Anime
Buggy's journey from clown to crime boss
Advertisement
Highlights
- Buggy the Clown surprises fans by going from a comic relief character to a powerful figure in One Piece lore.
- Despite his weak nature, Buggy commands loyalty and power, even becoming a Sea Warlord and Emperor.
- Teaming up with big names like Crocodile and Mihawk, Buggy sets his sights on One Piece, aiming to climb the ranks.
Buggy the Clown was introduced to the world of One piece as a literal pirate clown. As a comedic character and one of the first minor antagonists to be introduced in the series, few fans expected Buggy to be relevant to One piecestory after so many chapters and episodes. Surprisingly, Buggy continued to place himself in positions that demand great authority.
Even among regular pirate captains, Buggy lacks the stamina expected of a pirate captain, and he's a former member of the Roger Pirates. Interestingly, everything he's achieved has been a result of his comical strategies of trying to escape and save himself; however, it seems fate and Eiichiro Oda have other plans, as his comical tactics always lead him to greater heights, rather than to the rank of nameless pirate.

Related
One Piece: What is Buggy's true purpose?
Buggy pretends to be interested only in money and power, but there seems to be more to his character than just that.
The birth of Buggy's ambition
Why and how did he become a pirate?
As a child, Buggy apprenticed with Shanks on Gol D. Roger's crew. It's unclear how or what led him to become a member of Roger's crew. However, Buggy was always fascinated by the pirates' physical treasure (gold). Although he aspired to fight for the title of Pirate King, Buggy spent many years living as a small-time pirate, his connection to Roger being his only form of recognition. During their time on Roger's crew, Buggy and Shanks spent many years together, to the point where they were considered close.
However, Buggy always viewed Shanks in a competitive light and blamed him for making him consume the Bara Bara no Mi. After the Roger Pirates disbanded, Buggy declined Shanks's invitation to join his crew and started his own.
Due to his unimpressive skills, Buggy never seriously competed with the great pirates in their search for the One Piece, instead focusing on obtaining treasure. Comically, his obsession with treasure has been used to manipulate him several times, as seen with Shanks. Furthermore, despite his innate cowardly and cowardly nature, Buggy is willing to take rash actions, all for the sake of treasure, as seen with him following Luffy into the depths of Impel Down because he was promised an armband of Captain John's that Luffy wore, which supposedly contained a treasure map.
Buggy's rise to power
Buggy's leadership style and the loyalty he demands
Buggy's rise to power is one of the most surprising and unconvincing truths in the world. One pieceFrom a backward pirate to a Warlord of the Sea and eventually a Sea Emperor, Buggy has risen to various levels of power and authority in the series. However, his Devil Fruit usage has seemingly not advanced at all compared to when he was first introduced.
After his encounter with Luffy during the Orange Town and Loguetown arc, Buggy was captured by the Marines and sent to Impel Down. As fate would have it, Buggy was rescued by Luffy, and during his escapades, Buggy gained the loyalty of several Impel Down inmates, whom he brought to Marineford. Because of the loyalty of many dangerous Impel Down inmates, Buggy earned a place as one of the warlords of the sea.
As Warlord of the Sea, Buggy borrowed money from Sir Crocodile to start his business, Buggy Delivery. However, after exposing the warlord system, Crocodile came after his money, and since Buggy was a real clown, he had nothing to offer, and Crocodile almost sold him into slavery.
In the hands of Crocodile and Mihawk, the founders of the Cross Guild, Buggy's outcome was uncertain. However, his subordinates published a poster depicting Buggy as the leader of the Cross Guild, with Mihawk and Crocodile portrayed as his subordinates. Having the notorious Crocodile and Mihawk, the world's strongest swordsman, said to be equal to Shanks, the current Emperor of the Sea, Buggy having these two subordinates makes him eligible to become emperor, if this were true.
Looking back at Buggy's life, his greatest strength is undoubtedly his sheer luck. Even Luffy wouldn't be guaranteed to survive the many trials Buggy endures, given how weak Buggy is. However, Buggy's growing notoriety is one of the series' running jokes, and it makes many wonder if Oda has a plan for him.

Related
One Piece: Why Buggy Deserves More Credit
Buggy is often treated as a funny character, but does the “Genius Jester” deserve more credit than he actually gets?
The Formation of the Crusader Guild
Partnering with big names gives the clown some advantage
As Emperor of the Sea, Buggy is supposedly one of the strongest pirate captains in the series. However, fans know the truth about his weak and cowardly nature. Despite all his acclaim, Buggy would not hesitate to flee, leaving behind his trusted crew if his life were in danger.
However, being a Sea Emperor and 'teaming up' with Crocodile and Mihawk gave the clown some leverage and courage when declaring that they would go after One Piece, as the Cross Guild possessed the manpower to do so. This shows that, despite his weakness, Buggy has always coveted becoming the Pirate King, and now that he has the opportunity, he would like to seize it. With the formation of the Cross Guild, the fortunes of Buggy, his many subordinates from Impel Down, and Crocodile and Mihawk, the Cross Guild has become a powerful adversary for anyone they target.
Potential strategy to climb the One Piece ladder
How can Buggy contribute to the One Piece lore?
Although Buggy remains weak, he possesses tremendous luck that propels him to greater heights no matter what he does. Furthermore, with his new "allies" and position, many would think twice before advancing. the Kingpin who became a clownWith Buggy now setting his sights on One Piece, Oda may have plans for him that fans can't yet imagine. After all, despite remaining cowardly, Buggy the Clown went from a bounty of 15 million berries to a whopping 3.189 million.
One piece is available for streaming on Crunchy Roll.

A Piece (1999)
- Studio
- Toei Animation
- The Creator
- Eiichiro Oda
- Number of episodes
- 1082+