Warning: This article contains anime spoilers upcoming in the Dressrosa arc.

The ocean of One Piece is vast. Its contents are fearsome. The pirates are innumerable, their abilities are limitless, and their dreams, unyielding. It’s survival of the strongest, but strength takes many forms. One may be resilient and invulnerable, a swordsman of the highest rank, a scholar of forbidden truths, or even a self-constructed cyborg.

Alternatively, one may be a damned-good liar.

Okay, just an all right liar. One with good aim, for good measure.

On the Grand Line, Usopp is but a man among monsters. In the company of his own crew, the difference in strength between him and the so-called “Monster Trio” is itself an ocean of disparity. Consequently, Usopp’s greatest strength is his very humanity, at least as far as author Eiichiro Oda is concerned. By emphasizing his faults and his position of relative weakness, Usopp serves the manga in a variety of ways that few other characters can.

In Usopp, we the audience have a barometer by which to measure the incredible strength of others. This is apparent from the get-go in Syrup Village when Zoro and Luffy flex their muscles and defeat the Black Cat Pirates with ease. Usopp is not an outright “audience surrogate” in the sense that we do not travel the Grand Line from his perspective, but he does serve to remind the audience that the feats performed by the Straw Hats are not commonplace, frequent though they may be. Like the reader, Usopp himself marvels at the abilities of his friends and comrades.

The scale of power is not the only way that the audience relates to Usopp’s unique place in the crew. As Luffy’s closest friend on the seas, Usopp is a proxy for how attached the audience has become to Luffy throughout the years. When Luffy needs someone to be in his corner (quite literally, when Usopp plays the part of boxing coach in Luffy’s heavyweight bout with Foxy), Usopp is there to support him.

The best example of this is at the climax of Enies Lobby, when Rob Lucci’s deadly techniques push our hero to the brink. Worn down by his reckless use of Second Gear, Luffy prepares to admit defeat when none other than Usopp recognizes his friend’s confidence dissipating. When challenging his strength does nothing to rouse Luffy’s will, Usopp touches on the foundation of not only their friendship, but of the audience’s connection to Luffy as well: setting sail together. Usopp’s plight could not have better communicated the reader’s plight.

That teary-eyed and unabashed plea to continue their/our journey is one of many compelling reasons that I believe Usopp is the most emotionally interesting character in One Piece. Begging Luffy to get up and face Lucci requires Usopp to swallow his pride over the argument the two were having over Going Merry’s fate. So blinding was this pride that Usopp was willing to fight his captain hand-to-hand over what would become of their dilapidated vessel, and to assume a new identity altogether so as not to let Luffy believe he was by his side. His desperation in imploring Luffy to fight on is all the more heartwarming given the enmity that had preceded it.

Between these extremes of love and pride, Usopp’s emotions have run the gamut throughout the series. At times there is a subtle charm about him. His lies and antics in Syrup Village thinly veiled his innocent and sincere attempt to provide his mother some faint hope as her days dwindled. His unrestrained transparency is also endearing, demonstrated by his own surprise upon defeating Choo in Cocoyashi Village, or by his genuine awe of the chivalrous rivalry between Dorry and Broggy.

The conundrum Usopp faces when Robin becomes a toy remains a Pandora’s box of potential emotions: does Usopp lose faith in his capabilities in vintage-Usopp fashion because he forgets Robin’s existence and therefore his character development since meeting her, or does he have a complete existential crisis in the face of a powerful New World adversary and decide that he does not belong? Whatever the truth may be, Usopp displays loyalty (and shame) by returning to the Tontatta’s side, for better or for worse.

Beyond all this previous emotional investment looms what is sure to be a complicated confrontation between Usopp and his father, Yasopp. After presumably abandoning his family to pursue a life of piracy, how will Usopp react when he finally comes face to face with his unresolved past, and in the form of an accomplished “brave warrior of the sea” at that?

Much has changed for Usopp since he stepped foot on Dressrosa. He’s become a folk hero amongst the Tontatta tribe, a god to countless indebted pirates, a user of Observation Haki, and 200 million-caliber criminal. How will having the third-highest bounty of the Straw Hat Pirate crew alter his reputation going forward? What effect will this newfound sense have on his self-confidence in future crises?

Perhaps little will change, and Usopp will go on have such illnesses as Prehistoric Elephant Island-disease and continue to defeat his foes in silly fashion. Perhaps he will buy into his own hype and experience bouts of overconfidence, which would pose a new emotional struggle for him to cope with. Whatever the case may be, Oda has done more for Usopp than any Straw Hat, arguably save for Luffy, thus far in the story. He has become infinitely more famous and notorious all at once, which promises more emotional highs and lows for our everyman.

With an adventure in Elbaf and a reunion with his father on the horizon, Usopp is poised to remain the most emotionally interesting character in the series and one of my favorites for some time. After all, the Sniper Island resides within our hearts!

Has Usopp’s emotional roller coaster taken you along for the ride? Is there a character you feel is more emotional invested in the series than Usopp? Give your take in the comments or tweet them to me @renfield89!