Volume 98 Predictions/Discussion

[black-leg jex]

Villains for 99, then a really triumphant heroes one for the big 100 feels like a safe bet.

Volume 99 will be the one with Chapter 1000 so it definitely won't be a villains only cover. My guess is it will have everyone on the rooftop on it (so Luffy, Killer, Zoro, Kid and Law all at the bottom looking up and an imposing Kaido and Big Mom looking down above them) and the volume name will be 'Straw Hat Luffy'.

Volume 100 and 101 will probably be villain and hero covers if they do them.

[Captain M]

With chapter 1000 falling squarely in the middle of the volume, I don't think it'll get as much fanfare as it did in the magazine. It'll be mentioned on the ads and there'll definitely be the logos for the 1000 Logs campaign on the obi, but I don't think it'll be enough of a thing that it puts demands on the cover art.

Volume 100, on the other hand, is the equivalent milestone for the collected books, a big round number checkpoint that would be insurmountable for most other series. It's going to be a great excuse for the marketing people to track out all the "look how big it is now and how exciting it still is" hype again a few months after the chapter 1000 stuff dies down. There's no way a book that marketable is going to get away with not having Luffy on the cover.

[rayleigh92]

Well the Allies vs Villain covers usually are respectively the third to last and second to last of the arc, with the last being centered over the final battle. I thinks it's safe to assume the arc will last no more than 30 chapters (basically almost the whole 2021), so the 99-100 seems the legit one for the dual cover.

[ScotchInformer]

Final Ver of the Cover ! Title: Vassals of Glory

[Monquito]

beautiful, so at the end Kaido didn't really make it into the cover uh? welp.

no title yet? I'm starting to suspect Yamato is getting the title(again)

[FelRes]

I love the white and teal in that cover.

Edit: I just noticed, that is probably the worst color combo Luffy has ever worn.

[Coookie]

With the whole cover transitioning from white at the top to the teal shadowing on the Akazaya at the bottom it feels like this whole volume is an homage to Yamato

[akagami7]

beautiful, so at the end Kaido didn't really make it into the cover uh? welp.

no title yet? I'm starting to suspect Yamato is getting the title(again)

It's the title from chapter 987, I think the official translation is "Vassals of Glory".

[Solid]

Kaido is gone, so much for connected volumes...

[Kdom]

Well, I'm surprised so many people like this weirdish blue color....
At least it ends the 'compound covers' theories

[Captain M]

A shame to see Kaido get cut between the sketch and this version. Sure, he made a busy cover even busier, but the incredible art of his dragon form was a highlight of every other chapter of the volume, and I would have loved to see that represented. The colour filter over the Scabbards was a good way to reduce the potential clutter of this one, so hopefully Oda keeps hold of the technique for later.

The title choice is fitting, but I hate that he went with the one with possibly the most contentious translation of the lot - with the Japanese version having both a pun and a literary allusion, neither of which translate in a way that make sense or work particularly well when transcribed literally (hence the official release's title simplifying so much compared to what you might see elsewhere). It's gonna take me days to decide what to name the folder for this one in my archive

--- Update From New Post Merge ---

Oh, and here's all the covers together, for those that are into that kind of thing.

[rayleigh92]

A shame to see Kaido get cut between the sketch and this version. Sure, he made a busy cover even busier, but the incredible art of his dragon form was a highlight of every other chapter of the volume, and I would have loved to see that represented. The colour filter over the Scabbards was a good way to reduce the potential clutter of this one, so hopefully Oda keeps hold of the technique for later.

The title choice is fitting, but I hate that he went with the one with possibly the most contentious translation of the lot - with the Japanese version having both a pun and a literary allusion, neither of which translate in a way that make sense or work particularly well when transcribed literally (hence the official release's title simplifying so much compared to what you might see elsewhere). It's gonna take me days to decide what to name the folder for this one in my archive

--- Update From New Post Merge ---

Oh, and here's all the covers together, for those that are into that kind of thing.
https://i.redd.it/bq71gljpl2c61.jpg

What was the pun in the title? I kinda miss it

[Nouryoku]

Funny how that 2 weeks break delayed the volume by 5 weeks.


Pretty much agree with the cover but concerning the title i would bet on "The Brocade of Loyal Retainers".

Nailed it.

What was the pun in the title? I kinda miss it

https://onepiece.fandom.com/wiki/Chapter_987

"The chapter's title is possibly a reference to Chūshingura (忠臣蔵 The Treasury of Loyal Retainers), a fictionalized account of an event in which forty-seven rōnin avenged their master's death. The chapter title replaces "treasury" (蔵) with "brocade" (錦), the same kanji symbol used in Kin'emon's (錦えもん) name."

[Robby]

Wow, I woulda left Kaidou in out of sheer stubborness after having drawn all those scales.

I wonder if Oda made a digital brush to quickly fill them in for layout purposes.

Yet another cover Viz's stupid crescent moon and giant number template is going to wreck by going all over the character faces.

[rayleigh92]

Nailed it.



https://onepiece.fandom.com/wiki/Chapter_987

"The chapter's title is possibly a reference to Chūshingura (忠臣蔵 The Treasury of Loyal Retainers), a fictionalized account of an event in which forty-seven rōnin avenged their master's death. The chapter title replaces "treasury" (蔵) with "brocade" (錦), the same kanji symbol used in Kin'emon's (錦えもん) name."

Thank you! I never aknowledged the originale name of the "47 ronin story", very interesting.

[Captain M]

"The chapter's title is possibly a reference to Chūshingura (忠臣蔵 The Treasury of Loyal Retainers), a fictionalized account of an event in which forty-seven rōnin avenged their master's death. The chapter title replaces "treasury" (蔵) with "brocade" (錦), the same kanji symbol used in Kin'emon's (錦えもん) name."

Beat me to the explanation

Basically the whole thing looks like a translation nightmare. It fails from the outset because few western readers are going to recognise the translated title of the play out of hand, let alone a pun on it, and then when you actually get to the pun what are you going to do? 'Brocade' is direct, but it doesn't read as a play on words from 'treasury' at all, and it's a really obtuse word for a comic with a YA target audience. I've got a degree in lit and I had to google it when I first saw it. Way too unintuitive. Apparently the Japanese term used can also be translated more loosely as 'fine clothes,' but I'm struggling to find a synonym that would actually work as a riff on 'treasury.' Closest thing that comes to mind you be 'tapestry,' but then you lose the clothing angle that's the only thing still connecting the title to Kin'emon at this point. So yeah, I don't blame Stephen for basically throwing his hands up and just simplifying it down to 'they're vassals and they're going to do something glorious (like in the play)'

I'd love to hear if anyone actually has creative ideas that could capture the whole title and its intended layers in English.

[Chams]

The blue hue was a great substitute for Kaidou's tail. It really feels like they are going under his menacing shadow

[theackwardstation]

Beautiful cover. One of the best from Wano.

A little more side boob than neened though.

[Monquito]

Lol, Yamato's nailing her own arm with his horn.

[Syphin]

Are the colours and way it transitions meant to convey some sort of imagery centered around shadows and dawn?

The style of the cover appears to be very much fashioned around Yamato.

It is a shame Kaido didn't make it as the partial presence of his overwhelming form adds a foreboding element to the hope ingrained through the volume cover. Or is that what the blue "shadow" over the Akazaya Nine is meant to represent?

Overall, it is a fascinating volume cover that takes some time to fully appreciate.