"We can't see Dressrosa anymore," Robin says to Law as they stare out at the open sea. Holy moly, did you ever think we'd see the day? I joke a lot, just because it's novel how long we've spent on a single island, but that doesn't change the huge sigh of relief that line brings me. Of course, the episode cuts back to Dressrosa almost immediately as we get some reconstruction shenanigans, but we've gotta wean ourselves off first.
This episode covers a lot of the cool stuff we tend to look forward to in these post-arc episodes. It was just a few weeks ago that we saw Kaido and many of the super rookies of the New World, and now we've returned to that well with the revelation that some of the old CP-9 members (the villains of the Water 7 saga) have been promoted to roles in CP-0. This is crazy-pants if you've read the manga cover stories, where it seemed like Rob Lucci and friends had separated from the World Government, but apparently not. They're back just in time for their Film Gold cameos too.
We also see Doflamingo chained in his cell, as he's being transported to Impel Down or wherever they intend to hold him up. Miserably, the marines seem to have given him a pair of replacement sunglasses, meaning we still don't get to see his eyes. I was sure that would have happened by this point. Regardless, he gives a huge dramatic villain speech about how his defeat is only going to turn the world to mayhem. It's a big diatribe about the many world powers: the Four Emperors, the Seven Warlords, the rookies, the World Government and the Revolutionary Army.
It's one thing for this speech to be cool, but it does an even better job at defining the bigger picture that's been developing since pretty much day one. One Piece has always been about the enormous rat race between the strongest and most interesting people in the world vying for that “one last empty seat.” The political web that makes up the pirate world has always been crucial to the appeal of this series, as everything is connected with room for change and growth around every corner. “Who's going to side with who? Who's going to betray who?” In the days of alliances and Emperors, this is a more important question than ever.
Lastly, the episode gives us an update on the Straw Hats's wanted posters. Everybody's bounty went up by at least 50 million berries (except for Chōpper's nonsensical “pet” bounty, which doubled to a whopping dollar in our real word currency), as well as a new picture for everybody, representing their New World status. Luffy and Law have gone all the way up to 500 million each, and “God Usopp's” bounty skyrocketed from 30 million to 200 million, thanks to the following he gained on Dressrosa. Sanji's new 177 million also mysteriously lists “Only Alive” on his poster, hinting at a new development to be explored in the next arc.
I've always loved the bounties in One Piece. Maybe I'm just basic like that, but I always thought it was a neat equivalent to Dragon Ball Z's power levels. Not only does the number give us a ballpark of a character's strength, but it represents their reputation within the world, which is a huge part of the pirate life. I guess I'm still attached to the days of Jaya, when the story played with the idea of reputation in an incredibly satisfying way. I love the idea of regular folk within the One Piece world just opening their newspapers and exchanging gossip about all this stuff.
Next week looks to be the beginning of a new filler arc (we haven't gotten any in a while), so even if it's bad, it'll hopefully still be fun to talk about. It looks like the bulk of the usual post-arc info dump is over, so we've got this Silver-Mine arc and then finally the Straw Hats' reunion on Zou to look forward to.
Following Poupelle of Chimney Town, Nishino tackles addiction in his new stop-motion anime short film.― In advance of the U.S. premiere of the new stop-motion animated short film Bottle George, Anime News Network sat down with writer Akihiro Nishino and chatted not only about the film and its creation but also its deeper message and how it connects to Nishino's past. While now well-known as a childr...
From Classroom for Heroes to Management of a Novice Alchemist, we have reviews of the newest light novels in our guide!― Welcome to Anime News Network's Spring 2024 Light Novel Guide, the companion to our ongoing manga guide! This season, we have 20 novels with reviews in the guide for you to browse. Every included novel was published in March or April or will be released in May. This guide focuses...
Anime's teaser visual also revealed― A website opened on Thursday to reveal the original anime project of animation studio GoHands titled Momentary Lily, which will premiere in January 2025. The website also revealed a teaser visual and promotional video. The visual above teases: "Our daily life is always fun." GoRA and GoHands' K television anime series premiered in October 2013, and had a TV serie...
SAND LAND is a curious game that combines an eclectic set of gameplay features into a well-realized package that, despite its flaws, is perfectly solid and more than the sum of its parts.― SAND LAND is a curious game that combines an eclectic set of gameplay features into a well-realized package that, despite its flaws, is perfectly solid and more than the sum of its parts. Going into this one, all ...
Atlus reveals its big new game, Metaphor: ReFantazio, amid the recent exit of Shin Megami Tensei artist Kazuma Kaneko. PLUS: A Golden Axe comedy series and Pokémon Go models get a makeover.― Welcome back, folks! As you probably noticed, Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes came out earlier this week. It's a fun time, as you could see in my review of it. It's come to my attention that there are some per...
Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes promises to revive the Suikoden series in everything but name, but what's so great about Suikoden that it's worth reviving? Well, read on…― It's 1996, and the PlayStation is just starting to take over the game industry. It has many genres covered: racing, fighting, action, sports, puzzles, train-conducting, deep-sea diving, fire-fighting, and so forth. But what abou...
Some of Shonen Jump's biggest manga hits are approaching their end. Does the magazine have new heavy-hitters lined up to take up the mantle?― Some of Shonen Jump's biggest manga hits are approaching their end. Does the magazine have new heavy-hitters lined up to take up the mantle? Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Netwo...
James and Lynzee reflect on the end of Solo Leveling and whether its worldbuilding is worth its edgy turn. PLUS: The big monsters of Kaiju No. 8, & court intrigue in Yatagarasu!― Will You Watch Solo Leveling Season 2? James and Lynzee reflect on the end of Solo Leveling and whether its worldbuilding is worth its edgy turn. PLUS: The big monsters of Kaiju No 8, court intrigue in Yatagarasu, and a li...
Some books are good. Some books read like self-insert fanfiction from the early days of AO3, but you can't stop reading and enjoying them. Dark Moon: The Blood Altar is one of those.― Some books are good. Some books are not and read sort of like self-insert fanfiction from the early days of AO3, but even though you recognize that they aren't objectively filled with literary merit, you can't stop rea...
Hayashi and Tōchi play mentee/mentor in heart-warming golf anime series.― Golf anime Tonbo! is one of the new anime premiering in the Spring 2024 season. At Anime Japan 2024, we sat down with lead voice actors Rika Hayashi and Hiroki Tōchi to talk about their characters, their experiences with golf, and the positives of country life in Japan. In her first voice acting role as a main character, Hayas...
The third season of Sound Euphonium reignites the fandom controversy over Reina and Kumiko's relationship. Chris and Steve delve into it and why 'queerbaiting' is such a loaded term.― The third season of Sound Euphonium reignites the fandom controversy over Reina and Kumiko's relationship. Chris and Steve delve into it and why 'queerbaiting' is such a loaded term. Disclaimer: The views and opinions...
You can't accuse the Pretty Cure franchise of resting on its laurels. Wonderful Precure! could move too slowly for some viewers. But these episodes are full of unmitigated joy.― You can't accuse the Pretty Cure franchise of resting on its laurels. While there are distinct similarities between all iterations of the long-running Magical Girl franchise, recent years have done their best to maintain the...