Monkey D Dragon

Monkey D. Dragon,[10] also known as the "Rebellious Dragon",[7] is the infamous Supreme Commander (総司令官, Sōshireikan?)[6] of the Revolutionary Army and one of its founding members, as well as formerly the captain of the Freedom Fighters.[11] He used to be part of the Marines but became disillusioned with the organization's outlook on justice;[4] this, along with the fallout from the Ohara Incident, sparked Dragon's desire to attempt to overthrow the World Government, with his endeavors ultimately causing him to be labeled the "World's Worst Criminal".[5]

Dragon is the father of Monkey D. Luffy and the son of Monkey D. Garp, having been born in the Goa Kingdom just like them.[2] He was also responsible for saving Sabo's life after the latter had almost drowned from a World Noble attack, eventually turning the boy into his second-in-command.

Dragon was first introduced in the Loguetown Arc, where he helped Luffy escape from Marine captain Smoker's clutches Dragon is a tall middle-aged man with spiky black hair with a widow's peak and a tattoo on the left side of his face, which is colored dark red in the anime and bright red in the manga. He has a bit of stubble on his chin. He is usually dressed in a long green cloak, underneath which he wears the orange garb of a revolutionary. He is most often seen sporting a grin. Only on rare occasions, such as at Roger's execution, has Dragon not been seen smiling.

At Gol D. Roger's execution, 24 years ago, Dragon did not have his tattoo or his stubble on his face.

After the timeskip, Dragon's hair has grown slightly longer, reaching down his back past his shoulder As the leader of the Revolutionary Army, Dragon is dedicated to dismantling the World Government and its corrupt nobility system that allows its World Nobles to oppress lower-class citizens as they please. He considers the corrupt nobility in his homeland of the Goa Kingdom to be the same problem on a smaller scale and was enraged when their self-serving actions caused an innocent noble boy like Sabo to denounce them.[12][13] When he rescued Sabo the next day from being attacked by a World Noble's ship, Dragon was shown with a powerful glare of anger on his face.[14]

Dragon is most often seen with a serious and grim expression while remaining focused on business at hand with little time for pleasure or relaxing. He prizes information and knowing his enemies, taking care to stay as informed as seasoned spy about world affairs and events, while educating his subordinates about relevant pieces as their missions allow. A realist at heart, Dragon knows his movement is small and almost insignificant compared to the power of the World Government and is quick to caution his subordinates against celebrating small victories given how much work is still to be done.[15] While his business-like view seems grim, he is an optimist, as he has been shown smiling when reflecting on the changing course of the world and shows particular amusement in his son Luffy's role in it as a pirate.[16] Dragon's personal life and history are written in near invisible ink even to his subordinates and confidantes, as he did not tell anyone in the Revolutionary Army that he was Garp's son or Luffy's father. Ivankov was once stopped stone cold when he attempted to ask if Dragon had any family out in the world.[17] When the news of his family ties came out following the Summit War of Marineford, Dragon noted that it would help his subordinates to see him as more human rather than the intimidating figure he has always been.[18]

Dragon has shown himself to have a vast amount of empathy, with an island sized amount of compassion for those oppressed by the World Government's system. He checked to see if a young Sabo was all right after seeing him be thrown to the ground and did not hesitate to take his denouncement of the Goa Kingdom's nobles extremely seriously.[12] He is active in seeking out people oppressed by the World Government and isn't shy about inviting them to join his fight for freedom, though he will not force them to.[13] He also cares about the members and associates of his army even if they are not around for long, as shown when he asked Koala if Nico Robin was doing well.[15] When he was under the impression that Portgas D. Ace was Dragon's son, Emporio Ivankov expected that Dragon would go to Marineford to save Ace,[17] showing that Dragon holds love and care towards his family and possibly his son, Luffy, despite not being involved in his childhood.

Dragon is protective of his allies and the innocent and is almost as unforgiving as Sakazuki to those he considers having done wrong to them, stating he would not forgive Sabo if he really had killed Nefertari Cobra during the Levely no matter the reason, as killing regular royals is not part of the Revolutionary Army's goals. While he is not shy about using violence to achieve his aims, Dragon does not appear to enjoy it or go to the extremes like a Buster Call which the World Government is willing to engage with Monkey D. Garp Garp is the father of Dragon, although no direct interaction between the two has been shown yet. While in the past Dragon initially followed in his father's footsteps to become a marine, he eventually left due to finding no justice in it. Garp himself expressed anger about his son's path to leave and become a revolutionary.[19][4]

Despite this they appear to be on relatively good terms in the present day, having spoken sometime after Luffy and Dragon ran into each other at Loguetown.[2] As a Revolutionary, Dragon's ideology greatly differs from his father's, though they both share disdain towards the World Nobles.

Dragon and Garp express different viewpoints of the East Blue. While Garp perceives it as a rather peaceful place, Dragon expresses his disgust with Garp's view of "peace" as nothing more than a form of oppression authorized by the law in places, such as Tequila Wolf and the Goa Kingdom, where common people that are put into horrible living conditions. While Dragon absolutely despises the World Government to the point of becoming a revolutionary and seeking to overthrow them, Garp takes pride and contentment in being a Marine serving the World Government, their ideals being completely different.

Monkey D. Luffy “ A child is a weak spot for any parent. ” — Dragon to Bartholomew Kuma about his own son Luffy.

Ace, Dragon, Garp, and Luffy on Newspaper Dragon appears on the news about Luffy's return.

Dragon was never a part of his son Luffy's life, giving custody of him to his (Luffy's) grandfather Monkey D. Garp. Accordingly, Luffy never knew or even really cared who his father was, only finding out it was Dragon two years ago when Garp told him at Water 7,[2] and seeing Dragon's face for the first time after reading the report on Baltigo's destruction. When reading about the Revolutionary Army's peril, Luffy did not pay nearly as much mind to his father as he did to his sworn brother, Sabo.[20]

That said, Dragon does in truth care for his son and would occasionally watch over him from a distance, an event that Bartholomew Kuma once took notice of. In the past, Ivankov also noted Dragon to be constantly looking toward the East Blue from their base and wondered if he had family there.[17] Still, Dragon did not enjoy speaking about Luffy, since, as the leader of a worldwide criminal group, he would be jeopardizing his child's safety by sharing this information with anyone, as well as the possible anguish it brought with the reminder of his necessary abandonment of his only child. By the time of the Summit War of Marineford, however, Dragon does not seem to consider Luffy a liability anymore, as his son had become a powerful, infamous criminal himself by that point.

Just like his father, Garp, Dragon is shown to have high expectations for Luffy, believing that he will be a great man. But unlike Garp, who is irritated and disapproves of Luffy's choice to become a pirate, Dragon approves and supports his son's choice, believing that Luffy was free to live however he wanted. He went to Loguetown just to see Luffy leave for the Grand Line and reflecting at Baltigo that he hoped for Luffy's pirating career to play a role in the world's shifting. To that end, he saved Luffy from being captured by Smoker in Loguetown and anticipates reuniting with his son in the future.[1][16]

Allies Revolutionary Army Dragon seems to maintain a serious and professional interaction with his subordinates most of the time as demonstrated by his warnings they should not be complacent about liberating one nation.[21] He is quick to caution his subordinates against celebrating small victories, reminding them of the war they are in and of the World Government's massive power and resources.[22]Dragon is extremely secretive about his personal life and background, as he did not tell anybody in the Revolutionary Army about his immediate relatives (with the seeming exception of Kuma, who knew), and once rebuffed an attempt by Ivankov to ask if he had family out in the world.[17] However, when news about his family was released in the aftermath of the Summit War of Marineford, Dragon does not seem to be aggravated as he states the information would help his subordinates to see him as a human for once.[23]

Sabo Dragon checked on a 10-year-old Sabo 12 years ago after seeing him being thrown to the ground while in the Goa Kingdom. In their brief meeting, Sabo confessed his disgust over the hearts of the residents, and Dragon took his words extremely seriously, becoming angry that even a child was affected by their corruption.[12] Dragon would go on to save Sabo from being killed by a World Noble a day later, and over the next 12 years, Sabo became a trusted member of the Revolutionary Army, rising all the way to the position of Dragon's Chief of Staff and second-in-command.[14] Dragon and Sabo work well together, and Sabo told Dragon a lot about Luffy after reuniting with him in Dressrosa.[15] When Nefertari Cobra was assassinated, Dragon said that he would never forgive Sabo if the rumors were true that he indeed did kill Cobra, due to him believing that Cobra was a kind and just king,[24] although it was quickly revealed that he had no involvement in Cobra's murder.[25] While Dragon expresses relief of Sabo's innocence, he also notes his lack of concern over the accusation and his focus of keeping morale for the revolution burning, something he seemingly approves of.[26]