That… Hot Mambo panel.... I can't stop staring at it.
I NEED THAT ACE WATCH D':
That… Hot Mambo panel.... I can't stop staring at it.
I NEED THAT ACE WATCH D':
Okay, I admit my theory of Aladdin being the shooter is stretched by him being present. Then again, if he did do it, him slipping back out among the crowd (if that's where he even is, we don't see more than his head and speedlines) could work as a red herring.
I've given my reasoning in the spoiler thread, but I'll explain again here. Every time his prior enslavement has been brought up, Aladdin's kept his thoughts close to his chest: when Arlong asked if he'd want to get rid of Koala too, and when he healed Otohime and the Tenryubito at first. He's also been constantly told to lay aside feelings of vengeance against humans along with everyone else. Would it not be an incredible irony if someone like him finally snapped and took that vengeance he'd been denied against the person who would have them side with their direct enslavers and oppressors?
It would really be an incredible contrast. Hodi, following Arlong’s lead, lashing out against the humans who’ve kept them down so long but had little personal interaction with them. And Aladdin, who’s suffered first-hand from a specific group of humans and who would strike the person who would have them make nice with those same oppressors as if nothing ever happened. His actions could also be one reason why Jinbe wouldn't have gone after Arlong all this time, if he was preoccupied with Aladdin who said they'd go after Arlong together.
I could maybe see Hordy himself or his hired gun being the shooter, though that seems a bit cut and dry from what we know of him, plus it seems like he's been waiting to make his move until the present day, so such a crime seems out of reach for him at this point.
Someone from the WG could also be a suspect, but there are any number of candidates for the job, and barely any we'd know personally from the story. We don't even know which particular noble gave his support and why they'd double back on it, or if they were a Tenryubito or not. If we were to hate whoever it was and not just the lot of them, the identity would be helpful.
So my bets are still on Aladdin, but I'll concede there are certainly other possibilities.
It looks like Shanks
I don't see Shanks randomly appearing and taking every thing out, he's epic but he's not even related to this arc
Brook's flower-fro on the main cover had me rolling, it was so lovely!
And I don't know how many times I "Awwwwww'd" in that chapter! Even VDD saying that he didn't have any friends was wibble worthy. I loved the balance between cute and sad and awesome in this chapter and as always cannot wait for more!
Van der decken says he wants to invade the palace and get a box to make her older so he can marry her. Then his genius of crew tell him that if he marries her that they can go in and get the box (which was supposed to be used to make her older). He then says he will wait 10-20 years for her to age to marry her, canceling the whole stupid plan of making her older with magic box. One of the panels on page 5 make it look like his family dream is gold or the box. It is marrying the princess.
Aladin was one of 3 sensible guys on the pirateship. He doesn't hate humans as much as certain people. I think Tigers loyalist, a certain man who heard of his misfortune with the nobles, was pissed at the deal with the humans and specifically the nobles. VDD needed one of 2 distractions, burning the signature or killing, he didn't need to do everything. Also based on the respect he showed the king when they met (father in law or something) and the fact that he wanted to wait 10-20 years, tells me he was just opportunist.
The killer, by the fact that the queen asked to be forgiven, is irrelevant. It's a way to make the story go on, and based on how long ago it happened, I doubt that it will be revealed if someone far gone did it. So either it doesn't matter, or a character in the current storyline did it and it will be revealed upon his final fight or after.
I've read some theories that the princess would join the crew…
At first I was like "Lol no."
But then I realized San Juan Wolf doesn't have an equivalent in the SHR crew outside of a possible "Mecha" Thousand Lion-chan.
I think Nico Robin could be a possible equivalent. Even before her training she was able to create an arm large enough to rival one of Oar's arms. Now after her training I think she might very well be able to create arms large enough to snap San Juan Wolf's neck. It seems very fitting since so far Nico Robin never had a chance to take down a real boss and San Juan seems to be dumb enough to be sacrificed early on. I
That and there is my long held dream that they Nico Robin has found a way to use her ability to make her own body grow to the level of a giant and evne further. That would be really cool
Good chapter. But whats with the sea kings actually being a threat? They were always fodder for someone strong, I don't see how this sea king controlling power even compares to the military power of the marines and the yonkou crews.
We haven't seen anyone defeat Sea Kings of this size
We're supposed to believe that Bonney's power being the exact match of what's in that box is a coincidence ?
Has there ever been a successful assassination in One Piece before? Because that scene was pretty brutal.
Does Bellemere count? Although that murder was not as high-profile as an assassination.
Dr. Clover at Ohara counts I think. But it was clearly visible who shot who.
This is the first assassination where the shooter is no where to be seen.
Am I the only one who finds the panel of Ryuuboshi and Mamanboshi dancing really chilling? Yeah, it's sweet that they're doing their best for Shirahoshi and Otohime but at the same time… It's really profoundly cathartic to me in a sort of creepy way. I dunno.
does one of the fishmen in this crowd look familiar? Xd
i love oda <33333333333333333333333
Does one of the fishmen in this crowd look familiar? XD
Just in case anyone missed it due to Camie/Pappug being in the same panel:
We haven't seen anyone defeat Sea Kings of this size
Rayleigh did actually. While swimming in the Calm Belt. But only Rayleigh. And it was only 1 Sea King. Not 3.
Just in case anyone missed it due to Camie/Pappug being in the same panel:
[qimg]http://img192.imageshack.us/img192/2603/fishmanb.jpg[/qimg]
Hahaha, Oda's awesome.
sigh…it seems that many people still didn't understand oda's joke when decken talked about the urashima's casket...
In fact, some are thinking that the casket may be a serious part of the plot.LOL
Just in case anyone missed it due to Camie/Pappug being in the same panel:
That sh*t made my day!!!!! XD
And wow, what I found most shocking was how the bros tried to keep Shira from crying…too sad and shocking...
My bet goes for Hodi being Otohime's assassin, Decken's just too stupid to pull that off while Hodi...
sigh…it seems that many people still didn't understand oda's joke when decken talked about the urashima's casket...
In fact, some are thinking that the casket may be a serious part of the plot.LOL
I also don't get it, it says about being some box that turns someone old, but why was it brought up?
Fuck you, Oda. I cried again, when they started dancing while crying just to stop the princess from calling the sea kings. It was so sad, they lost their mother and coudln't even show it for the sake of the whole island. It's just too sad.
Sorry if it was already said in this thread, but:
I looked up this Tamatebako thing Decken was talking about on Wikipedia, and apparently the folktale Tamatebako is from, "Urashima Tarou", also involces a "Princess Otohime" and a "Ryuuguu Palace". Interesting.
Am I the only one finding it weird that the signature box apparently bursted in flames out of nowhere, while merfolk were putting their signatures there? And then Otohime gets shot, only sound is heard but shooter is nowhere to be found? Smells definitely like DF to me. No, I don't think it was Absalom, but rather someone new, with a power similar to Bluenos, an ability to create wormholes (think of Portal games). I'm rooting for human assassin sent by the World Nobles, either with Otohime when she came back or his power is just so hax that he could go to Fishman Island through portal. And when he is finally introduced to us (for some reason he comes back to FI after 10 years?), Luffy is gonna get stabbed out of nowhere or shot with something sharp and we know this is our guy. Near the end of arc Luffy is going to have a tough fight, but triumphs in the end and yadda yadda. You know how it goes.
Just my two cents.
Just in case anyone missed it due to Camie/Pappug being in the same panel:
Muahahahahahahahhahahahahhaaaa xD
Thank You
Now we know who the next nakama will be
I see that not too many posters here have played Okami before…
oh this chapter :,,,( we all knew it was coming, but still hits you in the heart!
Now, I'm not necessarily saying that Van Der Decken shot the queen…but he has a shotgun strapped on his back…yet, the army just allowed him to run away scot-free?! I mean, I know they wanted him away from the princess but they should be on his ass for having a "gun" at the very scene of the crime! He's a decent suspect to say the least! FAIL... complete fail -_-
sorry, sorry...i'm just a little choked up from the chapter ;_;
@SGR:
-The Casket of who-what?
I don't see where Oda is going with this.
Actually it never said Urashima's Casket in the original Japanese.
It's called "Tamatebako", a magical casket that appears in the Urashima Taro legend.
This entire Ryuuguu palace and mermaid princess are themes from Urashima legend.
So it's not out of the blue, the theme has ALWAYS been there.
Urashima Taro was a fisherman who saved a turtle from being picked on.
In return, the turtle takes him to the underwater palace of Ryuuguu
There he meets Princess Otohime who welcomes him with feasts, and he has a blast.
He decides it's time to go, and the princess gives him the Tamatebako.
She tells him never to open the casket.
But when he returns to land, no one remembers who he is….
He opens the tamatebako despite Otohime's warnings, and mystical smoke comes out of it, aging him to old man.
Although he only spent a few days in Ryuuguu, many years had passed above land.
Am I the only one finding it weird that the signature box apparently bursted in flames out of nowhere, while merfolk were putting their signatures there? And then Otohime gets shot, only sound is heard but shooter is nowhere to be found? Smells definitely like DF to me. No, I don't think it was Absalom, but rather someone new, with a power similar to Bluenos, an ability to create wormholes (think of Portal games). I'm rooting for human assassin sent by the World Nobles, either with Otohime when she came back or his power is just so hax that he could go to Fishman Island through portal. And when he is finally introduced to us (for some reason he comes back to FI after 10 years?), Luffy is gonna get stabbed out of nowhere or shot with something sharp and we know this is our guy. Near the end of arc Luffy is going to have a tough fight, but triumphs in the end and yadda yadda. You know how it goes.
Just my two cents.
I see, Luffy and Hodi fighting while the mermaid Princess does some thing to destroy the place?? Luffy can still guide her with his voice while fighting. I think it'd be pretty cool if this happened, have Hodi transform all the way while that's going on.
IDK. That piece of paper from the world noble to Otohime seems to me like the promise from Arlong to Nami, bout letting go of Cocoyashi.
"IF u can collect 100mio I'll let go of Cocoyashi… IF!"
"IF there are signatures, I'll support them... IF!"
There should be a non-asshole world noble? Good joke!
So we have VDD, Hodie or a henchman who is workin 4 the world noble as the suspects.
ATM I don't think any clue point towards that direction. However it's a nice guess, since Oda, at a higher scale, try to balance things.
I'm a little confused about Decken's ultimate goal here. Does he want the legend of the Princess Mermaid with the power to control Sea Kings or does he want…something else like treasure? In chapter 625 Decken said his ancestors came down here in pursuit of the legend of the Princess Mermaid.
!
Now in chapter 626 he makes it seem like his family's ultimate dream is not the legend of Princess Mermaid but rather treasure and possibly royalty.
! So I guess the family dream overall was to find the Princess Mermaid with the legendary power and get rich off of it? I know the picture of the treasure can just be a representation of Decken obtaining his dream which can be compared to finding treasure, but the picture really makes it seem like treasure, riches, and gold was the dream all along for Decken's ancestors and now him.
Is that shadow Shanks ? Seems plausible…
Hm… where is Hodi? Or Pandaman? But, page 9 is brilliant in many ways.
And, no, it doesn't make sense for such a funny guy like VDD to have been at fault. I agree with many others about that hidden assassin hired by the WG. The entire idea that a world noble would agree to a petition is way too suspicious.
Actually, I wonder what Otohime had to go through to get that paper. It must have been not very pleasant. She (like Fisher Tiger) could have been hiding something in her heart. Throughout this chapter, she almost seemed like she was expecting her death.
Edit: Really, people? Oh, sure, Shanks will show up for no reason and lead Shirahoshi off to Sabaody Park to play.
Hope the killer isn't Hodi. That would make things lame and predictable.
I understood it as him needing Shirahoshi's ability in order to find that treasure. Perhaps sea kings of this size only lead to it.
Woah. That chapter was simply breathtaking.
I didn't care much about the princes before, but this chapter was so great, their reactions so intense, that I really love and respect these characters now o_o
Look at Fukaboshi's facial expressions ! Come on… God, Oda is such a sick bastard, how can this manga be so awesome and surprising after that many chapters ?
The two other brothers were pretty cool too, I found them really touching and admirable.
Wonder if the shooter will be revealed at the tail-end of a fight, setting off Shirahoshi's ability again. Like Spandam revealing Spandine's part in Ohara, though that one was lame because all the readers pretty much knew by that point in time.
I'm a little confused about Decken's ultimate goal here. Does he want the legend of the Princess Mermaid with the power to control Sea Kings or does he want…something else like treasure? In chapter 625 Decken said his ancestors came down here in pursuit of the legend of the Princess Mermaid.
...
So I guess the family dream overall was to find the Princess Mermaid with the legendary power and get rich off of it? I know the picture of the treasure can just be a representation of Decken obtaining his dream which can be compared to finding treasure, but the picture really makes it seem like treasure, riches, and gold was the dream all along for Decken's ancestors and now him.
I think you have to go to the first time VDD was introduced along with the Flying Dutchman. He said something like he wanted all the treasures on the bottom of the sea, and that he's the world's richest man. So think what would happen if he had the ability to sink all ships; all of the world sea treasures would be his.
It can be Zoro too. But who cares.
It was a very funny and touching chapter. VDD was very funny, maybe that is the reason why I don't see him as a main villain. Interesting, but I can't spot the main villain in this arc, eventhough we have evil people here, such as Hodi Jones or VDD. The big question to me is still, what will be BigMum's role. Since Shirahoshi is able to call Sea Kings, I think she will the one who will protect FI, so there will be no more need for BigMum. That's why I think, that the "Shirahoshi for nakama" thing is absolutely out of the question. As if she would leave home! There are more people who would leave and could be nakamas.
As for the murderer, I think, it might be a former slave. The queen said it was her fault, so I'm guessing she realized that she asked too much from people who have truly suffered under humans. The one who set the fire and the one who shot might be different, I can see VDD and co. doing this mischief in order to get everyone panicked and the murderer used this opportunity and killed the queen for not understanding him/her and because that person might have feared that Otohime would press on joining humans which was for him/her out of question.
Whoa, what a chapter. @_@
The kids signing stuff.
Decken doing his wedding plot and realizing he has no friends, not to mention he snuck that touch from Shirahoshi.
The part where Otohime was shot was excellently done, and it matches the chaos of the place. It even makes the unknown villain not only evil, but pretty smart as well.
Burning those sigs just so s/he could have cover to pull this off. I already want to see the hunt for this person.
…And with that, I have to admit one thing: At first, I wasn't on board with the idea of Luffy burning down the island to free the fishmen from their shackles or whatever, but despite all the arguments put forth, the more and more Otohime and others talk about their need to migrate to the surface and live under the sun, the more and more there seems to be a set up for just such an action by Luffy.
I hope we get something out of left field with these events by the time all of this is done.
ANAL EDIT: I'm not certain per se, just thinking out loud on likelihoods and all that. The real Red Flag will come when rising to the surface goes from being Otohime's dream to becoming a necessity (as in trying to make a case for it being FI's salvation or something).
I'm a little confused about Decken's ultimate goal here. Does he want the legend of the Princess Mermaid with the power to control Sea Kings or does he want…something else like treasure? In chapter 625 Decken said his ancestors came down here in pursuit of the legend of the Princess Mermaid.
Now in chapter 626 he makes it seem like his family's ultimate dream is not the legend of Princess Mermaid but rather treasure and possibly royalty.
! http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/9200/pic2ol.jpgSo I guess the family dream overall was to find the Princess Mermaid with the legendary power and get rich off of it? I know the picture of the treasure can just be a representation of Decken obtaining his dream which can be compared to finding treasure, but the picture really makes it seem like treasure, riches, and gold was the dream all along for Decken's ancestors and now him.
Perhaps it's a bit of both and is a legendary treasure located in a seaking nest?
Just in case anyone missed it due to Camie/Pappug being in the same panel:
[qimg]http://img192.imageshack.us/img192/2603/fishmanb.jpg[/qimg]
Thank you! That looked like a crown to me, not a person.
Oh, I just realized. Those two pirates with Decken in the beginning are labeled "A" and "B". Sound familiar?
Good chapter but I say that every week.
Patty but no Carne? He doesn't deserve his own cover, does he? I'm not sure I'd want the cover story to be quite THAT drawn out. Also, it's totally underwater. How do the people even get there?
So VDD has knowledge and interest in the treasures the royal family controls. His logic is backwards and he's becoming more amusing, but it seems like his motives lie in some object rather than being part of a prophecy. There's even more to this thing than this chapter gave away. I have a feeling that casket will be cast aside for now and have some role to play later.
Otohime got the support of a noble, which makes sense. That's a lot different from getting the support of all the nobles, though. They're still a serious threat, especially the one from last chapter.
Those same children keep getting shown, so I assume they'll have an important role to play in the present time, where they should be in that 15-20 range. Especially that one with the curly hair
The way that the island began loving and supporting Otohime when they initially resisted her is very touching. Hodi is quite the bastard.
The royal family has their own additional info on the prophecy, which I'm guessing is unrelated, or possibly only slightly related to VDD's ambition. Saving thousands and destroying the world isn't exactly an even trade. I feel like the "saving thousands" part needs to be addressed in this saga. Superjew mentioned that destroying the world could apply to the series ending war with the World Government, and I rather like that idea as an additional event.
A lot of people are downplaying Shirahoshi's ability, but I think most of those don't realize the ridiculous size of the things. The sea kings we've seen killed aren't much bigger than those sea kings' eyeballs that Shirahoshi called.
The princes are finally beginning to distinguish themselves from each other. I'm finally beginning to actually like them. Fukaboshi's concern over Shirley's prophecy in spite of everything else that happened makes A LOT more sense now.
Was it coincidence or intelligent planning that lead to the queen's assassination? I'm leaning towards the latter. The fire caused her to lose focus so that she didn't detect the danger with her mantra. If a noble sent an assassin, then such planning should be within their capability. There's still a question of how the fire started and why there was no image of a shooter in the slightest. VDD seems like a red herring at best to me. I'm sort of hoping that Dofla killed some fishmen and used their corpses as puppets. The idea of it being someone from Tiger's crew makes no sense to me. A bitter fishman like Hodi is possible, but I hope not. A lot of signatures seemed to be saved.
Otohime's death… touching as they always are. Oda never fails there. Her comments just reinforce my opinion that a human was responsible.
Not sure how close this flashback is to being over. On the surface it looks like maybe half a chapter, but I'm hoping there's more than that left to tell. We still have Shirahoshi being moved to the tower and Jinbe receiving his scar, but both those things could be realistically skipped I suppose.
Damn you, Oda! ;__;
Farewell, Otohime, you were such a great, lovely character. The page when she was shot and looked down, with these shocked eyes… this brought me to tears. And the brother's dancing to cheer Shirahoshi up, while they're crying...
Goddamn, this is heartbreaking. The three brothers gained much more respect from me during this chapter.
I don't know who killed Otohime. I'll just wait and see what happens.
Vander Decken is such a idiotn but he's not the typical bad guy, that's good xD
Perhaps it's a bit of both and is a legendary treasure located in a seaking nest?
Just think of all those Ships that have been stranded in the calm belt/sunk by Sea Kings over the years. Treasure Graveyard?
Also, new here, One Piece has to be my favorite Manga so finding a site to discuss it is awesome.
Manboshi dancing was…...realy awkward, yet touching.
Also, I hope this means they all get to have some featured fight, however brief.
can someone say where exactly is pandaman in this chapter
Considering the vagueness with which Jinbe described the 'assassination incident' before the flashback, it's possible that the killer remains a mystery to this day. If they know who the assassin was, it can't be Vander Decken or Hodi; people would've made comments when those two arrived at Ryuugu Palace. It could be Aladdin I suppose because there's no conclusive evidence against it, while there's also nothing to support it. I'm really not sure, but I'm excited for the next chapter.
Considering the vagueness with which Jinbe described the 'assassination incident' before the flashback, it's possible that the killer remains a mystery to this day. If they know who the assassin was, it can't be Vander Decken or Hodi; people would've made comments when those two arrived at Ryuugu Palace. It could be Aladdin I suppose because there's no conclusive evidence against it, while there's also nothing to support it. I'm really not sure, but I'm excited for the next chapter.
He was just one of the people responding to it, I don't think Oda would be as subtle as to just have his reaction be one of many identical ones.
Patty but no Carne? He doesn't deserve his own cover, does he? I'm not sure I'd want the cover story to be quite THAT drawn out. Also, it's totally underwater. How do the people even get there?
http://mangastream.com/read/one_piece/88732753/2
If you look past the text at the top, there's a periscope; it's a submarine. Looks to me like the "lip" under the DESSERT door is at sea level when it surfaced.
Great chapter… flashback started slowly but has risen in tension. The killer... hmm, well the obvious candidate is Van Der Decken, but because of that I don't think it was him. I'm thinking Hodi Jones... Oda had a close up on him when Jinbe was talking about helping Otohime with her dream. We've seen how murderous he looked when the Tenryuubito came. He obviously wasn't down with fishmen and humans living together, so may have plotted something like this. But there's also a good chance the person who shot Otohime is someone unknown to us... or Pandaman out of randomness.
Really interested in how the events of the flashback will affect the present timeline after this chapter. I think that they have not found the assassin, who will reveal himself later to get beaten by the SH… If it was a human, it might show the merfolk that not all humans are the same.
However, what about the prophecy? It is surely related to Shirley's vision of the destruction of FI, so, Luffy might somehow "lead" Shirahoshi to call SeaKings who go rampage and destroy the Island - at least, that would be ONE event that makes both the prophecy and Shirley's future-telling come true. Just a possibility though. Also, if this were to happen, there has to be some reasonable motive behind the act, or at least a positive outcome... :wassat:
http://mangastream.com/read/one_piece/88732753/2
If you look past the text at the top, there's a periscope; it's a submarine. Looks to me like the "lip" under the DESSERT door is at sea level when it surfaced.
Yeah, I know it's a submarine, but… it surfaces and submerges every time someone starts or finishes their dessert?
Is Patty in underwater, grinning… and WITHOUT a bubble mask?