Well, not the Top ones. I can't ever choose my Top ones. These scenes are the ones I have on top of my mind to talk about today:
Article Contains HEAVY SPOILERS
I chose scenes that make me tear up. Many of the other scenes have bigger emotional impact over the ones in this list. Many deaths and flashbacks deserving to be here aren't included because the ones who hit me the most are the ones I didn't expect to hit me even when I knew they will happen.
One Piece Tear-jerker Scenes
5. Koala Introduction (Ch.622)
The whole Fishman Island flashback is amazing, but the part that makes me the most unsettled is Koala introduction.
A young girl who was sold to the lowest beings on earth as a slave. The experience destroyed her. So much that even after she was saved, she still had the empty smile, and overly submissive thinking from her slave days.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'll never cry. Please don't kill me" - Koala
Seeing her interact with Fishmen who inherently hate humans and how she's smiling despite being afraid of them is heartbreaking. When their leader Fisher Tiger burn their Sun Pirates symbol in her body and threw away his gun. Only then she felt safe enough to cry.
The moment she cried, is one of the best moment in which I didn't know if my tears were happy or sad ones.
4. Death of Corazon (Ch.767)
Well, let's say he had a messed up brother...
Corazon is one of my favorite characters in ONE PIECE because he's genuinely a good guy. One of the few good marines and he's lifelong dream is to save the world from the evils of his brother. All his bad treatment of Law in the beginning was out of love and to make him choose another path.
He loved Law so much that he decided to die for him.
What made me tear up is that while he was dying, Corazon tried to stay conscious as long as possible. As soon as he loses his consciousness, his power to make Law's voice silent will stop working.
Then we see law crying without a sound while getting away from Donqixote Family. The moment the boy hears his own voice, he knows for sure that his savior had died.
GOD!! I'm tearing up just from writing this!!!
3. Usopp Fighting Luffy (Ch332-333)
Everything about this section of the story is sad... Robin disappeared. They learned that the ship merry couldn't be saved. When Usopp heard the news he questioned Luffy's decision of leaving the ship.
Usopp fought his captain for the ownership of Going Merry, and after the most serious fight Ussop ever had, (and probably fight that's the most painful fights in the whole series,) he lost.
Luffy gave him Merry and told him to do whatever he want... What makes me tear up is the experssions on everyone's faces. Every one is in despair during and after this fight. The close-up of Luffy crying as he won, says more than anything anyone could say.
2. The Total Annihilation of Straw Hat Crew (Ch.340)
I first watched ONE PIECE just after the crew left Fishman Island, so I knew that there will be a time skip at some point. I also knew that Straw Hats will be separated. *I didn't know the events that would lead to it will hit this much!
When I watched Sabaody Archipelago Arc, after many amazing moments including The. Best. Punch. In all of One Piece, things go south for the Straw Hats, fighting enemies far stronger than them in what amount to a losing battle.
Then Kuma, one of the Warlords they fought and couldn't defeat before comes. He makes Luffy friends disappear one by one in front of him. Going out of his way to keep him for last.
I knew they were being saved, as without Kuma separating them, they were going to die at that place. It was still painful to see the despair in the Straw Hats faces as they watch their friends disappear in front of them. The realization that the same is going to happen to them too.
The ones who made me tear up are Nami and Robin. Nami disappeared while trying to say "Luffy Help me." When she said that before, he destroyed an unstoppable force to save her life. Now he couldn't do anything!
In Robin's case. After all the lengths she's been through to finally find a group she belongs to. She saw everyone disappearing in front of her, leaving only her captain after her turn. In short: She must've realized that she has no place to belong to again, and that's painful!
When Luffy realized he couldn't save even a single one... That's one of the most painful wake-up calls Luffy needed!
What makes this much worse is that this is only the beginning of a long streak of suffering for him. Only because he punched one guy without listening to warnings!
1. Death of Going Merry (Ch.430)
What gets me is that ONE PIECE is the only series that managed to make me this emotional over a vehicle! Merry basically became a full-fledged character by then, and that's the point!
The ship: Going Merry somehow found her way to Enes Lobby. She saved the Straw Hats by taking them away from the island, using its small size to navigate the sea by herself.
After a fight that left all of them exhausted. Just when everyone thought they were all saved, Merry started to break. She used her last strength to save them and her time has come.
"Merry. The bottom of the sea is dark and lonely, we'll see you off here." -- Luffy
As the crew members gave her a viking funeral, the ship spoke:
"I'm sorry. I wanted to carry you, just a little bit further. I wanted to go on more adventures with you but... ...But I was happy. Thank you, for taking a good care for me until now. I was... Really... Happy."
That's another scene I'm tearing up, just writing about it for this article...
The Series Keeps On Delivering
That was a nostalgic, a bit painful trip in my memory. Loved watching all the Youtube videos and Scenes lists in my research for this article. There are many other moments that tear me up. This list may change after I rewatch/reread the series again.
As for now I wish all of you a good day/night. Enjoy the small moments in life!