When we talk about the cutest member of the Straw Hat Pirates, it’s definitely not Sanji screaming ‘Robin Shuwan’ or ‘Nami Chuwan,’ but it’s their ship’s doctor Chopper. Tony Tony Chopper might be one of the most adorable (and interesting) characters in One Piece, but he is also at the center of one of the funniest running jokes in the entire franchise, that how the world keeps mistaking him for the Straw Hats’ ship pet. And honestly, if you have watched the series long enough, it’s easy to see why this confusion refuses to go away.
We know Chopper is the crew’s doctor, who is a reindeer. He ate the Hito Hito no Mi devil fruit and is a fully functioning member of the team… but to pretty much everyone outside the crew, he looks like a marshmallow-sized mascot who loves cotton candy and wandered on board by accident (or was taken in as an emergency food for the crew as per Sanji).
The sweetest doctor that world keeps underestimating
It is understandable why a lot of this misunderstanding comes from, and honestly, it is primarily because of his adorable Brain Point form, which he loves to stay in. He is so small, round, and fuzzy that even characters inside the story treat him like a baby. Everyone holds him and treats him with utmost care; even Ussop says, “Where is Chopper?”
Oda originally drew Chopper with a more animal-like design, but as fans kept insisting how adorable he was, his look shifted into a chibi-style ‘tanuki’ with bigger eyes, a smaller muzzle, and a whole lot of plush-toy form that, when he runs and jumps on someone’s arms, they can just wrap him up.
So when the Marines see him in this form, they don’t think “competent doctor” or “Zoan fighter.” They think “pet tanuki.” Never mind the fact that he is a reindeer; the world just collectively decided he must be some kind of raccoon-dog of the sheep.
But that is not all, because this confusion got even worse after Enies Lobby. If you guys remember, while the rest of the crew earned massive bounties, Chopper got only 50 berries, with his image eating a cotton candy. For context, that’s less than the price of a snack in the One Piece world.
The World Government basically assumed him as the Straw Hats’ emotional-support animal, but at the same timeline, Chopper turned into a Kaiju-sized beast after consuming way too many rumble balls and created havoc for both CP9 members as well as for his own crewmates, as he had no control. And that terrified even the crew at one point. But the Marines never connected the dots that the fluffy raccoon-thing and the towering muscle monster were the same guy.
Chopper’s dream that proves he’s no pet
Audiences and fans know that even Chopper’s history doesn’t help in this either. He grew up on Drum Island, trained under Doctors Hiriluk and Kureha, and left determined to become a doctor who could cure any disease in the world. His goal is noble, his intelligence is unmatched, and his medical knowledge has saved the crew repeatedly, including people who need treatment in general.
In Wano, when Queen creates a mess by releasing a virus that turns everyone into Ice Oni, Chopper makes sure to treat everyone without any bias, enemy or friend. But the world rarely sees him in these moments of brilliance. Instead, they see the tiny reindeer with a fuzzy pink hat and a blue nose who says “baka” whenever someone compliments him.
The tanuki confusion is another long-running joke. No matter where the crew goes, someone points at him and goes, “Look, a raccoon!” Even his human-form Heavy Point gets mislabeled. Sometimes as a gorilla, sometimes as a yeti. We honestly feel bad for him because the poor guy cannot catch a break.
What’s even funnier is that Chopper takes it personally every single time. He wants respect, he wants recognition, and he definitely does not want to be categorized as Luffy’s furry ship pet. So while his bounty has slowly increased, 100 berries after Dressrosa and 1,000 after Onigashima, the world still hasn’t fully caught on.
And honestly, that’s part of his character if we think deeply about it. Chopper may be misunderstood by the world, but we know him as one of the bravest, kindest, and most essential members of the Straw Hat Pirates. Even though he is smart, he is the doctor, but we can’t deny that he is the youngest of them all, a baby reindeer who walks on his two toes that make squeaky noises and is adored by everyone.
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