#because of his choice of placement for Luffy

[panrao]

When divorced parents accidentally match

[doodleplus]

genshinified them…i wanted to know what zoro would look like with a vision and it devolved from there (first six are splash wips)

bare-bones details/mechanics of how this au would work under the cut hehe

Luffy is a young adventurer who wants to find all the gnoses (reasons unclear), was mockingly called ‘king of the archons’ as a result, then adopted that as his goal. He meets Zoro in Inazuma, where he was imprisoned under the ruling of the Raiden Shogun, and upon temporarily defeating her, they escape with no destination in mind. Nami decides to hitch a ride with them, promising that she’ll navigate their wave rider to the next place they are trying to go. (And they meet Usopp and Sanji and leaves for her hometown in Fontaine to pay off Arlong etc etc)

It follows the main story from then on, except it’s much more condensed (Teyvat is much smaller than the One Piece world), and there’s much more of a spotlight on how archons (and gnoses) work. Devil Fruits, Haki, Points, and other magical combat abilities are condensed into Visions (for the sake of world placement), though Vision strength levels get introduced to accommodate power levels of characters in One Piece.

Anyhow! I’ve thought of all the strawhats’ countries of origin + element + weapons so I’ll list them here: (since I’ve not gotten super far into the anime it’s not perfect (past Robin it gets hazy for me))

- Luffy

* grew up in Mondstadt, nation of origin Natlan, Khaenri’ah (though he doesn’t know nor care)

* has an anemo vision that he activated by grabbing a hollow vision out of a chest the red-haired pirates had found (matches his eating of the devil fruit in canon)

* catalyst user as he can’t fight with weapons well

- Zoro

* grew up in Inazuma

* has a dendro vision that he gained when he promised to become the world’s greatest swordsman with kuina (who already had a pyro vision)

* sword.

- Nami

* grew up in Fontaine, country of origin Inazuma

* gained her (hydro) vision after Arlong took her away and tried to sell it. when that failed, she refused to use it until she was free from Arlong. However, she doesn’t really know how to control her powers until she fights Ms. Double Finger with a spear specially forged for her.

* polearm user, most specially her clima-tact (as she calls it)

- Usopp

* from Mondstadt, father is from Natlan

* gained his geo vision after meeting Onion, Carrot, and Pepper and creating the Usopp Pirates, and he used it to avoid as much trouble as he could—he still usually uses it defensively

* bow user (obviously)

- Sanji

* grew up in Fontaine, born in Snezhnaya

* gained his (pyro) vision not when he tried cooking as a kid in the palace, not on the Orbit, but on the last day of him and Zeff being stranded on the empty island, starving. Zeff had already had a vision then, and it solidified his choice to take the kid in and teach him cooking

* he fights with his legs. catalyst

- Chopper

* from Snezhnaya

* got his cryo vision when he tried to help an injured member of his reindeer pack, which changed him into more of a humanoid reindeer hybrid, leading to him being ostracized until he met Hiluluk, a doctor

* bow user, to mimic the sniping function of brain point. other points function as his elemental skill and burst

- Robin

* from Snezhnaya, but has been in Sumeru for the last few years

* got her vision as she learned to read Khaenri’ahn, which then made her an outlaw

* catalyst user—her attacks make organic mimics of hands, formed by flowers and vines

- Franky

* grew up in Fontaine, country of origin Mondstadt

* got his (electro) vision when apprenticed to Tom as a shipbuilder

* claymore user because in-story he’d be the only character who would be able to use one comfortably

- Brook

* from Mondstadt

* gained his anemo vision when he was about to die on an island near Fontaine, and somehow it kept him alive, blowing food and causing rain storms constantly to where he was stranded (the strawhats have contemplated whether he has a gnosis on him)

* sword user! with great elemental mastery

- Jinbe

* from Inazuma

* gained his hydro vision almost immediately after seeing the ocean for the first time (he was born as a youkai and lived right next to the ocean so it was rather soon after he was born)

* polearm user, and is partial to tridents

BONUS:

- Ace

* grew up in Mondstadt, countries of origin Natlan, Khaenri’ah

* got his pyro vision when he got shipwrecked and stranded on an island after leaving Mondstadt

* is also a catalyst user

- Vivi

* from the desert portion of Sumeru, though has been traveling around Teyvat in disguise

* got her geo vision after fighting Kohza but doesn’t find it useful at all (she wishes she had a hydro vision and is confused as to why Nami rarely uses hers…irony)

* her assigned weapon is a polearm (the peacock feather whips do not have a direct translation into the game, which is frustrating)

If you read all of this, oh boy (and also thanks!)

[sleepyone2three]

That whole last ending sequence in the final episode episode of Arlong Park really hits hard though 😭 This whole arc has absolutely wrecked me though. My standards are too high and I fear nothing will live up to it. Final Thoughts 👇and they're in no particular order/all over the place since I wrote them as I thought of them.

Fuck Arlong

The hat scene wrecked me

Again, the whole ending sequence from the note placement to that last pinwheel spin is so good I can't even put it into words

All of the meaning behind Nami's new tattoo down to the aesthetic. Such a simple yet elegant design too.

"I'LL always be YOUR friend, Nami!"

Luffy just took down the man the literally owned and made Nami miserable for the past eight years and is using the most non possessive verbage possible he's letting her know it's always her choice at the end of the day I can't with this boy 😭

We'Re NoT goNna hUrt HeR

With grease and meat all over his face and his mouth still stuffed

It was at that moment Genzo realized he had nothing to worry about

Nojiko getting the tattoo for Nami though! She's such an amazing big sister

Oh my goodness yes doctor man please tell Zoro off for not taking better care of himself because I will if you don't

Usopp's fight was honestly pretty funny and I enjoyed it

Oh my God I just remembered the sea monster cow and I felt for so bad for it, Sanji and Luffy were so mean

On that note, wtf is up with Luffy and hurting cute animals? First Shushu and now this? Someone call peta on this boy

I wasn't a huge fan of how obnoxious johnny and yosaku were but I loved that they were basically a stand in for the audience/riff on oc fan characters and self insert fics (which I totally don't write all the time whaaaaat why would you ask) and so self aware that I can't even be mad most of the time.

Nami stealing everyone's wallets is such a rad way to prove she's self sufficient and going to be okay out on her own

Also not letting anyone say thank you is such a mood

She does what she wants

Luffy you're the captain, you sweet stupid enabler

The pacing of the hat scene in so good of my gooooosh

Weirdly this arc has had some of the best edited recap intros so far

I honestly kinda wish we got to see Nami throw down in the final battle. She goes up ready to fight and then just doesn't, I'd have liked to see her at least beat up one fishman. But I also love how much the others go all out for her

I really liked the moment in Usopp's fight when he was going through all his lies and his tone gets more and more unsure and how it builds up to him declaring he'll never pretend to be a pirate again because he's going to be a pirate

Sanji trying summon good vibes? That's so dumb and cringe but I love it

Speaking of Sanji, I love that he thought to blow into the gills I was not expecting that kind of solution

Also, I love Sanji's character... as long as he isn't around women. Let him be a bitch to everyone, not just the guys.

And the the wounds opening up as the as Hachi is swimming? That was a great payoff

God the Mirabelle scenes hurt

Genzo's an amazing character and I really like him

Hajiko too, she's awesome

The little kid feels super tacked on tbh. He disappears for half the story and then comes back for a hamfisted monologue. Is this different in the manga? I sure hope so

I kinda love the Hawaiian shirt and bandages look on zoro, heavy trans masc vibes which I love

Yikes on the scene where Arlong rips off Zoro's bandages though dysphoria kinda triggered uhhg

I bought Sanji's cook book and there was no special orange sauce sauce recipe why did he not ask for crew contributions?

I'm honestly shocked the town had enough food for Luffy to gorge himself like that for three days, they're gonna need the money Nami left to recoup their losses

The ship flying and Luffy just having a blast the entire time had me wheezing

Stretching Luffy's head above water was such a brilliant and creative solution. Makes me wonder if the same could work for Buggy if he chop chopped his head off before sinking.

All in all, these dorks are so good for each other

[astro-inky]

fuck you, godly parents one piece au (not necessarily pjo but can be i guess????)

oh and as for canon bio parents uhhhhhhhhhhhh (ignores)

I think Luffy would definitely be a son of Hermes (god of thieves, travelers, merchants). No explanation just vibing with the idea.

Ares (god of violent war, rage and all that stuff) is a pretty obvious choice for Zoro.....but damn am i tempted to make him a son of Dionysus just for shits and giggles bc “haha alcohol”. but i think Ares is a much more fitting choice haha

honestly?? like for real?? Nami as a daughter of Poseidon (god of seas, storms, horses). I’m gonna say it right here and now since we’re doing this: I feel like i see a lot of people put main female characters in the Aphrodite area of Greek god/godly children aus and I’m not into it. or maybe I’m just seeing things lol idk. anyway, i think it fits her well cause she knows how to navigate waters well and uses storm related abilities in canon so...yeah I’m liking this placement

Usopp was kinda hard to pinpoint who’s godly parent i wanted assigned to him. i thought about Apollo, since hes the god of archery (among MANY other things) and it fits with my mans cool ass sniper skills. but it didnt fit that much. i thought about Demeter since he has those plant things post ts, but still didnt fit with the vibes. and then it hit me.....now here me out, stay with me.....Usopp as a son Zeus (god of the sky, thunder, lightning, King of the Gods)... now LISTEN. I feel like that parallels well with his canon relationship with his father, his dad being a pirate and him wanting to live up to that but viewing himself as weak. and Zeus is the king of the gods and I THINK THAT ITS A COOL MIRROR OK!! let me have this, i want him to be a son of Zeus with no major powers but tries to prove himself anyway ok. Also God Usopp.

Now look...I agree, Apollo would have been a GREAT choice for Sanji. Flirty, blonde (is most interpertations), poetic, extremely bisexual...theres a lot of parallels u could make. BUT. Consider MY opinion: Sanji as a son of Aphrodite (Goddess of love, beauty, lust, sexuality). Flirty TO THE MAX. He’s ball about love!! Even if canon wont show it, my boi is in love with love. and hes rlly pretty i think. He’s the type to use a winky face at an enemy in an attempt to distract them (in my opinion lol). Lust, sexuality, love...it’s HIM guys. like i wanna write a deep character study fic on this now just cause i love this idea so much. (also my zosan shipping ass seeing Ares and Aphrodite like—)

If we wanna go basic than we can assign Chopper with Apollo since he is a god of medicine and healing. BUT. Asclepius, the god of medicine and healing who is a son of Apollo, seems like much better pick. thats all this one was simple and i love my son

I really couldnt decide whether to make Robin a daughter of Persephone (goddess of spring, queen of the underworld; it goes with her aesthetic and her flower related powers what a queen) or Hecate (goddess of magic and witchcraft i just want a cool witchy power theme here). i still cant decide tbh. I think I’m going with Persephone tho.

My mind immedeitly went to Hephaestus, god of blacksmiths, forges and fire for Franky. I cant think of anything else tbh reblog with ur ideas if u got them

NOW we got a child of Apollo and his name is Brook. now THIS is who Apollo would fit and i wont take no for an answer. The music, the pervetedness, the art, the wisdom. It FITS damn it! And brook’s laugh....is like the sun........bright and amazing and gives me life.

i know it would probably fit Jinbei to put him with Poseidon....and it would create an interesting dynamic with him and Nami. But LOOK. i want everyone having different parents because why not? so what about Ceto, ancient goddess of sea monsters? i think it would be cool in this au for the fishmen to be children of the sea monster goddess and for jinbei to be one of them and still have some of his fish features ok? I would love opinions on this lol

thats all i got feel free to add ur own opinions to this lol

[neverwatchedonepiece]

511-513: "Unexpected Relanding! Luffy, to Marineford!", "With Hopes It Will Reach My Friends! Big News Spreading Fast!" and "Pirates Get On the Move! Astounding New World!"

Lafitte showing off his soft skills.

Now these three episodes were worth every minute! This is, hand on heart, my favourite part of any arc epilogue: when the seeds of new plots are sown and you get to see what everyone else is up to.

And there was a lot of that in 511-513.

I’m still messing with the format. I’ll stick with the three days a week posts but watching six episodes at a time was too much. The post ended up way too long and I couldn’t get into much speculation (which is the most fun part). Three at a time might be a better balance. :)

Luffy’s Message

This was the Main Event for me. It was why I was so keen to watch the next lot of episodes. That cliffhanger drawn out over so many episodes! What could have caused the Strawhats to react so spectacularly? What the hell was Rayleigh up to? Why all the secrecy?

And most of all...

Why the hell would Luffy go back to Marineford?

The answer? He wanted to send a message. And Rayleigh had crafted his plan so skillfully that this message would be different depending on which side a character was on.

The build up was great. 511 opened with a Marine debriefing meeting. Marines were getting the hairdryer treatment because Monkey D. Luffy, the notorious rookie pirate, had not only escaped their grasp but had the audacity to return to the scene of the crime with the Traitor Jimbei and The Dark King Rayleigh.

This was not good PR. And we all know the Marines are all about PR.

What happened was this: a lone Marine ship sailed right into the bay without clearance and fired a blank. Then three figures were spotted on board: Luffy, Rayleigh and Jimbei. Of course, they were fired on. The ship caught fire and sunk, but Luffy leapt ashore with Rayleigh and Jimbei and set about... doing some really weird stuff.

He rung the Ox Lloyd’s Bell (a Marine tradition, apparently. It’s rung at New Year: eight times to salute the passing year and another eight to welcome the new). Okay, I thought. I have no idea what this means. Let’s see where this goes.

It became a bit clearer when Luffy walked through the dumbstruck crowd, laid flowers into the chasm and removed his hat in a gesture of respect. Okay, I thought, this is funeral stuff. He’s returning to Marineford to pay his respects to Ace. This was to give Luffy closure so he could continue to live his life without being crippled by guilt and depression.

Except it was bigger than that, but I didn’t realise it until Luffy, Rayleigh and Jimbei exited via getaway whale sharks and the action returned to the debriefing meeting. The Marine in charge was Oda’s mouthpiece. Ringing the Ox Lloyd’s bell was a challenge. Luffy rang out the old Pirate Era and rang in the new one. That Rayleigh (symbol of the Old Era) was at his side was Significant. The Marines believe that Rayleigh has backed Luffy to be Roger’s successor. (This might be true. It was Rayleigh’s plan, after all. He knows all about pirate symbolism and how to make a statement. He was on Roger’s crew.)

Annoyingly, I didn’t realise the Return to Marineford would also be like the bat signal to the Strawhats until Vivi picked up the newspaper and I saw that photo of Luffy (I’m still salty she didn’t join the crew).

And I noticed something interesting. Those tattoos Vivi mentioned. 3D2Y. I have seen that combination of numbers and letters before on the CR arc list. Does this mean Luffy will only reunite with the Strawhats in 3D2Y (whatever that is)? According to the arc list, I have Fishman Island to go first.

I also have no idea what 3D2Y could mean. Maybe it’s a calendar thing? 3D is crossed out (the old pirate era) and 2Y is the new pirate era? Maybe it’s a new model of Star Wars droid. I have no clue.

But I can’t wait to find out! :D

The Strawhats

Of course, the Strawhats picked up on it right away. (Vivi did too, which is why you should have joined the crew, Vivi, why do you have to be such a good and dutiful noble?)

Zoro’s and Chopper’s reactions to the Marineford Return were most in-depth, so I’ll talk about them here just now. I’m assuming from the 514 preview that we’ll get Sanji, Nami, Usopp, Robin, Franky and Brook later.

They didn’t give us much of Zoro here. It was a short scene but his reaction was the most interesting. While the other Strawhats said: “Awesome, Luffy. Got the message!” Zoro was actually suspicious.

“Luffy doesn’t do sneaky, clever stuff like that!” he said to Perona. “This must be Rayleigh’s plan.”

Clearly, Zoro knows Luffy so well at this point that he can tell Luffy’s style of planning. I liked that.

And Chopper...

I still have that major soft spot for Chopper. I still cannot watch the flashbacks of his past without tearing up. Every time Chopper cries, I kind of want to take him aside and say, “Shhh, Chopper. I can’t handle your little reindeer tears.”

It was when Chopper returned to Birdie Kingdom that the penny dropped. The Strawhats wouldn’t reunite yet. They all have to go through training. Now everything from the last few episodes made sense. Maybe the Strawhats I thought would get away without training will have to do it after all.

And Chopper definitely got a good deal here. That library! I was as shocked as Chopper (but at least I didn’t say it out loud, haha, that was funny).

Chopper’s loyalty to Luffy and the Strawhats has upped a few levels post-Sabaody. He said something really interesting (and kind of worrying). Remembering his past, when he was reviled as a monster - outcast from human and reindeer society - he never wanted to go through something like Sabaody again and is now willing to “become a real monster for Luffy.”

Wow... Chopper’s about to get an upgrade. I mean, he’s always had so much potential. Monster Point, anyone? Those Rumble Balls? And he’s a great medic? Hopefully, Oda has good things planned for Chopper.

And speaking of plans... not all is well in the World Government hierarchy! I wouldn’t like to say they deserve it, but... they deserve it.

The Gorosei?

I think that’s who these guys are. I counted five in the shot and they are all old guys in suits, so I’ll go with it for now. There was no confirmation in the episode. Neither were names given, so I’ve made some up. I feel like I need to distinguish them because they all seem to have a different take on the post-Marineford situation.

Ringlets was worried about Luffy. He is a controversial figure. Of course, Luffy is Garp’s grandson, so that is a given.

Saruman was concerned about smoke rising from Mount Doom... Nah, kidding. He’s worried how Luffy knows Rayleigh. He thinks Rayleigh won’t return to centre stage but implies that maybe Rayleigh will support Luffy from the shadows.

Handlebar was salty about Jimbei. Was annoyed he finally turned against them as he was a symbol of intertribal peace. (The ‘finally’ implies they always suspected Jimbei would snap one day.)

Baldy was concerned about the imbalance of power in pirate society. There is a vacant Yonkou seat and THREE to fill in the shichibukai. How to fill those vacancies? Is there anyone qualified left? Glasses was also annoyed that the D. names were receiving so much PR lately and making the WG look bad.

Blonde has his eye on the New World. The power structure imbalance there now Whitebeard is gone is troublesome. They will have to choose the strongest to be Shichibukai. He also gave us an update on Blackbeard, which was nice. Wasn’t expecting to hear from Teach for ages!

Apparently, Teach has already made waves in the New World. He has an advantage over others who want that Yonkou seat because he knows everything there is to know about Whitebeard’s territory.  No one has ever eaten two Devil Fruits in history except for him. Only another Yonkou or Marco and the remaining Whitebeards could take him out. Is that a statement on Blackbeard’s new power level? Is he training too, so he’ll be an effective adversary for Luffy by the time they inevitably clash again the New World?

I have my fingers crossed for it.

And there’s something else the Gorosei should be worried about...

Human Resources Will Be Snowed Under Right Now

I forgot who Kong-san is, but I bet he has his work cut out for him right now.

There are a lot of changes afoot at WG and Marine HQ. The biggest shocker is that SENGOKU HAS RESIGNED!

I am so happy about this. Now, all he has to do is join the Revolutionary Army and I’m all set.

Garp continues to exasperate. He has “virtually resigned” but lacks whatever he needs to be truly brave and take that final step. He has kept the Vice Admiral title and is now tutoring younger Marines. I suppose it’s good he’s still around to keep whippersnappers like Akainu in check, especially now Sengoku did not recommend Akainu to succeed him.

Aokiji, the mystery wrapped in an enigma, will be Fleet-Admiral.

I... it’s weird. I can’t see it yet, but it’s definitely a better choice than Akainu. Maybe he would’ve been better with Kizaru. Oh well, it’s Sengoku’s choice. I trust him. He’s a wise man. “Old soldiers shouldn’t cling to power,” he said. “Justice is based on values and those change every generation.”

He ain’t wrong.

And I’m guessing now Garp is training young Marines that Coby, WHO HAS AWAKENED HAKI, will be first on the list. Here’s another one who will go through training to become a worthy opponent of Luffy.

Smoker also went to see Aokiji and requested a transfer to G5 branch. Aokiji had doubts. “That’s not a place you go voluntarily.” Apparently, G5 means Grand Line, 5th Branch. It’s in the New World. Smoker wants a New World placement.

I cannot handle this much awesome.

To Top It All Off, The Pink One Is Also Causing Trouble

How can he sit like that? Surely that is not in any way comfortable?

Remember when he ambushed Moria at Marineford? Turns out he didn’t quite get the job done (phew!) I should stick to my No Corpse, No Death rule more often.

In the words of Doflamingo.... “Poof!”

Moria disappeared just before Doflamingo landed the final blow. He insisted Moria was dying, so even if he did get away, he wouldn’t go far. Unless he came back as a zombie. (You joke, Doflamingo, but I would not put that past Moria for one reason: Hogback!)

The WG official accused him of sloppy work. Then Doflamingo lost his cool. I’ve never seen him act like that before, so it was interesting. “Who do you think you’re talking to? When did you become my boss? When I lose interest in doing business with you guys, I’ll quit being a Shichibukai at any time.”

I guess this really highlights the tenuous relationship the Marines have with these guys. Plus, Doflamingo seems like he’s Mr Chaotic Evil (or at least Mr Neutral Evil) incarnate, so maybe not the best guy to rely on?

Especially when the New World has descended into utter chaos.

So Who’s All Enjoying The New World?

Everyone who is anyone will head there eventually. Crocodile and Daz Bones will have another crack at it. Law has plans but is content to wait for his time (smart). The Strawhats, obviously, are a Work in Progress.

Buggy has reunited with his old crew (I forgot about Richie the Lion. How dare I?) and also has a massive bunch of Impel Down followers. Maybe he’ll have a crack at it too, now he has Alvida and Galdino to be the strategists? Plus, he just got that letter from the WG. Maybe he’ll end up on the run.

The rest of the Rookies have ventured out.

As for the Supernovas (sans Law and Luffy) I have predictions.

Who Will Make It:

The most obvious candidate is Kidd. He’s made for the cruelty of the New World, has already crushed another crew and has declared himself an enemy of Luffy. Sweet. Battle points.

Hawkins is another one who has crushed a crew. Again, battle points.

Apoo isn’t dumb. He’ll run if he has to. Smart points.

The Jury’s Out:

Urouge has stumbled across The Thunder Plains (from Final Fantasy X) and met some weird old ladies who look like they’ve just stepped out of Macbeth.

Who’s Probably Not Okay:

Gang Bege’s ship is in fragments. X-Drake has just clashed with Kaido’s crew. I don’t see them lasting much longer.

And Jewelry Bonney...

When Your Fave Is Problematic

Hard pass, Teach. A very hard pass.

I loved how the intro caption to this scene was: “Some Burning Island”. Then I saw the Blackbeards and thought, “Praise Oda! My villainous faves have returned in style!”

I thought the only news I would get on them was from the Gorosei. This was a nice bonus.

Of course, they were bickering. The Blackbeards always bicker and snipe at each other. There was a definite tone change here, though, as though Oda wants to step their villainy up a gear.

Take their argument over the ship they sailed in on. Teach said, “We should have stolen a Marine ship. The Raft wasn’t great.” Shiryu’s retort was tolerated: “You guys don’t prepare for anything.” But Avalo Pizarro’s (I finally know his name!) joke, “Want me to be captain, Teach?” earned him this response from Lafitte: “Shut up or I’ll kill you. We are Blackbeard Pirates.”

Teach is gaining more authority and loyalty from his crew. The ones who have always been with him are fiercely loyal and the newer ones have yet to learn the ropes. Lafitte (is he the first mate?) is also flexing. Do I sense tension between the established and newer members of the crew? Maybe, but they seem to get along well enough.

Among the new ones, I already have the ones I like (Shiryu and Catalina) vs the ones I’m not keen on (Avalo, San Juan and Vasco. Their personalities haven’t really emerged yet, so there’s time).

While the island burned, the Blackbeards stuck around necking Jacky D (haha!) because they were waiting for the Marines.

Why? Were they about to do another deal?

Yeah... but not one I was expecting.

They had crushed Bonney’s crew, chained her up and were about to trade her in for a ship.

That was shocking. I hadn’t expected Bonney to catch up to Teach so quickly and be defeated, but the outcome wasn’t surprising. Of course Teach would do that. He’d done it to Ace before and it worked. Sasuga Teach, I guess. What he did next stepped up his villainy a few notches.

He turned on lech mode, which I didn’t know was in his repertoire.

“I can’t believe they gave you a hundred million bounty! The New World is the sea for the chosen strong ones. You can all the way from South Blue. But you’ll go no further. You’re too weak to join my crew, but you can come with me, if you become my girl.”

Her response was excellent. “SCREW YOU, YOU BEARDED PIG!”

Honestly, Teach. You deserved that. And you were shocked at the rejection? You were going to get the Hard Pass. Apart from being a traitorous, murdering scumbag, you’re also a rubbish flirt. I mean, expecting her to go out with you after you beat up her crew, called her weak and laid her out as bait for the Marines? Not a great sell, Teach. Work on your people skills, like Lafitte.

Their plan went awry when Van Augr spotted Akainu on the approaching ship. Obviously, he would not do any deal (and I bet he’s steaming mad Aokiji will be Fleet Admiral before him). So they scarpered.

I’m worried for Bonney, though. Akainu picking her up? That’s the worst luck... :(

TEAM SELFIE AFTER A HARD DAY’S PILLAGING! #blackbeards #nofilter #okayonefilter

[recentanimenews]

The Best Manga You’re Not Reading: Star Wars

I was five years old when Star Wars: A New Hope blasted its way into movie theaters. Like most members of Generation X, the film cast a long shadow over my childhood, dictating my Halloween costumes, afterschool play, Happy Meal purchases, toy collections, and clothing; I had Princess Leia action figures, Star Wars drinking glasses, Star Wars t-shirts, and a Star Wars beach towel. One of the few tie-in products I didn’t own, however, was a comic book adaptation of the movie. I’d purchased The Star Wars Storybook at a Scholastic book fair in 1978, but never knew that Marvel Comics or manga publishers were peddling something similar.

That’s a pity, because Star Wars has a long and fascinating history in print. Marvel’s six-issue adaptation of A New Hope, for example, was cooked up by a Lucasfilm executive in an effort to drum up business for the film — in essence, it was a trailer for comic geeks, arriving on newsstands a month before the movie opened. Though Marvel executives had been reluctant to license Star Wars — according to former editor Jim Shooter the “Prevailing Wisdom” at Marvel was that “science fiction doesn’t sell”  — it proved one of the company’s best business decisions of the 1970s. “The first two issues of our six issue adaptation came out in advance of the movie,” Shooter observed:

Driven by the advance marketing for the movie, sales were very good. Then about the time the third issue shipped, the movie was released. Sales made the jump to hyperspace. Star Wars the movie stayed in theaters forever, it seemed. Not since the Beatles had I seen a cultural phenomenon of such power. The comics sold and sold and sold. We reprinted the adaptation in every possible format. They all sold and sold and sold.

By contemporary standards, Roy Thomas and Howard Chaykin’s version is skillful but a little stodgy, relying on voice-overs to introduce key characters and explain plot points, rather than allowing the art to shoulder the responsibility of telling the story. Nonetheless, as Star Wars fever crossed the Pacific, Weekly Shonen Magazine republished Thomas and Chaykin’s comic, touching off a Star Wars manga blitz in Japan.

Japan caught Star Wars fever again in 1997, when the Special Edition trilogy hit theaters across the globe. Kadokowa’s MediaWorks division churned out a new set of Star Wars manga, hiring Hisao Tamaki (A New Hope), Toshiki Kudo (The Empire Strikes Back), and Shin-Ichi Hiromoto (Return of the Jedi) to handle the adaptations. And while all three are good, faithfully reproducing the main beats from each film, Tamaki’s version of A New Hope is that rarest of tie-in products: it captures the look and feel of the movie without slavishly copying it, offering both a fresh perspective on a canonical text and a point of entry for someone wholly unfamiliar with Star Wars. 

Part of what makes Tamaki’s version so fascinating is how he compensates for the absence of a soundtrack — no mean feat, given how noisy the Star Wars universe is. While Tamaki uses plenty of hand-lettered sound effects, he never uses them as a crutch, instead finding nifty ways to help us imagine the sound of a landspeeder skimming the desert floor or a Stormtrooper firing his blaster. Tamaki’s most effective tactic is careful attention to the velocity and direction of moving objects; through deft placement of speedlines and artful manipulation of the panels’ shape and size, he conveys the same information that a well engineered roar, squeak, thud, or electronic rumble might.

Then there’s the film’s lush, Wagnerian score, the kind of movie music that had been fashionable in the era of Ben Hur��and Lawrence of Arabia but was considered unhip in the gritty, naturalistic world of early 70s cinema. The opening fanfare and dense web of leitmotifs are unquestionably part of A New Hope‘s appeal, goosing fight scenes and capturing the melancholy of a young Luke Skywalker as he gazes at a Tatooine sunset. Absent those musical prompts, however, Tamaki is forced to think about how to elicit the same emotions in words and pictures. One of the most dramatically successful attempts to bridge sound and silence occurs in volume one of Tamaki’s adaptation, right after R2D2 and C3PO land on Tatooine:

In the film, John Williams accompanies C3PO’s trek with music cribbed from The Rite of Spring — a decent choice, as Stravinsky’s dour ostinati and octatonic harmonies imbue the harsh landscape with an otherworldly quality. Tamaki, however, distills this two-minute scene to an evocative two-page spread in which a wide-angle view of the Tatooine desert unfolds beneath the individual panels, reminding us just how small and vulnerable both droids are. These images track closely with Lucas’ own vision, but the implied silence of the first and final panels in this sequence more powerfully conveys C3PO’s isolation than any musical gesture could:

The absence of sound has another unexpected benefit: minus the actors’ desperate attempts to make George Lucas’ dialogue sound… well, like conversation, the script has more room to breathe. Tamaki plays the earnest stuff straight and ramps up the comedy whenever someone is surprised or indignant. Luke, in particular, benefits from such an approach, given his age and naivete; in Tamaki’s hands, he’s Monkey D. Luffy with a lightsaber, freaking out over chores, the Millennium Falcon’s shabby appearance, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s death, a kiss from Princess Leia… you get the idea. Tamaki’s elastic deformations of Luke’s face transform him from blandly handsome farm boy to Shonen Jump hero, equal parts brave and ridiculous:

One of the manga’s other great virtues is its ability to expand and contract time in ways that a purely temporal medium like film can’t. The ability to speed up and slow down the unfolding the plot isn’t unique to comics, of course; filmmakers can use slow motion imagery or cross-cutting to manipulate the viewer’s perception of time, but a good manga artist takes advantage of the fact the reader can, in fact, stop time by poring over an image or a scene for minutes, savoring small but telling details that would otherwise get lost in the cinematic flow. Writing for Animerica in 2004, Patrick Macias offered a thoughtful explanation of how this kind of creative expansion of time adds new layers of meaning to Tamaki’s story:

It is in Tamaki’s take on destruction of the planet Alderaan that he really shows off his stuff. A scene that took mere moments to depict on-screen is drawn out to fill half a dozen pages. He inserts images of the Alderaan populace looking up to the heavens, and you can almost hear those “millions of voices suddenly crying out in terror” with more dramatic impact in the manga than in the film.

Of course, none of this would matter if Tamaki lacked the precision to bring Lucas’ vision to life on page. Again and again, Tamaki delivers amazingly detailed drawings of space ships, aliens, and weapons that pulse with the same life as Katsuhiro Otomo’s AKIRA and Shirow Masamune’s Ghost in the Shell; if you’d never seen or heard of Star Wars, you might reasonably infer that Tamaki dreamt up this world on his own. Tamaki proves equally adept at staging deep space dogfights, too, conveying both the dizzying speed with which the ships are moving and the maze-like surface of the Death Star:

For readers coming to the manga from the films, the biggest stumbling block will be the character designs: did Tamaki get them right? The short answer is yes, if you can tolerate a little artistic license with hairdos and body types. Not surprisingly, R2D2 and C3PO look most like their big-screen counterparts — no pesky noses or mouths to draw — but the rest of the cast bear a passing-to-strong resemblance to the actors who portrayed them, though Obi-Wan Kenobi has gotten a beefy makeover as Chuck Norris. Tamaki does an even better job of bringing Darth Vader and his Stormtroopers to life on the page, adding an extra touch of menace in the way he draws their helmets; you can almost see the soldiers grimacing under their plastic armor from the way he draws their browlines.

If I’ve sold you on manga Star Wars, you’ll be happy to know it’s a relatively inexpensive way to relive the original trilogy. The digital versions — currently available through Amazon and ComiXology — retail for $1.99 per volume. There’s also a Phantom Menace manga for the morbidly curious; Kia Asamiya is the author, and he’s been given the truly thankless task of condensing that stinker into two volumes. At least it won’t be as interminable as the movie.

WORKS CONSULTED

Macias, Patrick. “Star Wars, The Manga.” Animerica, VIZ LLC, 7 Apr. 2004, http://ift.tt/2C9euK1. Accessed 27 Dec. 2017.

Rickard, Ron. “Retro Foreign: Japanese Weekly Shōnen Magazine #18 – 23 (1978).” Star Wars Comic Collector, 20 May 2016, http://ift.tt/2lpIFkQ. Accessed 27 Dec. 2017.

Shooter, Jim. “Roy Thomas Saved Marvel.” Jim Shooter, 5 July 2011, http://ift.tt/2C8vHDo. Accessed on 28 Dec. 2017.

Spellman, Ron. “A Long Time Ago: The Strange History of Marvel’s Original Star Wars Universe.” Comics Alliance, Townsquare Media, 28 Jan. 2016, http://ift.tt/1PI3KCV. Accessed 28 Dec. 2017.

Tamaki, Hisao. Star Wars: A New Hope, adapted from an original script by George Lucas, Marvel Comics, 1998. 4 vols.

By: Katherine Dacey