One Piece - I'm Gonna Be the Pirate King!

[ShitLurker]

Only thing I can assume is that Urogue will play a bigger part when it's time to talk about Sky Islands and the Moon citizens and Enel will probably appear again

I'd be all for that, Urogue is the other one along with Bege that my initial thought was "literally who?" but after how things have gone with the Novas, I'm certainly keen on seeing what use Oda gets out of him. Not so sure on Enel... I think he's fine as is and no need to bring him back, also he would be pure chaos since he isn't aligned with any of the existing parties and I certainly don't want him all chummy with the straw hats.

I can remember back when Enies Lobby was wrapping up, and how maligned Skypeia was for being “out of place” and “filler diversion.” I held then and I hold now that whole arc is peak One Piece (it also felt so late into the series back then).

Skypeia is peak. Yeah, may not be that relevant from a "core plot" standpoint, but went in hard on how much adventure you can have in the world of OP and I'd say it's the last proper no strings attached adventure the crew ever has. From that point onward it's either helping/saving someone or dealing with somebody above in the pirate pecking order. Skypeia was just a "well shit, now we are in a city in the clouds, lets fuck around (till they found out)"

 

[McMitch]

Yeah, may not be that relevant from a "core plot" standpoint

It’s proving to be the most core plot relevance, which is why it amuses me so much that people were advising to skip it. I also think it was intended to introduce every development to the setting he had planned going forward, all at once. Because you can justify it being part of such an alien setting. I bet that, until the Haki retcon, Tekkou/Mantra was supposed to be how people got past Devil Fruit bullshit.

 

[Kari Kamiya]

I bet that, until the Haki retcon, Tekkou/Mantra was supposed to be how people got past Devil Fruit bullshit.

I'm under the impression Mantra is Haki through-and-through, it's just that they have a different name for it due to being isolated from the surface for hundreds of years compared to the Fish-Men (perhaps Fish-Man Karate could've been like this, too, had Oda planned it out better). Could also be they have a different means of honing it compared to surface-dwellers.

 

[McMitch]

I'm under the impression Mantra is Haki through-and-through, it's just that they have a different name for it due to being isolated from the surface for hundreds of years compared to the Fish-Men (perhaps Fish-Man Karate could've been like this, too, had Oda planned it out better). Could also be they have a different means of honing it compared to surface-dwellers.

You’re right on that. I meant armament and conqueror’s Haki being brought into the fold.

 

[Cryogonal2]

Still getting a kick out of the fact that Momo's fruit was only a failure because his dragon form is pink instead of blue

 

[AskeDead]

Are we on break this week?

 

[Stab You in the Back]

Because you can justify it being part of such an alien setting. I bet that, until the Haki retcon, Tekkou/Mantra was supposed to be how people got past Devil Fruit bullshit.

That's the weird part about One Piece: they don't need to get past the Devil Fruit bullshit. In any other manga, invincible Devil Fruits would always end up being countered by a newly discovered Devil Fruit or Devil Fruit user. But Oda has seemingly gone out of his way to avoid adding any new powers to the Straw Hat crew. 30 years on, and the Straw Hats haven't even seen a Devil Fruit in the wild, let alone possessed one.

 

[McMitch]

That's the weird part about One Piece: they don't need to get past the Devil Fruit bullshit. In any other manga, invincible Devil Fruits would always end up being countered by a newly discovered Devil Fruit or Devil Fruit user. But Oda has seemingly gone out of his way to avoid adding any new powers to the Straw Hat crew. 30 years on, and the Straw Hats haven't even seen a Devil Fruit in the wild, let alone possessed one.

Well, there was the whole issue of recovering Ace’s fruit at Dressrosa.

As an audience, we’ve seen multiple people eat a devil fruit. It’s even implied that cannibalism can also pass devil fruit powers. The problem is, we’ve never seen a person try to eat a second one (Blackbeard doesn’t count). Part of me thinks it needs to actually have been on screen near the start, but part of me wants the twist to be people only think you can only have one and people only think you can’t because they keep telling each other you can’t.

There’s so much shit Oda just casually does with devil fruits specifically that another series (and probably 90’s Oda) would handle completely different.

 

[NoonmanR]

WRT the devil fruits, the stuff with Nika makes me think back to something said way back in Ennies Lobby. How the Devil fruits actually do posses you with a devil, it's also where the confirmation comes from where having two devil fruits causes violent explosions.

don't mind the dub, it's just the first one i found that doesn't cut out what i'm talking about.

 

[Kari Kamiya]

Thanks to recent events, I'm convinced not every Devil Friit is actually possessed by a literal devil and it's something the World Government called them to make themselves look like the good guys.

 

[ShitLurker]

That's the weird part about One Piece: they don't need to get past the Devil Fruit bullshit. In any other manga, invincible Devil Fruits would always end up being countered by a newly discovered Devil Fruit or Devil Fruit user. But Oda has seemingly gone out of his way to avoid adding any new powers to the Straw Hat crew. 30 years on, and the Straw Hats haven't even seen a Devil Fruit in the wild, let alone possessed one.

Well, we have had fruits being able to awaken and the concept of Legendary zoans popping out, so it's not like the Fruit system hasn't evolved, but I do admit the restraint that not a single Mugi has gotten a Devil Fruit outside of already starting with one. Would have been the easiest way to power up a crew member yet instead went with some Haki which feels more "organic" since there is a skill aspect to it. Basically, I prefer a lot more that Ussop develops observation Haki instead of him getting the Looky Looky fruit. Also keeps the Mugis with a nice mix of members that can operate in the sea without much issue, one of the things that I would like to see fuck over Blackbeard is that all his crew are Devil Fruit users.

 

[Monolith]

Went back to reread it and realized that Brook does the Nika pose in ch635. Foreshadowing?

 

[Honka Honka Burning Love]

Went back to reread it and realized that Brook does the Nika pose in ch635. Foreshadowing?

View attachment 5508267

Wasn't he Technically Enslaved during the Timeskip?

 

[Trombonista]

Today is Bepo's birthday!

 

[Honka Honka Burning Love]

Today is Bepo's birthday!

Never forget

Bepo is a J-pop Fan

 

[6MillionCoofs]

Went back to reread it and realized that Brook does the Nika pose in ch635. Foreshadowing?

View attachment 5508267

Forshadowing actually requires you are able to pick up on the stuff the first time through.

So like everything Nikka, it was intended forshadowing and just executed clumsily. Because Oda never lijes to reveal all his tricks early.

Makes for great reveals but doesn’t always make for a solid story on reread

 

[Kari Kamiya]

Forshadowing actually requires you are able to pick up on the stuff the first time through.

So like everything Nikka, it was intended forshadowing and just executed clumsily. Because Oda never lijes to reveal all his tricks early.

Makes for great reveals but doesn’t always make for a solid story on reread

You sound like you were one if those "I hate Skypeia, it's just slow and filler-ish" blokes Wano dope-slapped across the head.

 

[6MillionCoofs]

You sound like you were one if those "I hate Skypeia, it's just slow and filler-ish" blokes Wano dope-slapped across the head.

No. I just know what Oda’s intent was and know it was executed poorly.

Luffy being a sun god was obvious from chapter one due to a bunch outside factors.

That’s my gripe. None of the things that forshadowed that were in the work itself

Forshadowong something actually requires you be able to spot that something will happen before it will happen based solely on the work itself if it is to be good forshadowing.

No one spotted Nikka before it was straight name droped due to stuff Oda had laid out.

And, come to think of it, I’d argue he wasn’t trying to forshadow Nikka. I’d argue he’s using Nikka to forshadow a much bigger reveal.

 

[Johnny Salami]

sun God thing might have been better received if it had first been mentioned during the Fisher Tiger flashback. Joyboy was at least during Fishman

 

[6MillionCoofs]

sun God thing might have been better received if it had first been mentioned during the Fisher Tiger flashback. Joyboy was at least during Fishman

I feel the issue is the fact the Elders don’t really explain why, despite knowing about the Gum Gum Fruit, they did not seem to be active in dealing with it. Especially considering who it belongs to currently.

So it just raises a bunch of questions that I don’t think we a meant to be asking and that risk making the work weaker in hindsight.

I hopeI’m wrong in this regard.