Gold Hunt!!!
The very first One Piece theatrical feature. Takes place directly between Syrup Village and Baratie of the manga and anime.
Many years ago, a legendary pirate captain named Woonan supposedly hoarded together a third of all the gold in the world. Though his time has passed, tales of his exploits have pirates all across East Blue trying to find the hoard he left behind, and the map guiding the way to it. Two such crews happen to both be the fledgling Straw Hat Pirates, as well as the ruthless El Drago Pirates. Who will find Woonan's legendary trove first?
This movie contains examples of:
- All for Nothing: After amassing his legendary trove, Woonan came to regret his course in life, as he found himself lonely amidst his vast riches. As such, he returned all the gold he stole, and sealed himself away in his storeroom to die, only keeping his tattered Jolly Roger as a reminder of his friendship with Ganzo.
- Animal Motif: El Drago actually has two; the Dragon and the Lion. His mane-like hair-style, golden talons, feline facial features and the fact his Devil Fruit grants him a weaponized roar all contribute to the "lion" aspect. His name, obsession with gold, and Breath Weapon-like Devil Fruit attack showcase the "dragon" aspect.
- Bling of War: El Drago's armor, and even his nails, are forged out of gold.
- Chained Heat: Luffy and Zoro spend about half the movie chained together because of a failed dine-and-dash, and have to act and move as one unit until Nami can eventually unlock their bindings.
- The Cameo: Sanji makes a brief one in the film's credits, likely to entice viewer of the, then upcoming, Baratie arc.
- Conveniently Interrupted Document: Woonan's map, which details how one can find his hoard, has faded due to old age, leaving Usopp to (wrongly) guess that "if the whale looks north, then the tail points south", which would lead to Woonan's treasure. The tail, in fact, points east, towards a mountain.
- Hidden Depths: Golass, El Drago's mercenary, supposedly hates being reduced to little more than a sellsword, as Zoro observes during their duel.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: El Drago's own power ends up being his downfall, as Luffy uses his rubber body to contain one of his vocal blasts, before launching it directly back at him.
- Loves Only Gold: Whilst El Drago is rare amongst One Piece villains for having simple greed as his motivation, what makes him a more characteristically quirky character is that he only cares about gold specifically, and will happily toss aside more valuable prizes that aren't made of gold in pursuit of gold coins and icons.
- Money Fetish: El Drago is often shown sensually caressing golden objects, or even smiling blissfully and stroking himself as he imagines the gold he is about to get his hands on.
- Oddball in the Series: From a production standpoint, this is the only entry in the Toei series to be animated with traditional ink-and-paint.
- Shockingly Expensive Bill: Subverted; though it seems like Luffy and Zoro's gorging of Ganzo's udon is gonna cost them a fortune, it all only comes up to a meager 11 berries. And even then, the two can't actually pay for it.
- Super-Scream: El Drago ate the Scream Scream Fruit, a Devil Fruit which allows him to channel his very voice as a weapon, through sound waves projected as concussive beams of energy.
- Worthless Treasure Twist: Woonan's treasure turns out to be the torn flag that marked the last day he ever shared with his childhood friend. He DID, at one point, have all the gold legends said he had, but eventually gave it all back on realizing how unfulfilling it was.
