Ah you are the best Sandman!
The most interesting things of note to me are about Oda's vision getting worse so he leaves out smaller drawn details and how he doesn't feel stressed when actually drawing the manga.
Ah you are the best Sandman!
The most interesting things of note to me are about Oda's vision getting worse so he leaves out smaller drawn details and how he doesn't feel stressed when actually drawing the manga.
Here is my additional summary for Oda's interview in ONE PIECE Magazine which I didn't mention yesterday.
Oda enjoys watching both old and new films, but he usually watches new films in order to catch up with the trends unless there is much free time.
When asked if he is afraid that he can't come up with ideas about ONE PIECE some day in the future,
Oda denies and says he is confident that he can produce good ideas via final push near a deadline for chapters.
Oda appreciates deadlines since he considers he would not be able to draw an interesting manga if he had so much time to prepare.
Many staffs are involved in ONE PIECE industry, but Oda himself doesn't feel pressured at all.
He says there is no responsibility for him about ONE PIECE other than manga although for example he has been getting along well with anime staffs.
Oda says it would not have a large impact even if ONE PIECE comes to an end due to his health.
Oda considers manga is basically helpless in that it can't be of help for people who suffer from a large disaster.
Oda says manga doesn't produce food, house and clothes. (Oda has made drawings for the victims for large earthquakes in Japan.)
When Oda was in his 20s, he thought he should spend time on manga rather than attending his parent's funeral even if they die.
Oda now calls it a crazy idea, but at the same time, he says this excessive seriousness toward manga made what ONE PIECE is today.
Oda wants to entertain people ever since his childhood. He says he is happy to see others delighted.
Oda says now that ONE PIECE is already the best manga in terms of volume sales he is wondering what to aim for next.
He also says he has already experienced most of what other popular manga artists have done in the past (anime, games etc?). Oda says he needs a big goal.
Oda supports his assistants so that their mangas will become popular.
ONE PIECE has more characters than before. He has to cram much information into one chapter to move forward with the story.
Oda says he would be able to draw really impressive fight scenes only if he could keep drawing the fight scene for 2 chapters in a row.
He feels ONE PIECE can now spend only 1 chapter at most on a fight scene.
When asked where he wants to visit most, Oda laughs and says he doesn't want to visit space since it would be too dangerous.
Oda is interested in diving since his wife loves it, but he is scared of sharks. (The restroom in Oda studio is full of sharks, though. lol)[hide]
[/hide]
- ONE PIECE has more characters than before. He has to cram much information into one chapter to move forward with the story.
Oda says he would be able to draw really impressive fight scenes only if he could keep drawing the fight scene for 2 chapters in a row.
He feels ONE PIECE can now spend only 1 chapter at most on a fight scene.
That's… sad.
Well, at least he knows that he still needs 2 chaps to make it really impressive. Let's hope important ones will get that treatment.
Man this is really good stuff. It's been clear for a very long time that Oda has been off paneling portions of fights or entire squabbles to get the story moving. I think I'd be pretty happy if Luffy got one or two less chapters of final battle action in favor of other crew mates splitting similar action chapters among themselves. Well the crew mates who aren't named Zoro or Usopp.
I do love the fights in this series though. If Oda wanted to add more chapters for the fights I'd be jumping for joy. I suppose as long as some major action is given to every Straw Hat during a saga defining battle I will be mostly satisfied.
What ever the case I'm generally content and happy with everything that goes on in One Piece.
Hey Sandman. I'm a bit confused by the third point where he says it would not have a large impact. Could you elaborate on that?
Thanks again!
Hey Sandman. I'm a bit confused by the third point where he says it would not have a large impact. Could you elaborate on that?
OK. I remember Oda once said that manga is just a pastime.
It seems Oda thinks ONE PIECE suddenly coming to an end doesn't affect people's life so much as long as manga in general can't directly help people in serious predicaments as stated in the next paragraph.
Oda's hometown suffered from a large earthquake last year. And in 2011, more than 15000 people died due to an earthquake and Tsunami in Japan.
Oda made several drawings for the victims to cheer up, but he still seems to feel helpless..
And he's right. To me its like hash tagging your cause and calling it a day. It don't do squat.
Of course there are a ton of creative ways Oda could use his manga to actually help people. I'm sure they could do some crazy world wide auction on the manga art drawn directly by him to raise money for charity or some such.
Thanks Sandman!
Really great look at Oda. I feel bad that he doesn't think One Piece has accomplished much in the world. I can at least say from a personal standpoint, that One Piece has helped me through very hard times, including the deaths of a close friend and sibling. I'm sure being in a country that has experienced such insane natural disasters can give you that feeling of helplessness, but I know I'm not alone in those that One Piece has motivated to keep working hard. I'm sure out there some are doctors, EMT's, fireman, and others that do great things and also have a passion for One Piece!
I'm also glad about the comments of his health. I've been watching the anime for Bakuman recently, so I've been thinking about the mentality Oda must have working so hard. For those who don't know, Bakuman is about two teenagers that aspire to create a manga that will be serialized in Jump and get an anime made from it. I read the manga years ago, but recently decided to watch the anime. At one point, one of the two main characters is hospitalized after being serialized, is placed on a hiatus, and their manga suffers hard from it. Really makes you think about how weak the human body can be when you deprive it of a little bit of sleep, food, and water to put that time towards manga, and how it all catches up.
Oda saying that he isn't stressed out while drawing it is a big relief, though. It's glad to see after all of these years that he still wants to make One Piece even greater, despite already being number one in Volume sales.
- ONE PIECE has more characters than before. He has to cram much information into one chapter to move forward with the story.
Oda says he would be able to draw really impressive fight scenes only if he could keep drawing the fight scene for 2 chapters in a row.
He feels ONE PIECE can now spend only 1 chapter at most on a fight scene.
Why do I have the feeling that it's hopeless to want another arc where every single member of the crew gets a dedicated one on one fight anymore? Please tell me I'm just being an overreacting worrywart.
@All:
Why do I have the feeling that it's hopeless to want another arc where every single member of the crew gets a dedicated one on one fight anymore? Please tell me I'm just being an overreacting worrywart.
You're an overreacting worrywart.
@All:
Why do I have the feeling that it's hopeless to want another arc where every single member of the crew gets a dedicated one on one fight anymore? Please tell me I'm just being an overreacting worrywart.
I don't think thats ever actually happened outside of Alabasta, however I know exactly what you mean. I feel like Wano has to be that arc and of course the final Black Beards VS Straw Hats show down. Other than that its hard to say. When you read One Piece you are playing the long game.
I know it's often said that the crew is far too big now but I don't buy that when there are a ton of side characters who get a decent amount of focus when its time to get their hands dirty.
I don't think thats ever actually happened outside of Alabasta, however I know exactly what you mean.
You're technically right about this, as Usopp and Robin didn't get fights in Enies Lobby and Dressrosa (although I guess sniping Sugar counts. Robin was still nay support for Kyros though).
While Alabasta is the only arc where everybody got a full fight, I do think that Oda still puts emphasis on Alabasta, Enies Lobby, and Dressrosa being 1v1 arcs. At least in his volume covers. These are the only arcs that have a volume not featuring Luffy and solely featuring the antagonist faction. Although the next volume after these has the Straw Hats and their allies doing a parallel version of the villain volume cover.
I don't think thats ever actually happened outside of Alabasta, however I know exactly what you mean. I feel like Wano has to be that arc and of course the final Black Beards VS Straw Hats show down. Other than that its hard to say. When you read One Piece you are playing the long game.
I know it's often said that the crew is far too big now but I don't buy that when there are a ton of side characters who get a decent amount of focus when its time to get their hands dirty.
Thats wrong Buggy's arc, Kuro arc, Baratie, Arong Park, Alabasta, Skypiea, Enies Lobby, Fishman Island, Dressrosa all had definite 1v1s
Thats wrong Buggy's arc, Kuro arc, Baratie, Arong Park, Alabasta, Skypiea, Enies Lobby, Fishman Island, Dressrosa all had definite 1v1s
He is talking about arcs where ALL of the Straw Hats got 1v1 fights.
In Orange Town, Zoro got a fight with Cabaji while Luffy got two fights against Mohji and Buggy (and Nami only helped out in Luffy's fight against Buggy). Nami did not get a 1v1 fight.
In Syrup Village, Luffy defeated Kuro, Zoro fought the Black Cat Brothers, and Usopp sniped Jango with the help of Zoro and the Usopp Pirates. Nami did not get a 1v1 fight.
In the Baratie, Luffy fought Don Krieg, Sanji defeated Pearl, and Zoro lost against Mihawk. Nami and Usopp did not get 1v1 fights.
In Arlong Park, Luffy fought Arlong, Zoro battled Hachi, Sanji scrapped with Kuroobi, and Usopp combatted against Chew. Nami did not get a 1v1 fight.
In Alabasta, everybody got a 1v1 fight (and it's the first time that Nami has a 1v1 fight). Although Usopp and Chopper technically had a 2v2 against Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas.
In Skypiea, Satori was fought by Luffy, Sanji, and Usopp, Ohm was defeated by Zoro, Yama was stomped by Robin, Gedatsu was beaten by Chopper, Shura was one-shotted by Wiper, and Enel was beaten by Luffy. Nami, Usopp, and Sanji did not get 1v1 fights.
In Enies Lobby, everybody got 1v1 fights except for Usopp and Robin (although they both got in one attack against Spandam).
In Fishman Island, Nami didn't get a full 1v1 fight. Even Robin arguably didn't get one.
In Dressrosa, Robin never got a 1v1 fight. The most she contributed was holding Hakuba at bay and supporting Kyros' 1v1 fight against Diamante by protecting Rebecca against spiked ball rain.
@Count:
In Fishman Island, yes, everybody got a 1v1 fight.
Eh, Nami and Robin didn't get 1v1 fight in that arc.
@All:
Eh, Nami and Robin didn't get 1v1 fight in that arc.
Ah, I forgot. Although Robin kind of did fight a named character one-on-one. Albeit very briefly.
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@Count:
While Alabasta is the only arc where everybody got a full fight, I do think that Oda still puts emphasis on Alabasta, Enies Lobby, and Dressrosa being 1v1 arcs. At least in his volume covers. These are the only arcs that have a volume not featuring Luffy and solely featuring the antagonist faction. Although the next volume after these has the Straw Hats and their allies doing a parallel version of the villain volume cover.
I disagree about Dressrosa being a 1vs1 arc. Something about the thought just feels not right. There's enough stuff speaking against the feeling of being planned as a 1vs1-centered arc. The crew split as most glaring issue as well as the focus on all the side characters.
Also the Arlong arc did put significant emphasis on being a 1vs1 arc as seen when Usopp got his first 1vs1 encounter. (Nami being a special case there comparable to Usopp/Robin at Enies Lobby. Also she wasn't in the epic march on Arlong Park scene which basically cemented the upcoming 4 1vs1 battles.)
So we have these as 1vs1 arc:
As well as Wano and the grande finale in the future.
With the ridiculously huge amount of characters that will converge in Wano, I'm having trouble picturing it as a traditional 1v1 arc like Arlong Park, Alabasta or W7/EL. I'd say it will be more along the lines of Dressrosa, with weird sort of 1v1 match ups that will involve some Straw Hats and some allies, with tag teams or support playing a role. Just like it took Law and Luffy to take down Doffy, it'll probably take multiple Supernovas to take down Kaido (with the last stretch of the fight being for Luffy, of course). I would say that the new Monster Trio of Zoro, Sanji and Jinbe might also get some help to fight the Calamities, like Luffy got from Nami against Cracker. It would feel weird if in the following arc, these guys would be able to solo guys on the same level of an opponent that Luffy required help to fight in this arc.
Here is my brief summary for Super SBS in ONE PIECE Magazine volume 1. Four editors talk about Oda in this section.
Oda pretends to be a heavy drinker these days. He orders strong Japanese sake boldly, but he drinks only a small cup of sake. After that, he keeps drinking coke.
Oda is obsessed with internet shopping. He shows off the items to his editor happily.
Oda sometimes tells a joke to his editor via phone, like "I'm in Hawaii". They keep talking for a while as if Oda is actually in Hawaii. lol
Editor says that ONE PIECE editor should make up his mind to spend his 24 hours per day and 365 days per year on ONE PIECE.
Oda offered to his editor that he will take care of his family if the editor gave up working due to illness or injury from overwork.
Oda is so concentrated while drawing manga that editor can't even ask him if his work is going well.
Editor Habuta says Oda has a very nice personality. Stamp creator Kanahei on "LINE" app says in OP magazine that he was fascinated with Oda's bright personality when he first met Oda.
Kanahei says he felt as if he became Bartolomeo.
Editor Hattori says he has been a big fan of ONE PIECE other than the time when he was ONE PIECE editor.
He felt so stressed every week as he was dying and said ONE PIECE was something like a demon for him at that time.
Editor Sugita recalls he aged rapidly in only one week while waiting for Oda's manuscripts for final battles in Dressrosa arc.
Oda submitted his storyboard one day after the deadline..
Editor Hattori says he was frequently stuck inside Oda's studio for more than 24 hours.
He got to be able to sing the songs played in Oda's studio perfectly without buying them.
Oda told his current editor Naito about the detail of Big Mom's backstory and Wano arc via phone. The editor says he felt as if Oda were a minstrel as an excellent storyteller.
Question: When did you feel happiest as ONE PIECE editor?
Habuta: Oda made a special drawing to celebrate my daughter's birthday.[hide]
[/hide]Sugita: I have been respecting Oda since my childhood. As I worked with him as an editor, Oda's personality turned out to be exactly the same as I imagined from reading his comments for SBS.
His personality is far from being two-faced. I was really glad to realize it as one of ONE PIECE fans.
Hattori: I felt happy when I witnessed many people reading ONE PIECE in Jump and volume on a train on release dates.
Sandman FTW again! Thanks buddy!
It's nice to read from the editor that Oda is very much like his SBS self. There is nothing worse than looking up to someone for their ability to do something and then find out what a awful person they are. At the same time I've learned a long time ago to separate what I like regarding a persons capabilities from the actual person.
If Oda turned out to be a total sleaze ball that would be ok. I like the work that he puts out, doesn't mean I have to like him.
@Chrior
For the most part I do agree with you Chrior but I picture most of the Straw Hats initially getting help fighting the biggest guys on Kaidou's team but it ultimately comes down to clear cut 1on1's. Basically how Law + Luffy VS Doflamingo started but ultimately ending in a way that shows the Straw Hats are beyond their aid.
If we see guys like Jozu joining in to fight King, Queen, etc I can only imagine with his arm gone and another war lost under his belt he won't be as much as a defining factor in battles as he once was.
There are going to be so many people fighting I hope Oda keeps the on panel battles of the side characters at a minimum and give more focus to Straw Hats.
Though the likelihood of all the Straw Hats fighting Kaido together, with others, does remain a possibility.
Editor Sugita recalls he aged rapidly in only one week while waiting for Oda's manuscripts for final battles in Dressrosa arc.
Oda submitted his storyboard one day after the deadline..
16 characters of Oda pls.
- ONE PIECE has more characters than before. He has to cram much information into one chapter to move forward with the story.
Oda says he would be able to draw really impressive fight scenes only if he could keep drawing the fight scene for 2 chapters in a row.
He feels ONE PIECE can now spend only 1 chapter at most on a fight scene.
Facepalms
Seriously, Oda? From the way that I see it, that's been doing more harm then good. -_-
lol at people upset about that awesome bit of news
Right. Most fights don't need to be that long, and the ones that are usually are worth the time, is Luffy vu Cracker.
I'd love to see expanded fights. But I'd much rather have Oda focusing on what matters: the plot, and understanding how to use the time he has.
Skip fights to drag out the story with running around and reaction shots. At least Oda got his priorities sorted out.
Sandman FTW again! Thanks buddy!
It's nice to read from the editor that Oda is very much like his SBS self. There is nothing worse than looking up to someone for their ability to do something and then find out what a awful person they are. At the same time I've learned a long time ago to separate what I like regarding a persons capabilities from the actual person.
If Oda turned out to be a total sleaze ball that would be ok. I like the work that he puts out, doesn't mean I have to like him.
@Chrior
For the most part I do agree with you Chrior but I picture most of the Straw Hats initially getting help fighting the biggest guys on Kaidou's team but it ultimately comes down to clear cut 1on1's. Basically how Law + Luffy VS Doflamingo started but ultimately ending in a way that shows the Straw Hats are beyond their aid.If we see guys like Jozu joining in to fight King, Queen, etc I can only imagine with his arm gone and another war lost under his belt he won't be as much as a defining factor in battles as he once was.
There are going to be so many people fighting I hope Oda keeps the on panel battles of the side characters at a minimum and give more focus to Straw Hats.
Imagine Oda blackmailing his editors to say nice things about him, otherwise bye-bye…
@Monkey:
lol at people upset about that awesome bit of news
Depends on how you think about it, plenty of people domnt like how oda has been cutting his action scenes together and skipping around, id prefer that to fishman island level pacing but I feel there is a happy medium
Facepalms
Seriously, Oda? From the way that I see it, that's gonna do more harm then good. -_-
Ugh…its actually not 'news'. Its that way since years.
Ugh…its actually not 'news'. Its that way since years.
Yeah, I just realized that. I've changed my post back to my original response.
Facepalms
Seriously, Oda? From the way that I see it, that's been doing more harm then good. -_-
Nope.
Its the battle-fans that constantly want something flashy otherwise their attention-span start to suffer.
Other than that, One Piece doesn't need lengthy fights, and I am glad as hell that even Oda himself thinks so.
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@Long:
Depends on how you think about it, plenty of people domnt like how oda has been cutting his action scenes together and skipping around, id prefer that to fishman island level pacing but I feel there is a happy medium
It's just nonsensical whining from people who are still somehow under the impression that Oda cares about fighting as much as they do.
We can talk about pacing, and other issues, but fights not being lengthy is definitely not one of them.
I only hope that he can free himself with the Luffy Vs Teach. It picked my interest, because i truly believe that he's not good with fights.
Trying to not put so much attention on fights can result in a disjointed flow of the story, which has affected the series on occasion. But overall, it's the right thing to do, and can be improved upon. One Piece isn't a fighting manga, and if a fight can be shortened without the narrative and character development suffering, then I'm all for it, since it's clear the story might get interminably long otherwise.
@Kaido:
Trying to not put so much attention on fights can result in a disjointed flow of the story, which has affected the series on occasion. But overall, it's the right thing to do, and can be improved upon. One Piece isn't a fighting manga, and if a fight can be shortened without the narrative and character development suffering, then I'm all for it, since it's clear the story might get interminably long otherwise.
Yeah. That's what happened in Bleach basically. Character does an attack and five pages later we see what happened.
Nope.
Its the battle-fans that constantly want something flashy otherwise their attention-span start to suffer.
Other than that, One Piece doesn't need lengthy fights, and I am glad as hell that even Oda himself thinks so.
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It's just nonsensical whining from people who are still somehow under the impression that Oda cares about fighting as much as they do.
We can talk about pacing, and other issues, but fights not being lengthy is definitely not one of them.
Well I think there is a difference between "MOAR FIGHTS" people and people who dnthave it as #1 but stil enjoy a good choreographed scene, that is easy enough to follow and gives you the feel of motion/impact/mood etc…
Daz, is far from the former type and they had issue with how Oda structured the fight with cracker and how it seemed like oda didnt put effort into showing it so why should we care about it, at least thats what I remember being said, im not 100%...
People arent being completely delusional to see how oda's structured the action in whole cake island and worry that there'll be a lot less of the connective tissue that made all the older fights so good.
I still trust oda will come through but if he didnt mean " unless its a boss fights only 1 chapter each" and instead meant of only 1 chapter of pure fighting" thus having some cuts among longer fights than Im fine.
Its just his I could make it really cool if I wanted to but I cant thing seemed kind of like boasting about something without expectations to follow through. Just kind of weird how he formatted it, or maybe thats the translator bias
I also believe that when people complain about the figths they're mostly complaining about the coreography, even if they're not using those words.
One Piece is as much a fighting manga as anyother shounen, the fight is usually used as the culmination of the feelings and plots presented troughout the arc. Oda says it himself, OP is about Luffy clashing his will against other people and the fights are a visual representation of that, the fights do matter in OP.
And Oda has done better/cooler fights than the most recent ones.
For those wanting to see some good figths in manga I'd recommend Enen no Shobotai, for amazing choreography, and Boku no Hero Academia, for fights that are truly visual resolves of the plot hence why the author can use most of a chapter for a fight without it feeling lackluster.
I also believe that when people complain about the figths they're mostly complaining about the coreography, even if they're not using those words.
One Piece is as much a fighting manga as anyother shounen, the fight is usually used as the culmination of the feelings and plots presented troughout the arc. Oda says it himself, OP is about Luffy clashing his will against other people and the fights are a visual representation of that, the fights do matter in OP.
And Oda has done better/cooler fights than the most recent ones.For those wanting to see some good figths in manga I'd recommend Enen no Shobotai, for amazing choreography, and Boku no Hero Academia, for fights that are truly visual resolves of the plot hence why the author can use most of a chapter for a fight without it feeling lackluster.
You already answered it yourself, the fights to matter as a climax point of two wills clashing against each other, the fight itself was and never will be the selling point of One Piece by itself though. The implications of a fight matter, the fight themselves, not so much.
You already answered it yourself, the fights to matter as a climax point of two wills clashing against each other, the fight itself was and never will be the selling point of One Piece by itself though. The implications of a fight matter, the fight themselves, not so much.
Imagine it's a math test, at school.
You can't just write down the final answer, you need to write down the process through wich you got there or your professor won't give you full points (some of them might not even give you any points at all if you don't write down the process).
I'm repeating myself but the fights are a vital part of the series because they're a visual representation of the plot/clash of ideals and this is a comic book.
If we were talking about a traditional book then the fights would matter less since we wouldn't be seeing them. Not many people (including me, and I've read it 3 or 4 times) remember many of the details of how the fight in the Ministry of Magic went, in the 5th Harry Potter book, but the movie version packed a good visual punch.
The design of the characters, for example, also falls into this "category". It matters much more because we're always seeing the characters.
Oda decided to make a shounen manga with fights, he could have chose to focus much more on adventure and finding treasures but he decided he wanted to have cool fights in his work so he should be critized if the figths sometimes don't seem to excite people reading his comic.
I'd incite you again to check the series I mentioned to see how good fights and good/decent plot can very easily go hand to hand.
Imagine it's a math test, at school.
You can't just write down the final answer, you need to write down the process through wich you got there or your professor won't give you full points (some of them might not even give you any points at all if you don't write down the process).I'm repeating myself but the fights are a vital part of the series because they're a visual representation of the plot/clash of ideals and this is a comic book.
If we were talking about a traditional book then the fights would matter less since we wouldn't be seeing them. Not many people (including me, and I've read it 3 or 4 times) remember many of the details of how the fight in the Ministry of Magic went, in the 5th Harry Potter book, but the movie version packed a good visual punch.
The design of the characters, for example, also falls into this "category". It matters much more because we're always seeing the characters.Oda decided to make a shounen manga with fights, he could have chose to focus much more on adventure and finding treasures but he decided he wanted to have cool fights in his work so he should be critized if the figths sometimes don't seem to excite people reading his comic.
I'd incite you again to check the series I mentioned to see how good fights and good/decent plot can very easily go hand to hand.
In my math tests at university, only the result was important…
You already answered it yourself, the fights to matter as a climax point of two wills clashing against each other, the fight itself was and never will be the selling point of One Piece by itself though. The implications of a fight matter, the fight themselves, not so much.
That’s like saying the “idea” behind the arcs’ drama is all that matters, not the actual depiction of the drama. Execution is everything, particularly in a visual medium like this, and you can’t just Infer your way to a compelling adventure/action series – just ask Toriko.
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Nope.
Its the battle-fans that constantly want something flashy otherwise their attention-span start to suffer.
Other than that, One Piece doesn't need lengthy fights, and I am glad as hell that even Oda himself thinks so.
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It's just nonsensical whining from people who are still somehow under the impression that Oda cares about fighting as much as they do.
We can talk about pacing, and other issues, but fights not being lengthy is definitely not one of them.
Just because series like Bleach have abused the concept doesn’t mean that fights as a concept are objectively bad/of lesser worth. Building on what FolhaS said, fights are not just about punching, they’re a vector for humor, drama or character growth. They’re the time when the story narrows its focus to remind you exactly why a character is fun to have around, and having more than a few pages to work with helps facilitate that. Zoro beating Mr. 1 wouldn’t be as memorable had he not spent a few chapters getting beaten up beforehand, etc. Good fights don’t need to be long –Robin vs Yama is pretty damn short and sweet- but giving them at least more than a chapter allows you to build tension more effectively.
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@Kaido:
I'd love to see expanded fights. But I'd much rather have Oda focusing on what matters: the plot, and understanding how to use the time he has.
The problem is that the time which would’ve been spent on fights isn’t added to the time spent on the non-fighting plot. Don’t give me wrong, Oda is clearly prioritizing the latter, but this isn’t a matter of deciding to give the myriad plot-threads more time to breathe. This is about more efficiency – or more quickly- getting through the plot. As stated by Oda himself his approach to writing the series has fundamentally changed post-skip:
He makes numerous comments about stuffing as many scenes/information into a chapter as possible, and despite the often shorter length, chapters have more panels on average than before. He has started to create mashups of arcs, because he can’t get through everything otherwise. And now, fights are getting cut down to a chapter each.
Yet on the other hand, Oda states that he will keep adding ideas to an arc as he goes along. Relative to their length, arcs are more dense with subplots and characters than ever before – which may be unsurprising, considering that Oda has expressed a preference to character creation and drawing compared to story. So you end up with hyper-compressed arcs filled with differing factions, objectives and subplots, yet no extra time allocated to exploring/resolving these. You can see it with the current arc, which is truthfully way more focused than Dressrosa, but still filled with compromises and cut corners. Theres sometimes a nagging sense that plot progression in itself is the main priority; Oda is a lot better at masking it than Toriko was, but the mask is starting to come off.
I get that this was arguably the unavoidable outcome given the evolution and expansion of the series; soonor or later you’ve gotta deliver on all those setups, and I totally sympathize with Oda wanting to finish up before he dies. With that perspective, I get why fights hit the chopping block. But I still think it’s a shame.
All that said, its perfectly valid to be enjoy the current direction of One Piece. People are different. But theres no denying that One Piece is a very different beast compared to before. And people who fell in love with The Old School are allowed to be annoyed at the changes made to the New School, and not mocked for being “Fight Junkies” (not saying that you are doing this , this bit is a more general address).
Tl, Dr; It is not as simple as “people just want to see characters punching each other for 10 chapters, just like BLEACH!!!!!”
In my math tests at university, only the result was important…
Is that so? I never took math in the university.
I'll guess that unless you're presenting a paper where you need to explain the formulas you're using the professor already knows how you got there.
But I hope you understood what I meant, execution matters.
I also think that action can be a good replacement for a one on one fight. That way the arc won't just be a build up and then punches.
Take Luffy's and Nami's resistence against Big Mom's army early in the arc. If Oda had showed a bit more of it, with Nami dodging a few mooks, then realizing she could take control of the cloud and then a nice image of her bolting a pack peons and you don't need a Nami fight in the arc. That would satisfy many needs. Kinda like Ussop in Dressrosa, he didn't have an actual direct fight but he still stole the show.
Sanji is a poor case in this regard right now, because while he could/should be put on the spotlight this arc because of cooking he has not had a decent 1v1 fight in a long time.
@Daz:
That’s like saying the “idea” behind the arcs’ drama is all that matters, not the actual depiction of the drama. Execution is everything, particularly in a visual medium like this, and you can’t just Infer your way to a compelling adventure/action series – just ask Toriko.
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Just because series like Bleach have abused the concept doesn’t mean that fights as a concept are objectively bad/of lesser worth. Building on what FolhaS said, fights are not just about punching, they’re a vector for humor, drama or character growth. They’re the time when the story narrows its focus to remind you exactly why a character is fun to have around, and having more than a few pages to work with helps facilitate that. Zoro beating Mr. 1 wouldn’t be as memorable had he not spent a few chapters getting beaten up beforehand, etc. Good fights don’t need to be long –Robin vs Yama is pretty damn short and sweet- but giving them at least more than a chapter allows you to build tension more effectively.
Battles in a shonen series are an beaten-to-death concept that lost its energy long long long time ago.
Look at the earlier parts of One Piece, in particular East Blue saga, to see just how Oda was able to flesh out Luffy's character without lengthy fights.
Then look at Enins Lobby arc, and how barebones it was in terms of character-work despite the lengthy fights.
Or take a fairly recent example of Bartolomeo, and Cavendish whose characters were established way before their fights which is why the fights were fun, but just looking at fights as it is, it just falls flat.
Fights can be used to show character. But it doesn't mean it's the one, and only way of doing that especially since Oda himself has done better without fights then with fights.
@Daz:
That’s like saying the “idea” behind the arcs’ drama is all that matters, not the actual depiction of the drama. Execution is everything, particularly in a visual medium like this, and you can’t just Infer your way to a compelling adventure/action series – just ask Toriko.
–- Update From New Post Merge ---
Just because series like Bleach have abused the concept doesn’t mean that fights as a concept are objectively bad/of lesser worth. Building on what FolhaS said, fights are not just about punching, they’re a vector for humor, drama or character growth. They’re the time when the story narrows its focus to remind you exactly why a character is fun to have around, and having more than a few pages to work with helps facilitate that. Zoro beating Mr. 1 wouldn’t be as memorable had he not spent a few chapters getting beaten up beforehand, etc. Good fights don’t need to be long –Robin vs Yama is pretty damn short and sweet- but giving them at least more than a chapter allows you to build tension more effectively.
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The problem is that the time which would’ve been spent on fights isn’t added to the time spent on the non-fighting plot. Don’t give me wrong, Oda is clearly prioritizing the latter, but this isn’t a matter of deciding to give the myriad plot-threads more time to breathe. This is about more efficiency – or more quickly- getting through the plot. As stated by Oda himself his approach to writing the series has fundamentally changed post-skip:
He makes numerous comments about stuffing as many scenes/information into a chapter as possible, and despite the often shorter length, chapters have more panels on average than before. He has started to create mashups of arcs, because he can’t get through everything otherwise. And now, fights are getting cut down to a chapter each.
Yet on the other hand, Oda states that he will keep adding ideas to an arc as he goes along. Relative to their length, arcs are more dense with subplots and characters than ever before – which may be unsurprising, considering that Oda has expressed a preference to character creation and drawing compared to story. So you end up with hyper-compressed arcs filled with differing factions, objectives and subplots, yet no extra time allocated to exploring/resolving these. You can see it with the current arc, which is truthfully way more focused than Dressrosa, but still filled with compromises and cut corners. Theres sometimes a nagging sense that plot progression in itself is the main priority; Oda is a lot better at masking it than Toriko was, but the mask is starting to come off.I get that this was arguably the unavoidable outcome given the evolution and expansion of the series; soonor or later you’ve gotta deliver on all those setups, and I totally sympathize with Oda wanting to finish up before he dies. With that perspective, I get why fights hit the chopping block. But I still think it’s a shame.
All that said, its perfectly valid to be enjoy the current direction of One Piece. People are different. But theres no denying that One Piece is a very different beast compared to before. And people who fell in love with The Old School are allowed to be annoyed at the changes made to the New School, and not mocked for being “Fight Junkies” (not saying that you are doing this , this bit is a more general address).
Tl, Dr; It is not as simple as “people just want to see characters punching each other for 10 chapters, just like BLEACH!!!!!”
Depiction says nothing about the length of a fight though. A clash can be much more meaningful when it´s short and sweet and does not require chapters of continuous fighting. There is a reason why Luffy vs Bellamy felt so satisfying the first time around. Sure, to a certain extent it was the "he got what was coming for him" but the impact of the clash was that greater because how Oda dealt it.
The wedding has been a great action sequence so far, so if this is the sort of thing he's replacing 1v1s with, I'm game.
Like Daz said, execution matters heavily in a visual medium. If a fight sucks, it sucks. Even if it's used as a catharsis for the emotional conflicts established earlier in the arc.
Truly great fights can be stories in and of themselves from a technical and/or emotional standpoint. Like Zoro vs Mr. 1, Luffy pushing himself to protect Usopp and surpass his limits to fight Rob Lucci, a bunch of the fights in My Hero Academia and Part 1 Naruto, etc. Whether it's approaching the dynamic of how to overcome an enemy's certain ability like a puzzle/question, seeing characters overcome certain insecurities/limits during the fight either physically or mentally, visual metaphors showcased in combat and juxtaposition made significant due to the relationship of whoever is fighting who, clever humor, build up stakes, incorporate ethical conflicts and ultimatums, witnessing a character's progress from a previous point or compared to another character especially if fighting ties into one of their main passions/objectives, etc. Just because Oda fleshed out Luffy outside of his fights in East Blue does not mean those fights aren't appreciated, didn't need to be in the story, or didn't contribute to One Piece's quality as a series alongside its plot/characterization (or even complement those aspects).
Luffy wants to be the Pirate King, and like Mihawk said in the Baratie, that is one of or the toughest thing to ever achieve with loads of rivals vying for the title. Because a strong fighter, while not the sole definition of whatever being Pirate King means to someone, kind of comes with what the job description and relevance implies.
Fights do not need to only be viewed as a way to satiate action/power level junkies with generic punches and explosions like, say, Dragon Ball Z. Or merely as a catharsis to emotionally investing background events. If there's potential for an awesome fight, I want to see that awesome fight if it does not come at the expense of the story.
Lots of things are beaten to death in action-adventure shonen, but that doesn't mean that you still can't find new and interesting ways to reinvigorate them instead of ditching them altogether.
I myself will always love the dead mentor trope as long as it's timed correctly and the characters stand out/are compelling (not that I would ever mind seeing this subverted. My Hero Academia actually did this in a cool way). Although for this to work, it needs an ample amount of time and investment, which is enough for an author to leave their own memorable signature on this trope so that it stands out in people's minds among all the other mentor corpses.
Battles in a shonen series are an beaten-to-death concept that lost its energy long long long time ago.
Look at the earlier parts of One Piece, in particular East Blue saga, to see just how Oda was able to flesh out Luffy's character without lengthy fights.
Then look at Enins Lobby arc, and how barebones it was in terms of character-work despite the lengthy fights.Or take a fairly recent example of Bartolomeo, and Cavendish whose characters were established way before their fights which is why the fights were fun, but just looking at fights as it is, it just falls flat.
Fights can be used to show character. But it doesn't mean it's the one, and only way of doing that especially since Oda himself has done better without fights then with fights.
That doesn't mean that non-action story moments alone alone has to the one and only way to show character either. Especially at this point in the series after so many 1v1 fights.
Personally, I like it when 1v1 fights are spread out rather than in every arc. Choosing to forego with 1v1 fights this arc outside of Luffy versus Cracker is completely fine in my book. Especially in favor of this type of wedding chaos and escape plan, which can still be inventive ways to demonstrate the action capabilities of characters. It allows Oda to keep us on our toes and come up with more inventive ways to convey action and unique arc plots as a whole. Another example I could point out is the Alabasta saga and Skypiea. In Little Garden, Sanji was mostly off-panel while the rest of the Straw Hats and Vivi took on Mr. 3 and his colleagues. Then in Drum, Sanji gets to help fight against Wapol's crew while the rest of the crew except for Luffy, Nami, and now Chopper to compensate for Little Garden and have a unique spotlight. Then in Alabasta, we finally get our very first arc where every single member of the Straw Hats simultaneously gets 1v1 fights (although Usopp and Chopper technically got a 2v2). With Skypiea, Oda turned conventions on their head by having Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji fight against one guy as a unique and quirky team-up fight, and had every Straw Hat contribute in their own unique ways to work together and inhibit Enel's plans even though Luffy was the one to take handle most of the reigns in actually hurting Enel himself. Balances like this for fights in One Piece are awesomely effective in varying things up while still maintaining an ideal balance between what people want out of both story and action.
So when Oda gives this type of news, I don't mind it. Especially when it's been self-evident for years. The only part that bothers me is seeing certain types of scenes cut short from being truly memorable and impressive like Brook not being seen withstanding any attacks from Big Mom on-panel before his speech or Chopper and Carrot's Mirror World adventures being rushed with Chopper's plan formed entirely off-panel. Neither of those scenes even need full fights, but just more respective detailing and interconnectivity to truly feel meaningful in seeing Brook stand up against Big Mom or the logic behind Chopper being shrewd enough to improvise a plan to turn the tables against Brûlée, Randoph, Aristocroc, and Diesel.
But let's say that for the rest One Piece, we never got a 1v1 fight until… Straw Hats versus Blackbeard Pirates in the finale. Or maybe not even then. All action is comprised of is either team-up fights or inconclusive 1v1s whereas enemies get taken down solely by plot circumstances or external threats. Hell no, I am never going to be in favor of that. I want to see the full limits of the Straw Hat crew to see where they stand against an Emperor's crew together so it feels all the more meaningful when they get stronger in the final arc of the series and finally become the strongest crew (along with all of the creativity and fun that can go into the fights). Especially when the last time they nearly all got 1v1 fights was in Fishman Island when they stomped the New Fishman Pirates without breaking a sweat.
Depiction says nothing about the length of a fight though. A clash can be much more meaningful when it´s short and sweet and does not require chapters of continuous fighting. There is a reason why Luffy vs Bellamy felt so satisfying the first time around. Sure, to a certain extent it was the "he got what was coming for him" but the impact of the clash was that greater because how Oda dealt it.
That is very true. But it's not like we should use Luffy vs Bellamy as a precedent to say that every fight should be as brief. If anything, it's so meaningful because of how much it stands out as a brief fight among all of the other longer ones in establishing the gap between Luffy and Bellamy both in strength and in spiritual resolve. If there were brief fights all over the place, it would be a much lesser deal. Especially since we're used to every arc having an antagonist, with the only arcs withstanding from having strong antagonists are the Romance Dawn and Whiskey Peak arcs.
The main problem I have with how the some fights at Totland were handled is that they were supposed to be important fights.
Luffy vs. Cracker was Luffy going against a Yonko commander for the first time. You know, the people who are just one step behind the emperors themselves. To off-panel important aspects of those fights feels underwhelming because this is supposed to be a milestone we readers want to be invested in. Same for Luffy vs Big Mom in 871 (even though their fight might go on under different circumstances given 871's end).
It makes for good pacing if Oda shortens unimportant fights against characters which only serve as fodder, but taking a general shortening attitude for all fights backfires in my opinion.
Not really because what you perceive as important and what is being portrayed as important are two different things.
Luffy fighting a commander has never been presented as a milestone since Luffy does not care about them, he only cares about Admirals and Yonkou.
On the other hand a clash in the sense of WB vs Shanks, Luffy got it, more was not needed for this arc either.
Luffy fighting a commander has never been presented as a milestone
It was Luffy's longest fight until today and without Nami's help he might have lost. Not on the level of defating a Yonko, but milestone for our hero absolutely. Besides, it made for awkward pacing when we first read it.
@Big:
It was Luffy's longest fight until today and without Nami's help he might have lost. Not on the level of defating a Yonko, but milestone for our hero absolutely. Besides, it made for awkward pacing when we first read it.
That was just another case of Oda shaping a fight around the plot requirements though, fighting that long has also not been presented as something special or as a milestone. Oda needed to keep Luffy and co. away, so he can make them appear in the tea party and that´s what he did and that´s also why Cracker had such an overwhelming power against a brawler such as Luffy or why Luffy conveniently forgot that he has shown the speed to travel half a city in an instant or the fact that he can fly…
I know what you are getting at, for the audience it can be regarded as something special. For Oda and within the story though, it was not.