With the Wano arc of One Piece coming to an end, fans are theorizing and speculating what awaits them in the last arc of the long-running, beloved series. The main debate over the final arc stems from the two factions that fans believe will pose the final threat to the Straw Hat Pirates. These two factions are the Blackbeard Pirates and the World Government. Each is certainly a valid and reasonable choice, and there are powerful arguments to be made in either case. Ultimately, however, the World Government makes the most sense as the final antagonistic group standing between Luffy and the One Piece.
Blackbeard and the World Government have been looming threats, with Blackbeard pragmatically waiting for his chance to strike and with the mysterious and sinister knowledge the World Government holds. Blackbeard is indirectly responsible for the death of Luffy’s brother, Ace, and was the catalyst of the Marineford War.
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In contrast, the World Government were the ones who actually killed Ace and were significant contributors to the death of Edward Newgate, better known as Whitebeard. Beyond the War, the World Government has been a present and shadowy antagonist that fuels most of the non-pirate-on-pirate conflicts throughout the series. This is why the World Government, and not the Blackbeard Pirates deserves to be the final villains of One Piece.
The World Government Has Control in the One Piece World
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As their name suggests, the World Government holds authority almost everywhere on the One Piece planet. The New World, the second half of the Grand Line, is admittedly not strictly under their authority, with the Four Emperors of the Sea ruling that half of the ocean. However, this does not mean that the World Government doesn’t try. Following the time skip, the newly constructed World Government headquarters was built on the New World half of the Grand Line in an attempt to finally gain some serious footing in the previously restrictive territory.
The World Government controls more than just soldiers and civilians, though. Their efforts have restricted an entire century of history from being studied to the point where even the most remote knowledge is cause for immediate execution. Their obsession with maintaining power is reminiscent of 1984. Through their intervention, a vast majority of the mysteries in the series stem from, and as such, their defeat and the subsequent spilling of their secrets is something that fans have been anticipating for years. Waiting until the end for them to spill these secrets would be the better choice since it would keep audiences waiting in immense anticipation until the end.
Luffy is Currently on a Roll Defeating Emperors of the Sea
The Wano arc has all but concluded in the One Piece manga. Kaido, one of, if not the most fearsome of the Four Emperors, has been defeated by Luffy. Big Mom, another emperor, was also defeated by Trafalgar Law and Eustass Kidd. This means that discounting any new Emperors of the Sea who will inevitably arise in the coming chapters, the only two that remain are Blackbeard and Shanks. Speculating from a narrative standpoint, a confrontation with either one of them (or even between them) is coming soon.
Inserting the World Government (in its finality) between the Straw Hat’s battle(s) with the remaining Emperors of the Sea would make for a more awkward final battle with Blackbeard, one in which the stakes don’t feel nearly as high. In essence, the story stands to lose more than it stands to gain by interrupting the momentum Luffy has in taking down Emperors. One also cannot ignore the implications of Wano on the greater world of One Piece. Luffy is assuredly going to challenge Blackbeard sooner rather than later, as Blackbeard is his only remaining pirate competitor, Shanks aside.
The World Government is Responsible for Doing Wrong
There’s no overstating the tragic impact of the World Government’s authority on the vast population of the One Piece world. From allowing the nobles to use and abuse the population however they see fit to employing its military to silence researchers, the World Government has more than proven itself to be a wicked institution. But in order to make the argument that they are more deserving of being the finale’s antagonists, one need look no further than their impact on the members of the Straw Hats.
Jimbei, as a Fishman, has experienced severe institutional discrimination. His mentor, Fisher Tiger, was not only enslaved but later killed as a result of the actions of the World Government. Nico Robin is actively being pursued by the World Government as the only person left alive who knows the secrets of Ohara, the island of scholars. Nami’s life was made miserable by a lack of action taken by the World Government, by their letting Arlong loose in the East Blue. Luffy’s home was burned to the ground in an effort to appease the nobles of the World Government.
With all this in mind, our heroes, the Straw Hat Pirates, have collective, deep-seated grudges against the World Government, which would warrant a final showdown that will finally give them each closure.
