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#the only time i can see that happening is pre baratie

cineflections · 9 months

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You know, if there was one manga that would be adapted to live action and succeed, I never would have guessed it to be this one.

I'm ofc talking about the One Piece Live Action on Netflix

A whole day binge right after release, I was READY, and thankfully, I was not disappointed. There are cuts and streamlining of the story, characters coming in earlier than in the manga/anime, and some of the emotional bits don't hit as hard as in the original. Still, I can feel the love the production team has of One Piece. The characters are goofy and lovable, but they are also serious and straight-faced.

One thing that I noticed throughout was the constant close up to faces and sometimes straight on, as if almost breaking the 4th wall. The very first scene with Luffy is like this, but there he DOES look into the camera directly, but the pov of the camera is revealed to be a newsbird. It's like a statement that they know this is a silly pirate romp, they know that some people will not take this seriously, but they will not do 4th wall breaks silly, but in-universe silly. Does that make sense?

I laughed at several points in the show, big and wide smile on my face and pointing at the screen several times...

But I do wonder how much of my laugh was on the show's on merit or if I was only calling back on the the source material. At times I did feel the straw hat crew not being as iconic as in the manga/anime. The extreme reactions, the over the top noises and actions, at the same time I realize that real people generally don't act like that.

I appreciate the show runners attention to details. Putting stuff in to tease future arcs, adapting some cover stories, some of the complete unhinged behaviors of characters (Garp I'm looking at you!).

This show adapted Romance Dawn, orange town, syrup village, baratie, and arlong park.

There are so many moments that are almost scene by scene taken from the manga. Luffy in the barrel and meeting Koby. Alvida with her giant spike club. We got to see some pre-captured Zoro moments (particularly him killing a baroque works agent!), Nami being a sneak.

Then we meet the one and only clown Buggy! They hammed him up, they made him a showman and a real clown (with a real bulgy nose as well, props!). I loved Buggy. Goddamn what a show stealer. Excellent casting, his devil fruit was show cased so well and it looked good!

Usopp's introduction is the most changed. The kids are gone and the Black Cat pirates never call in the entire crew or Jango. Instead of the fight on the slope by the beach it's instead in Kaya's house from which they cannot escape. The actor for Kuro nailing the mannerism and hand movements, altho his "teleporting" looks a bit wonky.

With Baratie we are finally introduced to Sanji! Who's British now 😆. And Mihawk's introduction tho! Badass and just so over the top and goofy. I love him so much! This is where we got the biggest change where we instead get Arlong and crew coming in smashing the place up (a tiny bit). Arlong may not be as tall as he should be but I love the practical approach instead of CGI, which means he actually feels present! All the fishmen we see are guys in costume and prosthetics!

Arlong Park felt a bit more rushed than the earlier parts, but I do think they nailed *that* scene tho.

If the bar for live action adaptation was below the ground, I would say now there's a new bar, which is on the ground 😅. I think it's a solid show but it might be my bias talking. I do have some gripes tho.

One thing that was constant in East Blue Saga was how much village people hate or are scared of pirates. I think they got the marines right, and the pirates, but they failed to really have the village people be a character in their own right. In the manga and anime the villagers are mostly a monolith who will think and act alike in situations and be part of the happenings either by watching or fighting. We got just about none of it here, except a mention in Arlong Park. They did some really good and cool world building with lots of people populating the sets in the background - but that's it, they're just extras to fill out the screen. There are ofc a few exceptions but I felt it was not enough.

I wish they had Luffy be more agile when using his gum-gum powers. Whenever he springs a pistol or a whip is stands in place, which I found boring (and they did so well with Zoro's fights!). I do think the explanation is that they decided for Luffy to be coming into his powers as we go. That we will learn with him all the things he can do (him not knowing he can blow himself up like a balloon proves this). I hope that in season 2 (please netflix!) they show the growth in his fighting!

But to end this long post. I just wanna say how much I fucking love the dude playing Mihawk. Goddamn he's so fun. MVP.

For the straw hats, I would say that Usopp feels the closest to manga version, and Luffy feels the most distant from it. But I don't dislike this, and I think the actor for Luffy has so much potential to really make the role his own.

It will never be "just like" the manga and anime, but that's ok! It's a new adaptation (in live action) made by people you can tell loves the source material and really really tried to make it work! I respect that, and I respect this show. Please watch it on Netflix! It's a fun and silly time, just like it should be!

#series #one piece #one piece live action #op #opla #monkey d luffy #roronoa zoro #nami #usopp #sanji #dracule mihawk #monkey d garp #buggy the clown #netflix

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kaizokuou-ni-naru · 4 years

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Hi Jonny! What are your thoughts on Zoro as a character? Do you like him more pre- or post-timeskip because I think his personality, idk, changed pretty drastically?

i’m just gonna focus on the first question here, because i don’t really have many thoughts on the matter of pre vs post timeskip. (plus i think that’s kind of contentious territory to get into and i don’t want to do that to myself and my inbox when i don’t have any personal investment in the topic.)

anyways, i love zoro! that’s really no secret, he was my favorite character for a good long time until luffy eventually edged him out through the sheer force of his delightfully wonderful self, and as it he’s still one of my favorites. when i first started reading one piece, before i got really hooked on the story (which happened around baratie), one of my prime motivators for continuing to read was Seeing Zoro Do Cool Sword Shit.

zoro is a pretty straightforward character, compared to some of the other strawhats. that’s not to say he’s flat or uninteresting or anything of the sort, just that he’s both very direct and fairly singleminded. he wants to be the strongest, he’s going to be the strongest, and he will keep hacking his way at whatever obstacle or enemy is placed in its way in order to get there, no matter what it is. see his fight with mr. 1 (resolving to cut through steel) or little garden (resolving to cut through his own fucking legs).

this is an interesting contrast between him and luffy, by the way, because while luffy doesn’t think so much, he does innovate. luffy was given one very simple tool (his devil fruit) and came up with a billion different ways to use it. zoro has got one fairly simple tool (sword) as well, and his approach is Get More Sword And Keep Cutting Until It Works. and these are both approaches that work for their respective users!

also, to sidebar- just because he’s very forward-focused and direct doesn’t mean zoro is dumb! he isn’t! i see this take sometimes and it frustrates me a little, mostly because zoro is like, one of the only strawhats to have gotten some degree of formal education. he can do three digit multiplication pretty quickly off the top of his head and drops references to buddhist theology in his attack names. he’s really not a complete meathead, he just kinda acts like it.

so where zoro gets interesting is when he, this character who has basically built his life around singleminded devotion to his goal, decides to commit himself to something else. after getting thrashed by mihawk and seeing just how far he has left to climb, after seeing that what he’s been doing so far on its own just isn’t enough, he decides to commit to luffy’s dream as well as his own. and we already know, by that point in the story, just how hard zoro commits himself when he chooses to; we’ve just gotten a perfect demonstration of that in his choice to fight mihawk despite knowing full well he’s not strong enough. he dedicates himself to the crew with the exact same level of fervor.

zoro is the only member of the east blue crew (aside from luffy, obviously) who never tries to leave the crew.

zoro’s ‘character arc’ mostly ends at baratie. after that point, where he resolves to throw himself fully behind luffy, he’s basically the same character we know for the entire rest of the manga. and that’s not a bad thing! zoro still has a lot of huge character-defining moments later on- his deal with kuma, him setting his pride aside to ask mihawk for mentorship, that post-enies lobby conversation. and one piece, while very much a story about people and relationships, doesn’t usually place so much focus on changing and progressing its characters (though that does happen!) as it does on fleshing them out and making them real.

zoro’s a constant on the crew, and that’s good. he’s a character who’s defined by loyalty, by commitment; to his dream, to luffy, to his crew, to the future where luffy’s pirate king.

#jonny answers #zoro #one piece #opmeta #character meta #not japanese #long post #got a little offtracky in the first half there #but i kept having thoughts

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the-bejeesus · 4 years

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Another One Piece Birthday that Somehow Reveals a Lot of Lore

So about a year ago I discussed how the Vivre Card Databooks use snow men’s birthdays to prove that a pre-timeskip arc occurred specifically at a certain date, allowing us to estimate when every pre-timeskip arc took place. However, because of the margin of error in the estimations, along with the vagueness of a “two year timeskip”, it was too difficult to pinpoint dates on any post-timeskip arcs.

Well, not anymore. You see, for awhile now we’ve known that the Straw Hat Pirates’ birthday is June 13th, but we had no clue what that meant. Well, somebody translated the page for me, and it represents the day the Straw Hats reunited on Sabaody, making the Return to Sabaody arc take place June 13th, 1524. So now all we have to is take note of the passage of time to further estimate arc dates.

Our first immediate hurdle is the Straw Hats all losing consciousness. However, it can be assumed that they didn’t pass out for an entire day.

Despite Sanji passing out from blood loss, there’s no indication that a day has passed.

Despite Fishman Island having its own underwater light source, it appears that night and day still pass. Perhaps the tree is using light from the sun, so it can’t light up the water unless the sun’s out. Anyways, I’m going to count this as one day.

Arriving on Punk Hazard, there’s a huge storm, so it’s hard to tell if it’s day or night. But I would assume it’s the morning of June 14.

Again, there’s some evil knockout gas trying to get in our way, but because not much time seems to pass in Luffy’s group between Nami’s group passing out and waking up, I wouldn’t assume much time has passed. Probably not even an hour.

But that’s not all, Luffy and co are defeated by Caesar and once again left unconscious. However, Zoro’s team is left in tact, so it’s shown that not much time passes before they wake up.

Now you would think that the aftermath at least was a long time, right? After all, Mocha took some powerful drugs and needed recovery. But actually it would appear Law’s treatment was radically successful. The Straw Hats are having a huge banquet at the beginning of the aftermath, and people are still eating just when they’re about to leave.

When they set out, that’s when they finally go to sleep, making Punk Hazard June 14th and just a little bit of June 15th.

While you may have heard the phrase “Dressrosa is 100 chapters but somehow it all covers the course of one day”, and while that’s partially true, it’s ignoring the aftermath of the Dressrosa arc.

For one, night is shown to pass, but on top of that, it’s noted that the Straw Hats have stayed for 3 days since Doffy’s defeat, making it June 18th.

Zou begins on the same day,

Only for a week’s worth of sailing to pass later, making it June 25th.

“Now hold on, a week is vague. It could be exactly 7 days, or it could be 10, or 5!” True, but the dates add up when Robin says “can you tell us everything about the last 11 days from the start?” If it’s June 25th, the last 11 days have been June 15th through June 25th.

As Nami and co go on describing what’s been happening, night passes. This is the only time they can meet Master Cat Viper, as he and Duke Dogstorm have alternating shifts, making it June 26th.

Despite treating Zunesha’s injuries, no passage of time is really indicated, so when Luffy’s group leaves, it can be assumed to still be June 26th.

Now this is where it gets confusing. The Straw Hats note it’ll take multiple days to get to Whole Cake Island.

Then we’re told that it’s still just the first day since they’ve set off, though.

Then it cuts to Sanji and it’s several days later. What do you mean several?

Then when it comes back to the Straw Hats, it’s a few days later. A few??? Is that compounded by Sanji’s “several days later” or seperate?

So now we’re in Totto Land. I would assume it’s once again a week later, making it July 3rd.

Pudding sets up a reindez-vous for tomorrow, on July 4.

We do indeed end up seeing it takes a whole day to actually get to Whole Cake Island.

After the battle with Sanji, night falls. If you’re thinking “hey it’s just a storm” this is proven wrong by Big Mom going to sleep with Brook. The next day is July 5th.

After the wedding, the pursuit of the Straw Hats is shown to go all night long. making it July 6th.

It’s extremely hard to pinpoint when the Reverie happened because the Straw Hats are barely in it, so I’m just gonna say it’s July 6th.

Going into Wano there’s already some problems. For one, there’s no mention of how long it took to get there. And on top of that, they get shipwrecked and pass out. I think it’s safe to assume that it at least took a day to get there, considering how far behind their trail Big Mom ends up being. So it’d be July 7.

Then Kin’emon goes on to say that the Night of the Fire Festival, when they will raid Onigashima, is in exactly two weeks. So the Night of the Fire Festival would be July 21.

And sure enough those two weeks pass exactly as planned.

That is essentially the most info I could find. It’s rather unfortunate that guesswork had to be laid out once we got into Whole Cake Island, but I feel like it’s still pretty accurate.

So, combining what we’ve just estimated with the list of pre-timeskip dates I determined in a previous post, here’s the unofficial complete One Piece story arc timeline:

Pre-timeskip:

East Blue Saga -January 25th, 1522 — February 17th, 1522-

Romance Dawn -January 25th, 1522 — January 26th, 1522-

Orange Town -January 29th, 1522-

Syrup Village -January 30th, 1522 — February 2nd, 1522-

Baratie -February 5th, 1522 — February 10th, 1522-

Arlong Park -February 12th, 1522 — February 15th, 1522-

Loguetown -February 17th, 1522-

Alabasta Saga -February 18th, 1522 — March 8th, 1522-

Reverse Mountain -February 18th, 1522-

Whiskey Peak -February 18th, 1522-

Little Garden -February 21st, 1522-

Drum Island -February 24th, 1522-

Alabasta -March 1st, 1522 — March 8th, 1522-

Sky Island Saga -March 11th, 1522 — March 14th, 1522-

Jaya -March 11th, 1522-

Skypiea -March 12th, 1522 — March 14th, 1522-

Water 7 Saga -March 15th, 1522 — March 30th, 1522-

Long Ring Long Land -March 15th, 1522-

Water 7 -March 22nd, 1522 — March 23rd, 1522-

Enies Lobby -March 24th, 1522-

Post-Enies Lobby -March 27th, 1522 — March 30th, 1522-

Thriller Bark Saga -April 2nd, 1522 — April 5th, 1522-

Thriller Bark -April 2nd, 1522 — April 5th, 1522-

Summit War Saga -April 9th, 1522 — May 5th, 1522-

Sabaody Archipelago -April 9th, 1522-

Amazon Lily -April 11th, 1522-

Impel Down -April 15th, 1522 — April 16th, 1522-

Marineford -April 17th, 1522-

Post-War -May 1st, 1522 — May 5th, 1522-

Post-timeskip:

Fishman Island Saga -June 13th, 1524 — June 14th, 1524-

Return to Sabaody -June 13th, 1524-

Fishman Island -June 13th, 1524 — June 14th, 1524-

Dressrosa Saga -June 14th, 1524 — June 18th, 1524-

Punk Hazard -June 14th, 1524 — June 15th, 1524-

Dressrosa -June 15th, 1524 — June 18th, 1524-

Yonko Saga -June 18th, 1524 — July 21st, 1524 (continuing)-

Zou -June 18th, 1524 — June 26th, 1524-

Whole Cake Island -June 26th, 1524 — July 6th, 1524-

Reverie -July 6th, 1524-

Wano-kuni -July 6th, 1524 — July 21st, 1524 (continuing)-

What I find most interesting about these dates is that, a year ago I concluded that the pre-timeskip ended on May 5th, so if the Straw Hats were to wait exactly two years to get back together, June 13th, is not actually that far off. If it was like April or September that Return to Sabaody was supposed to happen, I’d be in a bit of trouble. I also find it interesting that everything from Return to Sabaody to most of Dressrosa was three days, and then over a month has gone by since then, almost entirely from traveling, sleeping, and waiting for the Fire Festival to come around.

#One Piece #OP #ワンピース #Wan Pīsu #anime #manga #Return to Sabaody #Fishman Island #Punk Hazard #Dressrosa #Zou #Whole Cake Island #Reverie #Wano #Wano-Kuni #Yonko

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whirlybirdwhat · 5 years

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Its been awhile since I Rambled so guess what y'all are getting tonight!

Today’s topic is going to be Family; specifically, the family dynamics/examples in One Piece.

In the first two ‘arcs’, Shells Town and Orange Town, there isn’t a single mention of family beyond ChouChou (a good doggy) and his owner, and even that is less familial and more Pet-owner friendship, obviously. Instead, the arcs focus on introducing characters (Luffy, Zoro, Nami) and establishing world building and themes of the story - This is what the One Piece is, This what the series is all about, dreams and chasing them forever.

It isn’t until Syrup we get a mention of family, and even then its just Usopp’s lack of one, as he has a dead mother, and a faraway father. The most important aspect of this is that Usopp doesn’t really know his father beyond a role model.

It isn’t until the Baratie and Cocoyasi Arcs that we see any importance placed on ‘family,’ which is little over 40 chapters into the series.

And so BOOM - another major theme is introduced into the series, subtly tying into the main theme (Dreams and chasing them) and etc.

I personally however like how it was introduced behind everything else because you eventually become completely blindsided to how important family is in One Piece. And not just any family - the family you choose which is simply awesome!

So lets start looking at these family’s shall we?

All of these families are really diverse in their dynamics, so lets start with the easiest example - Usopp, who has none.

As previously stated, Usopp’s mother is dead, and for all we love Yasopp he pretty much ditched the kid. So - an example of a lack of family and how that influenced Usopp, without him turning into a ‘woe is me, I hate my dad’ character which can be common trope in fiction. Pretty interesting if you ask me.

Zoro can also be seen to have no family, and unlike Usopp, he never appears to have had any in the first place (Wano Arc may explain), and, yet again, doesn’t fall into a common trope for this.

Moving on, the next family relationship seen in One Piece is Sanji and Zeff, which is incredibly heart warming to me. Classic Single Dad trying to get his son to move out trope lol. More seriously, this is another family dynamic that we see -

and very different from the next person, Name, who has no parent at all and when she did, she had a single mother. Bell-mere is an amazing example of a mom struggling to feed her kids and literally willing to do anything for these two girls she found in the wreckage of a battle. Bell-mere is also one of the few examples of some kick-ass moms we see in the series.

While One Piece follows the ‘kill the moms/absent mom’ trope they do make them awesome characters who definitely did not lie down and take their deaths nicely.

Nami’s arc is also the first time we see a sibling and also the first time we see the sibling get wounded in front of another hi ace , and begins to add value to the found family theme.

Because Nojiko chose to be Nami’s sister. Bell-mere chose to be Nami’s mother. Further back, Zeff chose to be Sanji’s father.

And then we meet (rip) Ace, who appears to be a blood relative of Luffy’s, adding importance not only the family we choose but the family we have. Of course, this is debunked later, but it definitely reinforces the ‘I love my family’ thing we have going on (Hey have you seen my baby brother - that's my kid brother - don’t hurt my brother - have I said Luffy’s my brother yet - Ace, Alabasta, pre death)

Oh! And we can’t forget about Chopper’s lovely parents who love him despite the fact that he’s not even human, (I salute you old medical people) and Vivi’s father who clearly adores his daughter and is very proud and supportive of her?

Alright.

And then there were four.

Robin and Franky’s backstories happen at the same time and are vastly different yet incredibly similar.

Robin’s story is about losing family, even the family you had for but a few days (Saul) and eventually reclaiming a family for yourself. She is also one of the few characters who have a biological relative.

Franky’s story is about the continuous gain and loss of the same family. He started out with nothing - his parents threw him overboard for gods sake - but then he gained Tom, Icebarg, and Kokoro, and the frog (I forget how to spell his name oops) and formed a relationship with them... only to lose them again when Tom died and then gained them again along with the Franky Family.

His story is also very cool because, unlike the others, he was the leader of his family and not the one relying on the others. Also unlike the others, he lost his family when he was an adult.

Now - what are the similarities between the two, you may ask? Well, for one, they both inadvertently caused the death of a loved one (Robin, Saul and Franky, Tom). Their biological family was either abusive (Robins Aunt, Franky Parents for throwing him overboard) or absent (Robin’s parents as explorers, Franky’s for abandoning him), yet their ‘first’ found family was people who were part of their career - the shipwrights for Franky and the archeologists for Robin!

Essentially, the message here is your work, your job, your coworkers can be your family too - it doesn’t have to be someone who fills a familial role specifically!

Lastly we have Brook, the Sanji situation and Luffy - Jimbei’s will come at a later date once I get the hang of his backstory and character.

Brook first - he lost it all as an adult. Thats essentially all I have to say, as we know very little of his childhood. But as an adult he lost the family he created, the Rumbar pirates, and Laboon, proving that not only can adults make their own families but they can lose it too - different from the rest of the then teenage straw hats.

His family is also similar to Chopper’s as species doesn’t matter to Brook - he loves Laboon as if he were a dear human friend.

Which is just sweet yknow?

The opposite of Sanji’s biological family, who are assholes. This is great family dynamic because it proves that only the people who you think of as family, are family, and not every family is kind and loving. Which sucks, but is an important thing to realize, as it contrasts all the other messages we have had so far from One Piece!

Then we have Luffy. He is one of the few characters with living biological family - and one of the few who just doesn’t care. Luffy hits the mark of every box in a way - he’s lost family (Ace, Sabo), he has absent parental figures (his mom, whoever she it, and Dragon) actual parental figures (Dadan, if you want, Makino, and Shanks at least as a role model) family by choice (His brothers) abusive yet weirdly loving family (Gramps) and self sacrificing family (Rip Ace)

Whats important though is how it effects him - specifically in Marineford.

He does all of that for family, feels like he would die if he didn’t, and built his own family out of the Strawhats. With Marineford, the theme of family, chosen family, was emphasized and finally hammered in.

tl;dr The Straw Hat Pirate crew and One Piece in general has a wide array of characters with diverse families, all who influence the characters by their absence, presence and actions one way or another, and help bolster the subtle theme of ‘found family is important’ in One Piece, especially with the Marineford arc (Rip Ace). It is also important to note that most of the characters. gave up the family they had to be with their family in the Strawhats, which wow, my heart.

Anyway, that's it, this is long so I'm not checking it for errors, have fun!!! I just needed to say something about how how I love those family dynamics in one piece

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thefakeraindog · 5 years

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It is late and I may be Slightly Drunk. Therefore, it is One Piece Theory Time.

So, as we all saw in WCI Sanji’s backstory (as originally given to us on the Baratie) turned out not to be the entire truth, but just the last stop on his Terrible Childhood Trauma Train.

As we also know, Oda is the Lord of the Gun of Chekhov.

As we also also know, Oda likes to make things rhyme. See: Alabasta and Dressrosa.

What I’m getting at is the last Giant Hole in a SH’s backstory:

(Not counting Zoro, because “where TF did Zoro come from pre-dojo” is a chasm that eats theories and spits out crack crossovers.)

Where are Nami and her sister Nojiko from originally?

The facts, as we are given, (via Bellemere’s explanation to Genzo, which he presumably filtered to be bby!Nami appropriate, which happens to give Oda a dual dose of Retcon wiggle room) are thus:

Bellemere was a troublemaker who left the village. At some point, she joined the marines, and Genzo described her as a “fine marine”. She was involved in a terrible battle, and only regained the will to live via two surviving children. She came back to her hometown in the middle of a terrible storm, on a very small boat, with a marine officer’s coat, severe injuries and two feverish young children she insisted be treated first.

She subsequently adopted them but did not file whatever paperwork was required with the town registry, which is strange from a woman who smacked her daughter for saying they weren’t a real family for not sharing blood. She clearly had -0 issues claiming them as her daughters, so what gives? Why didn’t she want them connected to her through official WG paperwork? Was it just her status as a (presumed dead?) marine who (probably) deserted?

Ahem. The point is, we’ve seen this basic story framework again. TWICE. For Very Major Characters: Robin and Law.

The basic story structure of

Horrific disaster destroys an area/country (at instigation of the WG).

Marine officer rescues main character as a child from (WG induced) disaster, abandoning their post/office/the Marines.

Becomes a guardian/parental figure for child.

Dies protecting child.

keeps happening. Saul/Robin. Cora/Law. Bellemere/Nami & Nojiko.

In two out of three cases, there was something about that (extremely gifted) child, something inherited, inherent to where they were from, that made them public enemies and government targets. Robin was from Ohara and had inherited their knowledge. Law was from Flevance and had inherited Amber Lead Disease. (Also the Will of D, but that’s a separate kettle of fish for now.)

Does Nami have something, like her intuitive sense for the weather and navigation, or her almost instinctive prodigal cartography abilities, that would have caused problems if the wrong people connected the right dots?

Bellemere told her she found her under a bridge. That’s a far cry from “ruins of a town that got leveled in heavy combat”. Is being told you were unwanted less traumatizing than being told your parents left you because they died? Why tell a kid they were abandoned instead of orphaned, in a world where random pirate rampages can redraw maps?

Was this just a kinder ambiguity, considering Nojiko apparently found her in the ruins before finding Bellemere and they genuinely did not know?

Or was she trying to keep a small child from blabbing about where they were truly from in range of the wrong ears? Did Genzo know what he was doing when he told her what Bellemere told him?

How much does Nojiko know/remember aaaaaaaaaaahhhhh.

Worth noting, all three examples are people who were prodigies (navigation, archaeology, surgery) who required a lot of blood sweat and tears for Luffy to ‘save’ from people who wanted to exploit their talents. Arlong, CP9, Doflamingo. Parallels everywhere!

There’s a lot of other things to be suspicious of in Bellemere’s story.

Where was this battle? Why was this battle fought, and against who? Doylist explanation, it was vague because Not Important when OP was supposed to run like 5 years, but the Watsonian at this point is... interesting.

What happened/went wrong that the hellraiser who shoved a gun in the mouth of a moderately famous former Sun Pirate, was two inches and a well-timed pair of kids who needed her from lying down to die among the corpses of her comrades?

Was that Marine officer jacket she arrives back at Cocoyashi in hers or did she grab it off a corpse or something for warmth?

How far did she travel to get back to Cocoyashi?

Why did Bellemere immediately recognize a Grand Line pirate like Arlong, even if she wasn’t aware he could bite though steel? East Blue-ers can’t reliably recognize Devil Fruits as things that really exist, much less know about fishmen.

The point: what really happened to Nami’s birthplace, why was Bellemere so cagey about it, and WHAT IS ODA UP TO????

@possiblyfakenovi thoughts?

#one piece #theory #nami #nojiko #Bellemere #possibly spoilers

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creative-type · 7 years

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Building up to Arlong Part II

In my previous post I started my analysis of the East Blue Saga, looking at the arcs leading up to Arlong Park to see how Eiichiro Oda grew as both an author and an artist in those early chapters as he built the series slowly towards the first “epic” moments of One Piece.

I ended that post with Orange Town and how Buggy managed to do something no villain before him had done (be memorable and interesting). It’s interesting to see how Oda follows up on this breakthrough with...well, this guy

I don’t really have much to say about Gaimon’s arc...chapter...whatever the heck it is. It’s completely random and doesn’t fit well with the rest of the East Blue chapters.To be fair to Oda, he does cut loose and show off some of his wacky creativity, and there is some world building as the Red Line gets its first inauspicious mention.

There’s also something to be said about Luffy and Nami getting to know one another better and further insight into Luffy as a character, but it’s not anything that isn’t accomplished better in other places

I will admit this made me laugh, though

Syrup Village

Moving on, we jump to Usopp’s recruitment arc. This one is one of the more intriguing of the East Blue arcs (intriguing not equaling good) in that I liked a lot of the individual pieces but found the overall product to be a little lackluster.

I think part of this is the setting. One Piece is at its best when it’s exploring wild and crazy new places, but Oda hasn’t gotten to that point in the series yet. This arc’s supporting cast is also pretty generic. Usopp’s Pirate Gang aren’t the most annoying little kids I’ve ever seen, but they are annoying little kids. Kaya is...okay. She shows some real gumption after Kuro shows his true colors, but I’m not sure that makes up for all the time she spent being boring early on.

Usopp himself can be hard to like, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Usopp is the everyman of One Piece. He’s not a power fantasy like Luffy or Zoro nor supernaturally talented like Nami. He has the greatest personal flaws of any of the Straw Hats, and his dream is the only one in the crew to be internal rather than external. With that in mind, firmly establishing Usopp’s foibles and his weaknesses makes his victories - both in this arc and later in the series - all the sweeter, even if it makes these chapters a bit of a slog to get through.

This arc does manage two things that would later become staples of the series, and once again we have our villains to thank

There are some very specific trends in One Piece’s villainous organizations. Most are headed by the main antagonist of the arc and are fought by Luffy. Below the leader there’s usually an annoying, but decently strong character taken out relatively early on (think Pearl, Mr.5/Miss Valentine, Satori, etc). This character acts as both hype and a teaser for bigger fights to come, but also carry some narrative weight by giving insight into the plans/mindset/priorities of the enemy organization as a whole.

Lastly, Oda usually adds a lovable, quirky villain who, if not the second in command, is one of the strongest fighters in the arc. These characters humanize the Straw Hat’s enemies, add levity, and are generally really fun - so much so that more often then not they return later in the series as a recurring character.

The Nyaban brothers fit into the annoying but decently strong category, but Jango steals the show as the first lovable, quirky minion of the series (I think Oda tried with Buggy’s crew, but they lack the necessary charm to pull it off). Heck, the first thing we see him do is accidentally hypnotize himself after moonwalking down the path to Usopp’s village. Later on it’s hard not to feel at least a little bit sorry for the guy when we see the hopeless position Kuro has put him in. Jango may be an antagonist, but he’s fun and likable and honestly having him join the marines through the power of dance is amazing.

Gin, Hatchan, Betham, and Kaku all fit to one degree of another into this mold, and it wouldn’t have been possible without Jango.

Secondly, Kuro is the first cerebral villain of the series. Alvida and Morgan relied on brute strength, and while Buggy exhibited a certain amount of cunning he, too, was focused on overwhelming firepower and his Devil Fruit to win the day.

Kuro of a Thousand Plans. His epithet says it all. Kuro is conniving, sneaky, underhanded, and without a shred of honor to hold him back as he meticulously plans to murder a sickly girl for nothing more than his own peace and comfort.

All of Oda’s most memorable villains have this Machiavellian mindset. Crocodile, Doflamingo, and most of all Blackbeard are all chess masters to one degree or another. Though their end goals are completely different, you can see a lot of Crocodile especially in how Kuro built up an unshakable reputation while biding his time to strike. They even share a penchant for breaking speeches

It’s such a little thing, but the words “I suffered” elevate Kuro to one of my favorite East Blue villains, well above even Buggy. It’s so needlessly cruel, twisting the knife right where he knows it will hurt most, just because he can, and I freaking love it.

As a side note before moving on, Oda’s attention to detail is also to be commended during this arc. The way Kuro adjusts his glasses makes for an excellent and chilling re-read bonus, and connecting Morgan’s past to Kuro’s gives the former a little more depth than before.

The Baratie

It’s interesting to compare the Baratie to Syrup village because in many ways these arcs have opposite strengths and weaknesses. Where Syrup village had strong antagonists and a weak setting/side characters, the Baratie is the most memorable locale of the East Blue Saga and has an extremely strong secondary cast.

The Baratie as a concept brilliantly fits into the world of One Piece. The idea of a floating restaurant in a world that’s 90% ocean makes perfect sense, and it’s one of the times that Oda integrates the setting with his characterization. It’s not creativity for creativity’s sake, and unlike Gaimon’s sub-arc...chapter...whatever that was there’s a method behind the madness.

This excellent setup is the backdrop to some superb character writing. Sanji is by no means my favorite Straw Hat, but his strained relationship between Zeff and the rest of the Baratie is done extremely well. It’s one of those situations where no one is 100% right or wrong and you just wish they’d all enter counseling or something so they could figure out how to talk to one another without resorting to violence.

It doesn’t hurt that this is when Oda figures out how to properly use the power of Tragic Backstory (tm) to its most devastating effect. While no (named) characters die, Sanji’s backstory is raw, painful, and emotional in all the right places. It’s in expressing these extreme emotions where Oda’s cartoony style is at its most effective. Oda’s characters don’t just cry, they cry ugly, and that’s so important when setting the tone of these heavy moments.

I don’t have much to say on Kreig or his crew because he’s boring and I despise Pearl with every fiber of my being, but once again we get some fun fight choreography. I especially like the sequence when Sanji spits his cigarette into Gin’s face before kicking him halfway across the deck, only to get a tonfa to the ribs for his effort.

Also this happens, and it’s soooo satisfying to see Kreig get punched in the face. 10/10, would watch again

But the one thing that the Baratie does best of all the East Blue arcs - better than even Arlong Park - is world building. The entire series people have been telling Luffy and co. that the Grand Line is super dangerous and that he shouldn’t go, but it’s only here that we see that we see that played out in real time with Mihawk’s introduction to the plot. The Straw Hats have thus far been presented as invincible badasses when they’re nothing more than a big fish in a little pond.

All the stuff with Mihawk is big-picture storytelling and one of Zoro’s best moments. I don’t think that anyone who follows One Piece needs to be told how well Oda does at developing his world. More important to the build up to Arlong Park is Oda’s use of immediate foreshadowing. Right about the time Mihawk shows up Johnny and Yosaku catch Nami checking out bounties, specifically Arlong’s though he’s never named and we don’t see his picture. Immediately after Nami steals the Going Merry so she can run away, and we see her facade start to crack a little under pressure. Note especially how utterly exhausted she looks in this panel here

This all happens in the same chapter Zoro challenges Mihawk, and the action cuts between the swordsman’s pre-fight banter and the story of how Johnny and Yosaku lost the Merry. Zoro’s fight is the more immediate concern, but when constructing the chapter, instead of going out on that high note Oda cuts back to Nami a second time, this time sailing alone on the open ocean

If it weren’t already obvious by the whole rest of the series, this scene proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that there’s more to Nami than meets the eye. This is the first time we see her truly vulnerable, almost to the point of being broken, and it puts a completely different meaning to all her actions previous and what we’ll see coming up in later chapters.

I do think there is some significance to putting the Nami scene last over Zoro’s, because as the last thing the audience reads it’s what tends to stick in their mind longest week to week. We don’t see Nami again for a long time, and when we do all her defensive walls are firmly back in place. This is the Nami Oda wants us to remember when she’s going around Cocoyashi village telling Luffy to leave her the hell alone.

The Conclusion

What really stands out to me when going over these early chapters leading up to Arlong Park is Oda’s vision for the series from the word go, even when his execution isn’t as consistent as later on in the series. The whole East Blue saga exists to do two things 1) build the core of the Straw Hat Pirates 2) answer the question Who is Luffy.

Each antagonist from the lowly Alvida to Arlong himself has a weakness in their leadership ability that directly foils Luffy. These chapters show us what kind of pirate, what kind of captain, and most of all what kind of man Monkey D Luffy is, and what values he will and will not stand for.

Arlong Park is the emotional peak of the East Blue saga, and it works because Oda has taken the time to build up to that peak. The impact would not have been the same if it had been placed earlier in the series because it would not feel earned without seeing Nami interact with the rest of the crew for as long as she did. Nor would it have worked if Oda hadn’t placed the breadcrumbs of her story for the audience to pick up along the way.

It’s impossible for every arc to hit all the high points that Arlong Park does, because not all arcs are designed to do so, nor should they. That being said, there’s a steady increase in quality seen even in these early chapters as Oda gets his sea legs and figures out exactly what story he’s trying to tell.

#one piece #analysis #manga #monkey d. luffy #nami #zoro #East Blue Saga #Arlong Park #Eiichiro Oda #creative-type analyzes

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pingo1387 · 7 years

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Hidden Admiration

Special gift for @summerotaku! One Piece; ZoSan; Pre-timeskip Words: 7,009

“Stop following me.”

“We’re supposed to be walking together!”

“I don’t want to!”

“Your lost ass needs a partner!”

Zoro and Sanji glowered in each other’s faces as they walked through the woods, scaring away small animals. The others had been quick to vote Sanji as Zoro’s chaperone when Zoro had wandered away from the ship—neither liked the situation, but Sanji wouldn’t leave him, not when Nami had asked him so sweetly while batting her eyelashes.

“I don’t,” Zoro hissed, “get ‘lost.’ Just because I can find cool new paths through things—”

“It doesn’t count if you didn’t mean to!” Sanji folded his arms, staring ahead as he walked. “You always do this, and then one of us has to go find you, because you’re an idiot and never think of the consequences of not fucking knowing where you’re going. Honestly, if you would just do as you’re told and pay attention to where you are, this wouldn’t happen! It shouldn’t be that difficult to keep one of us in sight, at the very least! Even Luffy has a better sense of direction than you, and that’s saying something! You—”

Here he turned, and saw no one beside him. Zoro had vanished.

“Fucking moron,” he hissed, looking around. He went in a random direction, hoping he’d be able to make out Zoro’s hair among the mossy trees.

“And he tells me not to wander off?” Zoro muttered when he realized Sanji had vanished. What a telling-off he could give him when they were both back at the ship! Of course he knew which way the ship was . . .

Sanji scowled. The only things surrounding him were trees, a small, glimmering boulder, and more trees. It was Zoro’s own fault, he reasoned, the idiot had gotten himself all lost and turned around. He hadn’t seen where he’d gone, how was he supposed to find him, anyway?

He sighed, resting a hand on the boulder and running a hand through his hair.

“Why’d he have to be like this?” he murmured.

He shook his head and straightened up, heading off in another direction. His head began to pound.

Zoro frowned, looking around. He knew the ship was this way, but it must’ve moved—he didn’t see any water, only a bunch of trees and a big glittering rock. Stupid cook! Why had he wandered away like that? And in the middle of a rant, too! He just had to be like that, complaining all the time . . .

He rested a hand on the rock, frowning.

“Not how I thought this would turn out,” he muttered.

He removed his hand and wandered away again. His head pulsed with pain.

“They really should’ve been back by now,” Nami said, annoyed, staring into the wilderness of the island.

“I am back,” Luffy said, bouncing up behind her. “I just got here, didn’t you see me?”

“Not you, stupid, Zoro and Sanji-kun!” Nami turned around. “Usopp! Chopper! Go find them!”

“Why us?” Usopp complained as he and Chopper came to the railing.

“You’re good trackers and I’ll cut your allowances if you don’t.”

“Let’s go!” Chopper exclaimed, jumping from the ship onto the sand below.

“Wait!” Usopp leapt after him, and they hurried into the woods.

They split up at a fork in the path, agreeing to meet back at the ship later. Usopp found himself wandering downhill and came to a rocky beach. As he made his way to shore, he saw a familiar blonde head staring out to sea.

“Hey!” he called, approaching. Sanji whipped around, eyes wide, and stared as Usopp came up to him with a friendly grin. “C’mon, let’s get back, everyone’s hungry! Did you guys wander off from each other?”

“Get back . . . where is this?” Sanji said blankly.

“The island we landed on,” Usopp said patiently. “I dunno if it has a name.” He squinted at Sanji. “Did you shave?”

Sanji rubbed his smooth chin. “Why wouldn’t I? But, more importantly, how did I get here?”

“Didn’t you walk?” Usopp said, confused.

“Walk?” Sanji repeated, utterly baffled. “No, I . . . I woke up in those woods—” He pointed. “And I don’t remember coming here at all.”

“Sanji, what are you talking about?” Usopp exclaimed.

Sanji’s eyes widened and he stepped back. “You know my name?” he said accusingly. “Do you know something?”

“Sanji, I—” Usopp held up his hands, taking a step forward. “You might’ve hit your head. Let’s go back to the ship and Chopper will help you.”

“You . . . have a ship?” Sanji said cautiously.

Usopp nodded slowly.

“Okay.” Sanji swallowed. “Maybe the captain will be nice enough to take me back to the restaurant.”

Usopp opened his mouth, but decided not to bother and shook his head. “Just follow me.”

“Zoro!” Chopper exclaimed in delight. Zoro, who had been studying a tree to see if it looked familiar, turned and jumped when he saw Chopper.

“Did you get lost again?” Chopper asked, grinning. “Let’s go back, it’s getting late!”

“Back where?” Zoro said. “Who are you? What are you?”

Chopper’s smile faded. “Is this a joke?” he asked tentatively.

Zoro placed a hand on his swords. “Where is this? How did I get here?”

Chopper frowned. “Zoro, it’s me, Chopper! You guys were on a walk, and Nami made Usopp and me come find you—are you okay? Let me look at you!”

Zoro narrowed his eyes. “What are you talking about?”

“Zoro,” Chopper said slowly, “if you don’t remember m-me—or how you got here—you might’ve been hurt. Let me check your head. Please?”

Zoro slowly removed his hand and knelt, allowing Chopper to run his hooves on his scalp.

“No injuries,” he said at last.

“I could’ve told you that,” Zoro snapped. He rubbed his temples and sighed. “Look, can you help me? I think someone might’ve kidnapped me. I just need to be dropped off at an island somewhere. I’ll find my way from there.”

Chopper stared at him in worry. “Okay,” he said at last. “Yeah, we’ll help. Come on, hold my hand, it’s this way.”

He turned big, startling Zoro.

“What are you?!” he yelled.

“Reindeer,” Chopper said with no further explanation. He grabbed Zoro’s hand and led him through the trees.

“Emergency!”

“Why did you yell?” Sanji hissed. “And why am I an emergency?”

“What, Usopp?” Luffy asked, bouncing towards them. He grinned. “Hey, Sanji!”

Sanji frowned at him, but when he saw Nami and Robin approaching, he grinned.

“Oh!” he exclaimed. “I didn’t know I would meet such lovely ladies today! Pardon me for intruding, mademoiselles, but are you single?”

“Evening, Sanji,” Robin said. “Usopp, what’s the emergency?”

Sanji’s face fell at their lack of response, and Usopp cleared his throat as the others approached. “Well, uh, Sanji doesn’t . . . know us?”

“Huh?!” Luffy cried in dismay.

“Bro, tell me it ain’t so!” Franky exclaimed. Sanji leaned away from him, staring at his exposed form in alarm. “How could you forget the super Franky?!”

“Is it true, Sanji-san?” Brook asked despondently. Sanji stiffened and scooted away from him, and then looked up at the flag.

“Oh, this is a pirate ship?” he said, frowning. “No wonder you’re all weird—except for you, you lovely ladies—but I’ve never seen this mark before. Which pirates are you?”

Franky began to cry in despair.

“Sanji, we’re the Strawhats,” Luffy exclaimed. “You really don’t remember?”

“What am I supposed to remember?” Sanji snapped.

“Hey! Emergency!”

Everyone looked over the railing to see Chopper returning with Zoro. He carried Zoro in his arms as he leapt over the railing, and then set him down and turned small again. Sanji jumped, and when he spotted Zoro, his eyes widened and his ears turned red.

“Zoro doesn’t remember me,” Chopper announced tearfully.

Zoro looked around, squinted at Franky and Brook, and frowned at the person he couldn’t make out hiding behind Usopp.

“Don’t tell me you forgot us too,” Luffy moaned in horror.

“How can I forget someone I’ve never met?” Zoro said, confused. He bowed. “Uh . . . nice to meet you all. Can I request that you take me to the nearest island?”

“What d’you mean, too?” Chopper asked.

Usopp looked around for Sanji, frowned when he noticed he was hiding, and gestured. “Our chef’s lost his memory too,” he explained.

Chopper whimpered in distress while the others looked around, confused.

“How could they both have . . . ?” Robin murmured. “Come to think of it . . . Zoro, how old are you?”

“Seventeen,” Zoro responded.

“Sanji-kun, how old are you?” Nami asked.

“Seventeen, my lady!” Sanji exclaimed, popping out at her voice. When Zoro saw him, he frantically looked around and ducked behind Robin, who glanced back at him in confusion. Sanji likewise hid behind Usopp again.

“So . . . they didn’t exactly lose their memories,” Brook said thoughtfully. “What they lost was their age?”

“It sounds that way,” Usopp agreed. “Sanji’s chin was all smooth, and Zoro looked a little younger, too . . .”

“I’m gonna check them over properly,” Chopper said. “Zoro! Come out here!”

He turned big and dragged Zoro to his office. Sanji slowly came out again, straightening his shirt (he was a touch smaller, but his clothes fit nearly as well).

“What’s your deal?” Usopp said.

“Nothing,” Sanji snapped, his ears pink. “I just need to go back to the Baratie.”

“We . . . can’t really do that,” Franky said.

“Why?” Sanji said in surprise. “Are you holding me hostage? I’ll have you know I’m a decent fighter.”

“Yeah, so are we,” Luffy said patiently. “But, Sanji, the Baratie’s in the East Blue.”

“And we aren’t?”

They gave him pitying looks. When they finally told him their location, his eyes nearly fell out of his head. He was reeling by the time they explained his role on the ship and why they were on the Grand Line in the first place.

“I need to sit down,” he whispered.

Robin helpfully used her ability to grab a chair from the upper deck and bring it down. Sanji collapsed into it, staring at her in awe.

“You can still cook, right?” Luffy said hopefully. He playfully stretched out his arm and tapped Sanji’s head. “We’re hungry.”

“Of course I can cook,” Sanji snapped, making a face at his ability.

Chopper came back, Zoro close behind, and Sanji jumped. Zoro spotted him and hid behind Robin again. Nami squinted at him.

“Sanji, your turn,” Chopper called. He dragged Sanji up from the chair into his office, and Zoro came out from hiding.

“So why’re you hiding?” Nami asked, suspicious.

“Just because,” Zoro muttered. “Chopper gave me the briefing on this situation. This is the Grand Line, huh?”

“Sure is,” Luffy said, eyes shining.

“I see. I’m sorry I don’t know you all.”

“No worries, Zoro-san, I’m sure we can make fast friends again if this situation isn’t resolved,” Brook said merrily. Zoro eyed him curiously. “Though I do hope it will be resolved. Robin-san, I don’t suppose you have any idea how this could have happened?”

Robin shrugged. “I can only assume something happened to them in the forest.”

“Yeah, Chopper said S—Sanji and I were on a walk,” Zoro interrupted. He rubbed the back of his neck. “Do we do that a lot? Go on walks?”

“In general? If we have downtime on an island, sure,” Nami said.

“I meant me and Sanji.” Zoro ducked his head, looking away.

The others were surprised, but before they could question him, Chopper returned with Sanji.

“No injuries on either of them,” he said as Sanji ducked back into the kitchen with a mumbled promise to start on dinner. “I don’t know how this could’ve happened.”

“You really don’t remember anything?” Franky prodded, leaning forward. “Like, how this could’ve happened?”

“The last thing I remember was looking for a tavern,” Zoro said, still confused.

“You’re skinny,” Luffy said in wonder, poking Zoro’s arm. Zoro frowned and elbowed him away.

“I should go help Sanji-kun,” Nami said suddenly. “He won’t know the combination for the fridge.”

“You can tell me and then I’ll go tell him,” Luffy offered from the ground. Usopp kicked him while Nami went inside.

“Hello, my lady,” Sanji crooned when Nami entered. “Is there something wrong?”

“Code’s 7-3-2-6,” she said, coming around and unlocking the fridge.

“Oh,” he said in relief. “Thank you so much. Why is it locked?”

“Luffy always steals.”

“The captain?”

“Yeah.” She straightened up. “Need anything else?”

Sanji shook his head. “I don’t think so,” he said. “It looks like everything’s where I like it, so . . .”

“Let us know if you need anything.” She was oddly gentle. “This must be a real shock, being torn away from your restaurant.”

“I can guess why I left,” Sanji murmured. He suddenly looked panicked. “That reminds me, Nami-san, if you don’t mind me asking—was I in a relationship with you or Robin-san?”

“No.”

“Oh, thank god,” he said, smiling in relief. Nami stared at him, puzzled, as his ears turned pink and he continued, “Was I—in a relationship with—anyone else?”

Nami rolled her eyes. “Get started on dinner.”

“Okay!” he exclaimed, voice cracking. She left the room.

Sanji called everyone in for dinner within an hour, having found meal preparations already in the fridge. Luffy was the first one in, followed closely by the others. Sanji watched them expectantly as they dug in, and his face fell when he saw their smiles freeze.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, wringing a towel between his hands.

“Well . . . it’s good,” Usopp said. “It’s just not what we’re used to.”

The others nodded.

“Is future me really that good?” Sanji murmured. He looked at the table, and the only ones digging in with real vigor were Luffy and—Zoro.

“You’re both good,” Luffy said through his food. Zoro set down his plate for a moment, and his and Sanji’s eyes met.

“Do you—like it?” Sanji asked tentatively, nearly ripping the towel in two.

“It’s . . .” Zoro looked down. “The best food I’ve ever tasted.”

He dug in again, and Sanji hid a smile behind his hands. The others looked between them, baffled.

“Are you sure neither of you met before you woke up in the woods?” Franky asked.

“Yeah, why?” they said together. Zoro hastily shoved more food in his mouth.

“You’re acting awfully weird.”

Zoro made a point of keeping his mouth full of food to avoid responding, while Sanji snapped, “Weird? Y—You’re one to talk, dressed like that!”

Usopp laughed. “He’s got you there, Franky!”

“I’m weird and proud of it!” Franky took out his ukulele and strummed it. “The wand’ring pervert, shunned by society—”

“—Shows no shame in his lack of propriety,” Brook continued.

Sanji rolled his eyes and started on dishes. He had never met a merrier band of pirates.

Zoro and Sanji slept as far apart from each other as possible, though both stole glances once in awhile. While Sanji had occasionally fallen asleep with the other cooks in the kitchen, it was Zoro’s first time sleeping with so many people in years, and he shied away from the pillow fight Luffy had started.

“Hey, guys!” Franky yelled. “What’s it like being seventeen again?”

“As far as we know, seventeen’s the oldest we’ve ever been,” Zoro pointed out. “Right?”

“R—Right,” Sanji said. It was the closest they’d come to speaking. “So, it’s normal.”

“Boring!” Luffy exclaimed.

“It’s not really fair to call that boring when your only point of reference is being a pirate,” Zoro muttered. “Compared to that, a lot of things must seem boring.”

“Yeah, but you guys are pirates, too,” Usopp said.

“It’s a pirate party!” Chopper exclaimed.

“Yeah! Let’s have a party!” Luffy yelled.

The door flew open, revealing a livid Nami. “If you idiots don’t shut up, I am raising your debts through the roof!” she hissed.

“Whatever you say, my lovely!” Sanji cried. Zoro looked away, and everyone promised to be good. Nami turned off the light and shut the door, leaving behind whispers and muffled giggles.

Sanji woke early out of habit, and found few others stirring. He remembered where he was after a moment and slipped out of bed, creeping out the door and heading to the kitchen.

He’d just started on breakfast when someone said, “Good morning,” and he whipped around, not having heard anyone come in. Robin sat at the table, smiling.

“Could I have some coffee?” she asked, crossing her legs.

“Yeah, of course,” Sanji said quickly. He searched the pantry, found the coffee and filters, and took them out, heating water over the stove. As he poured the steaming pot through the filter into a mug, he said, “That ability of yours, what is it?”

“A Devil Fruit. They’re uncommon outside the Grand Line.”

“Yeah.” Sanji finished pouring and waited for it to steep. “Do you take cream or sugar?”

“No. Chopper didn’t mention our abilities?”

“He didn’t. But I’m guessing he has one, too. Reindeer Fruit?”

“Human. He was a reindeer originally. Brook can live because of a Fruit, too, and of course, Luffy . . .”

Sanji nodded. “Did I have one?”

“No, why?”

“Well . . . it’s not important.”

They sat in silence. Sanji busied himself with breakfast again while waiting for the coffee, and then brought it to Robin when it was ready. She thanked him and held the warm mug.

“Um . . . Robin-san?”

“Yes?”

Sanji was just finishing breakfast, and his ears turned pink as he played with his hair and said, “What . . . what’s my relationship with Zoro like?”

He stopped the eggs from burning and doled them out onto plates, watching Robin expectantly. She stared at him, amused.

“Well,” she said. “How should I put this . . . ? There’s a lot of tension.”

Sanji’s eyes widened. “Oh,” he said, voice cracking again.

Robin stood. “I’ll get everyone in here.”

Sanji stared at the plates, neck beet-red, while Robin left and Luffy entered.

“No good?” Sanji asked, dejected, when the crew’s chewing became reluctant again.

“Again, it’s just not what we’re used to,” Nami said reassuringly. “It doesn’t matter, don’t worry about it.”

“You guys are weird,” Zoro said. “This is—” He saw Sanji and hid his face. “This is the greatest food ever.”

Sanji turned around, smiling and pretending to wash dishes, while the others either bit their lips or stuffed their faces to hide smirks.

“Chopper,” Robin said. “I think you and I should head out to explore after breakfast. We need to look for clues on how this situation happened.”

“Good idea!” Chopper exclaimed.

“I’m coming,” Luffy announced.

“You are not,” Nami snapped.

“Why?”

“Because you’ll run off from them, and knowing you, you’ll probably get hit with whatever made Zoro and Sanji-kun this way and lose a couple years, too! I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m not putting up with a younger Luffy.”

The others nodded. Luffy frowned and slumped in his chair. “I still wanna go.”

“Luffy, we’ll stay here and play or something,” Usopp promised, patting his shoulder. “Once Robin and Chopper figure out what happened, they can tell us, and then you can go explore, because then we’ll know what it was so we can avoid it happening to us.”

“Yeah, okay!” Luffy said, sitting up again.

Zoro stood on the bow, peering out to sea. The Grand Line certainly didn’t look like all the horrible tales he’d heard—rather, the waves were calm, no Sea Kings were attacking, and hardly a cloud was in the sky.

He sighed and sat against the railing, closing his eyes. He opened them again when he sensed movements and squinted at Luffy and Usopp crouching by him.

“Show us your chest,” Usopp said.

“Show us your chest,” Luffy insisted.

“Why?” he asked, scooting back against the railing.

“We wanna see if the scar’s still there,” Usopp explained.

“Scar?” Zoro sat up and pulled off his shirt, studying his chest. “I don’t see anything.”

“It did vanish!” Usopp exclaimed. “I bet the ones on your legs vanished, too!”

Zoro pulled up his pant legs, studying the smooth skin.

“They are gone!” Luffy said. He traced a circle around Zoro’s shins. “You had two here!”

“What from?”

Usopp rolled his eyes. “You tried to cut off your own feet when you got stuck in a giant wax cake.”

Zoro frowned. “That doesn’t make any sense.”

“Exactly! I think you traumatized Nami, too, she was practically screaming when—”

“No, cutting off my feet would make perfect sense in that situation,” Zoro interrupted. “I meant the giant wax cake thing. Where did something like that come from?”

Luffy grinned while Usopp groaned. “Just a guy with a weird power.”

“Okay.” Zoro pulled his shirt back on and glanced towards the kitchen. “Hey . . . can I ask you guys something?”

“Shoot,” Usopp said, folding his arms.

Zoro looked down. “What was—what was our relationship like?”

“Who, you and me, or you and Usopp, or both?” Luffy asked.

“No, I meant—Sanji.”

Luffy burst out laughing while Usopp squinted. “You guys have been acting weird towards each other ever since you de-aged . . . why is that?”

“Weird?” Zoro said, attentive. “Weird how? How did we act before?”

He stared at Usopp intensely, and Usopp shifted. “Well, y’know,” he said. “You, uh—you were always, like—”

He gestured with his hands, thinking the meaning was clear, and he didn’t realize Zoro had misinterpreted it when he leaned forward, saying, “Is—is that so? Do you think we should talk?”

“Well, if only to clear up why you guys are all weird now,” Usopp said, exasperated.

“Okay.” Zoro stood. “Thanks!”

He hurried to the kitchen, cheeks pinked. Usopp and Luffy looked at each other and shrugged.

“Robin?”

“Yes?”

“What if we both lose our memories, and ages? What then?”

Robin stared ahead. “I suppose we’d have to find the ship, wouldn’t we?” she said. “We wouldn’t know anyone, but . . .”

She trailed off. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t happen, hm?”

“Right.” Chopper straightened his hat and his posture. The trees surrounded them and small animals ran out of their way.

They paused for a break by a glittering boulder.

“Could this be what made them lose their years?” Robin remarked, smiling teasingly.

“Oh! Maybe!” Chopper exclaimed, taking her seriously and hiding behind her legs.

Robin smiled and knelt by it, reaching her hand out. “I’ll need your help if I forget where we are,” she joked. She placed her hand on the rock for not even half a second before withdrawing.

“Robin!” Chopper cried, grabbing her. “Are you okay? Do you know me?”

“I’m fine,” she said reassuringly. She frowned as a headache began to come on. “I was kidding. Don’t worry . . .”

She pressed a hand to her temple, gritting her teeth before collapsing into the dirt.

“Robin!”

Chopper turned to pull off his pack, but just as he finished rooting through it, Robin stirred.

“What . . . ?” Her eyes flew open and she sat up quickly, looking around. She saw Chopper and relaxed. “Doctor-san? Where is this?”

Chopper stared, dejected. “You did lose your memory!”

“Lose my . . . ? What do you mean?” she asked warily. “Where is this? What happened?”

Chopper put away his equipment. “Let’s go back to the ship. The others should know about this.”

“Hey!”

Sanji jumped and whirled around when Zoro slammed the door open, flying into the kitchen.

“Uh—hi,” he said, swallowing.

Zoro rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m, uh—I just wanted to say, um—I’m a fan.”

Sanji stared, eyes wide and ears red. “What?”

“When I was younger, I heard about someone who’d survived an amazingly long time without food or water,” Zoro explained, stumbling over his words. “I always thought that was incredible, and wanted to meet that person. And, not too long ago, there was an article about your restaurant, and how it was full of amazing fighters—I recognized you, and—your cooking’s even better than I imagined. I just, I could never find the restaurant itself.”

He hid his face as soon as he’d finished. Sanji stared, gaping.

“I’m . . . your fan, too,” he whispered. Zoro looked up, stunned. “You won some competitions. It was in the paper. I never thought your hair was green, but—you, uh—you must be really strong.”

He bit his lip, staring at Zoro.

“I—I see,” Zoro said, adjusting his swords. “There was—something else I wanted to say. I—”

“We’re back!”

Both jumped at the shriek from outside, and they hesitated before reluctantly heading out.

They found the crew gathering at Chopper’s behest. Chopper held Robin’s hand while Robin stared around warily, moving away from Brook and Franky.

“Well, the good news is we found out what happened to Zoro and Sanji,” Chopper said wearily. “The bad news is—”

“Luffy, are you aware that a skeleton and a pervert have boarded this ship?” Robin asked.

“Robin lost her memory, too,” Chopper finished. “But, she only seems to have lost a couple months.”

He explained about the rock.

“Damn, so we’re the only ones you forgot, Nico Robin?” Franky asked, dejected. “I’m hurt!”

“Please put some pants on,” she said.

“Robin-san, I’m sure this is a shock to you,” Brook said gently. “The others will be able to explain it to you thoroughly.”

“Why not you?” Usopp said.

“How am I supposed to explain things I wasn’t here for?”

“Good point.”

Robin studied Zoro and Sanji. “Swordsman-san, Cook-san, why do you look younger?”

“So . . . this is what happened to us?” Zoro said, interested.

“Robin-san, I hope your memory of me will return soon!” Sanji cried. Zoro scowled at the floor.

“We’ll explain things, Robin, don’t worry,” Luffy said reassuringly. He and Nami led Robin away from Brook and Franky, and Usopp and Chopper followed.

“So . . . you were saying?” Sanji said to Zoro, turning to him.

Zoro glanced at Brook and Franky, who had leaned in obviously, putting hands around their ears (or where ears should’ve been). “I was saying it in private,” he said pointedly.

“Right.” Sanji beckoned, and they went back to the kitchen. As soon as the door shut, Franky and Brook went to it and pressed their ears to the wood.

“I, uh . . .”

Zoro stared at the floor. “I . . . I think I have a crush on you.”

Sanji’s eyes widened again.

“I sure hope so, because otherwise I don’t know what this feeling is,” Zoro continued. “You’re—you’re strong, you have amazing willpower—your food—”

“Fuck, fuck, are you serious?” Sanji whispered.

“Yeah. Sorry if you don’t—”

“Fuck, Zoro, I like you too.” Before Zoro could say anything, Sanji ran a hand through his hair, continuing, “You—you look so cool when you’re fighting, that’s what the pictures were of, and you have this—this air about you—it’s just amazing.”

“I thought you liked girls!”

“I do! I love women! I didn’t even know I was capable of liking guys until—!”

He cut himself off, shoving his hands in his pockets.

“Well . . . let’s date.”

“What?” It came out as a squeak.

Zoro shifted. “The others act weird when our relationship that we apparently forgot is brought up. Have you noticed?”

“Yeah.”

“I figure—I figure, we were already—together. Why wouldn’t we be? If we’re both like this, and we’re on the same ship—there’s no reason we wouldn’t be—fuck, you know what I mean.” Zoro rubbed the back of his neck, still staring at the floor. “So, we . . . might as well . . .”

He looked up to see Sanji holding out his arms.

“Come here.”

Zoro nearly jumped into him with a hug. They held each other, basking in each other’s warmth.

It was tapping at the window that got their attention, and they saw Brook and Franky staring at them with thumbs-ups. The two fled when Zoro and Sanji sprinted for the door, swords drawn and scowls on.

“Well . . . this is a change.”

Sanji and Zoro looked at Usopp as the rest of the crew stared at them, Franky and Brook giving thumbs-ups again and everyone else wide-eyed and slack-jawed.

“Oh,” Sanji said, who had just given Zoro a kiss when serving lunch. “Right—we got back together. Or, it’s the first time for us, but . . .”

“Second time for you guys, right?” Zoro added. “No wonder you thought we were weird earlier, if we were together before. We’re together again now. Or, for the first time.”

Sanji nodded.

“Should we say something?” Chopper whispered to Nami, who shrugged helplessly. Robin said nothing, despite being more confused than anyone there.

“Something wrong?” Zoro added, noticing the stares lingering.

“No,” everyone said together, returning to their food in thick silence.

“Robin,” Chopper cried when she sank to her knees and collapsed for the second time that day. Brook, who she had been in the middle of questioning, knelt by her and felt her forehead.

Robin sat up after only a minute, blinking. She rubbed her head and looked at Brook and Chopper.

“I’m back,” she said with a smile. “Sorry for the trouble.”

Chopper hugged her and Brook clutched his ribcage in relief. “Thank goodness, Robin-san. And this means Zoro-san and Sanji-san will eventually revert to normal as well!”

Robin nodded. “Probably this evening at the earliest.”

“Speaking of them—” Chopper pulled back. “What’s gonna happen when they get their memories back? Are they gonna stop being in love?”

“Chopper-san, such questions are meant for fate,” Brook said gravely.

“I wonder how they got together so quickly,” Robin added, standing. “To their knowledge, they only met last night . . .”

She shook her head. “I’ll tell the others.”

She ran into Franky on her way. Franky studied her and lit up. “You’re back!”

“How did you know?”

“Your face is different. You’re gonna apologize for earlier, right?”

“No. Put some pants on.”

“So . . . how’d you two meet?”

Nami watched Zoro and Sanji, waiting. They stared at her and glanced at each other.

“We only met last night,” Sanji said. “But, um . . .”

“We’d heard a lot about each other before this,” Zoro explained, looking away and smiling with embarrassment. Luffy and Usopp crept up behind Nami, listening. “Sanji’s amazing—”

“That’s you,” Sanji interrupted, seizing his hand and resting his head on Zoro’s shoulder. He looked back at Nami with a smile. “Didn’t either of us bring it up when we first got together?”

Nami shook her head. “It never came up.”

“You guys are weird,” Luffy remarked, grinning.

“I’m . . . looking forward to remembering how we first met,” Zoro admitted. “This will probably feel like a redo of the situation.”

Luffy and Usopp looked at each other and laughed, hurrying away.

“Good luck,” Nami said, giving them a pitying look before leaving.

“Everyone’s still acting weird,” Zoro remarked, squeezing Sanji’s hand. “Why is that, d’you think?”

“Maybe we didn’t quite act like this before?” Sanji suggested. “Careful with my hand.”

Zoro brought it up to his mouth and kissed the back.

“Wow, who knew those two were mutual fans?” Franky exclaimed. The crew watched Zoro and Sanji from afar as the two held hands on the island’s shore, gesturing and smiling while the sun started to set.

“It’s so weird to think about it,” Nami agreed.

Brook sighed. “It’s like a look into another universe, at what could’ve been!”

“If they stay like this, maybe they’ll stop destroying the ship,” Robin said.

Luffy draped himself over the railing, not too interested in the conversation.

“Oh, oh, I think they’re gonna kiss,” Usopp whispered, pointing.

“Really?” Chopper squeaked. Everyone leaned in, staring obviously.

On the beach, Zoro studied Sanji’s face, lit by the sun and sea.

“Hey,” he said. Sanji looked at him. “I’m, uh . . . I’m glad you’re here.”

Sanji smiled. Zoro’s visage was perfect in the light. “Me, too.”

They leaned in, tentative . . .

And then they clutched their heads, leaning back as sharp headaches came on. Both sank to their knees and collapsed into the sand.

“They—they’re going back to normal?!” Chopper cried.

“So close!” Franky exclaimed, frustrated. Chopper and Luffy leapt from the ship to get them, and Chopper picked up Zoro while Luffy dragged Sanji across the sand.

They woke up against the railing, rubbing their heads. Before the crew’s eyes, Sanji’s goatee had returned, and Zoro’s muscles had become thicker.

“How do you feel?” Nami asked. The others stared with bated breath.

Sanji’s eyes couldn’t be wider with shock, and when he saw Zoro next to him, he scooted away so quickly he singed the deck with friction. Zoro stood and backed away, stunned.

“Guys?” Usopp said timidly.

“Is everything . . . alright?” Brook asked.

Luffy was the bluntest as he picked his nose and said, “So, are you guys still gonna be kissing each other?”

No one knew how it happened, but he suddenly had a shoe imprint on his face and a bump on his head as he lay still halfway across the deck. Zoro fled to the observatory and Sanji to the kitchen.

“Guys!” Chopper exclaimed, too late. He frowned. “Oh, no . . .”

Usopp went to help Luffy up. Franky took out his handkerchief and blew his nose.

“They were so sweet!” he cried. “And now—now they’re—!”

“Oh, Franky-san, I’m sure they’ll work things out, don’t cry,” Brook said, patting his shoulder.

“I’m not crying!”

Dinner was the quietest it had ever been. Sanji and Zoro looked everywhere but each other, and the eyes of the others darted between them.

“So . . .”

Sanji tapped his fingers against his arm, leaning against the counter and facing away from the table. “The food’s better now, right?”

“Much,” Robin said reassuringly. The others voiced their agreement, but Zoro scowled at his plate and stabbed his fork into a piece.

“You guys have weird taste buds,” he said, tone unusually harsh. “This is shit.”

Sanji froze, staring at the wall.

“What happened to ‘The best food you’ve ever tasted?’” Chopper asked.

“Something must’ve messed up my head when I regressed,” Zoro muttered, eating his portion nonetheless.

“I’m going for some fresh air,” Sanji said abruptly, striding out of the kitchen. Zoro was the only one who didn’t watch him go, and Franky hid a sob in his handkerchief.

Zoro had jumped at the chance to take lookout duty, leaving the others in the men’s quarters. No one dared to speak to Sanji for a long time.

Finally, Brook spoke up. “Sanji-san?”

“What?” he snapped.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No.” Sanji covered his face with his pillow.

“Do be careful or you’ll suffocate,” Brook exclaimed. “Sanji-san—”

“Leave me alone,” Sanji said into his pillow.

“Sanji, don’t hide your emotions, talk them out,” Usopp said, leaning over and poking him.

“Talk them out,” Luffy echoed, stretching his arm to poke Sanji.

“Talk it out, yeah,” Franky sang. “Don’t bottle it up—”

Sanji removed his pillow to silence him with a scary face.

“Thank you,” Robin said in surprise when Sanji set her coffee in front of her as soon as she’d sat down. “You knew I was coming?”

“I had a feeling,” Sanji admitted, turning back around to put the finishing touches on breakfast. Robin was quiet, holding the mug up to her face to breathe in the scent.

“Robin-chan?”

“Yes?”

Sanji faced away from her, gripping the counter, head bowed.

“Do you—” He grimaced. “Do you—think he feels the same way?”

Robin paused, setting down the mug and watching Sanji. His hair was barely combed: a sign he had stayed up late.

“I don’t know,” she said. “Would you be satisfied with staying friends?”

Sanji raised his head. “Yes,” he said hesitantly.

“Then, it shouldn’t matter.”

The door flew open and Sanji whipped around to see Zoro storming in with a determined face. Zoro opened his mouth, but he spotted Robin and promptly backed out again, shutting the door.

“Wait,” Sanji whispered. “Wait!”

He turned off the stove and ran outside. Robin stayed in the kitchen, taking a sip of her coffee.

Sanji caught Zoro on the bow, leaning against the railing and catching his breath.

“Hi,” Sanji said, staring at him.

“Hi,” Zoro said. He bowed his head. “Sorry about last night. That was uncalled for.”

“No, it’s—it’s okay,” Sanji said, shaking his head.

Zoro looked up again. “I’m, uh,” he said. “I’m glad we got to redo our first meeting.”

Sanji’s breath hitched in his throat.

“I think it went a lot better this time, is what I’m saying,” Zoro continued. “I’d almost forgotten . . . how it was to feel that way.”

“You’d better be saying that you still love me,” Sanji said, voice quavering.

“Was that not clear?” Zoro muttered, looking away.

“Because I do, too. Love you, that is.”

“Of course you do.”

“What?”

“You’re the love-cook.”

Sanji kicked his shin and went in for a hug when Zoro winced. Zoro shifted his weight to his uninjured leg and awkwardly embraced him in return, both reveling in the comfort of each other’s presence.

Wolf-whistling interrupted them, and they looked over to see not only Franky and Brook, but the rest of the crew (minus the women) staring at them.

Zoro drew his swords and they both charged, sending the others scattering for safety.

“What’re you reading, Sensei?”

Koshiro looked up from the newspaper. “The newspaper.”

“Oh. Is there anything cool in there?” Zoro bit into a rice roll.

“I was reading an article about a boy your age,” Koshiro said. “He and his guardian survived over two months at sea without food.”

Zoro’s mouth fell open and a few grains of rice fell on his lap. “Two months?” he cried.

Koshiro showed him the article. Zoro studied it and saw the picture of the boy and the old man, who looked like they were returning to health and were starting a restaurant called the Baratie.

Zoro looked at his rice roll and shoved the tray away.

“I’m not eating today,” he declared. “In his honor. I can go a day without food, easy!”

Koshiro smiled and took the tray away. “If you insist.”

The next morning, Zoro ate so quickly he nearly made himself sick, and his admiration for the boy’s strength of mind and body grew.

Several years passed, and Sanji, just turned seventeen, could be found reading a newspaper before opening time.

“Roronoa Zoro?” he murmured. “Won several tournaments in a row . . .” He leaned forward. “Three-sword style?”

His eyes traveled to the picture shown, of a man with a bandana tied around his head, shadowing fierce eyes, and his heart jumped, startling him.

“Whoa,” he whispered.

“What’s up?” Patty asked, passing by and clapping him on the back. “See a pretty girl?”

“None of your business,” Sanji snapped, folding up the paper.

“Touchy,” Patty muttered, strolling away.

Sanji opened up the paper again and stared at the picture, rereading the article. For the first time in his life, he began to question his sexuality.

It was around this time that Zoro was hit in the face with a flyaway newspaper. He removed it, rubbing his cheeks, and a small article caught his eye.

“Baratie?” he murmured. The memory of the boy who had survived at sea came back to him and he squinted at the article. “Fight with pirates . . . small bounty . . . Sanji?”

Though the picture was blurry, he recognized the grown-up version of the boy he had seen all those years ago—who else had that spiral eyebrow?—and his heart skipped a beat.

“A cook . . . he’s got to be amazing,” he whispered, folding up the newspaper and tucking it away. He lost it days later, but kept the name Baratie in mind.

Two years passed, and Zoro was relieved he could keep his cool in front of his new crew. Finally, the Baratie, where he could meet him, Sanji.

He waited at the table with the others, and became distracted by Luffy’s antics, failing to notice Sanji staring at him, wide-eyed, from across the room.

Sanji could hardly believe his eyes. Roronoa Zoro, in his restaurant! What was he to do? Take him somewhere private? Give him a free meal?

He realized his legs were walking on their own to that table, and he stopped right by it. His mouth wouldn’t form the words he wanted to say, and when Zoro finally noticed him, he didn’t linger long enough, instead panicking and turning to the woman sitting next to him.

“Oh, mademoiselle,” he said loudly, refusing to look at Zoro, “your beauty blinds me! I had no idea I would meet a goddess today!”

“Great,” she said. “How much is the food?”

“For you? Free!” His brain was on autopilot.

“Oh, thank you!”

For a moment he was completely distracted when she hugged him, but when he turned his head and saw Zoro and Usopp staring, he said the first thing that came to mind:

“You guys have to pay.”

While Sanji tried to cover up his internal crisis by dragging Luffy back to the kitchen, Zoro sat back in his chair, barely breathing. So, the man he had wanted to meet, the man who had made his heart jump, hadn’t even spared him a second look. He stared at the table as Usopp and Nami argued over paying for the meal.

“Hey.”

“Hey, yourself.” Sanji looked at Zoro as they leaned against the railing, having left the island before Luffy could find the de-aging rock.

Zoro grinned. “You’re pretty okay.”

“Thanks. You’re not bad, yourself.”

Sanji took his chin and turned his face towards himself, and they leaned in, holding each other’s shoulders as they kissed.

#one piece #zosan #opfanfic #writing adventures

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