When it comes to character diversity, not many shows come close to One Piece. The series has over a thousand chapters, so it is not surprising to see a multitude of different characters. Of course, it might be easy to draw new characters, but it is far more difficult to make sure that they offer something to progress the plot. Oda puts a lot of effort into making One Piece characters.
Oda also tries to give them different personalities and abilities to increase diversity.
However, it is nearly impossible to make everything about these characters unique. Things such as dreams and philosophies are common, and many characters share them, especially those in the Marines. The Marines have different ideologies about justice, which plays a huge role in their personalities. The one philosophy that is followed by most Marines is Absolute Justice.
What Is Absolute Justice?
Absolute Justice is a major tenet of the Marines. The followers of Absolute Justice believe that all evil must be eradicated from the world. They are prepared to go to any lengths to ensure that justice is served. In their quest for justice, these individuals do not hesitate to slay anyone who dares to obstruct them. They do not care about collateral damage either, which they have demonstrated multiple times throughout the series.
People who believe in Absolute Justice are of the opinion that if the goal is noble, the sacrifices do not matter. Naturally, the followers of this philosophy are not afraid to engage in immoral acts if they think it will eventually lead to justice. Considering the principles of Absolute Justice, one would think it wouldn’t be as popular, but it’s actually the complete opposite. Absolute Justice is followed by the majority of the Marines, which has led to some of the most horrible incidents in the series.
Why Is It Bad?
As previously stated, Absolute Justice is bad because it blinds people, and they can no longer discern between right and wrong. One of the best examples of Absolute Justice being dangerous is the Ohara incident. When the Buster Call was initiated on the island, the innocent citizens were evacuated via ship. The World Government only wanted to punish the scholars who broke the law by trying to decipher the Poneglyphs. As the ship carrying the natives of Ohara moved forward, it was blown to smithereens by a Marine warship. Aokiji, Saul, and Robin saw the ship being destroyed, and they were left completely speechless. It was later revealed that the person behind the attack was none other than Vice Admiral Akainu.
Another example of Absolute Justice causing the deaths of innocent people could be traced back to the time when the Marines were searching for the child of Gol D. Roger. The Marines didn’t want to let Roger’s bloodline continue, so they searched every nook and cranny for his child. While searching, they slaughtered numerous children and quite possibly their mothers as well. It may not be openly stated, but it is heavily implied to be the case. Otherwise, if the Marines were not killing babies, Rouge would not have been forced to carry Ace for twenty months.
Why Absolute Justice Needs To Be Stopped
It won’t be an overstatement to call the followers of Absolute Justice more dangerous than the pirates and all the other criminals combined. The regular people expect the pirates to be bad, so they can at least plan to defend themselves against them. When it comes to the Marines, people would never expect hostility from the Marines. So, if the Marines were to attack normal people, they would be completely unprepared. Furthermore, the supporters of Absolute Justice are willing to go as far as killing their fellow Marines. This was demonstrated during the Summit War, where Akainu killed a low-ranking Marine because he didn’t want to continue fighting. The Marines will bend the rules if the World Government asks them to, and the tragedy of Flevance is the perfect example. The Marines were used to keep all the citizens segregated, and later they were killed.
Absolute Justice is not only followed by the Marines; in fact, the Cipher Pols are ardent believers in it. Rob Lucci even took things up a notch and applied his own ideals to turn it into Evil Justice. Needless to say, Lucci is so fervently devoted to his beliefs that he has killed countless criminals and innocent people.
Given the events that have occurred as a result of Absolute Justice, it must be completely destroyed Before the series ends, the Marines will very likely crumble. Luffy, Dragon, and many other notable characters despise the Marines, and they will do everything in their power to ensure that they don’t bother anyone else ever again. It is also possible that the system of the Marines will see a complete overhaul, and the people in power will be kind and understanding, such as Koby, Smoker, Aokiji, and Fujitora. All these characters firmly believe in morality, and they don’t go out of their way to hurt other people. So, by replacing characters such as Akainu, Kong, and, Onigumo, the Marines will become more respectable, and dependent.
