The new One Piece story arc is just beginning, and even though the protagonists haven't yet reached the location of the infamous Dr. Vegapunk, the scientist has already become a topic of debate. In this article, we decided to discuss Dr. Vegapunk and his overall role in the story. One of the most brilliant minds in the entire series, Vegapunk is a controversial figure due to his ties to the World Government and his experiments. But is he really a villain? In anticipation of this revelation in the upcoming Egghead arc, we decided to discuss this hot topic and reveal whether Dr. Vegapunk is truly a villain in One Piece or not!

Vegapunk isn't a villain in One Piece, but he's far from a hero either...

In order to properly explain Vegapunk's role in the story, we actually need to tell you how he became an employee of the World Government, since his ties to the Marines are the most controversial aspect of his story.

Vegapunk was born in Future Country Baldimore on Karakuri Island. More than twenty years before the story begins, he ate Nomi Nomi no Mi, and his head began to grow as he memorized information. During his youth, he transformed his home into a laboratory in which he conducted numerous experiments. He later collaborated with an outlaw research group known as MADS (working with Vinsmoke Judge, Caesar Clown, Queen, and Buckingham Stussy), winning the Ibel Peace Prize after inventing the GP Flower. Along with other scientists, he also studied hereditary genetic factors, successfully creating Stussy, the first clone in history, which Vegapunk believed was a major step towards world peace.

However, the World Government deemed him dangerous, so it arrested the scientists and then used them for its own purposes. For at least twenty years before the beginning of the story, Vegapunk began collaborating with the Marines, working at the Punk Hazard research base. This is how his association with the World Government began, and as fans know, this is the most controversial aspect of his story.

Most people directly associated with the World Government (Punk Hazard being a particularly heinous workplace) are considered villains in One Piece. For many years, Vegapunk was thought to be a true villain, but someone who wasn't powerful enough to be on the battlefield. He had been mentioned as the cause of many controversial moments and events in One Piece's story, and fans rightly believed Vegapunk to be a villain.

But the Egghead Arc will finally reveal more about the mad scientist and confirm that he's not really a villain. Vegapunk may have been employed by the Marines, but he never truly worked with them willingly, nor was he loyal to their cause; he was loyal to them because he was forced to work for them, but other than that basic loyalty, he didn't care much for them. So no, you can't really call him a villain.

On the other hand, he's not a hero either. Namely, if you remember the members of MADS, you'll see characters like Judge, Caesar, and even Queen. And while some of them had villainous arcs, they weren't really outright villains like the Five Elders or Akainu. So, Vegapunk is as much a villain as Judge… he's not really a hero, as he's selfish and has his own (often controversial) goals in mind, but he's not an evil character—so no, we can definitely confirm that. Vegapunk is not a villain.

Why did the World Government send CP0 to kill Vegapunk?

And if you don't believe us, we can add one more fact to the tally. Namely, even though Vegapunk was an employee of the Marines, they didn't really respect him much—he was useful and they wanted to keep him, but he was disposable in a pinch. That's why, when Vegapunk began researching the Void Century, which is the World Government's biggest and darkest secret, they decided to eliminate him and sent CP0 after him. Will they succeed? The Egghead Arc will reveal all, so no spoilers here!

Got anything to add? Let us know in the comments below!