New Delhi, Sept. 20 -- When Singha Durbar, the grand palace housing government offices in Kathmandu, went up in flames last week, Gen Z protesters hung across its golden gates a manga pirate flag showing a skull in a straw hat. For Gen Z protesters, demanding the prime minister's ouster, the "Straw Hat Jolly Roger" carried a message far deeper than cartoon rebellion.

The manga pirate flag used by the Gen Z protesters comes from One Piece, the long-running Japanese manga created in 1997 by Eiichiro Oda. According to the Guinness World Records, it has also broken the world record for 'most copies published for the same comic book series by a single author.'

One Piece follows the journey of Monkey D. Luffy, a pirate captain who fights oppr...