Laboon

Laboon is an extremely large whale (of comparable or greater size than the monsters in Calm Belt), native to West Blue, whom the Straw Hat Pirates encounter immediately after entering the Grand Line.

Appearance
Essentially, Laboon is a large black whale with many scars across his head where he has bashed himself against Reverse Mountain. His eye alone is much larger than the Going Merry. After meeting the Straw Hats, Laboon gains a badly drawn copy of their Jolly Roger across his scars.

Personality
Laboon is heavily emotional and surprisingly understanding for a whale. He can understand the human language and the motives behind people's actions. He has both the patience and loyalty of a good friend. He formed strong bonds with the Rumbar Pirates, Crocus (his caretaker), and the Straw Hat Pirates as well.

In his early years he was a happy little Island Whale who formed a strong bond with the Rumbar Pirates. However his happiness was shattered and he fell into a deep depression after he was told they had fled the Grand Line, leaving him behind. His strong will and determination was led by a blind ambition to see his friends again, clinging on to what little hope he had for their safety. However his efforts over the years have only led to further suffering due to his own self-inflicted injury and would have killed him if this had continued any longer by Crocus's observations.

Past Story
Over fifty years earlier, Laboon met the Rumbar Pirates after becoming lost and seperated from his pod. After they cheered him up by singing he continued to follow them. The crew grew attached to him because he was "cute". Eventually, while feeding him bait, Brook named him "Laboon". He was accepted as a crew member and even aided them when an attack left a few crew members having fallen overboard and no one else could help them.

Despite being a crew member, when the Rumbar Pirates decided to go to the Grand Line, they were forced to leave Laboon behind because he was just a baby. However Laboon refused to leave them and Yorki, their captain, ordered the others to ignore Laboon. When the pirates finally entered the Grand Line, to their horror they found that Laboon had followed them. After repairing their ship the crew finally bid farewell to Laboon, promising him they would return in two or three years time, after having traveled all the way around the Grand Line.

Waiting
Laboon patiently waited for them at Grand Line's entrance under the care of Crocus, who mans the Lighthouse that introduces travelers into the Grand Line. After many years passed by without the return of the Rumbar Pirates, Crocus decided to travel with the Jolly Roger Pirates to discover what happened to Laboon's crew. Upon his return, Crocus revealed to him that his friends had effectively abandoned him by fleeing the Grand Line through the Calm Belt. The old doctor had cared for Laboon ever since his friends left him and tried to make Laboon understand the situation. Although Laboon knew the truth about his friends, he refused to admit to himself that they were gone.

That night Laboon turned his head towards the mountain and slammed himself into it for the first time. Over the years that would pass, Laboon gained many scars on his head from slamming into Reverse Mountain. He believed that by doing this he could destroy the mountain and return to the West Blue where his friends would be waiting for him.

Present Story
After entering the Grand Line, Laboon was the first thing the Straw Hat Pirates saw. Launching the cannon in the hopes that it would slow them down, Luffy, instead, hit Laboon. After saving him from Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday who were trying to use Laboon for food, Crocus explained to Luffy why Laboon would slam his head into the Red Line.

Luffy, in an effort to give Laboon a renewed sense of hope, picked a fight with the whale by jamming the Going Merry's mast into the whale's head. After the battle (which Luffy called a draw), Luffy promised Laboon that he would return to see him, under the guise of wanting a rematch, moving Laboon to tears of joy. As a sign of this, Luffy paints the Straw Hat Jolly Roger on Laboon's head, commenting that the insignia will wash away if Laboon hits Reverse Mountain further. The Straw Hats depart, leaving behind two important new friends.

Relationship With Brook
Recently, Brook was discovered to have once been a member of Laboon's crew. It is revealed that Brook's crew had been wiped out during their journey, effectively leaving Brook the sole survivor due to the ability of the Yomi Yomi no Mi. Because of the promise Brook and the rest of his crew made to Laboon, Brook feels obligated to meet up with Laboon again in order to fulfill that promise. He feels that Laboon wouldn't forgive them for dying irresponsibly in the Grand Line. Later, when Brook finally joins the Straw Hat crew, Laboon is seen giving a triumphant roar.

Translation and Dub Issues
Originally, in the Japanese manga and anime, the appearance of Laboon is also the introduction of Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday, two Frontier Agents of Baroque Works who are responsible for bringing the Straw Hat Pirates to Whiskey Peak (Misty Peak in the English dub). However, the fight between Luffy and Laboon where Laboon is stabbed with Going Merry's mast was deemed to be too controversial and violent by 4Kids for American audiences, so Laboon was passed off as an iceberg that was effectively destroyed by Luffy. (In the July 2006 English issue of Shonen Jump, there is a page featuring upcoming One Piece cards; in this, he is called "Raboon," but his name remains "Laboon," in the manga itself.)

This missing "arc" was also significant in it was originally how Nami came to have a Log Pose, though this was also written around in the English anime. In the original, Nami found a Log Pose left by Mr.9 and Miss Wednesday, which Luffy destroyed. Crocus then gave them his Log Pose.

In the 4Kids version, the Log Pose (here called the "Grand Compass") was inside Usopp's pocket which was found when it fell out. Usopp had a "flashback" of his father explaining what the Log Pose was (the scene of Yasopp saying "I can shoot the antenna off of an ant" was used to mouth the words) where he apparently told his wife that Usopp would find this useful when he became a pirate. Nami and Sanji both then recalled information about the Log Pose and the Grand Line from their past mentors (just like with Yasopp, previous scenes were reused).

This situation also created a plot hole in the events concerning Brook. However, since 4Kids has canceled in One Piece and FUNimation has taken over, this plot hole doesn't matter much.