Discussion Usopp's courage

[BlkHorus]

Is it just me, or does it appear that Usopp is more of a coward now after the time skip than he was in the first half of the grandline. Its jus that before the time skip, he didn't want to fight and still was scared most of the time, but he would still atleast fight if backed into a corner. And since he buffed up after the timeskip and wants to be a warrior of the sea, I thought he would atleast be bit more up for fighting if need be...but it appears that he is being more of a coward now than he was in the first half. So far the most courageous thing(s) he has done on his NW venture is on Punk Hazard. He and Nami actualy seem more cowardly now.

What do you guys think?

 

[Ace4]

I have to agree with you. I mean it was always his thing that he said I have a disease and can't enter these islands and stuff like that and they joked about it on Punk Hazard. But since he heard that Doflamingo is after them he has been scared as shit. Even whispering to Robin to stay on his side when he was on green bit. He should have had no troubles with that since he spend 2 years in a jungle.
I know that Oda wants Usopp to be always the weakest member but he is becoming more and more the disgrace of the ship. After Enies Lobby he redeemed himself a bit by fighting Perona but I don't want him to be a total coward unless he transforms into Sogeking. But I think that's Odas plan. He will be cowered in covardice until he decides to ask Sogeking for help and then he will (hopefully) get his shining moment.

 

[UnknownMugiwara]

Hopefully he will realise soon that he doesn't need the mask anymore. But I don't think the currect arc will bring that oppertunity, perhaps if he sees Robin having trouble?

But yeah, Usopp act more cowardly than before. I think the difference might be that post-time skip, he doesn't even have the courage to bullshit inf ront of dangerous enemies.

 

[Josef]

I just see it as "Oda does not want Usopp to go out of character after the time-skip". He is without a doubt stronger, but still a coward, it's just that Oda finds a way to mix these things in a beautiful manner, plus the coward part of him adds to comedy, think of a serious Usopp?

That does not mean that Oda does not want Usopp to grow, water 7 revolved around him, so Oda gave the courage part a lot of thinking. All in all Usopp and his courage thing is not settled until Sogeking shows up again. That was the duality of his persona will be settled.

 

[Spam286]

He's going to be a coward at least until Elbaf. What's annoying about it at the minute isn't the fact that he's cowardly - as mentioned that's in his character and is often funny, and we always know he'll come round when it really matters - but that he's being really unsympathetic to the dwarves because of it. From what he was saying during their discussion of the SOP strategy it seems like he would genuinely be willing to abandon them to their fate, and that's more than just cowardly.

 

[BetaRuler]

Hopefully he will realise soon that he doesn't need the mask anymore.

I hope not! That mask has also given many other pirates a false reputation, impression and perhaps a sense of mystery about who he is. I like that, like people not familiar with the Straw hats refer to him as Sogeking, some who might see Usopp might not immediately recognise that he's Sogeking but instead just some no name crew member on the Straw hats ship...

I think he's in character as always though, still really scared of getting into fights, but sticks around until his conscience gives him a smack and he decides to really try to do the right thing... As always he'll end up relying too hard on the stronger people to be there when they are around, but when everyone else is struggling he'll realise he can't just do NOTHING.

 

[spidy]

I feel the same way. I was so happy when Usopp appeared after time skip with six packs and cool new fighting techniques. He looks cooler and cooler at Fishman/mermaid island when he fights along the other members of SH. But after Hazard puck arc and the current arc, I feel that he becomes more and more coward. I mean he is even more coward than the post time-skip arcs.

It is really frustrating!! He is not my favorite character ,but I really want he to improve in a positive way, and not the other way round.

 

[Syphin]

Usopp not wanting to help the dawrves is a "normal" reaction, a "normal" person, let alone a "normal" pirate wouldn't put themselves out in harms way to help solve a situation that has nothing to do with them. Not everyone can be as reckless as Luffy or as selfless as Otohime/Vivi/King Riku.

And that is why "normal" Usopp's reaction is fine. I'm sure the heroic and courageous Usopp within himself is struggling against his current cowardice and hesitation that has had two years to build up. There is currently a wall representing Usopp's lack of belief in his ability that is blocking Usopp from his "real" self. Usopp not being in situations deeming him to step outside his comfort zone or at least far away from it over the past two years has led him to regress back into his former self before he met the Strawhats (one where he hides behind his lies). Usopp may have physically gotten stronger and upgraded his weaponry and ammunition, but the mental aspect that has also been Usopp's problem in the first half of the Grand Line isn't that easy to train and change.

Usopp having recently rejoined with the rest of the Strawhats (what has it been, 3 or 4 days since they all came together?) is currently struggling to find his self that had grown accustomed to danger by the time the Enies Lobby Arc had crossed the Strawhats path. What Usopp currently needs is a reason to break down the wall holding him back, reminding him of what he is truly capable off and consequently allowing himself to unleash. Or for his courage to built up to the point that explodes through the wall blocking him.

Usopp's ability/strength is inversely proportionate to his cowardice, that is to that say that the stronger his cowardice, the stronger his fighting capability when it rises above that cowardice.

Whether it be through the Sogeking mask, or his own decision, or seeing Robin injured, Usopp will rise to his potential in this situation, especially after Oda has built him and his role up so grandly. Usopp is currently the Strawhat in the most key position for seeing Doflamingo's plan truly failing. By taking out Sugar, Usopp is effectively pulling out the card within the Donquixote House of Cards keeping it stacked. Once Sugar is gone, just like when a house of cards falls and crumbles, so too will Doflamingo's plans he had meticulously built up over the past ten years. With the truth being revealed, chaos will likely arise across Dressrosa consequently affecting Doflamingo's state of mind as well as the safety of the SMILE factory. Both Marines and pirates/criminals will be after Doflamingo.

Usopp not being seen yet by the Donquixote Pirates must have a reason to it, as well as the build up Usopp has gotten since meeting the dwarves. It is likely Usopp will find his courage current dormant from the lack of use over the past two years, but once Sogeking/Usopp has been unleashed, Doflamingo's end will truly be in sight.

 

[sameel]

I really think usop is just negative about himself. He just has very low self esteem. When the time comes, he will prolly fight for the dwarves. Until then he will say im no match for trebol and sugar and just stay away.

 

[THM Nindo]

Yeah, I find that pretty bad actually...
The whole point of the 2 years was that Usopp did become a great warrior, as he wanted to be.

But his badasness was really short-lived, and now he's back to being a coward like Part 1.

 

[sarutobi_sensei]

Well him being out of character would be worse actually. This is his character, but I do agree that I'd like to see him being less cowardly. He's supposed to have grown into a stronger person, but instead we keep on seeing him treated as a coward even saying things like if it's an enemy that's far away I have no problems. Well I understand the comedy part with Nami and Chopper, but it's pretty annoying.

Even if he does come trough when it really matters, it's still troubling to see him like this after 2 years.

Hopefully it'll change soon.

 

[M3J]

I don't think Usopp is entirely cowardly. I mean, yeah, he's thinking of running away and shit, but we all know he wouldn't do that. I'm confident that when the time comes, Usopp will step up and protect his friends. Just look at his fight with the mole lady at Alabasta, and how he refused to give up after she mocked Luffy. Hell, even as Sogeking Usopp was pretty awesome and saved Robin with his sniping skills.

He will come to the rescue when needed.

 

[Anduren]

He's going to be a coward at least until Elbaf.

This is the key to Usopp's character development. His dream when he entered the grand line was becoming a "brave warrior of the sea". If he achieved that as soon as he entered the new world, he'd be the 1st strawhat to realize his dream already before even reaching Raftel. Just like Luffy wasn't ready to meet Shanks and return his strawhat during the marineford war, Usopp isn't ready to meet Yasopp (the guy he wants to emulate).

M3J beat me to most of what I was going to say... The one time we saw Usopp being the most couragous was when Miss Merry Christmas laughed at his captain's dream. When it comes to being cowardly, he isn't that much worse than Nami. I'm guessing that once he reaches Elbaf, he will get a taste of what it means to have courage; and during some final battle near or after Raftel, he will have to prove his courage against the toughest of opponents in the world, after which he will be able to face Yasopp as a proud warrior of the sea.

 

[sameel]

Just wanted to post something i wrote on another thread. Its about usop so not offtopic

Yup. Usopp is technically one the main combatants of the crew since he is the sniper of the crew. Hes not really weak, he is just very underconfident. He wasnt like that in the beginning after the timeskip. My guess is he thaught he became more powerful than zoro (which is naive) but then he saw him fight and down came his confidence level. Followed by being cowardly figuring he would need to be as strong as zoro at least if he needs to survive in nw.

 

[M3J]

Seriously doubt Usopp ever thought he'd be more powerful than Zoro, so that's probably not what killed his confidence level. My guess is that Luffy challenging Big Mom scared Usopp shitless, along with learning that they gained Doflamingo's ire.

 

[Seafarer]

Maybe the difference isn't how much of a coward he is, but how Oda shows it to us.

Usopp has always trembled in fear and tried to skip fights with ridiculous lies, but up until the timeskip Oda kept portraying this in a consequence-free manner. He may have acted scared and cowardy, but that was usually done with great comic effect and at the expense of other Straw Hats whom we knew would save the day, unless he himself manned up and did the job.

Whereas here in Dressrosa, for the first time we're seeing Usopp go through wih the coward act. He's not only claiming to be afraid, but also manipulates a stronger party who isn't a Straw Hat into taking the risks in his stead. For the first time, we're looking at the real prospect of Usopp not doing his share of the work. Yet unless he actually turns his heels and abandons his responsibility, he won't have been a bigger coward than usual. His acts have simply caught up with his words, which we might want to consider as better characterization.

 

[sameel]

Seriously doubt Usopp ever thought he'd be more powerful than Zoro, so that's probably not what killed his confidence level. My guess is that Luffy challenging Big Mom scared Usopp shitless, along with learning that they gained Doflamingo's ire.

Hmmm. I like your guess more. (y)

Maybe the difference isn't how much of a coward he is, but how Oda shows it to us.

Usopp has always trembled in fear and tried to skip fights with ridiculous lies, but up until the timeskip Oda kept portraying this in a consequence-free manner. He may have acted scared and cowardy, but that was usually done with great comic effect and at the expense of other Straw Hats whom we knew would save the day, unless he himself manned up and did the job.

Whereas here in Dressrosa, for the first time we're seeing Usopp go through wih the coward act. He's not only claiming to be afraid, but also manipulates a stronger party who isn't a Straw Hat into taking the risks in his stead. For the first time, we're looking at the real prospect of Usopp not doing his share of the work. Yet unless he actually turns his heels and abandons his responsibility, he won't have been a bigger coward than usual. His acts have simply caught up with his words, which we might want to consider as better characterization.

But he wasnt so cowardly during the fishman island arc. He was quiet confident that he could be the pirate kings sniper.

 

[Anduren]

Whereas here in Dressrosa, for the first time we're seeing Usopp go through wih the coward act. He's not only claiming to be afraid, but also manipulates a stronger party who isn't a Straw Hat into taking the risks in his stead. For the first time, we're looking at the real prospect of Usopp not doing his share of the work. Yet unless he actually turns his heels and abandons his responsibility, he won't have been a bigger coward than usual. His acts have simply caught up with his words, which we might want to consider as better characterization.

I think you're misunderstanding the situation a little here. Usopp doesn't have a share of the work. It's not his responsibility to free Dressrossa or defeat Sugar. The only reason the strawhats came to Dressrosa was to destroy the smile factory. There have been times where he tried to get the other strawhats to fight in his place, but he has never abandoned a fight, that he has actually accepted, to the detriment of the crew. Starting from his fights against Kuro or Chu, all the way to what happened at Ennies Lobby when Sanji took over for him fighting Jyabura and sent him off to a different objective, Usopp has yet to actually let down the strawhats as their sniper.

Sure he runs off from his opponents and makes them chase him. But he has yet to abandon anybody.

 

[Seafarer]

But he wasnt so cowardly during the fishman island arc. He was quiet confident that he could be the pirate kings sniper.

Fishman Island was really a power show-off tour, so there wasn't much to fear anyway. I wouldn't give it too much credit in the cowardice assessment.

I think you're misunderstanding the situation a little here. Usopp doesn't have a share of the work. It's not his responsibility to free Dressrossa or defeat Sugar. The only reason the strawhats came to Dressrosa was to destroy the smile factory.

I'd have agreed to that until recently, but now that Luffy gave Franky the greenlight to side with the dwarves and that he himself is off to confront Dofla, yes Usopp does have a share. The whole crew is putting their life on the line one way or the other, so I'd say Dressrosa's fate has become his responsibility as well.

As for cowardice, we completely agree. For all his chicken attitude Usopp has yet to abandon anyone and I don't think he will. My point is that, compared to how Oda played out his character in the past, for the first time it really looks like he may. Once again, I don't think that this is going to happen, but I believe that this is what has been give readers the feeling that he is more of a coward when his behaviour hasn't really changed.

 

[Anduren]

I'd have agreed to that until recently, but now that Luffy gave Franky the greenlight to side with the dwarves and that he himself is off to confront Dofla, yes Usopp does have a share. The whole crew is putting their life on the line one way or the other, so I'd say Dressrosa's fate has become his responsibility as well.

I actually thought about this when I was considering the situation Usopp was in . There is truth to what you're saying; Luffy gave Franky the green light to do whatever he wants... meaning he was accommodating to Franky's wishes. He also said "we're comming too" meaning he also has the rest of the strawhats' support.

As for cowardice, we completely agree. For all his chicken attitude Usopp has yet to abandon anyone and I don't think he will. My point is that, compared to how Oda played out his character in the past, for the first time it really looks like he may. Once again, I don't think that this is going to happen, but I believe that this is what has been give readers the feeling that he is more of a coward when his behaviour hasn't really changed.

I could be wrong, but maybe, the reason the people who have a problem with his cowardice is more because they expected him to be more brave after the time skip rather than stronger. I suppose maybe some people expected the strawhats to lose all or most of their (strawhats') major flaws and negative unique character traits in order to become serious powerhouses fit for the new world which wasn't really the purpose of the 2 years of training. I remember just after the time skip some people were saying they were dissapointed that Luffy was still a gullible goof; they were expecting him to be more serious and mature after training with Rayleigh.