⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This article references events and concepts from across the One Piece manga and anime, including late-game lore. Read at your own risk!
Is One Piece secretly one giant love letter to Castle in the Sky (Laputa)? Japanese fans have been digging deep into the parallels between Eiichiro Oda’s masterpiece and Hayao Miyazaki’s 1986 Studio Ghibli classic — and the similarities go far beyond coincidence. From mysterious stone tablets to pirate captains with armies of “children,” the connections are staggering. Here are 10 stunning parallels between One Piece and Castle in the Sky, plus a wild theory about what Laugh Tale might really be.
First: Oda Is a Huge Miyazaki Fan — This Is Confirmed
Before diving in, it’s worth noting that this isn’t just fan speculation about a creator accidentally echoing another. In the 2014 July issue of Ghibli’s free booklet Neppu, Oda stated clearly:
“I’m a Miyazaki fan, so I want to see everything he makes.” — Eiichiro Oda
Oda has also appeared four times on Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki’s radio show Ghibli Azemichi, and contributed illustrations for Jirocho Sangokushi. The Miyazaki influence on One Piece is real, documented, and deep.
Quick Primer: What Is Castle in the Sky?
Castle in the Sky (Tenkuu no Shiro Laputa) is Studio Ghibli’s first feature-length film, released August 2, 1986. Set in a fictional world inspired by late 19th-century industrial Europe, it follows two 13-year-old kids — Pazu and Sheeta — as they search for the legendary flying island of Laputa. The name “Laputa” comes directly from the floating island kingdom in Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels.
A few key facts that matter for the theory:
- Sheeta’s full name: Lusheeta Toel Ul Laputa — “Toel” means “true,” “Ul” means “king” in Laputian. She is the true heir to Laputa’s throne.
- Muska’s full name: Romaska Palo Ul Laputa — the villain is a descendant of Laputa’s royal cadet branch.
- Laputa itself: A once-terrifying ancient empire with over-technology (OOPArt-level science), hidden inside a massive storm called the “Dragon’s Nest,” accessible only to those who carry a special stone.
The 10 Parallels Between One Piece and Castle in the Sky
1. The Visual Resemblance — Laugh Tale and Laputa Look Alike
The earliest known image of Laugh Tale (shown in Chapter 105 of Volume 12) depicts a floating, verdant landmass shrouded in clouds — remarkably close to how Laputa looks in the film. Laputa is hidden inside the “Dragon’s Nest,” a colossal low-pressure vortex that makes it invisible to ordinary travelers. Only those who carry the Aetherium Crystal (flying stone) can approach it.
The parallel? Reaching Laugh Tale also requires a “stone” — the Road Poneglyphs. Without the right stones, you simply cannot get there.
2. The Black Stone Tablets and the Poneglyphs
Laputa contains mysterious black stone tablets covered in ancient inscriptions — an almost perfect visual match for One Piece’s Poneglyphs. But here’s where it gets interesting: Laputa’s black stones don’t just carry text. They’re also power sources tied to the island’s over-technology. Could the Poneglyphs be more than historical records? Could they, too, hold an activating function?
3. Treasure Beyond Imagination
Laputa is filled with gold and treasure — though only a side character (General Mouro) seems particularly interested in looting it. The Laputa Empire’s backstory reads almost like a lost One Piece arc:
- It existed over 700 years ago — the same rough timeframe as the Void Century.
- Laputa’s people used their flying stones and advanced science to rule the surface world from the sky.
- A plague they could not overcome forced them to descend to the earth.
- After their departure, the island continued to drift through the sky unmanned, hidden from humanity.
Sound familiar? An ancient civilization with godlike technology, a catastrophe, a descent — and a secret kept from the rest of the world for centuries.
4. “Ul” and “D” — The Royal Blood That Carries a Name
This is arguably the most compelling parallel. In Castle in the Sky, the royal bloodline of Laputa is split into two branches:
- Sheeta (Toel branch): The “good Ul” — the true, legitimate heir
- Muska (Palo branch): The “evil Ul” — a corrupted, power-hungry descendant
The surname “Ul” essentially marks someone as royalty. When the royal family descended to Earth, they split into two lines — one kept the flying stone, the other kept the ancient manuscripts.
Now consider the Will of D. in One Piece:
- Good D’s: Luffy, Roger, Garp, Ace, Law, Robin’s father Jaguar D. Saul…
- Evil D’s: Blackbeard (Marshall D. Teach), Rocks D. Xebec
“D” may similarly signify royalty or divine mandate. The theory? Laugh Tale = the ruins of a great D Kingdom, and its conceptual origin traces directly back to the Laputian royal bloodline split. The “D” carries a will — just as “Ul” carries a legacy.
5. Robot Soldiers and the Pacifista
Laputa’s most iconic symbol of its lost civilization is the Robot Soldier — a giant, eerily gentle automaton that is nonetheless capable of catastrophic destruction when provoked. It represents the “over-technology” of a civilization that surpassed its era.
One Piece’s equivalent? The Pacifista (and later the Seraphim) — mass-produced human weapons built using science that shouldn’t exist yet. Both serve as haunting reminders of what ancient civilizations could do — and what the current world military has tried to replicate.
6. The Tiger Moth Airship and Maxim
In Laputa, multiple airships are central to the plot — most notably the Tiger Moth, the aerial flagship of the pirate crew Dola’s Gang. In One Piece’s Skypiea arc, Enel’s Ark Maxim fills the same role: an advanced flying vessel used by the arc’s primary antagonist.
Both arcs are set largely in the sky. Both feature a “sky pirate” dynamic. And both climax with the destruction of an ancient sky-based civilization’s legacy. The Maxim is essentially One Piece’s Tiger Moth.
7. Pazu’s Father and Noland the Liar
In Castle in the Sky, Pazu’s father once photographed Laputa — proving it existed — but was branded a liar and a fraud by the world. He died with his reputation destroyed, and Pazu’s journey is partly about clearing his father’s name.
In One Piece, Montblanc Noland discovered the City of Gold (Shandora) but was executed as a liar when the city could no longer be found. His descendant Cricket spent decades trying to restore his ancestor’s honor.
In both stories, it’s ultimately the main hero’s journey that vindicates the disgraced truth-teller.
8. Pazu and Luffy Share a Voice Actress
This one borders on destiny. Mayumi Tanaka voiced Pazu in Castle in the Sky in 1986. Thirteen years later, she won the role of Monkey D. Luffy through a competitive audition in 1999.
What makes this even more remarkable: in the book ONE PIECE 10th Treasures, Oda revealed:
“From the time I was writing the pilot chapter, I always imagined Luffy’s voice as Tanaka-san’s.” — Eiichiro Oda
“I was just saying as a fan that I wanted the voice of Krillin and Pazu.” — Eiichiro Oda
Oda specifically cited Pazu as one of the roles he associated with Tanaka. The vocal bridge between One Piece’s hero and Laputa’s hero is entirely intentional.
9. “I Won’t Become a Pirate” vs. “I Will Be King of the Pirates”
In the middle of Castle in the Sky, Pazu joins Dola’s pirate crew to rescue Sheeta. He tells her earnestly:
“I won’t become a pirate.” — Pazu
Thirteen years later, a different boy with a similar voice declared to the entire world:
“I WILL BE KING OF THE PIRATES!!!!” — Monkey D. Luffy
Whether intentional or not, it’s a perfect thematic inversion. One hero refuses piracy; the other defines himself entirely through it. Same voice. Opposite declarations. Possibly the same mythological DNA.
10. Dola, Big Mom, and Dadan — The Fearsome Maternal Figure
Dola is the captain of the sky pirates in Laputa — a terrifyingly tough, larger-than-life female leader with three sons. She’s gruff, loud, and ultimately has a heart of gold.
One Piece gives us two characters who echo her:
- Big Mom (Charlotte Linlin): A female pirate emperor with 85 children, a massive appetite, and a terrifying maternal presence
- Dadan: The mountain bandit boss who grudgingly raised Luffy, Ace, and Sabo — essentially Luffy’s “three sons” moment
Even minor visual parallels exist between Dola’s crew members and One Piece side characters from the Dressrosa arc.
Bonus Theory: Is Laugh Tale Actually the “Land of Horses”?
Here’s a fascinating wildcard from the original Japanese theorists. Castle in the Sky is based on Gulliver’s Travels — and Gulliver’s Travels maps remarkably well onto One Piece’s world:
- Land of Lilliputians (tiny people): Tontatta Kingdom ✅
- Land of Giants: Elbaf / Little Garden ✅
- Flying Island: Skypiea ✅
- Land of the Dead / Immortal Beings: Thriller Bark ✅
- Japan: Wano Country ✅
- Land of Horses (Houyhnhnms): …?
In Gulliver’s Travels, the final destination is the Land of Horses — a nation of hyper-rational, noble horses who represent an idealized society. It’s the one Gulliver destination that has no clear One Piece counterpart yet.
Could Laugh Tale be the “Land of Horses”? It’s the one place the Straw Hats haven’t reached. And given that every other Gulliver destination has been adapted into the One Piece world, the pattern demands a final answer.
Conclusion: Homage, Inspiration, or Something More?
The word “plagiarism” would be entirely unfair here. What Oda has done with Castle in the Sky is what great creators do: he absorbed a work he loved deeply, internalized its themes, and transformed them into something new. The flying stone becomes Road Poneglyphs. The “Ul” bloodline becomes the Will of D. The ancient empire with over-technology becomes the Void Century’s lost kingdom. Even Laugh Tale’s inaccessibility mirrors Laputa’s Dragon’s Nest.
With Oda on record saying he imagined Mayumi Tanaka — the voice of Pazu himself — as Luffy’s voice from the very start, the connection between these two worlds feels less like coincidence and more like conscious mythological inheritance. One Piece didn’t copy Castle in the Sky. It grew from the same seed, watered by the same love of adventure, ancient secrets, and the unbreakable will of a kid who refuses to give up on a dream everyone else called impossible.
Whatever Laugh Tale turns out to be, there’s a good chance Miyazaki’s floating island is somewhere in its DNA.