Posts made by Taz

@sgamer82:

If you mean Doflamingo's references to Ivankov and Kuma's relationship, I think he's merely inferring from Iva's reactions that the two know each other. If you mean the "already dead" bit, that's a tougher call.

I'm assuming Iva knew the one and only original Kuma.

Yeah I meant the "already dead" comment from DoFla. I'm curious to know whether Iva knew the original tyrant, or if he was aware of the 'government dog' cover.

Kuma was made out to be such a horrible person in his pre-warlord days, I can't really imagine him being a revolutionary. Unless his joining is what 'tamed' him into the born-again bible-bearing bear.

@Steven:

Croc better show up next chapter, even if he gets punched in the face, he needs to do something.

I'm also wondering what happened to Croc. Hopefully he won't be joining Mihawk as background dressing.

Not to mention, more than any of the other subplots, I've been itching to know just what is his connection with Whitebeard.

@Silence:

Moria just got punched once. What on earth makes people think he's down for the count?

Jinbei hype. Moria h8. Standard forum idiocy.

LOL, Buggy's tongue-lolling on page 8. I think the Buggy/Whitebeard interactions are my favourite part of the chapter.

Kuma's story is a bit confusing. We need some clarification on just 'which' Kuma was the one Ivankov knew in the first place. How the heck would DoFlamingo know all this anyway? (His intelligence network must be more vast than anyone expected.)

And I don't believe it.. Hancock did the god damn blushing shit again. That'll learn me to speak too soon in the spoiler thread.

But dammit, I still say Moria's not out of the game yet. I'll reserve my disappointment and blinding rage in the event that a KO is confirmed from this single hit. Regardless of Jinbei being 'the new guy', our first and probably only warlord-battle ever simply can not be degraded to the likes of an uninspired jobbing display. No way.

Wow, they could've allocated a bit more of the animation budget for Franky's dance number. It really deserved better. But the introduction of British Gentleman mode was excellence. I'm not sure if I like this or Fat Usopp better as a transformation upgrade.

On the other hand no gaps were filled concerning how he got from his starting point to his cover arc's running from cyborg animals. He was in his normal mode there, and later when he stumbles upon Vegapunk's old workshop, so he should be able to get ahold of some cola between then.

And Nami's new cyclone attack. I want.

Despite some alterations here and there, I'm still willing to accept the more significant content as canon-ish, assuming they arethe results of Oda's input. And if that's the case, I really hope this is just skimming the surface of Nami's powerup. Even the addition of a fanservice scene didn't bother me since it was brief and actually served a purpose of showcasing more of Weatheria's quirks. I'm actually quite interested to learn more about its history and relations with the rest of the world.

But wasn't Merlin a head taller than Nami in the comic? Strange that he comes off so short in the anime.

(That Hancock fantasy scene was so awkward to watch. Kind of reminiscent of the yaoi fantasy scene in Naruto.)

@CCC:

So… you think Oda ok'd an interpretation of his story which changes the okamas from "wild hedonistic rapists" to "just chasing Sanji for fun, because he seemed to be asking for it, despite the fact that he clearly doesn't want it." I guess it's possible that Oda had something like that in mind all along, especially considering how well he treats okamas in OP otherwise.

I sure hope so. That had been bugging me about Sanji's arc - making the trannies look like a bunch of irrational, relentless 'rapists' for the sake of an easy, overplayed joke. I actually love how the filler was done for that here. It really shows how we got from point A to point B, and the series of misunderstandings was pretty believable in context.

Chopper's story unfortunately left much to be desired. Such gratuitous use of still-picture montages just to kill time.

@Nectar:

Tsuru with the laundry DF?
The next female DF user will have the power to make sandwiches without a kitchen.

I'm pretty sure some girl's going to get a sewing or knitting DF down the line.

@yohohohoho:

Mihawk is a jobless bum who never shows up to meetings and spends all his time one-shotting low-tier pirates on his dumb raft and getting roped into happy hour with Shanks. He's not a master swordsman, he's a griefer in an MMORPG. He goes around looking for lowbies to kill and logs off the minute he finds a real challenge.

lol

@Lordzeb121:

Usopp left the crew, thats a big thing to walk away from especially for such selfish immature reasons. That was the biggest betrayal to the Nakama motto yet not Zoro reminding luffy of his duty as a captain and their place as the crew. They're not playing pirates however much that seems to people like you.

A bit of a sidetrack: but I always find it strange when people use adherence of protocol and regiment as primary arguments involving the SHs. Unlike someone like Don Krieg, the SHs have gotten as far as they have by bumbling through the Grand Line, making mistakes, doing everything the wrong way. That's what makes them who they are, they're not a conventional crew. That said, once again, I'm not saying Usopp shouldn't have apologized. He should have.

But it doesn't change the fact that: Zoro threw a tantrum; Zoro threatened the captain; Zoro's harsh rhetoric ignored the fact that Usopp's sticking up for a ship that he saw as part of the crew (truly a devious betrayal) ultimately saved them; the terms he demanded made way for what could be seen as an empty apology.

not have to worry about them walking out whenever they feel like it for such petty reasons.

Wow, now you're dismissing the Luffy/Usopp fight as a run-of-the-mill spat. And the ship that saved their lives as a 'petty reason'.

Anyway, feel free to disagree. My point apparently wasn't made clear before, so I just wanted to get it out there.

@robbybevard:

He was right too, it would have set a permanent precedent for bad mojo and arguments and betrayals at crucial times.

Providing a second opinion is fine. He outright threatened to leave the crew over the captain's actions towards a fellow crewmate (sounds familiar.) What a dick. And yet, despite all that happened - let's say Sanji's hands were cut off and one of the others refused to leave him behind, I get the feeling we'd see such a 'betrayal' again. .

@shinpanman:

It was rather long, but what would I have done with my summer break without the Arlong Park Character Tournament? Seriously, this stuff was like crack to me for a while…

ANYWAY, thanks for the fun dudes.

http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/2381/winnerz.png

! http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/6240/okamaway.png

Great pic/comic. Bon will always be a winner in our hearts!
All that's missing there is Shushu. For all the controversy he caused, that dog deserves recognition.

Overall fun tournament. And good job to all the mods that made it possible. Those random, wacky and intense matches are what really made everything worthwhile.

@Usopp with a Pushpop: I can't believe you voted against Buggy just for the purposes of crushing Zoro in the final round. First Nami, now this? Shaaaame.

@Darklord:

Umm…then what have we been discussing all along? If you agree that Zoro was right to demand that Usopp apologize, then we are on the same page. What was your point that I distorted, since I am pretty confused. By the way, good job making a judgment on my character based on an avatar, which I can easily change. That's the real dick move.

My point was that Zoro acted like a dick about it. He basically threw his version of a temper tantrum. Whoever drew that Ace whining fanart needs to do one for Zoro whining about not staying with a captain who doesn't demand apologies.

He acted insubordinate to Luffy while complaining about insubordinance and demanded terms that ultimately made Usopp's apology less meaningful. His cold, unsympathetic and militant attitude not only disregarded the fact that Usopp's 'mistake' ultimately saved them all, but was completely contrary to the spirit of friendship that's been the driving force of the Straw Hat pirates. That part honestly wouldn't bother me so much if all this "nakama" bullshit wasn't drilled into our heads for hundreds of chapters - now it's conveniently ignored? Pffft.

And good God, the avatar comment was a joke. That's just the type of humourless, dickish reaction expected from a guy with a Zoro avatar.
(Yes that was a joke, too … or was it?)

Even though this match has been a boring shut out since the beginning, I've got to give it to the Zoro fans for their non-stop efforts. I wasn't even planning on voting, but felt compelled to (and for a guy I don't even like that much) after seeing how hard they worked despite an impossible battle. I'm pretty sure others felt the same and that contributed to the narrowing of the gap, so props to you guys.

Makes me think that if the Crocodile fans had kept up the same way (and their campaign was really awesome in the first half) instead of getting demoralized and falling apart when Luffy pulled ahead, they could have possibley halved their gap, too.

@HEATXZ:

Here's my other Luffy campaign with guest star Toriko

! http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/858/eatitluffy1.jpg
http://img32.imageshack.us/img32/5007/eatitluffy2copy.jpg
http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/2865/eatitluffy3copy.jpg

HEATXZ, I will miss your campaigns most of all.

@Darklord: where did I say Usopp shouldn't have apologized? Good job distorting my point. Dick move, man. Dick move. As expected from a guy with a Zoro avatar.

On-Topic: My one regret in this tournament is missing out on Richie vs Sengoku..

@Darklord:

Yeah, it's simple…Usopp disrespected their captain and Zoro didn't want to let him get away with it without an apology.

Simplify: ignoring the cause, circumstances, everything that happened in-between, irony, very nature of the SH crew and breaking it down into a strawman argument. Basically what you did. If you're that interested just read through the old threads. I won't say anymore on it since it's an old topic that I care about getting into just as much as "Usopp character development".

(Edit, lest I incur Ivotas' wrath: Just to make it clear, I'm not approving what Usopp did.)

@Ivotas:

http://e1n.eecafe.net/DOODLES/QUASI/081218.png

Kuhahahahahahahahahaha :devil:

Ooh good point. Because of Zoro's dickishness we were forced to put up with Luffy and Usopp bawling like a bunch babies.

@dinty:

Oda has been evolving Zoro's personality for a long time – turning him from a lovable goof into a responsible adult. And unfortunately, that's made Zoro less popular with some people, because he's no longer as stupidly funny as he once was. But I think Oda's done a great job of finding other ways to make Zoro funny.

Yeah, Zoro's found a new niche in deadpan humour. And it has made for some really funny moments whenever he lets it out. I also agree that he's one of the crew that has changed the most since his introduction, so it's a positive in that it shows development. But on the other hand I still find it a shame since, save a few quirks he's kept, that very growth and maturity has made him conform too much to the generic "honourable swordsman" archetype - one I never liked. But we can't all have our cake and eat it, too.

Of course we see the events at W-7 differently and always have, and I'm not going to try to persuade you otherwise (sweat) but I think you're right that at least some of the good deeds he's done since then are Oda's way of showing that he's not a monster.

Weeell, it wouldn't be interesting if we agreed on everything now would it? Not that I object to the principle per se. (Though I suspect Zoro has never read the story of "The Prodigal Son".) But I liked his bonding with Brook, so eh, let it slide.

I did miss the little lecture Usopp gave him - that puts a new spin on an already interesting scene (Usopp protecting Zoro for a change). Though Zoro's 'flaw' here was really just more of his honourable nature kicking in, I don't know if that should really count. Still, the whole Sabaody conclusion was great.

The way I see it, this is a convenient way for him to end up with a huge crew before entering the New World. So for him to have circus (the original crew), side-show freaks (Foxy's crew) and con-artists (the Impel Down 'converts') all together in one big armada seems perfect to me. And yes, he's got to go on to bigger things. He's one of Oda's own favorite characters.

When you put it that way.. it wouldn't suprise me if Buggy's newfound (and possibley future) strength in numbers might be his stepping stones to becoming the 5th Emperor of the new world. It'd be horrible and hilarious and perfect at the same time.

@Darklord:

Apparently some people believe that he should have let Usopp walk all over their captain.:ninja:

Way to simplify.

It wasn't just asking for an apology, it was his whole attitude in context. Usopp's too. The W-7 conclusion wasn't handled well in general and suffered problems with consistency, which is why there was so much controversy about it (one of many during those days). I'm too lazy to get deep into it, but the fact is that after the arc both Zoro and Usopp took huge blows to their popularity. …Which kind of makes me regret that we didn't have one of these tourneys right after that. The results would have no doubt been hilarious.

@Ivotas:

Doesn't that still leave the opportunity that we'll see Gold Lion in a Roger flashback? The statement clearly indicates that Gold Lions place in the manga existed before he was ever meant to appear in a movie. So I'd say it's very likely to see him appear much later down the line.

Yeah, there's also the fact that he was mentioned in Impel Down. What I understood from that explanation was that Oda opted out of name-dropping Shiki during the Shanks/Whitebeard confrontation since too much was already going on at that time. Not that he'd necessarily never show up or be flashbacked down the line.

Depending on how the premise of the movie is written, I think it's still possible for the events to be considered canon(ish).

@e1n:

i thought i explained that already.

i guess i'll refrain from making tournament threads next year. =/
i made the same mistake in franky vs sanji too, only i realized it way sooner, so it was possible to close and restart the poll.

Oh I wasn't questioning what happened (I saw your explanation). I just thought it was funny that someone else had the same automatic compulsion as me.

@Ubiq:

On the other hand, Zoro is still well below his average for a match and it's somewhat questionable as to how much overlap there is between the two fanbases; my guess is that, while there are a few swing votes, the bases are largely two different sets of people. So there are undoubtedly quite a few more votes out there for Zoro even now.

That I'm not too sure about, since one of Zoro's huge advantages in previous matches was his being 'second top-ranked Straw Hat', which obviously is meaningless when pitted against the main one. But the fact that we're already seeing a huge turnaround does make it very possible.

There is still more-or-less a day left. Plenty of time for the fangirl army to rally and make something hilarious happen.

@dinty:

Buggy has a big cult following around here. (I'm actually one of them! – still waiting impatiently for Oda to give me that Buggy vs Foxy DBF cover story). Buggy also benefited from the timing of the tournament: it coincided with his return to the spotlight and his Impel Down caper, so that magnified his fanbase.

Crocodile has a pretty big following too and a similar support base as Buggy; villain, non-SH, etc. which is why I thought the case was hopeless. But I guess in the end the deciding factor was that Luffy's popularity was just too much. Understandable though, given that it's been his story alone for the last year. (Though that is true about the timing for Zoro. Perhaps Oda was trying to make up for his dickishness in W-7 with that generous exhibition of good deeds.)

Even though Buggy seems to be building up for greater things, I too would still like a meeting with Foxy. And with Alvida and the rest of his crew wandering around without one of their co-captains, they'd make for some nice Foxy-prey so I wouldn't say the window of opportunity has been shut just yet.

@Hawkeye:

Hmmmm, how come we can't see who voted for who in this poll?

lol, after seeing such a one-sided jump in votes, I was curious to check that option, too.

Last I checked Zoro was losing by 110+ votes.

But since then he's made about a 40-vote gain. Wow! And Luffy's hardly gotten any new ones. I was sure after the new chapter dropped he'd be getting a ton more. Shows that even in a shut out, you can have surprises.

There's still a day - maybe Zoro can close the gap and make the Luffy fans' jaws drop.

@nakapan_jun:

thanks for the heads up dinty…
I'm pretty disappointed that they have revenged towards Zoro since he beats every potential opponent... but hey this apforums so yeah... >< you cannot please anyone eh?

Hey now, don't assume these results are purely due to "revenge" voting. Lots of factors are at work here:

1. Luffy being the main character.

2. Luffy taking up 100% of the screentime the past year. Thus tapping into the "hype" vote base.

3. Zoro's appeal primarily resting on the "badass" factor throughout the span of the tournament. (That post-Kuma pic was pretty much his only campaign up until now.) Of course there's more to him than that, but this is where the main momentum of his popularity stems from (and the current improved, more varied campaigning just came too late). It's a huge mistake to try and take on the main character from the "badass" angle alone since he has a monopoly on those types of moments by default.

4. Lack of comedy. Don't underestimate the power of LOLz. He's had a few moments, but Zoro just hasn't been as funny post-Skypiea. (I stand by my old theory that Ener frying his brains changed him.)

5. Lack of unanimous support from the non-SH/Villain vote. You can't blame this on "revenge" voting. Both are Straw Hats, so obviously those two camps are going to fall apart and just vote independently. And don't forget, Luffy took out Crocodile, another fan favourite with a much more humiliating loss. If anything the fans of Buggy should be inclined to vote Zoro since he defeated him in a close match that allowed him to exit with dignity. Though if they don't like him or prefer Luffy to begin with, then why not jump at the chance for revenge? (I just happen to dislike all of the Monster Trio for various reasons.)

Taking all this into account, the outcome was kind of predictable. So yeah, exclusively blaming revenge voting is just as inaccurate as blaming Buggy's loss exclusively on bitter Sanji fans.

@dinty:

EDIT: Taz!

Yeeees?

This is brutal.

Well, I guess I'll do what I usually do when faced with indifference:

A) examine the campaigns.

B) help out the one that's losing.

For once Zoro's campaigns are better (amazingly free of spamming that bloodied post-Kuma pic), and after all the great characters he beat he needs to put up a decent show. So he has my pity vote. (My heart almost always lies with the underdogs, what can I say.)

Well Zoro's not doing as bad as I thought he would (so far). I was anticipating an almost instant blowout. Guessing that all those random Luffy couple pictures on the first few pages had the reverse effect and compelled some people to vote for Zoro.

There's still lots of time so a turnaround isn't completely impossible. (And nice fanarts, Myrllok.)

@robbybevard:

VOTE FOR HIRILUK!

I'm convinced.
+1 for Hiriluk.

That last page: lol @ Jinbei looking so casual.

Not sure if I'll vote in the final round (due to indifference), but there's almost no way I'm voting for Luffy. Among a few reasons, because I noticed that the most obnoxious anti-Buggy campaigners all sported Luffy avatars. If I liked him a bit more, I could get past that small-minded pettiness. But nope.

Though I do think the extended time for voting should reel in a bigger turn-out. It'd be pretty shameful otherwise.

@dinty:

I think a lot of people fell off the treadmill around Amazon Lily, but I expect a few more will return to the fold now that the momentum has picked up.

Ooh yeah, Amazon Lily.. That factored big-time into my waning interest in the series itself, let alone the forum. Glad I wasn't alone there.

:shocked::shocked::shocked:

looks up into the sky for evidence of falling frogs or four horsemen

Haha, oh come on I wasn't that bad! But these days, despite the occasional comment, I've mellowed out a lot on the marimo. (Er, so long as no one brings up Water-7 part II.) Even voted for him once.

If this match doesn't break a record also, I'd be very surprised – since both contestants broke records in their prior matches. Your boy has nothing to worry about.

I have to say the results shocked me. After seeing Crocodile destroyed in the match with Luffy, I really believed the best Buggy could manage was something like 100 votes against mighty Zoro. Definitely exceeded my expectations.

Of course, it would've been nice if he won.. cough but a close defeat is the next best thing.

@Lordzeb121:

Dont Let Buggys Loss Go To Waste! Vote Flashily For Zoro 2009

@Lordzeb121:

Bwahahahahaha And So Ends Buggy The Clowns Reign Of Fail!!!

Yeah, stop right there.

@flybyshooter:

Alright I am going ahead and saying it. The Sanji people seemed to pile against Buggy during this round to support Zoro. So, why don't we do the same to Zoro during the finals and support Luffy. Lets make Zoro lose hard during the next round!

No need. We got a taste of what Luffy vs Zoro will be like with Luffy vs Croc. Zoro won't even have the advantage of the unanimous support of the "villain" or "anti-Straw Hat" vote. Predicting a shut out.

Besides, Dinty threw a pity vote (against Zoro no less) to let Buggy reach 300. I'm willing to return the favour.

While obviously disappointed, I must say that Buggy's performance today FAR-exceeded my highest expectations. Well done you loveable clown bastard.

@dinty:

Well, it is a "popularity contest" after all, so it stands to follow.

Maybe if they'd called it a "funky silly loveable oddball character contest" the results would have been different

All well and good, but there are actually people who admitted they LIKE Buggy better than Zoro, but are voting because they want a Luffy/Zoro final. (Whyyy?)

So neither side can claim complete sincerity.

That said, come on lurkers! Vote for the more entertaining final match - Buggy & Luffy! Let those two would-be Pirate King Paramecias have at it. Besides,

Clowns are funny…

jFGYXZFReiE

The world needs laughter.

Vote Buggy

Aww.. gap is widening. I guess that '600th vote' tempted some of the Zoro lurkers out of hiding.

Come on guys, this is your last chance to help out Buggy. He's come such a long way:

From wiling away in East Blue, to jumping headfirst into the Grand Line, and now prepping to join the fray of Whitebeard vs Marines! Won't that be an interesting reunion? And it's coming!

@llLuffyll:

Huhuhu. I hardly ever post, but i'll put my to cents in! VOTE BUGGY, VOTE FLASHY!!!!!!!! only 11 more votes!!! C'mon now I agree, zoro vs luffy would be kind of boring/predictable. This might be the last tournament where buggy will stand a chance.

One brave lurker has come forth!

And yes, this likely is the last tournament where Buggy could actually make it as a finalist. The circumstances (Straw Hats missing for a year) and the timing (just finishing an amazing adventure in Impel Down and preparing to join the current chaos against Whitebeard) being the main advantages. By next and subsequent years the Straw Hats will be back together. I doubt Oda will ever have a separation like that again, so all minor characters will be effectively shut out. This is quite possibley our only chance ever to have a non-Straw Hat finalist. Not even winner, finalist.

Let's be like Buggy and seize this rare opportunity!

@Marimo_Swordsman:

make a buggy amv with this song?

I'll have to pass that on to Urouge.

@klet:

"Seem" being the key word there, I take it? :ninja:

No, it really is "seem". Don't be fooled, I can tell you for a fact that there are Zoro fans lurking around that are 'saving' their vote, should the numbers get a bit too close. (You know who you are.)

Our last moments with Buggy are precious. But I think we've already beaten the past voting record. This looks like the end.

If there are any remaining lurkers out there, I beseech you to vote Buggy! Don't let the final round be a silly fanboy penis war between Luffy and Zoro. Take the the previous Luffy vs 'Serious Badass' (Croc) as an example. Buggy at least makes for entertaining matches. His penis is detacheable.

@The:

I voted Zoro but it's much funnier to campaign for Buggy.

See? Even Zoro fans acknowledge this!

Come on. After all,

Clowns are funny…

jFGYXZFReiE

Vote Funny

Vote Buggy

Aw, is the voter count maxed out already? And there's still a few hours..

Come on, do we really want another match, let alone the final one, consisting of that same bloody Zoro picture getting posted over and over again, accompanied by repetitive, tiresome arguments about who's more 'badass' between Zoro and Luffy?

Vote for fun times! Help make the final round flashy!

Vote Buggy!

@fedcom:

Thanks for that. I had a good laugh and voted Buggy. (even though I was planning to vote Zoro)

Nice! Every vote counts. We should support the laughter. Support Buggy!

One Piece's main story might be focused on Luffy and the Straw Hats, but to an extent it's also been about Buggy and his journey from East Blue.

Despite a meagre 15 million bounty he still managed to survive the wilderness of the Grand Line, defying the odds without the benefit of being a main character. He's already come so far, let's help him get just a bit further!

Come on, vote for the last minor character/villain/underdog left in this thing. Make a miracle happen.
Vote Buggy!

Vote for the first villain to engage in comical banter with Luffy!

It's not easy to make a public execution into a successful two-man comedy sketch. But these two accomplished it.

VOTE BUGGY

We want to have a fun final round, don't we? Well,

Clowns are funny…

jFGYXZFReiE

Vote Funny

Vote Buggy

Buggy's band of choice.

Becomes sometimes clown paint just looks cooler.

Vote Buggy!

I don't believe it. After the Luffy/Crocodile match I was fearing the worst for Buggy, but he's actually hanging in there!

Come on Arlong Park, let's aim for a miracle.

How many guys out there can become their own sweet ride?

Vote Buggy(-cart)!

Darkstorm, did you make that icon yourself?

@KiShiDo:

Dunno but you are the type of person I don't believe.

__vZAjrJsFw

Clowns are funny…

jFGYXZFReiE

Vote Funny

Vote Buggy

@Sesshy:

Buggy supporters should of been smarter. Why would you want your underdog to have an early lead? You're blowing away all the potential pity votes, and then you can stack on the actual votes later. Obviously you don't want it to get to out of hand and get so beat down that everyone loses interest, but still.

Yes, because we actually have control over who votes and what time.

I dread what the day will bring. I know the closeness of the results at this moment are a lie.

@Zach:

If this gets close, I'll vote for Buggy, if it isn't, I'll vote for Zoro. I'll wait until late tomorrow.

… I don't understand this. It's this prevalent "vote for the one who's winning" attitude that prevents the underdogs from rising up and overcoming.

Come onnnn, vote Buggeh!

There's no other non-SH character that we've seen go through as much as he has: from arc villain; to star of his own mini-series (which was animated!); to grandiose comeback with Alvida that resulted in his almost killing Luffy; to comical interlude with Ace; and finally to yet another grandiose comeback, this time culminating in him making a name for himself in the New World!

What other minor character can boast such a journey that we've had the privilege of following?

Only Buggy!

Remember people:

Clowns are funny…

jFGYXZFReiE

Vote Funny

Vote Buggy

Zoro must be stopped.

No matter the cost.

[Buggy transforms into car-mode]

bDdcAaWnbQs

@sufjan:

thanks guys for the compliments and Marguerite for the repost, though i wish this match was slightly more competitive and then we could have had some fun campaigning

is this sig worthy? and fixed, but now that Crocodile is gone I really am lost on which character to support

Buggy!

Since the next match is most likely his final hurrah, let the last remaining underdog/villain/non-SH go out as he lived - flashily!

I thought that rule only applied to you. Namely because I've made largish posts before and didn't have any problems. (Same for some other people.)

@dinty:

Taz? Wah-hey! My old sparring partner! It's been ages.

I went dormant for about half a year, and then got sucked back into AP by a vortex called "499 votes." Somehow I felt strangely compelled to be the 500th – (no prize for guessing who I voted for) -- and decided to stick around. So here I am. Cheers.

lol, "sparring partner"! I suppose that is an accurate description..

So you too were drawn back in by the tournament. But half a year isn't so bad compared to my nearly 2-year hiatus. It was a bit surprising to see that almost all the pre-2007 members had vanished.

What's this I read about "the Zoro menace"?
Nice. I see you haven't lost your touch.

Heh, old habits die hard. I was originally planning on tearing into your boy come the finals against Luffy, but have since rescinded that plan. So no venom from me. (He's just been something of a juggernaut in this tournament.)

My only concern now is to try and soften the blow to Buggy as much as possible..

Because it's going to be back and forth arguing about who's more "badass/strong/pimp/etc."

I had thought that nonsense might be avoidable with Luffy.. 'fraid not.

(And like others have said, a final round with the 'Big Two' Straw Hats is extremely conventional and thus, boring.)

@Sesshy:

That's all I got to say 'bout that.

That word is obnoxiously overused around here as is, but the real clincher is when you use it to describe the guy with the brain of a 7-year old who dresses like a hillbilly and is interested in food rather than money/women/power.

Luffy had an advantage of being a more comical character which could have easily made for slightly more original, funny campaigns. Maybe even some informative posts that highlighted why people like him. Instead what we have is mostly 'who's stronger', blahblah 'bigger badass', blahblah 'vote da pimp', nonsense. Luffy is one of the more innocent characters as well as the main one, so I expected a bit more than just the repetitive and meaningless tallying up of "buzz" words. How disappointing.

Man, the next round is going to suck big time.

@dinty:

So then the logical solution would be to find someone who can draw bishie Buggy pronto.

Whoa, now there's a familiar face.

I thought most of the old members had left or been banned.

Starting reading through the first couple of pages of this thread and had to stop once I got to the point where people were spouting "vote Luffy da pimp!"

Using the word pimp.. to describe Luffy. Luffy.

. . . And here I was perfectly ready to throw my support behind him in the event of a match against Zoro. But now, after seeing that the Luffy fanbase is just as horrible as the other big ones, I really couldn't care less who wins between them.

@Ubiq:

Crocodile winning here might well energize the Buggy fanbase as it proves that somebody can beat one of the Big Two. If Crocodile loses, some people who might be inclined to vote for Buggy might hold off because they won't believe that he can beat Zoro.

That's true, but I don't know if it's worth the risk since I really want the Zoro menace eliminated. Luffy might be the only one who stands a chance since Zoro and Croc seem to share a fanbase (the "serious badass" one), and Croc can't afford to have his votes split.

But the odds of one vote making a difference are slim anyways. I'll probably just end up pity-voting Croc since I have a feeling that Luffy will be dominating by the time the masses of daytime lurkers hit the scene.

If by some miracle Buggy wins, then a final match with Croc would be amazing. Even Buggy vs Luffy would be fun.

Still don't know who to vote for in the current match. I like Luffy and Croc just about equally, but being evil would normally give Croc the edge.

On the other hand, since Zoro is 99% going to win against Buggy, I cringe at the idea of a Crocodile vs Zoro match. I can already see it.. 50+ pages of people going back and forth on who's the stronger/more badass/pimp, ugh.

Luffy vs Zoro would suck, too. But it'd still be nice if we had at least one funny guy in the finals.

Aww damn.. Well I'll still vote for Buggy.

@Xing:

That is quite funny. Never noticed the similarities.

Good must win. DO NOT vote for the underdogs just because, and DO NOT pity vote the villains!

The Straw Hats are destined to win.

I'd bad to mess with fate. =]

You could also argue that since good is obviously destined to win in the series, that these tournies are the only chance we'd have to see evil triumph.

(Though the near-positive outcome of Zoro being a finalist is conflicting me on who to support in Luffy vs Croc.)

@shinpanman:

I'm glad you like the comics but I don't think I could've managed one considering I've had no access to my own computer or a scanner all week. Still, I too would've preferred Nami vs. Luffy, even though it would've been just as one-sided.

Well, time for the old to make way for the new. Go, you silly rubber man, you!

I mainly assumed you would've (if you could) since you did them for all the other SH/SH matches. At least we're not missing out there since yes, I did really like them.

Nevertheless, it's ironic how the expectations for potential Roger matches were so over-hyped and in the end he's getting the worst slaughter this round. Very unbefitting of a king. Even Ener did better against the almighty Zoro. And this without making a main story appearance for like 250 chapters, or the benefit of a recent flashback/mention to stir up excitement.
Ah well. Hope we'll get to see something as crazy as the Buggy/Sanji match next round.