#’I had to let you go’ Sanji VS ‘I’ll never let you go’ Luffy | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

vemuabhi · 3 years

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Hii! It´s me popping here again! How are you doing? So, I would like to ask if you have a favorite Sanji moment and outfit (if it´s possible to chose hahaha) <3

Author san~~~ I'm doing good. How are you. And.... this ask... it took a long while for me to collect the pictures and scenes. I had so many scenes but I tried so much to cut them down to some of the scenes.

This is going to be a long freaking post. With cusses and spoilers.

Sit back and play a song for feels!

My Favourite Sanji scenes!!!

Warnings : Simping, Please be aware I sometimes cuss at that man because I love him. That is how I really am. I cuss the person that I love idk why. But not all the people I cuss are the ones I love. There will be a lot of difference and I'll respect that.

Disclaimer: This is solely my pure opinion.

There are just so many moments like when Sanji saves Otama or tries on his raid suit and all those but Tumblr won't allow me to post more than 10 pictures sadly. So I did the only scenes part here, I'll do outfits in other post and make sure I'll link it here too. Check it out also!

So.. yeah... here it goes. My favourite scenes of Snooj!!

1) Sanji VS Enel

the 1st thing I always remember about Sanjis Coolest scenes is the one at skypiea. Sadly its one of the underrated scene of the anime.

Sanji in this scene protects Ussop and takes the hit. See his smile at the end. Wait for it. The SanUso moment is so pure where ussop understands Sanjis feelings completely.

He stands still even after receiving the hit and then takes a puff of his cigarette and says "Thanks, I needed a light", then falls down. Please... why isn't he given more credit. He is an amazing chef and yes I know you see it but... he has his amazing fight scenes too.

I absolutely adore the way Sanji always thinks about so many things while he fights. I mean... he plays with the mind too. You see, in this same scene he made sure to ruin enels ark from the inside. He is like this in another movie too. Not only that, a scene in alabasta arc too, where he enters into the base of Mr. 3 and talks to crocodile.

2) Sanji saving the Vinsmokes

Even after facing so much of abuse, he still saved his father and siblings. Looking at them after saving their asses is a delight to watch.

This is the moment they all realise that Sanji won... he has become stronger without their genes and techniques.

3) Sanji shouts at Luffy for Ussop

As Ussop and Luffy start to argue about merry, Luffy almost says to pack up and leave but he was stopped in between because Sanji kicks gim in the face and shouts at him for almost saying Ussop should leave.

Sanji never lets anyone to talk about leaving (even though he left and had a huge ass arc for him). He really cares about his crew and hates and it is really shown here. Not only the ladies. He definitely cares about the guys of the crew too.

4) Sanji uses Knives to fight

Cmon... its the only fight of Sanjis that he uses knives. The person being a chef and using food to fight made Sanji even more angry. He was already trying to find Robin chan and got into this shit where another chef keeps his kitchen dirty and uses food, pissed him off.

He decided to teach him a lesson and got into the fight by using Knives (Improvisation on spot!) Isnt he excellent here.

5) Reunion with Luffy

Getting back to his King, his Captain Luffy was the only scene where Sanji smiled truly after coming to the Whole Cake island. Its way too adorable. Him realising what he truly wants and to know that his nakama would save him definitely if he is in any problem.

Their smile is definitely the most precious. Infact for me... their smiles are the one piece for me. The most valuable treasures.

Bonus scenes

* Sanji saving the Maid of Vinsmoke family

Never he lets anyone harm a lady. Its not him. I could add Kalifa scene here but... this is also a good scene. One of the reasons why I really respect him. Yeah it gets annoying some times but... still its just how he is.

* Him saving Tashigi because he heard her cry.

I know its Extra af but cmon, we are dealing with Sanji here. Its going to be like that.

* Sanji's Surgeries

He is the best plastic surgeon ever. I won't step back on this opinion. He just makes people to completely change their faces. There were 2 of these who were shown in the anime. I really wanna see more people though.

* AceSan and ZoSan moments

I definitely love these scenes so much. The Ace scene is just so beautiful + dreamy. He was so daamn polite and so nice with Ace. Yes Sanji is good with everyone if they are polite with him.

The ZoSan scene is perfect + precious. Yes this is the thirst quencher for me. I adore this moment very much. Please they could've kissed.

The next one is kinda personal and not that needed. So I suggest you to skip this.

Like Comment and Reblog this! And share your favourite moments of Sanji with me!!!

XOXOXOXO

But if you wanna read then go ahead.

* After Sanji and Pudding Kiss and also pudding cries.

This scene was so emotional and personal to me...

Its weird but... when she was crying, I was crying too. Idk why These feelings were there but... It was the moment I realised I liked that jerk Sanji. And... I actually dont like pudding. Everything about her felt a bit odd and not trustworthy. But... when she cried. I cried too. When I was rewatching that scene now again, I cried. I myself don't know why I cry watching that scene. I get so many mixed emotions and my feelings are not even clear to me. I don't know.

If you did read this. Thankyou for reading.

Like Comment and Reblog this! And share your favourite moments of Sanji with me!!!

Wait.. you say you didn't read my post on "my favourite outfits" then click here!!!

#one piece #sanji x reader #sanji #one piece sanji #black leg sanji #sanji imagine #one piece x reader #one piece strawhats #zosan #whole cake island

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recentanimenews · 3 years

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FEATURE SERIES: My Favorite One Piece Arc with Maffew

I love One Piece and I love talking to people who love One Piece. And with the series going on 23 years now, there is a whole lot to talk about. As the series is about to publish its 1000th chapter, a true feat in and of itself, we thought we should reflect upon the high-seas adventure and sit down with some notable names in the One Piece fan community and chat about the arcs they found to be especially important, or just ones they really, really liked.

Welcome to the next article in the series "My Favorite One Piece Arc!"

My next guest in this series is Maffew, creator of the popular pro wrestling web series Botchamania. For my chat with him, he chose the Alabasta Arc, in which Luffy and his crew not only have to save a desert kingdom but also topple Baroque Works and its powerful leader Crocodile.

A note on spoilers: If you haven't seen the Alabasta arc yet, this interview does contain major plot points. Watch the Alabasta arc starting RIGHT HERE if you'd like to catch up or rewatch!

Dan Dockery: So I guess my first basic question is, let’s say for some reason, I got to the end of Drum Island and I said “Well, One Piece ends here for me. This seems like a good finale.” What would you tell me to keep me going into the Alabasta Arc in one sentence?

Maffew: Well, after Chopper has made all the kids cry, you’ll need pickin’ up.

That’s pretty good! What was the impetus for you getting into One Piece? What made you want to jump into an anime that’s nearly one thousand episodes long at this point?

I think I tried watching it on YouTube back in 2009, and I just couldn’t get into it. At that point in my life, I wasn’t ready for a character like Luffy and his adventures, and I couldn’t wait for the villains he fought to kill him. So I dropped it. A year later, I’m in Germany and this wrestler ACH was doing a Q&A panel for this German wrestling organization called WXW. And ACH is a REALLY big One Piece fan, and even dresses up as Luffy in New Japan and Ring of Honor. And I was like “Hey, you watching JoJo?” because that was my thing at the time, and he was like “No, no. Just One Piece.” I said, “What else are you watching?” “Just One Piece.” And I’m like “Wait, what? Just the one?” But he was sellin’ it to me like he was a One Piece ad on QVC. And guys like Steve Yurko are so passionate about it, and if one person tells ya to watch something, you’re like “Eh, whatever,” but if five people tell you, you start to pay attention. So I’m gonna blame ACH and my good friend Steve Yurko for this.

What do you like about this arc in particular?

You get so much wonderful worldbuilding. They go to Alabasta, meet up with Mr. 2, and it’s one of those cool interactions where they’re meeting, but they don’t know who they are meeting exactly, like when they meet Blackbeard in Jaya. So later on, they’re like “Oh, it’s THEM!” There’s a real sense of everything not being really pre-determined at this point. It’s building everything through a bunch of pirates just doing stuff. Ace shows up, knocks out some assassins so he can get his royalty checks.

That’s such a funny way to put it.

Then we get Kung-Fu Dugongs, and they’re a pretty pure expression of One Piece. They’re all synchronized, they’re adorable, they play their part amid all the serious stuff, and they’re completely ridiculous, but they work anyway. And it’s with Alabasta that Eiichiro Oda starts to perfect the tropes that he puts into place throughout, with the new islands, the new leader who everyone loves but is actually a bad person, the crew having to deal with him and the Navy, them having to help put someone back in their position, etc. And even though, on paper, it reads like “Well, he’s gotta beat this dude and this dude and this dude,” it’s so much more chaotic and less formulaic than you’d expect. It keeps things interesting.

I agree. I like how he takes all of these pieces and he’s consistent with them, but Oda always plays around with how he sets them up.

But it’s all a foot massage before the real reason to watch Alabasta: Sir Croc.

Are you a big fan of him? That dude is so cool, conniving and powerful. He’s kinda the perfect villain.

Back when I was being miserable and first watching One Piece, I really liked him. I like the design, the sand powers that could actually pose a threat. I always appreciate it when a villain provides actual tension. It’s like why I think Goldeneye is still the best James Bond film. Because Alec Trevelyan is constantly reminding Bond “Remember, I could kill you. I’m from the same place as you. I can take your exploding watch and just, eh, I’ll stop that then. Thank you.” And Luffy loses twice to him in the three-match structure that really works here as it did for wrestling in the 70s.

How so?

So you’d have somebody like champion Bruno Sammartino and someone like Ivan Koloff or one of the Wild Samoans or Stan Stasiak. They’d have one match where the hero would beat Bruno by disqualification. Bruno’s still around to fight, but he’s lost. Luffy survives being thrown in the sand, but he’s been beaten. Then they have the second match, where Bruno would win because the villain would just give up and leave and get counted out. Luffy attacks Crocodile with water, but it’s not enough, and Crocodile just kinda leaves Luffy thinking it’s all done. And then Bruno would be like “Oh no ya don’t. Next time, you won’t be able to escape, because we’re gonna be in a cage match.” And then Bruno wins, just like Luffy wins by punching Crocodile up through that giant enclosed space. He escapes the cage.

It’s just so satisfying and that’s a great way to describe it. So, villains in the series have had extensive crew members before, but they haven’t been as recognizable and colorful as Croc’s crew, Baroque Works. Do you have a favorite member?

They’re all good in their own way, but at this point, I’m gonna go with Mr. 2. Eh, that’s probably too obvious an answer…

Mr. 2 is a lot of people’s favorite member.

Oh, who cares. I’ll go with Mr. 2. I like how Mr. 2 interacts with everyone, having fun with the boys and fighting Sanji with kicks but respecting him.

So, in this arc, there’s a lot of government intrigue and a revolution is about to happen, and everyone’s dissatisfied with their perception of the monarchy. How did you react to all of this political drama in One Piece?

Well, it’s great because you have Vivi, and you get to learn her motivations and because she’s on the crew, it gives you a reason to care for the crew and how all of the political intrigue affects them. Without her, you’d just hear about a war and say “Oh, sorry about that. Hope it goes well.” And with all this lore being thrown at you because you have Vivi and that connection, it’s adding to the main conflict, rather than distracting.

Yeah, Vivi really grounds it all with a personal attachment. Because otherwise it’s just savin’ the kingdom, which is cool and they’re good for it, but it doesn’t have the same impact. So, they did this back in the Arlong Park arc, but what returns here is the kind of 1 vs 1 match structure, where a member or members of the enemy crew are matched up against a Straw Hat or Hats. Mr. 1 has knife body parts, so he’s obviously gonna fight Zoro. Mr. 2 kicks and Sanji kicks, etc. What do you think about that kind of matchmaking, because it’s also a little wrestling-esque.

Yeah, right, like if you have D-Generation X fighting the Nation of Domination, you can’t just have The Rock fighting Triple H. Ya gotta have D’Lo Brown vs X-Pac and The Godfather vs Billy Gunn. I like it because the characters feel like they have to prove themselves, like Zoro’s a swordsman, and he’s gotta test himself against another swordsman. And Usopp does it when he fights Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas with Chopper, because they have a weird dynamic and they’re fighting two people and they have no clue what they’re up against.

So, at the end of the arc, they do the iconic “We can’t let Vivi become associated with pirates so we’ll hold up the X symbols on our arms in solidarity” pose. What did you think about that? Because it’s one of the most famous images in One Piece, and it’s hard to avoid it, even if you’ve never watched the series. Was that your first time seeing it?

It actually was. And I’m glad you brought this up because I was watching it and I thought “Wait, they’re just going? They’re not even keeping the duck?” And then they do that with the X and the original opening starts playing and I get goosebumps just remembering it. That really hit me. Because it finally got me really emotionally invested in the series. Made me feel a bit cheeky.

ONE PIECE LIGHTNING ROUND!

So, considering you’re such a huge pro wrestling fan, your lightning round is gonna be a bit different. I’m gonna say a Straw Hat that’s in the crew at this point and you tell me which wrestler they’re the most like. You can also tell me what time period they’d fit the most in, since wrestler personalities tend to change. So, Luffy?

Gotta be Cena. Specifically? With Luffy’s attitude? Probably 2015 defending-the-United States-Championship John Cena.

Zoro?

He’s all business, he likes to fight. So I gotta go with Cesaro.

Sanji?

Going with Eddie Guerrero.

Usopp?

That character is all over wrestling - the underdog who isn’t very good and uses every trick in the book to win. Gonna go with MJF. He had one of my favorite matches of this year against Cody Rhodes and he just had to use EVERYTHING to beat him - brass knuckles, distraction, chairs, everything he could to get that win. But he could be MJF, could be The Miz, could be Mikey Whipwreck from ECW, take your pick.

Nami?

Hmmm. Becky Lynch.

Chopper?

KeMonito

Robin?

Oh, she shows up after being booed for ages and you’re supposed to like her, so 2019 Charlotte Flair.

Stay tuned for the next installment of "My Favorite One Piece Arc" as we speak with One Piece's official English manga translator Stephen Paul on his favorite One Piece arc: Skypiea!!

Daniel Dockery is a Senior Staff Writer for Crunchyroll. Follow him on Twitter!

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: Daniel Dockery

#Anime #News #Latest in Anime News by Crunchyroll!

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darthchic · 4 years

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Character War: Zoro vs Sanji

Trying to put my own bias aside, and because I’m bored here in quarantine, I was thinking about how I could fairly break down parts of Zoro and Sanji’s characters and compare them. I want to see if I can analytically decide which character is more well realised or well written (just because there’s always that rivalry between both the characters and the fans, you often can’t help but ask yourself these kinds of questions).

EDIT: OH, and SPOILERS if you wish to read this and are not up to date

If the question was “Who’s the more popular character?” though, Zoro wins hands down, no contest.

So, I broke the two characters down into categories:

– Design

– Fighting Style

– Fights/Achievements

– Coolness

– Backstory

– Gag

– Development

Design: Neither Zoro or Sanji have designs that particularly stand out to me, not within their own universe or in anime in general. Seriously, think of some crazy-ass looking characters you've seen in other anime and Zoro and Sanji simply pale in comparison. Heck, they pale in comparison to some of their fellow crewmates (Usopp, Chopper, Franky, Brook etc.) and over time their designs have probably been... how to put this... made more attractive as time goes on? Cause you know, you gotta let the female fans have some eye candy too. And with attractiveness tends to come more “normalness” (not a word but whatever) cause you can't go too crazy with the overall design in case it becomes off-putting. The only thing that really stands out for Zoro and Sanji respectively is hair colour and eyebrows.

– Still if I had to declare one of them the winner... I'd have to say Sanji, just for his more 'unique' eyebrows. We've seen plenty of anime/manga featuring characters with hair colours that match every colour in the rainbow, so it's commonplace for someone to have green or pink hair and no-one really bats an eye. Peculiar eyebrows however are less common, although not rare (as far as I can tell), but for anime fans, it's something I think people still instantly notice more so than a character's hair colour. So.... point to SANJI! But barely, and it’s not much of a win.

Sanji 1/0 Zoro

Fighting Style: Again, neither a sword fighting style or kicking fight style is exactly uncommon, but I am edging towards Sanji's fighting style and I'll try to justify why, even if it is due to my own personal preferences. To me, sword fighting is often the go-to 'bad-ass' method of fighting, cause, come on, SWORDS ARE COOL (can't help but think about the overwhelming popularity of Pokemon Sword vs Pokemon Shield for example). Sword fights/fighters are iconic and that’s the issue at times for me because I feel like I've seen enough sword fights at this point, and not just in anime. So, while they're fun, their overexposure makes me appreciate something different a lot more.

– To me, Sanji's style has a bit more 'kick' to it (oh yes!) and his reasons for using a kicking style are a bit more unique and interesting as well (being that he’s a cook and can’t damage his hands, the tools to his craft). His style is fun to watch, requires a bit more imagination when designing his moves, but it also has a strange kind of elegance to it which I appreciate. Not that sword fighting can't look elegant (Hello, ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’), but I love that people often joke that some shots of Sanji make it look like he could be a dancer which I find amusing, because it’s true. Plus, I admire the fact that he's the only Straw-hat that fights without either a magic power/devil fruit or a literal weapon (though he has now grown accustomed to the raid suit, so…). But, for the majority of the story so far, the dude has just used his legs and that’s it. And is the 3rd (or fourth if you count Jinbei now) most powerful member of the crew, and still impressively strong overall amongst a massive cast of crazy powerful characters. Also, dude can fly. Actually fly. He can fight in the skies, sing “Walking in the Air” and it would not seem completely ridiculous. So, people reading this may not agree, but, point to SANJI!

Sanji 2/0 Zoro

Fights/Achievements: I feel that most fans prefer Zoro's fights as he tends to take on the second strongest villains of each arc (with Luffy obviously taking on the strongest), which is automatic epicness. I know some fans even argue that Zoro would have no problems taking on the strongest villains in Luffy's place anyway, though I would disagree simply due to the fact that if Luffy were weaker/equal in strength to Zoro then why would he even be captain? The guy who's gonna be the Pirate King can hardly be weaker than one of his own crewmates, it ain't right!

– Anyway, Zoro's battles tend to be straight-up badass one-on-one feats of strength, while Sanji's can be a mix of badass and sometimes plain goofy (thinking of Sanji vs Mr. 2 here or Sanji vs Wanze). And I do think Oda makes it clear that Zoro is the more powerful of the two, making his wins a lot more impressive, awe-inspiring, and show how physically far he’ll go in order to succeed (man should really have no blood left in his body). For me personally though, I often found many of Zoro’s fights a bit dull, like his fight with Mr. 1 for e.g. (ha, ironic), and when I watch his big battle with Kaku, while I like Kaku as a character, I had a hard time taking the image of Zoro fighting a sword-wielding Giraffe seriously. Sanji fighting a wolf with a moustache often looks goofy as well, but at least wolves come across as a bit more threatening (unless you have been on a scary Safari tour o__O…).

– Alas, I would give Zoro the point for fights simply because I know how much the fandom appreciates them and the effort he puts in, BUT.... as for achievements... Maybe I'm being sneaky with this, but for me, while Sanji's fights maybe aren't considered as iconic as Zoro's, his actions towards helping the crew solidified Sanji's usefulness to the crew as not only a fighter but a tactician, and without him at a certain point, there wouldn't be any epic Zoro fights to appreciate. Sanji's rescue of the crew in Alabasta was pretty damn awesome, the fact they wouldn't have even reached Alabasta in the first place if Sanji hadn't gotten a hold of the Alabasta eternal log pose is hilarious, his saving of Usopp and Nami in Skypeia, his enabling of the Merry to escape without being blown to smithereens in the Enies Lobby arc, it's all just undeniably awesome. And to me, just as equally iconic and important as Zoro's fights, sooooo... I'm calling it a TIE!

Sanji 3/1 Zoro

Coolness: HAHA! Ok, come on, I love Sanji, but Oda's portrayal of him can get a bit ridiculous at times and sometimes rob him of his dignity, whereas with Zoro, Oda really doesn't humiliate him that much. He's usually always cool and epic and never seems to leave a negative impression in the eyes of fans. So, no question about it, point to ZORO!

Sanji 3/2 Zoro

Backstory: Ok, maybe it's just me, but I don't think many are gonna argue that Sanji has the better backstory? There's just more of it, it's better fleshed out, it establishes his character relationships and motives far better, it's just... better? Zoro's backstory perhaps is still to be further developed, but as it stands...

– Zoro = Wants to become the greatest swordsman because of a promise he made to his dead rival/childhood friend. Nice, but doesn’t feel very original or special. Where did he come from before all that? Where/who is Zoro's family? Why did he want to be a swordsman in the first place? Cause it's cool? It just leaves me feeling annoyed because there’s these gaps and things left unanswered within his story and I can't tell if Oda's even going to give us any answers! But with a possibility that Zoro is from Wano, maybe something is eventually going to be explained? Still, I feel like Oda needs to be careful he doesn't make a repetitive tragic backstory, cause I worry that at some point he's going to run out of ideas on how to make each new backstory more uniquely depressing than the last, to the point where it's gonna be a 'been there, done that' kind of deal. Or maybe he’ll actually reveal that Zoro has a DUN-DUN-DUN living mother. I mean, that’s rarely done in this series, so that would be pretty shocking.

– Sanji = Born as a quadruplet (still so weird to me) to a royal family, kind mother but douche-bag father. Mother dies saving Sanji's humanity because said douche-bag father violated mother and children by tampering with them before birth in order to make his children into sociopathic weapons. Sanji grew up emotionally and physically abused by father and brothers because he had kindness and compassion, and the abuse got so bad that he was even locked in a jail cell with an iron mask on his face because his father was ashamed of his existence. Mother, of course, dies, leaving Sanji with only an older sister to turn to, who could only be nice to him in secret and laugh at him in public. He decided to become a chef during imprisonment due to his mother giving him the only praise he had ever received and he enjoyed making her happy. Finally escapes douche-bag family thanks to decent sister freeing him, but only after promising to never admit he was related to his douche-bag father, further destroying him emotionally. Next, the ship he worked on was destroyed in a tidal wave, killing all his friends at the time, and left him alone on a rock with little food and a pirate who recently kicked the crap out of him. Went months without food only to find out that the pirate he hated had given him all the food, forcing him to cannibalize himself to survive. And all this happened before he was just 10 years old. So, from then on Sanji grew up with a fixed dedication/appreciation for food, but a clearly messed up self-image due to years of abuse and being told he was a failure by his biological father. Not to mention the man who saved his life, while a good man at heart, kinda has a messed up moral compass of his own, and kinda f**ked up Sanji's head in his own way (seriously, Sanji can't bring himself to hit a woman to save his own life cause he can't bear disappointing/disobeying Zeff, the man who actually loved him like a son? Jeez).

– For real, Sanji's story is a doozy, and Zoro's just doesn't compare (at least not at the moment). Sorry, but clear point goes to SANJI!

Sanji 4/2 Zoro

Gag: Possibly debatable again, but I honestly do prefer (and the fandom majority seem to prefer) Zoro's whole getting lost gag to Sanji being a looney tunes pervert (some of the faces Oda draws, I swear!) I don't mind anime perverts so long as they have some substance to their character, but Oda places ‘Pervert Sanji’ in some situations where you're left screaming, “NOW'S NOT THE TIME DAMMIT!” Some moments can be thrown off kilter by the perverseness and/or fanservice to the point where you're just left face-palming. Arguably, the same can be said for Zoro, especially with his wandering off and getting lost in Wano right before Luffy faced off against Kaido (not that Zoro could do much about that anyway if he hadn't gotten lost), but just how easily he gets lost is so ridiculous that it veers right around from being annoying and returns straight back to being hilarious because of how mind-boggling it is. xD So, point to ZZZZZORO!

Sanji 4/3 Zoro

Development: Once again, another debatable one. Too debatable! There's no way around it; some may say Sanji's ‘self-rediscovery’ arc in Whole Cake Island made him the better developed character (or didn’t develop him at all) and some will say that Zoro's “Nothing happened” moment is the pinnacle of character development in One Piece, and to me, too much of it comes down to preference and I find it hard to justify why one is potentially better developed than the other. Especially when there could still be further development for them to come. So.... yeah, another TIE!

Sanji 5/4 Zoro

So, there it is, I killed some great time in quarantine with this(!) Maybe there’s more ‘categories’ I could have added, but with what I came up with, I really did try not to be bias here. I do think it’s important to have a character that can hit ‘all the beats’, deliver in terms of action scenes, comedy and the emotional hard-hitting moments too. I can’t help but appreciate the male characters who are more in touch with their emotions and show vulnerability, which is what I appreciate with Sanji, and why I probably don’t connect with Zoro as much as I’d like to?

Going through all of this however has made me think that I'm actually fairer than I thought I was. No? Yes? Close call anyway.

#one piece #sanji #zoro #my ramblings #one piece spoilers

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neverwatchedonepiece · 5 years

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609-610: "Luffy Dies from Exposure?! The Spine Chilling Snow Woman Monet" and "Fists Collide! a Battle of the Two Vice Admirals!"

Surrounded by trash, unsure of location or direction. Too real, Luffy. Too real.

I feel like a broken record at the moment but Punk Hazard really is delivering.

Across 609 and 610, we had Law vs Vergo with a surprise interruption by Smoker. Caesar was the subject of unexpected character development. Even Luffy vs Monet had a twist, with Luffy falling into a trash compactor and meeting a tiny talking dragon.

I bet that’s Foxfire’s son. The little dragon had a kid’s voice.

I’m just glad the big dragon the Strawhats roasted wasn’t Momonosuke (@mrkashkiet, I am looking at you sternly. xD)

Law Just Cannot Quit Smoking

And does not want to.

The action picked up with Vergo hoofing it to the SAD Room. Speed lines ahoy!

Inside, Law slowly drew his sword in front of a vast tank of SAD Gas. Not sure what he was planning to do, but let’s not dwell on it, in case his plan was literally explosive.

Vergo appeared at the door. “I feel like my hand has been bitten by my own dog. This is too much even for a mischievous child. You were always too smart for your own good. People like you tend to die young.”

You know, I’m not keen on stoic villain types but I’ve got to admit that Vergo has some killer lines.

“It would be easiest to crush your heart but I won’t do that. I’ll torment you slowly as I please and warp your smart ass face with fear.”

Like I said, good lines.

He wailed on Law with grim purpose to the point I found myself shouting, “Come on, Law! ROOM YOURSELF OUT OF THERE!” Law was not having a fun time. (Dare I say, he was SAD?)

But his instinct for shit-talking was irrepressible. “Are you guys frustrated because your scheme is coming crashing down? Is this thing that important to you?”

Well, yeah... If Caesar is *the only person* who can make whatever it is that Doflamingo wants, then SAD must be profitable. Profits before pals seems to be Doflamingo’s modus operandi, but I don’t get the feeling Law is all that surprised Vergo is trying to kill him.

Law did fight back. There was an attempt. He tried to Room his heart back. But Vergo is fast and snatched Law’s heart from the air.

The worst thing, though? Vergo punched Law so hard he lost his hat. That is not cool. It must have riled Law enough for him to try his (awesome) Counter Shock attack. It was big, flashy and high voltage, but it only left Vergo lightly toasted.

Vergo must have decided to kill Law then because he said, “I have a message from Joker. He said, ‘What a shame.’”

Law was weirdly zen about the whole situation. “Oh, well. It didn’t work. I was pretty sure I could take my heart back from Caesar, but I didn’t expect you here, Vergo.”

The lack of -san honorific was the last straw for Vergo. He squeezed Law’s heart like a stress ball. Toei’s red filter descended. Soul-shredding pain was experienced. Law screamed a lot. As you would if your heart was being squeezed by a maniac.

Then, a shaft of light descended from the vaulted heavens.

Except not really because it was Smoker.

It’s almost the same thing.

Vergo was typically cool about the interruption. “I’m in the middle of something. Does it have to be now, Vice-Admiral Smoker?”

And I did a backflip. Yes. Excellent interruption. Great timing, Smoker! Now stop being so fixated on the Big Tanks That Go “Blort” and execute your glorious revenge!

Really, now I think about it, Vergo is almost as bad as Caesar. When Smoker called Vergo out on his deceit and told him not to tell the G5 Men as he was a father figure to them, Vergo said, “Don’t tell me you actually care about those guys? I’m a base commander. I can do whatever I want to my no-good subordinates.” Another one who treats other people as disposable pawns.

Unsurprisingly, Smoker and Vergo came to blows. Smoker seems to be having more luck than Law, but then Vergo does not have Smoker’s heart in a box. What I’d like to happen is Smoker retrieving Law’s heart and they tag-team Vergo into oblivion.

That sounded wrong. But you get what I mean.

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Rubbery Hope

How did Luffy end up in the Death Star’s trash compactor?

His battle with a bird woman from Hoth went south. Literally.

And I cannot believe I am about to say this, but I kind of wish Luffy’s fight with Monet was a little bit longer. Her powers are great. Her self-awareness and cunning are too.

She maintained those ten layer kamakura walls without breaking a sweat. When Luffy smashed one layer, she wrapped another around her frozen prison without missing a beat. Luffy knew she was stalling for time and said he’d just break every layer quicker than she could replace them.

“I bet,” she said. Then swept up behind Luffy and, in an oddly flirty manner, whispered in his ear, “I don’t think I’ll win if I fight you, but the strongest isn’t always the winner in a fight.”

Then she grabbed him and wrapped him, literally, in winter’s embrace.

That hypothermia power was quite cool (no pun intended). Paired with those desolate, snowy vistas and her eerily calm voice urging Luffy to let go, to sleep, relax and let it be, Monet’s Devil Fruit seems pretty strong to me.

But just as Luffy was about to pass out, Zoro’s voice - the very warning he yelled at Luffy a couple of episodes ago - cut through the darkness. “THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING OF THE NEW WORLD!”

I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of the blue filtered haki moments. When he sprang up and let loose that Jet Spear attack, I cheered.

Then he fell through the floor into a garbage chute and I laughed.

It was cool, though. He’s rubber. He’d bounce. And sure enough, it wasn’t long before he was raking through broken gadgets for food. At which point a tiny dragon spoke to him and that is where the story ended.

I am now 75% sure that tiny dragon is Momonosuke. It had a kid’s voice. Probably should be a higher percentage than that but I like to hedge my bets, haha.

Chopper Looks Like Every Harried Substitute Teacher Ever

While Luffy was readjusting to life in a trash compactor with a small talking dragon, Monet flapped away to tick off another box on the never ending to do list: securing the Addicted Experiment Kiddies.

Said kiddies were knocking lumps out of Chopper with their ferocious addict strength. He could not restrain them without hurting them. He tried to convince them not to eat the candy. “I know it’s hard but you have to endure it!”

The thing is, Chopper was dealing with a double helping of trouble here. Not only are they kids, who are naturally more self-centred due to their developing brains. They are also addicts who are so far down the rabbit hole of whatever drug Caesar was peddling they’ll do anything for a fix.

When Chopper’s rumble ball wore off, the kids trampled him and thundered straight for the Biscuit Room, where Mocha was waiting alone.

Luckily, he was picked up by Nami, Zoro, Usopp, Robin, Brook and Foxfire. (Do not remember Brownbeard hanging around. Did he leave or did he just not have any lines?)

Robin tried to restrain the kids. That was interesting for two reasons: one, I didn’t know Robin could feel damage sustained by her extra hands, and two, she asked Usopp and Brook to try and find a pair of Sea Prism Stone cuffs because Luffy had asked her to. (I bet his plan is to cuff Caesar!)

The kids charged Mocha, who tried to tell them the candy was evil! Then Monet whirled into the room on a frosty zephyr. (The best part of this entrance was when Usopp shouted: “I TOLD YOU THERE WAS A BIRD WOMAN!” He was finally vindicated.)

Yay, thought Mocha. It’s Monet-san. She’s lovely!

Nooooope. Monet told her, in a sweet, ever-so-reasonable voice that it wasn’t nice to keep all the candy for herself. Mocha should share it with the others, like always. Mocha’s little face when she sensed betrayal was just heart-wrenching. “Why?” she whispered.

Because Monet is a nasty piece of work just like Caesar? Just a thought.

Not sure what’s going to happen here. There are a *lot* of Strawhats in the room, so I’m guessing Monet will be defeated by them. Then they’ll push through, deliver the cuffs and - BAM - we have one angry, kidnapped scientist.

Sanji Acquires Unexpected Fans

This was a short scene but the fact that Sanji has a cadre of devoted fans in the G5 is hilarious. Yeah, he claims he doesn’t want their approval. And he probably doesn’t.

But Sanji cannot stop himself running back to save the poor saps who can be saved.

This is the Sanji I like: surly on the outside with a golden heart on the inside. More, please!

And the Academy Award for Best Actor goes to . . .

CAESAR CLOWN!

Seriously.

The yarns this guy can spin could crush the GDP of a small textile-dependent country.

Caesar should run for office somewhere. Then he could appoint himself head of the science department.

For that is exactly what has been bugging him for years, it seems. He wants Vegapunk’s job.

Well... maybe not the job. (He’s getting by just fine thanks to pirates. A Government job would ruin that). It’s the fame and kudos. That’s what he’s after.

Plus he has a weird goal: to achieve world peace by obliterating all sources of conflict - collateral damage be damned. Unless he’s lying about that. Given his oscar-winning performance, that would not surprise me.

The action picked up with Caesar caesaring through a pipe and landing outside the Secret Room (I laughed when I realised everyone on Punk Hazard literally calls it the Secret Room).

He was bitching about having to enter the room because it was Vegapunk’s old office. Still, he claimed it was the only place where he could “pull it off”. (I am unsure why he had to go to Vegapunk’s old office just to close some doors, but I’ll chalk it up to plot and say no more.)

He promised to make Luffy, the Strawhats, G5 and Trafalgar Law pay for ruining his plan. It was all their fault! The experiment could have been a great show - everything perfect and beautiful and befitting of the world’s greatest scientist (Vegapunk says hi!) But they screwed it up. He couldn’t let the Strawhats do as they liked. They’d pushed it a little too far and he has Joker on his back now.

He ordered a minion to close the gates to Buildings C and D. This would lure all survivors into one narrow room. His plan? Trap them in the bottleneck and pump the room full of his poison gas through the air vents. He would broadcast it as a snuff movie for the brokers. That would show them what he was really made of!

But the minions hang on his every word and they caught one small discrepancy.

“Um... did you say that *you* had created the poison gas, Master?”

Caesar’s haughty reply was, “Yes, I did.”

“But it’s like Vegapunk’s gas. It freaks us out.” Understandably, the minions probably have ptsd from four years ago.

The moment when Caesar realised he’d let his ego run away with him and opened his big mouth was glorious. How could he spin this? How? The animators did a great job here. You could see the evil, conniving cogs turning in his mind.

Then he broke out his Oscar winning performance.

“This is . . . an avenging battle of science. My people! That day, I tried to stop the mad scientist, Vegapunk. No! If such a weapon exploded, what would happen to the people on the island?” Caesar even threw in a melodramatic “YAMEROOOOO, VEGAPUNK!” for some extra emotional sparkle.

“But the accident happened. And he still lords if over us as the head of the science department of the Marines. and he’s considered the world’s greatest scientist. I cannot tolerate it! He’s the cruel man who hurt you all! Do you think it’s right that people still call him the number one scientist? That’s why I want to prove them all wrong. I didn’t want to make a weapon of mass destruction! But I want to show them that there is a greater scientist here. That I am the greatest scientist in the world! When the Marines acknowledge it and when I become head of the science department, my dream will come true. I can use my scientific knowledge to bring peace to the world!”

I honestly had to stop myself giving Caesar a standing ovation. What a performance that was.

You know, it’s weird. Every lie Caesar told there has a basis in truth. That’s the most dangerous liar right there because the lies they tell are more believable. Does the Gas-Gas Fruit confer gaslighting powers too? Because Caesar is a hellishly efficient manipulator.

And while Caesar was congratulating himself, a flashback happened!

Caesar is Prime Material for /r/IAmVerySmart

Caesar with a bob was weird. I’m guessing when he moved to Punk Hazard, there was a lack of stylists, so he just grew his hair out. That hair you see right now? That is four years of growth.

At any rate, Caesar was doing something a bit more important back in Vegapunk’s lab. He was debating morality with some other scientists. They begged him to stop his experiment. If it exploded, it would kill everyone on the island.

Caesar was typically receptive to criticism. “STFU, boneheads! Where do you think you are? This is a Marine research facility. They want to kill as many pirates as the can. What they need is a weapon that will do it for them.”

“But they don’t want one that will also kill civilians!”

Caesar’s rebuttal? “It’s called collateral damage! If we blow away everything, we can bring peace to the world.” (Does he genuinely believe that? That’s a properly depressing view of the world he holds there, if true.)

“You’re so...”

Caesar had a, “I’m gonna stop you right there” moment. They wanted to say he was cruel? What a joke. They were using prisoners as guinea pigs as if they were trash. What was the difference? (Fair point, Caesar.) Moreover, Admiral Sengoku was too soft, but Akainu, if he was in charge, *he* would want a weapon Caesar made. (Also interesting. I hope Caesar never decides to change sides again. He would be dangerous in Akainu’s hands.)

He went off on one about how Vegapunk had failed to turn people into giants again. Caesar knows you can’t turn people into giants in a short period of time unless you use magic, so had suggested Vegapunk just kidnap some kids and feed them drugs until something worked. What a lovely idea, Caesar! xD

The flash forward revealed Caesar’s “William Birkin Moment”.

Just as he made a significant discovery, Marines burst in and cuffed him with sea prism stone. Vegapunk himself came to see off his old colleague. I was ONE HUNDRED PERCENT HYPED for about half a second. But there was no face.

Blue balled. Again. xD

Caesar was summarily dismissed from the Science Department. “Your eccentric behaviour is intolerable and I cannot protect you anymore, Caesar.”

Interesting that what the rest of the scientists did was viewed as fine and dandy, but Caesar taking it a step further was regarded as “eccentric”. First off, eccentric is a gross understatement. Secondly, what they’re doing is pretty evil too. Caesar is just overtly, unashamedly amoral. They hide it better.

Suffering such a humiliation, Caesar had his “SCREW YOU!” moment and pushed the big red button. Punk Hazard went up in a Mighty Kaboom-Boom Cloud.

Still wondering how they all survived that, but I will chalk it up to plot and say no more.

Of course, after Caesar’s theatrics, his minions fell over themselves to apologise. Sorry, Master! You are the saviour, after all.

“Thank you... thank you all,” Caesar simpered, while inside he called them unintelligent fools. So easily manipulated. Dumb as bricks.

This guy needs taking down several pegs. Maybe an entire cloakroom rack.

Luffy, please oblige asap.

Caesar tells a rip-roaring, thigh-slapper of a yo momma joke.

(No one laughed.)

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ximca · 7 years

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Evidence.ZIP: Nami's slow descent into love

Before we start I want to make clear a few things. This is not paid work which means it's substandard trash, all of the scans used are unofficial, but all the interpretations are mine.

Ready? Set. Go.

This first panel is not a shipping panel. LuNa or SaNa, it's not. However because it's been some days since Sanji took off, that means between that day and the day Luffy and company arrived, he's been on her mind. Again I stress, this is not a romantic sign or symbol of any note. Her tears are of worry and relief because she's been worried sick for her nakama and relief because finally, Luffy's here, let's get the rescue rolling.

The next two pictures are about Nami being eager to get off their butts and go after Sanji right away. But Luffy and Zoro are in no hurry, and even Chopper and Brook in other panels are just sad that Sanji is gone but they're not like Nami who's gung ho about chasing him right away. Does that mean they’re not worried about Sanji? No, of course they are, but Nami obviously is the most worried here.

Right before everything happened, Nami was pretty belligerent towards Sanji. She's used to everything he does, including his antics. But by no means does that mean she's apathetic to him. After all, even as early as FI our guy Sanji put in the work. In PH even if he didn't like it, he followed Nami's wish to save the kids and his body serendipitously saved Nami from Caesar's explosion. Nami knows that Sanji would save any other of his nakama, but it was only during the time skip that she began to see how much special attention Sanji actually paid her. And she doesn't even know yet, that Sanji gave her body respect when he dived that lake to get Kinemon's torso, when just a few minutes ago he was cupping her breasts like a madlad for a punchline.

Nami also remembers quite clearly what little Sanji told them about his family. It doesn't seem anything special until you realize that when this happened, Nami asked Chopper right before to dig a spot up for gold, and forgot all about it entirely when Sanji was telling them about Liar Norland.

So then Sanji and co. got captured. This is what I think triggered Nami, the "I'll be back but not really" smile she's seen twice in her life now: Sanji's and Bellemere's. She never really knew what she had until he was gone.

In this panel Nami is mad at Zoro for victim blaming Sanji. Both sides have a point, but take note of Luffy. He noticed, as well as I did (and a few others), that Nami was being a teensy bit overreacting at this point. Why I judged that to be his action instead of Luffy observing the back and forth, is because he’s of the same opinion as Zoro...marriages are no big deal, it’s not like somebody won’t return from a marriage. But Nami’s uncomfortable with it, so in order to remedy the problem, he decides to go up to Sanji and ask him to come back, because their navigator was being cranky when he wasn’t around. Also because he didn’t want to be a Big Mom subordinate, but if it was really the basis of his decision then he should have decided the chase before Nami’s overreaction.

The other two victims, Brook and Chopper, had very different stances. Brook was the calm and mature narrator while Chopper just kept apologizing.

See again Luffy in this panel. But, in addition to noticing Nami's vehement objection to Sanji's Vinsmoke lineage, there's also what I call the "wait a minute!" graphic. It's those small lines that form a semicircle near a character when something catches their attention during someone else's monologue. So now he knows something's definitely up with Nami, if he wasn't sure before.

That face isn't a "wait a minute, what are Vinsmokes?" but rather a "wait a minute, why are you objecting?"

For comparison, this is Nami’s “wait a minute, I know who you’re talking about” panel.

After the Jack ownage, Luffy was open to another banquet like he wasn't done with one the night before. Nami feels once is enough, let's get going, and gives her usual excuse of "you can't go anywhere without a navigator" spiel like Luffy doesn't know what she does. Go back to when Luffy visited Pekoms, he was still saying no to her because the fewer the members the higher the chance of stealth. But now all he says is OK. He knows that somebody on his crew can't wait to see Sanji again, and he's all too happy to oblige.

Even in this catfight prelude, Nami wants to hurry up, giddy up. But when Pudding elaborates on her situation...

THIS is where I think Nami caught herself slippin'. Luffy's just happy with someone complimenting his cook, Chopper is concerned with fact checking, but Nami...is concerned about Sanji's emotional well-being? If she really didn't give him the time of day then why the hell does she care whether Sanji marries for love and not just for political reasons? Just Nami well-wishing? Can't be, because well-wishers would not question whether or not the bride loves her groom in a political marriage.

ANYBODY else would give the happy bride-to-be a congratulations but only a "former-gf-who-has-accepted-the-reality-of-the-situation-who-still-has-residual-feelings-of-love" would confirm for herself if the man she left/who left her is being loved by his bride-to-be.

And before someone says “But family members and to an extent nakama would ask that too!”, they won’t question the bride’s/groom’s feelings, but whether or not he/she is ready to take care of their partner for the rest of their life. Nami isn’t asking “Will you take care of Sanji for the rest of his life?”

Also I think this conversation makes One Piece finally fail the Bechdel Test after all these years.

Fast forward to when they caught up with the Germa, that's Nami's face of relief from being worried about not being able to see each other again. If Sanji were his normal self this is probably where he'd ask her Do you love me now, Nami-san? or something. And after Nami fighting about quarter/half of 11 hours vs Cracker (this dude could take several G4 punches too), she'd probably reply to him in kind at that point.

I have no doubt in my mind that this Nami was one who already recognized her feelings and had no problem acting on them.

But reality is cruel...Sanji wasn't taking any chances. Even going as far as mock Luffy for his dream...and she believed it...despite hearing about a week ago from his own mouth that Luffy was going to be PK!

Luffy never believed the cockbull Sanji was cranking out, so why did Nami? Well for starters, Nami never experienced Sanji lying to her. Ever. You can even search the whole manga for a panel up to that point where Sanji lied to her, you won't find it. That's why she believed Sanji's lies so easily.

Do you remember the Usopp vs Luffy fight? The stated reason is because Usopp doesn't want to leave the Merry behind, due to his own insecurity about being weak and his projection onto the boat being useless and needing replacement which snowballed into him cracking. But was that really all it was? Of course not, Usopp wasn't selfish enough to fight for himself. Flee for himself maybe. He wasn't just fighting for the Merry Go, he was also fighting for Kaya because Merry was his reminder of her.

Scour the manga, all of Usopp's most emotional fight moments are because he was fighting for someone else.

Back to Nami, what did the slap mean? Was it anger at beating Luffy up and spitting on his dream? Yes. Was it because of all the stress and worry for him being useless at that point? Yes. But as a natural opposite of Usopp, Nami's most emotional fight moments are about herself.

Nami decided to fight Arlong because of his continued tyranny towards Cocoyashi Village despite her doing her best to pay up their freedom, but the bulk of her anger was about how much Arlong fucked her life up. Thanks to him she never grew up with a normal childhood.

With Nami vs Ms. Doublefinger, I think Nami even decided to leave her to Zoro. However because she was being labeled a weakling (and underestimated), she decided to stay and fight. Nami vs Kalifa was a similar case of underestimation despite her taking the fight because Sanji was useless against Kalifa.

I think Nami was also mad that Sanji wasn't the same man she realized she fell in love with. Gone was the kind, humble, and goofy man who would stick up for his nakama and their dreams. In his place was a snotty brat who acted superior to everything and believed status gave them the right to shit on other people's dreams. Nami thinks Sanji has changed for the worse because of his newfound status, and drops the endearment term “-kun” which she only used for him.

It's framed like in TV dramas where the lady slaps the man out of passion. Yonji even lampshades it: "She's the fiery type!"

The last pic is just Nami’s “oh shit no” look compared to Luffy’s “oh shit” one.

I’m too tired to continue so I’m stopping this here.

Better researchers than I can spot where Nami first got infatuated by Sanji.

All I’m saying is, they don’t really care about us Sanami shippers should not worry about the character development Oda gave Nami in the Year of Sanji. It’s been a long time coming for us but it’s the last stretch before the game ends.

Don’t expect Oda to give them a flashy confession or an extraordinary action to validate the ship.

But if I read Oda right and this is where he wants Sanji and Nami to take the next step into their relationship, we’re in the green.

Naysayers will say things like “but Nami would do the same for the other nakama” or “so and so would act like that too” but take heed and remember, Oda does not write without reason. He MADE Nami overreact because he wants US to care that Sanji was taken from the crew. He WROTE Sanji into catching Nami with both of them sharing a brief smile because he wants US to feel the relief of both parties safe in each other’s hold.

And he DREW Pudding being jealous because that’s how some other ships feel about this arc. jk ilu guise this is just banter

Thanks for reading.

#sanami #sannami #sanji x nami #sanjixnami

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creative-type · 7 years

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Why Tony Tony Chopper is my Least Favorite Straw Hat

I feel conflicted when I see people list characters from greatest to least favorite. Cut and dry lists in general - whether featuring power levels, most attractive, saddest backstory, etc - tend to elicit this reaction, because they’re so subjective and I think if an author has done a good job then the audience shouldn’t be able to make the list at all.

Which wouldn’t stop people from trying, but still.

Using One Piece as an example, there are certain characters that resonate with me personally, the chief of whom is Nico Robin. I’m a total sucker for the misunderstood badass bookworm - Raven from the original Teen Titans cartoon, Tris Chandler from Tamora Pierce’s works, Roald Dahl’s Matilda, and Thistle from Daughter of the Lilies are just a few examples of this in other media.

But apart from Best Girl Robin, my feelings about the cast of One Piece tends to vary depending on how you define “favorite”. I love Luffy as a main character, but would hate to meet him in real life. I appreciate Zoro’s place in the crew, but find him boring and long wistfully for the days when he was allowed to be a goofball. Nami, Usopp, and Vivi grew on me over time, and if I could graph my feelings on Sanji over the course of the series it would look like I have ventricular tachycardia

And then there’s Chopper.

Just as I’ve liked Robin since her first appearance, I have never liked Chopper. I know typing it is akin to blasphemy amongst the One Piece fandom, but I was left unmoved by his backstory, and he’s never grown on me in the hundreds of chapters since then. The first thing I thought when I first saw his unused concept art was “what a wasted opportunity”.

A lot of this is subjective. I work in health care, so the quack doctor Hiliruk rubs me the wrong way on a purely professional level, which in turn makes it really hard for me to care when he dies. I dislike Chopper’s “mascot” status and how it’s affected his character design. I wish he would do more onscreen doctoring. I find his naivete annoying. I think his post-timeskip transformations look dumb. And so on and so forth, ad nauseum.

At the same time, Nami is never shown drawing maps and I regularly have her in my top 3-4 Straw Hats. Usopp and Luffy are just as stupid, but their antics don’t bother me half as much as Chopper’s do. When I decided to sit down and write about Chopper, I had to figure out what made me less tolerant about him specifically when there are plenty of others who share his same flaws. This is what I came up with.

Want vs Need and Forgotten Development

In his book The Anatomy of Story, John Truby describes the difference between a character’s want versus their need. While written with writing screenplays in mind, many of Truby’s techniques can be used regardless of medium. It’s an excellent tool for would-be writers, and I highly recommend it.

When looking at Chopper through the lens of want and need, it’s pretty easy to see what Oda had in mind.

Chopper wants to become a doctor who can heal any illness, but he needs to reconcile his human and reindeer natures and see himself as a complete person. Ironically, in doing so he willingly becomes the “monster” he was so afraid of.

Since this transformation is for the sake of and with the support of his friends, it’s coded as positive when before it was negative. Chopper is no longer isolated and lonely, but an accepted and important member of an infamous pirate crew. Compare the above to his fight on Fishman Island

So Chopper does have a complete character arc through the first half of the series, and it’s a good one - simultaneously unique to him while bolstering the themes of One Pieces as a whole. Good job, Oda.

At the same time, I think there’s a secondary need that’s overlooked by the narrative, and by this point I doubt will be relevant to the story, and that’s the fact that Chopper needs to grow the fuck up.

To be fair, Chopper is only 15 at the start of the series, had spent the first years of his life as a reindeer and the rest isolated from the world for his own safety. It is understandable that he’d be naive. Dr. Kureha points this out for herself when he first joins the Straw Hat Pirates

What sets Chopper’s immaturity apart from, say, Luffy’s is that it is presented as something that he needs to overcome. This is especially true during the Skyepiea arc.

Remember that early on in the arc Chopper is left alone to guard the Going Merry. Chopper fails, losing quite badly to the Priest with all the strings whose name I can’t remember. Even with Gan Fall’s intervention it was plot armor sheer luck that kept the both of them from being killed.

This loss nicely sets up Chopper’s battle with Gedatsu, which ended with Chopper’s first solo victory of the series.

Chopper screams to the heavens that he’s a “real” pirate, which in context refers to reliable, brave, and strong. Note that this ties into his main need of self-actualization as the chapter before Chopper calls himself a monster just before hitting Gedatsu with his finisher.

In doing so, Oda is effectively saying that Chopper needs to mature before he can become a complete character. In this way Chopper is like Usopp, whose desire to become a brave warrior the sea necessitates that he face his problems head on instead of run from them.

Later during the Davy Fight Back, Chopper is temporarily lost to the Foxy Pirates. He is understandably upset, but he goes overboard with his hysterics, causing Zoro to call him out.

Zoro in essence tells Chopper to man up. Now, masculinity as defined by One Piece is a pretty broad topic, and this isn’t the only time Chopper is told how to act “manly” by other members of the Straw Hat crew, one of the best examples I can think of being Sanji telling Chopper that “a man doesn’t believe a woman’s lies” when Robin tries to leave the crew. In this instance, however, I think “being a man” is interchangeable with “acting like an adult”, specifically in the area of taking responsibility for one’s actions.

So we have the problem of Chopper’s naivete brought up by Kureha, the first steps of maturity seen during Skypiea, and the exposure that Chopper still has a long way to go during the Davy Fight Back. There’s even a moment during Thriller Bark when he has to deal with the realization that one of his idols is an evil dirtbag of Spandam-like proportion - a loss of idealism that most go through as a normal part of growing up.

The development isn’t fast nor especially profound. It’s never the main focus of Chopper’s arc because it’s not his primary need, and in a gag-happy series like One Piece I think Chopper’s childishness would always be the brunt of some sort of joke. But there is a sense of steadily marching forward toward a goal, and if things had kept trending in that direction I think it would have been enough to elevate Chopper from his dubious position as my least favorite Straw Hat.

But immediately after the timeskip we have this abomination of a scene

Words cannot express how much I hate this scene. Every other Straw Hat gets an awesome reintroduction. Nami and Usopp, who along with Chopper make up the so-called “weak trio”, even get to beat the crap out of some of the Fake Hat Pirates.

Chopper mistakes creepy cucumber lady for Robin and runs away crying, undoing hundreds of chapters of development in one fell swoop. It’s stupid on so many levels I can’t even articulate enough to type them all out. The gag falls flat and makes it impossible for me to take him seriously going forward. I will admit that I’ve not done a lot of rereading of recent chapters to double check, but where Usopp and Luffy get plenty of moments post-timeskip to display a new-found maturity while maintaining their fun-loving nature, Chopper does not. He’s the same old Chopper.

I don’t have any way to confirm this, but I think part of this stagnation of character is due to Chopper’s status of cute mascot. To disrupt this status quo is to lessen his marketability. There is a reason why Chopper’s so damn cute when Oda originally wanted him to be kind of ugly. I mean, say what you want about Oda’s use of realistic body proportions, but there was a time when Chopper’s head wasn’t bigger than his torso.

Whether I’m right or not, I don’t think that it can be disputed that Chopper has gone through what I call “forgotten character development”. He’s just as immature (and in some places more so) as he was early in the series, and personally I can’t stand that kind of character.

And again this is a highly subjective thing, but I don’t even think he’s that cute anymore. It’s a serious problem when your mascot ceases to be adorable and has no development to fall back on.

In the larger picture of One Piece, the loss of Chopper’s secondary development is a small thing, but it’s enough for me to not care about him at all. Sanji, for all his polarizing actions, at least makes me feel something. These days Chopper is just...there.

I will admit that I might have let my initial distaste cloud my objectivity, so let me know what you think about Chopper’s development, or if there’s any other character that everyone else seems to like but you can’t stand. I’ll commiserate with the burden of having an unpopular opinion.

#One Piece #Writing #Analysis #Manga #Eiichiro Oda #Chopper #Tony Tony Chopper #Character analysis #Straw Hat Pirates #creative-type analyzes

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forcedapotheosis-blog · 7 years

Text

In response to ..

@sanjiafsincedayone ‘s post “Regarding Sanji and Pudding” [read here].

Sorry that I’m going the long way, but I’m not a man of few words, I’m a lazy piece of shit of few deeds though.

Note: I’m gonna give you my honest opinion on SanjixViola and SanjixPuddin within this piece of garbage post, and that is my opinion alone. If you’re shipping one of those pairings, please go on. We’re all here for the fun of it and nothing could be further from the truth than me trying to suck the fun out of it for you (also, remind yourself that I’m just a random stranger on the internet and the impact of my opinion on your life is non-existant and should be handled as such).

So, as probably everyone involved I have my opinion on the matter. Two opinions, actually, which I will highlight as such.

1. With the shipping-goggles

Surprisingly enough, this one is going to be the shorter one. I actually went through the hassle of quickly re-reading the interactions between both Viola and Sanji and Pudding and Sanji to provide you with a more based view (which still doesn’t mean that I’m interpreting it right, mind you). So, first of all let me get this one out of my system: I personally think that an unknown amount of people only ship either Viola or Pudding with Sanji because .. well, it’d ‘free’ Nami.

To quickly elaborate this, most people actually don’t want to be jerks, but still have an opinion that differs from yours. Regarding shipping (let’s call it AxB) that would mean that while you ship AxB, they’d rather ship CxB and might even outright state that they don’t like AxB. But then person D gets introduced and has some kind of interaction with A. Some persons now, those that ship CxB, might want to say that AxD is a great ship, because of whatever. That way, they can support their own ship (CxB) while non-jerkishly taking away from AxB.

Alright, that got a little more confusing than I hoped it would, but I guess that you get the point anyway. Moving on.

As I already wrote, I re-read the interactions between Sanji/Viola and Sanji/Pudding and in my personal opinion, they’re .. nothing really special. Some people might say that there’s chemistry between either of those pairings (and they might be right and I’m the one unable to see because of my personal bias), but I honestly can’t see it. Imagine any (really, any) other beautiful female in Viola’s position when she asked Sanji to protect her and kill somebody for her. Would he have done it? I mean, it’s Sanji, so I’m betting my ass on it. The same goes for the moment with Pudding in which he sees her third eye for the first time. Now, let me get this straight: In my mind, one of the most wonderful things abut Sanji’s character is his utter, egalitarian admiration/love of female beauty, egalitarian regarding that he’s not following one standard for human female beauteousness, but that he simply loves women.

Want an example? We’ve got a few of them, too. Mermaids, for starters. I mean, yes, most of them have human proportions and half their body is actually human, but what about Shirahoshi? She’s about ten times the size of a normal human, it still doesn’t stop Sanji. Another example? The minks, of course.

So, Sanji could get the hots for giant half-fishes and furries, but a third eye is a no-go-area? Please. If it’s female and beautiful, this man will be all over it, bless his soul.

Alright, this part is getting way too long and I’m going to cut it here, hoping that I somewhat made my unimportant point.

2. Without the shipping-goggles (more of a writing-perspective)

First off, this might still come across as if I’d want to make a point from the shipping-perspective, but I’m giving my best not to do it. Cut me some slack, plox :D

Alright, so: From the end of chapter 824, in which Sanji first sees Pudding, he is portrayed with his usual, lecherous persona, so nothing new here. See, the thing I’m trying to get to is that, while he asked her to marry him, it would come somewhat out of the blue within the story if their pairing would become canon. Yes, he called her his ‘Ray of Hope’, but I think one might be overinterpreting it a little. Sanji’s situation is dire, he’s at his lowest of lows and, at this point, he is sure to never see his nakama again and be a thrall of BM. Add to that that the reunion with his family didn’t really went well and that they’ve threatened the safety of Zeff and the other cooks. One, at least myself, could say that this is a terrible situation to find yourself in.

Enter Pudding! She’s beautiful and seems kind, in that situation that’s probably better than the best Sanji could have hoped for, a small light at the end of the tunnel and, yes, a ray of hope in his darkest hour (hell, even I’d be a lot more optimistic about things if that happened to me). But from this perspective, is it somewhat feasible that he actually fell in love with her? Again, in my personal opinion, no. Infatuated? Hell yeah, sure. But that’s a part of his character, but in love? I’d doubt it (and might be totally wrong, again). Oda even undermines her importance when he’s going to bring her food (and flowers), remember that this, of course, was before she revealed her true colours. He brought the favourite food(s) of his nakama. She then proceeds to reveal her (and BM’s) true intentions and the chapter ends with something along the lines of “not a single ray of hope left in this world”.

We all know what happens after that, poor Sanji is shattered because the shittyness of his situation just went through the roof, he was betrayed and .. well, he might even be a little heart-broken, but I wasn’t able to find a definite clue for that (so there might be some). Yadda-yadda, he talks with Reiju and fills her in this situation, then moves on to reunite with Luffy, the alliance with Bege is forged and now shit’s already hitting the fan.

What I want to say with this part is that, at least in my humble opinion, it would be kind of out of the blue, even from Oda’s (current) perspective, to let them end up together. First off, I’m of the opinion that Oda is actually a pretty good writer and relationships need time to develop. Time that these two didn’t really have, and what little they had left was pretty much overshadowed by her betrayal, and I’m not even talking about the fact that Luffy and Nami might have died without her even so much as giving a shit about them. Now, One Piece is, first and foremost, about friendship. And even though Sanji will gladly mock and beat, for example, Zoro, if a woman is involved, I’m fairly certain that he’d still take even his side when push comes to shove (not by beating up said woman, of course, but within the boundaries of his character).

Yes, Pudding might be redeemed and I’m somewhat certain that it’ll happen within the next chapters, and she, most likely, will be forgiven. But with forgiveness, it’s the same thing as in real life. Stuff can be forgiven but not forgotten.

Another thing, going back to the point that Oda is a good writer, is that it would, at least in my eyes, incredibly devalue Pudding’s character if she only sits back to wait for Sanji. Some more pretty pivotal topics of One Piece are, besides friendship, growth and adventure (and those sometimes/oftentimes go hand in hand with growth). Growth can take many forms within the manga, sometimes it happens within a fight (Luffy vs. Lucci, for example), other times it happens over a pretty long time (I think that Nami and Usopp are the most outstanding examples for that). So yes, Pudding can be redeemed by siding with the Straw Hats, no questions asked, but in my humble opinion, this would only be the first step towards actual growth. Simply because of the fact that one act of kindness, even if it’s a rather huge one, can’t spirit away a lifetime of being a psycho. And when it comes to Pudding, just pulling this out of my ass, her personal redemption arc / or hero’s journey if we talk Joseph Campbell, would probably consist of her travelling the world and actually learn to love herself for what she is and experience true kindness from other people, those that will accept her for the person she is, not for being the daughter of a Yonkou. But that’s just my opinion and if Oda decides to let the two of them become a canon-pairing, I’ll just live with it. I mean, there’s nothing I could do about it, writing a billion posts about why I think that’s not good will not even reach him :D

Oh well, this has become longer than I wanted it to be. Sorry for wasting your time with my babble.

#I'm not even going to tag this with shipping stuff #One Piece #Sanji #Pudding #Viola #personal opinion #Don't hate #If you hate anyway #come tussle with me big boy style #writing

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azuregold · 7 years

Note

(struggling to figure out how to ask all of them... also obv no spoilers ;u;) okay for character specific questions: 13 I don't think I've questioned any character's actions so ┐( シ)┌ 14 I guess Zoro?? maybe Travis 21 tell me about the human experiences of Luffy! 22 Zoro 30 eh just ramble about the Straw Hats living human lives? 42, 43, 49 & 50 all of the crew when they were in Earthverse !

These were fun! Well, most of them. For questions 21, 30, 42, 43, 49, and 50…they aren't things I've thought too much about before. I'm not in the right frame of mind to try at the moment and I didn't want to let the ask sit there unanswered until I did manage to think of something, so I'm just going to go ahead and skip them for now, sorry! ^^;

1: what inspires you?

Having a good idea I can be excited about? IDK. X'D

2: one of your favorite comments/reviews on this chapter/verse?

I love all my comments. ;u; I love the comments that go into detail about what they thought, the comments that are just a mess of flailing, the comments that tell me they stayed up all night reading, the comments that are just a line or two to say they liked it, and everything in between. Even if I could decide on one to use as an example, I wouldn't want to make anyone feel like I didn't appreciate their comment because it didn't look like that one.

3: what motivates you?

Being excited about an idea, getting to write a part I've been looking forward to, getting a nice comment on a fic, having the house to myself.

4: what time of the day/night do you like to write?

Either afternoon or at night once my mom's gone to bed.

5: do you write scenes in a linear fashion or do you write future scenes/dialogues sometimes?

I'll write snippets of future scenes if I think of something I don't want to lose, but otherwise I write pretty much linearly (aside from going back to rewrite previous scenes/chapters).

6: hardest/easiest character to write for?

I don't know if any of them are easy, exactly. It also depends on the scene and what they're going to be doing. Sometimes I know exactly how they'll behave, and sometimes I just can't picture how a character would react to a particular event or line of dialogue.

But generally Zoro isn't too bad. (Also Travis, because he's my character, though that still doesn't mean I know how he'll respond to things all the time, unfortunately.) Hardest is probably Flirty!Sanji and Franky. I've never tried writing from Franky's point of view, but he's hard enough from someone else's that I'm not eager to try. Chopper and Robin aren't too bad from someone else's POV, but I think I might have trouble writing from theirs. And Luffy can be difficult occasionally, depending on the situation. (Also Sven is hard, even though he’s my character.)

7: hardest/easiest verse to write for?

Well, I only have one at the moment, so… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Though once I actually start writing some of my other ideas, I have a feeling Mistyverse will still be the easiest, just because I've been working in it for so long.

8: (if you have either or both) how do you manage time with writing, work, school etc.?

Very badly. ^^;; I'm terrible at time management.

9: what tv shows, books, or movies inspire for this verse, if any?

Story-wise, I can't think of anything specific (there may have been and I've just forgotten, but). Character-wise, Archer from Fate/Stay Night and Furuya Rei/Amuro Tōru/Bourbon from Detective Conan were a big influence when I was developing Travis.

10: any writing advice?

I don't feel confident enough to give advice to other people, haha.

11: (if you use) what do you like about archiveofourown?

The tag system. It can be very helpful in finding a certain subject or giving me a better idea of what the fic is about. Also the "mark for later" option. And the ability to have a series. It makes it much easier not to miss things when there are multiple fics in a story. And I like that the author isn't sent a notice when someone subscribes/can’t see the names of people who have subscribed. I feel much less awkward about subscribing to fics that are years old or about a very guilty pleasure. :P

12: anything you would do to make archiveofourown different/change it?

I…kind of have a list…

– Add a way to sort subscriptions by fandom! Sometimes I want to reread fic for a particular series and if I don't remember the title(s), going through multiple pages of fics and opening them one by one is such a pain.

– Give us a way to mark main vs. minor characters and relationships in fics. It's really annoying searching for fics about a certain character or pairing and getting dozens of fics that focus on someone/thing else entirely, with whatever you were looking for getting maybe a couple of scenes in the background. I've seen authors try to tag things to indicate this themselves, but most (including me ^^; ) don't do it, and in any case, I'd like an actual option I can mark in a search.

– It'd be cool to be able to put spoiler warnings on tags. Click to view, highlight, something.

– Filter IDs are very helpful, but it would be so much easier if we could just click a button to exclude things like explicit fics, “multi” fics (I’m so tired of being overrun with smutty “multi” fics when I search for “gen” without a filter), NOTPs, fandoms I don’t like…and so on.

– Being able to choose whether or not crossovers are included in the search results. I like a good crossover, but sometimes I just want fics for the one series.

– Don’t have author replies count under total number of comments. Also a PM system would be nice.

(If any of this is possible and it’s just that I don’t know about it, someone please tell me. X’D)

14: what is the arc for this character (redemption, etc.)?

I find it hard to put things like this into words (and I don't want to give spoilers), so…I'm going to pass on this as well. ^^;

15: ask me any spoilers you’re curious about for a verse, and i’ll post the answer in the tags

I'm glad you didn't ask for any because usually I love giving spoilers but we're far enough into the story now that most things I could say are Big Spoilers for the climax/ending that I really don't want to give away ahead of time. So thanks for not tempting me. XD

16: do you ever hand write? why or why not?

Once in a long while, if I think of a line I don't want to forget after I've turned my computer off, I'll jot it down on a notepad so I'll remember it the next day. Otherwise, no. My handwriting is slow as molasses and makes my hand tired. ^^;

17: do you listen to music while you write?

Almost always. 8D Just instrumentals, though.

18: any fanmixes you’ve made for this fic/verse?

Not really, no. I have a playlist I use when I'm writing scenes with Travis, and I'm working on one for fight scenes in general, but that's the closest I've got.

19: any edits or art you’ve made for this fic/verse/any edits readers have made? if not, what visuals would you use for one?

All the art I've posted for Mistyverse is here (If I get any fanart in the future, that's where it will be, too). I have quite a bit of art I haven't posted, mostly of Travis or unfinished attempts to draw specific scenes (I have an attempted map of the island in OtMS that I'm too embarrassed to look at again X'D).

20: what songs were you listening to during this scene/chapter?Mostly I just shuffle my giant instrumental playlist. Or if I'm in the mood for something new, I go looking on YouTube or similar places for writing playlists. As far as music for specific scenes/chapters, I think I pretty much covered that in question 13 here.

22: favorite line/quote/inner monologue from this character?

Zoro… At the moment, probably:

Zoro's heart had nearly stopped when he'd seen those hands. Or it would have, if he'd still had one.

Damn it, when did I start stealing Brook's lines?

23: feelings on epistolary fic?

It can be interesting. c: I like it best when letters/diary entries/whatever are mixed with more traditional narrative, but they can make for a fun story.

24: do you outline?

Yep! Not super-detailed outlines, usually, but I prefer having some sense of where things are going.

25: if you outline, do you edit it frequently?

Not that often, no. I don't think I've even looked at the outline for FMaA in a while, actually, because things got very vague toward the end, outside of a few specifics, and I have most of the necessary info in my head at this point.

26: anything you’re planning to write in your fic that you’re worried readers might like?

I think this is supposed to be "that you're worried readers might not like". Because otherwise…why would someone liking my stuff make me worried? Barring creepy stalkers and the like. Assuming it's "not"…

Ohhh yeah. I might hide under the covers for about a week when I post those parts… X’D

27: when you read fic, how often do you comment?

Not…very often. ;;OTL I know how much comments mean to writers, especially now that I've had firsthand experience, but I still find it a difficult thing to do. And lately, when I do comment, more often than not I do it anonymously, even if all I have to say is praise. It's just more comfortable for me that way. If I leave a signed in comment, it usually means I really liked the fic.

28: any scene/line you wrote that you didn’t expect to write/that surprised you once it was written?

Uhh…first thing that comes to mind is when they were at the museum and got roped into playing themselves. I had planned for their disguises to be seen through and for it to be assumed that they were cosplaying, but the rest of it just sort of happened. Including Maya; I knew she was going to be in the story, but I didn’t know she was going to be on that island or working at the museum until she showed up in the fruit room. X’D I don’t even remember how I was originally going to introduce her, except that it was going to be a lot closer to the end.

29: do you eat or drink anything while you write?

Not while I'm writing, but I like to have a drink and sometimes a snack before I start. Most often chai. It helps me get in the mood.

32: what are your stats for this story/verse?

Is…this supposed to mean, like…number of kudos/comments/hits. etc? If it means something else, someone tell me and I'll adjust my answer. :P

Just doing the two main fics (and on FFN the shorts are part of OtMS anyway, so):

On the Misty Shore

AO3 – Kudos: 75, Comments: 11, Bookmarks: 10, Hits: 1350

FFN – Reviews: 86, Favorites: 165, Followers: 63, Communities: 1, Views: 21,005

From Mist and Ashes

AO3 – Kudos: 117, Comments: 37, Bookmarks: 17, Hits: 1739

FFN – Reviews: 94, Favorites: 101, Followers: 129, Views: 11.433

33: favorite one-shot you’ve written?

Ah…hmm. I haven't actually written any one-shots as in "self-contained, stand-alone story" yet (I have plans!). Out of the one-shot extras that I wrote for Mistyverse…maybe Proof? It was the most self-indulgent of the three and the most fun to write.

34: a scene/paragraph you wrote that you’re proud of

I'm pretty happy with most of the stuff in chapters 18 and 19…and the scene in 16 where Zoro reveals himself…and Zoro and Travis’s fight in the museum in 15…and probably more that I’m not thinking of, but I’m not going to reread the whole thing again right now. :P

35: any foreshadowing/symbolism you wrote that you hope readers didn’t miss?

Yes, but at the same time I hope most people don't put the pieces together until things get revealed later.

36: any scenes you wrote that parallel the canon verse?

I guess maybe the stuff with Zoro and Chidori in 17? Kind of?

37: do you use quotes in the beginning notes/intro to your chapters? if so, what are some of your favorites/what are their significance?

Nope, I don't.

38: do you title your chapters? what’s your favorite chapter title? what’s its significance/why did you choose it?

Yes, I love titling chapters. Even when I can't think of anything good. Favorite chapter title is definitely Law and Order. Because it has a double meaning/pun (the structure and rules of Whitestone + Law showing up at the end).

39: any alternate fic titles you were considering for this verse?

I had a couple others I was playing with, at least for FMaA, but who knows what they were? Not me. XD

40: chapter you’re most proud of in this verse?

At the moment, I'd say it's a tossup between 15, 16, 18, and 19.

41: chapter that was the most fun to write in this verse?

Hmm. 12 was the easiest, and it's always fun when I'm not struggling with a chapter. The whole arc on Crinia (chapters 13 – 15) was pretty fun, even when it got difficult. 18 – 19, too. And I felt like chapter 20 was crap while I was writing it, but it was silly fun, and it doesn't seem as terrible when I reread it now.

44: have you shared your outline with anyone? if so, what did they think of it?

The outline itself, no. Parts of it are pretty different from what I actually ended up writing; it might be fun to share some of it sometime. c:

45: anyone you share excerpts with?

*pokes you* And I've posted a few here before, too. They're usually pretty short, though. Just a line or two.

46: story with the most kudos (AO3)?

From Mist and Ashes.

47: story with the most comments?

From Mist and Ashes again. :P

48: a happy future moment you’ve written/have planned for this ship? (will post under read more for spoilers)

*ignores the "ship" part* Hmm…I have no idea if I'll ever actually write it, but in my list of ideas for FMaA bonus scenes I have one where Zoro cooks for everyone (just because he can't eat anymore doesn't mean he can't cook—he lived on that island by himself for a long time before he died, after all). Also (for the benefit of anyone else reading this), sircerenade and I have discussed Brook and Zoro bonding over stuff before (being "grandpa figures", sharing skull/ghost jokes, etc.). Some of it may be more bittersweet than happy, but it’s a cute bittersweet, so.

#From Mist and Ashes

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omelettedufromage-24601 · 7 years

Text

Wrong Number

Pairings: LawLu, ZoSan. Summary: Inspired by the prompt we all know, Person A sends a message to Person C without meaning to as they thought they were texting Person B. Warning: Tons of humour!

AO3 - Fanfiction.net

Chap 1 - Chap 2

Enjoy!

“Hey, Luffy!” – Unkown number “Yeah?” – Luffy “It’s Shachi and Penguin again!” – Unknown number “Who?” – Luffy “Law’s friends!” – Unknown number “Oh hey guys! How are you doing since last time?” – Luffy “Well better, almost thought Law would kill us just by the way he was looking at us!” – Shachi and Penguin “Shishishi, I guess he’ll be over it after some time~” – Luffy “… Are you sure you never met Law?” – Shachi and Penguin “Well I only know one Torao! Why?” – Luffy “Don’t know, you’re acting as if you knew him, like, in real life.” – Shachi and Penguin “Oh really? Wouldn’t surprise me though, once I’ve been talking to this blond pineapple head at some friend’s parties and at the same time Ace was always talking to me about a Marco-guy, he even showed me some pics, but I never realized the Pineapple Head and Marco were the same person until Ace came by and finally introduced him to me!” – Luffy “… We honestly have no idea how to react to this right now.” – Shachi and Penguin

“Blblblblbl” – Luffy […] “What’s that?” – Torao “I’m bored” – Luffy “As usual.” – Torao “Is that your new way of saying ‘hello’ now?” – Torao “Well you did say something about how I keep saying 'hello’ and 'goodbye’ all the time!” – Luffy “Right.” – Torao * “OH MY GOD” – Usopp “OH FUCK” – Usopp “OH NO THAT’S IT” – Usopp “THIS IS THE END” – Usopp “What? What’s going on?? Is everything alright?” – Chopper “I’M HURT” – Usopp “IT’S BAD” – Usopp “IT’S VERY BAD” – Usopp “IT’S VERY VERY VERY BAD” – Usopp “I’M GONNA DIE” – Usopp “I CAN SEE BLOOD ALREADY” – Usopp “OH MY GOD WHAT’S HAPPENING?? TELL ME USOPP” – Chopper “LIFE IS LEAVING ME” – Usopp “TELL MY FRIENDS I LOVED THEM” – Usopp “I’M DYING” – Usopp [Missed call] “I WANT TO GIVE EVERYTHING I HOLD DEAR TO YOU MY FRIEND” – Usopp “PLEASE TAKE CARE OF MY BELONGINGS” – Usopp “STOP A MOMENT AND TELL ME WHAT’S WRONG PLEASE” – Chopper “I CAN FEEL LIFE LEAVING MY BODY FOR GOOD NOW” – Usopp “GOODBYE CRUEL WORLD” – Usopp “FAREWELL” – Usopp “WHY CAN’T YOU ANSWER THE PHONE” – Chopper “IS IT REALLY THAT BAD DON’T DIE ON MY WATCH” – Chopper [Missed call] [Missed call] “Usopp please tell me you’re okay” – Chopper “You’re scaring the shit out of me answer” – Chopper “USOPP PLEASE ANSWER” – Chopper “Oh sorry, I was trying to fix what I broke” – Usopp “WHAT, BROKE? LIKE A BONE?” – Chopper “No, my new invention! I just walked on it and my foot hurts like hell damn!” – Usopp “… Are you really serious?” – Chopper “Well I was lazy to put on the light and had forgotten about it so didn’t see in the dark and blam” – Usopp “Oh thank God I’m glad you’re okay!” – Chopper “Hey I’m not! I just broke everything I have to start ALL OVER again! My life’s greatest achievement! And it really does hurt man!” – Usopp “Don’t ever do that to me again though. I thought you were dying for good!” – Chopper * “So how did it go?” – Franky “What are you talking about?” – Sanji “Your date! C'mon dude, we’re between guys, don’t be shy about it!” – Franky “What the fuck?” – Sanji “Would have known if I had been on a date lately” – Sanji “With a green–haired swordsman?” – Franky […] “Sorry I almost died of disgust when I read your message” – Sanji “So how did it go? What did you finally do?” – Franky “I bet you guys were all jerks at first but then finally made out” – Franky “Because you did make out right? I mean we’ve all been waiting for you to do this for so long now.” – Franky “Not that we’d want that because he’d totally be awesome – which would be don’t get me wrong – but to be honest we figured out maybe you would stop being that unbearable for once” – Franky “Damn I wish I could have come to see you guys but I had this thing at the factory to finish in time” – Franky “All of this because Paulie took his day off without telling me or Iceberg!” – Franky “I still can’t believe it.” – Franky “My boss can really be a pain in the ass sometimes” – Franky “Well enough about my stuff tell me more about last time.” – Franky […] “Sanji?” – Franky […] “What really?” – Franky […] “Don’t be such a drama dude!” – Franky “I thought we were friends!” – Franky * “I learnt there was a movie last day to go to!! I’m so sorry I didn’t know!” – Chopper “What?” – Zoro “I was so busy with the work and all!” – Chopper “I didn’t mean to let you down!” – Chopper […] “You didn’t let anyone down, don’t worry.” – Zoro “You’re not mad at me?” – Chopper “You just told me you didn’t even know!” – Zoro “Next time I’ll be there!” – Chopper “I promise!” – Chopper “I told you not to worry we weren’t even really hanging out.” – Zoro “You weren’t?” – Chopper “Yeah no one really came so” – Zoro “'Really came’? You were alone?!” – Chopper “Yeah there was only the curly-brow” – Zoro “Oh” – Chopper “Oh!” – Chopper “What 'oh’?” – Zoro “Nothing I hope you enjoyed!” - Chopper “I gotta go back to work!” – Chopper “Bye!” – Chopper “Don’t 'oh’ me what do you mean?!” – Zoro “Chopper!!” – Zoro * “[Picture MMS]” – Luffy “No.” – Zoro “What?” – Luffy “We are not adopting this cat.” – Zoro “Who says he needs adoption?” – Luffy “Its eyes. And you.” – Zoro “His name is Meatloaf” – Luffy “Don’t lecture me about his name, you’d have called him Katana and thats no better!!” – Luffy “You can’t be serious.” – Zoro “And he really loves my food!” – Luffy “We’re not keeping it.” – Zoro “We are!” – Luffy “Luffy…” – Zoro “If we do, I’ll be quiet about last time, I promise.” – Luffy “Last time?” – Zoro “Sleep over, remember? You took a pic of Sanji.” – Luffy “nO I DIDN’T” – Zoro “[Picture MMS]” – Luffy “… Okay. Alright. But it’s not going near my stuff.” – Zoro “Meatloaf may have already met your stuff…” – Luffy “Oh, COME ON.” – Zoro * “Hey Luffy! You know what’s incredible with Voldemort? That’s what he nose” – Usopp “Ahah! Great! Coming from you it’s even funnier Usopp!” – Luffy “…” – Usopp “I’m not talking to you again.” – Usopp “Ever.” – Usopp “C'mon Usopp it was your joke!” – Luffy “No?” – Luffy “Wasn’t it supposed to be a joke in the first place?” – Luffy “Wasn’t it?” – Luffy […] “… Usopp?” – Luffy

“Hdiwjw9n8dbs. Djsjaibsu disbs eid d” – Torao “Is that a kind of code for decryption?” – Luffy “Jdbwiwbwi dieb ifbeo djsjwbe vs eiss wis” – Torao “Omg, that’s so cool Torao! I have no idea what you are talking about though” – Luffy […] “So I have replaced numbers by letters and letters by numbers” – Luffy “But that doesn’t make any sense.” – Luffy “I wanted to ask Robin I’m pretty sure she would know how to read this but she’s busy…” – Luffy “And Usopp’s not talking to me anymore…” – Luffy “I’m trying Google translation in case it’s a language I don’t know but it didn’t give anything!” – Luffy “Sanji says it’s not French.” – Luffy […] “… And you didn’t ever think that maybe it was a mistake?” – Torao “What is?” – Luffy “My late messages.” – Torao “They were?” – Luffy “Yeah. Phone typed it by itself in my pocket while at work.” – Torao “Oh” – Luffy “What?” – Torao “I’m disappointed” – Luffy “Disappointed I didn’t text you by myself?” – Torao “Nah, not to have any code for decryption. I was so excited to look for the signification!!” – Luffy “Right, of course.” – Torao […] “Hey” – Luffy “Torao” – Luffy “Yeah?” – Torao “Wanna guess my language code?” – Luffy “No.” – Torao […] “Plus, that would probably only be limited by the 'meat’ vocabulary.” – Torao *

“Tonight, your place or my place?” – Zoro “Mine. I made pastas. I’m not using your shitty kitchen again, last time was a nightmare.” – Sanji “We both know you didn’t come for the kitchen.” – Zoro “Shut up, marimo.” – Sanji

As always reblogs, likes and comments are appreciated to motivate us, authors, to update more! Thank you for reading!

PS: if any of you wishes to read a theme or have an idea you are welcome to comment it or send a message! :)

#lawlu #zosan #one piece #trafalgar law #monkey d. luffy #roronoa zoro #sanji vinsmoke #fanfiction #wrong number #chapter 3 #plume8now #plume-now

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hentaihunblog-blog · 6 years

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Why [Spoiler] Will Betray Monkey D. Luffy In The Future – OtakuKart

New Post has been published on https://hentaihun.com/blog/2018/01/07/why-spoiler-will-betray-monkey-d-luffy-in-the-future-otakukart/

Why [Spoiler] Will Betray Monkey D. Luffy In The Future – OtakuKart

Hey everyone! In this post, I want to talk about Monkey D. Luffy, and his alliance with Trafalgar D Water Law. Law, and Luffy are both members of the Worst Generation. Law captains the Heart Pirates, while Luffy captains the Strawhat Pirates. Both of them have made a name for themselves, and earned a very high bounty of 500 million berries each. When you look at Luffy, and Law, the two share an interesting bond.

Law the one who saved Luffy at Marineford, otherwise Luffy would’ve been dead. He also saved another Strawhat, Jinbe. After that, Luffy and Law met at Punk Hazard, and Law proposed an alliance. This alliance was to take down the Yonko Kaido of Hundred Beasts. Of course, we see alliances all around in One Piece, but most of them end up in betrayal as mentioned by Nico Robin.

But, is it fair to say that Law will betray Luffy in the future? Let’s have a look. Law wanted to toe Doflamingo down, Luffy helped him. Law put his trust in Luffy and the Strawhats, and it seems like they’ve truly become the best of friends. But, here something that needs to be kept in mind. Law is a Pirate. More importantly, of all the members of the Worst Generation, Law has the reputation to be the most dangerous, and heartless.

When exactly have we seen that Trafalgar Law? Never. The Law we saw wasn’t cruel, or heartless at all. I’m pretty sure Law is planning something. So, when and why will Law betray Luffy? I think this will happen at the end of the Wano Country arc. Law and Luffy will have to go their separate ways because they’re both essentially looking for the same thing. The One Piece.

A lot of people say that Law doesn’t really want the One Piece, but that’s not true. He has himself mentioned that his intentions are to find the One Piece. I’m sure that’s what Law wants. In order to reach Raftel, law needs the Road Poneglyphs. He already got one at Zou. He will get the second one when. Luffy returns, and at Wano, he will get the third one as well. That’s how he’ll benefit being with the Strawhat Pirates.

Later, Law will break the alliance, and set sail for Raftel himself. We might even get to see a Luffy vs Law battle, but I don’t think that’s happening in the near future. I do think that whatever happens, Luffy and Law will have a bond similar to Roger, and Whitebeard. But, if you expect Law to be with the crew forever, and forget about his goals, then that’s not going to happen. Law is too good a character to be butchered like that, and I don’t think that’s going to happen.

—-

[Spoiler] Will Leave The Strawhat Pirates At Wano Country

Hey everyone! Today, I want to talk about something very interesting that is probably going to happen in Wano Country. Before I begin, I want to let you all know that this post might have potential spoilers, so please read only if you are okay with that. With this out of our way, let’s continue. As you all know, the Strawhat Pirates are a group that hails from East Blue and are captained by Monkey D. Luffy.

We’ve been following this journey for years now, and right now the crew has split up. One half of the crew is at Wano Country, and the other half is at Whole Cake Island. Just like any other crews, the Strawhat Pirates have had squabbles among themselves as well. In this post, I’ll be talking about why Roronoa Zoro will leave the Strawhat Pirates at Wano.

The main members of the Strawhat Pirates are Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and Sanji. All five of them were recruited in East Blue, and they’re the main crew members. If you think about it, except Zoro, everyone of the East Blue recruits have left the Strawhat Pirates. Nami left them at Arlong Park in order to save her village. Usopp left to save Merry, and Sanji left to save the Strawhat Pirates from Big Mom herself by sacrificing himself.

Zoro is the only person who hasn’t left the crew yet, and I think he will. Before you jump on the “Zoro is too loyal” bandwagon, hear me out. Zoro has always mentioned that if Luffy doesn’t respect himself and act like a Captain then there will be nobody for the crew to follow. At Whole Cake Island, Sanji beat the crap out of Luffy.

This was in order to save the Strawhats, and Sanji only had them on his mind. But, he himself was ashamed of the act, and said that he would never return to them because he hit his Captain.

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neverwatchedonepiece · 5 years

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579-580: "Arriving! a Burning Island – Punk Hazard!" and "A Battle in the Heat! Luffy vs. the Giant Dragon!"

Sorry, I couldn’t wait. xD

Delayed gratification?

Self-control?

Nah. Afraid not. The New World was calling and its siren song was far too strong. Plus, this arc has a killer name: Punk Hazard. I’ve itching to get to it ever since I saw the arc list on CR. And everything is on fire! (Except the part that’s not.)

But I’ve already said too much.

Luffy’s Nose: Meat-Detector and Trouble-Sniffer

Could it be the smell of burning island?

Now I get why you guys were mad at the filler interrupting the canon entry into the New World. The Strawhats were sailing back from wherever their filler adventures had taken them (I will go back and watch Film Z. Honest). Next thing, Zoro spots something interesting from the crow’s nest.

“What’s that? A red sea?”

It quickly emerged that Zoro did not mean an inlet of the Indian Ocean between the continents of Africa and Asia. No. The sea was red because it was literally on fire. Volcanoes erupted. Lightning shrieked from the sky. Lots of dead, skeletonized fish bobbed in the water.

Awesome. I thought. That is totally metal. This will be fun.

Though fire is a rubber person’s natural enemy, Luffy thought the same. “LET’S GO TO THAT ISLAND!” he yelled.

Yes, Luffy! Please do. :D

Then something sketchy happened. Sunny’s DDM rang. It made a strange, wailing sound Luffy had never heard before. He asked the DDM if it had a stomachache (that was hilarious and oddly thoughtful of him).

Sanji put him straight. “Luffy, you walnut, that’s an emergency signal.”

Robin also added, “Most of them are fake. It’s a tactic the Marines use a lot.” (That was a cool, little detail. A hint that maybe the Marines tried to pull this on Robin in the past?)

Luffy processed this information then ignored it immediately. He picked up with his customary greeting: “HELLO, MY NAME IS MONKEY D. LUFFY AND I WILL BECOME THE PIRATE KING.” I should not find this funny now, but I still do. Every damned time. Luffy does not give a crap who knows he’s in the vicinity. I also love that DDM trope and hope Oda never stops using it.

The distress call was from some poor sap on Punk Hazard. “It’s cold, is this the boss? It’s cold. Our guys were cut one after the other. Samurai are gonna kill us! Please help. I’m on Punk Hazard--”

The message cut off abruptly due to premature death (by cutting, I assume).

Robin was convinced the messenger was attempting to lure them into a trap (she wasn’t that far off). Zoro, of course, zoomed in on the samurai.

Brook explained that the samurai was the name for the people of Wano Kingdom (remember the zombie samurai who possessed Brook’s shadow in Thriller Bark and passed on Shusui to Zoro? He came from there). Apparently, the Wano Kingdom is completely closed off to the outside world. It is unaffiliated with the World Government to the point that even Marine ships cannot approach (I’m getting North Sentinelese vibes here, minus the technology aspect).

But Brook was puzzled as to why samurai had been brought up. Distress signal guy said Punk Hazard, not Wano Kingdom. Why were samurai being mentioned? Plus, he said it was cold. Punk Hazard was literally burning. Also, the signal of a baby DDM carried by crews on exploration missions would only stretch as far as Punk Hazard to the Sunny. Why samurai and Wano?

Okay, I thought. This is going well so far. An island is burning. The sea is on fire. A shady distress signal. A proper mystery is cooking here.

Then things got really interesting.

The action cut to Smoker’s G-5 ship. Robin was right! The Marines *do* listen in to emergency calls. Now Smoker knows the Strawhats are on Punk Hazard. But this was a pain in the ass for them. Punk Hazard had been sealed and made a restricted area after what happened four years ago. How could any living thing exist there? Plus, None of Nami’s new Log Pose needles pointed in the direction of this island, which was in itself suspicious. I wonder if the WG deliberately messed with Punk Hazard’s magnetic field so no one would come across the island by accident?

I felt like a ray of light pierced the heavens.

Disused government facilities is one of my favourite tropes. Resident Evil 2 was one of my favourite games as a kid. Ever since, I’ve loved the, “Oh, crap. Something went kaboom. Abandon ship! And now the protagonist must fight their way out” action plot trop.

Smoker ain’t the type of guy to let that phase him. “We’re going,” he said. So the Marines will show up at one point too. I’m glad. I missed Smoker. He’s been chasing Luffy for years. Gotta give the guy some panel time.

Mythical Creature BBQ

The Strawhats debating over who would escort Luffy to ensure he didn’t do anything dumb was hilarious. Nami was right, though. Luffy has no sense of self-preservation. They drew straws and Zoro, Robin and Usopp were chosen. (Poor Usopp. His disorder flared up again. xD)

Nami used another trick up her sleeve to make a cloud road (a la Skypiea) that soared over the flames, allowing mini Merry to sail over, unscathed. Downside? The road will eventually dissipate, potentially leaving the others stranded. Not so good.

When the reconnaissance team landed, they found Punk Hazard enclosed by an ominous, metal wall. Huge, “DANGER: KEEP OUT!” signs, stamped with the World Government and Marine sigils boosted the peril factor (nice). Of course, massive metal walls are no barrier to Zoro. He sliced open the gate and in they strolled!

Usopp was the only Strawhat who was really dressed for Punk Hazard, with his bare chest and overalls. The place was boiling. Volcanically hot to the point magma leaked from the stones beneath Usopp’s feet. Everything was burning. (By accident or on purpose?) Once Robin surveyed the dwellings, she concluded they were probably not people’s homes. (Evidence for a secret government training facility is growing by the minute here.)

Luffy called out to the Distress Signal Guy. (Was he stupid? This place is boiling! xD)

Then, randomly, they encountered a supposed mythical creature. Not *the* dragon, as in Monkey D., but a fanged, fire-breathing monster that talked!

I should learn not to get too attached to monsters in One Piece because they end up on the BBQ half the time. xD It was cool that Luffy, Zoro, Usopp and Robin encountered a little difficulty in taking it down. Again, that ups the peril factor, which is great.

Still not quite sure how the guy who was stuck on the dragon’s back managed to make it talk, but I guess I’ll learn how next episode. The only thing I can say is that I don’t think he’s the biggest fan of the Shichibukai. “Are you allies of the Shichibukai too?”

Arc Villain: Gru and his Minions?

Back on Sunny, where it was supposedly safer, kidnappings were afoot! (Excellent. Now everyone’s involved.)

Poor Chopper was wilting in the heat, eating his ice cream. Even Brook and Franky were feeling the burn. Sanji was in the kitchen, preparing some cool snacks, because only a chef who endures the fire of a kitchen every day would be able to endure said heat. I mean, the guy never even took his suit off. He must be flame-retardant.

While Sanji did his thing, outside on the deck, a sinister, Darth-Vader-breathing presence drew near. They placed a canister of sleeping gas on board. One by one, the Strawhats succumbed. (Including Brook, which was kind of weird, but Oda’s Universe, Oda’s Rules.)

For one minute, I thought Sanji might dodge the gas and there would be a grand return to the Sneaky Sanji running gag. But no. He opened the door, got a faceful of the gas, and almost, *almost* reached the DDM to call Luffy before passing out. Argh. Sanji was carted out with the rest by the strange, cycloptic yellow minions.

But Brook was left alone. I knew it! Ever since he was almost overlooked by Hordy’s goons on FMI, I figured Brook would be useful as a stealth agent. No one ever suspects the skeleton! I guess Sanji is in the limelight now. Now more sneaking around for him. Brook has taken over the mantle. Go, Brook!

The Strawhats are being taken to “The Master.”

I am excited.

I love that these minions think that the “two humans, a cyborg and their pet” will not be missed by anyone. No one except the G-5 ship and an angry Vice-Admiral Smoker heading your way. >:D

Love how these two are tucking into lunch when the sea is literally on fire below them.

#one piece #neverwatchedonepiece #nwop #never watched one piece #punk hazard #monkey d. luffy #roronoa zoro #sanji #usopp #nami #tony tony chopper #nico robin #franky #brook #vice admiral smoker #captain tashigi

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neverwatchedonepiece · 6 years

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549-550: "A Rift Opens Up! Luffy vs. Jimbei!" and "Something Has Happened to Hordy! The True Power of the Evil Drug!"

TEAM WORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK, RIGHT GUYS?

Another two good episodes here. They seemed shorter but lots of little things happened to advance the plot, which is good when you’re trying to predict what’ll happen.

When you notice these more minor developments click into place, it’s like seeing a master watchmaker at work, fitting all the tiny parts together to create a finely-honed plot machine.

Still not sure how they’ll come together but I have a few guesses now.

(Oh, and I only just got the Conchcorde Plaza pun. xD)

Brook’s Out of Body Experience!

This. Was. So. Cool.

I love Brook’s new power up. There was no way I could’ve seen that coming, so kudos to Oda for creativity. I was always a bit worried for Brook, in that he was up against Zoro in the swordsman role. What could he do except back up Zoro? What other unique purpose did he have other than playing sweet, sweet tunes? Well, now Brook can take on stealth and recon for the Strawhats!

How?

He can force his freaking soul from his own body.

If that’s not badass, I honestly don’t know what to say. (Though he should probably team up with Jiraiya with that pervy peeping habit he’s cultivating. Bad Brook!)

Thanks to Brook, Zoro might be able to cut them out of the cage. I say “might” because the plan relies on Pappagu not having a fear-induced embolism with the disembodied soul of Brook chasing him through the deserted palace.

I mean, it’s hilarious to watch but I fear for Pappagu’s blood pressure. His little starfish face when Brook rose out of the wall wailing, “Pappagu-saaaaaan” was another 10/10 would watch and laugh at again moment. xD

And while Zoro, Usopp and Brook were planning to succeed where Houdini failed, Luffy was duking it out with Jimbei down at the Sea Forest.

Still Agree With Jimbei

But I know how I’d solve the problem...

I honestly wasn’t expecting these two to actually come to blows. I thought Jimbei would manage to calm Luffy and they’d thrash out an agreement.

Not a chance. At least I got another showcase of Fishman Karate. And I just have to let this be said: Fishman Karate is awesome. I always wondered how Jimbei’s hits could affect Luffy, since he’s been rubberized. It’s nice to know the mechanics of the art. Fishman Karate is about manipulating the water all around you. As all humans are 70% water, being punched by a Master like Jimbei would not be a pleasant experience. (I wonder if it’s the same for Logia users, though?)

The comedy moment when Robin stepped in between them was great. Sanji playing the White Knight and getting smashed in both directions by Jimbei and Luffy was another comedy gold moment (probably a good idea after the dark themes of the flashbacks).

And speaking of Sanji.... I was so disappointed. I’ll tell you why. I got an alert for one of the older posts here and it led to a post where you guys were discussing the Flanderization of Sanji. You all said it would get worse. I didn’t quite believe you, but here were are.

It was the moment when Jimbei tried to convince Luffy that wading in and beating the crap out of some Fishmen was not a good idea considering the current political climate.

“Every time Fishmen opened their hearts to humans, humans disappointed them,” Jimbei said. “Humans are violent. Humans hate and look down on Fishmen. The past planted twisted ideals in Fishmen minds. Take Arlong. Many Fishmen believe humans hunted him only because he was a Fishman. If the Strawhats, who beat Arlong, beat Hordy Jones too, what do you think would happen? Even if it helped solve the crisis, witnessing you beating down Hordy Jones, who is taking a stand against humans, would make the islanders think things will never change.”

A fair point and one I agree with, to be honest.

Then Sanji chipped in, briefly, with an eloquent and thoughtful answer. For a moment, I thought I might have the Sanji of old back. The one who would make a meal for a starving man.

“But Jimbei, we have to rescue our crew and if nothing else is done, Hordy Jones will rule this island,” Sanji countered. “We have lots of friends here. Hatchi is trying really hard to hide who injured him, but he said Hordy Jones attacks those who are sympathetic to humans. Is he doing that because he spoke up for us? I think part of the reason Luffy wants to fight is because this is your home.”

Okay, I thought... this is great. Sanji is being a human being again with capacity for debate and critical thought. Please say this is the return of Sanji?

He acknowledged how Jimbei helped Luffy at Marineford, but that if Luffy wanted to fight, they would go with him as members of the Strawhat crew. They couldn’t just leave the island like this.

“We have a reason to fight.”

Guess what his reason was?

CAMIE-CHAN’S HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERE.

FFS.

I would have been really funny if the joke hadn’t been done to death. I feel a bit sorry for Sanji now. You guys are right. The Flanderization is merciless. :(

But at least I still had the Showdown Between Luffy and Jimbei to sink my teeth into. Neither of them will budge. Normally, I admire Luffy’s drive to protect his friends and fight tooth-and-nail for them. Normally, Luffy’s disregard of the past is refreshing.

Well, when it comes to individuals, that is. When you’re talking entire countries were with millions of inhabitants with varying experiences, a rich history which unfortunately involves violence, slavery and suppression, it’s... less sensible to disregard the past.

Chopper did say Luffy wants to help Fishman Island and his friends, but at the moment, from where I’m sitting as a first time viewer anyway, is that it looks more like Luffy wants to help his friends and Jimbei wants to help his country.

The way to get round it without fighting, I think, is to work together. Show a united front. I mean, a famous Fishman and an infamous pirate human fighting side by side and ridding the island of fanatical extremists? That’s got to sear like a firebrand across the ol’ memory, right? The islanders won’t forget that in a hurry. Maybe seeing cooperation first hand will change opinions.

Or Oda will let Luffy do what he wants to do. This wouldn’t sit well with me, but if it’s done well enough, I could be convinced.

You Know This Guy Bought His Costume From That 50% Off Store

Meanwhile, Hordy’s goons continued their rampage unabated. Well, the Princes and Palace Guards took down a shark goon until a fodder slipped him a Fish Roid, then all bets were off. Oda is making it very clear that these guys can only fight while Roid-boosted.

I’m trying to decide who’ll fight who. There are less Fishmen Head Goons than Strawhats, so maybe there will be team ups. The Roided shark guy might suit Franky or Sanji.

I can’t remember the name of the angry little guy with the sharp teeth (Daruma?) but I doubt smashing up Big Mom’s candy factory is a good idea. (The little guy might fight Chopper?)

The drunken mercenary swordsman is Extra Drunk and is on a slashing spree. (He’ll obviously engage with Zoro in battle.)

Ikaros, who fears fire because his giant squid pal, Daidalos, was dried out by swimming too close to the sun, has been feeding Fish Roids to Sea Kings, which... isn’t a sensible idea as they turn on their handlers. His spear that turns his victims into dried up raisins is cool. (Maybe Brook could fight him. Would Brook be immune to such a weapon?)

The blue-ringed octopus guy is my favourite Head Goon, by the way. The camouflage and stoic “straight man” comedy role are the best traits of the bunch. This guy is called Zeo: the noble of Fishman District. So noble that when stomped like a cockroach, he still keeps his cool. (He’d suit someone with a tricky fighting style, like Usopp or Robin).

And speaking of Fish Roids...

Hordy Jones Showing Off His Leadership Skills

Luffy and Jimbei had better resolve their differences quickly because Hordy and crew are on their way to Conchcorde Plaza (ha). But... the thing is, Hordy’s been having a rough time. The old wound Zoro gave him, that single slash, has been plaguing him with flashes of pain.

Instead of taking paracetamol like a normal person, Hordy Jones necked a meaty fistful of Roids. When the wisdom of this decision was questioned, Hordy replied in the measured and sensible manner we’ve all come to expect from him. xD

Of course, as soon as he did, he doubled over, palms spread, sweating buckets, veins a-poppin’, with Happy Hardcore BPM speed palpitations.

Turns out necking that many Fish Roids yields an interesting side-effect.

They turn you into an evil, white-haired anime villain! (And they also take years off your life. WINNING!)

#one piece #neverwatchedonepiece #nwop #never watched one piece #monkey d. luffy #jimbei #hordy jones #fukaboshi #fishman island #sanji #roronoa zoro #usopp #brook #pappagu #nico robin #nami #franky #tony tony chopper #camie

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neverwatchedonepiece · 6 years

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531-533: "The Ryugu Palace! Taken by the Shark that they Saved!", "A Coward and a Crybaby! The Princess in the Hard Shell Tower!" and "It's an Emergency! The Ryugu Palace is Occupied!"

Pappagu’s gonna stroke out with stress. Yup. Any minute now.

Loved these episodes! The humour that took an exit stage left during Marineford (for obvious reasons) is back. Most of the humor was comedy of errors type stuff. We had Luffy accidentally bouncing on some giant mermaid tiddies. Luffy being unwittingly rude and poor Pappagu nearly having a stress embolism (look at those veins!) There was Zoro getting drunk and waking up in a jail cell. Brook, Usopp, Nami and Zoro accidentally occupying the entire palace and taking a bunch of important hostages... xD

There were some short updates on other characters too. Some have already had an impact on the plot. Caribou has kidnapped some Mermaids with intent to sell them at the Sabaody slave market. Without knowing it, he has exacted perfect revenge on the Strawhats! But how will you leave Fishman Island, Caribou. You don’t have a ship, you absolute roaster.

Others I’m guessing Oda is keeping up his sleeve for later. Robin, Franky, Sanji and Chopper are still at large. Robin is wandering the island in search of important evidence of missing history. Franky, bless his mechanical heart, is off looking for Tom-san’s family. Chopper is done treating Sanji. He has a new point: Kung Fu Point. Nice to see that Chopper has some more offensive abilities that don’t completely strip him of his intelligence. :)

That’s Some Nice Real Estate, Neptune. Would Be A Shame If Someone Occupied It.

You know what? I like Neptune. His advisors might browbeat him, but at least he’s the type of ruler who will listen to advice, even if he doesn’t take it. He has his own mind and will follow his inner sense of justice, though it might conflict with what his advisors tell him.

Luffy on the Fish Boat back to Ryugu Palace was hilarious, though. Neptune kept doing a Jason Derulo: saying his own damned name all the time in the little songs he sang to himself and Luffy was like, “Mate, your chant is dumb.” (I mean, Luffy, you’re not wrong but maybe not to the king’s face next time?) Either Neptune is chilled enough to ignore it, or he didn’t hear, Pappagu did, though, and was on hand to give Luffy a five-armed starfish spanking.

Neptune cares about his family too. The princess’ happiness is important and as she can’t get out the house much (more on that later) rescuing Megalo was a Big Deal. “Didn’t mean to save you, but I’m glad you’re okay!”

Too honest, Luffy! xD

Then Neptune told the Strawhats that one of their crewmates was already there. I knew instantly it was Zoro. Only Zoro could be that hopelessly lost that he’d accidentally infiltrate a palace with only one heavily guarded entrance and a buzzer system.

There was also a handy bit of world-building. Neptune handed Luffy a device that looked suspiciously like a pink dildo with multipurpose attachments. It was called Bubbly Coral and enables the user to form their own oxygen bubbles whenever, wherever. Useful.

They zoomed through the entrance flume and emerged into a beautiful place full of light, grand buildings, colour and dragon statues. Dat real estate.

As soon as Neptune stepped through the door, his Minister of the Right advisor (seahorse guy) got laid into him. “WTF, my lord?? You went out again on your own? You know the situation in this country??” Neptune is like Princess Jasmine All he needs is a cute Sea Tiger pet and he’s sorted. Either that, or Neptune is confident enough in his strength to face whatever’s out there.

The Minister of the Left (catfish guy) took one look at the company Neptune had brought back and was like, “Um.... my lord, there’s something you should know about those Strawhat Pirates.” They spilled the current intel: Memaids had been kidnapped, which is something human pirates are known to do, and Madame Sharley had predicted Luffy would destroy Fishman Island. Unconscious Zoro had already been taken into custody. The rest of the Strawhats were under arrest!

(I’m having doubts about this Madame Sharley, by the way. I wonder if she’s working with Hordy Jones, or is being forced to work with him? Zero basis for this prediction. Only that the timing of the prediction is pretty damned convenient...)

Then Everyone Fell Out

Suddenly, the Strawhats were surrounded by guards. I say the Strawhats. I mean Usopp, Nami and Brook because Luffy had gone AWOL (more on that later). The Mermen made a sensible, tactical decision to burst the Strawhats’ bubbles and force them to fight in the water. But they made the mistake of showing Nami how to operate the Bubbly Coral. She used a giant one to drain the room of water. (Good job, Nami. Quick thinking as usual!) Brook had a badass moment. That’s why I like him. He can go from his goofy, kind, fun-loving self to scary swordsman with a snap of his bony fingers.

Usopp was ready to throw down, which was a nice surprise. I was so hyped to see what his new weapon can do, but was blue-balled. Ah, well. Next time! :D

Oh, and Zoro let himself out of jail. xD

Or Zori, as Neptune kept calling him. Another trait to add to Neptune being a stand up guy was that he volunteered to fight Zori because he didn’t want anyone else getting hurt. A good king!

The next thing, Zoro had plowed through everyone and Usopp was freaking out about overkill! “FFS, Zoro! We were just going to intimidate them and run!”

Zoro thought, “Yes. Run. Let’s bail.”

Usopp said, “A great plan, but we don’t know where Sunny is. Plus, the coating came off when we crashed through the bubble.”

Nami also added that the Log Pose had been unstable ever since they arrived (what does that mean?)

Then a nearby DDM rang.

Accidental Criminals

This whole scene was hilarious. Honestly, I came into this arc expecting lots of heavy stuff about Fishman vs humans racism and I’m getting accidental criminal activity and comedy hostage-takings. It’s awesome.

Zoro picked up the DDM and Usopp freaked out. “Don’t pick it you, you dumbass!” It was Fukaboshi, the eldest Merprince. He asked Zoro to open the gate.

“Yeah, no can do. But I’ll tell you what you can do...”

For Zoro had spied an Opportunity. (For all everyone calls Zoro a dumbass, he can be really clever sometimes).

“We have your father and the palace hostage. We need a new coating for the Sunny. And we need the rest of our crew: a gloomy woman, a robot, a raccoon, and a dirty water imp.”

“HAHAHAH, a dirty water imp. Classic!” Brook chortled.

“Oh, and a million Berry in cash, please, Zoro,” Nami added.

The Strawhats really have taken a level in grey morality, it’s hilarious. Their reactions to Zoro’s Big Idea were even more than I’d have expected from them two years ago (except Nami. She’s always had half an eye on treasure). And they are clearly confident they can escape from Fishman Island in one piece.

Fukaboshi agreed because he had no choice. It seems he’s a stand up kinda guy too, because he delivered a message from Jimbei to Luffy (this caused a stir in the palace. Jimbei is even more godly down there than on the surface).

The message was: “Do not fight against Hordy. I will meet you at the Sea Forest.”

Do not fight against Hordy? Really? There’s history between them, right? Jimbei and Hordy, I mean. They were both Sun Pirates. Or is that Arlong and Jimbei? Yeah, I think it’s Arlong and Jimbei. But maybe Hordy was also on that crew?

Something is up here...

But I never found out what because some Big Booms happened off-panel in the direction of the Princess’ room.

Which happened to be where Luffy was, of course.

Princess Peach

So Luffy, who only came to the palace for food, got fed up within 0.5 seconds of arriving and wandered off. He came across a pair of massive, solid-looking doors. A pair of axes were embedded in them. Must admit my first thought was, “Oh cool, the princess is an angry, fighting type!”

Nope. Completely wrong.

Luffy sneaked inside because he could smell food. One thing led to another and he ended up bouncing on the giant Mermaid Princess’ giant tiddies. (If Sanji ever finds out, he will never speak to Luffy again.)

Of course, she woke up and was like, “Why is there a tiny human bouncing on my tiddies? I did not consent to this.” And she shrieked and cried, as you would if some hungry, little random was bouncing on you. I love how Luffy could not deal with her giant tears. It’s one of his rare weaknesses. Like, what, why are you crying, stop, plz, I did nothing to you.

Turns out the Princess is not a fighting type. She is actually a terrified, sweet girl who has been locked in a Hard Shell Tower for ten years because Captain Bloody Vander Decken is an annoying fucking sex-pest who will not take no for an answer!

The action briefly cut to him ranting away about how he was convinced Neptune wanted to force her into a political marriage because she was really in love with Decken. That he could not allow her to be with anyone else and he would rather see her dead than with anyone else. “Your life is either death or marriage. I will present her this lovely boomerang axe with a rose on it.” You know, because if you’re going to be decapitated, I guess it’s nice to know it’s done with love and good intentions, right? Absolutely insane. This guy is Major Incel Material.

Of course, Decken’s latest “gift” whirled into the room and Luffy stopped it. He was like, “WTF, where did this come from?”

The Guards burst in and the Princess saved Luffy’s ass by hiding him. Of course, Luffy overheard what had happened to the others. He wasn’t bothered. “Meh, that’s fine. Your lot won’t be able to control them, anyway.” Just goes to show how much faith Luffy has in his crew’s strength after those two years.

To repay Luffy, the Princess said he could eat her giant food. While he ate, she asked him questions. The most interesting was this one:

“You’re a pirate,” she said. “Does that mean you’re a bad person?”

Luffy thought about this, then answered, “Hmm... I dunno. You decide.”

(Just another incident to add to my growing: Luffy’s Grey Morality Evidence Pile.)

The Princess told Luffy Decken has a DF power called Mark Mark. It sounds pretty useful, actually, (which is bad for her). If he designates someone as his mark, he can throw a weapon and hit them every time, unless an obstacle is in the way. That’s why she’d been locked in the Tower for ten years.

Luffy was confused, as you would be if someone told you that. “He wants to marry you but wants to kill you? WTF?” and said, “Ten years? You must be bored. I’d get sick if someone locked me up for ten years.”

Then he yelled at her because she poked his cheeks while he was eating (tbh, that would make me mad too. Just because he’s little does not mean Luffy is a pet!) But she’s just a lonely girl with minimal social skills because she’s been locked up for so long and she could not handle Luffy yelling at her.

Luffy being Luffy, was honest to the point of being Super Harsh. “You might be big, but you’re a coward and a crybaby. I don’t like you! You’ve stayed hear for ten years, eh? That could make you sick. Isn’t there anywhere you wanna go? Come on, let’s go for a walk!”

Luffy gave her the Unblinking Luffy Stare.

There is no returning from that.

Once he puts an idea in someone’s head and gives them That Look, they are done for.

The whole meeting the Princess scenes reminded me of the Big Baby from Spirited Away. The one who wouldn’t go outside because Yubaba had told him all about germs and he was afraid but was still fascinated by Chihiro because he was lonely and wanted her to play. Except this situation is more complicated because Neptune is a Good Dad and only wants to protect his daughter from a pest who he is trying to arrest but cannot find. It’s for her safety. Just as well Luffy is there with a cunning plan to get her out for a walk, eh?

Nah, Luffy. Absolutely no one will realise there’s something up here... xD

Sex-Pest Shakes Hands With Roid Peddler

Meanwhile, the shady villains have teamed up! I don’t think that’s happened in One Piece yet. It’s an alliance of convenience based on a common enemy. They both hate Neptune for different reasons. Hordy’s is political. Decken’s? Because he’s a sex-pest.

Prediction? I bet Hordy will betray Decken. Evidence? None. Just wishful thinking. I want to see Decken get his pathetic ass kicked.

“And I would like to add a side order of salt and chili fries to our ransom demands.”

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neverwatchedonepiece · 6 years

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517-519: "The Beginning of the New Chapter! The Straw Hats Reunited!", "An Explosive Situation! Luffy vs. Fake Luffy!" and "The Navy Has Set Out! The Straw Hats in Danger!"

The hat is back on!

I was excited about this. Was also oddly excited to click on the “Fishman Island” arc on CR, finally, after so long on Marineford.

These episodes were another curve ball for me. I thought the timeskip would go one of two ways: either they’d all meet straight away at Sabaody, group hug, then sail off into the New World, or we’d get a training montage for each Strawhat before the meeting.

Then I remembered you guys mentioned there would be a mini-arc and I cursed myself for being dense.

There’s not much plot to it. Some fake Strawhats are blighting the real ones’ good name and reputation. Unfortunately for them, 3D2Y is kicking off and the real Strawhats are gathering on Sabaody like the Avengers Assemble. Plus, pretending to be an infamous pirate crew isn’t a great idea when the Marines and World Government are after them.

I think I can see what’s coming. The fake Strawhats are light-hearted fodder, there only to show off their real counterparts’ training. And bring some lulz. No idea how it’ll unfold, though. That’s half the fun of watching One Piece, to be honest.

Luffy

It was good to see Oda hasn’t tinkered with Luffy’s design too much. (Saying that, I liked the Strong World outfit). He still has those flip flops and cut offs, but now the red vest has sleeves and is open at the chest. (Gotta expose dat 8 pack and scars, right?)

Of course, the iconic straw hat was picked up at the beginning of the episode. He was ready! Hancock and the Kuja pirates were there to see him off. Hancock packed Luffy half a year’s worth of supplies in a massive pack and gave him a handy-dandy Groucho Marx disguise in case any Marines spotted him prior to sailing out.

(Is it me, or does Luffy finally realise Hancock likes him? He kept saying, “I’m not getting married.” Though I did like the part when he refused to say goodbye because he wanted to see her again. That was nice of him. He acknowledges just how much Hancock helped him - and she helped A LOT. You could argue Luffy is as indebted to Hancock as to Rayleigh, Jimbei and Ivankov.)

Then, he set off! The next time we saw him, his massive backpack nudged Fake Luffy. There was an altercation.

Of course, Luffy couldn’t retaliate. Drawing attention to himself and bringing the Marines down on his head before he reunited with his crew would be a Bad Idea.

He did get his own back. Just not in a way that would draw attention.

When Fake Luffy fired the gun, I cheered because Real Luffy gave us a teaser of his new power. Observational Haki! Armament Haki! Conqueror’s Haki! He deflected the bullet, dodged it, then floored the Fakers without lifting a finger.

Honestly, I cannot wait until Luffy’s next big fight. Sentomaru has returned with some Pacifistas. I hope the Strawhats get their rematch. Oooh, maybe the Pacifistas will be fodder now....

Nami and Usopp

Look at them.

Look at how beautiful Nami and Usopp are.

It seems that over the course of two years, certain Strawhats have ended up with less clothes than they started with.

Nami has lost her t-shirt, but at least she has that bikini, right? Like Luffy, Usopp has buffed up and has a shirtless look to show off his gainz. They both have longer hair too - and it looks good on them.

Not sure about this comment from Usopp, "I don't belong to the weak trio with you and Chopper. I became a warrior who is not fazed by anything!" I guess (or I hope) it was acknowledged by all three that they were the weakest members of the crew, but it’s a bit much saying he’s graduated to a higher tier. Especially since he doesn’t know what Nami and Chopper have been doing. I like that Usopp has found some more confidence, but don’t find it at the expense of your friends.

Or, it’s classic Usopp overcompensating because he’s underconfident. Or he’s just joking.

Nami must have quiet confidence in her fighting ability because she sat at that bar in Sabaody on her own and talked back to Fake Luffy who had just shot someone. She can control the weather and summon thunderclouds indoors. That is not someone you’d mess with.

Usopp has some new weapons in his arsenal too. He’s weaponised the plants from Bowin Island and I’ll bet he has much more than carnivorous plants up his sleeve.

I love how casually they walked out of the bar, talking about their training, “Yeah, so I was studying new weather tech on a Sky Island...” while thunderclouds tore the bar apart in the background.

And Nami was driving a hard bargain for a discount. Never change, Nami. Never change...

Zoro and Sanji

Never realised how much I missed these guys and their bickering until I had a genuine laugh-out-loud moment (in 519, I think?)

I love Zoro’s new design. I think it’s my favourite out of the new outfits. The green robe looks great. It gives him more gravitas, as though he has now graduated from Sword Training School and is allowed to wear the academic gown. Not sure what kind of garment it is, but it’s definitely more traditional.

Sanji is still in a suit. I liked his previous style, so I’m kind of glad Oda didn’t mess with it too much. Sanji and suits are like Luffy and flip-flops, you know? He’s changed his shirt, has grown a goatee (which, of course Zoro noticed and roasted Sanji for it) and maybe his hair’s a bit longer?

Zoro arrived at Shakky’s bar first. This was a source of woe for poor Sanji, who arrived seventh after Franky, Nami, Usopp, Chopper and Brook. (Robin was eighth because she had to shake some CP goons off her tail.)

The fact that Zoro arrived first was nothing short of a miracle. I’m still not sure how he managed it. Maybe Perona dropped him off right at the door. When Sanji arrived, he was overcome with emotion at the sight of women to the point his enthusiasm freaked out a couple of innocent ladies. Then Sanji met Duval (I love how they’re friends now) checked out the kitchen and went food shopping.

On the way, he met Zoro.

Zoro wanted to go fishing. Rayleigh and Shakky shouldn’t have let him out of their sight. Instead of getting on a fishing boat, he boarded a pirate galleon and fell asleep. Sure enough, the ship set sail with him on it. “THAT IDIOT!” Sanji yelled. But it was okay. Of course Zoro would do something like that. At least the ship was headed for Fishman Island and they knew where Zoro would be.

I was annoyed for a half a second (rob Zoro of the big reunion? How dare you!) But then he showed off some of his new skills. Mihawk-esque skills. He sliced an entire pirate galleon in half. It was awesome. He still has great lines too. “I ruined your New World dream? No. It was your fault for allowing a plague on your ship.”

Has Zoro taken a Mihawk level in edginess? I think so.

Then they started arguing on the way back and I honestly laughed out loud at their shit-flinging contest.

“Stay with me, or you’ll get lost!”

“Who’re you talking to, moustache eyebrow!”

“Shut up, lost moss!”

“How could number seven talk bossily to number one?”

“SHUT UP, I TRAINED MY LEGS IN HELL FOR TWO YEARS!”

“BRING IT ON, I’LL CUT YOU IN HALF!!”

They love to pretend they hate each other, don’t they?

Chopper

Aw, Chopper. He has definitely take an level in cuteness. Chopper is a rare example of more clothes. He has acquired a cute, stripey shirt and red shorts. The hat is okay. It’s huge. Maybe to accommodate his massive brain (because he has absorbed the contents of all those medical books, right?) Must say I prefer his old hat. Mainly because Dr Hiluluk gave it to him and it’s a huge part of his identity. Parts of it are still there, but I guess it’s difficult to change Chopper a lot, so the hat is an obvious target.

Haven’t seen any of his new abilities yet, so Chopper hasn’t changed at all personality wise. He still loves cotton candy and, like Luffy, is still absolutely hopeless at seeing through lies and bad disguises. The part when Chopper was running after the Fake Strawhats and crying out at them to rescue Fake Robin was a bit daft. I mean Chopper did admit later on to Nami that the Fake Robin, “didn’t smell familiar.” But then, that’s the gag. It goes all the way back to Sogeking, so I’ll let it slide. :)

He really thought the Strawhats had changed so much, though. It was interesting to see that he’d stick to his principles and go rescue Robin himself: a real marker of Chopper’s new determination and confidence in his own abilities!

After that stressful moment, it was nice to see how glad Nami and Usopp were to see him, hugging him and telling him how much softer his fur was, how much bigger he’d grown. And Chopper’s outrage once he realised there were impostors about: “WAIT, NOW I’M MAD!”

Even though he’s stronger, kind, innocent Chopper hasn’t changed that much.

Robin and Franky

Again, how good do these two look? Robin is the most drastic change out of all the Strawhats. Could you believe I actually didn’t recognise her at first? (Only the eyes and the voice acting finally gave it away.) The blunt bangs/fringe/whatever you call them were iconic to her look, so it’s a definite departure. She looks great, though. Similar to Boa Hancock.

I’m 100% being Franky’s new look. The colour scheme is the same (red/blue) and he has his loud fashion sense, but the chunky cybernetic enhancements, the sharp shades and the buzz really add an intimidating edge to Franky that he was missing pre-timeskip. And apparently, the Sunny has some new weapons as well as a Full Underwater Coating courtesy of Rayleigh. Can’t wait to see what nightmarish destroyers of ships Franky has constructed! >:D

Franky injected some tension into the narrative, which was cool, even though I am 99% certain it will turn out fine in the end. While losing the CP9 goons trailing her, Robin picked up a poster for Brook’s concert. Quite rightly, she WTF’d over it and asked Franky if he knew what was going on.

“Brook's quite the star now. From the lonely shadows to a place where everyone cheers for him. He might not come back to pirating again.”

Surely Brook would not be so ungrateful to abandon the friends who lifted him out of loneliness into the spotlight again?

Nah. Brook’s not like that. I’d bet money it.

Soul King?

Brook has now graduated from garage band Slash-wannabe to issuing health and well-being advice via the genre of soul and the medium of arena tours.

He has acquired a manager. Before the gig, Brook had something to tell him and I’ll bet it was about quitting.

I’m still wondering how Brook got away with becoming so famous. Wasn’t he identified at Sabaody when Kizaru kicked their asses two years ago? Hasn’t his bounty poster been updated since? Did not a single Marine think, “Hey, there was a talking skeleton in the Strawhats’ company at Sabaody. Here is another one on TV. Coincidence?”

Love that we got to hear most of the song, though. Brook hasn’t changed that much, either. He still loves those skeleton puns.

(I am very behind on replies, btw. I know. I will reply to every single one tomorrow. ^_^)

“Move, bitch. Get out the way. Get out the way, bitch. Get out the way!” - Ludacris

#one piece #neverwatchedonepiece #nwop #never watched one piece #monkey d. luffy #roronoa zoro #sanji #usopp #nami #tony tony chopper #nico robin #franky #brook #silvers rayleigh #thousand sunny #shakky #fake strawhats

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neverwatchedonepiece · 6 years

Text

483-484: ‘Looking for the Answer! Fire Fist Ace Dies On the Battlefield!’ and ‘The Navy Headquarters Falls! Whitebeard's Unspeakable Wrath.’

...

Actually watched these on Friday but was too bummed about what had happened to post. Turns out one of the spoilers was real, after all. Joy of joys. One more to go and then all I’ll have floating around my head is that Sanji has a sister.

Annoyed at the spoiler-tastic title, though. Thanks, Toei, for ruining that in advance. I was also unwittingly spoiled by the latest Uniqlo/SJ 50 t-shirt drop (but didn’t know it at the time because I was clueless about the panel’s context).

Yes, I am delaying the inevitable...

Better get on with it.

R.I.P. Fire Fist Ace

I am sad and mad at the waste of life.

Ace had so much to live for, but he had no regrets, so from his perspective, it is okay. I mean, the old cliche is true, right? Death is easy for the dead. Those they leave behind have to deal with the fallout. And Luffy is... beyond distraught. Catatonic with despair, actually, to the point Jimbei had to step in or else he would have been fried by Akainu.

Picking up where 483 left off, despite the Big Damned Spoiler Title, I knew Ace was not in a good way. If that title hadn’t ruined it, I might have thought even then that Ace would make it through. If Whitebeard can fight on with a hole in his chest, why couldn’t Ace? And the Pirate Alliance had Emporio Ivankov on their side, right?

There were a few final twists and turns, a few flashes of drama, before the quiet, sad moment happened. Garp rushing down to Ace, Sengoku having to pin him to stop Garp killing Akainu (I wish he hadn’t. I still want that Garp Monkey D. Family Team to happen). The nightmare fuel scene when Akainu was shot point blank by bazooka fire and walked back through the flames like a zombie with parts missing. The moment when Jimbei stood between Ace and Akainu “You will not touch him again! I have been ready to die since the beginning!” with Akainu retorting, “Looks like I need to execute a traitor.” Marco breaking free courtesy of Mr 3, enabling Luffy to take Ace away...

Damn, I really didn’t think Oda would have the cajones to kill off Ace. The moment was done well, though, so at least there’s that. Weirdly, the scene reminded me of Mufasa’s death (from The Lion King). Just Luffy’s fragile, tentative questions, “Hey. Hey... are you alright?” mixed with the horror of realisation something was terribly wrong when he placed his hand on Ace’s back and it came back thick with blood.

But still, he could deny it then. Ace could be treated. Ace could be cured. Emporio Ivankov was on his side!

Unfortunately, the damage was irreparable. Ace’s organs had been completely burned away. The moment Ivankov had to break that news was horrible. I felt so bad for Luffy. He tried to bargain desperately: “You can’t die! You promised you would never die, no matter what!”

Knowing he didn’t have much time left, Ace took advantage of the quiet moment to have a last talk with his little brother. I liked how Toei froze the battle, cast everything and everyone but Ace and Luffy in greyscale, because for that moment, the only alive people in the world were two brothers.

“I wouldn't even have had a will to live if it weren't for Sabo and a high maintenance brother like you. If you see Dadan someday, say hello for me. When I face my own death, I even miss a woman like her. There is one thing that makes me wanna stay. That is my desire to see you fulfill your dream. But I'm sure that you can do it. Because you're my brother. Like we promised that day, I have no regrets in life. Something tells me that what I truly wanted was not fame. Did I deserve to be born? What I wanted was the answer to that question.

I can't raise my voice to let anyone hear anymore, Could you tell them what I'm about to say now? Old man, everyone, and you Luffy. Thank you... for loving someone like me: a good for nothing who has such bad blood in his veins... Thank you!”

Yeah, so at that point, I was just staring at the screen, watching Ace die and labouring under the same haze of denial as Luffy. It still wasn’t real. Then Ace’s eyes glazed over, the little flame inside him finally winked out and he slumped to the ground with a smile on his face. Even the vivre card burned to ashes.

Watching Luffy realise his brother was dead was worse than Ace’s last words. Eyes wide, he just stared at his blood-soaked hands and shook. “Ace...? Ace...?”

Then he screamed. The grief was too much and he shut down completely.

This is the second gut-wrenching loss Luffy has suffered in quick succession. As far as he’s concerned, he’s lost his crew. Now, he has lost his only brother. I wonder how this will affect Luffy going forward? I’m assuming Luffy will use Ace’s death to swear vengeance on the Marines and World Government. Take note, Marines: this is how you create a mighty enemy. Luffy does need to be stronger. But, damn, if that is not a harsh way to learn that lesson...

Oh, and I don’t ever want to see Jimbei sobbing again. That was too much on top of everything else. ;_;

Akainu Is Not A Good Person

He’s behind me, isn’t he?

That shot is honestly the only thing that cheered me up over these two episodes. I watched it three times and laughed like a drain every time.

Then it just got better because Oda let Whitebeard loose on Akainu and it was glorious! It’s as if Oda realised, “Yeah, the fans will be grieving and seething, let’s give them an outlet for their feelz.”

Akainu made another swipe at Luffy, but Marco stepped in. Unfortunately, Marco was wearing sandals. (Not the most effective footwear for facing off against Akainu. You’d need steel toe capped boots or special heat-entry PPE for that. Marco, you must update your look. Function over fashion. I know it will sting but it is for a good cause.) He couldn’t hold off Akainu completely. But someone who could rumbled up behind him.

Man... Whitebeard was mad. Beyond mad. “I will hammer you into the ground like a tent peg” mad. “I will punch you to pate” mad. I actually cheered when that first punch connected. The best part was when he grabbed Akainu by the collar, tossed him in the air and broke him with a devastating punch. I’ve never been happy to see someone bleed before. That was new.

But Akainu did get a hit in. Note to All Pirates: Do not let Akainu anywhere near your torso. Reblog to save a life!

It’s maybe too late for Whitebeard, though. I am not going to jump the gun again because Oda has subverted tropes before, but it seems like Whitebeard is intent on Marineford being his last stand. He split the battlefield so the Pirate Allies could escape, trapping himself on the other side with all the Marines.

It was also satisfying to see Marineford sinking into the sea along with Akainu! I may also have cheered at this and laughed: “YES! BYE, SAKAZUKI! SINK INTO THE OCEAN AND DROWN!” A measured response? Absolutely not. Do I think he will be saved? Hopefully not!

Then Teach appeared.

This is the first time I was not excited to see him and his crew. I thought, “Come on, mate. There’s a time and a place...”

But clearly, for Blackbeard, this is the perfect time and place.

Not Even In The Mood For Blackbeard

Teach has the chutzpah to turn up at Whitebeard’s last stand and advertise his new crew. I might be going off them. There are now ten Blackbeard pirates, so that’s my Individual Blackbeards vs Individual Strawhats theory up in smoke. (Unless Luffy recruits another crew member. Then it’s back on!)

So far, we have:

1. Blackbeard 2. Van Augr 3. Jacques Laffite 4. Jesus Burgess 5. Doc Q 6. San Juan Wolf 7. Catalina Devon 8. Shiryu of the Rain 9. Vasco Shot 10. Guy With Horns I Don’t Remember

Now it makes sense why Teach was sniffing about Impel Down. He was recruiting! Still don’t know what his game is, though. Why is he here now? What’s the point in having a chuckle at Whitebeard’s expense? Why advertise your new crew? I don’t think the Marines will be impressed that you took time off to recruit while there was a big battle going on.

I also have questions about San Juan Wolf.

How does San Juan Wolf fit on any ship? He is so massive he barely fits into shot and suffers from goddamned distance fade. Does he just trail after Teach’s ship like a massive, violent puppy? Where did they keep him in Impel Down? Would Ikea be interested in such space-defying dimensions?

I’ll have to stay tuned, I guess.

No, thank you, Ace. You’ve been great. ;_;

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