You can watch my review for the next arc (Water 7 Part 1) RIGHT NOW on Patreon here (5$+): www.patreon.com/Aleczandxr To follow the readthroughs on stream, you can follow me on Twitch here: www.twitch.tv/Aleczandxr/ Link to AJ's Discord server: discord.gg/Ekhz7PNuJd CURRENT TWITCH SCHEDULE: Mondays @ 10am EST: A Blind Playthrough of The Great Ace Attorney Wednesdays @ 10am EST: A Blind Playthrough of Xenoblade Chronicles 3/Haikyuu Discussions Fridays @ 10:30am EST: New Hunter x Hunter Chapter reads Sundays @ 11am EST: Mob Psycho 100 and Chainsaw Man anime reactions & One Piece Chapter reads SOME FRIDAYS, I do full One Piece reading streams as well, after the HxH chapters.
I just finished the long ring arc and dude... seeing how hard Luffy fought so that he wouldn't lose a crew member in what was essentially a twisted game was something else. It makes me wonder how he'll react to higher stakes
Chopper has a great little brother dynamic with pretty much the entire crew, but sometimes I think he looks up to Zoro the most because of scenes like the Davy Back one. You'll occasionally see him imitating or clinging to Zoro (especially in cover pages) and it's really cute. I remember at this point in the story I wasn't really feeling Robin on the crew too much, but the INSTANT Aokiji showed up and she panicked, that vanished. Intensely felt like I needed to protect her with the rest of the crew lol.
#AJPiece Fun fact: all 3 admirals have codenames, which you have already read. Each codename is a combination of a color and an animal. Aokiji = ao kiji = blue pheasant Akainu = aka inu = red dog Kizaru = ki zaru = yellow monkey The specific trio of animals is a reference to the Japanese myth of Momotaro.
I love how you seem to understand the crew so well, even though you are still so early into the series! About Movie 6: Lily Carnation really is the stuff of nightmares. About the G8 arc: You really think Sanji is at his lowest here? 🤔 I personally didn't find his simping was too much, just regular; they could have done it much worse. And I adore to see him cook! I feel like his cooking tends to take a back seat to his fighting (which I also really love) and his amorous antics (which I could have less of, but still enjoy because it is part of him). Thankfully, the anime is here to show us more of Sanji cooking in some of it's filler episodes! (There was a cooking contest in LogueTown, what he does in this arc, and then a bit of it 2 arcs from now). I absolutely love him, and I think if people could see past the overuse of his amorous nature played for laughs, they would like him too. Thanks for the video, AJ! I always enjoy your opinions. Can't wait to see your reaction to the things that are to come. PS: Congratulations on the new house! I hope the new environment will refresh your spirit and inspire you to keep up. I always appreciate all the work you put into the videos and your interaction with all of us. 🙏
I don’t know if it was him at his lowest from what I’ve seen but it’s definitely the least I’ve enjoyed him so far. Just in those segments though. Like I said, every crew member had moments where they shined in G-8, and that includes Sanji with that cooking. I just didn’t like all of his stuff. But it was no big deal and that naturally doesn’t factor much at all into my feelings about him in my manga read. Regarding him as a character overall, I imagine those are just general statements about him not directed to what I said? Because through these videos I’ve definitely given my thoughts extensively on him and made it clear that I enjoy him. You’re very welcome, and thanks! It’s just a new apartment, not a house, but it’s been a nice change so far and that’s sweet of you to say!
@@Aleczandxr Yes, the last part was in general, it wasn't directed at you. Sorry for the misunderstanding! You indeed seem to enjoy Sanji as a character, and I hope it won't change in the future. Like I said in the beginning, I think you understand perfectly who each of the crew really is. Oda-sensei 's character writing is amazing! They feel like real actual people, and a part of this is having flaws. Thanks for taking the time to read and answer my comment! Actually communicating with the OnePiece community is one of the things I like the most in being in this fandom.
Long Ring Long Island is definitely not a perfect arc even in the manga, but it is the prologue to Water 7 in almost every way, highlighting the stupidest (Davy Back Fight) and deadliest (Aokiji) ways to lose a crew member, showing the Straw Hats' approach to such a loss, and demonstrating that not everyone is welcome aboard. It may therefore have contributed extremely to Robin's grave decision in Water 7. As you noted, it also puts Usopp in the spotlight, as he is essential to the course of Round 1 and Round 3 of the Davy Back Fight for completely different reasons, but can do nothing against Aokiji. In addition, Aokiji also introduces the string-puller in the background, who starts the events in Water 7 in the first place by giving the Buster Call to CP9. There are other things in Long Ring Long Island which I could only appreciate later - but which I won't mention here for spoiler reasons. What I want to mention here is the nice analogy that the Straw Hats arrive at the time of the big ebb which leads to the Aqua Laguna in Water 7 every year (we know this thanks to a databook).
long ring long land on reread was so much more fun than i remembered i love it so much bc of the strawhat interactions it was great seeing so many wholesome, cute, and funny strawhat moments unlike other arcs where Oda has to weave plot threads and develop antagonists, this arc was just pure fun, so much comedy and wholesome moments wherein strawhats r just being the best of friends. simple plot structure and setting but so much energy and opportunities for the strawhats to bounce off each other and just be themselves in a lowstakes-- yet still thrilling and entertaining-- conflict its insanely character-focused imo for such a lighthearted arc i think in hindsight long ring long land was perfect in its placement in the wider scope story. a lot of the themes carry over to the next arcs and it kinda is the last arc where the strawhats are just a group of friends. after this, they're a group of friends and a legit pirate crew with a captain who is respected and deserves to be respected. the davy back fight was just an amazing and enjoyable tournament arc that showed off all the strawhats' ability and teamwork while also managing to give some pretty great super in-character moments for every strawhat luffy's unyielding spirit, zoro and sanji's satisfying comeback, the reactions and expressions from nami, usopp, and chopper----- man... the arc was so strawhat-focused i love it so much
LRLL has a well deserved terrible reputation due to the anime, the manga its fun and the fight is pretty good, but god the adaptation of it is really bad
#AJPiece: The tides going out on the island is a reference to the Aqua Laguna we see later in Water 7. The fact the path is blocked for Tonjit signals the water is rising again and the wave will hit soon. Also, Akio Otsuka voices Blackbeard. Give his Jaya dream speech a watch. He gives that character so much life and makes it impossible to read his lines without that voice in your head.
53:15 Seeing Robin, the one whose specialty is assassination to Usopp's dismay, who is cool and aloof, usually amused by the shenanigans of the crew, but who could easily sprout 2 arms on your back and break your neck, or sprout on those arms to see farther away, to break the neck of someone else further away, while sipping tea in her living room, seeing that badass bitch turned into a quivering mess made me immediately and deeply afraid of Aokiji. She was ready to die in Alabasta. Why is this sleepy lanky guy so much more scary than death?
Really hope you'll be tackling Movie 2 and especially Movie 4 as well. The consensus is bad, good, bad, good when it comes to the early One Piece movies. So, 2, 4, and 6 are considered not bad to pretty darn good. Movie 6 is actually my favorite One Piece movie to this day. I think you would get a good kick out of movie 2 and definitely 4. Maybe some time in the future.
#AJPiece One of my favorite things in this arc happens when Aokiji attacks Nico Robin with his ice saber and Zoro is the first crew member to defend her. The first Straw Hat to clash with an admiral and he does it for Nico Robin. Zoro was always the crew member who trusted her the least when everyone else warmed up to her quickly. After their experiences in Skypiea Zoro treats Robin like one of the crew. Such a fire moment
I actually really like Long Ring Long Land as an arc because of the contrast and consistency it achieves on its theming of struggle, lost of nakamas and unfairness, like of course foxy is a joke and his whole crew is a joke, but that's the insidious thing about them from a writing perspective, because the actual consequences of losing to them would be devastating but you ignore them because is dumb old foxy he is the ultimate lull into a sense of security. Then you reach the afro luffy fight and luffy gets the absolute shit beat out of him, he struggles against someone who is this much of a joke because that's just the level of experience people have with their abilities in the grand line and in the back of your head forms the thought ''What would happen if this wasn't Foxy?'' which Oda, the absolute madman, answers IMMEDIATELY with Aokiji who is a reflection of foxy but turned up to eleven thousand, he is cool, he is serious, he is unfair, he has way more information and is out to make them lose a nakama, he achieves such levels of danger and dread that I think are only possible because it resonates with what you've been seeing and thinking during the old silly davy back fight.
#AJPiece In a previous Review you mentioned how the story feels like a legend in the making. While that's certainly true for us as the reader, it's interesting to also remember the perspective of your average joe in the One Piece universe. At some point you start hearing about this new pirate defeating the current top dogs in the east blue who then is about to be executed, smiling, on the pirate kings scafold in front of thousands of witnesses only to be saved by what only can be viewed as divine intervention. That is not long before dethroning Sir crocodile, a member of the shichibukai, who stand on top of the Pirate food chain and are supposed to stand on par with military might of the Navy (and thus by extension the world government). Furthermore, the first thing anyone entering the Grand Line at Reverse Mountain sees is a giant whale proudly presenting Straw Hats Jolly Roger. It allows for this wonderful contrast between Luffy's reputation as a fearsome pirate and that funny little goofball depicted on his wanted poster. As much as each Strawhat is impacted by others, so too will the Strawhats leave their mark in the minds of those who bear witness.
G8 was amazing, and a seamless transition in between arcs. It somehow fits so perfectly for the Straw Hats to fall out of the Sky after battling God, only to land in the middle a Naval Fortress at sea. Honestly, I wish the arc had been in the manga. As for Long Ring, I often forget just how fun it was. It somewhat overstayed in the anime, but was overall a fun watch, and is the source Afro Luffy. The Aokiji part took place seperately in the anime for some reason, but with little change. This is the point in the story where the challenges started to feel overwhelming, and we would get glimpses of unprecedented tension. It sets the stakes by building up what the crew will have to overcome...
#AJPiece As a black man, one who very much embraces his natural hair I cannot necessarily speak for everyone but for me personally there were minor negative aspects to Afro Luffy but the majority of the storyline was very positive and actually very cool to me. To speak on the positive I like how Usopp, the member of the strawhats who is Of African descent (or would be if real as stated by Oda) sees this natural hair as a source of strength and a symbol of champions. And Luffy agrees, it's a very positive thing to cast as a trait for natural hair. The negative aspects of it is how they in some cases refer to it as wild as it does play into a few harmful sterotypes about wild hair. But for the most part I think it represents passion and spirit and I think that's very positive to people who may doubt the validity of their own hair. Does the champion wears an Afro or does the Afro wear the champion.
You are so close to the best One Piece ever gets. It doesn't fall off after that like people say, but there is something special about the next 150-200 chapters. Oda was serving peaking for like 3 years straight.
Aokiji is one of our first examples of the power ceiling of this series. The peak strength of the Navy encapsulated in a single person, and you realize there is no way the crew could win against him. At least, not now.
#AJPiece In case you weren’t aware, The three admirals are named after three animals based on an old folklore called Momotaro Aokiji (blue-pheasant) Kizaru (yellow-monkey) Akainu (red-dog)
#AJPIECE I'm sure this information is already somewhere in the comments but I couldn't find it, with regards to the afro, there was an extremely popular Japanese Boxer during the 70's and 80's in japan called Yoko (bet you will remember that part xD) Gushinken who famously had an Afro and a handlebar mustache and its portrait in media using similar mannerisms as Afro Luffy, i believe he successfully defended the world title in his weight class for 13 times making him the most successful Japanese world title defender and only has 1 international loss after which he retired with a record like 20+ to 1 (adding more to his legend) his charismatic personality also kept him working on TV after retirement, he is very idolize specially by Oda's generation and its a relatively common gag in manga, if i remembering correctly there is an Afro Boxer spirit cameo in Shaman king and Mister Satan from dragon ball shares the iconic hair and handlebar mustache among many others
#AJPiece It's interesting seeing you cover Long Ring Long Land. This is probably the one canon arc that the fandom universally says is skippable. Hearing you talk about it reminds me just how high the stakes were for Luffy despite this arc lacking in the scope and scale of arcs like Skypia or Alabasta. This arc really hammers home just how important Luffy's crew is to him. It actually servs as a great springboard for the themes in the next arc. It actually gave me a new level appreciation for my least favorite arc. Thank you. I can't wait to see your journey continue.
As a black man I loved Afro Luffy. Felt like Oda was giving a nod to the Ready 2 Rumble game character “Afro Thunder”. Also, the dialect that Luffy used, I thought was funny. No issues on my, or any of my friends, part.
#AJPiece one of the things highlighted about this arc I liked was how their unity affects their strengths. The reason Luffy won the battle was because the piece of mirror was caught by the afro that usopp provided, without it he very might've lost the battle. Zoro and Sanji working alone could not defeat the foxy pirates but working together they could. And that idea gets even more expanded on water 7.
This is more of a general thing and i obviously woun´t mention which parts of this video i refer to but sometimes it´s unbelievable that you don´t know the whole story! So many of your predictions, theorys and thoughts are just straight up right, to a point where i´m not sure if i´d watch OP videos of yours when you are caught up, because i would be afraid of spoilering myself ´:D You really have a great sense for storytelling and it´s kinda amazing that alot of what you expect actually lines up with what Oda did in the end and affirms my believe that he is one of the best authors of our time. It´s one thing to look at the story as a "whole" (at least up to this point) and point out what it needs next tonewise or which themes/characters you should explore more and at which time but doing it this well while almost consistenly publishing week by week is just unbelievable. I hope you continue to enjoy your readthrough because we will continue to enjoy you talking about it for sure ;)
little note: this kinda makes me wish Oda would´ve published as a "conventional" author or wrote the manga with a monthly release scedule tho, because i think he has the talent to make it even more perfect if only he had a little more time and never was rushed. I think OP is one of the greatest and best written epics as is but it could´ve been literally the best ever (not even joking or overexaggerating in my opinion). What´s your opinion on this and do you even consider OP as an actual epic?
#AjPiece A very common critique of One Piece lately has been what you warned about in terms of art. Where panels become a bit too dense and for some feel cluttered. Mostly around chapter 700 and onward. Most of the time I actually disagree with this critique. Whenever I read the new Jujutsu Kaisen/Chainsaw man/any other weekly manga it only takes a minute or two to finish the chapter and half the time I feel like nothing happened. Meanwhile with one piece there is so much content it takes two or three rereads of the chapter with each read taking a good 5-8 minutes to take it all in. So as you go on and start to see more and more cluttered panels also keep in mind the sheer amount of content to enjoy from it
I completely agree with the art feeling way too cluttered and honestly that was a big reason why I dropped it. However after a while I decided to try the anime instead and I am enjoying it a lot more.
People often dont bring up the fact that Ice / Cold restricts the stretching ability of rubber and makes it rigid so Aokiji is kind of luffy’s natural enemy
About Afro Luffy, It’s a reference of a famous boxer, look up “Yoko Gushiken”. Also about Akainu, Jonathan from G-8 was said to be his protege, back in the filler arc.
This is a great video I love that you focused on the Aokiji part so much, its so underrated in my oppinion. Also I cant stop thinking "oooooooh boi, *the* arc is coming"
#AJPiece one neat detail about the admirals comes from their naming scheme. all of the names we're given for them (Aokiji, Akainu and Kizaru) are titles, translating as Blue Pheasent, Red Dog and Yellow Monkey respectively which is in reference to the myth of momotaro, where momotaro befriends a dog, pheasent and monkey and goes with them to defeat a big bad oni (which considering the myth rose to popularity pro war propaganda during world war 2, that might be why oda chose to reference it with the admirals). Also, by the point you're at you've already seen sengoku. the guy with the pet goat who was talking to a few of the warlords and laffite from blackbeard's crew about replacing crocodile? that was him.
#AJPiece Glad you enjoyed Skypeia. A lore jam packed arc. I really feel bad for people who don't enjoy it. Jaya and Skypeia run as loose strings to this day a points. I know you're in Water 7 and Enies Lobby. Enjoy as for many it's peak.
Gotta say it...Robin did not call Nami by name here either. It was another VIZ edit. I searched that scene up to check it (Took forever for me to find it again lol) but yes just like when she didn't call Luffy by name in the AJPiece comment, she didn't call Nami by name either. I actually like this arc more than quite a few others (About half of the East Blue saga, and sorry...I'm one of the rare few that actually likes it more than Skypeia lol) I found it pretty funny, and its brevity made it feel harmless. I think it was only a volume long or something. I don't think about it a lot but it gives me a chuckle and it's over before I know it. Far from a favorite or anywhere even close, but I kinda dig it.
#AJPiece I was late checking this which made my early access privileges pretty much null and void but I thoroughly enjoyed your thoughts on LRLL! I was looking forward to this because it's a shorter, shallower arc with not much to say but that Robin/Aokiji stuff is just so much. One question - Do you view Aokiji as malicious? Not much to go off of and you kind of answered it already but just curious to see if your thoughts have marinated
Honestly, I just found a similarity between this and my least favorite arc, they both get elevated immensely once an unexpected character shows up at the end of it.
I think the comment that talked about colonialization isn't looking at real history in the proper context and how much more complicated it is than just greedy people stealing land.
Long Ring Long Land isn’t one of my favorites but I see it as an essential part of the broader story and what makes One Piece, One Piece. Can’t wait for the next one!
Because I don’t watch the anime, like I’ve said before. And also at this point in the story Blackbeard has nowhere near the narrative weight in his own story as the others I mentioned.
#AJPIECE (not a reflection but just a thanks) CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE NEXT ONE!!! Water seven + the part after is my favourite arc ever in One Piece, it's just insanely good, I don't know if it'll become your next favourite but surely has the potential to. Thanks for the reviews, everytime I see one it just sparks my day, each time it's as if a new episode of my favourite series came out, with the exception that THIS IS MY FAVOURITE SERIES!! Thanks a lot Alecxzander, for someone like me who's been reading One Piece for 11 years now, seeing someone embracing it with such passion and going into the detail of everything about it makes me Joyous :)
53:53 Aokiji means Blue Pheasant, Akainu means Red Dog, and Kizaru means Yellow Monkey. Pheasant (kiji), Dog (inu) and Monkey (saru) are the 3 animals that befriend Momotaro after he feeds them some kibi dango, and accompany him to fight the Oni of Onigashima in the Japanese folk tale
I am laughing way more than I should over some of the things you've said on the video and how they will play out in the future. Something tells me Oda heard you in the past and gave you exactly what you wanted to in a few ways! XD
Foxy is also ashowcase fot theworst enemy for luffy,an underhanded cheater. So from being honestly fun to hate, he also playsa good foil for luffy and what ishis worst type of opponent. Not saying more, but it could be a funny showcase,of that weakness. And con D oriano is perfect haha, where lysop shows his true power and him and robin playing each other off on that. Ok you might like moria :O , who is underrated in my opinion who. I guess spoiler.
#AJPiece What I adore about the Foxy Pirates is how it expands what a Pirate can even be in One Piece. Straw Hats and Red Hair Pirates want to adventure, Black Cat Pirates and Buggy Pirates are your typical treasure seeking pillagers, Baroque Works (and to a lesser extent Arlong Pirates) was a Shadowy Crime Syndicate and then you have characters like Bellamy that eschew lofty dreams for taking what you can of the world around you. And then there's the Foxy Pirates. They sail around and challenge other pirates to games that can trade crew and make you lose your flag. The sheer perpendicularity of having this as a primary goal that This Is What They Do is not only hilarious but a hugely enriching piece of world building. An element that invites you to imagine yet unthought of possibilities.
Alrighty man with this arc covered, and completed, not to spoil anything you have 14, arcs until you are completely caught up though the current one just started I’ll just leave it at that, and obviously I’m not going to tell you about where the Timeskip, takes place not to ruin it for you since you don’t know the context of it but I’m sure you’re going to love it. Now you reading that comment saying that the dancing with the wolves scene is one of Oda’s, favorite panels fills me with warmth, and joy shishishi.
#AJPiece You can really tell that Oda turned his brain off for Long Ring Long Land and just had to go on fun times autopilot for a bit, so I loved that you acknowledge that writers sometimes need to do that for mental health. Do you think it's a valid criticism for the story though to say that LRLL isn't great even knowing Oda likely had to decompress?
Somthing I like appreciate about Walpole and Foxy is they break the formula of having antagonists just being increasingly stonger, makes more kind of worldly sense to me
I'd like to make a comment about Sanji's comment to Usopp,but it would be a spoiler one,and You're going have to see it for your self because the moment is controversal and good. I honestly feel tempted to skip the long ring long land arc but its filled with good crew moments and stuff that adds up for Usopp and Robin's characters.
Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island is one of the best One Piece arcs, and G-8 is somehow but overrated and underrated. People talk about it like it's some masterpiece (which it isn't), but others say it's wildly out of character and total filler (which it isn't). The truth is it's simply pretty good and worth watching.
Usopp is black, and he was not offended. According to Oda, Usopp would be from Africa. Also. Who cares, it's funny. If people were offended by this, they should just stop being giant pussies.
#AJPiece There are actually a lot of interesting parallels between Long Ring Long Land and Movie 6, I'm glad you reviewed them together. Both have Luffy accepting a challenge he doesn't need to accept to play in a set of games, he loses crew members as the games go on and both tackle themes of loneliness and cherishing your friends. The movie is essentially what would have happened if Long Ring Long Land went poorly, and Luffy was held accountable for losing crew members he didn't need to. It's almost like a light and dark version of a similar story.
For this one I believe I had read the first couple of chapters for Water 7 I think? Usually for these videos there is a tiny bit of overlap or none at all, but I can’t manage that all the time.
