The anime adaptation of the Egghead arc is well underway in One Piece, and has fans at fever pitch about seeing the true genius— Dr. Vegapunk and his satellites. Fans have been patiently waiting to see how the man looks, his role in the One Piece world, and so on. And now, at last, this Einstein-level mastermind has made his debut in the Egghead arc. So, let’s talk about Dr. Vegapunk and his six bodies (satellites) in this guide.
Spoilers Warning: This article contains major spoiler about Dr. Vegapunk in One Piece. So, we recommend you watch the anime and read the manga to avoid ruining the intended experience.
Who Is Dr. Vegapunk in One Piece?
Dr. Vegapunk was the chief scientist of the World Government, famously known as the smartest man on the planet. He was the genius behind numerous astounding inventions in One Piece, including Sea Stones, Pacifistas, Seraphims, and many others. Hence, he led the science unit of the Marines, commonly known as the Special Science Group (SSG), until he betrayed the World Government by researching taboos such as Void Century, Ancient Kingdom, etc.
Before working full-time with the Marines, he oversaw the MADS, an illegal scientific research crew that the World Government later disbanded. During that period, he collaborated with some popular scientists we already know, like Caesar Clown, Sanji’s father, Vinsmoke Judge, Queen (confirmed to be Franky’s father), and Buckingham Stussy.
Vegapunk was born and grew up on Karakuri Island, which is more technologically advanced than any other island in the One Piece realm. You might vividly remember this island as one of the Straw Hats members, Franky, was sent to this island by Bartholomew Kuma.
Fun Fact: As you might have already guessed, Vegapunk’s appearance is inspired by the real-life genius Albert Einstein. His character design is based on the photo of Einstein sticking his tongue out. Various aspects of him are inspired by many other renowned scientists, such as Isaac Newton, Nikola Tesla, etc.
Dr. Vegapunk’s Devil Fruit Powers
Although Vegapunk already hailed from the technologically superior Karakuri island, he eventually consumed a devil fruit to clinch the title of the smartest man on the planet.
Dr. Vegapunk consumed the Nomi Nomi no Mi (Brain-Brain Fruit), a Paramecia-type devil fruit that enables the user to gain and store an indefinite amount of knowledge. So, technically, it made him the most intelligent person in the One Piece universe.
In one of the flashbacks, we could see Vegapunk with an unusually large head. Due to his Devil Fruit powers, his brain got bigger nonstop as he continued learning more new information. Nevertheless, he devised a brilliant plan to separate his brain from his body to eliminate the problem, which was a success.
He called his main body “The Stella” and created several other bodies to dedicate his life completely to science. Dr. Vegapunk managed to split himself into 6 bodies, aka satellites, namely:
- Shaka
- Lilith
- Edison
- Pythagoras
- Atlas
- York
Dr. Vegapunk’s Six Satellites in One Piece
With the help of his Devil Fruit’s power, Vegapunk created Punk Records. It’s a system where Vegapunk removed his brain to store it separately. So, if you are wondering how he and his satellites could access his brain after that, I’ve got you; it’s a fascinating concept.
A while back, as the smartest man on the planet, he was preoccupied with many businesses, and it was hard for him to keep track of them all. This was when Vegapunk decided to divide himself into six other bodies, which he referred to as satellites. The Punk Records acted like a library, and every satellite was able to sync their knowledge easily.
These satellites are linked to Punk Records and sync their experiences and knowledge with it once a day so that they all stay on the same track. The information pipeline between them stays intact, thanks to Punk Records. Moreover, each satellite stood out from the other as it represents a distinct emotion of Vegapunk’s character.
All 6 of his bodies identified themselves as Vegapunks. However, each of them has a name, and the main body is known as Stella. To this day, we still don’t know by which process he was able to split himself, but you can learn about each satellite of Vegapunk below:
1. Shaka
- Based on: Good
Alright, the first satellite or sub-body of Dr. Vegapunk we have here is Shaka. His designated title was Punk-01, and it’s because he was created as the first satellite. He personified the “good” character trait of Vegapunk. His helmet resembled the famous electronic music duo Daft Punk.
Shaka was the representation of the good within Vegapunk, and as a result, he is seen as an incredibly rational and considerate person. He remained loyal to Vegapunk until he died at the hands of York, a fellow satellite.
Shaka was the first satellite to be shot dead; however, Edison merged Shaka’s torso with his body to revive his consciousness. Therefore, Shaka is now alive inside the new 7th satellite body, where all dead satellites are united.
2. Lilith
- Based on: Evil
Up next, we have Lilith, who is the very first satellite we met at the beginning of the Egghead arc. In contrast to Shaka, Lilith symbolizes the ‘evil’ trait of Dr. Vegapunk. Don’t worry, she wasn’t that offensive to the Straw Hats. Her designated title is Punk-02 and resembles Nami a lot. Of course, we know almost most of the female characters’ designs share that trait.
Lilith, being the personification of Vegapunk’s evil aspect, directly made her a deceitful person, one who was cruel and untrustworthy. However, to our surprise, she was also caring toward her friends. She was the most courageous and audacious of all the other satellites!
Moreover, Lilith was the only surviving satellite of Vegapunk after the Egghead war. Or, so we were made to believe at first. The rest of the dead satellites combined their bodies to resurrect into a weird new patchwork body, which we have talked about below. Currently, Lilith is in Elbaf with the Straw Hats, and she plans to build a lab to revive Stella, the main body of Vegapunk, using a perfect clone. You can find out more about whether Dr. Vegapunk is dead or alive via our linked article.
3. Edison
- Based on: Thinking
Next, we have Edison, whose designated title is Punk-03. He is a mechanical robot (a tiny one) who embodies the “thinking” aspect of Dr. Vegapunk. So, you can pretty much guess that he’s one of the backbones of Vegapunk’s inventions and discoveries. His primary role is to brainstorm ideas and devise strategies and plans for not just new inventions but also during crises.
Edison was also seen as an empathetic character when compared to his fellow satellites. Oftentimes, he would say, “Eureka!” whenever he came up with a new idea. This was a clear tribute to one of the most famous physicists, Archimedes, the father of mathematics. Initially, Edison chose to sacrifice his life to let the Straw Hats flee by staying behind on the war-torn island.
But then, he salvaged the parts of other dead satellites and fitted them into his body to revive their consciousness. Then he secured the Punk Record from ending up in the World Government’s hands by creating floating clouds and flew away to Skypeia along with the records.
4. Pythagoras
- Based on: Wisdom
The fourth satellite is none other than Pythagoras, who must have been inspired by the renowned Greek philosopher. Punk-04 was his designated title, and similar to Edison, he also had a metallic robotic body. He personified the wisdom aspect of Dr. Vegapunk, and his role was similar to Edison’s.
As he was bestowed with Dr. Vegapunk’s wisdom, he oversaw the technical involvement and discoveries of the creator. Dealing with analyzing and compiling data, Pythagoras was inarguably one of the best contributors to various path-breaking inventions.
He was also seen as a very calm and considerate person who was also intelligent at the same time. However, his life came to an end when one of their creations — S-Snake (Seraphim in One Piece) killed him when York began to take over. Thankfully, Edison also recovered one of Pythagoras’ arms, and so he is back alive within the new satellite body.
5. Atlas
- Based on: Violence
Who would have thought that this kid-like satellite would be the one to adopt the “violence” aspect of Dr. Vegapunk? She may look like a kid, but her height was almost identical to that of the gigantic Kaido. Atlas’ designated title was Punk-05, and she was the hot-headed satellite among the gang.
The inheritance of violence automatically made her a short-tempered character. Hence, she was always seen as a rash and reckless individual in the story. Although Atlas was a hothead, she was also a loquacious girl whose expertise mainly relied on engineering.
Due to her enormous size, she eventually has a massive strength to clash with others. Similar to Edison, Atlas also decides to sacrifice her life to let the Straw Hat Pirates escape from the wrath of Nusjuro, one of the Five Elders. She exploded herself after her fight with the Elder and bought the necessary time the Straw Hats needed to escape.
In line with Shaka and Pythagoras, Atlas was also brought back to life from death after Edison retrieved one of her massive arms and merged with his new body.
6. York
- Based on: Greed
York is the final satellite, and so her designated title is Punk-06. She symbolizes the “greed” aspect of Dr. Vegapunk, and therefore, that makes her betray her kin later in the story. Similar to Atlas, she is also seen to have great height and great strength. She is regarded as extremely lethargic and a person with insatiable greed among her crew.
York was in charge of completing her fellow satellite’s daily duties, such as food intake, getting sleep, and many more. One could say that York, carrying out these duties alone, made her lazy as well. She is incredibly manipulative, and due to her greed, she became a traitor and switched teams to become an ally of the World Government. As a result, she killed her fellow satellite, Shaka, on Egghead Island.
York thought she was the only remaining Vegapunk satellite at the end of the Egghead incident. But it was the complete opposite, as all the satellites were able to make it out of the futuristic island in some ways. Although we don’t know about York’s whereabouts, she is expected to become a Celestial Dragon working for the World Government from now on, as she can replicate the Mother Flame.
Vegapunk’s New 7th Satellite Body
In the Egghead war, every satellite of Vegapunk, except Lilith and York, was shown to meet its end in the story. Every satellite had quite an impactful and profound death moment, which left the fans shocked. However, Oda sensei surprised the fans with a twist in the climax of the Egghead arc.
Edison, who was presumed dead, is indeed alive in One Piece. In the final moments, he salvaged the components of his fellow dead satellites (Shaka, Pythagoras, and Atlas) and put them together to form a combined, patchwork body of Vegapunk’s satellites. While we thought every satellite had lost its life, they are now confirmed to be alive in the form of a new Edison. They’ve successfully secured Punk Records and were shown heading to Haredas’ location.
So, we will meet the combined edition of these satellites again in the future, possibly alongside the old man. That’s everything you need to know about Dr. Vegapunk and his satellites in One Piece. It was beyond exciting to finally see this genius and learn everything about him in this arc.
Now, we know exactly why he is revered as the smartest man on this planet. What are your thoughts on Dr. Vegapunk? Let us know in the comments below!
Dr. Vegapunk is certainly a good person, although one of his satellites, which embodied his greed aspect, later turned out to be a traitor within them.
The main body, called Stella, is the original Vegapunk. You can easily identify him based on his old appearance.
Unfortunately, Shaka and Pythagoras were confirmed to be dead after the former was killed by York and the latter by his creation, S-Snake. However, they were revived by Edison later, who merged their parts with his body.
