Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!

Deicide

It's out:

https://mangaplus.shueisha.co.jp/viewer/1020064

pariston_hill

He walks on air, he burst in flames without burning, the refracts lights, he blocks lasers, physicists hate him for he is ~~Vinsomke~~ Sanji.

Gear 4 Sauce

When Robert decides to stop playing around it's over for you zorotards

10/10 chapter, now here are the predictions for next week:

Caribou finesses his way onto Augur's ship
Lafitte was here after all, he went to try and get the seraphims for Teach
Saturn is held up by whatever goes on between the marines and the giants
Jinbe finally arrives, but both Zoro and Lucci yell at him not to interfere bc they are in the middle of a petty ass argument
Kizaru manages to fly past Sanji and Luffy, and is about to stab VP with his light sword. Sentomaru blocks it, and somehow gets VP away from the scene without endangering him. Luffy, Sanji and Kizaru now have the floor for themselves.
Sanji thanks Kizaru for the reality check two years ago, but treats him to a good ol' Hell Memories because he's still mad about Kamabakka
chapter ends with Bonney and Kuma sensing whatever goes on with Robonosuke.

Deicide

Some quick comments:

I wonder where this "Sunny can't stop" sub-sub-sub-plot is going. Mark my words, Oda is going to turn this into something unexpected.

Also, since the ship can't stop, what happens to Zoro and Jinbe, who are nowhere near the ship's path?
The unofficial translation seemed like Zoro could have a hidden advantage ("You are not the one in control of this fight" or something like that), while the official makes it seem like Zoro is just pointing out that neither of them is in control of the fight's flow.

I previously predicted Lucci would fool Zoro into getting lost so he could rescue Yorki or free the Seraphim, but now it feels we are getting a real but quick fight with a definitive end ahead.
The G5 memes were right. Luffy is still smiling and doing gags even thought Vegapunk is dying, lol. I miss the old Luffy...
Saturn keeps being a failure of a villain. He doesn't feel threatening at all at this point. To me, he's the worst main villain we've got in the entire series. I'm sure he will pull some tricks in his fight, but due to the arc's nature, he will soon meet his swift defeat.
Oh, no! Vegapunk is dying. Anyway... Why should we be worried? Even if he dies (which everyone doubts, but it's possible), there's still three other Vegapunks with his memories (plus a 4th one, but that's a villain).
Sanji vs Kizaru is something that I always wanted to see but was losing hope it would really happen. I'm so excited for this. It's probably the thing that excites me the most for the remainder of Egghead.
AND THE STARS ENTER THE STAGE!

Unfortunately, this destroys my theory about the Blackbeard ship (thought there's still a tiny tiny tiny fragment of sliver of hope), but, hey, at least they came and they conquered this chapter.

I was always fascinated by Van Augur. And I was always and doubtless in the "Teach is the final villain" team. The Blackbeard Pirates are rising, while the World Government is crumbling on its own weight and incompetence.
It seems the redefining phase of the arc is almost over. Next chapters could still bring some twists and turns before the final fights begin, but the path now seems very straightforward. The arc is ending in around 20 chapters, maybe a bit less than that.

This was probably the best non-flashback non-cutaway chapter of Egghead so far. The arc still has a lot of problems (crew doing pretty much nothing, a pitiful villain, lukewarm tension, lots of off-screening), but at least it's tail end seems to be short and sweet.

Gear 4 Sauce

Will Hancock be joining the crew in Elbaf?

Deicide

@Gear-4-Sauce Well, she will join them at some point. Dunno if it's Elbaf, there was more setup for Egghead with the invasion of Amazon Lily, but she still has to leave the island and seek Luffy, if she's not already doing so. It's just a matter of when, not if.

The Franky Tank

Caribou being a Blackbeard fanboy mirroring Bartolomeo was something I was not expecting after everything that has happened with him since his introduction. If it was just his fighting prowess, he'd be just a chump, but it's him knowing about Shirohoshi's true capabilities that make him dangerous.

Really getting a sense of Blackbeard playing the long game between stealing powers and using them for various purposes. With the ability to imitate Saturn, I see the big aspect of that being Blackbeard gaining control of all the Seraphim.

Cockycent

Kizaru just want this to be over. He don't want to do this, but he has to. Can't even keep his eyes open on all of his attacks.

Deicide

@Cockycent His fight will probably be good because at least he can vent his frustrations on someone he doesn't care about, while also giving time for Bonney and the others to escape.

Kishido

Sanji!!!

Cockycent

@Deicide This is 1 of those bigger than a fight types like Kata vs Luffy with whoever Kizaru ends up fighting in the end.

This can possibly lead to VP "coaching" whoever take on Saturn. Same way he was Exposition Man for Lucci vs Luffy.

Some mix of the crew and Robonosuke possibly. I thought Kata would take on Sanji alone or Sanji + Luffy, so i'm sticking to Luffy vs Kizaru till the end as a possibility.

Deicide

@Cockycent I do see Kizaru as the strongest enemy here, but while either Sanji or Luffy could be his opponent, I feel only Luffy works as Saturn's opponent.

We've seen the "weak boss" having his top fighter challenge Luffy before, but in this case, there's just a lot of connections between Bonney, Kuma, Saturn and Nika, and Saturn is still a threat (in theory) that could have his own brand of "magical power" (also theory). So, Luffy fighting him while he torments Bonney and Kuma could lead to us knowing more about the nature of Luffy's power, as well as work as a way of hyping whatever "magic" he uses as a warm-up to other Elders and Imu.

.access timeco.

One thing I want to see after this chapter is Bonney feeding Luffy her own ideas of how to use rubber powers as he fights Saturn or Borsalino. And they eventually forget the fight entirely because they are having fun mindstorming

I will bring back this comment I made a few chapters back, because this chapter made me feel like it could end up happening. Imagine when Saturn comes back, Bonney immediately hits him with a huge rubbery attack and goes "how about this?" and then Luffy just "cool, but how about this?" and they start having fun trying to outdo each other's idea while using Saturn as a punching bag.

Deicide

@access-timeco The punchbag part checks out, at least.

I do think there's a very likely chance that Saturn goes down with a combo duo-Nika attack from Bonney and Luffy, so I kinda agree.

Hey, it's not like Saturn has any reputation left to maintain at this point.

Sengokusgoat

@access-timeco I wonder if she'll be able to go full Nika mode, white hair and everything.

aku-chan

Since Devon just copied Saturn, I guess this puts an end to any doppelganger theories (Unless she can copy a copy?).

Luffy will just have to punch him so hard he can't regenerate.

Kfunk

How about Bonney using distorted future : Nika on her father too?
Kuma told Saturn back in God Valley and to Bonney that he wants to be like Nika, I feel we're heading to a Nika father-daughter combo on Saturn.
I still think Luffy's opponent in this arc is Kizaru, Sanji might get another moment next chapter but I doubt Oda will have him blatantly outdo Zoro who has been struggling for over 10 chapters against a pre-ts enemy, even if Lucci is arguably the most competent villain right now.

Saturn IS the main villain of Egghead, but I feel Oda is not setting up Luffy vs Saturn properly. They met and clashed for the first time in this chapter and it kinda happened randomly in the middle of it with Saturn being sent flying the page after it started. Eh.
In comparison, the beginning of the first round of Luffy vs Kizaru was built up first by having a cliffhanger of Luffy's reacting strongly to Kizaru's power then the following chapter ending with another cliffhanger of Luffy and Kizaru facing each other.

Cyan D. Funk

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Cockycent

@Deicide I think in the end, it might be a combination of science and DF "magic".

Last arc, Queen and Caesar's work got to be displayed. I'm assuming some of what King and Sasaki did is off Queen enhancing them to an extent.

CDs have access to so many things, there could just be more to Awakening, but that "magic" circle seems off.

I still don't know what is tougher between the 2. I'm just confused on how Robonosuke plays into this. For example, I did not see Zunesha doing what it did to Jack.

The crew and the Minks could have did well against Jack. Oda got him off the board quick.

electricmastro

So is Bonney Luffy's disciple now?

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Logia

I got spoiled with Caribou showing up from one of Tekking's thumbnails, but the context of him in the chapter still thankfully surprised me.

I love Kizaru's comment towards Sanji!

.access timeco.

@Sengokusgoat said in Chapter 1107: I've been looking for you!!:

@access-timeco I wonder if she'll be able to go full Nika mode, white hair and everything.

When we first found out Bonney lived a secluded childhood, I half-jokingly said she was bound to get a "white transformation" (to keep the apparent trend with this archetype of companion that started with Carrot, was improved with Yamato and now is being further improved with Bonney).
After she did a Nika-like attack, though, I am fully expecting it to happen.

Nectar

I can't wait to see what Team Blackbeard does next. I perk up every time one of them shows up.

I wonder if the Giants know what devil fruit Saturn has?

Thought they'd be a twist to Lucci VS Zoro, but I guess Oda was just saving it for the Monster Trio battles portion of the arc.

Come on, York. You're a Vegapunk. You can't be down for the count yet.

@Logia
Crap like that happening is why I can't go too deep down the One Piece manga rabbit hole on YouTube.

Marcotty

The arrival of the giants is as triumphant and epic as you'd expect, as well as completely and totally unearned to feel that way. A moment like this should come when things are at their darkest and we need the added help, but instead it's just compounded the beating that the government was already getting. I don't know what to expect from this development. It's all just too easy, but would Oda really bring up their big return just to beat them down? Current Oda leads me to doubt that.

Lilith has a plan. Whether that plan is for Nami/Ussop/Chopper/Robin to stop the ship or for someone to drop the barrier so they can hop on quickly, who knows. Clearly there must've been a plan to turn off the barrier despite nobody being left at the main controls, so it doesn't really matter. They've got solutions, there's nothing much to worry about up here.

I know the fans would probably rather mock Lucci in all this, but I enjoy his shit talking to Zoro. He's not wrong after all. If the situation was as dire as it should've been, Zoro would be the dead weight delaying our escape right now. Of course, Lucci doesn't know that things aren't as dire as they should be down below and the delay tactic really won't amount to anything when they're just straight winning against a buster call right now. It'd be more reasonable to have Lucci back off as Jinbe approaches (so he can recover Kaku and the agents), but I won't dismiss the possibility for an epic doublespread shot of Zoro/Jinbe taking him down.

The Luffy and Sanji stuff is probably what most fans were excited to see and all that. Fan pleasing galore, but doesn't really change much. We're right back to "Atlas/Franky/Bonney fleeing while Sanji stays for VP." Not the best circle Oda's pulled. If Vegapunk can't be moved without dying, he really needs to die here. It really isn't reasonable to get Chopper down here to save him in time anymore. We've got 3 other good punks still alive anyway. It's time for Vegapunk to give his death speech.

I feel like we'll see more of what the blackbeards were up to on the island all night next chapter. I'd expect Caribou to have to do more to convince them to bring him along than just that little begging.

With how terrible things swung against the government in these last chapters, it really has to be time for their final ace to be played. Come on Saturn, you gotta know it's time to just quit playing slow evil and just call down everything you got at this point.

Shiebs

Caribou vs Rockstar confirmed

electricmastro

@Shiebs said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

Caribou vs Rockstar confirmed

Assuming Blackbeard Pirates and Straw Hats will be 11 vs. 11, maybe Kuzan will be phased out soon.

Deicide

After Egghead, I feel the marines as a military force will be crippled. Not only they are losing a mega-Buster Call force, they lost at least two whole fleets and a partial one when they went after the Warlords. Yes, they’d still have powerhouses like the Admirals, but their vast fleet and weapons will be spent, which will make the seas pretty lawless.

Captain M

The Egghead climax is definitely in full swing now, but it's still hard to tell how much of a full length, stand-your-ground fight to expect from this arc. Battles lately have left more like skirmishes. They're not about beating down your opponent until they physically can't move anymore, it's enough to make them dazed and in need of a moment to catch their breath so you get the chance to go on to your own objectives or keep them away from theirs. Plenty of other arcs have featured these kinds of 'smack the other guy away and get back to the more important stuff' kinds of confrontations (which people online love to extrapolate into being decisive wins or losses despite the result's lack of staying power) but never as a substitute for the traditional final battle. And I think this feeling that the final 1v1 could still come is the last thing that makes it hard to predict the remaining length of the arc.

Getting started, it's awesome seeing the Giant Pirates in action. With the scale normal humans can reach in One Piece, it's easy to forget how freaking big real giants actually are. They tower over the Marine warships enough to cleave them with single swings. And while there are humans who can also cut a battleship in two with their blades, those are individuals, and generally ones near the top of the food chain. When Mihawk cuts through a ship in an instant, it's a moment of awe. And giants are a whole race of people who can do that just virtue of their sheer size.

Usopp's joy at seeing the great warriors again is a wonderful moment. I get the need for a recap for casual readers, but I'd rather have seen some kind of explanation on the giants' timeline - when and how Dorry and Brogy gave up their duel and reunited with the others.

I feel like I'm starting to see part of the escape taking shape in the sequence with the ship sliding. The talk of Brook 'passing through in a moment' and not being able to stop seems to be setting up the crew on top leaping onboard as the Sunny slips past. There's probably going to be a little bit of tension and last minute saves with Jinbe and Zoro rushing to make the rendezvous and a Vegapunk having to rush inside to turn off the barrier (almost forgot about that) and then have to make it back in time, or just sacrifice themselves so the others can get away. With the giants right underneath, there's people there who could catch the Sunny and break its fall, or it could just do a coup de burst to ramp off the edge and into the hole in the Marine fleet made by the giants' arrival. That's my theory for how things play out from here.

Even though I floated the idea of Bonney being upset with her 'god' for not showing up sooner, I'm not at all surprised that she commits to him as a hero instead. While very dramatic, the other thing wouldn't quite have been Oda's style. I appreciate Luffy's casual dismissal of the Nika idea. He's still himself. But I do wish his reaction to seeing Vegapunk's injuries was a little more personal and had a bit more staying power before he shifted back into fun mode. Gear Five coming with a strong sense of euphoria isn't something I mind, but I want to see the difference split a little more evenly. Or at least give Luffy a chance to see a thing like this before transforming. I was close to writing off the lead-up to the attack on Saturn as well. The back and forth with Bonney almost makes it feel like the move is going to be more about showing her up than avenging Vegapunk, and that, to my mind, made it too much of a game. But after taking the stare attack from Saturn, the old Luffy shows his face. Nika will play with Bonney, letting it be her plan and a souped up version of her punch, but Luffy has a score to settle about his friend. The expression in that panel is good. He's still smiling, but it's a determined, focussed smile, with a furrowed brow that brings a wilder intensity to the wide Gear Five eyes. This is the version of Gear Five I want to see more of.

Vegapunk not being able to move without dying is an interesting complication to add. On the topic of having to stand and fight, it gives Luffy and Sanji a reason to defend this space to the end instead of stunning or knocking back Borsalino and Saturn before fleeing, but what happens after? Can we get Chopper down here to save the scientist? And if Vegapunk has enough medical knowledge to be sure of that, wouldn't Atlas, who shares his brain, have the same medical knowhow to do a patch job? Surely Franky has the strength to carry Kuma in her place.

Then there's the Sanji moment. He doesn't know. We'd thought that maybe because he'd acted less pervy around Bonney in some recent chapters that he had a sixth sense for it, but now we just have to say he doesn't know. This does mildly sour the coolness of the laser kick (as does the fact that he did it already two chapters ago without the big reaction). "Physics as we know it is dead" is a great line though.

I'm very interested to see how the choreography for a 2v1 for Luffy, Sanji and Borsalino will play out, even if it ends up being a short, interrupted one. In his earlier fight with Luffy, Borsalino proved an ability to zip around and attack from offshore one moment, up close the next. That speed makes him a terrible foe to have to protect a wounded ally against. In a tag team, however, one person can protect Vegapunk while the other chases Borsalino across the island. Could be fun, especially with Sanji's speed.

Now, that last scene. That's where it's all at this week. I've been asking questions about that Blackbeard ship tease for a long time, and we finally see the agenda. If that touch is what it takes for Catarina to be able to imitate Saturn (and what else could it realistically be?), shit's really about to get serious. It seems like Teach's go-to tactic is weaseling his way into the good graces of a group that has something he wants (Whitebeard's crew, the Warlords, and now seemingly the Celestial Dragons) and betray them to run off with the prize. Then there's this idea of them acquiring "the world" as an ultimate goal. Do we think it's a mirror of Luffy's own secret goal in some way, possibly relating to Gaimon's shoutout to "buy the world" back near the start of the series?

And then, in a one-two punch, we finally get Caribou's endgame. Oda's been stringing this one out for literally the whole timeskip, putting this slimey bastard in the right place at the right time to learn all kinds of valuable things about the Ancient Weapons and the Poneglyphs (as well as the Strawhats' idiosyncrasies) to make him the perfect asset to a final boss.

What a wild chapter. A finale coming together. Exciting action. Mixed feelings about the balance of goofball fun and genuine emotion in Nika. And the last two scenes feeling like they're bringing things Oda has spent most of the series coming to a head at last. The growing pains of Gear Five's implementation into moments of drama are easily forgiven in the face of these ultimate payoffs manifesting.

Oh, and Zoro's fighting Lucci I guess. There's basically nothing of note here except trash talk. The one clash we're shown isn't even particularly dramatic.

Blog!

Captain M

@Deicide With so many countries to conscript from and leverage resources and shipbuilding talent via World Government pressure I've always figured the Marines will be able to replenish themselves pretty quickly from most losses. Plus they're spread thin across the globe currently. Sacrificing the defence of a few small nations to bring a fleet together for a more important battle is a sacrifice the Celestial Dragons would gladly order.

Egghead's losses will exhaust and frustrate them for sure, but they're going to be a very hard group to totally take out of the running without removing the leadership and the power structure that backs them.

.access timeco.

@Marcotty said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

The arrival of the giants is as triumphant and epic as you'd expect, as well as completely and totally unearned to feel that way. A moment like this should come when things are at their darkest and we need the added help, but instead it's just compounded the beating that the government was already getting. I don't know what to expect from this development. It's all just too easy, but would Oda really bring up their big return just to beat them down? Current Oda leads me to doubt that.

Yeah, it was the equivalent of having a bomb being diffused 10 minutes before the explosion. Not exactly climactic.
We never got to see one character being in danger from the Buster Call, even the scenario looks almost the same instead of some flaming inferno one could expect the place would turn into after minutes of bombing, and the cavalry already arrived to diffuse the situation.

Of course, only the smallest ships were taken out, the warships are still intact, but I honestly can't see how any danger could be squeezed out from the Buster Call at this point.

At this point it's hard to even believe the SH need to escape. The tables are turning in their favor, so why even run in the first place and let the WG have their way?
Can a Logia's awakening be something big enough to put the SH in danger at this point? Can the Seraphim still have a part to play in this arc that is not just glorified Pacifista being passed around?

Captain M

@access-timeco It's hard to pin down a darkest hour when the cast is so spread out and there are so many things happening at once. It becomes impossible to resolve all the tension on every battlefront in a single chapter, so things more cascade back in the crew's favour one bit at a time, with little bits of pushback from the enemy. I think Egghead's darkest hour was right before the flashback and everything since has been cutting the knots and wrapping up.

As for the need to escape, what are they going to do after the battle if they stay? Luffy wouldn't want to stick around and defend Egghead full time, and without him in the way it's only going to take a fraction of what the Government brought this time to do the job for real. Saving Vegapunk means taking him somewhere outside the World Government's control, so Egghead is off the table. So the Strawhats can either expend a lot of energy and risk injuries and damage to "save" an island they'll have to abandon anyway, or take advantage of the opening they've been given and prioritise the stuff that matters.

Dragon D. Luffy

One thing that has dawned on me: Sanji is the perfect opponent for Kizaru, based on themes.

Because Sanji is the ultimate idealist. He believes in love, he believes in not letting anyone starve, not wasting food, not using his hands, not hitting women... he easily sacrifices himself for the crew, for Zeff, and for anyone. He believed in the wedding with Pudding and in his family's promise, and he even wanted to save his family even though they didn't deserve it. He believes in the All Blue. Sanji cares, and he is willing to make grand moves to show he cares.

Kizaru, in the flipside, is a cynical. He loves people too, but he seems resigned to be just a "cog in the machine". To follow orders even though he doesn't agree with them, and not to fight back.

So we have the man who doesn't believe in anything, versus the man who believes in everything. Love can block laser beams, indeed.

I'm not seeing Kizaru go down this arc, though, because I think an admiral defeat should be reserved for a bigger arc (though Saturn's goose is cooked). But I think this clash between Sanji and kizaru starts a rivarly that builds up until Sanji finally beats him in the final war.

.access timeco.

@Captain-M said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

As for the need to escape, what are they going to do after the battle if they stay? Luffy wouldn't want to stick around and defend Egghead full time, and without him in the way it's only going to take a fraction of what the Government brought this time to do the job for real. Saving Vegapunk means taking him somewhere outside the World Government's control, so Egghead is off the table. So the Strawhats can either expend a lot of energy and risk injuries and damage to "save" an island they'll have to abandon anyway, or take advantage of the opening they've been given and prioritise the stuff that matters.

There's the power reactor which can provide the WG more Mother Frames (or more shots with the one they have); there's Punk Records, with all kinds of tech Vegapunk might have not dared to put forward; there are the Seraphim... there's a lot in the island worth either protecting or destroying instead of just leaving behind for the WG to grab.

But that's not the point I was referring to, though. I was talking about the feeling of danger that demands the escape. At this point it feels less like the SH need to run and more like they just want to because it's their default course of action.
The situation went from "they need to escape from this deathtrap" to, like you put, "they will have nothing to do there, so might as well leave".

Goukan

The official's translation of the narrator box refresh about the Little Garden is way more ambiguous, not even outright saying that Oimo and Kashii went to Little Garden to check on their captains, just that they "were trying to" to check on them. Props to Stephen. TCB even had to change the part of the narrator box that said that their duel ended when the SHs arrived, which was flat-out incorrect. Still, I'm sad that this is gearing up to be "we interrupted our duel because our Sun God savior has just returned!" but alas.

Please, Blackbeard, come on and kill Imu already so you can become the way more interesting final villain. We're all waiting for it, even the deluded Imu supporters who'd rather have Kaguya instead of Certified Cherry Pie Lover.

Captain M

@Goukan The official version is outright correct on every point as far as I can tell. Oimo and Kashii did originally set out from Elbaf to check on their captains, they just got fooled once by the World Government, then learned the info they needed from Usopp and went on their way. TCB really flubbed this one.

Deicide

@Captain-M Conscripting inexperienced recruits is not the same as having experienced sailors, and building new ships can only go so fast.

The marines have been suffering terrible losses. Doflamingo's fall cut the government's source of Seastone. They were trying to negotiate with Orochi directly, but now Wano is free again.

Cross Guild was already threatening the morale of the marines, with Sengoku flat out saying they could become a major problem ahead.

Because of the Warlords, it's confirmed the marines lost two fleets (Buggy's and Weevil's) and suffered damage on a third (Hancock's). We don't know what happened to the fleet sent to capture Mihawk, but I doubt they fared way better.

And now in Egghead they are potentially losing dozens of ships and maybe even an Admiral.

Things are not looking good to the marine's naval forces. Yes, trhe World Government can still amass a fleet for some important battle, but that means the marines would be less and less present in outer seas. That makes pirates way stronger.

Captain M

@access-timeco At the same time, would it really be something the Strawhats are concerned about to manage the World Government's longterm military power? We might know that everything is building to a global war where those things will definitely be used against them, but Luffy's vision of the future is just completing his personal adventure, making the voyage to Laugh Tale (and doing one more thing after that). I could see Robin making an argument for torching everything or asking Vegapunk to set a self-destruct to keep these things safe but I think in Luffy's mind the important stuff is sorted.

And for the tension, yeah, I get it. The crew aren't underdogs anymore and it's hard to set that up the same way as Oda used to, especially when they're so spread out in every arc. We might just have to get used to the darkest hours being things closer to the way Saturn was about to kill Bonney before the flashback rather than 'will they escape' mad dashes.

Or just do more island nuke countdowns, no matter how contrived they may be. I guess we could still have Imu decide to aim the Mother Flame at Egghead when he learns the Buster Call is failing.

Captain M

@Deicide Counterpoint on conscripts: Issho and Aramaki were new recruits. Kaido's flashback showed how they can strongarm capable warriors into their ranks from desperate nations. There's no shortage of strong people in the world.

I think you're right though that in the worldbuilding we're seeing the Marines hit hard and we might see more news articles and internal meetings discussing their limits. And that's good texture for Oda to keep in. Things are also just set up such that they're not in danger of collapsing before the final battle. All that stuff can keep getting reported from the fringes, but it's not going to stop the Marines from turning up as a reasonable threat where the main story is involved.

Cyan D. Funk

Oda definitely saw the 17th opening song and was like "oh yeah sanji fighting kizaru is a good idea."

Deicide

@Captain-M said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

Counterpoint on conscripts: Issho and Aramaki were new recruits.

Counter-counterpoint: Issho turned out to use his position to further his own agenda, and both him and Aramaki have broken hierarchy and defied orders.

When you think about it, the whole Warlord fiasco and formation of Cross Guild came from Issho's actions.

You just don't take a strong person and give them a high status expecting they will fall in line and embrace protocols. They may be strong, but they didn't rise on ranks naturally.

Johnny B. Decent

I have to say that it is good for Giants to finally live up to their reputation.

Captain M

@Deicide Issho had an agenda, sure, but the same could be said of most kings at the Reverie. Aside from the PR nightmare of the public apology, his approach to personal goals has been less disruptive than, say, a Garp or Smoker type. He worked within the rules of the system to change it in a way that he thought would be for the better. It's not fair to prop up Cross Guild as something that makes him a liability to the Government; who could have seen that coming?

Aramaki defied orders mostly to be more aggressive and authoritarian towards the Government's enemies. He was rash, but he didn't exactly work against their interests.

Discipline breaking down as unprepared juniors are promoted above what they're ready for by a desperate-for-officers force on the backfoot of a war would be an interesting theme to develop for a more military-focussed series, like a Gundam or something, but I'm not sure if Oda would go for it. Internal division for the Marines is already being setup through the common sentiments and pre-written resignations of a lot of the SWORD force, so you have to imagine the characters who stay with the Government are going to be made hard-liners.

electricmastro

Actually, wouldn’t Bonney be the first character in this series to accomplish two dreams: she found her dad and found Nika. That’s two desires achieved right there after sailing out.

trollatron786

What is the BB pirate motive and what do you think about Teach's heritage?

King Cannon

@trollatron786 said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

What is the BB pirate motive and what do you think about Teach's heritage?

Seems obvious by now that Teach is Rocks' son, starting with his ship being named after Xebec.

The Light of Shandora

I am still hoping for Teach being somehow related to the Buccaneers. Maybe the secret to them will be explored not with Kuma but with Teach, also with Vegapunk close to his death, I belief he won't be able to tell us what's special about them. Either Kuma will be able to talk and answer questions like he was prior to his "death".
Anyways, I thought I would dislike the chapters after reading Redons brief summary last week. Turns out, it's a good chapter, though I hope Bonney will beat up Saturn with her new found belief in Nika. That would free up Luffy and Sanji going after Kizaru and protecting all of them from his pursuit. Sanji should be able to catch up to his speed thanks to his awakened Germa powers and Luffy has the strength to beat him in Gear 5.
Saturn and the Blackbeards, wow. So that scene made it sound like they came for something on Egghead and Saturn is just a nice bonus, or am I misreading something and their goal was Saturn from the beginning? If so that hints at a new level of knowledge and information gathering Teach somehow got. It seems superior to that of Big Mom even in her own turf.

Caribou, finally gets his big role, I somehow wouldn't be surprised that they reject him and he still has to travel with the crew or is captured by the marines, which would give them the option to go after the 2 ancient weapons. Either way is fine with me, but I don't see Teach as the final villain of the story, that ship has sailed for me personally after Imu's introduction and the Kumas flashback and the retrospective it gave me to some scenes of Boa's and Fisher Tigers backstory and parts of the first Sabaody Arc.

wolfwood

Obviously Teach is from the sreenaccub race.

Nectar

@Deicide
I can see the World Governemnt being backed into a corner, forcing them to go all in on their super-weapon (Uranus) to keep control. At least, once they solve the Mother Flame issue.

@King-Cannon said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

@trollatron786 said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

What is the BB pirate motive and what do you think about Teach's heritage?

Seems obvious by now that Teach is Rocks' son, starting with his ship being named after Xebec.

I never really thought of that but it makes sense. Maybe that's why Blackbeard's so efficient. He just needs to do what his dad tried while avoiding his mistakes, like relying on a crew of powerhouses who don't get along.

Rean

@Captain-M said in Chapter 1107: I've Been Looking For You!!:

And for the tension, yeah, I get it. The crew aren't underdogs anymore and it's hard to set that up the same way as Oda used to, especially when they're so spread out in every arc. We might just have to get used to the darkest hours being things closer to the way Saturn was about to kill Bonney before the flashback rather than 'will they escape' mad dashes.

I said this before, but I think the tension has always been about "Will Vegapunk escape Egghead or not?" And that question is absolutely unresolved yet.

Luffy and co already have more than enough to get them out, but Vegapunk himself (and his satellites) are a far less sure thing, the old man had death flags for a while now and is very close to dying rn.

My prediction is the old man dies, and the only satellites to get out of this are Lilith and York, so the WG and Revos both get their own Vegapunk.

Captain M

@Rean Yup, it kinda has to become about the supporting characters after a point.

It's very hard, in long-term storytelling, to have protagonists that grow and move up the ranks and still get to be the underdogs the same way in every conflict. Not without pulling a Dragon Ball and introducing even stronger guys from outside the established structure every single arc anyway.

Add that to the nomadic lifestyle of the crew not letting any of them have a personal connection to the setting or a longterm relationship with the locals and it makes sense to start filtering things through secondary characters whose backstories give them stronger local connections, more tangible stakes to threaten, and who aren't strong enough to get what they want without the crew's support because they haven't been climbing the scale at protagonist speeds for a hundred volumes.