First Impressions / One Piece

「怒りのJETピストル　ルフィvs黒ヒゲ」 (Ikari no Jetto Pisutoru – Rufi vs Kurohige)
“Jet Pistol of Anger! Luffy vs. Blackbeard!”

If you think about it, it’s kind of weird for me to write impressions on the anime series when I already know what’s going to happen. So I won’t really be able to guess along with the viewers with questions and whatnot. However, the thoughts and feelings I felt when reading the manga at this point along with commentary on the episode itself still apply, so that should suffice for a lot. Actually, I could even give you the difference between the two, if I ever notice anything. I know that would be interesting to the many people who always ask “is this different from the manga?” However, given my knowledge, I’ll make sure to avoid any “implications” that would suggest anything in the future. You should rest assure that nothing I say will ever spoil the upcoming episodes. So don’t worry, and on with the show!

Before I go on, I thought I’d like to take a moment to bring all the viewers of the anime or interested viewers of the anime up to pace. Though I guess if you don’t want the spoilers of what’s happened before this, you can skip this next paragraph.

So, Luffy and crew made their way to Saobody Archipelago after some Duval interference and meet the most new characters introduced in the shortest amount of time ever. A lot of stuff happens, and they get into huge trouble after some “Luffy Justice” punches. Kuma finds them along with others and the entire crew is overwhelmed. The battle ends after Kuma uses his fruit power to “repel” them all into different areas of the world. After that, the story focuses almost entirely on Luffy, as he learns of Ace’s coming execution and tries to save him from Impel Down instead of reuniting his crew. With the help of Boa Hancock, Luffy successfully invades Impel Down and makes it to the sixth floor where Ace was imprisoned, meeting Ivankov and his okama crew along the way. However, Luffy makes it a bit too late, as Ace is already being moved, and decides to now break out of Impel Down to follow Ace. They round up a bunch of people to make one hell of a team and proceed on busting out. Of course, the owners of Impel Down along with some surprising entrances won’t let them escape so easily. The chaos begins. Enter current episode:

So continuing right away from last week’s episode, Mr. Marshall D. Teach aka Blackbeard gets a punch to the stomach, sending him straight to the wall. The two duke it out but Luffy’s abruptly stopped by Jinbei as he explains there are more important things to do right now. While watching the flashback to Ace’s battle with Blackbeard, I figured Blackbeard’s “sucking your devil fruit power” is basically just like what Haki can somewhat do. Albeit it’s still slightly different, but both make it so devil fruit users get their powers negated and take damage like a normal person. With that thought, Ace only lost because he didn’t have Haki. Conversely, Blackbeard should be a relatively easy as hell opponent to beat once Luffy masters his own “King’s Will” Haki. As a side note, it seems Luffy’s gotten rather used to calling out Ace after beating an opponent as if it were a battle cry.

Mind you, almost all the Buggy/Mr. 3 scenes have been elongated in the anime compared to the manga, but it’s not something I really mind. Though it can be frustrating at times, since they can drag it out pretty long like last week’s “yelling at the door” for 10 minutes scene. Of course the flashbacks included in the episode that I didn’t cap are also “filler” to drag out the episode to fit one chapter. To the purely anime viewer though, you won’t really mind, cause you wouldn’t know otherwise.

Crocodile pointed out that all the animal guards following Sadi-chan are actually Zoan type users, but “awakened”. They don’t ever seem to return to human form, so maybe “awakened” means a permanent state? It’s only interesting seeing as how Chopper is a Zoan type as well, and I’ve been wondering what kind of potential his fruit can have. It’s never really been delved into, but his awakened form is probably that giant monster form when he eats 3 rumble balls. If he were to be able to control that, then that would be a huge offensive power added to the Strawhat crew in the future.

Sadi-chan herself finally gets the “whip” as she’s ironically tied up in a bondage fashion by Ivankov. It’s actually more hilarious that Ivankov’s the one that made her that way, seeing as it’s likely he would possess the knowledge of BDSM rope tying. Blackbeard’s crew meets up with Magellan but get wiped out without a moment’s hesitation, leaving them poisoned. It’s times like this that I really appreciate One Piece for not going the “let’s stare at each other for 10 minutes, talk, then attack for 1 minute” cliche. Blackbeard was like mid sentence and Magellan just whips out that Hydra on their asses.

Hannyabal is seen completely wiped out, and you feel a bit of dignity for him. Magellan continues to push on to the staircase and begins pursuit. It’s funny, when I first meet these weirdly designed characters, I usually don’t think much of them. But the more time Oda gives them, the more they become likable or at least capable of dragging some emotion out of me for them. Maybe that’s just Oda’s power of character development?

Note: Regarding spoilers for the people who are caught up with the manga, please refrain from saying anything even indicating something might happen. I know it’s hard to resist telling people that they’re wrong in their theories and that in the future there’ll be “this and that,” but seriously, don’t ruin One Piece for someone when it was so much fun for yourself. If you really must say it, use the spoiler tags given above the comment box, otherwise don’t make the comment at all.

 

Preview

91 Comments

    1. This. I’m not watching OP since they got split up, um, because I find it bad. It’s the same with the manga, even tough I’m reading it on a weekly base, I don’t like it ever since the other crew mates got “wiped out”. I don’t even know why so much people like the Impel Down/WB War arc, I think these are the worst ones in the OP history so far.

      viral
      Reply

      1. Hmmm, I try not to read the manga for OP, advantures HAVE to be coloured for me 🙂 , so I wouldn’t know. Not that I’m saying spliting them out is bad, cause it could change the story in a better direction. But since I watch OP to relax, not really for the story, Luffy going island to island with whole crew and have some occasion funny moments or epic moments (i.e. when he beat Bellamy and when he punched the Tenryubito), and then end the arc after he beat the last boss, were good enough for me. Don’t really mind them spliting up, I just want Luffy to start winning.

        N0216332
        Reply

    2. That’s how I’ve felt for over a year. I just want all of the main cast reunited so I can fully enjoy this series again.

      As for this episode, the annoyingly long flashbacks seriously hurt the pacing. These last four or five episodes have been painfully slow and full of so much padding. It doesn’t help that this story arc is already slowly paced.

      nowhere man
      Reply

    3. I’m really glad the crew got split up.

      For one, One Piece had started getting a little repetitive with the crew going from island to island and getting a new crew member (almost) every time and facing a new local enemy with his mooks every time. Then Oda did something really unexpected which sent the story into a completely different direction and now the possibilities are limitless. Now I can’t wait to see each consequent chapter since it will bring something new.

      Second, even though I miss the crew a lot, I have to say I was getting a little tired with watching the same characters when Oda creates such interesting side characters most of which have limited exposure. The crew split-up enabled us to see some old favorites back and some new characters in the action, which again made the story better in my eyes.

      Darklord
      Reply

    1. Luffy DID fight Blackbeard in Impel Down. If you read chapter 544, and watch the anime, they’re pretty much the same thing. And I never said anything about after Impel Down either.

      Kiiragi
      Reply

  3. Saw this posted right after I watched the episode myself.
    This might have been the first time I’ve liked Magellan just because he whipped out that hydra on Blackbeard’s crew and owned them, haha.
    The next episode looks bomb-diggity with Ivankov vs. Magellan. Seems to have better animation quality than this one as well?

    Nice Holystone
    Reply

  6. Hahahaha!!!!!
    This is the first Op post ive seen here in RC
    Its about the right time for RC to cover OP!!!

    I have extremely high expectations for
    White Beard vs Marines + Warlords arc!!!!

    I’d love to see that battle erupt

    rasone0104
    Reply

  8. I loved this episode. Blackbeard’s ability seems to be the only Logia type that doesn’t work on his body. (As in how Logia types would never be affected by physical blows such as Smoker’s smoke, Ace’s fire, Aokiji’s ice, Kizaru’s light)

    I can’t wait till Luffy is able to control his willpower. His strength would then be on the level of Whitebeard and Shanks. He’d also be able to fight the powerful Logia type enemies like Aokiji.

    Also, I wonder what’s Teach’s goal for infiltrating Impel Down. The D characters always do weird things.

    Eamon
    Reply

  11. There was something hilarious with Magellan just taking down the Blackbeard crew in one shot. Probably Blackbeard can just negate the poison with his ability since it’d be stupid for him to get destroyed at this point. Easier to let Magellan just keep going rather than get into a conflict with him. Blackbeard is such a weird villain though. Reacts so over the top when getting hit, but then comes back with such a strong counter.

    Anyways overall I’ve liked the arc so far. But really would rather the crew got reunited already.

    FlareKnight
    Reply

    1. There is a reason why Blackbeard reacts so over the top when he is hit.

      His devil fruit absorbs everything which includes the force of the impact when he is hit. As a result he actually feels more pain from physical attacks, which is why he reacts like that.

      Blackbeard is pretty much being set up as Luffy’s final opponent and his weakness to being hit further reinforces that. A logia user like Ace will have huge trouble against BB with his ability being negated but a straight-up physical fighter like Luffy will actually do some decent damage to BB. Of course, since BB is incredibly strong physically and resilient (remember, he managed to injure Shanks even before he got his devil fruit) even physical fighters will have a lot of trouble against him.

      Darklord
      Reply

      2. We are not even sure if Bellamy is dead or not.

        All we see is Sarquiss slashing something and hear Bellamy screaming.

        In OP unless death is stated explicitly it is never assumed.

        Darklord
        Reply

      4. DuketheGold, please read the note I’ve updated the post with located at the bottom. I’ve changed your comment with spoiler tags, but please avoid implications in the future.

        Kiiragi
        Reply

    4. Uh…aside from flashbacks, no important characters have died thus far. Crocodile was arrested by Tashigi at the end of the Baroque Works arc and obviously sent to Impel Down.

      brianwuzhere
      Reply

      2. Kewldude, I know you’re excited in telling people that, but if you tell them that there IS something it’s the same as spoiling. I edited your post so it includes the spoiler tags.

        Kiiragi
        Reply

  14. It’s so frustrating having to watch them drag out each episode. I just hope that they don’t find some BS way to add in a filler arc between the end of the Impel Down arc and the tremendous upcoming arc.

    The anime is starting to ruin my love of Buggy.

    Jaysus
    Reply

    2. Oops sorry… I agree, Jaysus. They’re making Buggy look like a bigger idiot than he is. On another note, does anyone else also feel that Buggy’s head looks like Vivi’s from the back with that super long blue hair in a ponytail? It cracks me up everytime they show him from behind.

      SOSAnimeBoy
      Reply

    1. Yeah. Ironically fillers will actually be the most fun, seeing as how it’ll be new content for me. Plus they usually come up with something pretty interesting nowadays, but I think it’s highly unlikely there will be fillers for a while. Of course, I could be wrong.

      Kiiragi
      Reply

      1. I don’t think the FairyTail manga or anime will be covered on RC because neither I or Divine have any interest in it. We’ve both tried the manga but never really got into it, let alone the anime. Unless Omni comes back, or a new writer appears that happens to like FairyTail, there’s probably no chance it’ll be posted about. Sorry about that.

        Kiiragi
        Reply

    2. mann i don’t know what’s your taste but i’ll say this..OP is getting much better than other anime’s i’ve ever watched..well lets not start a debate~ 😀 it’s divine’s choice anyways..

      noctis
      Reply

  21. So let me get this straight. People here complain about RC blogging Bleach, and then Omni stops blogging anime, then RC gets picked up again with One Piece, and people STILL complain?!!

    Oh wait. We’re anime fans. Nevermind.

    At any rate, of course I’d love to see Fairy Tail blogged again. But any blogger here shouldn’t tire themselves out. You listen to what you want to do.

    starss
    Reply

  23. @starss

    It never ends with the sad fanboys and girls out there (yes, I just insulted myself but whatever. I do it all the time). I still remember when people freaked out when the mangas of Bleach and Naruto showed up on RC. People flipped a lid, as usual.

    Besides, I’m still standing by and saying that One Piece is still the only shonen manga that has gotten more awesome as time goes on.

    And remember everyone: its just divine and now Kiiragi doing this, so lets all chill out for a while.

    queenie
    Reply

  25. can I ask which fansub is the best in subbing the latest episode? I’ve been collecting episodes, since vegapunk stopped, so did I. The raw is fine when I’m watching, but my friends watch too, so.. >_>

    MrRei
    Reply

    1. I used Yibis subs for this episode. They’re actually the only one decently subbing One Piece on their own for a while now actually. Other groups just rip Funimation’s vids with low quality.

      Kiiragi
      Reply

      2. Actually I used to follow Yibis and I stopped because I couldn’t take their translations anymore. They americanized or otherwise stylized their translations a bit too much at times. If you can put up with that then you won’t mind their subs, because they actually put good effort into their op/ed and attack karaoke and typesetting.

        SOSAnimeBoy
        Reply

  36. man i am so glad you are blogging this. unfortunately OP seems to be getting a lot more hate here than Bleach or Naruto got.

    anyway loved Luffy punching Blackbeard, loved the moment in the manga love it now 😀

    Pax
    Reply

    1. Well, to be honest there are some things about OP that I can definitely see ppl hating. Like the fact that, given the sheer violence in several of the fights so far in the anime, that no one has died – that applies to both the good and bad guys in the story. Characters are killed off in the other major Shounen series (Bleach and Naruto), adding a tinge of realism to an otherwise crazy setting/premise. Also, the fact that there are SO MANY characters makes it difficult for some ppl to keep track of everyone. Also, there’s a lot of crazy stuff in OP like Den Den Mushi that may tick some ppl off.

      That said, One Piece has Boa Hancock. That alone is enough for me to love OP.

      SOSAnimeBoy
      Reply

  38. While SOS does make a lot of good points, I think the main thing that turns people off is Oda’s artwork. Of course, the protagonists in Bleach and Naruto have suffered from losses time and time again, but they never experienced such a crushing defeat as seen in episode 405 when Kuma effortlessly disbanded the entire Strawhat crew. I still follow the Bleach/Naruto manga, even though they’re kinda past their prime (Chuunin Exam/Soul Society), while One Piece has just been getting better and better ever since Water 7.

    brianwuzhere
    Reply

  41. ZE-HAHAHAHA, poor BB and his crew..

    i wonder why magellan is keen on hannyabal being his replacement..he sucks xD..he has guts, i’d give him that.. but i don’t think he’s the best candidate worthy of a position as warden.

    ichigoat
    Reply

    1. It’s his commitment to the job and sense of justice.
      As you saw, the previous assist warden was corrupt.

      Remember most of these characters would be pretty weak without their Devil’s Fruit ability.

      Eamon
      Reply

    1. Not necessarily since there’s no ED anymore. They basically added the time from the ED to the OP. You still get the same time content wise, but they drag it out so it seems slower.

      Kiiragi
      Reply

    1. Bleach’s story has gone really retarded now. The characters have been literally standing in the air of Karakura Town for years now. And all of Aizen’s deuz ex machina plot turns have been annoying. I wonder how anyone can still stand watching Bleach.

      IMO, Bleach’s amazingness ended after the Soul Society arc.

      Eamon
      Reply

    2. Hey it’s not like this was all planned.. we just don’t have any writers interested in Bleach right now, let alone any other long shounen. They’re also hard to catch up on since they’re so long.

      Kiiragi
      Reply

  44. Personally i think that the “awakened” animals at their type of fruit, eg. the cow ate the cow fruit. the reason for this is that in one of the question segments, someone asked oda what would happen if a human ate a human fruit, and the answer was that he would become enlightened. so sorta the same thing would happen to a dog if he ate a dog fruit.

    Michael McRae
    Reply

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