Summary
Chapter 1153 of theOne Piecemanga was incredibly eye-opening for a number of reasons. This chapter finally gave much more depth to Harald’s character arc and did a great job of explaining exactly why he came to be such a beloved king. However, the most important reveal in this chapter was the truth of Loki’s birth, which took every fan by surprise considering the kind of malicious reputation he had gained on Elbaf.
While the residents of his homeland always considered him to be an evil person who only wanted to spread misery and pain everywhere he went, the truth of the matter is far sadder than that. Althoughthe look at his originshas been incredibly brief, many think that it is well on its way to being the most tragic in all ofOne Piece, perhaps even more than Robin’s. So, let’s take a look at if this really is the case.
Story Arc
Elbaf
Ever since his first appearance in Chapter 1130, fans could tell thatthere was much more to Lokithan whatever had been said about him up until that point. He was feared throughout all of Elbaf as a violent monster who even Scopper Gaban was convinced would be a bad idea to free from imprisonment due to the carnage he would cause, but Luffy’s immediate liking to the Giant was enough for fans to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Surely enough, Chapter 1153 broke down the truth of why Loki ended up the way he did, and it was even more tragic than anyone could have expected. Loki was born to King Harald and Queen Estrid, who ended up together because of the law of Elbaf which dictates that the only way the Royal Line of the country can continue is through the union of those with the blood of the Ancient Giants. Since Harald’s previous partner, Ida, wasn’t of this bloodline, she wasn’t allowed to be the queen.
Since Harald was away from Elbaf at the time of Loki’s birth, there was no way that he could have prevented what was going to happen to his son. As he was born and brought to his mother, Estrid shrieked at what she saw. Loki was born with incredibly unique, black eyes that are different from anything that has ever been shown before in the series. This, coupled with the horns on his head, which are a trait of those with the blood of the Ancient Giants, gave Loki a terrifying and devilish appearance,one which his own mother detested.
Due to her horror at seeing her son, who she deemed a demon, she grabbed him out of the nurse’s arms and threw him from Aurust Castle into the underworld. As a newborn child, Loki was dropped thousands of feet into a freezing wasteland populated with giant and fearsome monsters, which is made even worse by the fact that it was his mother who threw him. However, to make things even more scarring, the newborn had no idea of his mother rejecting him, so he would proceed to climb up the Adam Tree to get back to her.
It is said that the most unfortunate souls are those rejected from birth by their own mothers…
From here, there was a jump many years into the future. Due to his fearsome reputation and the supposed curse he carried, the residents of Elbaf avoided him like the plague and attributed every single misfortune to him without reason. This is very similar to Robin’s origins, since she was alsorejected by the residents of Oharaand shunned as a demon child, causing her to grow up alone and hated. However, the difference here is that Robin still had the scholars of Ohara and Saul, but Loki had no one.
In one of the panels, it was shown that from a young age, even his brother Hajrudin wanted nothing to do with him, and this attitude inadvertently made Loki into the villain he has become. Though much more clarification is needed regarding where Loki’s story goes from here, many have already stated that Loki’s backstory may just be the most tragic in all ofOne Piece.
The Parallels Between Loki And Robin’s Backstories
Two Tragic Pasts
Although many are pitting either of Loki’s and Robin’s backstories as the saddest in all ofOne Piece, they actually share a few similarities. The easiest to observe is the fact that both wereshunned by the citizens of their islandsimply for being different, leading to them spending almost all of their time alone and confiding within themselves. Although they came out of their experiences differently, this aspect is integral to both of their development.
Moreover, it seems that there is only one person whom they could ever rely upon for proper companionship, which was Saul for Robin and the mysterious Mosa for Loki. Of course, even here it has been different, but their parallels are quite unique inOne Piece, leading many to believe that this almost confirms Loki as the next member of the Straw Hats.
