First and foremost, if this doesn't deserve its own thread, by all means please merge it with a more general thread. I was hoping to stir some discussion on the matter.
! I like One Piece. As much as the next guy. It's genuinely my favorite anime series out there. Now, One Piece is not perfect. Nothing is. Show of hands, who all groaned over the nosebleed fiasco in 609? Heh.
! From Chapter 1, One Piece was always a charming series, but it didn't really pick up steam until the Arlong Arc, many would argue. However, looking at the past few arcs, One Piece's charm seems to have tapered off some. But how so?
! Well, it's Luffy. Luffy's an aloof guy with a big heart and a lot of power, but over all, he's kind of dumb. Well, he's a little dumb, yes, but Luffy's fucking smart. Luffy's a tactical genius. This is evidenced as early as the Buggy arc, but really shines during the Kuro arc, and later, vs. Crocodile and vs. Eneru.
! Luffy, lacking water, used his own blood to combat Crocodile's weaknesses. Against Eneru, Luffy shut off his own brain to combat Eneru's Mantra, and used his own handicap as a weapon to finish Eneru off. Still think he's dumb?
! But unfortunately, we don't see much of that these days. Luffy vs. Blueno was probably Luffy's last big example of his genius battle style, but also the first instance of things going south. I speak of the Gears.
! Now Gear Second and Third are quite clever. I mean, these are shining examples of Luffy's genius at its best. But they've become all purpose shit. Luffy beat Blueno and Lucci with Gear Second. Beat Oz with a one-time powerup + Gear Gigantos, and he's been using nothing but Gears and Haki ever since. Gone are the days of Gum-Gum Daze and Using Arlong's teeth against him. All that remains is "uh oh, bad guy, let's Gear up!"
! To be fair, ever since CP9, One Piece has been a bit melodramatic and has definitely called for Luffy to get a little serious. That's understandable, but how is this different than Arlong threatening to kill everyone on the island? How is it different than playing around with Mr. 3 when his three closest friends are slowly being killed? How is it different when every last one of his friends are about to be killed when battling Crocodile and Eneru? Sure, the Ace situation was far more urgent, and rightly so, perhaps Luffy's judgment was cloudy because of the circumstances.
! That's why for me, Fishman Island is do or die. I really want to see Luffy being a genius again. I'll be beyond upset if he goes against the arc villain and beats him with Haki and Gears. No, rather, I'll be upset if he doesn't get creative with the application. Luffy's an adaptable fighter. I don't want him to just overpower the enemy with asspulls. Fishman Island has tons of opportunity for creativity. I really, really hope Oda puts it to use.
To sum up my argument, Luffy's fights have always been a huge selling point for One Piece. At the end of the day, nothing's more satisfying than Luffy beating the pulp out of the bad guys. But is it really all that satisfying when he just overpowers them with the latest SSJ? That's why I strongly feel that East Blue to Skypiea is significantly better than CP9-Marineford. Oda may yet prove me wrong, but it depends on how Luffy performs in the coming Arcs.
So let's stir some discussion. What do you feel about the matter? I really hope you can prove my stance wrong.
Once again, if this doesn't deserve its own thread, feel free to move it.