I have no words to express how much I hate Saturn right now.
This man believes Navy people are just tools, and I can't believe the Navy still serves under such a horrible person.
It felt good to see Bonny stabbing Saturn even though we all knew Saturn would make it through.
She has at least wounded him. She was allowed to make him bleed. Bonney won't be the one to destroy him sadly but I hope she will have a huge part in it.
Saturn called Kuma a slave, he claimed it was his natural state. No, Saturn, Kuma was born free and beloved. And he's not a toy you can destroy at will.
Kuma was born as a kind man. He still managed to keep his nice attitude even though Celestial Dragons kept torturing him. That's because he knew the world was cruel.
Kuma knew how much people suffered. He was a slave as a young child. That's such a gruesome fate!
Now I understand why he accepted Vegapunk's experiments on him. Because he didn't want anyone else to suffer from slavery. He knew what was going to happen, he knew the consequences.
So Kuma accepted this because he knew Vegapunk would create an army thanks to his agreement. Vegapunk would create an army able to destroy the Celestial Dragons and their deeds on the world.
Sabo also knew this. Dragon knew this. Ivankov knew this. Losing Kuma is something they can't afford morally.
Like I FEEL her pain, I understand her anguish, I understand her plight. I am THERE with her, I want whatever the fuck she wants. If she wants those bastards dead then I am rolling up with her ride or die
Well damn, let's just dive right into 1095 because I can subscribe to all this jive. Everyone agree Saturn just went and tempted fate here? Like, Luffy's hitting about an 8.8 on the Bugs Bunny scale for cartoon nonsense, you really wanna try him with that rhetoric? The big, demonic form is just wild...but look how calm and collected he is. Providing real leadership and command. Saturn's devil form is scary, but his legitimate ability to change the tone of this arc on a dime is interesting. The stakes are clear; this is a threat there is not an answer for.
So...this is totally, 100% the type of circumstance that could be answered by an interloper. Just saying, Luffy/Kizaru are gassed, no one really seems to be able to deal with Saturn. Good thing Robonosuke hopped online right? Or the Grand Fleet could be waiting in the wings. Could be Kuma popping in, who knows? We're doing it again though, pulling away. Who's to say we'll even see the way they wriggle out? Precedent's already been set. Looks like we're back in that space where what comes next will heavily depend on how long this flashback takes. Speaking of...
Holy shit this is brutal. Like...my god is this absolutely horrific. It's the timing, a rare slave is that worthless to them. What absolutely crushes me is Kuma being chipper about having a nice master. Really just putting the extravagance of the Celestial Dragons next to the degradation of slavery on full display. Interesting tidbit about Nika and filling the gap of this Buccaneer race. I like the setup for God Valley as a concept, great swerve on the reasons behind the incident. Very interested to see how Garling fits in here, we did have that little Flim Red hint that Figarland & Shanks are tied. He seems like a total scuzzball.
We are breaking hard into that territory with Bonney where maybe you are just picking up the thread Kiku carried in Wano and running with it. Like I've said, you have to keep in mind Vivi/Stussy/Etc. have done the same so the idea Kiku straddles all of them might still matter. Like Vivi, Bonney broke and was a bit of a hothead causing problems. Saturn is laying the core themes on thick, we all about hierarchy now and it kinda looks like we're just using Kuma as a vehicle to showcase a lot of history. One thing to look at for a bellwether is how much we focus on Kuma vs. Garling going forward. Well, and...
Bruh, Oda...I'm already at my limit with bishie Mac Tonight here. You really gonna add Emporio Simmons in here? Sweatin to the oldies so we can get Kuma in tippy top shape? I love it, indomitable gay energy in the face of slavery and being hunted for sport. A lot of people talk about the idea Ginny could be Bonney's mom. I like it, and of course this does not fully confirm she's Iva's actual sister. But keep in mind Ginny could just be that, and a hungry little sibling pair with big gay overtones certainly makes me think of someone.
So yeah...Saturn does feel like he needs outside intervention. Could be Kuma, could be subverting Sabaody by having a hidden card left to play for the Strawhats. I feel like this flashback is perfectly set up to build towards either.
I read chapter 1095 this afternoon and I can't stop thinking about the death of Kuma's father, it hit me right where it hurts.
I mentioned it it before but my favorite tv show of all time is Black Sails (a little underrated and about pirates too) and his death reminded me inmediately of my favorite scene from my favorite episode of the series. I won't go into details because it's a big spoiler and it has huge consequences in the story but both deaths have the same energy: dead in the blink of an eye for no fucking reason.
I feel devastated, maybe it's because of this and because I also have a cold and I feel pretty bad as it is, but this chapter hit me like a ton of bricks.
