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“I will never question a lady’s tears” – is it really possible that Sanji can be even more “GAR” than he already is? Not for the first time have I found myself man-crushing on Sanji for the crazy things he says, and his interaction with Violet this week was yet another fine example of his unrivaled machismo! I’ve always had a soft spot for the Straw Hat’s “Black Leg” – he’s not just a badass and a great cook, Sanji also has some of the best lines in the entire One Piece universe, “Men who can’t wipe away the tears from a woman’s eyes aren’t real men”! The fact that Violet turned out to be a Donquixote family assassin – and a Devil Fruit user at that – hit me as somewhat of a surprise, but Sanji’s response was pretty much in character and his resolution to the dilemma facing him this time is no different from before – he’s a courteous jack-a-dandy who is truly one of a kind! No question, it was Sanji’s supreme fortitude that ultimately succeeded at swaying Violet’s heart and now that she has betrayed Doflamingo, it remains to be seen what lies ahead for the Giro Giro no Mi user. Violet’s circumstance is quite similar to that of Nico Robin’s and I suspect there’s a good chance she might emerge as the next Straw Hat nakama – along with warrior dwarf Leo, who is in my view, another strong contender!
There’s no doubt at all that Doflamingo is a fearsome opponent – he is widely regarded as the most powerful Shichibukai, and the fact his influence extends beyond that of the World Government is simply a testament to his dreadful reputation. Aptly pointed out Trafalgar Law, the only ones capable of pulling such an imposing stunt are the Tenyruubito, and the most recent bombshell certainly suggests a connection between the Heavenly Yaksha and the odious World Nobles! The Joker’s complicated past has been vaguely hinted at by Vice Admiral Vergo – who is of course, one of Doflamingo’s most trusted subordinates – and what’s unfolding in this chapter is merely an extension of that, something that points to bigger conspiracy in play! In fact, even the Marines were caught off guard by Doflamingo world-deceiving scheme, and it seems like Admiral Fujitora has played right into the Joker’s plan, without any prior warning. What Issho does at this juncture is crucial in setting the stage for the ultimate confrontation – he is a wild card who can swing either way and his mild temperament – and concern for civilian safety, is certainly in stark contrast to Akainu’s “Absolute Justice”! I don’t expect Trafalgar Law to go down this early in the game, but the Surgeon of Death is obviously in a tight spot, and whether he makes it out alive could very much depend on the blind Admiral’s judgment – my gut’s telling me Issho’s going to switch sides and I hope I’m right!
Random tidbits:
- I like that Nico Robin materialized her entire upper body and not just her head – I’m sure Trafalgar Law and Ceasar Clown got a pretty good view!
- Violet was tsun-to-the-max, but Sanji was able to tame her down just fine – I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they’ll be the first official couple in the Straw Hat ranks!
- The Giro Giro no Mi is pretty cool – It’s not just a peeping device, Violet can also make whales out of her teardrops!
- That bastard Caribou is making grandma fight – I wonder what crazy moves does granny have, Hi-Ya!
tl;dr: @SeishunRC – #OnePiece 712: “I will never question a lady’s tears”! Doflamingo just punked the entire world #Manga
“I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they’ll be the first official couple in the Straw Hat ranks!”
Yes please. We already got some potential couple for Luffy and Zoro, but I never seen any for Sanji. So please Oda, hear our plead!
Sorry, but who are Luffy’s and Zoro’s? Boa and Tagashi? Because if we’re counting one-sided crushes then Sanji has Nami.
but yes, I do like Violet
Just for the record, I’m shipping Zoro x Tashigi very hard :3
Luffy x Boa, not so much. I don’t think Luffy is even interested in girls, he’s all about kicking ass, nakama and om-nom-nom XD
What about Zoro x Perona?
Luffy’s more interested in meat than he is in Boa Hancock, unfortunately. What is wrong with him?
+50 Seishun Points for Riilme!
Oda sensei, please make it happen, I beg you 😡
Sorry,no couples in shounen jump(sadly).They will remain single forever,we all know that.
More shipping! Robin x Law 😀
Sorry, I like Sanji’s interaction with Nami a bit too much to ship Violet yet… but who knows. XD
that was a good chap, Sanji was her worst opponent haha!
Indeed, Sanji is a fine dandy. Sanji x Violet, make it happen! :3
This reminds me of Boa and Luffy. Luffy was Boa’s worst opponent for obvious reasons and she later changed.
On the side note, it seems I was half right; like Whitebeard, I was expecting Sanji to be stabbed. And here he was initially back-stabbed, but like Squad, Violet later changes her thoughts and helps Sanji.
So many candidates for a new cremate. Rebecca, Violet, the little soldier, or a dwarf. Will be have more than one new crewmember I wonder.
And for Caribou……I am not surprised how he left granny.
Haha wow Sanji got off way too damn easy. Awfully convenient and disappointing. His actions could have potentially fucked over the crew and yet he gets off scot-free. Just like the fight, Chopper just so happens to chuck a bathtub down to save Sanji. This chivalrous stuff is alright when used as a gag but not when meant to be taken seriously. How does one expect to have the luxury to choose who you get to fight?
Nami was willing to give up all of the crew’s money to save Caimie. Zoro getting lost or Luffy searching for food never voluntarily inhibit the crew’s well-being like Sanji’s spiel does. Character quirks are fine but not at the expense of the crew. Others may see his actions as cool but I think it’s straight up insulting.
But whatever at least Luffy’s getting ready to do some shit and even more interesting is Dofla’s ties to the Gorosei or Celestial Dragons. The best bits are the things that give insight on the Void Century.
But it was also Sanji’s foolhardiness that convinced Violet to switch sides, not to mention divulging some very critical information – lucky for him, I guess 😛
I know it caused her to switch sides, but it’s incredibly stupid all the same. Like I said it’s like the fight with Kalifa. It doesn’t matter if it worked out in the end, he is getting about as close to screwing over the strawhats without actually betraying them. Oda’s just writing it in a silly and contrived way so that Sanji never has to face any repercussions. And it ends up being too convenient.
Think about Sanji’s “I will never kick a woman even if it kills me” scene. I hazard to guess some people actually thought that was cool… but think about his situation. By refusing to acquire Kalifa’s key, he’s essentially damned Robin to be captured by CP9. So he’s actually saying “I will never kick a woman even if it kills Robin” and that’s just inexcusable.
Can you imagine if Kuma was a woman? WOuld Sanji have really offered to take Zoro’s place in Thriller Bark? Or would he have done it in the same serious fashion? What about if Big Mam and her crew decide to start some shit? Or how about the fact that his actions pretty much step on the dreams of people like Kuina and Tashigi?
Gag-chivalrous Sanji is alright. Serious-chivalrous Sanji is just sad. I mean all this + the nosebleed thing on Fishman Island? He is paling in comparison to early Sanji, who seemed so much cooler.
I’m not saying I agree with his action – and certainly his philosophy doesn’t conform to real-life scenarios. But a GAR/dandyish Sanji works wonders in this context only because it’s One Piece and his character is fun to watch 😉
Umm… One Piece is just as much a comedy manga as it is a shounen manga. I don’t think you should take it too seriously.
Loved this chapter, this arc is really getting exciting! Maybe it was mentioned before, but do we know how many crewmates Luffy will actually end up with? If memory serves, I heard that he’s only got around half of the final number. Anyway, I feel there are loads of characters in this arc that could potentially join the Straw Hats. In addition to the ones you mentioned Seishun, perhaps Gladiator Rebecca? Also I’d like Kinemon to stick around.
Oda really knows how to move his world. >.< In just one chapter we see the plot ramp up in the most consistent yet unpredictable way.
It totally deserves the #1 spot on this week's rankings.
Out of curiosity, is Doflamingo really seen as the most powerful member of the Shichibukai? I can understand why he’d be thought of as such, since his powers are immensely terrifying in the abstract, but I still have a [man] crush on Mihawk, I suppose. It would also make sense that Doflamingo is the strongest, as the part of the series where the Shichibukai are relevant seems, IMO, to be coming to a close…Mihawk is for Zoro, and Boa is in love with Luffy, Law is with the Straw Hats (for now), Kuma is lobotomized, and Buggy is…Buggy.
Anyways, I’m off-topic. Great chapter!
Doflamingo….I seen his “baby picture” in the one piece wikipedia, there is no way he is a celestial dragon. Well maybe I am wrong. There are only two possibilities, one is he has an ally that is a celestial dragon or two is he is the illegitimate child of a World Noble. We seen how Saint Charlos made his many wives back into commoners and I doubt he didn’t get any of them pregnant, so it is easy to guess that Joker must be an illegitimate child.
I hope actually get to see Doflamingo’s backstory and get a bit more insight behind the world government as well as the celestial dragons, things are setting up quite nicely and this arc should be quite a spectacle once its animated
I’m the exact opposite of Seishun when it comes to Sanji. I think his machismo is annoying, completely unoriginal, and reinforces the antiquated idea that “boys should be strong, girls should be dainty.”
Can we please have more beautiful female characters who get into real fights instead of just “giving up because of love?” He did it with Hancock too! I’m a female reader, Oda, and I won’t be offended if you beat some of the pretty girls up. It would only confirm that you have some balls.
To an extent, it is annoying. In the CP9 arc, it was very annoying to an extent. If Sanji was with Zoro when he was fighting Monet, I felt he would attack Zoro for obvious reasons and he would literally play into the enemies’ hands.
The way I see it, Sanji’s perverted/pathetic ways are sort of like a running joke. Gonna quote what I said in my reply to TOP2NE1 above 😉
And it’s a fine joke on it’s own. What ruins it is that there’s no alternative. No beautiful female characters that are involved in slapstick or brawls that mess with their flawless looks.
Imagine if Nami had the same attitude towards men that Sanji has towards women. That would be hilarious and subversive in a way that suits Oda’s style of storytelling. Instead she’s a typical femme-fatale and Sanji is a typical hopeless romantic. They’re weak characters compared to other members of the cast.
Gotta disagree here bro. Like I said before, they’re jokes only when they’re jokes. But the fight against Kalifa, the nosebleed, and this chapter are not jokes. They’re played straight. It’d be like Nami refusing to put down money for Caimie in Shabondy and just laughing it off with a wink and a smile, expecting some miraculous godsend to save the day instead of trying to save her friend through the most of her own ability.
Oda or not, it is poor, short-sighted writing. In fact Oda writing something like this is even more disappointing since I hold him in higher regard than other authors. Being Oda, Miura, Togashi, etc doesn’t make them infallible, it makes you expect better things from them.
Bobina:
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TOP2NE1:
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I understand that Oda’s pushing a facet of Sanji’s character, but that doesn’t really free anybody from criticism. Other characters too have unique quirks that don’t actively inhibit the crew in the way that Sanji’s does. That’s not to say that Sanji is horrible character or that he doesn’t contribute to the crew; he still does cool stuff like saving Kinemon for example. But other crew members don’t end up carrying the additional baggage that Sanji does when weighing in on their feats and accomplishments.
This actually reminds of another post I came across (albeit this is an extreme example!) concerning a forum user that attempted to defend Griffith’s actions in Berserk. Obviously one can argue the morality of anything, but that manner of thought pretty much borders on apologism. And that’s pretty awful. Plenty of things deserve to be denounced, and rightfully so. I love noir-esque moral ambiguity, but this week’s Sanji remains indefensible. Any ounce of conflict is all too conveniently swept aside. I bet many people would easily disparage plot contrivances in other shows or comics and One Piece should be afforded the same standard.
As for drawing unwanted criticism, that’s nothing that Oda hasn’t already set the precedent for. Luffy’s fought Alvida in first chapters of the series. There’s also plenty of cartoony to moderate violence littered throughout the comic, not to mention the content of series that share One Piece’s serialization *cough HunterxHunter cough*. All in all it’d end up being arbitrarily prude, condemning practically every series ever. Gender-directional chivalry is probably more inherently toxic than any sort of violence that a shonen series could muster anyway, because one (violence) would be naturally disparaged 99% of the time while the other (gender-directional chivalry) may even be celebrated.
It is pretty silly of Sanji to let himself be harmed. Heck, I wouldn’t even really mind that if it were at the expense of only Sanji’s well-being. (Lol it’d be dumb but honestly that’s his prerogative) But the fact is that his actions affect more than himself. Damning Robin in CP9. Abandoning his crews plans not once but twice in Dressrosa. He refused to stay on the ship and guard the “weak trio” (ain’t none of the Strawhats are weak yo!) and then again just ran off with Violet.
Consistency shouldn’t absolve him of evaluation. There are tens of better ways to have Sanji’s character remain consistent while not failing so hard. Instead it only ends up affirming a consistently disheartening Sanji.
On an unrelated note directed at other posts… Violet is not even close to being a reasonable candidate to join the crew. We’ve can already pretty much garner her averagey backstory/plight. In terms of visuals, shes fairly similar to Robin. And lastly everyone joins through the Luffy. Luffy has spearheaded the indebtedness of every existing crew member and I don’t see that pattern changing.
Violet.. surly a “Hispaniola Flamenco” Dancer Woman was the Inspiration for her 🙂
This arc has wayyyy too many potential new Nakamas. Whatever happens, someone will be displeased cause they cant all join :<
New nakamas. New nakamas everywhere.
Just exactly where does it say Doflamingo is “widely regarded as the most powerful Shichibukai”?
It’s mostly the fandom, I guess. Before Trafalgar Law showed up, Doflamingo had the highest bounty out of all the Shichibukai. That’s hardly a good gauge, we all know that, and for my money, I would say Mihawk is the strongest one in terms of combat capabilities. Who knows, I’m happy to be proven wrong 😉
Taking a beating from any woman is considered GAR? God why!!!!
If this violet joins the SHs I’m done.
Oh my, that title and main picture. XD
So Nico can actually create an extension of her body that can actually talk! That’s a very impressive and useful new skill!
I actually do not believe that Violet would make a very interesting addition to the Straw Hats, and I say that mainly because she doesn’t stand out as visually distinct enough from the other current members. She looks quite similar to Nico Robin.
Its quite hard at this point to guess who would join the crew, if any, from this adventure. I would have never picked Franky to join the crew at the start of the Water 7 arc.
well sanji’s machismo/pervertness only extends to himself.
he doesn’t really care if the others were to beat up the female.
thing is, does his philosophy counts on ‘ugly’ female characters too (e.g pre devil fruit alvida) ?
Sanji beaten up by a woman without doing anything about it isn’t GAR. Standing up for his beliefs and philosophy are. Luffy and Zoro underwent this too in Jaya. It just so happened that this time, it was a woman who beat up Sanji, not Bellamy.
I don’t see how what happened in Jaya is even remotely comparable to Sanji’s dilemma. Luffy and Zoro refused to defend themselves to make a point that these random nobodies weren’t even worth the time or effort to deal with them. As soon as these nobodies actively harmed their friends they stepped in unquestioningly. At no point in their display did they willfully endanger their crew. It’d only be comparable if Luffy and Zoro allowed Bellamy to continue on his rampage, hurting other friends and innocents.
Sanji voluntarily placed his so called beliefs and philosophies above the welfare of the other members. How is that GAR worthy? You mean to say that so long as any villain is strong in his or her convictions it ends up being praiseworthy? No matter how harmful, irresponsible, or short-sighted those actions are?
Suddenly Arlong and Hody are GAR for their creed against every single non-fishman? Surely nobody can doubt the veracity of their own beliefs and philosophies. Nonsense is nonsense and how strongly one believes in that nonsense doesn’t change it from being nonsense.
Well, I do see how it’s comparable. It’s just that, with Luffy and Zoro’s conviction, it doesn’t seem stupid compared to real life standards, while Sanji’s conviction is. It doesn’t, however, differ in the sense that they all stood up for what they believed in. Everyone is stupid in their own way, and I accept that. If we were to paint everything black and white then we should be bashing Luffy for his stupidity in not adhering to anything alliance-related, like storming Enies Lobby by himself, or bumping Caesar for miles when he was supposed to capture him.
Yes, villains are praiseworthy for being themselves. If they stick to their idea then they’re basically similar to Luffy, just different in their ways of dealing with their convictions, like Arlong chose to enslave humans to fulfill his conviction, or Akainu chooses to sacrifice lots for the good of millions. It’s fundamentally wrong, but in their own violent ways it’s praiseworthy. Why do you think a lot of people praise Floyd Mayweather? He has a disgusting personality, a dirty mouth, and behaves like an idiot. Yet, people praise him for his skill and determination in being undefeated. That’s how I see people in One Piece. There’s no labels, no blacks and whites, just a grey mix of everything.
You, on the other hand, have a strict definition of everything. Answer me this: Has Sanji put anyone from the in danger because of his beliefs in women? It’s a crock of nonsense. It’s all what-if situations. TMK he’s never put a single crewmember in danger because of it. If anything, it’s been Luffy, Nami, and Chopper who have. Luffy for being an idiot and sticking his nose where it doesn’t belong, Nami and Chopper for saving kids they have no business to save. Yet, we praise them for it, because they believed that what they believed in was right. It’s strange that we villify Sanji for the very same thing, believing in his beliefs, no matter how stupid it may seem.
Please point out where in the series does Luffy’s, Nami’s, or Chopper’s quirks conspicuously threaten the crew in the same way that Sanji has done. Luffy’s intermittent entrance to Enies Lobby still accomplishes the plan, stupid albiet, but again with eyes still on the same prize. If Luffy completely gave up on the plan to fight Lucci for some random piece of meat maybe people would have something to argue. On some level yes plenty of the crews actions are careless, but even then that’s giant step from being equitable to Sanji’s complete surrender.
Nami immediateley foregoes her money-grubbing quirk in the presence of Caimie. And don’t tell me people would defend her penny-pinching at human auction for a friend.
Nami and Chopper should be castigated for helping innocents? A pretty much core facet of the series. Sanji could be given the benefit of the doubt upon immediate meeting of Violet, but relinquishes exemption the moment he realizes she’s an enemy.
And I won’t subscribe to apologetics based solely on the convictions of individuals. At the risk of of invoking Godwin’s Law, people honestly think that Pol Pot’s a pretty cool dude for standing up for what he believes in?
Also lol at Akainu. This isn’t some moral puzzle about pulling a switch, this is bigger and more complex than the veritable black and white bullshit Akainu pulls. Look at the way Akainu was introduced. Oda chose to make his debut to the readers that civilian massacre. He expected like any normal person that we would react with horror to that action. Oda’s own exposition doesn’t even leave any moral grey area for Akainu. Oda supports a Marine schism. Do you seriously think the narrative is leaning toward the side of absolute justice for even a second? He created Akainu to be torn down. There may be greys in OP but Akainu damn sure as hell isn’t one of them.
And no black and white whatsoever? Portray Spandam in a grey light please. At what point did Oda introduce a moral quandary in his character?
People praise Mayweather because he’s good at boxing. People don’t praise his personality. Who in the world is praised on the sole ability to be an awful human being? Nobody, that’s who.
Haha wow I don’t know how many more ways I can say this. There plenty of racist, sexist, murdering, or just downright deplorable people that are liked in fiction. That doesn’t however make racism, sexism or murder somehow absolvable. If the extreme moral relativist world view held even one grain of salt, civilization wouldn’t exist. Annnd fuck it Godwin’s Law incoming. You’re seriously suggesting the genocide of non-“Aryan” world population is up for moral debate, if only considering conviction? Because this is exactly what “I don’t think there are any moral absolutes” amounts to. Naivety.
Yes Sanji has put people in danger. Nami was nearly killed by Kalifa because of Sanji, not to mention Robin. Do the rest of the crew’s quirks ever totally inhibit a mission. Despite Luffy rushing in he doesn’t cave. Despite Nami and Chopper saving people they don’t stop dead in their tracks waiting to be killed. Imagine Luffy choosing meat, Nami choosing money, Zoro choosing to fight some random swordsman, etc over fulfilling each of their own fights in Enies Lobby. I would give them same damn scrutiny I’m giving Sanji.
There is no “seemingly” stupid belief for Sanji. It is stupid. It’s palatable in gag format and in gag format only. If any writer gave earnest exposition condoning racism would you really just accept it as some amorphous blob of grey-moral goop? If someone was unreasonably violent towards you or your loved ones would you really just leave it at “I admire his or persistence to hurt me”.
Moreover the other crew members don’t have such inherently demeaning quirks to begin with. Do you really not see how Sanji’s dumb quirk is fundamentally more offensive than any other member’s dumb quirks? Because being stupid, frugal, morose, or gullible is nowhere near the same constitution as something like racism or sexism.
Your notion almost ends up clearing absolutely everyone and everything of consequence and criticism. Again naivety. Literally every deplorable action throughout history is somehow “praiseworthy.” Yeah no.
No, you misunderstand me. Like I said, stop looking with your black and white goggles. Don’t look at things as some justice lord and look at it with objective eyes.
Yes, Arlong may be evil in your eyes, but to him he has reason to act that way. He carried his beliefs out, and that way it’s praiseworthy. You have to recognize that they did it their way instead of weaseling out.
Sanji’s the same way. He stood up for himself. No one got hurt except him. He saved the girl. All this noise about him getting screwed up because of womanizing hasn’t happened yet. People are getting pissy because his logic worked better than theirs. You have to remember this is One Piece, where your logic doesn’t apply, and that Luffy’s stupidity >>> everything else.
Luffy put his crew in danger multiple times. Remember when he left his crew back in Enies Lobby? How about chasing after a shadow back in Thriller Bark when his crew was busy being stomped on by Oars? Nami and Chopper, especially Nami, wanted to save the kids. It was a whole bunch of people. I’m all for saving the kids but their choice and belief also put the crew in danger. Everything worked out in the end, but you cannot deny that half the trouble they went through is because Nami wanted to save them, and Chopper was roped in because he can’t leave a sick kid behind. Their beliefs are praiseworthy and I applaud it. However, how many people were harmed when Sanji was kidnapped? Only Sanji himself. How many people were harmed because of Luffy? Many. How many people were harmed because of Nami and Chooper in Punk Hazard? Many.
I don’t have a notion of clearing everyone of consequence and criticism, but I have a notion of looking at everything objectively and giving out praise where its needed. I admire Luffy’s stupidity because it gets him to areas where no sane person would have gone, Nami and Chopper’s desire to help the kids because it gives them closure to their respective goals (Chopper to heal and Nami to guide them correctly), and Sanji’s desire to help Violet. I hope I’m wrong, but I think you’re being a little immature here. Looking at things in only one way is something One Piece doesn’t encourage. Not all prostitutes are bad people. Not all transvestites are bad people, just how not all people in authority are good and not all women cannot be trusted.
It’s time to wipe the slate clean and start entertaining things out of your comfort zone, which is what I think One Piece really is, and you’re doing a bad job of understanding it. 🙂
You don’t like Sanji’s philosophy and you don’t like how I justify it, okay fine. I don’t think it works in real life too. You must have been livid when Sanji said to Chopper, “A man trusts a woman’s lies.” If he didn’t go through with it, then Sanji wouldn’t have been on the Sea Train, they couldn’t have gotten Franky and Usopp (Sogeking) back, and the crew might have met more powerful fighters on the way (not that it matters, but the train is another story. It might not withstand the fights like with Nero, and it would lead to Luffy and Zoro tiring faster because of unnecessary fights like that).
But like I said before, you have to praise the man’s word to follow through his beliefs. I don’t think Luffy’s thinking goes far on the real world too. Does that stop me from praising his drive?
You shouldn’t let someone’s belief stop you from admiring and praising someone’s drive, even if you think he’s really evil. I hope you don’t take this opportunity to lift some examples like a serial rapist, or a child murderer. You know what I’m talking about.
Altho I’m not as keen on the current Punk Hazard arc on the anime, I very much look forward to see this arc portrayed in the anime! Can’t Wait!