Monkey D. Luffy is the main character of the One Piece manga and anime. He is an incredibly powerful character who wishes to become the new Pirate King by finding Gol D. Roger’s hidden One Piece treasure. The primary source of his powers is the Gomu Gomu no Mi, i.e., the Gum-Gum Devil Fruit whose role in the story has expanded in the most recent developments, but that is not the topic of this article. In this article, we are going to talk about Luffy’s principal powers that he obtained when he first used his Gomu Gomu technique in the debut chapter (and episode) of One Piece.
And while Gear 1 doesn’t technically exist, the term would signify Luffy’s main powers, the basic set of techniques he had after eating the Gomu Gomu no Mi. He first showed one of these techniques in Chapter 1 and Episode 1 of the One Piece manga and anime, respectively, when he used the Gomu Gomu no Pistol, his signature attack.
The rest of this article is actually going to be a brief outlook of the evolution of Luffy’s basic powers. We are going to give you a technique-by-technique guide to Luffy’s basic powers and tell you in which episode the techniques debuted. We’re only going to tell you about the first time that Luffy accesses each Gear, since each Gear has a lot of different techniques that Luffy has accessed over time.
In which episode does Luffy first use Gear 1?
As we have explained, Gear 1 technically doesn’t exist. Strictly speaking, Gear 1 would encompass Luffy’s basic powers abilities, those he obtained after consuming the Gomu Gomu no Mi as a child. Since that one was shown in a later flashback sequence, the first time we actually see Luffy use one of his techniques is in Chapter 1 of the manga and, also, Episode 1 of the anime series; in both instances, he used the Gomu Gomu no Pistol technique.
As for Luffy’s other gears, they have been developed over time in different situations.
How does Luffy use Gear 1 techniques?
In this section, we are going to bring you an overview of Luffy’s primary Gear 1 techniques and tell you how each of them is used:
- Gomu Gomu no Pistol: Luffy stretches out his arm at high speed, increasing his strength to the point of comparing the punch with a shot, it is his characteristic technique. The name of this technique comes from the time Luffy told Shanks that his fist was as powerful as a gun. This technique is used successfully for the first time when Luffy faces the Lord of the Coast in the manga and Alvida in the anime.
- Gomu Gomu no Pistol Shot: Starts by using gomu gomu no pistol, and then , Luffy “unsettles” his own arm so that the punch lands repeatedly. This technique was first seen when he doused his body with water to face Crocodile.
- Gomu Gomu no Rocket: Luffy stretches out his arms to gain momentum so he can make a big jump, then launches himself at the enemies with momentum. This technique is usually used to travel long distances. This technique was first used by Luffy when he was a child as he was fighting alongside Ace and Sabo against the king of Mount Colubo, a giant tiger. Ace was the one who baptized this technique when he saw how Luffy launched himself against the tiger. Luffy has no control after launching as it is impossible for him to change direction mid-flight, the only thing he can do is brake before falling to the ground again. This technique was first seen in the manga when Luffy was trying to get to the top of the Marine base in Shells Town and in the anime, it was first used against the Alvida Pirates. This technique is also capable of being devastating, as shown when Luffy fought Dorry.
- Gomu Gomu no Bazooka: Luffy stretches his arms back and lets them fly forward at high speed to blow the enemy away with his palms. The first time he does the attack is to finish off Buggy.
- Gomu Gomu no Gatling: Luffy uses his ability to stretch to deliver consecutive punches with such speed and force that it creates the illusion that he has multiple arms that makes the technique look like a submachine gun, though if he faces an opponent fast enough, such as Enel, Rob Lucci, or Usopp, he can be parried. This technique was first seen used against a group of the Black Cat Pirates after he was accidentally hypnotized by Jango.
- Gomu Gomu no Bullet: Luffy stretches his arm out behind him while running towards his target, and when he is at a very close range he hits them with a very powerful punch capable of sending the target flying. This technique was first seen during his match against Don Krieg.
- Gomu Gomu no Bow Gun: Luffy grabs the enemy from behind and turns his torso vertically, then grabs his waist with his feet and turns again. to deliver a powerful blow that launches the enemy upwards. This technique was first used in combat against Wapol.
- Gomu Gomu no Rifle: It’s similar to Gomu Gomu no Bullet, but this time Luffy stretches his arm back while holding it. spins and finishes hitting the opponent at a very short distance, thus increasing the speed of the punch and its spin. This attack was first used against Enel.
- Gomu Gomu no Cannon: Luffy starts hitting with rapid punches to increase speed and timing as if using his typical Gomu Gomu no Gatling, and just when the blows begin to concentrate on a point and Luffy ends up hitting the target with both palms of his hands as in the case of his Gomu Gomu no Bazooka. This attack is so powerful that he is capable of destroying reinforced steel armor. When combined with Zoro’s santoryu he is able to break a wave as gigantic as the Aqua Laguna. This attack was first used against the Kairiki Destroyers of the Franky Family.