When Does Luffy First Use Gear 4 [top] < PROVEN >

If you’re watching the anime for the first time, do not skip the Dressrosa arc. Power through the slower middle episodes. Because when Luffy bites his arm and inflates, you’ll understand why this moment is still discussed in reverent tones years later.

This debut also set a template for future arcs: Gear Fourth would later evolve into Tankman, Snakeman, and eventually the balanced form we see in Wano. But every single one of those variants traces its DNA back to that bouncing, pink-haki-covered giant in the skies of Dressrosa. When does Luffy first use Gear 4? In Chapter 784 / Episode 726, against Doflamingo. But more importantly, he uses it at the perfect narrative moment —when hope is nearly extinguished, the villain is at his peak, and a new era of power is required. It is a 9/10 debut: visually stunning, tactically smart, and emotionally charged. The only thing holding it back from perfection is the sluggish pacing of the surrounding arc in the anime adaptation. For manga readers, it remains an all-time classic reveal. when does luffy first use gear 4