Ryokugyu (Green Bull) | May, 2018
Is This New Admiral Already a Joke… or a Setup?
A new Admiral finally appears — and the first thing we learn is that he hasn’t eaten in three years.
Is this meant to signal overwhelming power… or instant comic relief?
Japanese fans didn’t hold back, and their reactions quickly spiraled far beyond food jokes.
First Impressions: “He Feels Weak Already”
399: Anonymous Pirate
>>1
Cows are always jobbers.
Honestly, there’s some truth to that.
2: Anonymous Pirate
“Ryokugyu” is just hard to say.
7: Anonymous Pirate
This dude is a straight-up gag character.
9: Anonymous Pirate
If it was an existing character getting promoted, fine.
But this?
26: Anonymous Pirate
Green sounds weak.
Cow sounds weak.
37: Anonymous Pirate
They’re supposed to be the three primary colors though.
38: Anonymous Pirate
Dog, pheasant, monkey were too perfect.
Anything new just feels like a downgrade.
That trio basically was the Three Admirals.
86: Anonymous Pirate
Still kinda hype though, not gonna lie.
333: Anonymous Pirate
He’s turning into a reaction-face comedian.
348: Anonymous Pirate
Looks like he’s gonna go bald from stress.
Middle management is rough.
108: Anonymous Pirate
>>86
Fujitora’s actually really solid.
Akainu:
“Your selfish sense of justice has completely disgraced the Marines!!!”
Fujitora:
“If that ‘honor’ of justice is so easily crushed, then you might as well keep it tucked in your pocket!!!
Any trust that falls apart just from admitting a mistake wasn’t worth having in the first place!!!!”
Naming, Motifs, and Animal Symbolism
19: Anonymous Pirate
They’re all based on Japanese actors.
Akainu → Bunta Sugawara
Aokiji → Yusaku Matsuda
Kizaru → Kunie Tanaka
Fujitora → Shintaro Katsu
155: Anonymous Pirate
It’s not “Ryokugyu.”
It should be “Midori-ushi.”
This is Oda’s mistake.
278: Anonymous Pirate
We thought it was Momotaro with dog, monkey, pheasant.
But then tiger and cow got added, so now it’s zodiac-based.
Cow and tiger point to the northeast (the demon gate).
Opposite is sheep and monkey.
The only old admiral still around is monkey.
So a sheep admiral is probably coming.
The gate’s almost complete.
Power Balance and Admiral Fatigue
31: Anonymous Pirate
So was this guy recruited like the Warlords or what?
208: Anonymous Pirate
>>31
Probably drafted.
Fujitora mentioned world conscription too.
69: Anonymous Pirate
At this point, unless Aokiji joins the crew,
the protagonists can’t beat anyone.
171: Anonymous Pirate
Aokiji still has the biggest top-tier aura.
205: Anonymous Pirate
Akainu’s been meme’d so hard he doesn’t even feel strong anymore.
253: Anonymous Pirate
The balance of the three admirals was perfect.
262: Anonymous Pirate
>>253
Their leg-crossing poses overlap too much though.
Kizaru needs to read the room.
254: Anonymous Pirate
Current Coby can use Haki now.
Some Logia scrub won’t cut it.
Lore, Theories, and Meta Complaints
61: Anonymous Pirate
Oda’s really good at borrowing ideas from everywhere.
141: Anonymous Pirate
What’s this “legend hidden in the world” supposed to be?
Ancient weapons?
257: Anonymous Pirate
At this point, anything goes in One Piece.
You can make string clones that talk.
285: Anonymous Pirate
>>257
The power creep is wild.
Hobby-Hobby messing with memories already felt off.
274: Anonymous Pirate
What’s the blue guy even doing now?
I don’t even remember his last appearance.
287: Anonymous Pirate
>>274
Working with Blackbeard on something.
351: Anonymous Pirate
Why does Kong, who’s supposedly the top guy,
never get talked about?
447: Anonymous Pirate
Is Kizaru not an Admiral anymore?
So it’s Akainu, Fujitora, Ryokugyu now?
455: Anonymous Pirate
>>447
Akainu got promoted to Fleet Admiral.
He’s in the Sengoku slot now.
488: Anonymous Pirate
>>455
Then what’s Sengoku doing now?
544: Anonymous Pirate
>>488
He’s just an old dude munching rice crackers and doing nothing.
Completely Off-Rail Takes
109: Anonymous Pirate
They should’ve just brought back an awakened Magellan.
Too good a character to waste.
112: Anonymous Pirate
>>109
Doesn’t work.
He’d be useless against Luffy and turn into Enel 2.0.
452: Anonymous Pirate
They should recruit Carrot.
She ranked high in the English popularity polls.
459: Anonymous Pirate
>>452
Foreigners’ bone fetish is insane.
I like it too though.
276: Anonymous Pirate
A plant human?
That’s hilarious.
👉 Why Japanese Fans Think This Way
Japanese readers judge Admirals less by stated power and more by aura.
The original trio felt mythic, stable, and complete.
Anything new is measured against that emotional benchmark — not logic.
👉 When Power Is Introduced as a Joke, the Aura Is Already Gone
Ryokugyu’s “three years without eating” wasn’t read as hype.
It was read as comedy, stress, and middle-management misery.
For Japanese fans, that tone clash matters more than feats —
and first impressions, once set, are brutal to undo.
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