The most ridiculous ‘One Piece’ theory is starting to gain traction amid collective delusion

Warning: Spoilers for the ‘One Piece’ manga up to Chapter 1188.

The best ‘One Piece’ theories usually start with a questionable translation, a panel zoomed in so far that the pixels start begging for mercy, and the certainty that Eiichiro Oda has been hinting at something for thirty years that no one had noticed. The latest theory claims that Imu, the secret ruler of the World Government and a major threat in the series, might be a parrot. Not a character vaguely inspired by a bird, but Davy D. Jones’s former companion.

The idea began circulating widely in Korean communities before spreading to Reddit, X, and TikTok. At first glance, it seems like a whim that sprang up during a week without a new episode, but the problem is that fans have started to find connections. Some are reasonable. Others require turning a blind eye while the plot unfolds. And a few possess that touch of absurdity that fits perfectly within Oda’s universe.

The first clue is in the name. One of the Japanese terms used to refer to a parrot is “ōmu,” which is remarkably similar to “Imu” or the “Mu” that the character uses as a pronoun. His peculiar way of speaking also fits with an animal that has learned to communicate by repeating its owner’s words, although here we enter more slippery linguistic territory: “Mu” actually seems to function as a personal pronoun invented by Oda, not as a simple third-person reference.

A king locked in a cage

That’s where the party begins. Imu’s impossible crown could actually be a cockatoo’s crest; his eyes resemble the pupils of certain birds when they contract; his cape might conceal long feathers; and the flower room, surrounded by vertical structures, has been reinterpreted as a gigantic golden cage. Even the swords stuck around the Empty Throne could be likened to the sticks and objects that parrots play with.

The theory goes on to link Imu’s power to the board game Othello, Shakespeare’s tragedy, and the parrot Iago from *Aladdin*. It also turns Roger’s laughter upon discovering the truth about the world into something wonderfully literal: perhaps he arrived at Laugh Tale and discovered that humanity had been ruled for eight centuries by a pirate’s resentful pet.

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It’s probably just a series of coincidences. But in ‘One Piece’, where a ridiculous fruit ended up hiding a god, a deer joined a pirate crew after eating the Hito Hito no Mi fruit, and an elephant has been walking across the ocean for centuries, being too absurd has never been a reason to dismiss a theory.

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