@Shift:
Dog Storm literally said the Minks would show of their true power in the battle at Wano, Carrot most likely included. It's probably not something that would show up often considering the full moon condition, but it will be important soon enough. The simple fact is that Oda has been making his arcs longer and longer due to the dozens of characters and plotlines he's been stuffing each island with. Dismissing something just because Oda isn't making it happen fast enough doesn't make much sense to me.
Jinbe was a very slow burn, as you've noticed; unlike Franky, he didn't stand out inordinately during the majority of ID/MF and FI.
Incredibly solid predictions based around ODa's writing and how he introduced Jinbe were in place before he even appeared on camera. Not based on "how cool her looks" or "I hope he can do these things." But based purely on the writing and setup and how he was introduced. (Including being name dropped ten years earlier and ties to Arlong and Nami.)
Go back to the earlier versions of this thread and look at what Brennen, Urogue and myself all said. It took years for people to accept that Jinbe was going to join because he was "boring and fat", but his credentials, uniqueness and Oda presentation were there immediately. Brennen's theory was good to go after one chapter with the guy talking to Ace, and only got stronger as time went on.
And Robin's first onscreen act was to apparently kill Igaram.
And then in her first interaction she toyed with everyone and came off as mysterious, and had a very unique design. Over the years Oda has streamlined it so she looks like every other girl, but at the time her eyes, nose, haircut and overall presentation were super unique.
And why is it so detrimental that Luffy notes the Minks are similar to Chopper?
Because it is ODA SAYING IT. The author of the series brought up "Hey, these guys are like someone already in the crew." Because no, he did not need to draw attention to that exact specific fact. Not instantly, and not as the first thing out of Luffy's mouth. He is already aware they're like Chopper, and so is Luffy. His EXACT WORDS. If Chopper had brought up, it'd be one thing, but no, Luffy did, as his very first impression. That by default makes them less interesting, less standout.
He's not treating them any differently than anyone else now; what I'm specifically noting is that he's expressly talking to Carrot now in the same way he's talking to the rest of his crew. In the heat of this moment, he's seeing her in an equal light as the rest of those on his ship. It's not Pedro and it's not Pekoms he's talking to; it's Nami, Jinbe, Brook, Chopper and Carrot.
He's also not starry eyed or wowed by anything she's done, and she's literally been backup to play off of Chopper the entire time. Her entire presence has been to give Chopper someone to play off this arc, the same way Pedro was for Brook. And Pedro was there… so they had an excuse to get onto the island in the first place.
She nibbles on people, goes feral if someone touches her carrots, becomes docile when petted, and is naive enough to seriously underestimate the length of a voyage at sea. I dunno, seems quirky enough to me.
Again. When EVERYONE gets quirks and fun moments, you have to actually stand out. One or two little things over the course of two years ain't enough.
If it's her body proportions were taking about,
What is unique about her design. DOn't use the word "bunny" or "girl".
Where are her scars, tatoos, earings, strange clothes, hair stripes, polka dots, triple swords, three earings in an ear, twirly eyebrow, bionic legs, pinnochio nose, blue nose,metal nose, pug nose, thick bridged nose, broken antler, popeye arms, Ace Ventura haircut, triple pointed chin, afro, freckles, armband, torn ear, devil fruit turtle shell, sunglasses, lightning scar, giant tusks, unusual silhouette, ANYTHING on her that says Oda put time and effort into her design?
Her design is utterly generic and something Oda would have gotten in one or two passes, depending on how long it took to sort out the haircut. He did not put months of refinement and thought into her design as he would for a permanent member.
She is one of dozens of Zou residents, and once they leave Totland and get to Wano, she'll be one of dozens again. Same way Aphelandra was just another Amazon.
Jinbe needed 8 years to do the same.
Again, he was setup, unique and ready to go when he was introduced. His joining was a slow burn, but his stand out qualities and place in the story were not.