Highlights
- Gear 4 was pivotal in defeating Doflamingo, but Gear 5 has overshadowed it with reality-altering abilities and masterful Haki applications.
- Gear 5 combines Paramecia and Mythical Zoan Awakenings, allowing Luffy to manipulate rubber textures and switch between previous forms.
- Gear 4 has been absent since the introduction of Gear 5, as it now pales in comparison to Luffy’s more powerful and versatile transformation.
Of all the transformations showcased by Monkey D. Luffy in Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece, Gear 4 was a sorely needed power-up at the time of its introduction during the Dressrosa Arc. It was the first new form that Luffy demonstrated after the time skip, and played an instrumental part in his eventual defeat of the Warlord Donquixote Doflamingo. Since then, Luffy has gone on to use Gear 4 against the likes of Charlotte Katakuri and the Emperor of the Sea, Kaido, although it did not provide much assistance in the latter fight.
This prompted the debut of a new transformation in the form of Gear 5, which was presented as the Awakened form of Luffy’s Devil Fruit. Since then, Gear 4 has largely been overshadowed by this new transformation, as it is Luffy’s trump card against strong opponents. Naturally, this merits inquiry into whether Gear 4 has now been rendered obsolete at the start of the Final Saga of One Piece, or if the form could still prove to be useful despite its many drawbacks.
The Fundamentals Of Gear 4
Centered on compression rather than elasticity — which was the main focus of Gear 2 and Gear 3 — Luffy’s Gear 4 transformation greatly enhances his speed, strength, durability, and range of attacks. This is in large part due to its extensive use of Armament Haki, which reinforces Luffy’s arms, legs, and significant portions of his torso. He also inflates his muscles, which enlarges his stature, to a height of almost four meters.
On top of that, Gear 4 is not a single form, as it has variations which cater to different combat scenarios. So far, the three variants include: Boundman, Snakeman, and Tankman. While the first two are specialized forms that Luffy can access and switch between as long as he is in fighting condition, Tankman is a situational form that augments Luffy’s defenses, and can only be used after he overeats.
The main drawback for all three forms is that Luffy is unable to use Haki for a time after the transformation wears off. Among the three, Boundman was Luffy’s go-to form against strong opponents after the time skip, as it took his physical strength and endurance to levels that were unseen prior to its debut. He was also able to fly in this form by compressing his muscles to propel himself in the air.
Conversely, Snakeman was geared more towards increasing agility and mobility, granting Luffy the power to redirect attacks and overwhelm enemies with barrages of punches from all directions. Further down the line, his skill with Future Sight, Advanced Armament Haki, and Conqueror’s Infusion made these forms even more formidable.
How Gear 5 Rewrote The Rule Book
Whereas Gear 4 was an innovative application of his Devil Fruit’s properties in combination with Haki, Gear 5 is the Awakened form of the Gomu Gomu no Mi — or the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika. As the Awakened form of a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit bearing the name of a divine entity, Gear 5 exhibits characteristics of both Paramecia and Mythical Zoan Awakenings.
For starters, Luffy can affect his surroundings with his Devil Fruit abilities, turning their texture into rubber, which he can freely manipulate in ways that defy the laws of physics. In a sense, this ability allows Luffy to alter reality itself as he sees fit, and he is bound only by the limits of his imagination. He can seamlessly switch between Gear 2, Gear 3, and Gear 4 in quick succession, alter his size to that of a giant, hurl lightning at his adversary, or create fists as large as an entire island.
All of his attacks can be reinforced with advanced Armament and Conqueror’s Haki, allowing him to damage opponents such as Kaido, Admiral Kizaru, and the Five Elders. Gear 5 is the culmination of all of Luffy’s previous forms, although he is still yet to master it, since it leaves him severely incapacitated once the transformation wears off.
Why Has Gear 4 Disappeared?
Ever since his battle against Kaido, Luffy has not used Gear 4 even once. This is not much of a surprise given how effective Gear 5 has proven in situations where he would have otherwise relied on Gear 4. In his Awakened form, Luffy’s speed, strength, elasticity, durability, and capacity to alter his surroundings are truly absurd, which makes Gear 5 all the more important when looking at the caliber of opponents he has been matched up with in the Egghead Arc.
Since landing on Egghead, Luffy has fought a CP0 agent, a Marine Admiral, and the Five Elders — all in quick succession. It is fairly safe to say that Gear 4 would not have been as effective against any of them, when observing the limits of its various forms, along with the huge drawbacks Luffy has to contend with once the transformation wears off. Whereas Gear 5 leaves him exhausted for a time until he can refuel with a meal, Gear 4 depletes his Haki and prevents him from using it for a short stretch of time.
This was evident during his fights against Doflamingo and Katakuri, where he had to evade them for a time until his Haki was replenished. Gear 4 would also not be very effective against the kinds of enemies he has faced on Egghead, which would endanger all of his cremates’ lives, since the majority of them — except for Zoro, Sanji, and Jinbe — cannot really hold off a Marine Admiral or the Five Elders. Thus, there is a huge risk involved if Luffy were to use Gear 4 against these enemies, especially since his mastery of advanced Haki applications is still not on par with someone like Shanks.
Is There Any Further Use For Gear 4?
Currently, Gear 4 has been rendered all but obsolete, since none of its variants hold the title of being Luffy’s strongest form. Moreover, the drawbacks of using this transformation far outweigh the benefits at this juncture of the story, where the Straw Hat Pirates are being pitted against some of the strongest individuals in the world of One Piece.
At best, if Luffy learns to negate the consequences of using Gear 4, it could serve as an ability to fall back on when Gear 5 wears off. Furthermore, if Luffy manages to refine his use of advanced Haki in Elbaf, it could allow Gear 4 to compete with some of the stronger characters in the series. Unfortunately, for now, Gear 4 is not all that relevant in Luffy’s arsenal, and it may be a while before he finds a new purpose for it, if there is one still yet to be discovered.
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