hope you feel well~ any thoughts on mr morj new analysis?
I’m doing pretty good right now, thank you :)
And I assume you mean his villain video? I agree with all the points he made but would go a step further and say that most arc villains aren’t just a foil for Luffy but also the Main Secondary Character that’s the focus of the arc—especially during Straw Hat recruitment arcs.
Morgan—Obsessed with his personal glory and reputation, whereas Zoro throws away his good name to become a pirate
Arlong—Uses money as a way of controlling others, whereas Nami builds her fortune to save her village, plus the whole cycle of violence/hatred theme that really comes to a head during Fishman Island
Kuro—Like Usopp is also a liar, but for his own gain whereas Usopp uses his tall tales to uplift the spirits of other people. Also he hates being a pirate while Usopp worships them
Krieg—This one is a bit of a stretch and Gin ends up taking the place of Sanji’s foil, which I guess makes him closer to Zeff in that he took in someone who’d never known kindness and turned him into an ultra loyal number two. Maybe not as perfect as some of the others, but they can’t all be winners and the parallels are there nonetheless
Wapol—Selfishly hoarding the island’s medical resources for himself versus the little reindeer who wants to find a way to treat every disease. You tell me which one is the monster
Crocodile—I’ve talked a lot about the differences in his leadership style versus Vivi’s already, so let’s not belabor the point
Lucci—leader of a close-knit shadowy underground organization that (eventually) regards itself as family, occasionally known for wearing masks. Lucci or Franky, you decide
Spandam—Like Robin has a legacy to live up to, but this more a study of opposites. Spandam had everything Robin didn’t, and yet for all that the World Government says Robin alone has the power to destroy the world through the Ancient Weapons, it’s Spandam who’s searching for ways to revive them.
Moriah—He lost his crew, just like Brook. Unlike Brook, he lost his passion as well
Hody—After everything that’s happened, Jinbe had every reason to hate humanity. Hody, meanwhile, has never been directly affected by the surface world and would still destroy his home island in an efforts to attempt genocide
And this has nothing to do with analysis, but I personally divide Oda villains into categories (Powerhouses, Schemers/Manipulators/Charismatic Influencers) which is kind of stupid because most characters can be divided as such regardless of medium or level of villainy, but I do find it helpful for characterization especially when I’m writing. Enel is going to problem solve differently than Foxy who is going to be different than Blackbeard, etc., etc.
While there’s some overlap of categories I think that you can reach one core, defining characteristic per villain, and that’s a sign of good writing. No one character is going to achieve power in the same way, nor should they be good at everything.
Let’s use Blackbeard as an example because I think most people would agree that he’s a schemer, charismatic, and a powerhouse, but it’s through his plans that he giants the trust of his crew and his Devil Fruit abilities, making him at heart a master manipulator who also happens to be able to punch real good.
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