Crack Theory: Blackbeard is a Macbeth Parallel
What is the point of this thread: to propose a crack theory, a theory so outrageous that it just might prove true (or not). So just what is it that I propose: that One Piece is entirely based on Shakespeare's Macbeth? Of course not! Such a statement would prove blatantly false when scrutinized in relation to the manga. What I do suggest however, is that Blackbeard and his character arc, as well as the characters associated with him (in multiple ways) are inspired to a certain extent by the archaic play's characters. The evidence is plenty, I assure you. Please understand, I repeat, this is a crack theory, and not meant to taken in full seriousness. I'm not certain of this theory's validity, but it interests me deeply (seeing how Macbeth is by and far my favorite of Shakespeare's plays). So without further ado, let me explain to you the evidence and you decide for yourself if it holds any weight. If the theory proves true, I feel it could help the One Piece fandom predict what is to come in the manga's future.
Synopsis of Macbeth (Thanks to Sparknotes)
! The play begins with the brief appearance of a trio of witches and then moves to a military camp, where the Scottish King Duncan hears the news that his generals, Macbeth and Banquo, have defeated two separate invading armies—one from Ireland, led by the rebel Macdonwald, and one from Norway. Following their pitched battle with these enemy forces, Macbeth and Banquo encounter the witches as they cross a moor. The witches prophesy that Macbeth will be made thane (a rank of Scottish nobility) of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland. They also prophesy that Macbeth’s companion, Banquo, will beget a line of Scottish kings, although Banquo will never be king himself. The witches vanish, and Macbeth and Banquo treat their prophecies skeptically until some of King Duncan’s men come to thank the two generals for their victories in battle and to tell Macbeth that he has indeed been named thane of Cawdor. The previous thane betrayed Scotland by fighting for the Norwegians and Duncan has condemned him to death. Macbeth is intrigued by the possibility that the remainder of the witches’ prophecy—that he will be crowned king—might be true, but he is uncertain what to expect. He visits with King Duncan, and they plan to dine together at Inverness, Macbeth’s castle, that night. Macbeth writes ahead to his wife, Lady Macbeth, telling her all that has happened.
! Lady Macbeth suffers none of her husband’s uncertainty. She desires the kingship for him and wants him to murder Duncan in order to obtain it. When Macbeth arrives at Inverness, she overrides all of her husband’s objections and persuades him to kill the king that very night. He and Lady Macbeth plan to get Duncan’s two chamberlains drunk so they will black out; the next morning they will blame the murder on the chamberlains, who will be defenseless, as they will remember nothing. While Duncan is asleep, Macbeth stabs him, despite his doubts and a number of supernatural portents, including a vision of a bloody dagger. When Duncan’s death is discovered the next morning, Macbeth kills the chamberlains—ostensibly out of rage at their crime—and easily assumes the kingship. Duncan’s sons Malcolm and Donalbain flee to England and Ireland, respectively, fearing that whoever killed Duncan desires their demise as well.
! Fearful of the witches’ prophecy that Banquo’s heirs will seize the throne, Macbeth hires a group of murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance. They ambush Banquo on his way to a royal feast, but they fail to kill Fleance, who escapes into the night. Macbeth becomes furious: as long as Fleance is alive, he fears that his power remains insecure. At the feast that night, Banquo’s ghost visits Macbeth. When he sees the ghost, Macbeth raves fearfully, startling his guests, who include most of the great Scottish nobility. Lady Macbeth tries to neutralize the damage, but Macbeth’s kingship incites increasing resistance from his nobles and subjects. Frightened, Macbeth goes to visit the witches in their cavern. There, they show him a sequence of demons and spirits who present him with further prophecies: he must beware of Macduff, a Scottish nobleman who opposed Macbeth’s accession to the throne; he is incapable of being harmed by any man born of woman; and he will be safe until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane Castle. Macbeth is relieved and feels secure, because he knows that all men are born of women and that forests cannot move. When he learns that Macduff has fled to England to join Malcolm, Macbeth orders that Macduff’s castle be seized and, most cruelly, that Lady Macduff and her children be murdered.
! When news of his family’s execution reaches Macduff in England, he is stricken with grief and vows revenge. Prince Malcolm, Duncan’s son, has succeeded in raising an army in England, and Macduff joins him as he rides to Scotland to challenge Macbeth’s forces. The invasion has the support of the Scottish nobles, who are appalled and frightened by Macbeth’s tyrannical and murderous behavior. Lady Macbeth, meanwhile, becomes plagued with fits of sleepwalking in which she bemoans what she believes to be bloodstains on her hands. Before Macbeth’s opponents arrive, Macbeth receives news that she has killed herself, causing him to sink into a deep and pessimistic despair. Nevertheless, he awaits the English and fortifies Dunsinane, to which he seems to have withdrawn in order to defend himself, certain that the witches’ prophecies guarantee his invincibility. He is struck numb with fear, however, when he learns that the English army is advancing on Dunsinane shielded with boughs cut from Birnam Wood. Birnam Wood is indeed coming to Dunsinane, fulfilling half of the witches’ prophecy.
! In the battle, Macbeth hews violently, but the English forces gradually overwhelm his army and castle. On the battlefield, Macbeth encounters the vengeful Macduff, who declares that he was not “of woman born” but was instead “untimely ripped” from his mother’s womb (what we now call birth by cesarean section). Though he realizes that he is doomed, Macbeth continues to fight until Macduff kills and beheads him. Malcolm, now the King of Scotland, declares his benevolent intentions for the country and invites all to see him crowned at Scone.
Synopsis of Blackbeard
! 1. Blackbeard joins Whitebeard's crew a while back
2. Blackbeard duels with Shanks at an unknown time
3. Blackbeard chooses to wait for the Dark Dark Fruit
4. Blackbeard begins building his crew
5. Blackbeard ransacks Drum Kingdom 7 years ago
6. Blackbeard finally gets to see the dark fruit, but it ends up with Thatch
7. Blackbeard kills Thatch for the Dark Dark Fruit and consume it himself
8. Blackbeard runs away from Whitebeard's wrath
9. Blackbeard aims for the Shichibukai position that Crocodile lost
10. Blackbeard comes across Luffy, figures out his high bounty, and chooses to capture him to become Shichibukai
11. While he is chasing Luffy, Luffy is sent to Sky Island. Blackbeard chooses to wait for Luffy to come back down again
12. While chasing for Luffy, Blackbeard comes across Ace.
13. Blackbeard ask Ace to join him, but Ace obviously denies him
14. Blackbeard versus Ace. Blackbeard wins. Blackbeard sends Ace to the WG and becomes Shichibukai
15. Blackbeard abuses his Shichibukai status to infiltrate Impel Down.
16. Blackbeard confronts Luffy (again) at Impel Down ("Fate crossroads" as Van Augur says)
17. Blackbeard's plans are almost thwarted by Magellan, but Shiliew saves him with the antidote. Blackbeard gathers the strongest members of Impel Down to join his crew.
18. Blackbeard takes advantage of the moment, and goes to Marineford to execute Whitebeard and take his power. When he arrives Ace is already dead.
19. Blackbeard plans are once again, almost thwarted by Whitebeard, but Blackbeard and his crew manage to kill him and Blackbeard takes his power.
20. Over the time skip, Blackbeard becomes Yonkou using the Gura Gura powers he took from Whitebeard.
Character Parallels
! Blackbeard: Macbeth
Whitebeard, WG: Duncan
Ace: Banquo
Luffy: Fleance
Akainu/Aokiji/Kizaru: Three Murderers
Strawhat's: Macduff*
Blackbeard's Other Selves: Lady Macbeth*
Shanks and co: Lady Macduff*
Crocodile: Thane of Cawdor
Thatch: Macdonwald
Drum Kingdom: Norwegian Forces
Marco/Jozu: Malcolm *
Some embodiment of the Three Fates: The Weird Sisters*
*denotes uncertainty
Macbeth and Blackbeard parallels
Case 1: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard are introduced through external characterization.
Case 2: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard choose to wait for what is their's, but decide to change plans when things don't seem to be going their way.
Case 3: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard kill their king when the moment is opportune. They take their position and their power.
Case 4: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard are thematically embodied by the concepts of Fatalism and Ambition.
Case 5: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard take the place of a traitor and abuse that power for their own goals
Case 6: The actual introduction of both characters show a different side of their personalities
Case 7: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard become King offscreen
Character Parallels
Case 8: Whitebeard and the WG (especially Whitebeard) are allusions to Macbeth's King Duncan.
Case 9: Ace is an allusion to Macbeth's Banquo.
Case 10: Luffy is an allusion to Macbeth's Fleance.
Case 11: The color trio, are, in some way, an allusion to the three murderers in Macbeth
Case 12: Crocodile is an allusion to the offscreen character the Thane of Cawdor
Before I get started with this theory, I must point out, there are almost certainly more differences than parallels between Shakespeare's Macbeth and One Piece's Blackbeard, so I suppose I should point out a few (many- really) and rationalize them. Disagree if you so choose.
! 1. Blackbeard is open about his murders. Macbeth isn't. In other words Macbeth kills people with secrecy and Blackbeard does not.
- Honestly, I feel this is intentional on Oda's part. As I state in Case 1, Blackbeard is characterized as this ideal pirate; pirates don't use clandestine tactics to get what they want, they go out and commit the crime themselves. The same thing applies to Macbeth, albeit, in a different fashion. To sum it all up, different settings call for different tactics.
2. Blackbeard 'Thaneship' is received through traitorous actions to his king; Macbeth's thaneship is rewarded through loyalty. - Same as above.
3. In One Piece, Ace dies, then Whitebeard dies. In Macbeth, Duncan dies, then Banquo dies. - One Piece is a work by itself. It is not a replication of Shakespeare's stuff. The point of this thread is to show that Oda likely got inspiration from Macbeth, but he didn't copy it word for word, hence, the king dies after the friend.
4. In One Piece, Blackbeard is introduced as a disloyal bastard. In Macbeth, the titular character is introduced as a valiant hero. - Same as 1 and 2
5. As of yet, Blackbeard does not have a Lady Macbeth to spur him on. Obviously, Macbeth does. - I'll get to this later in the theory. I contend Blackbeard does have a Lady Macbeth to push him to action, it just isn't a singular person.
6. Blackbeard doesn't show anything close to the degree of moral complexity Macbeth shows. For starters, Blackbeard hasn't even shown grief for his actions - This is a shonen manga. Not Shakespeare. That doesn't mean Oda can't take inspiration from the play.
7. Blackbeard doesn't care if his Banquo or Fleance survived or not - Blackbeard is a different character with a similar frame; he is his own man, but has some basis in the Shakespearean character.
Remember, I stated that Blackbeard was inspired by Shakespeare's Macbeth and is not a mirror image. There are bound to be dissimilarities and I recognize them. Of course, I may be making parallels out of nothingness, but I like to think that they're living and breathing. Now let's finally kick this theory off.
Case 1: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard are introduced through external characterization.
Macbeth: Act 1 Scene 2
! Doubtful it stood;
As two spent swimmers, that do cling together
And choke their art. The merciless Macdonwald–
Worthy to be a rebel, for to that
The multiplying villanies of nature
Do swarm upon him--from the western isles
Of kerns and gallowglasses is supplied;
And fortune, on his damned quarrel smiling,
Show'd like a rebel's whore: but all's too weak:
For brave Macbeth--well he deserves that name--
Disdaining fortune, with his brandish'd steel,
Which smoked with bloody execution,
Like valour's minion carved out his passage
Till he faced the slave;
Which ne'er shook hands, nor bade farewell to him,
Till he unseam'd him from the nave to the chaps,
And fix'd his head upon our battlements.
Here, Macbeth is first introduced, not through his actions or words, but by the words of others. What do we get out of this long speech from a dying Captain of Duncan's army? That Macbeth is one valiant, loyal, and brutal son of a gun. To illustrate, Macbeth vertically ripped the rebel Macdonwald's torso in half and proceeded to hang his head on a stake. Macbeth did this brutal action in the king's name. I'd like to point out that this scene shows Macbeth to be an ideal member of his profession, a proper Anglo Saxon warrior, if you will, One who is loyal, valiant, and brave. Later on in the captain's story (not shown), we learn Macbeth also defeated the Norwegian Force in combat. I''ll bring that into this argument later.
Below is a page from Chapter 159
! 
Like Macbeth, Blackbeard is introduced through external characterization, first in Drum, as the man who ransacked Drum 3 years prior to the currents event of the story, and second, in Alabasta, where Ace describes him as the man who murdered 4th division commander Thatch (as you can see in the above page). What the reader gets out these descriptions of Blackbeard, like Macbeth, is once again, a man who is the 'ideal' member of his profession. Blackbeard is disloyal (he murdered his crewmate), cowardly (he is running from Whitebeard), and conniving, which is exactly what you expect from a pirate.
To sum this case up, both Macbeth and Blackbeard are characters who are externally introduced; through their external introductions, we get an image of a character that is ideal in terms of the setting. Before ending this case, I'd like to point out that Blackbeard killing Thatch is synonymous to Macbeth killing Macdonwald and Blackbeard wreaking havoc upon Drum Kingdom is synonymous to Macbeth defeating the Norwegian Forces.
Case 2: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard choose to wait for what is their's, but decide to change plans when things don't seem to be going their way.
This one of my stronger cases if I say so myself. Unlike the above, one can't really say it is prevalent trope in fiction.
Macbeth Act 1: Scene 3 & Macbeth Act 1: Scene 4
! Macbeth Act 1: Scene 3
If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me,
Without my stir.
! Macbeth Act 1: Scene 4
[Aside] The Prince of Cumberland! that is a step
On which I must fall down, or else o'erleap,
For in my way it lies. Stars, hide your fires;
Let not light see my black and deep desires:
The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be,
Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see.
Before I get started on this case, I must give context to the quotes above. For starters, both quotes are spoken by Macbeth. In the first quote, Macbeth has just received the title Thane of Cawdor in accordance with the three weird sister’s prophecies. He thinks about how he is going to become king (assassination of the Duncan is obviously on his mind), but instead, he chooses to wait for his destiny and believes that by waiting he will receive the kingship eventually, or maybe it won’t happen at all. The problem with this logic on Macbeth’s part is that, in Anglo-Saxon times, you cannot move up in the sociopolitical ladder without taking action, and here Macbeth chooses to do nothing. This fact will apply later in this case. In the second quote, Macbeth is disturbed to hear that Duncan just declared his son, Malcolm, Prince of Cumberland, or next in line for the throne. This greatly dismays Macbeth, because, in his mind, that meant the witches prophecy wasn’t meant to be unless he take action (that is, murder people- the “Black and Deep Desires”). What these quotes mean in simpler terms, you ask: that Macbeth chose to wait, but decided to change plan when things went awry.
A Page from Chapter 440
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In Chapter 440 (above) Blackbeard tells Ace that he waited for the Dark Dark fruit for decades. He decided that if it never showed up, he would remain on Whitebeard’s ship until the end of his life. When Thatch obtained the fruit, knowing the Devil Fruit Rule on the Whitebeard’s ship, Blackbeard knew he would have to take action or he never get to achieve his lofty goals. So, as we all know, Blackbeard killed Thatch and took his fruit “in a twist of fate” as he calls it.
Both Macbeth and Blackbeard chose to wait (Blackbeard obviously did so for a much longer period) for what they felt was theirs and when they couldn’t have it, they reconsidered their plan of action. Have you ever heard the phrase “You never really realize you truly wanted something until you seemingly couldn’t have it? Both Macbeth and Blackbeard feel this emotion, when Malcolm is declared the Prince of Cumberland, and Thatch gets the Dark Dark Fruit. Both fictional characters chose inaction in worlds where action was the determinant for rising in ranks. Macbeth got the position Thane of Cawdor by taking action and defeating rebels and opposing armies; Blackbeard joined Whitebeard’s crew by actively seeking him out. Why should getting the dark fruit (using it to become King) or becoming King be any different? Case in point, Macbeth and Blackbeard chose to wait and when waiting rewarded them with a big slap in the face, they chose action, that action being a trip down a path of evil.
Case 3: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard kill their king when the moment is opportune. They take their position and their power.
Macbeth Act 1: Scene 5
>! The raven himself is hoarse
That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan
Under my battlements.
Although this Lady Macbeth speaking (A character who has yet to show a parallel in One Piece), I must inform you that Lady Macbeth is Macbeth's initial motivator in all of this evil business. Here Lady Macbeth states her plans to assassinate Duncan, with Macbeth's hand in things, and take Duncan throne as Macbeth's and her own.
Chapter 576
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Blackbeard arrives in Marineford to take down Whitebeard and steal his power. His original plan probably involved building up his force against Whitebeard and taking him down, but with the opportunity at hand, he went to Marineford and slayed an extremely weakened Whitebeard, taking his power in the process.
In both scenarios, the respective Macbeth of the story took advantage of the situation and killed their king. This, I admit, is a common trope in fiction, but it occurs in both stories nonetheless.
Case 4: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard are thematically embodied by the concepts of Fatalism and Ambition.
Type in ambition and fate on you're search engine and tell me what shows up. M-A-C-B-E-T-H. Am I right in this assumption? Obviously, these two thematic concept are linked together in a variety fiction, but their intertwining occurs most poignantly and famously in Macbeth. When writing a character intrinsically linked to fate and ambition, were would someone else look for advice aside from Macbeth? That's where Blackbeard comes into this.
Macbeth Act 1: Scene 7 & Act 4: Scene 1
! Macbeth Act 1: Scene 7
I have no spur
To prick the sides of my intent, but only
Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself
And falls on the other.
! Macbeth Act 4: Scene 1
I conjure you, by that which you profess,
Howe'er you come to know it, answer me:
Though you untie the winds and let them fight
Against the churches; though the yesty waves
Confound and swallow navigation up;
Though bladed corn be lodged and trees blown down;
Though castles topple on their warders' heads;
Though palaces and pyramids do slope
Their heads to their foundations; though the treasure
Of nature's germens tumble all together,
Even till destruction sicken; answer me
To what I ask you.
In the first quote, Macbeth considers giving his ambitions a rest right before Lady Macbeth goes to truly convince of pulling of the terrible deed of regicide. See, there is ambition. In the second quote, Macbeth goes to the Wyrd sisters desperately wanting more information about his fate. See, there is fatalism. As I already stated, Macbeth and fatalism and ambitiousness are deeply intertwined with one another.
Chapter 225
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Blackbeard's Jolly Roger
!
*Mods, I got this from deviant art, is that acceptable or not?
In chapter 225, we see Blackbeard is a deep believer of dreams when he says "a man's dream never dies". Dreams and ambitions are concepts that generally synonymous. In Blackbeard's jolly roger, we see three skulls, each representing one of the three Moirai or Fate, past, present, future, and the cross bones representing a symbol of which I cannot remember the name of that emblemize the three fates. The fact that Blackbeard based his jolly rogers after fate, in addition to his crew's fixation with concept seem to indicate that fatalism is a crucial aspect of Blackbeard's character.
The fact that fate and ambition are so crucial to both characters seems coincidental, but when faced with the fact that Oda inputted many of tropes associated with Macbeth, in to his story, you may realize that its more than that.
Case 5: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard take the place of a traitor and abuse that power for their own goals
This case is a truly iffy; Blackbeard becomes Shichibukai intentionally; Macbeth does not. But, outside of that, it is certainly true that they use the power of their new title to exact their goals.
Macbeth Act 1: Scene 4
! The thane of Cawdor lives: why do you dress me
In borrow'd robes?
Here Macbeth expresses surprise at being titled Thane of Cawdor by the king, just after he received the witches prophecy that he would be king and Thane of Cawdor. An important thing to note is that Cawdor betrayed the king recently, and Duncan, impressed by Macbeth's valor, gives Macbeth his new title. Later on, Macbeth uses the celebration of his title to kill the king. Macbeth then abandons the title and becomes King of Scotland.
Chapter 576 (again)
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After Crocodile betrayed the WG, he was sent to Impel Down. Eager to abuse the power invested in an individual as Shichibukai, Blackbeard schemed to replace him. After chasing for Luffy for a while, Blackbeard came across Ace. Blackbeard defeated Ace and used Ace's head to become a member of the Shichibukai. Once becoming a Shichibukai, Blackbeard abused his new found power, accessed Impel Down, gained a crew, and dropped his position.
In both cases, the respective Macbeth of the story abuses the power invested in him by their new found position to rise up in the world; they then abandon that position and become king. As I already said, this is a weak argument, but an argument nonetheless for a parallel.
Case 6: The actual introduction of both characters show a different side of their personalities
When Macbeth and Blackbeard are introduced in their stories, both show a side of their personalities that is differs greatly from the external characterization of them.
Macbeth Act 1: Scene 4
>! I am thane of Cawdor:
If good, why do I yield to that suggestion
Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair
And make my seated heart knock at my ribs,
Against the use of nature
After being announced Thane of Cawdor, Macbeth begins to think about the second part of the Witch's prophecy, that he will be king. From his external characterization, mentioned in Case 1, Macbeth is shown to be loyal, brave, valiant, and a little brutal. In this quote, we see that image is not exactly true. Macbeth, without the being impelled by his wife, is ambitious and seeks to augment his greatness. He is not exactly the loyal follower of the king we are led to believe he was in the Captain's dying words.
Once Again, I refer to the same page of Chapter 225 (A Man's Dream)
! \
Case 7: Both Macbeth and Blackbeard become King offscreen
Macbeth Act 2: Scene 4
! He is already named, and gone to Scone
To be invested.
In this tid bit, Ross states Macbeth has gone to Scone to be invested. In other words, Ross is stating that Macbeth is being crowned at Scone. I must point out that Macbeth's crowning occurs off screen and is only mentioned by the words of others.
Chapter 650
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After the time skip, Blackbeard is introduced as one of the Yonkou off screen by Jinbe.
Case in point, both become king off-screen. In this situation, Ross and Jinbe play the same role. Is any other description necessary?
Subtheories
Now for the more interesting part, if this theory proves true, what does that mean for Blackbeard as a character and One Piece in general?
Subtheory 1: Blackbeard has a Lady Macbeth in the form of other individuals being harbored in his body.
Do things like, 'its not him but them' ring a bell? Or does Blackbeard having a weird body structure mean anything to you? Factor in the matters that his jolly roger has three heads (for fates and the number of individuals in Blackbeard's body) and the fact Oda is terribly inconsistent in drawing Blackbeard's teeth, I may have a proper guess on my hand. Every Macbeth needs a Lady Macbeth, and what better a Lady Macbeth than an evil doppelganger residing in One Piece's Macbeth's body. This evil Blackbeard residing within the Marshall D. Teach we know and love could possibly be the one who pushed Blackbeard to kill Thatch. This evil Blackbeard could be the one who planned Blackbeard's rise to one of the Four Emperors. I don't know about you, but pre-Thatch's death Blackbeard doesn't seem like the guy who would raze cities and burn the world down. I'm betting my money on this holding true, and if it does, plus one for the theory.
Subtheory 2: In Blackbeard's backstory, some iterations of the three witches will show their face.
Blackbeard's fascination with fate must have come from somewhere. Somewhere in his existence, he may have came across the three fates, albeit, probably not in witches robes. Macbeth being motivated to become King came from these three in the form of witches. If Blackbeard is One Piece's Macbeth, shouldn't he have some sort of meeting with the three fates to tempt him?
Subtheory 3: Blackbeard confidence in taking hits is because he was informed by his "three witches" he would not be defeated "by one of woman born" (not exactly this, but something unique to Luffy (the man who will defeat him) that by prophecy allows Luffy to beat him.
In Macbeth, the three weird sisters informed the titular character that he would not fall to one of woman born. He ends up getting killed by Macduff because Macduff was "from his mother untimely ripped" or birthed by Caesarian Section. As you already know (probably), Blackbeard lets people hit him knowing its going to inflict severe pain upon him. He confronts Whitebeard knowledgeable of the fact that he is going to get his behind sent to hell, but even mocks Whitebeard as he dies. Doesn't this seem like the kind of guy who thinks he's impervious to everything, invincible even. What if Blackbeard has a prophecy from his three fates stating something around the lines that he is invincible, except under a certain condition. That would explain his confidence in taking hits.
Subtheory 4: Blackbeard will kill Shanks (already kind of obvious to me to be honest, regardless of this theory's validity) and co and Shanks and co will serve as the Strawhat's Lady Macduff and Children
If this theory holds true, Blackbeard needs to kill someone dearly close to the Macduff of the story that motivate him to act. Shanks would serve as that person, obviously. Macbeth sent assassins to murder Macduff. Macduff wasn't there, so the assassins murdered Macduff's Wife and Family. I purport the same thing will occur in One Piece, Blackbeard will murder Shanks and co (Lady Macduff and children), and make things personal to Luffy (Macduff) and co.
Subtheory 5: Marco and the remnant of the Whitebeard pirates split up and are hiding somewhere in the New World
Malcolm and Donalbain ran away and hid after hearing of their father's murder. If this theory is true, I see Marco and the remnants of the crew doing just the same.
Bear with me, there is more to come.
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