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Art has always been political

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when i enter the slacker competition but Cale Henituse already uncovered the organisers' corruption and looted them of all their belongings including the prize money

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more strawheart alliance shenanigans

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Something that occurred to me during this newest re-read (pretty much the first thing in fact) was the contrast in the very first chapter between how the prologue describes Roger's achievements and how the Red-Hair Pirates describe piracy:

Wealth, Fame and Power

vs

Fun, Adventure and Freedom

(to sum it up in three words for symmetry)

I think it's fun because first you're given this expectation of what becoming "Pirate King" means, which also reinforces the established ideology of the world: Wealth, Fame and Power. This is what most of the authority figures (and wannabe authority figures) in the One Piece world are all about, so of course it would be what the Pirate King would represent too, right? There's also an implication that this is what pirates are after in general. That's what everybody wants, isn't it?

But then we immediately get introduced to an alternative vision of what piracy means, which goes against the established ideology. It's something that in this world can truly only be achieved by becoming a pirate, by rejecting the established order.

And it's obviously very clear which of these is valued more by the narrative.

It's very good, it's an immediate point and counterpoint, a great way to start the series.

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Something that occurred to me during this newest re-read (pretty much the first thing in fact) was the contrast in the very first chapter between how the prologue describes Roger's achievements and how the Red-Hair Pirates describe piracy:

Wealth, Fame and Power

vs

Fun, Adventure and Freedom

(to sum it up in three words for symmetry)

I think it's fun because first you're given this expectation of what becoming "Pirate King" means, which also reinforces the established ideology of the world: Wealth, Fame and Power. This is what most of the authority figures (and wannabe authority figures) in the One Piece world are all about, so of course it would be what the Pirate King would represent too, right? There's also an implication that this is what pirates are after in general. That's what everybody wants, isn't it?

But then we immediately get introduced to an alternative vision of what piracy means, which goes against the established ideology. It's something that in this world can truly only be achieved by becoming a pirate, by rejecting the established order.

And it's obviously very clear which of these is valued more by the narrative.

It's very good, it's an immediate point and counterpoint, a great way to start the series.

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Imu, isn't your house literally burning down right now?

Poetically speaking, this is to show that Imu's tunnel vision of inflicting the most excessive cruelty will be their undoing the same as it's been for just about every one of the World Government's brutalities.

But like, this is the equivalent of going out to get a fire extinguisher for a kitchen grease fire and then spending the rest of the afternoon in the appliance section of the store comparing toaster prices.

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I find what Demon!Brogy's saying here about how Jarul's value as a national hero of Elbaf is null and void now that he's an old man quite interesting when compared to an arc prior.

Remember this moment in Egghead where Garp was basically telling the new marine recruits that new blood always takes precedence over the old generation?

Meanwhile, what was the central focus of that arc? Trying to save Vegapunk, an old man who wanted desperately to live and continue to use his wisdom to help others.

Despite the Boat scenario eventually playing out with the younger Lilith getting away while the Stella died, it was the Stella who was able to broadcast to the rest of the world about the coming flood and his words carried weight because of his lifetime of experience and credentials. And we see that Jarul is still preparing to give it his all to defend Elbaf, even if he's up in his twilight years.

The older generation don't just get to wash their hands and dump all the responsibility for changing the world onto the young who are still finding their way. Rather, they should use their wisdom and the positions of power they hold to give the next generation an advantage. As long as you draw breath, you have the ability and the duty to make a difference.

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Happy pride!

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The fact that people still keep blaming Dragon for what happened to Ginny sure says something about society

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I don’t know if I’m reading too much into this but I really love Zoro’s reactions to Wano Country’s culture as a whole. Wano is conservative. Very much so. And Zoro seems to fit into their society at first, liking their food and fashion, but he’s also always shown observing the country with a level of discomfort. Like in this scene, the first thing Zoro points out is: Why weren’t you also sent into the future? Why did they pick your brother over you? Why were you, as a girl, left behind? That’s pretty cruel, isn’t it?

I joke about Zoro being an assimilated second gen Asian immigrant a lot (he can’t take wasabi. Wasabi. 😭), yes he was raised in a similarly patriarchal and conservative dojo, but he ultimately feels so removed from his “heritage” that his attachment to it stops at food, fashion and swords. Just like Germa wasn’t Sanji’s, Wano wasn’t Zoro’s.

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OP ch 1151 SPOILERS

My reactions as i read:

get him! :D also, hi, Kawamatsu

what a bad situation... hopefully the title is hinting at the tides turning in our favor?

so the domi reversi move was an othello reference

hurry, Ripley!

more sleeptids, dammit

and Killingham is in a different hybrid form - wow his design is cool

the fck are you yapping about? stop this victim blaming

... is someone coming to help the bound Strawhats? who is that? and how come no one is addressing them? is it to not draw attention to them? i don't think that's Sommers... or is it him? idk... am i forgetting something? (EDIT: i checked ch 1150, it seems to be Sommers kneeling, i was overthinking it)

the mothers resisted the haki blast!

Harald... what was your deal... were you like Nefertari D Lily? were you a double agent? Imu here is referring to whatever Harald did as a blunder (if the tcb translation is correct) which is the same word the used to describe Lily scattering the poneglyphs around the world

lmao Chopper's so panicked he repeated himself

did he just turn into a motor bike? lol

so the theories that he'll use guard point to soften the fall were right (though it was kinda obvious)

they're just bickering while having a picnic when there's pandemonium up there lol

also, Loki is such a stubborn little shit lol

why is Luffy surprised he knew it was Chopper? did his observation haki get better without him realizing? or was it something different? like the voice of all things?

i'm so curious who Mosa is (what is he's the man marked by flames?)

so Gerd can be soft too

Luffy finally found out and his reaction is exactly as is imagined it lol

lmao Gaban this isn't the time!

did Gaban recognize Imu's haki?

finally! let's go! :D

what a great chapter! Ode deserves the break after all these bangers

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Was just thinking of how KRS!Cale and Og!Cale deals with loss differently.

Looking back at his backstory as Kim Rok Soo, KRS!Cale deals with the loss of LSH and CJS with an impassive face, and it seems that it doesn't bother him at all, misleading others to think he doesn't feel any sign of grief or remorse. He even eats and sleeps normally like what an ordinary person would do contrary to a grieving person.

In reality, he's deeply affected by it and so he represses his emotions. Because it's easier to avoid it than to process it. Because he always has to move for survival, not giving him the room to just process all of his emotions in appropriate ways. In that one sidestory, when he laid down on his apartment floor doing nothing, records begin to stab him painfully and he can feel himself spiralling — until a call rang and asked for his assistance in a monster attack if I can recall correctly. Relieved, he went to do that, because then he wouldn't have to focus much on the grief that is wracking both his mind and heart.

He focuses intently on working, so much that the director in one of the side stories said he's the most passionate worker/ability user in the company (he doesn't want anyone in his team to die anymore).

KRS!Cale represses his emotions by distracting himself with work — because he can't find it in himself to come face-to-face with it (because he always has to be on the go and he doesn't have time for it — he has to focus on things that actually 'matter' more after all).

Then we have Og!Cale who he lost his mother at a very young age.

We don't know exactly how he reacted towards his mother's passing, but knowing how attached he was to his mother since she was all he could ever think about throughout his 40 years of life — well, we can assume that he reacted greatly. He might have cried loudly and lashed out since he was just an 8 year old child — but when he saw his father somehow being in a much more dire state than him, he probably tried to shove his emotions away temporarily to comfort his father instead, pretending he was alright. He prioritises the other's feelings and well-being than his own, very evident with how he is willing to act as trash for his step-family.

But...maybe with his trash act, it isn't just for his step-family and maybe it isn't also because he has no desire to be the young patriarch of the estate — but playing a role by throwing tantrums and drinking alcohol daily is how he copes with the loss of his mother because he didn't get to show his grief outwardly in healthy ways, prioritising his father's instead. That doesn't mean he feels good whenever he does.

When his family died in the war, what did he do? He enlisted as a soldier. To get revenge on the White Star. Fighting as a soldier and battling against enemies in war actually makes him release all his emotions, similar to his trashy act — and so he does exactly that. It doesn't matter if he dies in war so long as he rightfully gets revenge for his family, and it aligns perfectly with his sacrificial nature (like how he willingly ruined his reputation just for his new family to get accepted in high society, if that isn't sacrificing idk what).

So we can conclude that he probably deals with loss with self-destructive coping mechanisms and aggression.

Unlike KRS!Cale, he isn't fanning down the the flames that threaten to choke him, he's bursting into large sparks of flame that can get anyone — and even himself — get caught in it.

But contrary to his outbursts, it isn't loud — it's quiet. It seems loud but it is all just a pretense or a mask to make himself look strong, deep down he's just bone-tired and weary.

He probably knows how he copes is unhealthy and is hurting him in more ways than one, but the thing is, that's the only way he knows how to cope because he couldn't properly process and assess his emotions when he put others such as his family above him.

You know the saying "Fake it till you make it!" ? Somewhere along the way, that's exactly how it happened with Og!Cale when he acted as trash more often — he might have even genuinely thought that he's trash.

Faking as a trash and then actually becoming one! Like how he didn't need to poke Choi Han's nerves regarding the Harris villagers but he would have felt intense regret swirling in the pit of his stomach because he knows that what he did was absolutely wrong and he shouldn't have insulted the deaths of the person's loved ones because he knows how and what it feels like to deal with loss (even if he has some grudge or resentment against Harris Village because they're somehow involved with his mother's death, he shouldn't have done it).

But hey, his automatic response is to act as trash and he does so, even unwillingly.

That's all he ever knows after all.

In conclusion! KRS! Cale deals with it through repression (burying his feelings underneath the guise of a cold and stoic front) and Og!Cale deals with it through aggression (with self-harmful and self-destructive ways).

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Law & the Voice of All Things

Oda's left enough back hooks that Law could be revealed to have the Voice of All Things at any moment and it would make not only complete sense but explain a confusing scene in Dressrosa that stuck out as being rather odd, both in manga and anime.

There have been a bunch of scenes that can be interpreted at hinting at VOAT for Law, but the thing that definitively made it stand out as plausible if not soft-confirmed is how the Dressrosan rooftop scene happened compared with Luffy's fall from Onigashima. Law communicates with Luffy in what appears to be telepathy, considering his mouth is closed and neither Doflamingo nor Trebol overhear anything. When the chapter first came out, people were wondering if it was perhaps the prelude to a flashback because it did not look like whispering. Weird, but ultimately ignored considering there were a lot more pressing things going on at the time and we'd yet to have Zou elaborate further on the Voice of All Things.

Then years later, Luffy falls off from Onigashima.

And suspiciously similar formatting appears. A telepathic communication that only the other can overhear in the exact same style of bubbled text. Law (unknown-speaker) and Luffy (VOAT-only listener) had communicated in the exact same way as Luffy (VOAT-speaker) and Momo (VOAT-only listener) did. Going even further, Law might've overheard Luffy talking to Momo as well (unknown-only other listener).

In 1015, when Luffy was telling Momo he's going to come back and kick Kaido's ass and Momo was translating that, only Kid reacts during this. Oda usually pairs him up with Law when doing this type of reaction scene so the exclusion is a notable choice. Immediately after that, Law's submarine and crew find Luffy. Then Law pops up and doesn't doubt it for a second, believing Luffy will be back up soon. It would make sense if he had heard it from Luffy already and knew he was fine.

It explains why Law wasn’t worried that time Luffy went down but then next time he was, because Luffy wasn't saying anything. And there's the fact both Law and Momo are shown reporting very specifically that Luffy's voice has gone out in that moment. It could just be observation haki but its incredibly suspicious to be tied together with Momo like that and the different reactions Law had despite Luffy, by all means, going down the same as before.

On a more meta level though, it's incredibly interesting that we have learned that Roger had a special way of hearing Poneglyphs that Luffy doesn't seem to replicate, meanwhile Law is off in the corner not saying anything and being a secretive D. who doesn't share with the class. Especially since Law has demonstrated the capacity to sense seastone since Punkhazard and "coincidentally" found the Ponegylph in Kaido's massive, sprawling castle.

Sensing seastone is probably the weakest point to mention since Poneglyphs are not made of seastone, but it is an interesting facet of Law's perception that I can't recall anyone else having. Since the VOAT is all about a unique talent of hearing both animals and objects, it is worth pointing out in my opinion.

This also explains how Law knew what chains on Punkhazard were safe to be enchained in if he is able to HEAR sense it. He can feel the energy of seastone and sneakily swap the chains about to be put on him with the identical non-seastone variety. He was able to send that note to Chopper without any noticeable Room or movement after all. Law is a sneaky dude.

Regarding hearing the Poneglyphs themselves, one of the odd things about Law instigating the Rockyport incident is that he was originally motivated by rumors of a Poneglyph being present on Hachinosu. Law having a prebuilt capacity to hunt down Poneglyphs by hearing them would give extra context to what he was doing looking for one, especially if he can glean anything from the voices within them like Roger could.

Shout out to the first scene that demonstrates just how shifty this bastard is and began to cause people to wonder; where Oda chooses to show he is conspicuously saying literally nothing ("....") while confirmed VOAT people are hearing things. Damnit Law! Telling us nothing and standing there suspiciously...

The evidence is not conclusive and most of it can be explained as different coincidences, but the allusions to Law potentially possessing it keep happening and that Dressrosa moment is suspicious. Trying to explain it away as "just whispering" isn't quite right, and seeing something similar occur between confirmed users of it made me genuinely believe Law has the Voice of All Things.

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Law's Dressrosa Plan

Someone was complaining somewhere (I've forgotten now, I consume too much One Piece content) that Law's plan for Dressrosa was stupid and overly convoluted for no reason. Just kill Caesar and be done with it. I thought about it for a moment and sorta agreed at the time. It would quickly make it impossible for Smiles to be made without any problems or risk. Kaido would be very mad, Doflamingo very dead.

I had excused it as solely a facet of Law's character to be so harshly against taking a life clashing with his decision making. Law is a doctor, and we know that means he doesn't like killing. Even people who deserve it, he left Vergo to his own evil factory's explosion rather than finishing him off personally. Doflamingo points out that he would've just killed him rather than kidnapping him on the call with Vergo, so perhaps executions are a line Law will not cross. Not when Doflamingo's bullets are something Law remembers very well. Law is a sentimental man, after all. This is all still true but there is more to it as well.

I got to thinking about what Law's aims actually were. What had he wanted by making Doflamingo fall? Why go out of the way to maneuver Doflamingo into making a deal despite the danger of direct confrontation? A pincer maneuver of both the Navy and Kaido coming down on him would ensure he was screwed no matter what, sure—his two strongest supporters would be angry at him. Neither would be willing to intervene on his behalf. But Kaido was strongest in the world and could've killed him, involving the Navy was unnecessary. Doflamingo believes this too, shown not only in directly taunting Law about it later but because he was willing to even pretend to take the deal at all.

Then I specifically realized something. Law never wanted a fight to happen on Dressrosa. Caesar was the perfect bait to force Doflamingo into this position of not only losing his Warlord status but to come onto a different island where Law had told the Marines about the meeting. Assuming his plan went off without a hitch, Doflamingo would've been arrested on Greenbit. It was an assumed uninhabited island that would mean no collateral from the inevitable fight that would break out. He was saving up energy in anticipation of the fight here. Law specifically had the Navy show up on the island by giving Smoker that heads-up, and during this time Doflamingo's Smile Factory would also be shut down and no longer an option for anyone to use.

Even after his plan falls apart because of something unprecedented in the story at the time, Law still keeps the fight away from Dressrosa as long as he can. Unfortunately, Doflamingo brings him to it and from then on Dressrosa is turned into a battlefield. Law had tried to avoid that outcome from the start.

Law had gone out of his way to avoid bringing Kaido down on Dressrosa. He didn't want to, otherwise he could've made sure Doflamingo just never got his hands on Caesar again instead of going through with his plan.

When on death's door, an arm missing and threatened by the same gun that killed Cora-san, he is asked for anything and Law brings up two things. For Cora-san to come back to life and for Doflamingo to kiss the ass of every citizen here. Law cares. Law considers Doflamingo’s murder of Corazon to be one of his greatest evils and what upsets Law deeply and he then talks about Dressrosa's people too. He clearly cares. Fake-ass evil pirate.

Law's plan was unnecessarily convoluted if it was just to kill Doflamingo, but it was to stop him from being able to hurt the people Cora had tried so hard to save all those years ago.

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Gimme a break!!

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“Freer than anyone else.” 🔥 🎩 👒

This is available as a wallpaper on my patreon OR as a print in my new shop :D!