Egghead Island is escalating surprisingly fast this week, but I'm happy to see Oda doubling down on Vegapunk leaving with the crew. That should give him the chance to spread out the exposition over the course of this last saga instead of doing it all at once here.
The cover page finally shows Vegapunk in the outfit from Kuma's memories, but there is a question posed here: what does he do with the tongue when he's working? Can he suck that thing back in, or does he toss it over his shoulder, or does he wrap it up like a scarf, Greninja mode. I'm also curious about the two silhouettes assisting him in the lab back there. Aren't they just a bit too distinct to be anonymous researchers? Could be nothing, could be a connection we're jumping out of our seats to point out fifty chapters from now.
We learn that conflict between Vega Punk and the World Government is at a more advanced stage than previously assumed, which makes sense. I remember seeing some people near the start of the arc wondering why the WG would cut ties with their main scientist "so suddenly," but after multiple dodged investigations and vanished agents, we can see CP0's presence is a drastic last step.
What's very interesting about this sequence is the use of the Paw Paw Fruit. The OG Kuma cyborg is still human enough to retain its ability, but it seems to be replicated in S-Bear as well. And he's fast and accurate enough with it to take not just CP0 but apparently the whole ship's crew with him onto the island. I don't need to tell you what a dangerous development that kind of ability is if it can be mass produced, but I'm also assuming that this kind of instant teleportation is limited to close-range applications. Try to go across the world and you get hit with the "three days and three nights" clause. Anything else would be pretty unbalanced. But we'll see how long it takes OG Kuma to show up and make judgements from that.
Or wait, does it just seem like three days and nights because he can send a person around the world, crossing that many timezones before landing at their destination? I'm probably wrong, but I don't recall if it was ever said specifically at Amazon Lily that it's been 72+ hours since the incident at Sabaody, but I can't be bothered scouring the whole arc to check right now.
Vegapunk's dream of unlimited free (and presumably clean) energy for the world is a noble goal, but it's going to take some bigger structural changes to end global conflicts. As Aramaki conveyed back in Wano, tyrants need to create underclasses to survive. There are still plenty of people in positions of power who would reject that kind of opportunity for equality outright.
Big fan of Luffy calling back to his "not a hero" bit from Fishman Island. He ends up incidentally filling the role of hero so often it's easy to forget that part of his characterisation. Maybe if Vegapunk had phrased not like he was giving away unlimited energy but that he was making a world where his friends could use all the energy they wanted...
It doesn't shock me that Vegapunk has access to personal stealth tech for his exit. I wonder what Sanji will think of that, especially given he's managed it without a full-body Raid Suit. Hey it's Sentomaru too. Was wondering when he'd show up. Things are heating up, but hopefully there's time to see him get a bit more involved.
There's not a lot of new information in CP0's initial investigation of the island, except for Stussy's prior experience with the island. Hm, I wonder if she's worked with Vegapunk on something before. It's not like there'd be no applications for advanced technology like holograms, gloves that let you touch holograms, and perfectly passing androids for the "Queen of the Pleasure District" but I don't think Oda would be able to go too deep into something like that. Oh, and what's with Kaku recognising a space monster and thinking it's not meant to be "down on this sea"? What does the World Government know about space?
Rob Lucci is an absolute bastard of a man, but he's also one of my favourite of Luffy's rivals. It's an easy contrast, his bloodthirsty seriousness against Luffy's goofiness, his deference to hierarchy against Luffy's freedom, but it works like a charm. And from Water Seven to the Reverie to here, these traits make him able to do horrible things that make you cheer for his defeat. In this case, his attack on Atlas, one of the most likable and charmingly designed Vegaclones. The cracked face and eye shorting out make for a surprisingly graphic image to end the chapter. I'd assumed the clones were organic copies, but Atlas at least is much more mechanical than my prediction. Seeing this, I kinda hope the colour versions lean a little harder into the idea of eyes as screens, with a little glow behind them or the irises looking like they're made up of LEDs. I know it would give away the robotics too soon, but it's an aesthetic I really like for these kinds of characters.
Anyway, I'm glad to have confirmation Atlas is still alive and functional before the chapter ends. It would be a shape to totally lose her so soon.
I'm not sure what to expect of Luffy VS Lucci redux in the coming chapters. I'm certain Lucci is stronger now than he was at Ennies Lobby, but Luffy's growth has been exponential, and Gear Five almost feels like cheating. I wouldn't expect a fair fight between them to go in Lucci's favour. But he's the only villain this arc has right now, barring a complete flip of the Seraphim against the Vegapunks and their defenders. Oda doesn't often do arcs without something to threaten the heroes. Maybe Lucci will fight dirty, with seastone or some new weapon. The fact that he opened with his final secret move from the original fight is a good sign he's not going to be holding back. There's story potential in both a curb stomp rematch and an actually challenging one, so I'm really just along the ride.
Only a couple of chapters left before the Christmas/New Years breaks, huh? As exciting as the rising action is, I hope we get at least one big lore or story reveal to chew on before the series goes dark for all those weeks. But there's a few chapters to go before we really have to start worrying about that, so I'm just going to enjoy the ride.