop and Vivi. Zoro is the swordsman and the strongest member so he takes charge when luffy can't fight. Nami is the best at navigation so she handles navigation and Nami, Robin, Jinbe handle most of the strategies and stuff even if they never use them. Brook and Franky are the ones who support the others straw hats in their roles literally as Brook keeps up morale while Franky keeps them afloat. Chopper is the doctor. Pretty obvious. Sanji is the cook and in a fight scenario where Luffy can't fight, Zoro and Sanji together are basically an unstoppable force. And Ussop is pretty useless as his best talent is sniping and while he is exceptional at it, its not that useless unless fighting someone like blackbeard and his crew since the other fighters have good enough long range attacks for most of the snipers and the only ones who could be troublesome, Van Augur and Yassop can also be defeated by some of the other straw hats working together. But the straw hats are a group of friends. They don't care Ussop is useless. He is their friend So if he can't do something, they will help him. And that trust and friendship is what makes Ussop's best moments shine such as freeing Robin, Burning the flag of the wg, freeing all the toys. All of these were moments where ussop abandoned his cowardice bc of the trust of his friends. Especially Robin which people never seem to talk about.
In the English translation of chapter 723 Bartolomeo refers to Zoro as “Mr Luffy’s capable right hand man and reliable the first mate to the rest of the crew” but in the SBS on the color spread Oda doesn’t say explicitly that Zoro ISN’T the first mate. He just says that Bepo isn’t.
Yoooo, Oda just revealed in SBS that Kizaru was the one who gave the food to Luffy on Egghead
I know that 1st Mate is a title for the 2nd in command on a Ship but cuz of the Strawhats non hierarchal structure I like to call Zoro 1st Mate as literally being the 1st crewmember and basically redefine it to its linguistical meaning
Bull, plain and simple nonsense. Zoro is especially the first mate. Whenever Luffy isn’t there Zoro is the one everyone looks to. Their crew works as everyone is in charge of their specialty. Zoro is the only check outside of a specialty.
You keep saying what Oda originally meant and then describe how Zoro is that role.
So Zoro isn't the the first mate but that is exactly what his role is.
There is one character who refers to Zoro as the First Mate, but it's Bartolomeo, which seems more like a commentary on the fact that fans call him that, with Bartolomeo kind of being a meta commentary on the fandom itself.
Thank you. People wax Zoro’s pole all the time for this. He’s the fighter, that’s all he was labeled.
Well, he might not be first mate in a name, but he is in a role.
Zoro:
-Second strongest member of the crew.
-Supports the autority of his captain and enforces it on others.
-Functions as both protector, and a commander, when his captain either is not around, or cant issue the orders.
-Dealing with other first mates and figures alike
-Has second biggest room at the sunny, as well as second biggest dream.
-Is the only person to not act against Luffyy EVER in the series. Despite this, actually the only person out of the crew who actually fought with Luffy on all out.
-Inforces discipline on board, when its needed.
Thats pretty much perfect firstmate material by the OP standarts. And almost by the IRL standarts. This is how other firstmates in the series acted. All of them.
By the definition of the first mate, I’d consider Nami the first mate. She has the most authority at sea, she makes the decisions how to get from island to island, whereas Zoro more so takes on the role of captain when Luffy is incapable of doing so, Nami fits the role of first mate description quite well