One Piece at a Time

SPOILERS!

Don't trust the black market! Read One Piece legally in Weekly Shonen Jump

Welcome back! We're continuing our flashback with a nightmare. We see Dolflamingo had a nightmare from his childhood with himself, his brother Rocinante and his father being tortured for being Celestial Dragons even though they technically weren't anymore.

We continue the flashback within the flashback as Donquixote Homing (Doflamingo and Rocinante's father) leaves the Celestial Dragons at Mariejois to pursue a normal life which angers the Celestial Dragons severely. They even call them traitors.

How did this nice looking couple create such a terrible child?

Adjusting to a more normal life isn't very easy for bratty Doflamingo as he wants to buy slaves and shoot someone just for passing in front of him. Their status is eventually known by the townspeople and their mansion is burnt to the ground. It has forced them to stay in a much more run down house surrounded by garbage. It only gets worse for them from here.

We see Homing try to convince the Celestial Dragons to allow his family back into Marejois, which they refuse and the Donquixote family suffer even more through being beaten up, eating leftovers and the mother dying. This is all going back to Doflamingo's previous statement a few chapters ago of how he hated his father.

I'm probably gonna sound horrible here, but Doflamingo totally deserves this

Back to the more recent flashback, little Law has been captured by the Doflamingo family because he ran all the way to the harbor and thinks he'll be punished for stabbing Corazon (that is Rocinante) but it turns out Doflamingo wants Law to join his family because he has a ton of potential. Law is confused because he figured Corazon would rat him out for stabbing him and isn't sure at first because he'll be dying soon anyway.

Doflamingo convinces him though because they're bound to find a cure through a devil fruit which he may be able to obtain through the black market if he's lucky enough. He even plans to make Law his right-hand man in about 10 years. When Doflamingo does eventually ask Corazon about the wound he got, Corazon simply writes "enemy" on a piece of paper so he has actually covered for Law.

DUN DUN DUUUUUUUUN

For the next few pages we see Law and the rest of the Doflamingo family go through pillaging and other dirty stuff as well as Law being trained by some of the other members and studying. Through a forced conversation with Buffalo and Baby 5 Law reveals his full name: Trafalgar D. Water Law. Law mentions that hes not supposed to tell anyone because "D" is a secret name and "Water" is taboo.

The chapter ends with Corazon dragging Law off to a back alley and surprisingly, tells Law that he needs to get away since he of all people shouldn't be anywhere near Doflamingo if he carries the name of "D".

HE SPEAKS, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN

So yeah, we have a rather major revelation as Law has fallen under "The Will of D" among other characters like Luffy, Ace, Blackbeard or Roger. My friends, we have been wondering what exactly "D" means ever since the Baroque Works saga and we could be finding out more very very soon, this is getting really exciting.

While the more recent flashback was definitely the highlight (that ending, oh my gosh!) the flashback with Doflamingo's childhood didn't make me care very much. Mainly because Doflamingo was a rather horrible child to begin with and while all of the bad things that happened to him and his family is quite tragic (at least in regards to the rest of his family), I have no sympathy towards him because he is such a horrible person which I think is quite rare in regard to flashbacks in the series.

In any case, I am looking forward to see where this flashback is going to go? What will happen to Law? What will happen to Corazon and why is he suddenly talking? Will we finally find out what "D" is? Look forward to next time everybody, I have a feeling its only going to get bigger from here.

To continue my tradition: WHAT THE HELL IS "D" DAMMIT?!

SPOILERS!

Watch out for bears! Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump

Last time on One Piece: through the flashback Law is revealed to have "D" in his name and Corazon (Rosinante) is talking despite us thinking he was mute!

This was all an act by Corazon. He also reveals that he has eaten the Calm-Calm fruit and has the power to create a space of silence around him as he demonstrates to Law. Corazon explains that it is his duty as Doflamingo's younger brother to calm his madness due to the trauma he has suffered as a child.

This is what has caused Doflamingo's pure evil behavior (even though he was pretty damn bad before that) and the only ones who understand his nature are himself, the elite officers and the former Corazon who actually turned out to be Vergo.

Vergo is away on a secret mission but doesn't have anything to do with Law (foreshadowing!). In any case, Corazon continues to insist that Law gets away from Doflamingo because he is from the family of "D".

I hope this means the Celestial Dragons WILL be destroyed before the story ends

Corazon says that people with the name "D" who try to make a name for themselves always whip up a storm. It is a name that people have been secretly inheriting all over the world throughout history. In a certain land the people refer to people with the name of "D" as "God's Natural Enemy". Which probably explains why Luffy and Eneru were destined to battle.

Law's destiny as a "D" may even be to destroy the world and Doflamingo may be after him because he could be the antithesis of God and could dispatch the Celestial Dragons. Law is confused but makes himself clear that he wants to stay by Doflamingo's side and has basically given up on looking for a cure because he'll be gone in a year anyway.

He runs off to tell Doflamingo everything Corazon has told him (Great! Now HE'S a brat.) and even tosses Corazon away when he tries to stop Law. This is all thanks to the training Law has gained over 2 years. However when Corazon returns to the ship, he learns that Law didn't tell the truth after all because Law owed him one after Corazon kept quiet about that stabbing Law did.

Okay okay, Law isn't a brat...much

At a later point, Corazon decides to "kidnap" Law in hopes of finding a cure to Law's illness much to Doflamingo's anger. We get another revelation. Corazon gets into contact with Admiral Sengoku. It turns out that he is actually a Marine Commander undercover to report on Doflamingo. We also see a young Vergo briefly, requesting his transfer to G5.

For the next few pages, Corazon takes Law to a lot of hospitals in hopes of getting him cured. However the doctors and nurses that they all see are horrible and refuse to try to treat him because they're afraid of getting infected themselves. What arseholes.

Six months pass with no luck. Corazon has come to a conclusion: he realizes that he isn't doing this anymore for the sake of "D", but for the sake of Law's well being. Corazon even cries and says that he truly cares about Law. Law hears all of this and cries himself. The chapter ends with Law waking up Corazon because there is a call on the Transponder Snail. Who is calling? Doflamingo.

Talk about emotional whiplash

So we learned a bit more about "D" as predicted last time and it really makes sense to me because all the people in the story so far with "D" in their name cause a ruckus throughout the world. The are either pirates or associated with pirates therefore going against Gods because pirates obviously carry a lot of sins.

Aside from that, we get more typical emotional flashback as Corazon genuinely cares about Law and really wants to help find a cure. Law has started to trust Corazon a bit more with that little scene towards the end. This is a big deal for him because all hope seemed loss with the search for a cure across all of the hospitals they visited.

I would make an healthcare joke here but this isn't funny

Corazon being a "man on the inside" for the Marines is also interesting and I would like to see where that goes. I really want to see where all of this is going. I want to see all of the loose ends tied up but that will take a while.

In any case, I did like this chapter overall. Not too much to say since it follows the typical emotional flashback formula but it was never dull it was all still interesting, emotional and well drawn. Can't wait to see where the rest of this flashback has for us and I shall see you all next time.

Genius

SPOILERS

Get your crackers out! Time to read One Piece on Weekly Shonen Jump!

Summary
Jimbei meets the townspeople of the wrecked town.

Doflamingo tells Corazon about the location of the Op-Op Fruit.

Corazon and Law head to Swallow Island to steal the Op-Op Fruit.

Corazon takes the Op-Op Fruit but is at gunpoint after tripping.

Thoughts

Doflamingo calls Corazon to ask him to join him again but also mentions that he knows where the Op-Op Fruit is and that he wants Corazon to eat the fruit. We also learn from this chapter that Doflamingo suspects that Corazon is leaking information to the Marines which was why they were able to track down his location so quickly.

It really does seem that Doflamingo is letting on more he is telling which is exactly what Corazon is thinking. It is obvious that Doflamingo knows that his brother has back stabbed him to some degree. The question is how much does Doflamingo knows. If anything, I think Corazon isn't thinking about all that Doflamingo could do. What if Doflamingo knows that Corazon does have a Devil Fruit ability and wants Corazon to die by consuming another fruit. That would be pretty twisted. Then again, based on a previous conversation, maybe Doflamingo doesn't even know about this ability and unknowingly killed his brother prematurely by making him eat the Op-Op Fruit before getting his Immortality Operation. Either way, this means Doflamingo knows stuff that Corazon doesn't want him to know.

I do like that we are seeing the impact of Vergo being a mole for Doflamingo so quickly. It wasn't said in the chapter but most likely it was Vergo who told Doflamingo about the World Government's deal for the Op-Op Fruit. This must mean that Vergo is climbing the ranks quite quickly if he is being trusted with top secret information about this. This may be instant gratification but it is nice to see a payoff that doesn't take fifty chapters. Either way, I wonder how long will it take until Vergo tells Doflamingo about Corazon's Marine involvement if he hasn't told Joker already.

One of the strongest points of this chapter was Corazon's affection towards Law. He is going out of his way to make sure that Law will have a chance in life. Corazon is throwing away his whole life to make sure that Law's aliments will be healed. That is some love towards a little kid that stabbed him in the heart a few weeks ago. Something tells me that the payoff for this flashback is going to hurt.

Speaking of hearts. Oda is laying the heart theme pretty thick. Corazon means "heart" in Spanish. Law's crew is called the Heart of Pirates. The Heart Seat being the only open seat in Doflamingo's crew. Stabbed in the heart. Now we have the Op-Op Fruit shaped as a heart. I wonder how many other ways can we fit in "heart" into this arc.

Things are going to be coming to a head. It is interesting how a rouge Marine has the Op-Op Fruit. Even more amazing that their name is similar to another famous rouge Marine named X. Drake. Sound similar to the Diez Barrels. Maybe there is a connection between these two people? Maybe this was a person that X. Drake went rouge with. The question that I ask is that what took X. Drake so long to make it big if this flashback too place over ten years ago. That is if X. Drake is even in this flashback.

Blowing things up!

Another thing to note is how much of a hold does Doflamingo has in the North Blue. It looks as if the Marines want to get rid of this hold but can't due to how deep the Doflamingo name runs in this part of the sea. Clearly the Doflamingo Empire has expanded since this flashback but it is still curious that his main base seems to be the North Blue but he has operations in the Grand Line. It would be nice to see how this all plays out or if they are even in the Grand Line and we all just think that they are going back and forth via some secret method.

Stay tune as more chapter reviews are coming!

SPOILERS!

Things are getting serious. Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump

Continuing the flashback with this double post, the Marines have surrounded the island in hopes of capturing Doflamingo. While this is going on, Corazon has retrieved the coveted Op-Op Fruit and forces it down the throat of a dying, young Trafalgar Law.

Once Law swallows the fruit, Corazon collapses due to his severe injuries. Even when Law tries to figure out how to use his powers, its no good. But Corazon says this isn't enough to kill him and makes a plan with Law to deliver a document tube to the Marines to save the country of Dressrosa. Unfortunately out of all the Marines Law manages to find later on, its Vergo.

Remember to eat your 5 fruit a day kids!

Law brings Vergo to Corazon and the two are shocked to see each other, especially Vergo because he now knows Corazon isn't a mute. Law realizes that Vergo is actually part of the Doflamingo family and from this point it gets worse as Vergo starts beating Corazon up and even smacks Law.

Vergo destroys the document because it could mean the end of the family. After the beatdown, Vergo contacts Doflamingo and tells him everything about Corazon. Doflamingo says that he and the family are now also on the island and isn't taking his brothers betrayal very well.

This chapter ends with Vergo realizing that Corazon and Law have escaped but Doflamingo uses his "Bird Cage" technique which prevents both of them from leaving the island. But Corazon vows to himself that he will save Law and if he dies doing so, he'll do so with a smile on his face so Law will always remember.

Theres your influence everyone

The next chapter starts with a flashback of a young Doflamingo killing his father right in front of Rocinante's eyes. Great start! We return to the incident on the island as the effects of the Bird Cage take place as the pirates on the island start killing each other against their own will.

The Donquixote family robs the pirates of their treasure and finally find Corazon. Law is in a disclosed location (later revealed to be a treasure chest) but can hear the family beating the hell out of Corazon when Doflamingo finally shows up.

I suppose he'll always be scum

Speaking to his brother for the first time in a very long time while aiming his gun, Corazon confirms his position in the Marines. He also reveals Law ate the Op-op fruit but lies about him already leaving the Bird Cage and that hes under Marine protection so they can't hurt him. Buffalo actually confirms that the Marines sent out a transmission saying they took a young boy in custody much to the surprise of both Law and Corazon.

Doflamingo tells the family to get ready to depart and they'll sink that patrol ship once the transmission has been confirmed. He even says that if Law really has eaten the Op-op fruit then it is essential that Law needs to die for him. Doflamingo then aims his gun at Corazon. We see that earlier as Corazon puts Law in the treasure chest to hide, that he used his powers to ensure Law is quiet while he hides. He flashes him one more smile and even says "I love you".

So sad

Corazon proclaims that Law will never obey Doflamingo since he has triumphed over his illness and demand that his brother leave Law alone since he is finally free. Doflamingo says nothing but shoots his brother at last with a silent but very upset Law still inside the chest.

The chest is carried close to the ship and Law escapes still crying in silence as Corazon's life fades away. The chapter ends with the cannonfire of the Marine's ships drowning out the now cries of Trafalgar Law as Corazon or Rocinante finally dies.

These two chapters continue Oda's tradition of having the flashbacks of major characters being emotional and sad. Even though Rocinante's death was inevitable its still tear jerking when it happens. Especially because as we saw throughout this entire flashback that while he was ill Law didn't have anyone caring for him except for Rocinante who you could say was like the big brother he never had and now he's alone again, at least for now.

Don't worry Law, it will all work out in the end...maybe

Doflamingo's actions are not surprising by this point, he was ruthless practically throughout his whole life so him killing his own father and brother was just highlighting why I hate him. Its also worth nothing that during the Bird Cage incident while the pirates were killing each other that one boy named Dorry ran away while one of the pirates was begging for his help. Its possible that this boy was the one who Buffalo mentioned that the Marines took in for custody. He also has a cross shaped scar on his chin so its entirely possible that this boy is actually a very young X Drake.

I have a feeling that there'll only be a little bit more of the flashback before we finally return to the present though as we'll need to know where and how Law exactly started his pirate crew (other than the origin of the Heart Pirates' symbol since that's inspired by Corazon) and perhaps seeing him getting the hang of his powers but we'll see.

Get ready for next time as big stuff is going to go down. I'll see you all next time!

While I'm not a Naruto fan myself, I thought this was a nice tribute from Oda

SPOILERS

I said that we should read One Piece on Weekly Shonen Jump!

Summary
Jimbei watches a ruin falls from the sky.

Law and Doflamingo continues to fight on top of the royal palace.

Viola recaps to Usopp what is happening around Dressrosa.

Thoughts

This is our recap chapter to catch everybody up on what has happen in the story. I won't say it wasn't needed because a lot of things has been going on in One Piece as of late in Dressrosa. We also been out of the main story for about six chapters. The only gripe I have about this is that we are back in the action but have to deal with a recap and a tease for each fight that is about to come to an end according to Viola.

It was a drag to have a recap chapter but Oda really did make it interesting to watch. We got several little bits from almost each fight. I think one of my favorite moments was how Oda showed off some of Law's fighting prowess in his bout with Doflamingo.

In this moment, you see Law and Doflamingo lock in intense combat. Law simply picks up a rock and throws it behind Doflamingo like nothing. Doflamingo goes in for a strike and Law instantly switches places with the rock he threw behind Doflamingo and goes for an attack. The whole thing was simple but genius! These little moments is what makes me love Oda and One Piece so much! It is fascinating how Oda can come up with creative ways to utilize the abilities that he gives these characters.

I won't talk about this but this was pretty funny.

Another shining moment from this chapter was the little hints that Oda left for what is about to come for each of these individual battles. Out of these hints, I like the Gladius vs Bartolomeo and Cavendish one. This little line has gotten me excited for what is to come.

"These weak attacks of yours are putting me to sleep!"
-Cavendish

If that is true then I have a feeling we may seen an appearance from a certain alter ego of Cavendish. That will be exciting to see if this prediction does come true. This may cause a problem for Bartolomeo who will be a bystander at this point but I am sure he can handle a rampaging sleeping swordsman and a rupture man.

This chapter didn't offer much beside recap but it was filled with little details. We had Doflamingo's reaction to finding out that Law is a D. There was also the reveal of Dellinger's species. So it wasn't a complete waste and I suppose we were long over due for one. Better enjoy this peace as we will be revving up to major and exciting conclusions!

Until next time true believers!

Lets not forget Fujitora's contribution to this situation!

Sure. Let's kill time by watching Luffy and Law get in a fist fight for no reason. Why not.

Hello everyone and welcome to yet another addition of Roger's List.

Fillers, the unavoidable imperfection of any Shonen anime series. We all know the reason for them: if the animators catch up too close to the current manga storyline, they need to create a non canon story that will last a few episodes to buy time for the official story to play out. Sometimes in the case of One Piece, this has resulted in some intriguing sidetracks and a unique take on this world and it's characters. One in particular that comes to mind is the Navarone Arc starring one of the greatest non-canon characters ever, Vice Admiral Johnathan. However other times, specifically the ones we will be discussing today, come off as borderline trolling at best, to downright groan worthy and a complete waste of our time at worst. So let's get this over with. This is Rogers Top 5 Worst Instances of One Piece Filler.

5. The Alternate History Specials

We interrupt your regularly scheduled adventure to bring you the One Piece equivalent of Samurai Champloo, Rurouni Kenshin, or any other anime set in historical Japan.

During special occasions (specifically holidays I am presuming), Toei Animation would produce some One Piece episodes set in an alternate universe. A world that is more akin to historical Japan, with Luffy and Usopp working as a buddy sheriff duo, Nami and Sanji running a restaurant, Zoro is a wandering bum, Buggy is head of some Yakuza clan, and Vivi is a heiress of the town's Dynasty.

On their own merits, these aren't bad episodes. In fact they bring a fun unique take on our characters and get us to see them in a new and refreshing light. The problem comes in the episodes placement in the series. For those of you who don't remember (seriously though how could you not), the first History Special premiered smack dab in the middle of the Strawhat's battle with CP9, arguably their most intense and epic battle still to this day. We all remember when the assassin Kumadori pushed poor Chopper to his physical limit, leaving him no choice but to play his trump card. I will never forget the episode that ended with Chopper consuming his third sequential Rumble Ball, transforming himself in to his biggest, deadliest from, while Dr. Kureha's narrates in the background about the danger of taking on this form again, and how it will turn him into the very thing Chopper has feared people of seeing him as: A Monster. Chopper then makes a hideous roar as the screen cuts to the "To Be Continued" title in one of the most ominous and terrifying cliff hangers the show has seen thus far.....Only to then go follow up with us finding ourselves in this alternate reality where Luffy is trying to save Rika from being sold into slavery by Buggy who has it out for Pandaman for not paying his debts, instantly shattering all tension and buildup the previous episode had made.

Seriously, I felt like I was being punk'n.

4. Movie-connected Special

Great. The first time this show has a genuine Hispanic character, and he's a throwaway stereotype.

I suppose these episodes are presumed to take place sometime after the Thriller Bark Arc and before the movie Strong World. However, for some reason, it is placed in the middle of the Impel Down arc. The basic premise being that the Straw Hats arrive at this small island that serves as a tribute to the East Blue and all the original members of the crew that came from that part of the world. They then have to stop a pirate crew of Mexican stereotypes run by a guy name Largo with Net Net fruit powers, seeking to earn himself a place on Shaki's pirate fleet by destroying this little East Blue island.

I suppose all the nods to the East Blue were suppose to serve as a look back on how far the Straw Hats have come since the first season. For me, if this was placed where it was suppose to in the series, that being after Thriller Bark and before Sabaody Archipelago, I probably wouldn't have minded it much. But the fact that it's placed right in the middle of Impel Down, yet another very intense arc, makes it terribly intrusive to the plot. And the whole conflict with Largo being connected to the movie was pretty paper thin as well.

3. The Extended Davy Back Fight

"I hope you know we only agreed to this to humor you, right Split Head?"

This one's a bit interesting. In manga form, I actually liked the Davy Back Fight Arc. It was short, sweet, and fun while it lasted. In the anime however, they took a few liberties with the scenario and extended this 3-game-contest between two pirate crews into 6 games. The three games that were actually in the original manga (The Canoe Race, the Rugby game, and the Duel between the Captains) are all pretty awesome events. The three that were added to the anime (the roller skate race, dodge ball, and red light green light) were pretty lackluster and feel very obviously forced.

It can be said that the arc was still salvageable thanks mostly to Nami and Usopp's comedic timing and how they shared in the frustration of the whole situation (perhaps not too different from the audience) but the main problem this arc suffers from is a seriously lack of real urgency. The Straw Hats have no real reason to honor the agreement of these games. It was fine when it was just three events, but when it drags on, it just makes us wonder why the heck the Straw Hat's don't just say 'screw you guys,' kick the Foxy Pirates asses across the Grand Line, and move on. That's probably what any other competent pirate crew would have done in this situation. Seriously, just think of what would happen had the Foxy Pirates tried to pull this stunt with Kid's pirate crew. They'd probably all be dead right now.

2. Buggy and Mr. 3 Bromance Time in Impel Down

If only we were having as much fun as they were.

In an attempt to break into the world governments maximum security prison to rescue his brother, Luffy runs into two of his former adversaries, Buggy the Clown and Mr. 3. The two prisoners instantly bond as friends in their mutual hate for Luffy, and hilarity ensues.

Now on the surface, this actually looks like a lot of fun. These two have a unique chemistry and in a way, become the bad guy versions of the Luffy/Usopp duo. Except a lot of their hilarity contrasts too much with what should have been a consistently intense arc as they travel deeper and deeper into a prison with various circles of different punishments (a la Dante's Inferno). Seriously, there are several episodes that are contributed to them stuck in the frozen wasteland of Circle 5 creating igloos, hugging each other for warmth, and running away from Wolves while on stilts (which makes no sense. How are stilts suppose to make you run faster?). The sad part is that Mr.3 (whom I really should get use to calling him by his real name, Galdino) actually turns out to be extremely useful in several instances in this arc, as well as the subsequent Marineford arc, but now is stuck pulling first mate duty on Buggy's crew attempting to make his stupid plans work. At least he's now got Alvida to share in his grief.

And the Number One absolute worst instance of One Piece filler is...

Five Strait Episodes of Clip shows

Yup, we'll just stand here and patiently wait for you guys to finish reminiscing about your past. I mean it's only the most epic fight of your lives. No rush.

This was truly painful, especially when you consider just how much awesomeness was going on up to that point. The introduction of Luffy's Gear Second. The story of Robin's tear-jerking history. Sogeking shooting down the flag. The momentum was so strong, and then, of course, we cut to five episodes of each of the Straw Hats looking at their past and very haphazardly mentioning how it suppose to relate to their motivation to save Robin. Disappointing doesn't even begin to describe it.

I honestly don't have a huge explanation for this one. Simply put, clip shows are rarely done well, especially in Shonen anime. For an example of how to do clip show's right, look no further than Book 4 Episode 8 of Legend of Korra, but that is just about the one and only exception I can find.

To the show's defense, these Strawhat Theatre shorts that played after the clip shows were so awesome, they almost made it worth it. The key word being ALMOST!

So that's my rantings on the worst instances of filler. Were there any filler episodes you thought were even worse? Or, do you feel some of these moments listed above were genuinely worth it, and why? Feel free to leave your answers in the comments below.

Until next time, I'm Roger, and they just made the list.

SPOILERS!

It won't rain on your parade! Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump

Continuing from last time, Law continues the fight against Doflamingo with great use of his powers. Unfortunately he fails to land another attack on him and gets grabbed by the arm. Doflamingo once again mocks Law as he claims that if Law really wanted him dead then Law shouldn't have let his emotions get to him and pitted Doflamingo against Kaido.

Law claims that everything he has done since that day and everything he will do is to avenge Corazon which leads to Doflamingo sending Law crashing to the ground with a move called "String Saw" which has cut off Law's right arm!

All across the globe, the fangirls are screaming in terror

Doflamingo says he'll "forgive" Law for being influenced by someone else with D, the same way he "forgave" his father and brother by preparing to shoot him. Suddenly the floor collapses close to them thanks to Luffy's Jet Gatling attack and has left Doflamingo's clone in pieces.

Luffy demands that Doflamingo frees Bellamy because he looks badly injured and surprisingly, Doflamingo does so. We get some flashbacks for Bellamy including a younger Bellamy joining Doflamingo which Trebol thought was odd because apparently the town Bellamy and his friends come from (Nortis) is an affluent one. Apparently Bellamy believed that Doflamingo was the pride of the North Blue and wasn't a daydreamer like a lot of pirates.

I hope there is more to this than just them being bored

We see brief panels of the incident in Jaya and conversations with Luffy, Doflamingo and Dellinger. Bellamy is about to get up while Luffy is distracted due to worrying about Law up above.

Bellamy uses the familiar Spring Hopper and springs all around the area. Despite Luffy trying to get him to stop, Bellamy doesn't listen and tells Luffy to stop showing compassion for his enemy. Bellamy is is aware of the wrong her has done and has looked up to the wrong person all along. Even so, Bellamy isn't planning on attacking Doflamingo. The chapter ends with Bellamy demanding that Luffy joins him in his final fight.

What will you do Luffy?

While the stuff with Law against Doflamingo was good (seriously OUCH), the story with Bellamy's side is what makes this chapter for me. Regarding Law losing his arm, some people have suggested a connection with Shanks but I'm not sure about that.

As for Bellamy, we get to see a little bit of backstory for him regarding why he joined Doflamingo in the first place although how exactly he got to that point isn't clear yet. My theory is that it has something to do with Nobles because his town was affluent apparently.

Over this whole arc I have come to respect the character, which was completely unexpected because before he reappeared I hated him for his actions during the Jaya arc. This really says a lot about Oda's writing when he can do something like that.

That is ominous

Whether Bellamy will truly meet his demise next time, maybe Luffy will refuse for whatever reason or if he'll simply be out of the picture in an entirely different way in order for Luffy to continue fighting Doflamingo is putting me on edge. I really want to know what happens next. One more observation, this is one of the rarer chapters where there is absolutely no humor.

So yeah, looking forward to see where this goes, I hope you all think similarly as well. See you all next time!

Somewhere in the world, an architect is screaming in terror

SPOILERS

Atten-hut! Time to read your One Piece from Weekly Shonen Jump!

Summary
Jimbei encounters a figure that is standing besides a pile of offerings.

Bellamy strikes Luffy with an Armament Haki embedded Spring Hopper.

Zoro continues his battle with Pica.

Hajrudin defeats Machvise.

Thoughts

I hope we don't have to sit though too many chapters dedicated to each Doflamingo Officer defeat by a non-Straw Hat.

Oda can make very interesting characters so that isn't the problem. The problem is that not all of them seem as interesting as others. It is nice to see characters like Hajrudin getting more depth. That was a common complaint for the coliseum characters that were introduced in this arc. We now have a better idea of what he is fighting for. It just that if I had a choice between watching Hajrudin or Bartolomeo and Cavendish fight then I will go with pair of misfits over the giant.

This does have something to do with how much investment I have into the characters but the fact that we spent half of a chapter devoted to a minor coliseum character while spending some time in this chapter devoted to Zoro felt uneven.Then we only got two page for Luffy getting punched in the gut by Bellamy. Clearly those who wanted an exciting chapter with characters that are well liked didn't get that with this chapter.

Welcome to Mount Pikamore

Maybe Oda has a plan that ties in all the coliseum characters together in order to give them all a purpose but a part of me is wondering if Oda is including conclusions for these fights simply because he has to. He started fights for these characters so why not just give them all a conclusion for the readers at home. That is nice but I am sure I am not the only one who forgot the name of the giant that is on Luffy's side and lifted Usopp up.

I do not feel like there is much to say about this chapter. It was noble to see Hajrudin's resolve push though to defeat Machvise. It was nice for Zoro to give Hajrudin the time to actually do something. It was just things that we didn't want to see at this moment.

Here is an interesting thought that has nothing to do with what I wrote. Bellamy had given Luffy an Armament Haki infused blow. This was able to strike though Luffy's rubber attributes and actually make Luffy bleed. Now, lets take a look at Luffy. The part of his body that was hit with this attack was darken. Is that the darkening of Armament Haki in order to defend against Bellamy's attack or just strange shading? If it was Armament Haki then that means Bellamy was able to break though Luffy's Armament. It won't be the first time somebody was able to break Armament Haki as we saw Law accomplishing this back at Punk Hazard against Vergo. Bellamy was going pretty fast and Spring Hopper is his most powerful attack.

Also to note: This is the first time that we have seen Bellamy pull off this attack on screen. Funny seeing that Bellamy used this attack over 400 hundred chapters ago only to be interrupted by Luffy with a simple punch.

So how about I give you readers a question: Did Luffy use Armament Haki which got broken by Bellamy's own Armament Haki embedded attack? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Until next time, true believers!

RIGHT IN THE GUT!

Its that time again. This year for Reverse Thieves' Secret Santa I am covering the 1982 film Space Adventure Cobra. Check out my thoughts after the jump.

Why Space Adventure Cobra?

This was admittedly a tougher choice out of the 3 suggestions I had received. I was leaning slightly towards the film Ninja Scroll, but that seems a bit too...inappropriate for a Christmas review. So here is a film set in the far future about a space pirate instead!

What is it about?

Space Adventure Cobra is the first piece of animation based on the original 1978 Shonen Jump manga and was directed by Osamu Tezaki who has also directed and contributed to classic shows, OVAs and films such as the original Astro Boy anime, Ashita no Joe and Lupin III just to name a few.

The film itself revolves around our main lead Cobra who is enlisted by a bounty hunter in order to help save her sister but ends up being caught up in a struggle over the fate of a mysterious planet, and eventually the galaxy itself.

Who are our characters?

Our main lead Cobra himself is the best character in the film by far. He is a lovable rogue who reminds me so much of Han Solo and Lupin III with his love of the ladies and kicking butt with his arm gun known as the Psychogun. His role in the film is fairly standard as the hero who just does what he wants. That so happens to be to save the galaxy as well as resolving a problem between the female leads but his personality made me love him.

The previously mentioned female leads are sisters Jane, Catherine and Dominique. They are unfortunately pretty weak as characters. While they do seem capable of being able to kick butt alongside Cobra at first, they pretty much exist solely to be Cobra's love interests. The connection between two of the sisters which I won't spoil, further proves this. This is except for Catherine who is essentially there to be a sort-of side villain and plot device as Cobra needs to help save her.

The main villain Crystal Boy (Yes. That is seriously his name) isn't very good or interesting either. All he wants is to destroy the galaxy for no good reason. That is it. Really. The only good thing about him that I can think of is that his design is kinda neat. Overall, anyone who wasn't Cobra in this movie was pretty uninteresting and average to me.

How Good does it look/sound?

Like I've said before, this film was made in 1982 so I wasn't expecting brilliant animation out of this. However, the film won me over with its visuals for the most part. Action scenes in particular are animated very nicely and the art direction is also excellent. Even if quite a lot of scenes will make you wonder if you accidentally ingested drugs before viewing. There is also a fair amount of fanservice as well if you're curious.

I watched the original Japanese version of the film and the cast do their jobs nicely. Although most of them haven't done anything else I know since this. There are two English dubs for this movie: one by Manga UK and the most recent one which was done by Streamline Pictures. I've seen clips of the Streamline dub and it seems like the best option out of the two. The music isn't memorable but fits the movie very well. It screams 80s with a good amount of keyboard and orchestra compositions.

Overall

Space Adventure Cobra is a decent action/sci-fi anime film with a lovable main lead and some pretty nice visuals for the time. Because the film did let me down with it's lame plot and mostly poor characters, I don't think I'll be in a hurry to watch it again unless I do a big Cobra marathon in the future. I'm more in it for the art. If any of you are curious you can get the film on DVD and it is also on Hulu if you have that option.

Overall the film was more style than substance in my opinion. I should point out that I went into this completely blind with no knowledge of the original manga or anime at all but it has piqued my interest in checking out subsequent Cobra material which would be both of the TV series and the OVAs at some point.

With that in mind, I wish all of you reading this as well as everyone else here at One Piece at a TimeBlog a safe and merry Christmas, as well as a Happy Holidays too!

SPOILERS!

We're in the home stretch of 2014! Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump

Hope you all had a good Christmas Day. Anyhoo lets get on with this chapter! Zoro continues to fight against Pica even refusing King Elizabello's help since he is confident in his strength and Elizabello should save his King Punch for an emergency.

Meanwhile, the old fogies Chin Jao and Lao G face off against each other. Chin Jao also gets into an argument with Sai since hes against his and Baby 5's "marriage". The fight goes on in a pretty bizarre manner as Lao G goes deaf and even dies and immediately comes back to life.

I do actually love this

Baby 5 seems completely loyal to Sai now even though hes against the marriage and even tries to kill herself when Sai tells her to nonchalantly. Sai and Chin Jao gets all flustered and confused and we actually see through a flashback that the reason Baby 5 just wants to be of use is because she was apparently of no use to her mother and a group of people so they just left her all alone in the mountains. What a wonderful influence.

Chin Jao decides to attack both of them but Sai manages to stop him, even bending Chin Jao's drill-shaped head. While you would think this would lead to more fighting, Chin Jao is actually impressed with Sai's strength and even names him the leader of the Happo Navy.

Well...okay!

The touching scene is interrupted when Lao G attacks Chin Jao out of nowhere as we see now he has become more muscular with a technique which stored the strength from his youth. Now he goes after Sai since he thinks Baby 5 is "too convenient" which leads to Sai proclaiming that if he wins the fight then he'll make Baby 5 his wife.

The chapter ends with Sai using the Drill Nail technique he inherited from Chin Jao (albeit with a kick rather than a headbutt) to defeat Lao G. So now with this fight as well as Baby 5 being lovestruck and essentially engaged, 2 executives have been taken care of by Don Sai.

Well okay the-wha?!

This chapter was a bit unexpected since it sort of tricks you in the beginning with a brief glimpse of Zoro fighting Pica but the stuff with Sai is obviously the focus. This isn't exactly a bad thing as its nice to see side characters gain some more development and the fact that 2 of the executives are down for the count in the end is something, but I would've preferred more time with the any of the Straw Hats.

On the other hand this did result in a strong amount of humor within the fight since Lao G is such a weird character and Baby 5's crushing on Sai was part humor but also fairly emotional since like a good chunk of OP characters, she seemed to have had a pretty crappy childhood.

At this point, its pretty unpredictable what we're going to be seeing next as there is so much fighting going on but theres clearly still a lot to go before the end of this arc. It is still exciting though so I hope you're looking forward to next time as much as I am. Thats all for now, see you all next time.

Zoro apologises for not being here tonight

Hope your Christmas was more enjoyable than Zoro's

Happy New Year One Piece Fans. I'm Roger. We finally wrap up 2014 and put a nice bow on it, time to look back and see just how far we have come (or haven't come for that matter). We have a whole years worth of events to discuss, so let's get to it.

WARNING: This may contain spoilers for anime only One Piece fans.

The One Piece manga began this year knee deep in the Dressrosa Arc. The tournament for the Flame Flame Devil Fruit was heating up, a chunk of the Straw Hats were abducted by Big Mam, while another chunk was in pursuit of operation SOP. As we come to the end of this year, we find our heroes...now neck deep but nonetheless still in the Dressrosa Arc. That makes a whole year of having no clue what has happened to Sanji, Nami, Chopper, Brook or the Thousand Sunny. I'm sure fans of these specific characters must be frustrated beyond hope, wondering when if ever their time to return will come. I would rest assured, as the final battles between the Straw Hats and the Doflamingo family are finally reaching their endgame. Odds are by the end of 2015 (or even within the first quarter), we will find ourselves somewhere new, and finally see what has become of the Twirly Brow Pirates.

But in the meantime, I can say our time at Dressrosa this year has been quite eventful to say the least. Sabo's back in the fold, with an impressive new Prince Zuko-esque scar, as well as inheriting Ace's fire powers (so yeah, also like Prince Zuko). Usopp got to defeat a girl with quite possibly one of the most terrifying powers yet to be seen in the series by, get this, looking at her funny...twice. Oda has done the impossible of making us all feel genuinely sorry for Bellamy of all people. Sai of the Happo Navy has started to grow on me as one of my new favorite side characters. Though I guess the biggest upcoming star has to go to Bartolomeo. There is something instantly appealing about this doey-eyed Straw Hat Super-fan that so many of us have gravitated toward. In a way, he has become one of the most relatable characters in the series, and for that reason, has quickly rose in popularity himself, and is sitting tightly as one of the Top 10 in One Piece's most current popularity poll.

Speaking of Which:

Is that why you're upset, Zoro? Have you been dethroned from your 2nd Place Spot?

Despite the fact that Zoro has held the #2 slot (and Sanji the #3 slot) since the shows first popularity poll nearly 15 years ago, I can't say I am all too surprised to see Law has usurped them. Especially considering his backstory just concluded a few weeks ago, and everyone is still understandably taken aback by his relationship with Corazon (who appears #52 on the list). But even then, Dessrossa itself does feel like Law's own personal arc. In many ways, people could argue that he, not Luffy, has been the main character for the duration of this arc, and it may very well be him that deals the final blow to the big bad this time around. And you know what? I actually hope that does happen. Law has the biggest beef with Doflamingo, and yes in the past Luffy has taken on the burdens of his companions and fought the battles they couldn't, but it would be a nice change of pace to see someone refuse Luffy's offer and choose to finish their burden themselves.

Only time will tell what Oda has in store for Doflamingo's fate.

Outside the Manga department, Funimation has been keeping right at work, localizing more of the One Piece anime and distributing it across the states in reasonable time. We are currently half way through the Thriller Bark arc and it's just as fun as we all remembered it. Ian Sinclair is definitely growing on me as the voice of Brook, and of all the other characters, I have to say Alex Moore as the voice of Lola is probably my favorite of the Thriller Bark cast. She is hilarious.

In addition, I recall one of my wishes from last year was that One Piece Film Z could come to the US soon. However, I remembered how it took Strong World four whole years before it was translated, so I really only thought of it as wishful thinking. Well guess what?

Sometimes, dreams do come true.

In short, the movie was awesome. It's got some of the most beautiful and fluid animation the series has seen to date. The story itself is compelling too, with the Straw Hats caught in a do or die brawl against a rogue faction known as the Neo Marines for the fate of the entire New World. Zed is such a powerful and memorable adversary. (As such, he made it to #71 on the poll). For a deranged psychopath with no qualms about covering an entire ocean in lava, he is surprisingly sympathetic, thanks greatly to a perfectly paced telling of his tragic history narrated by Garp, which details not one but several traumatic incidents of his past that built on top of each other, one after another, until he eventually (and understandably) snapped. You can't help but appreciate how cunning and ruthless he was to exploit classified Marine intelligence that was trusted to him in good faith, then turning around to use it against them. Definitely worth checking out for any true blue One Piece fan.

In the video game department. One Piece has seen a few games get released in the states this year. One that I played was One Piece Unlimited World Red for the PS3. It's another open world action RPG that plays very similarly to Unlimited Adventure for the Wii. You have a small little hub town you can expand by collecting items to help the town build new shops so you can buy more items. All the different worlds outside the hub town are iconic locations from the show where you can play as any and all of the nine Straw Hats to blow through pirates, Marines, animals, and typically end the world with a final boss. The story is okay, with a serviceable villain in Red, whom I'll admit has a pretty cool Devil Fruit power. The combat, as far as an RPG is fine, though not quite as tight or intense as the combat in Toei's Pirate Warriors franchise. Too quickly do you learn the ins-and-outs of what all playable characters are capable of. You will spent A LOT of the game level grinding while you continuously back track to get that one specific item to build that one specific shop to buy that other item to improve your fishing rod to catch that one specific fish to make that other item, to improve your net to catch that one specific bug to make that one specific medicine to get that one specific upgrade too...well you get the point.

Or, if you want to skip all that RPG nonsense, this game has a Coliseum Mode where you can just beat up dudes and unlock other playable characters to beat up more dudes.

You can also kick Doflamingo's ass yourself instead of waiting for it to happen on the show.

So that's pretty much what One Piece has been up to in 2014. Now to wrap this year up with a quick list of a few things I wish to see in 2015:

Unlimited World Red was okay, but I still feel these Unlimited games fall a bit short of capturing the vast epicness of the series. Maybe keep a good chunk of the gameplay mechanics and RPG elements, but how about a game where the hub takes place on the Thousand Sunny, and you can explore your ship and travel to different worlds from there.
Funimation, you are coming close to the Sabaody Archipelago Arc, so you are going to have a ton of new characters to cast, including all the Supernovas. These are characters that, while not instantly important, will return and eventually have important parts to play down the line. I know you like to recycle actors from earlier arcs, but personally, I'd love to hear some fresh new voice talent to play these new characters. How about calling up some of the voice actors from Legend of Korra? All of them were really good, and their show's over, so they might need the work. (Just thinking about it, Dave Foustino could probably play Law really well. With P.J. Byrne as Bepo?)
Oda, let Law defeat Doflamingo. I know Luffy is stubborn and will want to do it himself, but he gets to fight everyone. Let someone else do it for a change. Pretty please.

And with that, I adjourn for the year. Stay tuned for new segments of Roger's List next year. Also, I will be attending Emerald Con in late March and Sakura Con in early April. If any of you will be there, maybe I'll run into you.

Have a good one.

See? Even Naruto's son Bolt is a One Piece fan.

SPOILERS
*IMAGE*
WSJ

Summary
Jimbei finds Wadatsumi who explains how he brought the undersea temple to the surface as thanks for the food.

Bartolomeo and Cavendish continue their fight with Gladius. In the end, Dellinger and Gladius are knocked out.

Robin arrives to the 4th Step where Rebecca and Kyros are battling Diamante.

Thoughts
If I was going to do a double review then it is a good thing it was these two. Chapter 772 and 773 tie together perfectly as it ends the battle between Bartolomeo and Cavendish versus Doflamingo combatant Gladius. Dellinger was also taken out as a result of this battle and as an example of Hakuba's strength.

When you read these two chapters together, the story flows much better. If anybody wanted to argue reading One Piece week to week versus volume format then this would be the chapters to do it with. Though, that isn't to say that these two chapters were weak on their own. I felt excited after reading both of them but it was that I just didn't have the chance to write a few review about them until this week. That said, it was nice to see a conclusion to a fight that has been going on for months now with two characters that we have invested quite a lot of time into. It wasn't painful either as they play off each other quite well. This reminds me of the time where Zoro and Sanji fought together during the Davy Back Fight. They got the job done but they fought the whole time.

It was nice to see that Hakuba got use again. We saw hints of him coming out earlier in the battle with Gladius where Cavendish was getting sleepy. The amazing part was how it was pulled off. In what felt like a minute in manga-time, Cavendish had fallen asleep and suddenly we see Hakuba come in to sliced Dellinger! Even better was the back and forth between Hakuba and Cavendish as the two argue the whole time for control of the body.

Does anybody else hears Master Hand laughing when Hakuba appears?

Though, in the end it was Cavendish who prevailed as he injured his hand to stop the blade that was being controlled by Hakuba. That was pretty impressive how Oda pulled off such a feat with the half darken face of Hakuba with Cavendish's normal appearance. Beautifully done as they used the speed factor to help get Robin to the final step.

Bartolomeo was no slacker either as he put some work in to create a resolution for this battle. He is quite creative in using his Barrier-bilities to good use. A great skill to have is to be able to switch easily between attack and defense. Something that Bartolomeo has mastered by the looks from these chapters. Though, the icing on the cake was his final blow to Gladius. Homage Holy Fist: Barrier Barrier Pistol. Now that was just amazing as it is obvious who Bartolomeo is paying homage to. Luffy would have no idea what this attack is alluding to but I am proud that a fellow Straw Hat fan has done to pay a nod to his hero. It isn't anything like the original but Bartolomeo made it work. I am excited to see more of Bartolomeo in the future.

Last piece to notice was Robin finally making it to the top step. Just in time to save Rebecca from Diamante's blade.

So now we have to deal with the issues on the top step where Rebecca isn't allowed to fight because Kyros won't let her. I can see why based on what Kyros has said but I can't help but seeing this as Oda recently bias towards woman and fighting. It has gotten slightly better but it seems like Oda is just battle blocking Rebecca and Robin in a way. It is a too early to say what Robin will be doing in this battle but it does look like she will be there just to protect Rebecca from Diamante's attacks. We have seen Rebecca hold her own as she was one of the few people to avoid Hakuba's attacks which is a feat in it's own.

How to Look Like a D-Bag by Diamante

Hopefully things will change where Rebecca can prove her strength by assisting to bring down Diamante with Kyros. After all, this is a personal battle between Kyros and Rebecca against Diamante. So I can see why Robin won't interfere. As much as this is Kyros's battle, it is also Rebecca's. Diamante may have ruin Kyros's family but it also ruined Rebecca's. So she has a right to fight just as much as Kyros and hopefully the conclusion of this battle will reflect that.

These passed two chapters have been great and hopefully the rest of the battles to conclude the Doflamingo's family will be just as great as we cover more personal battles. We still have to look forward to Zoro and Pica's fight which is going to be fun.

Until next time, true believers!

More Robin please!

SPOILERS!

There is cute in this chapter. You have been warned. Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump

Continuing from last time, Robin swoops in to take care of Rebecca while Kyros goes up against Diamante without him worrying. Meanwhile Viola contacts the Tontatta Tribe and Leo via Transponder Snail so she can tell Leo of Princess Mansherry's location using her powers. She also lets them know that the princess is being forced to use her powers by Giolla.

Giolla is quite strict with the meek princess, as Mansherry has the power of the Heal-Heal fruit and is commanded to cure the injuries of Doflamingo's executives who have been defeated so far. Mansherry refuses to cooperate but Giolla won't be affected by the Princess' cuteness as she resorts to hurting Mansherry.

Can't handle these two

Leo hurries on ahead of Kabu while the Princess' tears fall from her eyes and cures a soldier, showing that her tears have healing properties too. Viola urges Leo to hurry, because the executives will be revived. Leo manages to make it to where Mansherry is but the healing tears are about to land on the executives.

Kabu arrives in the nick of time to knock the executives' bodies out of the way of the tears and Leo stitches the bodies onto Giolla which causes the flying bodies to crash into her. The chapter ends with the tribe rejoicing in their victory and Mansherry seems very grateful towards Leo for saving her but her attitude quickly changes once Leo comments on how she seems to have gained weight since they last saw each other.

This was definitely the best part

Slowly but surely, the characters are achieving the goals of this arc. The Tontatta tribe now have their princess back so all that needs to be done for them is for Doflamingo to be defeated. Aside from Doflamingo, the Elite officers also need to be defeated so they'll probably be taken care of first.

Mansherry doesn't really stand out to me too much other than she can heal others but it is nice to see Leo being awesome. Sorry for not saying too much but there isn't much to say about this chapter. It seemed fairly standard to me overall but in a good way.

I am looking forward to the further battles although it is starting to feel a little bit exhausting, I am totally impatient for the final fight but I just know that when it comes that it will be worth it. That's all for now, I hope to see you all next time!

Smooooooooth.

SPOILERS

Ride along with Weekly Shonen Jump get get your One Piece!

Summary
Leo and the Tontattas are escaping from the palace.

Franky and Senor Pink concluded their battle with Franky as the winner.

Thoughts

So the battle between Franky and Senor Pink has finally ended after a year has passed. It started off with them battling in front of the House of Toys and then resumed at the SMILE Factory. It has been a long battle and we kept cutting back to it. Each time we just keep getting glimpses of the battle and the introduction of the important characters such as Kyuin.

What did I think about this battle? It was a mostly just a drag. One thing that I dislike about how One Piece has been in recent arcs was the constant going back and forth. We have gone between people and this battle was plagued with them. This has been happening with the other battles such as Zoro vs Pica and Diamante vs Kyros but it was worst for this battle. The Franky vs Senor Pink battle has been going on for over a year now back when they first started to fight in front of the House of Toys. We then had a huge break and came back to it at the SMILE Factory. If you think about it, we have been anticipating an ending to this battle for over a year.

One of the better things to come from this chapter was an explanation for Pink's current appearance. During the flashback we saw a suave man but when we were first introduced to Senor Pink we are see a "man-baby". So what was the explanation? Present Senor Pink is the result of a man who lost his family and is trying to make his wife happy.

It is an explanation but clearly Senor Pink's thoughts have become twisted throughout the years. He has taken this idea to the extreme and perhaps the idea of "hard boiled" has gotten to his head.

Then again, has people just went ahead and explained Senor Pink's "Hard Boil" attitude for his sudden change or was this something that people consider him before? If it was the latter then that means Senor Pink has went ahead and embrace this mantra that was force upon him in order to continue to make his wife smile. If so then Senor Pink is more of a tragic character then a comical one.

So hard boiled!

I am not going to defend Senor Pink but I am glad that we finally got an explanation for his behavior. I was willing to buy that Senor Pink was just some guy who liked to dress up as a baby. It fitted in well with the colorful characters that One Piece already has. What was bothering me was the mystery that had present itself since Law's flashback: What ever happen to the suave and handsome man that was Senor Pink?

It was an interesting chapter that ended with Franky having a clear shot of the SMILE Factory. Those of you who read this review, feel free to answer this question: Is Senor Pink a Tragic or Comedic Character?

Until next time true believers!

This one goes out to SuperNeku

SPOILERS!

We're in the lucky numbers! Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump

Kicking off the first half of this double feature, Franky leads the Tontatta tribe to tear down the SMILE factory while Kyros continues his fight against Diamante. This isn't going so well because Kyros is tired and having only one leg isn't helping although he won't give up. Taking advantage of this, Diamante shoots what appears to be confetti in the air but it turns out to be spiked balls. What a hero.

I wish they would just let her fight already

Kyros asks Robin to protect Rebecca and she does so using her Flower-Flower powers. Kyros actually manages to deflect all of the spikes using his sword but Diamante plays dirty and shoots Kyros in his good leg and he succumbs to the spikes. Rebecca wants to help. Meanwhile, Diamante goads her on but Robin insists on protecting Rebecca. Kyros manages to step up and urges Rebecca to stop because this is his fight and he wants Rebecca to continue her tradition of not killing an opponent because it would mean her mother's beauty can truly live on through her.

This chapter ends with Kyros unleashing all of the pain he has endured since Doflamingo showed up in Dressrosa many years ago onto Diamante by cutting him down with a tremendous slash.

There goes the bastardo!

The next chapter starts with Kyros thanking an exhausted Robin for protecting Rebecca. Rebecca and Kyros stumble upon Scarlet's grave which is only a tiny quiet scene but is quite sweet to see. Meanwhile Viola informs everyone of Kyros' victory and reminds us that while the other executives have been defeated. All that is left is Bellamy, Trebol, Pica and Doflamingo.

Riku decides to head down to the city because he wants to be useful so Tank and the crowds follow. At the same time Fujitora commands the Marines to gather the townspeople somewhere safe. An earthquake shudders the sunflower fields and suddenly Pica shows up as a stone pillar to see Diamante's body. He suddenly asks Rebecca and Kyros what King Riku means to them because it was Riku's reputation that caused Dressrosa to hate Rebecca for a long time. Kyros isn't having any of his talk because Riku saved his life and will lead the people of Dressrosa to peace. Pica disappears.

Well that's just rude

Down a level below, Zoro is confused by Pica's absence because they were still fighting. That is when all of a sudden Pica shows up and attacks all of the injured pirates as well as Baby 5, Sai and Chinjao which pisses Zoro off. Pica is about to take a bite out of Zoro but he gets cut for his troubles. After some complaining that Doflamingo is the true king, its becoming clear to Zoro that Pica plans to kill Riku once and for all.

Zoro tries to come up with a plan while the bystanders watch in fear as Pica marches to fulfill his duty. Pica edges towards Riku as well as Usopp and the others. The chapter ends with Zoro going with Plan 5, which of course is to cut the gigantic stone man in half.

Wheres the 3D Maneuver Gear when you need it?

These two chapters are pretty rock solid. The first finally puts an end to Diamante and gives some closure to Kyros and Rebecca's story over the course of this arc. Finally Scarlet's killer has been dealt with. As much as I would prefer it if everyone would just let Rebecca fight properly, I am willing to deal with Kyros' reasoning for doing so. Aside from the good fight, there is not too much to say.

The second only allows you to get a bit of room to breathe after the last fight before you're struck with Pica popping up all over and preparing to kill King Riku while Zoro plans to cut the big guy down. Puts you on edge both because a titan is stomping around and you're excited to see Zoro being awesome.

I'm imagining it'll be like this but much cooler

Overall, out of the two chapters I did like 777 a bit more because to me, it feels like there's a much larger sense of threat with Pica and Zoro being funny with his plans, his concern for others and just being cool in his typical way. You just can't beat the lucky number out of the two.

How will Zoro go about defeating this behemoth? Hopefully we'll see next time as well as seeing more fights perhaps. See you all then!

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

Enjoy some pizza and One Piece from Weekly Shonen Jump!

Summary
Zoro defeats Pica.

The Tontattas destroy up the SMILE Factory.

Zoro meets up with the group at the top of the Plateau.

Luffy defeats Bellamy.

Law taunts Doflamingo which results in him getting shot.

Luffy arrives to the top of the Royal Palace and attacks Doflamingo.

The Birdcage starts to get smaller.

Thoughts

Macho Man Pica

I have really dropped the ball on the manga reviews? Well, to make up for that, you will get not one! Not two! But three manga reviews! Triple Manga Review COMBO! Lets go!

This may end up being an unpopular opinion but I wasn't too impressed with Zoro's fight against Pica. Did it took skill to take down such a huge foe and recognize his weak spots? Totally. Is it something we we haven't seen from Zoro before? Not really. You can only be impressed by slashes so much. What I did love was Zoro's observation and planning skills. It took a really good eye to notice that Pica would always escape to the half of his slashed up pieces with the eye still blinking during all the previous chapters. I applaud Zoro for coming up with a plan that literally forced Pica to come out and challenge him. Zoro is becoming quite a strategist as we saw at the end of Chapter 778.

It was finally nice to see something of what happen during Zoro's two years of training under Mihawk. It looks as if Mihawk had pushed Zoro to learn how to cover his swords with Haki. That is quite intersting. What was even more interesting was what Mihawk told Zoro.

Mihawk knows how to motivate Zoro.

I wonder if that mean that Mihawk always has the blade on his back embedded with Haki. It sounds crazy but that could be an insight on how powerful Mihawk is. I am curious to see what crazy things Zoro will do with his Haki covered swords. Will he be as creative as Luffy with his Haki added attacks?

So the Tontattas get their happily ever after. I wonder if they will do anything else in this arc. Mansherry is still around and she hasn't used her abilities on anybody important. It seems like Oda is saving her ability for something big.

Based on what Trebol said, it sounds as if Mansherry can even "heal" building as well. Dressrosa is in some pretty terrible shape and it isn't going to get better with that Birdcage closing in on the land.

We also have Law who is in horrible shape with his missing arm and two gunshot wounds from Doflamingo.

These two situations are great candidates for Mansherry's healing abilities. Maybe we will see her use her ability on one or both of these cases.

Also to note, it looks like something is going on inside the palace to scare Koala. There looks to be a fight going on as you can somebody yelling "RAHH" in the background. Is this where Burgess has been? Looks like Sabo may have to fight him again.

Now you have to feel bad for Bellamy here. The guy really tried to push Luffy to defeat him and Luffy sure did. If Luffy beating Bellamy looked familiar then that means you remember when Luffy defeated Bellamy back at Monktown with his famous one-hit knockout punch. This time Bellamy got a few more fits on Luffy and we just feel bad for Bellamy.

Bellamy really tried to impress Doflamino even though he knew he was acting a fool. Though I love the line beflow.

"Luffy: You're a man!
Bellamy: Exactly! So you should know to shut up and fight me!"

This makes me think that one reason why Bellamy was doing this was because he is a man. Thus this is what a man does. They do things even though it is pointless. Luffy doesn't think like a man and by his actions, he acts more like a child. The whole reason why Ace and Luffy left their home island at seventeen is because they didn't want to grow up and become men. Luffy surely acts like a kid during most of his journey so based on this line, Should we expect Luffy to avoid growing up until the end of the series? Just some food for thought as we watch Luffy show Bellamy that he can throw a punch. Again.

Finally this leads us into Chapter 790 where Luffy is raging into a fight against Doflamingo. He is pissed and he doesn't like the slight of a bloody Law on the ground.

It looks as if we are entering the final fight. This will most likely be a fight between who will fall under whose pace. I feel that having Law hurt up is Doflamingo's way to trap Luffy into his pace. That way Luffy will be angry and play right into Doflamingo's plan. If Luffy can avoid that and force Doflamingo to catch up to his pace then Luffy will most likely come out on top. Trebol is an added factor but I feel as if Luffy can overcome that. Though, he will surely be there to help Doflamingo trap Luffy. I can only see that help as a way to stop Luffy from dodging Doflamingo's attacks. This may just force Luffy to go offensive which is something that Luffy has no problem doing.

And Luffy needs to do this quickly because that Birdcage is closing in. Doflamingo is serious about ending this fight as he is shrinking the Birdcage which he has always called a game.

It is two against one and both sides are not gaining an itch. Luffy's attacks are getting blocked while Dolfamingo's are being dodged. There are factors on both sides that could matter. I think the most important one is going to be Law and Corazon. Clearly anything that has to do with Corazon has some sort of effect on Doflamingo. I believe that will be the key for Luffy to overcome Doflamingo. The spirit of Corazon lives on in Law and he won't give up based on his namesake. Then add Luffy into this equation and things will not work out for Doflamingo. The battle has truly begun and the timer has been set. Now lets see what two Will of D namesakes can do against a Celestial Dragon.

Until next time, true believers!

Welcome back folks. I'm Roger and this is another installment of One Piece Theory. Here I will delve deep into the intricacies of Oda Sensei's Magnum Opus in an attempt to uncover secrets that could shine light on important events to come. Not all these exhibitions are expected to be successful, in fact most of them probably won't be. That is the unpredictable nature of One Piece at work. Despite this, it can't hurt to at least try to understand the future by learning from our past.

So with that in mind, lets put up the SPOILER ALERT, and get this theory started with the question of the day:

"To be, or not to be: that is the question:"

Just about everyone on the planet has heard the most famous passage from the most famous play written by the most famous playwright in the history of Western culture at least once in their life. For those of you who don't know what it actually means, Prince Hamlet from Shakespeare's Hamlet is contemplating the moral ramifications of life and death, which is what we will be discussing today. When is it right for characters to live and to die?

Almost two years ago, I wrote one of my lists titled Top 5 Miraculous Survivors, detailing the incidents in which particular characters should have died, but for various convoluted reasons, didn't. It sparked a little debate in which fans defended these incidents saying that Oda saves death for moments in which it will really matter and teach a lesson to our heroes. While I understand that is the reason why Ace's death was so impactful to the audience (and our heroes), being the first official death of a major character after almost 500 episodes of story, it troubles me that holding the death card that long was a bit manipulative on Oda's part, not to mention undermines some of his earlier story arcs in which death would have been very effective. I keep coming back to the Alabasta Arc, specifically concerning the events of Pell. Remember when Luffy and Vivi had that argument in the desert about whether their focus should be on saving lives or stopping the conflict at it's source? Vivi was so desperate to stop any and all casualties, while Luffy is trying to explain to her that is impossible, that death is inescapable. Looking back at this, we know Luffy is speaking out of experience, cause he has already lost his brother Sabo (at least for the time being), but Vivi just won't have it to the point where she strikes him in disapproval.

Vivi ends up winning this fight (sure, several unnamed rebels and soldiers probably died in the fighting, but no one she genuinely knew or cared about was lost) but does it really seem fair that she did? The story played out as if Pell was set up to be the Martyr to teach Vivi this lesson about the imminence of death, but the story cops out at the end by letting Pell survive, even after they gave him a funeral and everything. Why does the Princess get to have everyone she knows and loves survive this dangerous ordeal. Meanwhile the man who tried to teach her a lesson about loss, is ironically the one who actually has to suffer watching his brother die in his arms 400 episodes later? And before any of you say that Vivi did believe Pell to have perished in the blast so she technically did have to briefly deal with his loss, the same way Luffy thought Sabo was dead but wasn't, so their situations at the time aren't really that different,

No! There is a big difference between Vivi mourning Pell for less than a week before he comes back, vs. Luffy literally living with the belief that Sabo was gone forever for 12 years, especially when by the time he does find out Sabo is still alive, he's suffered the loss of his other brother Ace, but for real this time.

But that's all in the past. Now, let us fast forward to one of the more recent arcs. In Punk Hazard, two of the main antagonists actually kicked the bucket at the end of the arc: Vergo and Monet. Dead. The first time in a series that has been going on for 17 years in which the villains weren't simply defeated, dethroned, incarcerated, or blasted off again. No, they are very clearly Wiki confirmed deceased. An interesting change of pace surely, but what exactly brought about that change? For that, perhaps we should look no further than the mantra of Eustass Captain Kid, that quite bluntly but still eloquently sums up just what's at stake here in the New World.

The New World is truly a brand new era in the story that is One Piece, and Oda has highlighted this fact by demonstrating that there will be permanent consequences for characters actions. Everyone is putting their lives on the line from here on out. Vergo and Monet set the first examples, and if you consider the film One Piece Z as part of the canon, you can count Zed among the New World casualties as well. So what does that mean for the fates of the characters at Dressrosa. The prevailing theory: when this arc finally blows over and the dust settles, Donquixote Doflamingo will forfeit his life.

As I am writing this, the Dressrosa arc is closing in on its climax. The battles are wrapping up. Doflamingo's crew is falling one after another. It's only a matter of time before the young master finds himself out of options and is given his just desserts for all the pain and suffering he has brought this Kingdom over the last ten years. Of course there are still several ways the final showdown can play out. Can Law find a way to recover from all his wounds (perhaps Princess Mansherry could heal him) so he can get his second wind and take him out? Could Luffy finish up his ordeal with Bellamy and rejoin the fray to kick his ass? Will Fujitora get fed up with Doflamingo's game and take him into custody? Does Riku resume his rightful place as King and pass down Doflamingo's sentence? Would Doflamingo be so selfish as to take his own life before anyone gets the satisfaction? Regardless of what the answer turns out to be, I still retain my theory that the end result will be the same: Doflamingo is going to die.

Even if the arc does appear to end with Doflamingo fleeing Dressrosa and somehow he manages to escape, my guess is he won't get too far before Kaido tracks him down and kills him for his failure to protect the SMILE factory. In fact, a part of me hopes that is what actually happens. Have Doflamingo think for a brief moment that he actually got away with all that crap, only to be cornered by his angry business associate who slaughters him right then and there. Not only is it an epic way for Doflamingo to go out, it serves as an excellent introduction for our new Antagonist. Like," You thought that pansy flamingo punk was bad? HA! He was a mere appetizer compared to one of the Four Pirate Emperors!"

While Vergo and Monet's deaths were a decent start, they were still just henchmen at the end of the day. Doflamingo's death, if and when it does happen, will be a strong official turning point for the series, making it very clear that the New World doesn't take prisoners. Now it's one thing for villains to start dying, will any more heroes be doomed to fall in the foreseeable future? That's difficult to say. I would have predicted Law might die, but he's too popular for now, so I doubt Oda would take that risk. Eustass Kid's probably most certainly going to die when his own story arc comes along. As for the Straw Hat's themselves, definitely not with too much of the story left to tell. When the finale of the series comes close way down the line, I would not be surprised if one or a few of them end up falling, but which one's specifically?

Luffy seems like the obvious choice, given that he's working to follow in Roger's footsteps. The problem is that's too predictable, and for Luffy to truly accomplish his end goal, he needs to achieve a legacy beyond Roger's. My theory is either Zoro or Robin will be the ones to make the ultimate sacrifice. Zoro's already proven he will put it all on the line to save everyone. Robin is the unsung matriarch of the crew, and given her history of each of her previous organizations being annihilated while she survived, she may feel her chance to sacrifice herself is long overdue. Usopp and Sanji are maybes. Nami's navigation skills are essential to the plot, so I think she has immunity. If it's Franky, it will be him going down trying to protect the Sunny. Brook's death would feel too easy. Considering he's technically already dead, most of us wouldn't help but find it kinda funny. But if Chopper died...well...that's only if Oda is feeling really REALLY mean spirited and wants to make the whole world cry.

Keep in mind readers, while these theories are based on my own premonitions and perspective of the series, that does not necessarily mean I want each of these things to happen. Of course I don't want Zoro or Robin to die. I'm just saying from a story standpoint, I can see it happening.

Now, all that's left is to wait and see the story play out, and discover just how much Oda can prove me wrong. Feel free to share your own theories in the comments below. Class dismissed, and for any of you attending Sakuracon in the coming weeks, maybe I will see you there. (I'll be dressed as the guy in the first screenshot of this article.)

SPOILERS!

Whats going down? Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump and find out!

The Bird Cage continues to close in on Dressrosa which causes a massive panic all around the island. While at the Royal Palace grounds Doflamingo has unveiled that he has changed the rules to his game. Oh goody.

It will take an hour for the Bird Cage to close in and kill everyone inside. Naturally Luffy is furious at Doflamingo's constant mocking and actions so he gets ready to attack once again when all of a sudden, Law appears in Luffy's place and stabs Doflamingo with Gamma Knife to tear him apart on the inside!

I am fanboying

So not only is Law still alive but they've been inside his "Room" the whole time which is how he was able to attack, convince Doflamingo that he was dead by using a body double and managing to whisper his plan to Luffy when he swapped places with his body double again.

However Doflamingo is still alive and is ready to attack Law again but Luffy counterattacks with a Jet Stamp attack. He tries to continue his attack but Law demands that he stops because Law wants to be the one to kill Doflamingo. Trebol tries interfering but Luffy just kicks him out of the way.

But Law, its Luffy's job to take out the villain!

Law confronts Doflamingo about killing Corazon, Even if Corazon couldn't shoot his brother in the end that doesn't mean Law won't. Even though Law attacks again with a Counter Shock, he succumbs to his wounds and falls down...while Doflamingo stands up right afterwards.

He reveals that using his powers, he can use his strings to mend his own wounds given that he has enough time. Just as Doflamingo is about to stomp on Law, Luffy stops him just in time. With the two staring each other off, the chapter ends.

YES! YES! FINALLY!

I believe that with the ending, the final battle of the arc between Luffy and Doflamingo is finally about to commence. As for the chapter itself I really liked it. I wasn't convinced that Law was dead so while his comeback wasn't a shock it was cool to see him deliver some damage upon Doflamingo even if it didn't exactly work out.

Luffy surprised me by showing some restraint when Law wanted to be the one to finish off Doflamingo considering his actions during the journey to the palace. Of course it'll be a brilliant fight because hes finally going up against Doflamingo after such a long wait.

There is not much else to say aside from the fact that it was wonderfully drawn as normal. Overall it was an engaging chapter and now I'm extra hyped up now that the real fight that all of us have been waiting for is going to begin. On that note, I shall see you all next time!

Poor guy, at least Law put him back

SPOILERS!

1, 2, Punch! Read One Piece in Weekly Shonen Jump and find out!

Continuing from last time, Luffy stops Doflamingo from stomping on Law with a clash of Conqueror's Haki which shocks Law and Trebol. We see a quick flashback to a young Doflamingo using it. During this flashback, we learn that it was Trebol who provided Doflamingo with both a gun and a devil fruit so in a way, Trebol was a major factor in Doflamingo's power.

Over the next few pages, Luffy and Doflamingo continue to exchange blows against each other until eventually Luffy gets stuck in Trebol's sticky body. Luffy tries breaking free with haki but it doesn't work because Trebol isn't a Logia user. Law eggs Trebol on which angers him. This makes Trebol launches balls of goo at him in an attempt to kill Law with his own gooey hands.

See? Trebol is not just a douche, hes one of the big douches

Trebol reveals through another flashback that him and the other executives saw potential in Doflamingo and wanted to groom him into "A Champion of Evil" which is why they were so loyal to him and let no-one stand in his way. So yeah this is confirming what I was saying before.

Once again Law baits Trebol into attacking but before Trebol can strike a blow, Law uses his powers to deliver a spinning uppercut with his severed arm. DAMN. On the outskirts of the factory, Leo and the other dwarves look upon the city each with an enlightened heart.

Being stabbed causes Trebol's goo to slide off to reveal his actual skinny body. This chapter ends with Trebol attempting to take Law and Luffy with him by lighting his goo on fire which causes a massive explosion.

I guess Trebol was secretly made of Adipose

The next chapter shows Robin and the others seeing the explosion as well as Luffy carrying a damaged Law in the air. Robin shouts to Luffy to leave Law with them while he continues to fight Doflamingo. Luffy agrees and tosses Law and his arm towards Robin which she catches.

When Doflamingo is about to attack them, Luffy kicks him out of the way although some of his attack still goes through but luckily Cavendish reflects the attack to save Robin and Law. Luffy asks Cavendish to take care of the others for him, surprisingly Cavendish agrees but only because he thinks Luffy is a fan of his through his deranged bishonen mind.

Once again Luffy continues to attack Doflamingo although he seems to lack power but Luffy has plenty of speed. Doflamingo is reminded of big events that Luffy caused like defeating Crocodile in Alabasta, dropping in on the Summit War and now getting in his own way.

Wasn't that hard to figure out really

Back down, Law awakens and demands that Cavendish leaves him behind because he wants to see Luffy beat Doflamingo with his own eyes or be ready to die alongside Luffy if he loses. Cavendish decides to stay with Law but tells Robin to go and take his cape with her because he noticed her bleeding. Now that is a prince.

Doflamingo continues to shoo Luffy away and reminds him that the clock is ticking on the Bird Cage which will end up killing everyone. Everyone will blame Luffy because everything was "peaceful" before he showed up but Luffy replies that it was just a big lie. Doflamingo asks why he even bothers because Luffy can't save everyone he comes across and the only thing Luffy is doing is getting in his way.

The chapter ends with Luffy saying that Doflamingo is in HIS way. After everything Doflamingo has done, he is still standing and Luffy isn't about to let Doflamingo kill everybody. In the very last panel we get a speech bubble, Luffy activates...Gear Four.

Yes I admit I squealed when I first saw this page

Things have definitely been picking up in these last couple of chapters. Trebol's real role in the arc was the highlight of the first chapter showing that he really was despicable for pushing Doflamingo's extreme actions over the last 30 years. An exploding Trebol was a nice end to that threat.

The second shows the true final fight of the arc with Luffy and Doflamingo going mano e mano against each other with neither of them wanting them in the way of each other and the reveal at the very end made me squeal a lot.

Don't worry Law you won't die, the fangirls won't allow that

It was also nice to see Cavendish have some development because he decides to stay with Law and give Robin his cape although lord knows how long this will last. It is nice to see a minor character get some development especially considering this is happening during a big fight.

So yes overall both of these chapters were great as Oda continues to impress with the art and character development as usual. Unfortunately the manga is on break next week but that only means that seeing Gear Four is going to make this long ongoing fight have a very satisfying conclusion. See you all next time!

Bartolomeo is all of us

It's that time of year again.

Sorry this took so long gents. A while ago, I had a long two weekends at back to back conventions both taking place in Seattle. But I'm finally ready to tell you all about it. So lets get to it.

From March 27-29, we had Emerald City Comic Con. Personally, I'm pretty new to the convention scene, only starting to go to them last year. So far this is easily the biggest convention I've been to yet. A huge attendance, tons of comic writers and artists, fan art, panels, and tons of big name celebrities. Just to name a few of the people I got to met briefly: Janet Varney (voice of Avatar Korra), Steve Blum (voice of Amon, Mugen, Leron, and everyone else) Huberto Ramos (Amazing Spider-Man artist) Kelly Sue DeConnick (writer of Captain Marvel, which Marvel will be making a movie of some day), Anthony Mackie (Falcon in Captain America: Winter Soldier), Kevin Eastman (creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), and the grandfather of comics himself, Stan Lee, and yes I did fork over the $70.00 to get his autograph.

But to bring this back to One Piece, I suppose there's only one name worth mentioning...

Mike McFarland

You'd be hard pressed to find someone who works harder in bring One Piece to the States than this man right here. As the show's ADR Director and Line Producer, Mike is right at the helm making sure the show sails to American audiences both faithfully and competently. He has a strong hand in the shows casting as well. That's why none of the actors playing any of the Straw Hats have ended up saddled with secondary roles (unlike Dragon Ball Z, in which Chris Sabat got stuck playing half the cast) giving them far more space and range to work with their characters.

On top of all that, Mike is known for several voices himself. His debut role being Master Roshi in Dragon Ball, but in One Piece he's played the voices of a few animal characters such as Eyelash (the camel from Alabasta), Yokozuna (the frog from Water 7), as well as the newly recruited Marine, Petty Officer Helmeppo. I think there was one other role he did for the show, but I don't think it was all that important. Um, who was it again...

Oh...right. That guy.

In all seriousness, Mike noted during his panel* that he has found time outside his busy schedule with all the anime he works on to watch a little further ahead in One Piece. Specifically he mentioned being in the middle of the Impel Down arc, which means he is now well aware of the massive amount of Buggy shenanigans that are coming his way.

You're gonna have a LOT of work to do, Mike.

*I was hoping to find a video or recording of Mike McFarland's ECCC 2015 panel online to share in this article. Unfortunately, I was unsuccessful in my search. I know at least one person filmed it, so if anyone knows where to find a decent video, please share a link in the comments below.

Emerald Con certainly was a blast, and it was absolutely amazing seeing Mike and all these other awesome celebrities, but definitely pricy. Not to mention it seemed more family oriented, with larger crowds, but not quite as many cosplayers. Well, fast forward a week and a bucket of bleach later, and we are once more unto the breach. My second forte to what was originally my very first con last year.

Sakuracon

With our powers combined...

...yeah, we wish.

I don't know what it is about the gamer and anime crowd, but they always seem more passionate than standard comic conventions. The cosplays are more vibrant and expressive, and there's always a larger variety of characters and personalities. And while my Scientist Peter Parker outfit at Emerald Con was recognized by one or two people, mostly people just thought I was Dr. Horrible. But both my Oustet Island Link (from Wind Waker) and Sabo cosplays at Sakuracon were recognized and well received by dozens of people, which is always fun.

Anyway, like every year, there are photoshoots for all the biggest games and anime series run by the veteran cosplayers, so I made my way to the One Piece photoshoots on both Friday and Saturday, and as usual, the fans did not disappoint.

Yup. A whole year, and we're still in Dressrosa.

So the Sabo, on the left, that's yours truly. The Sabo on the right is Sai, who was surmountable in helping make these events run as smoothly as they did. Not only that she let me borrow half of her fire for several of the shots. In addition to us, this was probably the year more Revolutionary characters arrived than ever before, I suppose this could have been planed, but it makes sense given their increase in activity and involvement in the story as of recent.

"Those who wish to join the fight for freedom, board our ship."

Also, can't get over how awesome Dragon looked especially.

So... I could be here all day talking about the fans, but perhaps I should wrap this up with what I do best. So here's Roger's Top One Piece Cosplayers of Sakuracon 2015
(no particular amount or order)

Hack

This was the same guy who came as Admiral Fujitora Last year. Once again some amazing work.

Davy Back Fight Luffy (and co.)

Always fun to see all the more unique iterations of our favorite characters.

Zoro

Congratulations on having just the right genetics that make you look so much like the character, it's frightening.

Law and Corazon

Sai, the other Sabo I mentioned before, also did an excellent Rocinante, as seen above. I couldn't help but find the irony that the character who possesses the Silent-Silent devil fruit power was the one yelling to get everyone in position for the shoot, quite humorous.

Monet

So... Monet is still a bit upset with me because I put her in my Top 5 Scariest Characters list and not in my Top 5 Beautiful Women list, so maybe that's why she's blocking herself from my shot. Turns out her cosplayer had her own criticisms about my character [Sabo], not being too fond of his sudden resurrection from the dead, feeling it was gimmicky. Fair enough. Despite how she felt, she still was impressive looking. Though hopefully she can get over it if I thought there were a few that were just as if not more impressive.

NEVER!!!

[Sigh]...

Bellemere, Nojiko, and Nami

The adorable level, it's OVER NINE THOUSAAAAAAAAAAAAND!!!

And the #1 Best One Piece Cosplayer of Sakuracon 2015 Goes To...

This was probably bound to happen. I have maybe said a few unkind things about Princess Shirahoshi in the past. Specifically, rating her Reason #1 in my list of Top 5 Reasons Why Fishman Island Flopped, and possibly at one point calling her, quote, "The worst character Oda has ever created." Those were some pretty harsh words I will admit. Now, feel I wrote plenty of detail to support my claim in my article, however, that is not to say others aren't free to opposing opinions. Shirahoshi was ranked 28 in the most recent popularity poll, so clearly many others see something in her that I'm missing. So, in an attempt to show I am in no way biased in my choices, Shirahoshi was the genuine article, and a clear choice for the Top One Piece cosplayer of the day. Many kudos go to her boyfriend as well (as seen above as Lucy), who rolled her into the photo-shoot on a wagon and lifted her up onto the platform with his own two hands.

And that's about as close to being here all day as I am going to get. If you were at Emerald City or Sakuracon this year and have some fond memories or personal favorite cosplayers or celebrities you ran into, please share below. The thing I cherish most about these events is the chance to interact with fellow fans like myself.

And if you still want to see more from the One Piece photo-shoot, be sure to check out Jason Standiford's professional photo work at his page, Standiford Photography at www.standifordphoto.com The gallery password is Sakura-Con.

Until next time, I'm Roger, and have a SUPER Day!

Manga: Chapter 763 (SPOILERS!)

Manga: Chapter 764 (SPOILERS!)

Manga: Chapter 765 (SPOILERS)

Manga: Chapter 766 & 767 (SPOILERS!)

Manga: Chapter 768 (SPOILERS)

Roger's List: Top 5 Worst Intances of One Piece Filler

Manga: Chapter 769 (SPOILERS!)

Manga: Chapter 770 (SPOILERS)

Review Piece: Space Adventure Cobra Movie (Secret Santa)

Manga: Chapter 771 (SPOILERS!)

Roger's End of Year Wish List 2014

Manga: Chapter 772 & 773 (SPOILERS)

Manga: Chapter 774 (SPOILERS!)

Manga: Chapter 775 (SPOILERS)

Manga: Chapter 776 & 777 (SPOILERS!)

Manga: Chapters 778, 779, 780

One Piece Theory 103 (With Roger): The Life and Death Conundrum

Manga: Chapter 781 (SPOILERS!)

Manga: Chapter 782 & 783 (SPOILERS!)

Roger's Adventures at the 2015 Emerald/Sakura-con-bo