#Elbaf theories

[wesleysniperking]

Omg y’all. I know some people aren’t religious. And I’m not pushing anything onto anybody. But I just discovered something that stopped me in my tracks. This actually isn’t even really new to any Usopp fan, at least on Reddit 🤷🏽‍♀️ .

It’s another Elbaf theory (more so a connection).

Beware of spoilers!

So, I don’t know if Oda is a religious person, or even knows the story of David and Goliath. He very well might simply be irreligious. And as my sister put it, the best stories told by anybody are unknowingly from inspired by the bible. Oda has named some characters and things that come exclusively from the Bible.

But it has just hit me that Usopp is the David from David and Goliath. Okay, y’all have probably heard that (if you know you know). When some people have stated their Usopp Elbaf theory some have referenced David and Goliath. But get this…

NOT ONLY DOES DAVID FIGHT GOLIATH WITH A SLING, but what is significant is that David was also a shepherd. What do shepherd’s do? They take care of and guard sheep!

And Merry, her design and theme was that of a sheep! And y’all know how badly Usopp fought for her. He was willing to challenge his own captain over her, and that took guts and a strong asf conviction.

Of course of course, Usopp saw himself in Merry. He thought that if the crew could easily discard Merry they’d do the same to him. But that still doesn’t necessarily discredit my idea.

Usopp still fought for Merry because she had life, and was nakama. Like a true shepherd.

This is a passage in regards to the David parallel I’m trying for:

But David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God.” And David said, “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and may the LORD be with you.”

David is pretty much saying that he’d fight tooth and nail for any of his sheep, and Usopp did so for Merry. And if I want to get a little punny here, sheep does sound like ship. And with this same conviction David was willing to fight Goliath.

But in all seriousness, there are a few parallels that I just can’t stop thinking about.

I asked my mother about the biblical figure David. And she told that he started out as this small shepherd boy and grew up to be king. Now Usopp isn’t a king. BUT 1) I know he’ll eventually become the king of shooters AND 2) during the Enies Lobby arc and Thriller Bark arc he donned the Sogeking persona. So, like David he did become a king, temporarily (and will STILL become a king). I know it doesn’t sound quite clear. But I think y’all know what I’m trying to say.

(Edit: Actually, there was an opportunity for David to become a king earlier than he did because he’d been chosen to become king from birth, but he opted to wait since he very well did have the earlier opportunity to slay Saul and take the throne…but he didn’t. Like Usopp wasn’t ready to take the Sogeking/Sniperking throne just yet).

Therefore, I must reason with myself. With Usopp being such a king during the Water 7 and Enies Lobby arc, and being right about Merry, I think the only reason why he apologized was to be humbled. I think that’s one of the only ways I can put it since I’m not truly certain if Usopp needed to apologize but we’ll save that for another day, or get over it.

Yet, I go back to David’s story, and I think about what happened after he became king. He became very problematic. Messing around with married women and what have you. So, Usopp needed to showcase humility. And Usopp did so by wholeheartedly apologizing to Luffy and the crew after leaving and rejoining the Straw Hats. Usopp can’t be too big headed.

Also, another thing I gathered was that David is known as the warrior king in the Bible. This aligns with Usopp’s dream and ideal: to become a brave warrior of the sea.

God chose David because he had a good heart. Don’t get me wrong, Usopp has his flaws (who doesn’t?). But that doesn’t mean he isn’t compassionate. He was willing to go to considerable lengths to have Kuro’s crew NOT touch the village. Despite not having 8,000 men to back him up, Usopp was willing to fight alone. He was adamant in saving the village with or without Luffy, Zoro, and Nami. Like David’s faith in God, Usopp’s conviction (the impossible an afterthought) gave him the faith to make the decision alone. The decision to fight with only his wit, determination, and superb marksmanship.

Therefore, Usopp has a good heart. He is the chosen one in his own way, simply because he’s just a normal person continuously underestimated because of his lack of physical strength.

Moving onto my next point.

Ever heard of the term the lamb of god? If not, I understand. But the lamb of god represents sacrifice. In Christianity this is the belief as implied in the Bible. And Merry, the ship Usopp fought so hard to save, sacrificed herself! She sacrificed herself to save Luffy and the crew! So that the Straw Hats could live!

I got this from journallive.com:

To be called a Lamb of God means that God gave Jesus to be killed like a lamb for our sins so we could live forever.” The majority of Old Testament passages that mention “lamb” refer to a sacrifice (85 out of 96). As a nation, Israel began its history by putting lamb's blood on the doorposts and lintels of each house.

The Strawhats aren’t immortal but we all know they’ll have a long lasting legacy. Merry is one of the reasons why they were able to move onto the New World (even if she wouldn’t be there with them), and live out their dreams. Back to the the David parallel, it’s significant to realize that Merry saved the crew mainly because of Usopp’s care. If he hadn’t taken care of Merry, Merry wouldn’t have developed a spirit. Merry wouldn’t have saved the crew. Simple.

It kinda makes me tear up just thinking about it. But like Christ, Merry sacrificed herself to save those she cared about. She sailed away with the crew one last time before she died to save them.

I understand if anyone reading this may debunk my words simply because they think I’m reading too much into things. But I don’t think I am, because like any Usopp fan, I think his actions during Water 7 hold a lot of meaning. Some say he did some stupid stuff in the Water 7 arc because of a stupid boat. But it wasn’t that.

So, how does this tie into Elbaf?

Well, a user on TikTok (m05s_3nergy) theorized that when the crew are in Elbaf, there will be a moment where they’ll encounter a formidable foe, and before the crew (or Luffy or another crewmate) step in, Usopp would step forward and let them know that he’ll deal with the enemy himself, and to move on without him.

Now, it’s up to anyone at this point to explore the possibility of him biting the dust or not.

One of the things I can conclude about each theory is that they all sound really cool, and I really do hope that Usopp will get a moment that’s similar to one of them. To have a David and Goliath moment isn’t as far-fetched as some would think because the most obvious parallel is less subtle than some think. Usopp admires the Elbaf giants and he’ll eventually be in the land of giants (Elbaf has been confirmed 👀). With Luffy’s track record they’ll come across trouble quickly, and as found in most of the arcs, a LOT will be going on. How can Usopp not have a moment to shine? When David dealt with Goliath it took smarts. He acquired 5 stones and with his faith in God, he was able to defeat Goliath.

Before anyone thinks that the Franky-Egghead hype and Zoro-Wano hype is what Usopp-Elbaf hype is. I think you’re mistaken. Since Little Garden, Usopp and Elbaf have been associated.

Usopp has befriended 5 (or was it 6?) giants from Elbaf. I can ramble on some more. But I’ll stop here. I just wanted to talk about the David and Goliath parallels and religious themes.

I might make a video on this very topic. There’s more research I need to do. And many more parallels I must make. So stay tuned.

Related link here

Conclusion:

Usopp = David

Slingshot = Sling

Goliath/Philistines = Formidable opponent/admiral/Evil Elbaf giant

Israelites = Strawhats and Elbaf dwellers

One person already beat me to it when it came to my David being a shepherd parallel: https://www.reddit.com/r/WildAnimeTheories/s/Pi1h3PhNuN

The user expands on other theories I find valid as well. They’re worth reading.

Reddit users just love the David and Goliath parallels:

1: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/4jciG5CbiD

2: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/G8UNHHox2Z

3: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/F9XOlBV2st

4: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/vs0zolxht6

5: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/OB5WlCEjVZ

6: https://www.reddit.com/r/Piratefolk/s/zjqJPslEsp

7: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/VRfJoJCPJg (this post makes more connections).

8: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/7gNionwEhO

9: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/IbupOpfYwO

10: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/8iNZsaQpfE

11: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/7akm49XfYK

12: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/mpDbdWCOar

13: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/P0GW2ZZiun

14: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/6s9IdE1Tec

15: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/iJDeiyvmrc

16: https://www.reddit.com/r/OnePiece/s/Dh4XYYToxj

Many more theories and links I’ll provide in another post.

Usopp fan club (feel free to join)

#WaitTillElbaf

usopp fan art credit: msprinklez (@danbooru)

[karinzany]

SPOILERS FOR CHAPTER 1138 OF ONE PIECE

@shishishi-sunny @wyvernslovecake @theheybarrel

I'm basically going to write what I understood from the last panel.

"The First World", ended 900 years ago - beginning of the Great War and to what we call "the Void Century", and "The Second World" - 800 years ago - the end of the Void Century and the beginning of the World Government rule.

The first world was a technologically advanced world, symbolized by the factory. Humanity used the "Mother Flame" - the "forbidden sun" (represented by the balls of energy carried by the slaves) in their industry. The slaves wished upon their liberation, and from what Vegapunk told us, akuma no mi are the materialization of the wishes of humanity. So the Hito Hito no mi: model Nika came to be. A man-made God was born. The "god of earth" Pluton, a ship that moved using the energy of the Mother Flame caused the big earthquake that sank the world 200 meters (chapter 1115), and only the islands we know today remained. To survive the flood, people and animals got on the Noah ark, just like it happened on the Bible passage that inspired the manga.

I'm also curious about "Vearth", the god of earth in Skypiea.

The serpent of hell can be a reference to Jormungandr or the Leviathan. Maybe in the context of One Piece it is Nerona Imu themselves. Maybe it is a former user of the Yami Yami no Mi that brought darkness and death... Maybe it is just the serpent of Skypiea.

"The god of the forest sent forth demons" - the Devil Fruit tree created an army of Devil Fruit users. "The sun merely spread the embers of war" - Nika/Joyboy/The Sun God lead that army into war, his companions of the Ancient Kingdom: Nefertari Lili, Emet, Zunisha.

"The people of the half-moon" - Kozuki and Minks? - and "the people of the moon" - Shandorans, Birkans, Skypieans? - dreamed of a new Dawn. But humanity, the alliance of the 20 kingdoms, killed the sun, Joyboy, and began their reign of terror.

The God of sea became enraged - the Mermaid Princess Poseidon, Joyboy's dear friend, brought destruction after his passing.

"They could never meet again" - Poseidon was exiled in Fishman Island and Pluton buried under Wano. What about Uranus? I don't know, maybe the Mother Flame itself is Uranus and Pluton is "just" the warship.

About the People of the Moon:

Enel's cover page story is now more important than ever. His ark Maxim is depicted on chapter 1138, since it was probably used by the first moon people to come to the blue sea. It has also been a famous theory that the first Joyboy might have been one of them.

Who is that big Dragon in the middle of the page? I'm not sure. Is that the Forest God? I was reminded of the current Gorosei, and it vaguely looks like Markus Mars, just like the serpent resembles Ju Peter.

"The Third World" is about to end right now. It is a post-apocaliptic world where most people aren't aware of the events of the Void Century. We can see a bunch of characters that are well know to us readers and are destined to bring the End of Times and the Dawn of the New World (which we now now it's is going to be the Fourth): Luffy as Nika, Shirahoshi as Poseidon, Loki representing the Giants apparently, Emet the robot who was a companion of Joyboy, a Tontatta, a Mink, and a series of ships with what we assume have the Ancient Kingdom flag:

I would like to bring attention to a character that was highlighted in a previous moment of the chapter. It looks like a Mink, but I think he is a Zoan User - Yamato in his Okuchi no Makami form, the Guardian Deity of Wano.

Finally the big Demon holding the Sun is Imu, next to a ship with their Holy Knights / the Navy. The world will end with the ultimate battle against the Darkness that wants to extinguish the light of the Sun. And the Sun will emerge victorious and bring a new Dawn.

The drums of liberation will play to the rythim of Nika's heart. The will of D. will be fulfilled at last.

As the late Tom would say:

D. = Don = Dawn

Note: Eiichiro Oda studied about the biggest pirates and navigators in the world, which includes the Portuguese, like Fernão de Magalhães (Magellan) or Bartolomeu Dias (Bartolomeo, Bartholomew Kuma). In Portugal, when we refer to a lord or a lady, we put a D. next to their name, short for "Dom" - Sir/Lord or "Dona" - Dame/Lady. For example, Portugal's first king is called D. Afonso Henriques.

I think Oda did a play on words with Don and Dawn, meaning both the sound of a drum and the Dawn of the New World. So the D. clan are the real "lords" of the world.

[sapphicfandompirate]

*puts on tinfoil hat*

So, Oda definitely was inspired by Viking Runestones, right? Specifically, maybe, the Gotlandic Picture Stones?

Nika

Ship Styles

And the Jörmungandr stone

[mjrtaurus]

Okay, I gotta dig out my Society of Tinfoil Hattery credentials from the junk drawer for this one piece business, so strap in and get ready for some flow of conscious yapping.

And just to be clear: ELBAF SPOILERS

Okay. So the triptych(?) mural. I’m gonna be very insufferable about the mural because that feels like THE center point of this arc. Not so much the poems, because as far as I know, the translations are still unofficial and I can give my thoughts on them then.

Okay, so, the first third. The “First World”

We see people- we can assume slaves- coming out of complexes with machinery beneath and steam billowing from above. Is this a refinery? A power plant? A reactor, maybe?

We see these people go down deep, and come back up carrying something starlike that they bring to a crowned figure on top of the hill. Ore? Precious stones and metals? Some sort of fuel source? It looks the same as the stars depicted, so… nuclear energy?

We also see beneath the ground- perhaps hidden?- a winged figure (sky islander?), next to a very large ship with animals trailing towards it (Noah??) pointing skyward (to the moon???).

Above the crowned figure at the top of the hill, we see a ship in the sky sending a lightning bolt to the feet of the crowned figure and towards the roots of the tree centerpiece (Uranus? Something like the Ark Maxim and Enel?)

And the central piece to the first world portion of the mural… this “Serpent of Hell” coming up from beneath the earth where the slaves are going down into getting into a conflict with the bird-like creature at the top of the second world’s tree (Nidhogg and Hraesvelgr imagery? Who would be the Ratatoskr of that?). It seems from the fire the two are spitting at each other, that the whole world has become enveloped in war and- if the bit about the Earth God becoming enraged is translated correctly- rendering it uninhabitable (the reason why the sky islander is taking the animals to Noah? The reason why the sky islanders went to the moon to begin with? Was the land irradiated?)

This one is the most dicey for me, but bear with me.

The Second World is a tree with the Hraesvelgr-esque figure perched at the top, warring with the Nidhogg-esque figure going down into the earth beneath the roots. We might assume, though I’m not exactly certain about it, that this tree could be symbolic of this eight hundred year reign of the world government? Its branches don’t stick out very far from the trunk, so this could just be to keep the image from being cluttered, just something that wasn’t thought about, or because the tree is giving shade to only a select few.

This Hraesvelgr looking beast seems to have won the conflict with the Nidhogg one. So the Nidhogg beast might have been symbolic of a rebellion coming up from where the slaves toiled away? (The x marks on the serpent’s sides do make me think of a certain tattooed someone with a certain ophidic moniker with certain unsavory opinions on the Celestial Dragons…)

And then we see the last portion of the triptych. Nika leading the charge with an army at his back against a winged demon holding the sun.

I see Nika and Imu (or maybe even Teach…) depictions here, obviously. I see a whale with two people on it’s back (Laboon, Crocus, and that one dude who was drinking with him that one cover art (that might be the man marked by flames))? I see a Lunarian (King and/or the Seraphim?). I see Emmet. I see Dogstorm and Catviper. I see Shirahoshi and the Megalodon. I see Leo. I see Loki! We see several ships, too! All of these people fighting against one big demon and one tiny ship with just a handful of people. The world has turned on the powerful few.

In conclusion… I think this is a sort of history-prophecy thing like with Alduin’s Wall in Skyrim. These aren’t “worlds” per se, but Ages. It just gives that illusion because it feels like how humanity speaks of bygone eras as totally different worlds. I think this is the Void Century, Imu’s reign (specifically Imu, because clearly something or someone was calling the shots before them. Perhaps the Nerona were ruling? And Imu formed the alliance of the 20 Kingdoms when the Nerona family was being threatened by this “Serpent of Hell”? Maybe Imu was the only survivor of their line and refused to let go of their power?), and Imu’s downfall respectively.

I… really don’t think Nika brings the end of the world. I think he just brings in a new Age.

I’m going to go on my “Imu is an eternal child” soap box when I say that I think Imu is embodying a sort of foil to Nika (a moon god/dess mythical zoan, maybe?). Both Nika and Imu seem… childish to me. Nika is all the positive things we associate with childhood. Play and laughter and imagination. While Imu… Imu is all the negatives. Selfishness and moodiness and “I’ll break my toy so I don’t have to share it” mentality. You get what I’m saying?

Again, this is by no means a comprehensive thing. This purely just me spitballing things.

Thoughts are absolutely welcome.

[whateverthought]

Is Loki actually a Good Guy? (One Piece Chapter 1136)

We learn the Giants aren't really exposed to the outside world, despite the -both in and out of universe,- belief that all Giants were pirates or warrior types. But they aren't. They sometimes get newspapers they enlarge but they obviously get their primary information second-hand, likely either from Shanks if he's around or Saul who hasn't been out and about in 22 years.

We see Loki knows about the Celestial Dragons, knows or can infer that the Holy Knights are Celestial Dragons themselves, and Hates them.

But there's this question, Loki wants to destroy the World, so he has to be the Bad Guy, right? All the Giants think he's a monster, he does dangerous things like go into the wild dangerous forest and either kill or tame the beasts everyone else is scared of. He brings them home! And seems to not understand why all the damage would be a problem or why he shouldn't be laughing.

But, isn't that Luffy? Did we not see Luffy himself imply the similarity with his own childhood? Doesn't Luffy not understand the danger he puts his crew in and laugh even when Nami and Usopp are crying?

And of course, the big Sin. He murdered his father, a wise King who wished to connect with the outside world. But, I have to ask, would that have been truly wise? WE know the situation outside Elbaf. WE know what happened with Fishman Island. WE know the bigotry and violence that exists in this World. But I have to wonder, do the Giants? Loki seems to understand. And why does that fill me with dread?

Is this a Mother Caramel situation? Was he truly a Good Man? We know he seemed to attempt to mend the hurt feelings between the Giants and Big Mom, as Big Mom did get to bring her kids to Elbaf which allowed Loki to meet and fall in love with Lola. But we've seen how Big Mom acts, how she treats her children, others under her command and I get the feeling this wouldn't have been a good decision. Especially if King Harald wanted to change Elbaf's reputation into something other than violence. We hear he didn't want Loki to get the Devil Fruit passed down in their family, and its implied he killed him for it. Is that it, or was that what they assumed?

If Loki seems to know the outside World, if he knows about Celestial Dragons, if he knows how the World is run, would deciding to destroy it be such a bad idea? How do you define destroy? Is it Fire and Brimstone, nothing left or New World Order, cut off the head and start again?

[crowdusk]

One Piece Chapters 1134 + 1135

SUMMARY (I simply cannot be concise so I thought I'd add summary points for anyone who doesn't want to read a whole long piece. Clown music though because even the summary is long. I can't help it.)

Also you can find previous Elbaph thoughts/predictions here.

I believe Elbaph’s current culture of peace and absolute non-violence came from Harald (who was probably an idealist) and Mother Carmel, who was – and is still – seen as a holy woman and saint by the giants. Her rhetoric was all about ‘everyone living together in peace’ in a superficial, unrealistic and one-dimensional way that hid and enabled a lot of violence. Including, of course, her literal job providing military assets to the World Government in the form of orphaned children to be made into spies and soldiers. 

Mother Carmel’s infiltration may have led to Harald developing a relationship with the World Government (which he probably wanted Elbaph to become a part of), while we know that the Five Elders are wary of giants and have always sought to co-opt their strength. This might explain how the two Holy Knights looking for Loki were able to teleport into the castle (I believe there must be physical rules/limitations to the magic circle transport, e.g. some kind of physical anchor to the place you’re going).

This arc is going to look at and explore questions around peace and violence. Peace by and for whom? For example, ‘peace’ can look like the people at the center of society living without disturbance or discomfort while those on the margins suffer and are silenced (neoliberalism). Peace as defined by the absence of overt conflict doesn’t mean there is no harm or violence – it can be repression, manufactured consent, etc. True peace cannot be imposed from the top, it must be collectively built. And so forth. Conversely, violence and conflict are sometimes necessary to protect what you care about (your treasures), as we see with the Strawhats. Creating a peaceful and knowledge-centric society doesn’t have to be at odds with warrior culture, since being willing to put your life on the line is important in some instances. What will happen if external factors threaten Elbaph’s treasures? 

Last review, I talked about how I think one of this arc’s central themes will be the juxtaposition of reality and fiction, truth and lies, stories and lived experiences. Illusions will shatter and false gods/idols will fall – I think the giants’ idolisation of Mother Carmel and Harald will end, one way or another. For the latter, I don’t necessarily think he was evil. More so that he was just one person who made mistakes and had flaws, rather than a perfect king who only ever brought wonderful changes to Elbaph. On the other hand, Loki may not be a god but he could have the powers of one, and I think the first impressions we got of him will be changed and shown to be misinformation to recast him in a more positive light. I think he had a good reason to kill his father, and that the events of Harald’s death are another false story that must be clarified. Oda loves a good character twist. (Honestly if Harald turns out evil, I’m here for it). 

I also said in my last piece that I thought there would be internal divisions, and I still think this is going to be the case. For example, we don’t know why Hajrudin initially left Elbaph – could part of it have been feeling stifled by the loss of warrior traditions? This would make sense, since he wanted to follow in Dorry and Brogy’s footsteps. However, I think we might just see more of a spectrum of positions, rather than, say, two clear factions. Nevertheless, I still think the Strawhats will have to bring a lot of people together to fight a bigger antagonist, maybe even including Loki (as the potential king??) – but they’re pretty good at that. 

Last time I wrote about 1132, I was still a little unsure about Loki’s vibe, but I didn’t think he would be the big villain. This is now pretty much confirmed for me and I think will become even clearer once we get the truth of his backstory. The more we see of him, the more we see a silly side – one that hides genuine care for people under a violent and fearsome facade. I think he’ll probably end up as an ally (even if he’s still morally ambiguous). Classic case of Luffy’s gut being right once again. I am particularly interested, though, in what this means about Loki’s proclamation that he’s the sun god who will destroy the world. Is it metaphor? Does he want to declare war on the WG? Is he still going to do some fucked up things? Unclear. But I still think divinity, myth and belief are key to Loki’s character and his juxtaposition with Luffy, and I’m interested to see exactly how.

I wrote about strength after chapter 1132, and I still think it’s going to be an important theme. What I’d like to add is that I think it will be specifically about strength in relation to pride, and warrior culture in general. Essentially, it will be about why people fight. Why people want to be strong, and why they take pride in it. The Strawhats fight for what they care about, especially people. This also includes things that carry the wills of people who have died, like the books of Ohara, or even the concept of people’s dreams. This arc will look at warrior culture, and the difference between a warrior society and an oppressive/hegemonic society which uses violence (fear and the threat of death) for extraction and control. Fundamentally, all these themes are about power in relation to collective freedom, and what it means to live a good life. There is rightful pride in being able to fight from a place of knowledge and connection, to fight for what you love and believe in (including people’s freedom) as opposed to the soulless genocide and extraction from those considered less deserving of life. 

I think the declaration of the warriors at the feast might also be a foreshadowing of exactly what the Strawhats will do in Elbaph. Understanding and protecting their ancestral pride as warriors, and helping them reconnect to it as a country. Freeing them from ignorance (revealing the truth of what really happened with Carmel, Harald, and Loki). And saving them from being destroyed (this one’s pretty self-explanatory, but I believe it will be to do with Yggdrasil).

Ok if you’re here for the full whammy, yay! SO MUCH HAPPENED IN TWO CHAPTERS. GAH. Let’s just get straight into it. 

So, in chapter 1134, we open with the strawhats meeting Saul outside the library. I don’t have much to say about this part thematically (same with the previous chapter) because I think it’s pretty straightforward. I’ll summarise: I loved it, Luffy poorly copying Jinbe was extremely funny, the reunion did actually make me cry, and I am forever crying over Robin just – being happy now. Being relaxed, content, smiling more, bonding with Bonney. My heart, my heart. 

We also see Lilith introduce herself to Saul as Vegapunk, and explain to him (and us, for the first time!) that she has brought a “perfect re-creation” clone of Vegapunk with her. She plans to settle down in Elbaph and build a new lab. Ok, cool. Honestly, I’m a little eh about a Stella comeback (because I think it’s more interesting for him to be embodied by just his satellites) but just because that’s the plan doesn’t mean it’ll go smoothly, or happen for sure. On the other hand, I’m genuinely pleased that there’s a potential to bring Kuma back, not that he was ever never actually dead. We’ve had so many hints that there’s hope for him. Plus, he’s one of the characters that truly just went through the worst of the worst over and over for the sake of liberation and his loved ones, holding onto faith throughout. I think he deserves to be a father and be happy, I don’t care if that’s cheesy. But again, no guarantee that will actually happen. 

Love and Light Only 

We then see the Walrus School where the children are educated and hear that it was founded 20 years ago by Saul, at the behest of the former king, Harald. Once again, huge huge kudos to the assistants because wow. I want to live there. What follows is Luffy’s encounter with some of said children, who turn out to be, well, absolute wimps. They don’t use ‘bad’ or potentially insulting words, and they’re not going to be setting out to sea to fight ruffians when they’re older. They’re learning in school, rather than being trained to be warriors. In fact, as their teacher Ripley tells us, being a warrior nowadays isn’t fashionable, because “insults, violence, pillaging, war” are just “not the world we live in anymore”. [Side note: the number of beautiful giant women Oda is giving us??? It's tough out here for a gay]. Absolutely nothing even close to violence or antagonism are allowed, not even petty insults, specifically by the children, which tells us this is very much the way they’re being raised and taught. It’s giving weird, cloying, toxic positivity. I was even going to say there is no war in Ba Sing Se, but I don’t think we’re dealing with brainwashing here – just insularity and idealism. 

We see this reinforced by the repeated mentions that Elbaph has very little connection to the outside world – they don’t pay attention to it, they don’t get news coos, they just mind their own business. Interestingly, we also know that any “intruders” immediately get captured (presumably to be vetted and potentially kept out if they risk disturbing the peace). I honestly can’t remember if the news coo thing has come up before in the context of non-WG countries, but I don’t think so? Anyways, that’s pretty bad. Like, if a country isn’t in the World Government (which, remember, requires paying literal tribute to the Celestial Dragons) they just don’t get information about what’s happening in the world? Wild stuff. In some ways maybe that’s protective, but in other ways, extremely dangerous. 

On the topic of language, we also immediately see ways in which these cultural rules are being broken. The way Ripley speaks is rougher, as she herself calls the kids brats and says she teaches by “negative example” (do as I say not as I do). So we’re seeing a clear generational rift in culture between what Ripley later says is the “last generation of warriors” (presumably she’s around the same age as Hajrudin, Loki, Rodo, Gerd etc) and the current children. When we meet Collun, we also immediately see that the way the other children treat him isn’t exactly kind. Despite strictly following rules around things like name-calling, they outright say they hate him. He replies in kind, but it’s not hypocritical of Collun in the way it is for the other children. He’s clearly the rough “wild child” who’s following the older warrior culture, whereas the ways in which the educational system is teaching ‘non-violence’ clearly doesn’t preclude them from excluding or being rude to a kid who’s different from them. In fact, they’re just following the rules and it’s ok to be mean to him because he’s always causing trouble and not following the rules, so he deserves it. They even basically imply why are you here. I think this kind of petty behaviour isn’t abnormal or horrendous for kids, but it does highlight to me that the kind of ‘peaceful’ culture Elbaph is aspiring to feels extremely one-dimensional, oversimplified, and somewhat superficial. Even the way Ripley talks about it feels so smoothed out and idealistic, which is strange coming from the mouth of someone who still looks and behaves like a warrior. What happened from one generation to the next?

Ripley goes on to say Harald’s policy was “don’t fight other countries – trade with them!” Sound familiar? Yeah. Those were exactly Mother Carmel’s ideas for the giants a hundred years ago, when she lived on Elbaph. This was following the dissolution of the Giant Warrior Pirates because Dorry and Brogy had started their century-long duel on Little Garden, when she appeared as a “wandering holy woman” and ‘saved’ some of their crew from execution by beseeching the marines for forgiveness and an end to violence. The giants understandably see her as a saviour and saint who performed a miracle. We only learn later that this was a stunt pulled in collaboration with the marines and the World Government, which allowed her to gain the trust of the giants and infiltrate Elbaph as a child trafficker.

Now, I’m not saying Harald was aware of Carmel’s true nature, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he was inspired by/agreed with what she was saying, thus starting Elbaph’s current era of ‘peace’ with the Giant Warrior Pirates out of the way. Carmel was a perfect human link to the WG who could help Harald carry out his ideas, while her saviour position in the eyes of other giants helped him convince his people. This is important, because that means this peace was potentially built with a foundation of deceit tied to military strategy. Carmel wasn’t operating alone – she was specifically selling orphaned children to the WG to be marines, spies and agents. We see her talking to and dealing with CP0, who work directly under the Celestial Dragons and the Five Elders. Mother Carmel was a morally putrid money-hungry old hag, yes, but she was also an instrument of the WG. We also know that the WG has long been interested in harnessing and controlling the power of giants (from Carmel talking about getting giant children into the navy, like John Giant, to MADS’ and later Caesar’s gigantification experiments). In a world based on power inequality, oppression and authoritarian domination, the giants are military assets – if only they can be assimilated into the system. And who is easier to indoctrinate and control than children? 

To be clear, I think peace with a focus on education and knowledge is great! I would love for the world to be that way. And I definitely don’t think the “goal” of this arc should be to renounce those ideals or simply go back to being a completely war-based culture. Knowledge is extremely important in One Piece – that’s quite literally a central theme of the whole series. And of course, we are shown time and time again how horrific and devastating war is. However, history – why and how things come to be is crucial. Is something coming from people’s informed collective desires, or is it coming from the decision of one person/a few people? Is it something that benefits everyone? Is it growth from a place of understanding, or historical amnesia and bypassing material reality? The truth is that right now, the One Piece world isn’t past “violence, insults, pillaging, war”. It’s very much full of those things, specifically because it is rife with inequality. Elbaph so far has been sheltered from these problems, but what happens if the problems come to them? 

This is one of the central questions I believe Elbaph is going to grapple with. What is peace, and what is violence? How can true peace be created? Can violence truly be eradicated from the world? What different kinds of violence are there? 

I think the books from Ohara, the Owl Library and Yggdrasil are going to be of crucial importance to these questions. We know that Yggdrasil is extremely important to Elbaph, and we also know that accumulated collective knowledge and education – as represented by the books – are beyond precious. So, the giants have something to protect that isn’t just their own lives: they have a collective treasure. I wouldn’t be surprised if threats to these treasures are the catalyst for the giants’ reconnection to their warrior natures. Pillaging and engaging in violence just for the sake of it or for sadistic pleasure is unnecessary and cruel, but being a fighter and a warrior in order to protect what one cares about – one’s treasure – is important. All the warrior cultures we’ve seen so far in One Piece have shared this reason for their strength, from the Shandorans protecting their sacred ancestral lands and history, to Wano with Pluton, and the Minks with their poneglyph and Zunesha. 

Elbaph can be a peaceful nation that focuses on education and knowledge, and still be able to protect that knowledge if necessary through maintaining relationship to the core aspects of their warrior culture: honour, courage, strength, skill, freedom, etc. I think that’s also where pride can sit, in the space of being strong enough to do what’s needed to protect life, dreams, love, and what we care about. This is, after all, what we see time and time again in pirates like Luffy and the Strawhats – that fighting and strength are absolutely not everything, and look different for everyone, but are ultimately important to protecting what’s important to us. There is pride in embracing one’s dreams, taking action, resisting oppression and injustice, and having a strong relationship to life and death as warriors do. As an aside, I do think Usopp will be a key person who inspires this shift and re-invigorates the giants’ pride (big speech time!). 

Ideals and Idols

Two things jumped out at me in this section of the chapter. The first is that multiple people have referred to Harald as a “great king”, or something along the lines of ‘beloved by everyone’. Now, that’s not so strange. He could’ve just been a really caring or charismatic leader. But the emphasis makes me a little suspicious about what was going on behind the scenes, especially since we know what Mother Carmel was really doing, but the giants still don’t know the truth. They still see her as a holy figure and miracle worker who saved them and even cared about Linlin, a “god of disaster”. I think it’s no coincidence that the figures of Harald and Carmel have been set up as key figures of this hundred-year period who are idolised by the giants, and the illusion is going to crumble at some point. I believe the truth about Carmel being the epitome of ‘peace and love’ hypocrisy will come out, and so will whatever truth about Harald. Again, to be clear, I’m not saying I think Harald was evil or had bad intentions – it’s more likely that he was tricked and manipulated by Carmel and the WG because of his idealism. I think he probably wanted to make Elbaph part of the WG (in order to pursue his goals of peace and trade), he wanted Elbaph to open up to the world, and he wanted ‘peace’ in the sense of blanket non-violence. 

That last part we already saw expressed with terrifying clarity in a child Linlin, when she locked a bear and a wolf in a cage to stop them fighting because “fighting is bad”. I won’t get into analysing that metaphor right here (I think I’ll make a separate post) but it is so on the nose – forced peace and non-violence is itself violent and creates more violence, especially because it requires imposing your will on other beings and taking away their freedom. Peace for whom? And by whom? I believe the truth of Harald’s engagement with the WG, and either his collaboration with them or his mistakes in dealing with them will come to light, and I’m sure Loki’s reasons for killing him are related.

In this way, Harald opened Elbaph up to infiltration and engagement from the WG, who I’m sure were only waiting for an opportunity to gather intelligence and start undermining the giants’ power or bend it to their use. Like I said previously, I strongly believe that the Warland giants had ties to the Ancient Kingdom and the events of the Void Century. It would absolutely be in the WG’s interest to bring them over to their side and disconnect them from any remaining traces of that history. In fact, Mother Carmel’s House of Lambs also centered around the idea of ‘reforming’ children and helping them leave their ‘problematic’ past behind. This same idea of reform has been used to describe Elbaph itself. This treats history as something to bury and leave behind – something shameful, rather than something to acknowledge properly, learn and grow from. And of course if we know anything about One Piece at all, we know that forgetting or erasing history is literally one of the most central problems/mistakes/evils of the series. We see this further shown in the fact that Ripley is the one to bring up Nika to Luffy, and that she specifies she’s from the last generation of warriors tells us that the children might not even know about him. Why would they, if he’s a warrior god and they’re actively being taught to be anything but warriors? It gave me chills, no joke.

So the ‘peace’ in Elbaph feels especially uneasy right now, despite Ripley’s words. There are antagonists working for Garling/Imu on the island. There is what seems like a red herring of an antagonist (Loki). There is misdirection and mystery galore. So many illusions and false stories to be shattered. False idols to be toppled. Funnily enough, the one story we know is real right now is a literal living myth (Luffy’s Nika form), who is also just a guy. Ideals and idols need to be brought down to earth for real living people to connect with materially, instead of being held aloft and out of reach. What did the arc open with? Rodo pretending to be a god. We’ve also had another character claim to be a god in Loki, meanwhile we know Celestial Dragons (including the Holy Knights) pretty much believe themselves to be gods. Yeah, I’m reiterating my point that ideas of faith and divinity are going to be crucial in Elbaph. In fact, I will put it out here right now that we’re going to get more information about the Lunarians, who were also called gods (I have a whole theory about that). 

Updated Loki thoughts 

The last thing I wanted to talk about is some updated thoughts on Loki. Basically, he’s a tsundere?? Love to see it. It seems that at least part of the unhinged and violent temperament we’ve seen from him so far is a facade, since his long-term friend ‘Shaggy’ says “I’ve realized recently that those fearsome words of yours hide your kindness”. We see that Loki has a friend he’s never met or seen, but known for a long time through den den mushi conversations. He empathises with said friend’s recent traumatic experience, saying it hurts him to hear it, while overreacting when they call him kind. Typical bluster, which seems to compensate for what is a sense of compassion and understanding. Not a heartless villain, then. This of course consolidates the idea that he isn’t how he appears on the surface and how he was first introduced, and that Luffy’s instincts were right. This does make me feel much better about their ‘promise’, even if it will still probably end up causing chaos. On top of that, it reinforces my feeling that he reminds me of Law, and will probably end up as an ally to the Strawhats in some way. Maybe by the end of the arc he will even be restored as the king of Elbaph, potentially alongside Hajrudin. Speaking of which, I went back to the previous chapter where the Giant Warrior Pirates were talking about Loki and Hajrudin, and the description of Loki as “another official child” of Harald makes me think Hajrudin is probably his illegitimate half-brother. But we’ll see. 

All of this has me thinking about the other giants calling him the “shame of Elbaph”. Initially I thought this might be because his actions are considered dishonourable, and I still think that’s probably the case. But having had the developments about Elbaph’s cultural shift, I wonder if part of the dishonour is just doing any kind of violent acts in Elbaph at this point. Thinking about how the other children treated Collun, and talked about insults, is there a sense that anything ‘barbaric’ on the island is shameful? Have they maybe even been taught to be ashamed of their violent past as Warland? I wouldn’t be surprised. And if so, that makes me even more worried about how that happened and the consequences of such revisionism and reform. As I said earlier, it’s one thing to want to change and improve, to move forward collectively for everyone’s good. It’s another to completely reject the past and bury it. Shame can be an important part of reflection and acknowledgment, when deserved, but it can also prevent real growth. I worry that Harald and Carmel’s approach was just to give Elbaph a PR-style culture change that has left them with a flimsy and fragmented social structure. One that is particularly vulnerable to hegemonic influence and external danger. 

Speaking of which, my thoughts on the two strangers (I’m going to call them Holy Knights because I’m pretty sure they are) looking for Loki are that they are either here to kill him, or to influence/recruit him somehow. I’m sure they’ve had intel on the situation in Elbaph, including the fact that there is no king since Loki didn’t ascend to the throne. Given that it seems Harald wasn’t a threat to the WG, I assume they know that Loki is different somehow. We also know that the Holy Knights are essentially the military special forces unit of the Five Elders/Imu, so I don’t think they’re there for a tea party. Even if their mission involves diplomacy, I think violence and threats are probably part of the plan. Hence, persuading him of something (with force if necessary) or assassinating him. We saw Loki has a “special” bounty, probably because he killed his father and/or has a legendary devil fruit, so it makes more sense to me that the knights are there to take him out. Plus, from a narrative point of view, if Loki is a rebel compared to his father, and is likely to ally with the Strawhats, he’s probably a character that is going to be set in opposition to the World Government. 

I don’t have much to add to what everyone’s already saying about the Shanks lookalike Danks, other than I agree it’s not Shanks and is either a relative or a clone, especially with the way clones keep being brought up. They’re clearly very powerful if the bandage person is anything to go by (bandage-bandage fruit?? the way they used it to break the guy’s bones was something), and I’m hyped for more. I’ve been waiting to see the Holy Knights since we got the God Valley flashback. I’m so ready for new villains. I'm also pretty scared, since we're getting a feast at the beginning of an arc. That doesn't bode well for the ending to me...but let's enjoy the good vibes while they last.

Honestly it feels like these last two chapters just left us with more questions than answers, and knowing Oda, we might not get those answers for a while! But let’s see. The opening parts of an arc are always the most fun to me because of that.

Bonus favourite bits:

Saul asking why Vegapunk's a woman and Lilith being like "who gaf"

Robin being happy always

Chopper and Robin library time I cry

Ripley being excited to see Nika Luffy, and Luffy's response

BIG ANCIENT OWL!!!!!!!! I LOVE

Bonney, Chopper and Robin on giant books

Luffy's interaction with Collun - truly big brother

the way Stephen Paul translated the kids' speech (vylence, vishus)

the new outfits, very cute (especially love Jinbe's)

the Jarul gag????? unserious

[lightningbastard]

Elbaf theory:

Since Little Garden its been believed that Elbaf will be a big arc for Usopp and with Oda highlighting his & Luffy's reactions to arriving I hope that'll come true.

While I do want Usopp to get focus and a new ability I don't want him to suddenly do a 180 & be like the monster trio like some fans want;

Due to the Nordic themes in Elbaf as well as the introduction of Loki, there is a theory that Mjolnir exists in Elbaf and with hammers being in Usopps arsenal it would be cool for Usopp to be considered worthy enough to wield the real Mjolnir.

However rather than it being like Thors hammer and giving Usopp the ability to use Thunder, as that will overlap with Nami. I hope it would be made of material with a similar ability to the sun stone painter Brogy used to summon a rainbow.

It'd be cool if Usopp used this to create rainbows to gain distance on enemies and snipe them from far - especially if his final battle will be against Van Auger who can also teleport.

And if it comes to close combat it could actually weigh 10tonnes or more, but feel weightless to Usopp as he proves to be a brave warrior of the Sea.

& since this is One Piece rather than Usopp swinging the hammer at an opponent to hurt them it would be funny if he discovered how heavy it is by accidentally dropping it on his opponents foot and immobilosing them cause they can't lift the hammer.

But we just have to wait and see...

[dr-senpai13]

I never cared too much about the shanks twin theory until this panel right here

[raconteur-wanpi]

none of this makes sense honestly and I had an actual fever while making it

[wesleysniperking]

Ahhh. ☺️ I’ve been looking at Usopp vids on YouTube to get me out of Usopp fan angst. And this video really didn’t disappoint.

Truly.

The individual who created the video made all good points as to what Usopp represents and why he is a needed Straw Hat. It made me like the long-nosed sniper even more.

If you’re looking for some simple (not-so-long) YouTube videos that provide character analysis for One Piece characters, PK Buggy is where it’s at. He did a good job with the video.

Usopp may be a scaredy cat but when it comes to fighting for those he loves and wants to wholeheartedly protect, with heavy conviction, then dang it! Usopp is even more invincible than the D in Luffy’s name.

If you’re an Usopp fan just know you aren’t alone.

Why did Wano give Usopp haters so much ammo? Before Nami’s firm resolve in defending Luffy’s honor scene, Usopp did it first! Ugh! 🤬 But apparently selling fake toad cream and not wanting to see a friend get their head literally bashed into the wall is an effin’ dealbreaker!!!!! Wano is my least favorite arc because of all the Usopp hate. Like, how can I be so hyped up for the next arc when the Usopp slander continues?

BUT I must wait for Elbaf. I can. I will.

And if Oda pulls the rug right from under Usopp fans, or moves the finish line again when it comes to Usopp’s time to shine once more I’m going to make a documentary about being an Usopp fan, and how Elbaf hurt so so so so so so so so so so so so so much!!!!! Heck, Usopp-fans might have to come together and make our own fan-funded Usopp Elbaf anime movie or somethin’.

Anywho, I’m making a full summary and list of all of the Usopp-centric Elbaf theories I’ve found on the web (YouTube, Reddit, TikTok, and etc)! They’re always so interesting to read and watch and (most likely) better than what we’ll get in canon. So, the post will be up soon.

Wait till Elbaf, y’all!

[epraim1992]

Shanks' Twin

When Colon was first revealed the first thing I notice was his helmet.

It looks identical to one worn by a boy giant from Big Mom's childhood. We never see his face.

The anime depicts him as this kid but the helmet design is different which I thought meant it was a different character in the manga.

The bar maid gives Colon food to bring to Ripley and his father. So I thought maybe his father is the kid from Big Mom's flashback

But Colon's scene with Shanks was reminiscent of Luffy asking to join Shanks' crew and I think it's a clue.

I have a theory that the boy giant is the man that looks identical Shanks.

The one who appeared to the Gorosei during Levely.

It seems like his lack of a scar was a tell tale sign he was not Shanks.

I don't think they will be twins but Doppelgangers similar to Caribou and Gaburu.

I think there was hint through Road. He dons a skull mask that looks similar to one worn by a Holy Knight during the God Valley Incident. There was speculation that there was a connection, I think Oda was planting seeds.

We know Mother Carmel was the reason John Giant joined the marines maybe she also inspired Shanks' doppelganger to join the World Government.

It was revealed that the late King Harold was a visionary king who wanted to revolutionize Elbaph one way was by fostering trade not war. I think he supported Mother Carmel's effort to get giants to enlist to build a better relationship with the World Government.

We know King Harold had Saul create the Walrus Folk School to reeducate the children of Elbaph.

I think similar with Shanks with the straw hat he passed it down to Colon's father who then gave it to him.

I think it will turn out to have belonged to Joy Boy. It was reiterated that Luffy's looks like Nika. I think Joy Boy lived in Elbaph for awhile.

It hasn't been confirmed that the giant straw hat in Mary Geoise is Joy Boys'.

But the flashback of Joy Boy highly suggests he is wearing a Straw Hat. And a popular theory is that he is a buccaneer but if not he does seem like a large human.

As to why he is human sized. I think it is because of a Devil Fruit, there is a non-canon called the Mini Mini no Mi that lets a user shrink their size.

[minniiaa]

This might sound pretty silly, but in ending of chapter 1124, there's a mysterious silhouette character in Elbaf. I couldn't help but kinda got a strong feeling, if he could be responsible for rescuing Law and Bepo?🤔

Its just a small theory, it'll be cool if it did happen. So far we still don't know mysterious man in the silhouette except he likes to drink.

Absolutely not silly and y otally a possibility! I’ve seen theories floating around that the figure is actually Scooper Gaban of the Roger Pirates (see below comparison photos which do look pretty similar). Could just be a coincidence, but with Oda, you never know!

Whoever it is, I hope your theory is right and they are indeed the one who saved Law and Bepo so we finally get to see our favorite emo doctor and his fluffy bff again! I need to see Law’s pretty face again and real solid confirmation he’s alive and well. (I mean he’s probably not WELL, but when has Law ever been?)

[iamumbra195]

!One Piece Chapter 1138 Spoilers!

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Things I recognized from the Ancient Carving in the Elbaf Adam Tree:

Yggdrasil (obviously lol)

Noah's Ark

Zunesha (I think it's what's carrying the Noah's arc though I'm not sure)

THE GIANT SNAKE !!! (Remember the theory about the how the Redline is the hiding spot of Jormundgandr (The World Serpent) WHO IS SAID TO BE THE CHILD OF LOKI IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY!!! Jormundgandr circles the entire earth, biting his own tail and him releasing his tail is one of the signs of the beginnning of Ragnarok. Ragnarok entails a catastrophic series of natural disasters, including the burning of the world, and culminates IN THE SUBMERSION OF THE WORLD UNDERWATER!)

Enel's flying ship, which has lightning coming from it and is being attacked by the Snake (probably connects to the mythology of Thor and Jormundgandr being enemies because Thor is the God of  lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, etc. which Enel is also connected to, including the sacred groves and trees part because of how sacred and valuable the Upper Yard of Skypeia was)

Emet, the Iron Giant (?)

Lunarians

Mermaids

Minks

Dwarves

Ancient Giants

Samurai

The Alabasta Flag (?)

I couldn't figure out what any of the other figures and symbols, so if you guys know what they are, please tell me!

[whateverthought]

(One Piece Chapter 1137)

Partly going off this, but are the Giants going to... turn on the Straw Hats?

This chapter does an even more explicit job of seeding in the Giants' bigotry. Did you notice how, the obvious, Hajrudin's mother was A Different Giant and couldn't be accepted as Queen, and the 'Ancient Giant's Blood' being seemingly demonized, despite it being inside All Giants? Diluted but still present, present enough that their physical traits still manifest. And demonized so much that the King mutilated himself to, prove a point? to be accepted? because he knew they wouldn't take him seriously if he had this giant reminder of their past? (Also talked about by others and a little bit more by me)

And not to mention the previous little clues, Colon being ostracized for being a 'problem child' and Loki being blamed for things that just happened after he was born, the Horse and his mother's death. (This post speaks about it more)

And even just tinier things, they're so isolated they only get their information from inconsistent newspapers, Shanks when he's around and Saul who's been out the game for 22 years. How old man Jarul, who obviously isn't all there, was seemingly their main informant on what happened as everyone else died but Jarul being as old as he is would be a Warrior born and raised? (Like this person pointed out and it hit me as odd too)

But they feel very, set in their ways? Very lost in the sauce? And Luffy is already allying himself with Loki, however strenuous and we know Luffy. He still mentions Oars! He doesn't care to call people out! Sure he doesn't care about other people's business but with Hajrudin and Shanks connected to this place and the inevitable reveal of Nika, I just wonder if there's gonna be a conflict, maybe reminisced of Water 7?

That is to say, I do enjoy the slow reveal that the Giants, as a fully fleshed-out people, have bigotry. Its disconcerting? Disquietening? To see something we've waited for for so long, something the characters themselves have dreamed of, be this less-than-ideal reality. Like the fact they aren't warriors anymore!

[jaspbi]

Before I review chapter 1135 and 1134 (I was busy, apologies) I want to point out something about this week's chapter, so spoilers below!

Apparently Ridley is the mother of Colin! Oda kinda of stated this back in chapter 1132, I honestly thought the bar lady was his mother so I didn't think much of it

Until...

Colin mentioned his father too, which is what I mainly want to talk about.

Colin's father is a human and is infact on Elbaf NOW, given the treats. He seems to be important

Now, what other human has been shown in Elbaf, who people have also theorized to have been pirate AND to be important this arc?

THIS GUY

We've known that he was playing an important role since the beginning of Elbaf, and I think this is the start of it.

I am POSITIVE that this guy is Colin's father

But who could he possibly be? I've discussed this lightly before, but there are 3 contending theories:

- Shiki the Golden Lion

This one seem like the most likely tbh, we know he was part of the Rocks crew and we don't know his current whereabouts, so I think this would be a cool way to introduce him to the main story

Also, the creatures in the dead realm where Loki is are the same creatures featured in Strong World, so it all just adds up I feel like

- Scopper Gaban

Gaban seems likely too, but I honestly don't see it. I think the only likely evidence is the mineral names in Roger's crew, which I don't know much about sadly, I'll need to learn more about that

- An entirely new character

It could happen 🤷 it is Oda writing the story

Thanks for reading!

[mjrtaurus]

Was thinking about the whole “people of the half-moon, people of the moon” thing and I think I have an idea for who the people of the half-moon might be.

The people of the half-moon are D’s.

So the moon, as we know, reflects sunlight to get its glow. And with Nika being the sun god (as far as we know), you could do some symbolism sleuthing here and say the moon reflects the will/favor of Nika somehow.

The D’s- as we well know- are fucking crazy. They carry a predisposed inclination of defiance that’s apparently garnered such a reputation that the Celestial Dragons consider them sworn enemies (and likely have a kill on sight order in place for dealing with them, let’s be real here).

Yet the D’s are a mixed bag. They are anti-establishment in different ways. I would say these different ways are reflective of the half-moon as the illuminated surface representative of being of Nika’s will, and the darkened surface representative of being void of Nika’s will.

I’m gonna use Luffy and Teach as the most extreme examples for this idea.

Both have clear, anti-establishment motives (finding the One Piece and becoming King of the Pirates is inherently anti-establishment.). Both have very different methods of going about being anti-establishment.

You have Luffy, who is most representative of the illuminated half of the moon. He’s clawed his way to where he is because he wants to get there and further beyond by his own merit, by his own strength, by the bonds he’s made with the people he cares about. There is no shortcut to doing what he wants to do, because he understands that finding his way there is just as important as getting there.

As he journeys, he makes friends and he sees what hardships they face at the hands of something he can change. So he does. Not because he wants the glory. Not because he wants to be the hero (that would make him shrivel up and die, we know). Not because he wants to conquer. He does it because he’s made a friend and something is hurting his friend, and more often than not, what’s hurting them is hurting a lot of people.

So he does what he does and beats the shit out of the person and/or people responsible, giving zero fucks about how strong or respected or feared or loved or wealthy they are. You fuck with his friends, and not even Death himself will be enough to keep him from kicking your sorry ass.

By doing this, he’s exposed and destroyed what keeps people from being free. If that doesn’t reflect the Warrior of Liberation perfectly, then I really don’t know what to tell you.

And on the opposite end of this spectrum, we have Teach.

Every bit of power Teach has is only there because he’s stolen it, bought it, killed for it, or exploited for it. From the Yami Yami to the title of Emperor, he’s gotten it all at the expense of others. None of his strength is his own. One could even go so far as to say that with an inability to sleep and two devil fruits at his command, not even his dreams are his own.

He does care about people, despite this, but his care is conditional. Not very hard to meet those conditions, actually. Raise hell, murder, pillage, plunder, do all manner of unsavory and horrific things that you so desire.

Just don’t get in his way.

Because once you do, you’re just another obstacle for him to destroy. He doesn’t care about you anymore.

To Teach, an unfair power dynamic is a ladder to climb. If there’s a struggle, he exploits it to get what he wants and moves on without a backward glance. He builds his bridges, and then burns them once he’s safely across, leaving people stranded and dying in the fire.

There is nothing of Nika- at least insofar as liberation- in him. The sun doesn’t reach him.

All of that be as it may, there’s something else to be said about the half-moon. It does look like a big, toothy smile…