Wapol

Tin-Plate Wapol (ブリキのワポル, Buriki no Waporu) is a character from the anime and manga "One Piece".

Wapol's name is likely derived from the word "Waffle" - significant to his eating habits, and possibly Politician, referring to his status as King. Could also be based on Napolean.

• Attack List

Personality and Relationships

Wapol was once prince of the region, and succeeded his father (a beloved king by the Drum people) as monarch when his father died. Wapol proved to be a spoiled and corrupt king. Before Wapol's ascension to power, the Drum Empire possessed the most numerous and skilled doctors in all of Grand Line.

He thinks he is more important then anyone else in his kingdom. He has no time nor care for political events concerning the world that do not effect his country such as Dragon and the movements of his revolutionaries. He also displays a huge lack of diplomacy skills all together in dealing with other Kings. In the original verion, he has a habit of saying "hippo" (kaba) when he means "idiot" (baka).

History

Wapol's accession to Power

King Wapol is the former ruler of the Drum Empire (now Sakura Kingdom), originally named for the "Drum Peak," mountains which support Wapol's castle. Wapol exiled all of these doctors, with the exception of his personal 'Isshi-20' (20 Doctors). These doctors were forced into servitude by Wapol as he believed he could control the citizens of Drum by forcing them to personally beg him for medical treatment. Only two other doctors, Hiruluk and Kureha, managed to elude Wapol's grasp.

Wapol then laid a trap for Hiruluk who shortly after eating Chopper's poisoned mushroom, received a memo explaining that the 'Isshi-20' were all gravely sick. Fearing for Drum's only 'real' doctors Hiruluk traveled to Drum Castle, where he learned that the 'Isshi-20' were all fine and it had all been a scheme of Wapol's to trap him. Instead of fearing for his life, Hiruluk expressed relief that the Doctors were all fine, and in what is possibily one of the most powerful speeches in the series, he explained that it wouldn't be a knife or gun or mushroom that would kill him, he would only truly die when he was forgotten. He then drank a potion that exploded his body.

Horrified over Wapol's treatment of Hiruluk and of the country as a whole, Dalton, Wapol's Army Captain turned against him claiming that 'There is no medicine for stupidity!'. Wapol then threw him in jail for his actions.

Wapol flees in Fear

Wapol continued to rule tyrannically over the Drum Empire until Blackbeard landed; the powerful pirate ravaged the entire kingdom and in a cowardly display Wapol abandoned his country and fled to the seas. Ever since then, Wapol had been traveling in a submersible ship with whomever decided to remain loyal to him.

Dalton kept the country together after Blackbeard's departure, and he helped fight back against Wapol when the former king returned. In gratitude, the people of the newly formed Sakura Kingdom (named after the pink snow created by a chemical of Doctor Hiruluk), elected him king.

The fight with Luffy

At some point, Wapol ate the Baku Baku no Mi (バクバクの実, Munch Munch Fruit), which allows Wapol to eat virtually anything (even himself to reduce his body mass) and takes on the properties of his food. Wapol uses this power many times against Monkey D. Luffy, (for instance he chomps his two advisors into a single warrior, or shoots bombs from his "Munch Munch Factory" pistol arms). He even tries to eat all the weapons inside his massive armory room to turn himself into a superweapon. Unfortunately, or luckily, depending on the point of view, Nami manages to steal the key from him when Wapol catches her.

In the end Luffy is able to send Wapol out of the kingdom again with a very long version of Gomu Gomu no Bazooka.

The fate of the spoilt King

After Wapol's second exile from his homeland, he wandered around the Grand Line, eating various things. He eventually was able to use his "Baku Baku Factory" power to produce toys. These toys gained the attention of many, and soon Wapol had an industry on his hands. He was last seen a married and wealthy CEO becoming far more wealthy than he was even as king, however it's unknown whether he will meet up with Luffy again.

Trivia

• Many of One Piece's primary villains are given distinct laughs. Wapol follows this tradition by starting his laughs with a long "Ma" (i.e Maaaa ha ha ha ha!)
• As with most side stories, Wapol's mini-arc in which he founded his toy company does not occur in the anime.
• Wapol is also a Playable Character in One Piece Grand Adventure