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I have no idea how Oda sensei intends to wrap up the coliseum fights, but one thing is certain – the arena was chock-a-block with action and hubbub this week, from explosions and boxing, all the way down to sniping and Hasshouken! The latest chapter of One Piece was certainly a wire-to-wire battle royal, and it seems like an end for this showdown is almost in sight! I have a hard time seeing anyone but Lucy emerging victorious – after all, he is the main character of the series and the reward in question is a memento of utmost importance from his beloved brother. Luffy would never allow the Mera Mera no Mi to fall into the wrong hands – that much is clear, but whether he has to come first, fair and square, at the coliseum match is a completely different matter. There’s indisputably more than one approach to achieve his goal and even if Luffy, by some stricken luck, loses the current match, he could always use brute force to get his hands on the Devil Fruit – a straightforward seize and make off, just like any other pirate! In fact, I’m surprised a head-on line of attack wasn’t Luffy’s first choice, and he has resisted barging right into the Donquixote headquarters for this long! This is where we must give credit where credit is due – Luffy is still his usual happy-go-lucky self, but his increased wisdom and character growth are also decidedly noticeable! The Straw Hat–Trafalgar Law Alliance and the bigger picture that their plan encompasses are obviously Lucy’s foremost concern at the moment. While his one-time juvenile self would not have think twice about wreaking havoc – no matter how ill-timed his action may seem – the conscientiousness that he has displayed here is, no doubt, a testament to Luffy’s newfound common sense, and such character development should bode well for his future adventures!
Aside from Lucy, the candidates who have made the strongest impression thus far are Don Chinjao – the former pirate who commands a hefty bounty of 500 million, and “Jean the Bandit” – the bounty hunter who seems to be aware of Lucy’s true identity. Don Chinjao is quite an imposing figure to say the least – not only was he able to go up against both Luffy and Cavendish at the same time, it was also revealed just this week that Chinjao is a one in a million who possesses the Haoushoko Haki! Jean Ango’s appearance, on the other hand, is not nearly as intimidating – but he makes up for his lack of bombast through his underhanded tactics and keen insights. His formidability as a combatant is hardly a fluke – for starters, he seems unaffected by Chinjao’s Haki blast and Jean’s prowess in the art of pilferage has perhaps made him the worst opponent for Lucy! Luffy’s camouflage is on the verge of falling apart, and make no mistake about it, there will be consequences should his real identity be brought to light! I wouldn’t put it past Oda sensei to take the unexpected route, whether it’s the concealment of Lucy’s identity or the ultimate winner of the coliseum fight, everything will remain in a constant state of flux and the jury is most certainly still out there – which, of course, points to an imminent pickup of frenzy and upheaval on the horizon!
Random tidbits:
- The Funk Brothers and the “Destruction Cannon” Ideo seem like cannon fodders to me – Color me surprised if one of them turned out to be the winner!
- Ideo’s character design reminds me of the titular mecha from Sunrise’s Densetsu Kyojin Ideon – one of my first ventures into the spectacular world of Super Robot!
- “No steak for dinner tonight” – Lucy’s being awfully nice to the “Fighting Bull”, just think about how many times he has tried to eat Chopper already!
tl;dr: @SeishunRC – #OnePiece 715: Who will Emerge Triumphant? Luffy’s camouflage is on the verge of falling apart! #Manga
i still dont get what is the relation between luffy and that bartolomeo guy.
Nobody knows – my guess is that he’s working for Buggy, but that’s obviously a long shot 😛
I don’t think there even needs to be anything between them. Luffy is a bonafide celebrity in the One Piece world, and many would like to take him down to boost their reputations.
Maybe, it’s like some Harry Potter thing, in which the guy took Luffy to Garp or something.
Perhaps Luffy freed Bartolomeo’s friend from the Impel Down.
On the interesting side is how, if Luffy has allies for this tournament, then it is likely he won’t get assassinated.
Works for the still missing Moriah who also plots to attack Kaido…
Maybe Bartolomeo is the son of Gekko Moria?
I’m pretty excited to see Chinjao go against Luffy. With all of these tough competitors, it makes me wonder just how tough Jesus Burgess was to wipe the floor with his foes in A block.
Too bad the manga is on break again next week!
I’ll be very surprised if the winner doesn’t turn out to be either Luffy or Chinjao – please prove me wrong, Oda sensei!
The Kanokuni warriors seem to have some hidden agendas too, I wonder what that may be :3
If I had to take a guess, I’d say that’s probably because it hasn’t been explained yet.
So One Piece become a bi-weekly manga now.
Also, is awesome how Kelly(bobby?) beat the hell out of Boo after his smug attitude about his superior fighting style.
His health is not exactly in tip-top condition – can you blame the guy? He works so hard 😡
I wouldn’t mind if he takes a couple of months off to be honest – take a good long rest and spend some time with his daughter 😡
If the Funk Brothers were cannon fodders, I think too many pages were wasted on them and their repeated shrimp jokes.
Also, Lucy, Ucy…good naming sense.
a certain manga site is speculating that Oda is actually throwing rocks and lame jokes over fairy tail because of that names, this arc’s fairies, and the tournament thingy.
…. Pretty sure this is going to disintegrate into Luffy chaos in a chapter or two. My bet is next chapter. I doubt he can fight such formidable opponents covering his face, and he has shown more than his normal amount of forethought by covering his face in the first place. (more than he did when his “disguise” fell off at Sabaody). Also these villains look as if they might match up well with the rest of the crew (as if they weren’t in enough crap to begin with). I really hope it comes down to Usopp Vs DoFlamingo. Now that would be a surprise and a half!
Usopp vs Doglamingo?
LOL Usopp vs Doflamingo? I highly doubt that’s going to happen, Usopp wouldn’t last a minute – happy to be proven wrong though XD
I actually would like the anime to do what Oda does, taking breaks whenever he freakin feels like it or is sick. Less filler and padding, and more budget to use in the few fillers or padding they still have to do. And of course more action and plot development per episode, so that, even if the breaks make it longer, it will still feel faster overall than at the pace it is right now.
I really want to know what Oda-sensei plans to do with all the coliseum fighters that have been introduced so far. There’s gotta be some kind of plan to have given them name and reputation to that extent.
Bartolemeo= Sabo^^
it would be fun
i guess garp or aokiji is in dressrosa.
thinking that Rebecca for some reason will get the fruit at last.. even if as it sounds a little stupid in my head.
anyway i have no clue who the winner will be 😀 when is 716 being published? cant wait oda san!