#ch341

[opbackgrounds]

This is the smartest thing anyone has said in a long time

[iiloffy]

[opbackgrounds]

There’s nothing about this scene that’s strictly necessary, but I like how Oda went out of the way to show this dude having a little bit of sympathy for some random kid who’s obviously really struggling. Sure they’re about ready to be hit by a giant tsunami, but some things are more important

[opbackgrounds]

So if there’s anyone out there wanting to get into writing, some common advise you’ll hear is to make your characters active instead of passive (as with most things, this is not a rule that anyone should set in stone--passive protagonists can work, but they can be tricky if you don’t know what you’re doing). One Piece is pretty great at this, in that they’re given the agency to choose their path in the story. A lesser writer might set up the circumstances so that the Straw Hats are forced into going to Iceburg’s mansion for a second time. Stories with passive protagonists often feel more like chess pieces than their own people, which just doesn’t work with One Piece’s theming on freedom. 

Secondly, I think it’s really important to me that Luffy is giving his undivided attention to the conversation. He might go off on a walk when one of his crew is going over their tragic backstory, but when it comes to matters of the present he is completely invested.

[opbackgrounds]

With the power of retrospect, I feel like this is one of the bigger moments regarding Luffy’s development as the Straw Hat’s captain. One of the things Oda’s trying to accomplish with this arc is have the Straw Hats really emerge on a world stage while also dramatically expanding the scope of that world to the reader. When it came to the fate of the Merry, while Luffy eventually came around to the right decision he first had to be talked into seeing sense by Iceburg. A wrong choice now likely spells the end of the Straw Hat Pirates. Luffy and the rest know that they’re being set up by an unknown enemy. It’s up to him to decide whether or not they walk into that trap with their eyes wide open.

Other arcs have had bigger stakes, but it’s never felt this personal before. Sure, screwing up at Alabasta means a bloody and terrible end to a civil war, but Crocodile’s ultimate goal wasn’t Luffy, or even Vivi’s, death. Here, amidst the most confusion and inter-crew turmoil the crew has ever faced, the heart and soul of the Straw Hats is at risk, teetering on a knife’s edge. One solid push could destroy them, and I think Luffy understands that, and makes this decision anyway 

[opbackgrounds]

Blueno’s greatest feat in the entire series is putting up Franky for five years while under cover and not trying to murder him once that entire time for pulling shit like this

[opbackgrounds]

We know Usopp knows about the incoming storm because Sanji and Chopper warned him, and even if they didn’t presumably he would have heard the warnings in town while out shopping. Yet even as the entire city shuts down and evacuates, he’s decided to stay with the Going Merry. 

Usopp’s self-delusion makes him do a lot of questionable things, but had he (and the Merry) not been kidnapped by Franky then there’s a good chance that the Aqua Laguna kills him then and there.

Also, that second panel is an amazing Usopp face

[opbackgrounds]

It’s sad because Usopp’s the heart of the Going Merry