#luffy is so simple minded that this has to be something extremely dumb

[franeridan]

what are our theories about Luffy's final dream, btw. has anyone figured out a possible dream for monkey d "all I want is to be free to party with my friends whenever I want" luffy that'd shock both his brothers, shanks AND his whole crew at this point in the story

[unknownwriting]

Ruin Our Friendship

[Part 1]

Summary: Poor Ace has fallen head over heels for his best friend but he's scared that he'll ruin their friendship if he tells her. (pt. 2) 

Characters: Portgas D. Ace

Song Inspiration: Jenny by Studio Killers

Work count: 4.2k (I was not expecting it to be this long)

Notes: Part 2 of the one shot, hehe it’s a little longer than the first i hoped y’all like it. Sorry it took so long I was not expect 2 book reports and 2 essays to be assigned 🤬🔫 

━━☆⌒*.

“...Ace, if I go on one....more rollercoaster, I think Imma...puke.” (Y/n) groaned as she stumbled over to a bench. Ace watched her, her hair a mess and her face flush from the excitement. For the whole mess she looked like, Ace found it so cute. He let out a loud laugh, taking a seat right next to her.

“Giving up so soon? I thought you’d have more in you.” Ace teased. (Y/n) shot a glare over at him but she couldn’t help but let a smile brush across her lips.

“Oi, shut up! I’m not built like a monster like you. And plus-“ (Y/n) leaned back on the bench as her stomach let out a low growl. She let out a soft whimper and placed a hand on her stomach before looking back at Ace, “-plus. I’m hungry. I wanna eat something.”

“I saw a hot dog stand just around the corner. Let’s stop there.” Ace laughed, standing back up. (Y/n) watched him for a moment, trying to calm herself down at but from the rollercoaster they just went on. It had to be their 4th rollercoaster in a row, she was just surprised with how casual Ace still seems to be acting. With a small scoff from her lips, she jumped up and intertwined their fingers once again.

“A hot dog doesn’t sound too bad.” She smiled leading the 2 of them to the food stand. Ace smiled down at her while the 2 of them walked hand in hand through the crowded park. Today was possibly the best day ever in Ace’s eyes, nothing could ruin today. The weather was perfect: not a cloud in the sky nor a chilly breeze. The park was amazing: not too many people nor long lines. And of course the best part of all: that fact that he’s going on a date with his best friend. Nothing could be better than this. After Ace got over his shyness and awkwardness, everything began to flow smoothly. The conversations came naturally and there seemed to be no conflict between the 2 when it came to activities. It was almost like the 2 were hanging out as friends but with all the hand-holding and the way Ace’s heart still raced in his chest, it made him remember it was a date. It also made him realize just how hard he has fallen for her.

“After this let’s go play some games.” (Y/n) had exclaimed as she squeezed his hand to get his attention. Glancing down at her, Ace followed her pointing her finger over at a row of games, “I wanna win a really big bear.”

“No more rides?”

“Ace if I go on another ride I will puke all over you,” (Y/n) said in a dumbfounded tone as she looked up at her date. Still hand and hand they made their way to an empty table. As (Y/n) took a seat pointed over to the stand and smiled, “Now Ace, go get me a hot dog!”

“Huh? You can’t get it?”

“Nope, it’s the man's job to buy their date a hot dog. It’s the first rule of dating.” (Y/n) exclaimed. Ace's face flushed red before he made his way over to the stand to order. Once Ace got them both a meal he went back to (Y/n) and let out a scoff as he saw (Y/n)'s eyes light up at the sight of food.

“I don’t think I’d ever been this excited to eat a hot dog.”

“So you really didn’t eat before coming here?”

“Of course not. Knowing you, you’d wanna go on a lot of rides so I tried not to eat anything that would upset me.” (Y/n) explained as she took a bit out of her food and hummed happily. Ace froze for a moment as he watched her eat. It was always the little things that made Ace fall for her. Even if she did it for herself, the fact that she thought of him was enough to make his heart explode. With the rush of shivers that ran through his body, he opened his mouth to speak but he caught his breath before he could say anything. He had a plan, well more like Macro and Thatch had a plan, for how Ace would confess. The 2 of you would spend the day together riding rides, playing games, eating junk food, and taking pictures, silly and cute ones. Basically, stuff the 2 of them would normally do together, and then at the end of the day is when Ace would confess. The park plans a huge firework show once every few months, so what would be a better place to confess than a huge firework show. The plan was simple and flawless, the only problem is waiting to see if it goes that way. He felt confident though, the date has been going smoothly so far. He hasn’t seen anyone who knew them or hasn’t run into any problems, with (Y/n) or anyone else. It was going well, nothing seemed to be getting in the way...

But of course, he spoke too soon. As the 2 of them finished their meal and began to ball up their trash, a loud voice called out to them. (Y/n) was the first to perk up and turn around to search. Ace immediately cringed as he recognized the voice. He’s totally jinxed their date.

“Ace, (Y/n) !!”

“Oh! Luffy, Sabo! I didn’t expect you 2 to be here.” (Y/n) called out as she waved back to the 2 approaching boys. Luffy and Sabo were quick to make their way over to Ace and (Y/n)'s side. As soon as Luffy took a spot next to (Y/n) and Sabo took a spot next to Ace, Luffy and (Y/n) already began to laugh.

“Pfftt...Lu-chan what are you even wearing? That headband seems very-“

“Shishishi, isn’t cool!! I beat Sabo and won it.” Luffy cheered as he smiled brightly at (Y/n) and place a hand on the strange hat he won. Now that he mentions it, (Y/n) does remember seeing those hats at the front. It would be a lie to say that winning one of those didn’t cross her mind, but she figured that she would force Ace to win her on one the way out like a boyfriend should do.

“Luffy beat you? Lu-chan must’ve been going easy on you.” (Y/n) teased as her eyes glazed over to the older blonde. Sabo tensed up and shook his head, trying to hide his embarrassment.

“It was dumb luck. I was winning but he came in and won instead. My hand simply slipped.” Sabo explained to cover up his embarrassment. (Y/n) scoffed as she raised an eyebrow at Sabo, who stared down at her. He knew (Y/n) was gonna say something, she always says some type of remark. Just like Ace, Sabo also met (Y/n) in one of his classes. They easily got along and it wasn’t until later on did (Y/n) learn that he was Ace’s brother. That was probably the moment Ace realized he fell. To him, family is extremely important to him and of course, his lover must like his family. So when Ace learned about how well she got along with Sabo, he knew he fell. Ace watched too, wondering if (Y/n) was gonna say anything and she was because she opened her mouth but was quickly cut off by Luffy again. He grabbed her attention and began to talk about who knows what. Sabo seemed to be interested in the conversation but he was pulled away when Ace spoke up. Ace still found it hard to believe, out of all the days, why did Sabo and Luffy have to come today. Out of all the days, why today? It was no lie that it made him frustrated. This day was just supposed to be him and (Y/n) and now Sabo and Luffy showed up. He’s not stupid either, he knows what going to happen next now that they ran into the 2, and it made him upset but he knows that the 2 of them mean no harm, it was simply just a coincidence.

“What are you 2 doing here?” Ace asked, trying his best to not sound upset, although it wasn’t really working. Sabo was quick to catch onto the tone in his voice but for the sake of Luffy and (Y/n) in front of them, he decided not to call him out on it.

“Nothing much.” Sabo shrugged, “I had a day off and Luffy wanted to come. Although we didn’t know you’d be here today, especially with (Y/n). I thought you were busy?”

“...I am.” Ace hesitated as he looked over at (Y/n) who continued to laugh with Luffy about something. The way her whole body would jiggle when she laughed, and the way she would put a hand on the other person’s arm, and the way her laugh echoed through the area, it was all things Ace knew all too well. No matter how many times he looks at her, he just keeps finding more reasons to fall in love. Sabo followed his gaze and looked at (Y/n) before looking back at Ace and the blush that not so subtly covered his cheeks. He’s had his speculation about Ace’s crush on (Y/n) for a while now, and seeing how he can finally connect the pieces, he understood why Ace was busy and it didn’t help that Luffy and he interrupted it.

“Oh.” Sabo hummed as he shifted in his seat grabbing Luffy and (Y/n)'s attention. It was Sabo’s and Luffy’s cue to finally leave Ace and (Y/n) alone to enjoy the rest of their date. It would be a lie to say that he wanted to leave, in all honesty, he wanted to watch Ace go on this date. It’s been so long since Ace has found someone that actually gave him butterflies in his stomach but Sabo respected Ace’s wish. The one he really had to worry about was Luffy, he’s definitely one to not read between the lines, thus this is where Sabo comes in, “Luffy, come on let's go. We should leave Ace and (Y-”

“No!! I still wanna go on some rides with her!” Luffy exclaimed as he jumped up out of his seat and grabbed (Y/n)'s hand. She yelps from the sudden force, causing Ace and Sabo to jump up alongside her to make sure she doesn’t fall. Although she didn’t have time to fall as she was quickly dragged behind Luffy as he pulled her to the next ride he wanted to do. (Y/n) looked back at the others with a worried yet apologetic look as she tried her best to regain her balance. She felt really bad leaving the Ace behind, it was just supposed to be him and her the whole day yet Luffy and Sabo just happened to appear. Even though they did appear, (Y/n) was just going to make a short conversation with them and move on. She was sure Ace had the same idea, but she should’ve known that Luffy was bound to do something. All (Y/n) could do now I hope that Luffy doesn’t stay long.

ミ☆

After a long day of being pulled around the park with a very energetic Luffy and going on almost all the rides, (Y/n) was ready to puke. Not only was she ready to puke she’s also ready to go back to Ace and hopefully end the day together, at least. Throughout the day, (Y/n) barely had any time with Ace because of Luffy. Ace and Sabo tried their best to try and keep up with the 2 but as soon as Ace and Sabo arrived at the ride Luffy had already dragged (Y/n) on it or to a different ride. So much for Ace and (Y/n)'s date, it might as well have been Luffy and (Y/n)'s date. However, Luffy finally began to crash near the end, letting Ace and Sabo finally catch up to the 2. At the moment, Luffy and (Y/n) sat at the front of the park talking about each of their favorite rides while Ace and Sabo made their way to them. Now don’t get her wrong, (Y/n) enjoyed the day with Luffy but she still felt really bad about leaving Ace behind. It was supposed to be their first date today yet they hardly spent any time together.

“I liked the roller coaster that spun around while we rode it. That one was probably my favorite. " (Y/n) explained as she recalled that ride. She made Luffy ride it at least 3 times.

“Shishishi. We rode it at least 3 times, you really did like it.”

“Of course, it was a lot better than those rides you made me ride with all the twists and turns. I’m surprised I last as long as I did, I was about to puke. You're worse than Ace.” (Y/n) exclaimed as she leaned back into the bench, she was happy to sit somewhere that didn’t move. All Luffy did was laugh. It was around sunset, the skies painted hues of pinks and purple with the moon threatening to take over the sky. To (Y/n), there was nothing special that’s going to happen now. She doesn’t know that there’s going to be a firework show tonight, so as far as she knows is that the 2 of them are waiting for Ace and Sabo to arrive so they can go home. Because she already spent most of the day with Luffy, she might as well go home with them and try to make up for the time she didn’t spend with Ace.

“Jeez, we finally caught up with you 2.” Sabo’s voice called out, as he and Ace approached the 2. Both Luffy and (Y/n) perked up when they heard his voice and as soon as (Y/n)'s eyes landed on Ace, she jumped up from her seat and joined him at his side.

“Ace! Your finally back.” (Y/n) cheered while she easily and quickly slipped her hand into his, sending chills down each of their spines. The blush that was missing from Ace’s face had now reappeared as he looked down at his supposed to be date. Sabo scoffed at the 2 of them and looked back down at Luffy.

“You didn’t drag (Y/n) on every ride, did you?”

“Shishishi, nope...” Luffy shook his head, letting Sabo release a relieved sigh but he was quick to suck it back in when Luffy spoke up again, “Some rides were closed and had too long of a line.”

“Thank god for those. Luffy was trying to kill me. We went on like ever ride.” (Y/n) sighed, looking over at Sabo before looking back up at Ace again, “And I can’t believe I thought you were bad. Luffy made me go on every ride without a break.”

“I almost feel bad for you but I told you how much of a handful he was.” Ace laughed. It was nice to finally see her again after a long day of having to chase after her.

“Almost?! Aww, Ace you're so mean.” (Y/n) playfully pouted. Sabo scoffed again as Luffy stood up and join him by his side. Sabo finally felt at ease, Ace was finally able to go back to the date he and (Y/n) were supposed to go on, even if it can only last for one more hour.

“Well seeing how you were supposed to come here with Ace only. I’ll take Luffy and leave the 2 of you alone.” Sabo quickly noticed the relieved look on (Y/n)'s face and could guess for 2 reasons why: One so she can actually enjoy her date with Ace and two, so she can get a break from Luffy. Luffy laughed once again and waved bye to Ace and (Y/n), they finally took off leaving the 2 alone after an extremely long day. As if in sync, Ace and (Y/n) both let out a sigh and looked at each other, and laughed. It was no lie that the 2 of them were finally happy to be alone with each other again, give or take the crowd around them.

“Well, I can proudly say I officially met the whole ASL trio.” (Y/n) chuckled as the 2 of them began to walk hand and hand to the lake that sat in the middle of the park.

“Heh, I did tell you Luffy was a handful. Although I probably wouldn’t make the 2 of you get to know each other at an amusement park.” Ace added, smiling down at (Y/n), “I bet you're pretty tired.”

“Ugh, Ace, that’s an understatement. I feel like I can sleep for days.” (Y/n) said as the 2 of them approached the lake. Ace scoffed at her comment, but then fell silent. All he did was looked down at (Y/n) who began to kick pieces of popcorn on the floor into the lake for the ducks to eat. He really wanted this day to be perfect yet Luffy seemed to come and interrupted that. It was so not how they thought the day would go. The 2 of them had hardly spent any time together, Ace just spent the day talking to Sabo about (Y/n) and tell him every reason why he fell in love. At least he was lucky enough to be with (Y/n) right before the fireworks and if all goes well this time, right before the fireworks Ace should confess his feelings.

“Sorry that Sabo and Luffy showed up. I didn’t know they were gonna be coming today.” Ace started drawing (Y/n)'s attention up to him. She took a moment to look up at him even if its dark outside, (Y/n) could still see the cute freckles that covered his face. Before any moment longer; not wanting to make Ace feel uncomfortable and shrugged her shoulders and smiled,

“Yeah, It was unexpected but I-”

“They ruined our dated.” Ace cut off (Y/n) as he hung his head low in guilt and frustration. It was already hard enough to figure out his feelings for her and now it’s just as hard to just ask her out. (Y/n) could completely understand how he feels, she was also so looking forward to his date but even if it was interrupted by Luffy and Sabo it still considered a date, just not a perfect one.

“They didn’t ruin anything.” (Y/n) scoffed, squeezing Ace’s hand pulling his attention over to her.

“It was supposed to be a date. With just me and you and yet-”

“-and yet, your brothers tagged along. There nothing wrong with that. We still rode some rides together, took pictures together, ate together, and did other couple-y stuff together. Your brothers just happened to be here.” (Y/n) explained as she recalled all the times the 4 of them did meet up with each other. Ace’s face seemed to soften a bit after hearing her explanation, “And plus, I don’t know about you but I think I'm finally ready to be apart of your crazy family. After the hell your brother put me through I better be apart of the family.”

That’s when Ace froze. He didn’t know what to do or what to even say. All he could do was repeat her, “...Apart of my.. family??”

“Well of course,” (Y/n) gave a firm nodded as she looked up into Ace’s eyes. As he stared right back down at her, he noticed there was a look of determination in them. It almost reminded him of the determination he had of making this date perfect, but that had to just be wishful thinking. (Y/n) couldn’t possibly know the plan behind the date. Seems like he was wrong, “All that’s left to do is confess to me, right? So whenever your ready Ace, I’ll give you my answer.”

“You...know? How’d you know??” Ace began to panic now. The plan was supposed to be kept secret and yet she seems to know all about it. He knows for a fact that Marco and Thatch didn’t tell her, they hardly even know her and as far as he knows, she was pretty good at keeping his feelings to himself, so how does (Y/n) know. She giggled as she inched closer to Ace, slowly closing the gap between them. Ace didn’t even notice, he was panicking too much.

“Ya’know Luffy doesn’t have a quiet mouth. Soooo, he ended up telling me. Well, he told me something along the lines. I figured out the rest.” (Y/n) smiled.

“Luffy told you?? God, he so stupid. How does he even know, I don’t remember even telling him anything about it. I’m mean I think I brought it up with Sabo but the only people who knew about it was-” Ace began to ramble on as the heat of embarrassment rushed through his body. He, no doubt, felt embarrassed. Luffy practically told (Y/n) that Ace like her. One more thing that Luffy did to ruin the day. Ace would’ve probably rambled on for a while too, not that (Y/n) didn’t minded. It was cute seeing Ace freak out and see the blush that covered his freckled cheeks, but if (Y/n) didn’t shut him up they would’ve gone nowhere. So while she wanted Ace to be the one to confess, it looks like (Y/n)'s just gonna have to step up for this one. (Y/n) doesn’t know what came over her when she thought of this idea but she has seen it happen in a lot of romcoms so why not try it in real life. Standing up on her tippy-toes, she closed the gap in-between them and connect their lips. Ace definitely froze now. This date is not going how he planned at all. The one he asked out is the one kissing him now.

(Y/n) had only planned to kiss Ace quickly and sweetly; a small peck on the lips to shut him up but things didn’t end up going that way Unknowingly to (Y/n) the fireworks began to go off right in the middle of their kiss. Gasping, her mouth slightly opened for just a moment and Ace was quick to take advantage of that. There wasn’t a lot he could control about this date but he knows that he can easily take control of this kiss. Now he’s taking full advantage of (Y/n). He knows that she’s hardly kissed anyone before so she’s inexperienced. He slipped his tongue into her mouth and began to dance around her mouth, taking his time and enjoying the feeling. (Y/n) face lit up in at least 10 different shades of red, this was definitely now how she imagined the kiss going but she enjoyed it. Her hands found the back of his neck while his hands found her waist. By now, there was no extra space between the 2. A small groan left Ace’s lips as the 2 of them continued to kiss. Fireworks continued to light up the sky, but the 2 of them didn’t even care. Ace probably could’ve kept the kiss going but after feeling a soft tug from (Y/n) on his shirt, he finally broke the kiss. As he leaned back he studied (Y/n)'s face. With the help of the bright flashes of light that illumined the sky, he could see the huge blush that covered her whole face: her cheeks, ears, and even neck. It was an amazing sight to see, especially after all the times (Y/n) had made Ace blush. He easily thought of it as payback, and seeing how he left her speechless he felt satisfied.

“I guess I don’t have to give you an answer anymore, do I?” Ace smirked as his strong arm continued to keep a tight hold around her waist. It still took (Y/n) a moment to regain her composer, the kiss was so unexpected and...amazing. There was no doubt that the feeling between the 2 is very much mutual.

“I...uh..A...a-after that kiss, if you don’t ask me to be your girlfriend now I might as well walk out of here empty-handed.” (Y/n) also kept her hands around her neck not wanting to let go of the warm body. Ace scoffed at her comment. Although the day didn’t go as plan at all, at least Ace was able to confess and not lose (Y/n). It filled him with so much indescribable happiness, he was going to be smiling for weeks. He closed the gap one last time, but this time with a tight hug. As he snuggled his face into the side of (Y/n)'s neck, she giggled feeling his black hair tickle her neck, “Ya’know, I guess we do owe it to Luffy. I mean, if he didn’t tell me then I wouldn’t have confessed either.”

“You? Confessed?”

“Mm-hm. I can’t tell you how long I’ve liked you. But I guess it was the same as you. I was scared to ruin what we already had.” (Y/n) explained as she nuzzled the nose into his hair as if she was trying to hide. Ace’s eyes widen at her explanation, turns out he hardly knows his best friend, “But, we really do have to make sure to thank Luffy.”

“I’ll make sure to beat him up later.” Ace muttered causing (Y/n) to erupt in laugher. Although, (Y/n) thought Ace was joking around Ace knows for a fact that he will beat him up for ruining their date, but he must give him credit at least. Even though Luffy didn’t mean to do anything, he ended up making this the best day ever.

[sz-amare]

10. Creating Realistic Characters with Depth

For many people, characters are one of the most influential aspects of an anime. The same goes for me. There are many types of characters: the protagonist, the main cast, side characters, antagonists, villains, etc. Each contributes to the story in their own way. Making flat, bland, or boring characters can make them forgettable, and therefore, can cheapen the quality of the anime. It can also make it painfully difficult to continue watching the series. Here I will give several pointers on what I believe makes an excellent character and give examples from the One Piece-verse.

1.     Flaws

When it comes to creating characters, I have noticed a general rule to make them great and likable. The audience needs to relate to them. The way you do that is by giving your character flaws. When I say flaws, I don’t mean random negatives about their characters, like when a shōnen protagonist can’t solve a simple math problem to save their lives. I mean flaws that can make them feel weak, directly or indirectly.

When I look at Luffy, many flaws end up making him a better character. The most fascinating one to me is Luffy’s childish nature. He is an extremely idealistic kid who dreams more than anyone. He, at first, doesn’t care nor understand the consequences of his actions. Luffy is also kind-hearted and always pushes his principles before his dream. He tends to scream a lot and wears all of his emotions on his face. Luffy is also a terrible liar. If I described this type of personality to anyone, they would undoubtedly think of a child.

This childish behavior is one of Luffy’s characteristics that make him flawed. There are also several times when acting like a child, particularly not thinking of the consequences of his actions, cost him severely. We have the time Luffy almost attacked the Drum Island civilians after they shot Vivi in the arm, meaning Nami wouldn’t get a doctor for her illness. The time Luffy punched the Celestial Dragon, resulting in him almost losing all of his crewmates (although in this case, I think most people would have punched Charlos. He deserved it).

And the most recent one where he attacked Kaido after “killing” his crewmates, which he ended up losing the fight with a single blow and ended up in prison. Luffy makes dumb mistakes. It plays perfectly with his character, but he is ultimately flawed.

Now I personally don’t relate to Luffy in the way that he is childish (I am the maturest), but seeing Luffy suffer from the consequences of his flaws and understanding that Luffy isn’t perfect is enough to understand that he is a human with struggles, similar to myself.

 2.     Personality, Psychology, and Philosophy

I think personality, psychology, and philosophy (PPP) are some of the most significant ways of distinguishing characters and are the source of a particular character’s general fascination. Every person in the real world has their own unique PPP. When you are in the world of anime, not only is everything overly exaggerated, but it is also unrealistic in all sorts of ways. With these two weapons, you can explore all types of themes, topics, and ideas. So when creating characters in an anime, understand that there are no limits to unique characters. Two characters can be very similar, but there should always be something to contrast.

Not only is PPP used to contrast characters, but it can make them feel more realistic if you can manage to connect all three along with their overall character. Let us look back at Luffy. First, we have Luffy’s personality. Luffy constantly yells, loves to mess around and laughs, loves food, is very dumb, is a terrible liar, always shouts out his dreams, loves to imitate his friends, and is a kind-hearted person.

Closely related to his personality, his psychology is that of a child’s perspective. Finally, we have his philosophies. Luffy believes that everyone should chase their own dreams and freedom, no matter how difficult it is to get there. He also believes that dreams should be achieved with the help of close friends. Luffy also believes that everyone is equal, seeing no one below or above anyone else. Once again, these views and ideals are somewhat childish.

Now that we have all the three major pieces of Luffy, we can fully understand his character’s greatness. All three of his PPP are connected with his childish nature. This makes his character seem cohesive, consistent, and more realistic. All of Luffy’s traits align with his character. Everything about Luffy is connected in a way that would make sense, like a real human being.

 3.     Contrasting, Paralleling, and Mirroring

This is one of my favorite techniques in creating characters. You can contrast, parallel, and mirror (CPM) many things in the series: themes, the plot itself, certain philosophies/ideals, characters, the list goes on. This one applies more to side characters, antagonists, and villains than the protagonist, but it can happen.

Now let us think of the antagonists and villains in One Piece that relate to Luffy and his beliefs and somehow align with one of the rules of CPM. Let’s start with my favorite, Charlotte Katakuri. Katakuri is similar to Luffy in terms of his devil fruit. But Katakuri is far superior in every way: his devil fruit is better and awakened, his haki is better, and he has more experience. Here we can see that Katakuri parallels Luffy a bit, but he completely contrasts in his ideologies and motivation.

Next we have Donquixote Doflamingo. Doflamingo believes that he is the ultimate king. He truly believes he is better than everyone, classifying everyone into three basic categories: kings, humans, and lesser beings. But even in this classification, Doflamingo believes he is on top of the kings as well: he thinks he’s a god. Therefore he believes he has the right to toy with the world, as symbolized by him making puppet gestures and physically controlling people, especially because he was mistreated after Doflamingo and his family left Mariejois. Doflamingo’s beliefs all contradict Luffy’s. First off, Luffy believes everyone is equal, no one above and no one below. This contradicts Doflamingo’s god complex. Luffy also believes that everyone should chase their own freedom, which Doflamingo believes he has the right to take away.

We also have Black Beard or Marshal D. Teach. Black Beard mirrors Luffy in a lot of ways when considering their ideologies. Black Beard, like Luffy, believes in the power of dreams and ideals. When we first see Teach, we see him acting like a child, arguing with Luffy about the food and drinks, and Luffy does the same. I think this is Oda showing us that Black Beard is practically and precisely like Luffy. Both of their dreams are to become the Pirate King. The only difference is their approach. As I mentioned earlier, Luffy wants to achieve his dream with the bonds he made with his friends. He doesn’t care if his crewmates are useless or not; a friend is a friend in Luffy’s eyes. On the other hand, Black Beard wouldn’t mind using money to hire strong “allies.” He even hires some of the most dangerous prison inmates. Black Beard is also crueler and is willing to do whatever it takes to reach his goal. If you pay attention, you might notice that Black Beard became a Yonko in a flash, simply because he obtained one of the most powerful devil fruits out there. However, we always hear Luffy saying that there are no shortcuts to become the Pirate King. In one perspective, they look almost identical. When you shift that view, you realize how much they contrast from each other.

Finally, we have Akainu. Akainu is the exact opposite of Luffy. Luffy believes in absolute freedom, while Akainu believes in absolute justice and control. Akainu would kill his own when they showed fear or opposed what Akainu believed was “right.” There isn’t much to talk about Akainu, mainly because we haven’t seen much of him. But from what we have seen so far, it is clear that Akainu and Luffy are complete opposites.

All these different villains are excellent and make clear antagonistic forces against the protagonist simply by contrasting some of Luffy’s ideals. But remember, you can also use CPM with themes on other types of characters. Take one of the reoccurring or significant themes in your story and create a character that uses CPM on that theme.

 4.     Connecting Character Ideas to the Story

This is something I love to do when creating my characters. Basically, I grab an interesting theme or an aspect in a character I want to explore and find a way to connect it to my story. There are many cases when I think of a fascinating character, but it wouldn’t make sense if I randomly added them to my story. So I just connect an event that could likely happen in my story to the reason why my character is the way she is.

One time, I was listening to a song, and the interpretation I got out of it was fascinating to me. It had something to do with abuse, insanity, and OCD. I really wanted to add a character that explored the ideas of abuse, insanity, and OCD to my story, and luckily for me, it was pretty easy to add it into my story.

Now my character (let’s call her Miku for now) doesn’t seem out of place because I connected her character into the story by creating a backstory that was plausible in the world I had created. She suddenly became one of my favorite characters I had created.

5.     Consistency

I think one of the most essential things in a lot of characters is that they remain consistent. Of course, you can pull a 180 and make an Eren Yeager, but if you don’t want to change your character that drastically, make sure they are consistent.

 Once you have created your character, make sure you fully understand their flaws and PPP and make sure whatever type of significant actions they take, it perfectly fits their character.

There were many times in the past when I was able to accurately predict Luffy’s actions and words. I thought I was some sort of genius at first, but I realized soon after that many others could do the same. It was when Luffy rejected his grand fleet where Luffy’s consistency became clear. After fully understanding that Luffy wants to become the Pirate King, simply because he wants to chase the ultimate freedom, why would he accept the grand fleet?

He doesn’t want to become anyone important, and he wants everyone there to chase their own freedom. This is consistent with Luffy’s philosophy of freedom and his childish psychology.

In conclusion

Following any of these principles can help to add intrigue and quality to your character. A regular human is complex and deep, no matter who they are. By following these suggestions, you can create characters with the complexity and depth of real human beings. Make your characters like Pinocchio. Make them strive to be a real boy or girl.

[ask-highheel-dellinger]

One Piece Movies!

Important: This is basically a reblog of the reviews I did of these movies awhile ago. I decided to blog them again, as it could be harder to find them now that I changed my blog name. Hope that clears things up!

I’ve been marathoning through the older One Piece movies, sort of in preparation for finally getting Film Gold subbed! I’ll be giving my opinions on each one, so maybe others who haven’t seen them might get interested! I will update it as I go along!

One Piece: The Movie (2000) - 6/10 A decent movie! The old art style definitely gives that older anime charm. The villain, El Drago, was passable, and honestly had a very enjoyable final fight with Luffy! What brings it down is the fact that, it’s set weirdly between Syrup Village and Baratie. Also Zoro’s fight was pretty lackluster. But I’d still recommend it for that final fight alone!

One Piece: Clockwork Island Adventure (2001) - 7/10 Also decent. Again, old art style makes it an interesting watch. The setting itself was also interesting.The side-characters were actually pretty good too! Bear King isn’t all that great, however. Same with his henchmen. Hell, one of them, who was a Logia user, doesn’t even fight at all! Also hard to tell if Usopp putting his mouth over someone’s asshole to block their paralyzing farts is ‘too much’ or not. But, Zoro, Sanji, and even Usopp have decent fights regardless! I’d still recommend it.

One Piece: Chopper’s Kingdom of Strange Animals (2002) - 6/10 Choppers movie debut! Obviously, it’ll focus a lot on him. He’s alright, though the side-characters don’t offer much. While the movie showcases a lot of very strange animals, not much is really done with them, unlike something like Strong World. Butler serves as a good comedic villain, until the end, where he actually becomes a pretty cool threat! And this movie can boast that it actually pits the opposite henchmen than what you’d expect for Sanji and Zoro, and it’s really good! Unfortunately, while Chopper does do some work against the ‘final boss,’ the KO still goes to Luffy, which is disappointing. Still, a good watch in the end regardless.

One Piece: Dead End (2003) - 8/10 In my opinion, the first very good One Piece movie! A nice plot, and definitely the best villain so far! Gasparde is not only intimidating, but serves to give an amazing final fight in the end! The side-characters have an interesting story going on too, though one of them can come off as a little Ace-y, beyond just their design. I’d say the only things that hold it back are, that the ending could’ve been MUCH more impactful than it was, and that the other Straw Hats don’t get to do a whole lot. Still, definitely a must-see!

One Piece: The Curse of the Sacred Sword (2004) - 3/10 The first, not only bad, but HORRIBLE One Piece movie. I needed to have friends to talk to to get through it. The animation is pretty lackluster, the side-characters are passable at best, the villain is dumb, the plot and movie in general is EDGY AS FUCK, and worst of all, the complete destruction of Zoro’s character. Not only does he betray the Straw Hats, but he does so when he should KNOW that his ‘childhood friend’ is being mind controlled. The henchmen get absolutely demolished with no effort aside from the only likable one, and Luffy ends up doing most of the fight that should be completely done by Zoro. Definitely skip this, unless you plan to suffer through it with a friend.

One Piece: Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island (2005) - 8/10 A well-needed breath of fresh air after the last movie. Not only is the animation greatly improved, but the plot serves both the light-hearted nature of One Piece, as well as the very dark side of it as well. Omatsuri serves as a very interesting villain once you learn his motives, and you’ll probably end up feeling for him and his crew by the end! The side-characters actually serve a very important role in the end as well! However, what brings this movie down is the awkward bickering between the crew that doesn’t even really go anywhere in the end. The worst DEFINITELY being with Nami. Not only that, but after the crew is separated, they do nothing during the climax. And there’s an argument to be made if this movie gets TOO dark for One Piece as well. That’ll definitely effect how you enjoy this movie. But still, overall highly recommended!

One Piece: The Giant Mechanical Soldier of Karakuri Castle (2006) - 6/10 A very simple movie. There’s no big theme or anything. It’s just a lighthearted adventure, which is nice after the last movie. Ratchet makes for a good comedic villain, who’s goals are so dumb that not even the Straw Hats take him seriously. Plus, it’s nice to see someone fight with something other than brute strength as well. Same goes for his henchmen, even if they are beaten pretty easily. However, there are a few things that give it the average score. The animation isn’t particularly special. Luffy can range from really funny to pretty annoying throughout. And, this movie really should’ve come out later, as all the inventions would’ve been perfect for Franky to react to. Also the ending with Luffy accidentally using Gear Second was just… Weird to me. Still, not a bad movie to see at least once.

One Piece: Episode of Alabasta: The Desert Princess and the Pirates (2007) - 6/10 The first of the ‘Episode of’ movies. And while it certainly isn’t bad, I can’t really recommend watching this as a way to experience Alabasta over the Manga or Anime. The animation isn’t that much higher than the anime, and it does feel rushed at points. Vital information is missed, like EVERYTHING with Ace, and Bon Clay’s sacrifice at the end. The fights aren’t all that fleshed out, though Zoro’s and the final fight with Crocodile are both really good. The most awkward moment is when Luffy and Vivi have their argument about people dying out of pretty much nowhere. But, the best part, I feel, is getting to see Crocodile in his original, full-on evil mode. It was great to see again. Other than that, if you want a quick recap of the events, the movie isn’t terrible, but definitely not recommended to watch as the first experience to the Alabasta Arc.

One Piece: Episode of Chopper Plus: Bloom in Winter, Miracle Sakura (2008) - 5/10 I was originally going to give this a lower score. I was teetering on 3 and 4 throughout the first portion of it, due to it, for NO reason, adding in both Robin and Franky into the story. I can understand that they wanted to make the special feel contained, without Vivi being there, but it really doesn’t work well. Same goes for the inclusion of Wapol’s brother, Mushroo, who was pretty much only added to have someone who could potentially put up a fight against Gear Second. But, what saves this movie is, one; The animation. The same animation as seen in Baron Omatsuri. and boy does it allow for some AMAZING action. And secondly, Chopper’s flashback. I’ll admit I didn’t cry seeing Chopper’s backstory in the anime, but in this movie, it got me. It really got me. With it being completely canon, there was no distraction from the sheer quality of the animation and story. In no way should someone watch this as a recap of Drum Island, but if someone wants to enjoy some good animation while reliving Chopper’s story, then I can safely recommend it.

One Piece Film: Strong World (2009) - 9/10 Oh boy. The first movie that was overseen boy Oda, and boy does it show. The animation, setting, and plot are all great. Shiki serves as both good for comedy, and threat. He is dripping with Oda charm, and I’ll say it, The Jamaican accent in the dub sells his character completely. His henchmen are silly, and give at least reasons for Zoro and Sanji to do something really cool. The rest of the crew gets to have moments as well, which is great. The animals are not only weird, but get to have plenty of entertaining scenes. The final fight with Shiki is unforgettable. And, of course, the scene with the Straw Hats crashing the party has become one of the most iconic in the entire franchise. I’d say the only thing really holding this movie back from being perfect is that, Nami being kidnapped is preeetty overused. Other than that, this is definitely the kind of movie you not only see, but plan to rewatch again from time to time.

One Piece 3D: Strawhat Chase (2011) - 7/10 While only just above thirty minutes long, I’d say that this little special is definitely worth a watch. The 3D is actually very good, and fits the One Piece style well! I’d say it’s even close, or on-par with the Burning Blood video game. The story is nothing special. Just the Straw Hat’s chasing after Luffy’s hat. That’s it! But, with that simplicity comes some GREAT flowing action. Luffy swinging around after his hat feels great to watch, and the final climax with all the Straw Hats fighting against 3 giants is just an absolute marvel. Again, very simple, but with it’s short running time, I really do recommend a view of it!

One Piece: Episode of Nami: Tears of a Navigator and the Bonds of Friend (2012) - 10/10 Yup. The first tin-outta-tin! Why? Because I honestly feel like this is the best way to experience the Arlong Park Arc. It is the exact opposite of Episode of Chopper. It represents the canon material extremely well, hitting every point it needs to with a natural flow. The animation is great to boot. The fit scenes at the end are great, especially, what I feel, one of the best beat-downs Sanji has ever given in motion. It’s accuracy and animation give it the perfect score. Not only would I fully recommend this to anyone who wants to recap on Arlong Park, but I will also say that this is possibly the best way to experience it, even for new comers into One Piece! You can show them this movie before anything else and there will be little confusion. Definitely a must-see!

One Piece Film: Z (2012) - 10/10 ANOTHER perfect score?! Well, this film deserves it. The second movie Oda has overseen, and once again it shows. Stellar animation once more, and funnily enough, the first One Piece movie that isn’t an ‘Episode of’ that features other canon characters aside from the Straw Hats! Zed is possibly one of the greatest villains in, quite honestly, all of One Piece. A man with some of the best motivations, and easily has a final fight that ranks among the best of the best in the series. And this movie actually made me cry! Before, I had only cried to Brook’s backstory, but at the very, VERY end of the movie,  right as the credits rolled, I broke. This movie is a gem in every way. This is a without a doubt a must-see for any One Piece fan!

One Piece: Episode of Luffy: Hand Island Adventure (2012) - 5/10 Despite the name, this definitely isn’t a movie dedicated to an arc retelling. Even though Luffy’s original backstory is very short compared to the rest, the movie couldn’t easily been about his backstory, and maybe one or two arcs of Romance Dawn. However, the non-canon story that takes up most of the film is just alright. The side characters were fine, though the villain, Bilic, isn’t exactly the greatest. He falls in the ‘annoying enemy’ category, like Wapol, but even worse. Honestly for how pathetic he was, his defeat wasn’t that satisfying. And unlike the Giant Mechanical Soldier, the weapons Bilic use aren’t even creative or fun. Honestly, Oh yeah. The movie has Coby in it. He doesn’t really do anything. He’s just there to try and make the movie more ‘special.’ Honestly, I wouldn’t recommend it, but it’s not the worst.

One Piece: Episode of Merry: The Tale of One More Friend (2013) - 7/10 Definitely a good movie, though still has some problems. The animation is still great, and it does stay completely accurate to the original plot. Unlike Alabasta, which I can feel can fit it’s entire story completely into a movie, this movie tackles stuff from Water Seven to the end of Enies Lobby, so obviously a LOT of stuff is skipped.  Like Episode of Alabasta, the fights too feel rushed, aside from the final one with Lucci. The stuff with the Drama between Luffy and Usopp, and the farewell to the Going Merry are all done perfectly. While I wouldn’t recommend this as a full recap of events, since SO MUCH is skipped, it’s still a good movie if you just want to relive some of One Piece’s most emotional moments.

One Piece: 3D2Y (2014) - 7/10 It’s nice to see some of what happened between the two-year timeskip. As usual with the more recent One Piece movies, the animation is great. World makes for an intimidating, and honestly interesting villain with his relationship with his brother. Seeing Hancock do some fighting as well is a rare treat! Buggy is great to watch too. However,this movie can be considered suffering from the ‘Power of Friendship’ syndrome. World was completely and utterly dominating Luffy during the first half of the movie, with Luffy standing no chance. And suddenly by the end, he’s able to keep up and overwhelm World. There has never been such a whiplash in power in the series. Despite that, the fights are still great to watch, and the story is good too. A solid recommendation.

One Piece: Episode of Sabo: Bond of Three Brothers - (2015) - 6/10 This movie is a bit all over the place. It’s partially about Sabo’s point of view while in Dressrosa, which is cool to see! But we don’t get to see THAT much with him. Another part is just recapping the first half of Dressrosa, until the end of the Colosseum, in general, which seems strange given that Dressrosa was still going on at this time. And it’s final part is recapping the flashback of the three brothers, which is honestly just sort of there. Aside from some nice animation, especially during Luffy’s fight with Don Chinjao and Sabo’s fight with Diamante, the movie doesn’t really offer much. You’d be better off just watching/reading the entire Brothers flashback, and the same goes for Dressrosa. Unless you want to see a bit more extra stuff with Sabo, or want a brief refresh on the Brothers and Dressrosa, you can safely skip this movie.

One Piece: Adventure of Nebulandia (2015) - 7/10 How you feel about the movie will really depend on whether or not you like Foxy. Honestly, I love him, so this movie was a great watch. It starts off with some fun shenanigans and then leads into Luffy and Foxy needing to work together against Komei, who is an alright villain. He has a decent fight with Luffy at the end. There’s not much else to really saw. The movie is just  fun! I recommend it to anyone who wants to see more Foxy!

One Piece: Heart of Gold (2016) - 5/10 This movie is basically just to try and hold people over until  Film Gold. Does it succeed? Kinda. It’s a decent adventure movie, with some fun ideas. Olga can range from passable to annoying. The villain, Mad Treasure, isn’t anything special. Also, the idea that a guy like HIM can just, completely control the entire Straw Hat crew that isn’t the Monster Trio is pretty insulting. But, it is nice seeing the crew work together to achieve what they need to. Other than that, the movie is pretty forgettable, and I really doubt you need to see it to appreciate Film Gold more. If you’re looking for a nice adventure, you’ll get it here, but otherwise you can skip it.

One Piece: Film Gold (2016) - 8/10 Definitely a great movie! The animation isn’t only great, but this is definitely the most eye-pleasing One Piece movie to date! Plus, I think the soundtrack is one of the best  too! The middle-half with the spy movie-like feel is very unique for One Piece! Tesoro is a very good villain, with an interesting story. His henchmen are decent, though only Zoro has a real fight in the end. The final fight with Tesoro is great too! Though in terms of negatives, they are still there. Zoro is absent for a good portion of the movie. Also, I’m afraid all the hype with Lucci and Sabo doesn’t really pay off. You see NOTHING of their fight, which is a huge shame. And while seeing Gear Fourth in such great animation is wonderful, Luffy only gets two attacks in with it, so again it leaves a lot to be desired on that front. Other than those things, I’d say it’s definitely worth a watch or two. Let’s hope for continually great movies in the future!