I feel like this is kind of a argument that ends up boiling down to how much do you want to put Oda on the hook for that. Yeah, it isn't perfectly thought out. It's a 1100-chapter series being published for over 25 years, big deal. It happens. But at the same time, you can handwave it, as people have been doing, and it's not that much effort to do so. If you are already pissed off at the series for other reasons, it's just another thing piling up for you to complain. If you're not it's just something you can make up a good enough reason and it's fine. I doubt "why weren't the roger pirates hunted down" and the quality of the answer to this question is what's making or breaking the plot, honestly.

@FatDogForMidTerms he didn't say it like that, but he did say something that gets to this idea, just not with... such aggressive words.

https://wsstalkback.blogspot.com/2022/07/mysterious-pirates-of-sunday-seas_22.html?m=1

"
Oda: I drew this because I really want to have fun, and I think that it’s okay if people don't like it. I just want to play around with my battles. Since I was an assistant, I have felt that silly expressions that were so characteristic in manga have been gradually lost. Putting a light bulb in a character’s head when they come up with some idea, or making the character’s legs go in circles when they’re running, for example.

Aoyama: Right, also those eyes popping out.

Oda: I have always loved those symbolic expressions, but they keep disappearing. Nobody draws them anymore even though they’re our predecessors' creations who also left many formulae we still use. Battle manga has to keep getting more and more serious to keep up with readers’ expectations and I honestly hate that. I definitely don’t want my work to become a serious manga like that. I want and have decided to have fun, and I feel like I’m finally able to do that. When I was drawing this, I actually had fun."

It's still about him being able to do whatever interests him without caring about what readers would feel or fear of backlash. Which, I agree with you, is very cool.

@electricmastro:

It matters because to disregard Zoro and Usopp's pasts just because there were over 1,000 chapters ago and not the same as pasts like Nami's pasts might be setting the bar a little too high, with all due respect.

If you really don't think Oda's standards for how to construct a crewmate flashback changed over the years we'll have to agree to disagree. If people got Zoro and Usopp-level backstories for a new member, they would be rightfully disappointed. Yamato is still above that, of course, but I still think it's disappointing compared to all of the others and I really didn't think that would be controversial if he is to become a crewmate.

I don't know dude, sometimes this thread feels like a battleground where you have to pick a side and disregard and dismiss any points made by the "other team". It just gets tiring.

@Bugs Man, y'all go to far. Yeah, it sure looks plausible that Oda would do that. One Piece, the series extremely famous for saying blood is the only thing that matters in parent-child relatioships.

Yes, to me it's pretty obvious they aren't directly talking to each other, it's just what the use of haki communicates. But oh well, sometimes people will find things to be angry about at any cost.

Yes, to me it's pretty obvious they aren't directly talking to each other, it's just what the use of haki communicates. But oh well, sometimes people will find things to be angry about at any cost.

I feel like this is kind of a argument that ends up boiling down to how much do you want to put Oda on the hook for that. Yeah, it isn't perfectly thought out. It's a 1100-chapter series being published for over 25 years, big deal. It happens. But at the same time, you can handwave it, as people have been doing, and it's not that much effort to do so. If you are already pissed off at the series for other reasons, it's just another thing piling up for you to complain. If you're not it's just something you can make up a good enough reason and it's fine. I doubt "why weren't the roger pirates hunted down" and the quality of the answer to this question is what's making or breaking the plot, honestly.

@FatDogForMidTerms he didn't say it like that, but he did say something that gets to this idea, just not with... such aggressive words.

https://wsstalkback.blogspot.com/2022/07/mysterious-pirates-of-sunday-seas_22.html?m=1

"
Oda: I drew this because I really want to have fun, and I think that it’s okay if people don't like it. I just want to play around with my battles. Since I was an assistant, I have felt that silly expressions that were so characteristic in manga have been gradually lost. Putting a light bulb in a character’s head when they come up with some idea, or making the character’s legs go in circles when they’re running, for example.

Aoyama: Right, also those eyes popping out.

Oda: I have always loved those symbolic expressions, but they keep disappearing. Nobody draws them anymore even though they’re our predecessors' creations who also left many formulae we still use. Battle manga has to keep getting more and more serious to keep up with readers’ expectations and I honestly hate that. I definitely don’t want my work to become a serious manga like that. I want and have decided to have fun, and I feel like I’m finally able to do that. When I was drawing this, I actually had fun."

It's still about him being able to do whatever interests him without caring about what readers would feel or fear of backlash. Which, I agree with you, is very cool.

@Daz said in Chapter 1066: The Will of Ohara:

@Hades said in Chapter 1066: The Will of Ohara:

The tears of joy were the second cry when he found out that Saul was alive, the first one (the one where the Straw Hats got angry) was tears of sadness to be remembering the tragedy of Ohara.

The first instance of Robin crying is prompted by Vegapunks reveal that the research of Ohara was saved, that Ohara "won", a fact he says moved him to tears - cue a Robin crying too after a flashback showing Ohara fighting to preserve its findings for the future. It's very much a reaction to good news

I can see that, but I think you can also interpret it by Robin being made to remember tragic memories, I'm not sure she was already on the mindset to be happy about it instead of reliving trauma.

@Bugs Man, y'all go to far. Yeah, it sure looks plausible that Oda would do that. One Piece, the series extremely famous for saying blood is the only thing that matters in parent-child relatioships.

@Ivotas but that's what i don't get. He's expressing worries because... he would be affected. As I said, he doesn't need to be visibly shaken with heart-eyes and such. If he let go of Hancock and gave her time to execute another slave arrow or mero mero beam he would be petrified. Why wouldn't he express worries?

I don't understand the Hancock complaint...? Teach wasn't hit by Hancock's attack because... he wasn't. It's not only by looking at her, she needs to actually execute an action, which can be avoided. And you don't need to have heart eyes or whatever to be affected by it, Teach would have been if not for circumstances.

@theackwardstation That's wildly off. Those numbers are from the entire OP series (all the 103 volumes). Volume 103 itself sold 1,793,237 copies.

That, however, is still considerably more than all the last recent volumes (volume 100 excepted, that one got close). The last volume that sold more was 93. The Film Red popularity + the final arc announcement (mainly the first thing) did wonders for OP popularity, with earlier volumes also selling much more than usual. We can't say if that will last, though. My opinion is that it isn't, but stabilizing OP sales for a few volumes is already going to be a great result.

I did like pretty much every strawhat fight besides whatever the fuck Nami got (and even then, Ulti is great! The character didn't disappoint, at least). Sanji coreography was kinda meh, though, but the character writing there did make up for it a lot. Idk, they really don't feel substantially different than an average strawhat fight. Not Oda's peak nor Oda's low, right there at the middle (again, not counting Nami or Usopp).

@electricmastro:

It matters because to disregard Zoro and Usopp's pasts just because there were over 1,000 chapters ago and not the same as pasts like Nami's pasts might be setting the bar a little too high, with all due respect.

If you really don't think Oda's standards for how to construct a crewmate flashback changed over the years we'll have to agree to disagree. If people got Zoro and Usopp-level backstories for a new member, they would be rightfully disappointed. Yamato is still above that, of course, but I still think it's disappointing compared to all of the others and I really didn't think that would be controversial if he is to become a crewmate.

I don't know dude, sometimes this thread feels like a battleground where you have to pick a side and disregard and dismiss any points made by the "other team". It just gets tiring.