Romance Dawn Arc

The Captain Morgan Arc (sometimes called the Romance Dawn arc) is the first story arc in the popular Japanese anime and manga series, One Piece. This arc is actually three stories in one. The first is the story of how Monkey D. Luffy gained his powers and tells us his driving force to become a pirate. The second story is his meeting with Coby and helping him escape from a female pirate named Alvida. In the final story Luffy tries to get the pirate hunter, Roronoa Zoro to join his crew while dealing with the marine Captain Axe-Hand Morgan. It is followed by the Buggy the Clown arc.

Romance Dawn: Luffy's beginnings
This saga starts off with a flashback. Gold Roger was about to get executed, before he dies he tells the crowds to go out and search for his treasure. With that he sparked the Golden age of pirates; countless pirates raise their flags and set off to find One Piece.

We then move 12 years later to Fuschia Village where we immediately meet Luffy (age 7 at the time), who tries to prove his worth to the Red Haired pirates by cutting himself in the cheek (which is the cause of his scar). Afterwards we get a more formal introduction to Luffy and his idol, Red-Haired Shanks, while his crew enjoy themselves in a bar owned by Luffy's friend, Makino. Shank's crew has used the village as a base of operations for a year of which during that time Luffy has taken an appreciation to the pirate life and tries to talk Shanks into taking him with them on their next departure. But Shanks continually refuses as it is too dangerous and instead teases Luffy on his inability to swim.

The mood shifts when mountain bandits enter the bar and their leader, Higuma, demands some rum. Makino tell him that the pirates had already finished off all the rum, though Shanks offers the last remaining bottle as an apology. Higuma smashes it over his head and insults him for being a pirate. Shanks ignores Higuma and starts to clean up the mess. This only serves to anger Higuma and causes him to break more bottles. With one final insult, Higuma and his bandits leave. After they are gone, Shanks and his crew laugh at what had just occurred, though Luffy thinks otherwise. He chides Shanks because he didn't fight back and then starts to leave. When Shanks grabs Luffy's arm to stop him, it suddenly stretches! That's when one of the crew members realizes that a fruit that was kept in a chest on the bar is gone. It doesn't take them long to figure out that Luffy had eaten it. Shanks then reveals the cause for panic: Luffy had eaten a Devil Fruit that will cause him to never be able to swim again!

The next day and Luffy starts to see an upside in eating the fruit. He begins to show off his rubber powers to some of the villagers, much to the chagrin of the Mayor of the village who doesn't like the idea of Luffy becoming a pirate. Later, Luffy visits Makino and once again expresses his disappointment at Shanks not fighting back the day before. Next we see Higuma and his bandits enter the bar.

The story shifts ahead a bit when Makino runs to the mayor for help because Luffy had upset the bandits and they were beating him up. After couple of more poundings, Higuma goes to finish Luffy off. The mayor tries to apologize for Luffy's action and offers money for his safety. But Higuma refuses and proceeds to kill Luffy anyway. Shanks returns and demands he let Luffy go. Higuma laughs at Shanks and sends his men to kill him as well. Instead, Shanks' first mate easily takes care of Higuma's thugs. When Shanks again demands that he let Luffy go, Higuma throws a smoke bomb, grabs Luffy, and escapes. Shanks starts panicking, but his first mate notices something...

Higuma sails a boat away from the town claiming a perfect getaway because no one suspects a bandit would flee to the ocean. Far from land, Higuma throws Luffy into the water and (true to the myth of the devil fruit), Luffy can't swim. A flashback shows us that when Higuma reentered the bar, he immediately started badmouthing Shanks, to which Luffy takes offense and screams for them to take back their words. Back in the present, Higuma laughs at Luffy's struggle but fails to notice the giant sea monster creeping up on him - until it is too late and he is eaten in one bite. The monster then sets his sights on Luffy, but Shanks pulls him away just in time and, with a very menacing expression on his face, tells the sea monster to leave. The monster leaves and Shanks tries to calm down a sobbing Luffy. Luffy points out that his left arm has been chomped off. Shanks tells him it's just a small price to pay for saving him.

Some time later, Shank's crew prepares to leave the village for the last time, and Luffy comes to say his goodbyes. When asked if he is disappointed, Luffy replies he is, but won't ask to join and that he will be a pirate on his own. Shanks teases him again and Luffy screams that he will be a better pirate than him - that he will be the Pirate King. Upon hearing this, Shanks gives Luffy his favorite straw hat and make him promise that he will return it someday when they meet again. Afterwards, Shanks and his crew leave the village.

Ten years pass and Luffy, now a teenager (17), is old enough to leave on his own. As Luffy sails away from his village, he runs into the sea monster again. This time, Luffy is ready and punches the monster with a Gomu Gomu no Pistol, instantly knocking it out. Luffy once again claims that he will become the Pirate King!

Coby and Alvida
The next act in the arc finds Luffy being sucked into a whirlpool but rescued by a pirate crew when they find him in a barrel (which he jumped into at the last second). Their captain, an ugly and fat woman named Alvida, barges in after their discovery, thinking that they're drinking behind her back. But the crewmates put the blame on their cabin boy, Coby.

Meanwhile in some woods not far from the ship, Luffy gets acquainted with Coby, who turns out to be quite the coward and only became a cabin boy because he got on the wrong ship while out fishing and it was the only way to spare his life. Coby also reveals he wants to be a Marine, but feels this goal is out of his reach. However when Luffy tells Coby of his dream and his willingness to do it or die trying, Coby starts to get inspired. Which turns out to be good timing as Alvida finds the two and barks at Coby to say who the prettiest person in the world (something she makes all her crew do). At first Coby starts to do as told, but remembering Luffy's words, he blurts out that Alvida's the ugliest hag in the sea!

This, of course, angers Alvida and she goes to kill Coby with her iron mace (her signature weapon). Luffy pushes him back and takes the blow, taking no damage as his rubber body absorbs the impact. He then retaliates by hitting Alvida with a Gomu Gomu no Pistol, knocking her out with one punch. He then demands to the rest of her crew to give Coby a dingy so he can fulfill his dream of joining the marines.

The crew does so and the two sail off with Luffy wondering if he can get a famed pirate hunter named Roranoa Zoro to join his crew though Coby thinks it'll never happen.

Captain Morgan
The third and final act of the Captain Morgan arc sees Luffy and Coby arriving in Shelltown that is home to a local Marine base. While stopping at a café to eat, the two talk about Zoro and Captain Morgan, which make the residents a little jumpy when their names are mentioned and gives Coby a bad feeling.

The two boys then head for the Marine base where they see the pirate hunter Zoro tied to a post. Zoro tries to get the two to untie him which Luffy is all for and Coby of course is against. Before the two can make their decision, a girl (to be known as Rika) climbs over the gate and goes to Zoro, offering him some rice balls. He refuses and tries to send her away, but a man in a tacky outfit with marines behind him approaches. He is Helmeppo, Captain Morgan’s spoiled son. Helmeppo swipes Rika’s rice balls and eat them, only to spit them out and complain they have too much sugar (whereas you originally season them with salt). He stomps them into dirt right before her eyes before ordering one of his men to literally throw Rika out, but luckily she is caught by Luffy.

Helmeppo then talks with Zoro where we find out that if Zoro can survive a month at the stake with no food, Helmeppo promises he’ll let him go. After Helmeppo and his guards leave, Luffy confronts Zoro and ask him to join his crew. Zoro initially turns him down, but before Luffy leaves. Zoro asks him to feed him the now heavily dirtied rice balls. After he eats it, he tells Luffy to tell Rika that they were delicious. To which Luffy does relay it to her, back in town, giving Coby a sense that Zoro can’t really be all bad.

Rika then tell Luffy and Coby that Zoro was thrown in prison for protecting her from a mean dog of Helmeppo's that was attacking her and the town. She also reveals that Morgan is the true menace to the island. Helmeppo happens to stroll into town at that very moment, bragging that he’ll put Zoro to death in three days. When Luffy confronts him on his promise, Helmeppo admits he was lying to which he receives a punch in the face from Luffy once the truth is known.

The townspeople start to panic as Helmeppo threatens to tell his dad what happened. Luffy, of course, isn’t worried and heads back to the base. In the base, Helmeppo bursts into his father's quarters, yelling he wants him to kill someone. On the marine ground, Luffy confronts Zoro again and makes a rather unfair deal with the swordsman, Luffy will get Zoro’s sword from the base. But if Zoro wants them back, he has to join the crew. Luffy then heads for the fortress while Zoro thinks he's a pretty dumb pirate.

At the top of the fortress, the marines are preparing to raise a newly finished statue of Captain Morgan, whom we are finally introduced to. He smacks then chides his son for his whining. Then he shows his cruel side when kills a lieutenant for not following his orders to search for and kill Rika. As the men begin to raise the statue, Luffy uses his rocket move to reach the top of the fortress. But overshoots and grabs onto the statue to stop himself, pulling the statue to the edge of the fortress and breaking it in half. Needless to say, Morgan is outraged and orders his men to kill Luffy, who ignores them and grabs Helmeppo before running into the base. On ground level, Coby trying to untie Zoro while asking him join Luffy and stop Morgan. Before he can finish his task, he is shot.

In the base, Luffy trying to get Helmeppo to tell him where Zoro’s swords are. He uses the man as a shield when he runs into marines. Back on ground level, we see Coby only been hit by in the arm. When Zoro tries to tell him to escape, Coby reveals Morgan's true intention of killing him. Morgan then appears before the two with a firing squad in tow. Back with Luffy he finds Zoro's sword but notices both his friends about to be killed. As the squad prepares to fire, Zoro reflects on his past where he was younger and met a girl name Kuina who he couldn’t beat in a duel, despite him being the strongest in his class.

One night, he challenges Kuina to a fight with real swords, which results in his 2001th loss against her. However Kuina reveals that she’ll get weaker when she grows older and can’t become a true swordsman. Zoro convinces her otherwise and makes her promise that one of them will someday become the greatest sword fighter in the world. Sadly, Kuina dies the next day from falling down some stairs, prompting Zoro to take it upon himself to keep their promise. Back in the present, Morgan tell the squad to fire, but Luffy jumps in front of the two,taking the bullets and then bouncing them right back at the marines. He then asks Zoro one more time to join his crew to which, under the circumstances, Zoro accepts.

Luffy then unties him just as the marines are bearing down on them with their swords. Surprisingly Zoro hold them all off with his Santoryu (three sword) style. He then pledges his loyalty to Luffy though he threaten to make Luffy commit suicide if he interferes with Zoro's dream. Luffy accepts his terms then takes care of the Marines with a Gomu Gomu No Whip (a stretching leg sweep.) Morgan then confronts Luffy afterward with his Ax-arm but the fight turns out to be very one-sided as Luffy keeps hitting Morgan without taking a blow himself.

Helmeppo stops the fight when he shows that he holding Coby hostage with pistol to his head. Coby however tells Luffy to not to worry about him and defeat the captain. Morgan rises over with his axe ready to bring fatal blow as Luffy hits Helemppo with a Gomu Gomu Pistol, but Zoro stops Morgan at the last second. The marines soon rejoice after their defeat as Captain Morgan’s tyranny is finally over.

Later Luffy, Zoro, and Coby are rewarded with a dinner at Rika’s house. As the three discuss their future plans, a Marine lieutenant named Ripper confronts the three, telling Luffy and Zoro that they have to leave since they're pirates, despite having saved them, though Ripper points out that he'll not report them to headquarters to repay the favor he owes them. When this issue is brought up with Coby (because of his cabin boy background), Luffy starts to reveal his past to which Coby socks him the face. The two start to fight until the lieutenant orders Luffy to leave. Coby realizes Luffy helped him out once again and comes to the realization that he must start standing up for himself. He proclaims to the weary lieutenant that he's no pirate and that he’ll be a Marine. Which is enough to get him accepted.

As Luffy and Zoro prepared to leave town, Coby catches up with them and salutes the two followed by the rest of the Marine base. Luffy tells Coby they’ll meet again someday as he and Zoro ride off to continue their adventure, bringing a close to the Captain Morgan arc.

Manga-to-Anime Changes
Cf Manga and Anime Differences