It’s official. As of One Piece Chapter 1086, “The Five Elders,” three more Seraphim model Pacifistas have been introduced to the story. As with the previous units, these three resemble child versions of former Warlords; Gecko Moria, Donquixote Doflamingo, and Crocodile. While all three of these Seraphim will likely bring something new to the story, there’s something particularly intriguing about the Crocodile one.
This new Seraph could finally confirm whether Crocodile was originally a woman. Since they’re only a child, they likely represent who the Warlord was before his possible transition. If another character can somehow confront this Pacifista, they’ll have an opportunity to learn what could be the Desert King’s darkest secret.
Was Crocodile a Woman?
The assumption that Crocodile was a woman goes as far back as the Impel Down Arc. Luffy was hesitant to accept the imprisoned Warlord’s offer to help his group escape, but Emporio Ivankov had the leverage to make this agreement work; he knew a deep, dark secret about the Desert King that he wouldn’t want to be revealed. Since the Okama King had the power to alter people’s genders, many fans presumed the secret was that he once changed Crocodile from a woman into a man.
The story hasn’t pushed readers any closer to learning the secret since it was introduced, but fans have stuck with the theory that it was a sex change. Some have even jokingly built off this theory and claimed Crocodile is also Luffy’s long-lost mother. Beyond such jokes, however, not much could be done with this theory without further proof.
If the Crocodile Seraph (possibly designated S-Croc) is a clone of the original, then they should resemble the Warlord during “his” childhood. This younger Crocodile is androgynous enough to be either a boy or a girl; the same applies to an SBS drawing Oda once did of a young Crocodile.
A confrontation with this Seraph should be the story point necessary to clear things up. Since they’re a Seraph, interacting with them in without either fighting them or providing orders will be difficult. Once an interaction happens, however, discovering the truth can happen in many different ways. It could be a tear in their clothes or a wardrobe malfunction, or them angrily correcting someone about their gender. It could also be something about their mannerisms or speech patterns. Whatever the tip-off is, it may be followed by a panel that distinctly labels the Seraph as a boy or a girl.
Will Crocodile’s Seraphim Prove He Used to Be a Woman?
There’s also the possibility that Crocodile’s Seraph has already been modified. After all, it already has a scar across its face that, according to the SBS, Crocodile did not get as a child. Whoever designed the Pacifista must have scarred it ahead of schedule. Similarly, a change could have happened to the Pacifista’s gender before it happened to the real Crocodile. If this is the case, then confronting it won’t prove anything.
This could be the chance One Piece fans have been looking for. The mystery of Crocodile’s past is 14 years old and counting. A Seraph embodying his younger self should at least tell people more about what the Warlord was like as far back as a child. This will either be the end of many jokes and memes or the jumping-off point for many more.
