When you see a vehicle that a character drives in a normal series, you imagine that it probably doesn't have a birthday. But One Piece is not a normal series. And so today is the birthday of the Going Merry, the pirate ship that made us all cry.
Gifted to Luffy and the Straw Hats by Merry and Kaya in the Syrup Village, it served them well through East Blue, the Reverse Mountain, Alabasta and Skypiea, along with many other islands and arcs. And along the way, it took a beating. Luffy's captaining skills have always been, ummm, unconventional, so the Going Merry rarely went through a dramatic situation without getting pummeled. And though Usopp did his best to repair the ship, by the time the crew got to Water 7, it was clear that a slight breeze would tear the mast off.
And so, in the first of multiple times that we'd sob during this particular saga, Luffy and Usopp fought over Merry, with Usopp seeing the ship as a reflection of himself. He took it personally that Luffy thought the Going Merry was too broken down to continue, as it might mean that he was too weak to continue on their journey. And then, one epic storyline later, the Going Merry saved the crew as they made their escape from Enies Lobby. But that last valiant effort from, I must remind you, a ship, was too much. The Straw Hats gathered to give the Going Merry a Viking Funeral. There the Straw Hats sobbed, I sobbed, everyone who watched the show sobbed, and everyone that's ever even heard of anime sobbed due to second-hand sadness.
And then, as if it wasn't enough that we were dealing with depression caused by One Piece and confusion caused by the sudden question of "Wait, is a ship actually making me feel this way?!?", the thing APOLOGIZED TO THE CREW. The ship felt bad that it couldn't continue taking the Straw Hats on their journey, and so an inanimate object told the Straw Hats that it was grateful for being their ship. Eiichiro Oda, how could you?
Let us celebrate the Going Merry on its birthday and always remember the lesson it taught us: It's more than okay to cry over a ship.
Gifted to Luffy and the Straw Hats by Merry and Kaya in the Syrup Village, it served them well through East Blue, the Reverse Mountain, Alabasta and Skypiea, along with many other islands and arcs. And along the way, it took a beating. Luffy's captaining skills have always been, ummm, unconventional, so the Going Merry rarely went through a dramatic situation without getting pummeled. And though Usopp did his best to repair the ship, by the time the crew got to Water 7, it was clear that a slight breeze would tear the mast off.
And then, as if it wasn't enough that we were dealing with depression caused by One Piece and confusion caused by the sudden question of "Wait, is a ship actually making me feel this way?!?", the thing APOLOGIZED TO THE CREW. The ship felt bad that it couldn't continue taking the Straw Hats on their journey, and so an inanimate object told the Straw Hats that it was grateful for being their ship. Eiichiro Oda, how could you?
Let us celebrate the Going Merry on its birthday and always remember the lesson it taught us: It's more than okay to cry over a ship.
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