I was rereading chapter 587—the one where Ace and Luffy are trying to escape the burning Grey Terminal and are stopped by Bluejam—and I got surprised by something Bluejam says. I’ve read a few translations of it and even though they differ in wording, they do mean the same thing. Mainly, Bluejam says that when people hit the rock bottom of despair, they can only laugh.
The latest chapters do not foreshadow a bright future for people from the One Piece world, and since Roger’s crew is supposed to already know about it, why would they laugh? What was so funny? What if this thing wasn’t funny at all but it was something they could never handle on their own? What if they were helpless because they were too early to change their fortune?
It always made me wonder why it was so highlighted that they laughed at the One Piece, and I’ve read dozens of theories and jokes about it at this point, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen one suggesting that it was not a joyful laugh but one born out of helplessness. And this is something we actually see in Wano with the SMILE fruits.
People suffering from the SMILEs laugh… because that is all they can do.
And Luffy too: he’s laughing, even though many situations call for a different emotion forth. And yet, he’s having the time of his life no matter the tragedy or danger. Whether this is simply something part of his nature right now or something spelling a problem Luffy will need to address at some point (such as being overwhelmed or controlled by his Devil Fruit theories) is for a different discussion.
In short, what I mean to say is that One Piece has already shown us that laughter does not always mean joy or happiness, and the treasure itself might be something completely different than we imagine it to be.
*by CMoonshadow
