One Piece - High gears, high drama and why Sogeking is the coolest
May 25th, 2007, 12 responses
Prior to this evening, it had been nearly two months since I last sat down with an episode of One Piece. I’d finally reached the promised land of the Enies Lobby arc but some what worryingly, it wasn’t clicking with me. I found the plot was becoming fairly predictable and excruciatingly slow, while even the soundtrack was still rehashing the old favorites we first heard way back in Alabasta. I felt like I’d seen all of this before; I was bored and needed a break from the Straw-hat gang. Well, now it feels like I just got back from vacation!
It’s ironic that I stopped watching at episode 271, right before Luffy unveils his sensational evolution and goes bad-ass on Blueno from CP9. I loved the moment of his victory; the sudden realisation that he has knocked his opponent out cold. Luffy’s new technique was cool and bad-ass, but then, the rubber-man has always been cool and bad-ass anyway.
The real reason why I’m writing this is that I wanted to comment on the end of episode 274. Having fought their way through literally thousands of marines, the Straw-Hats (including Sogeking) find themselves at the top of a tower directly facing Nico Robin. They walk to the edge and stand in-line with Luffy, looking across the island right into the eyes of their broken comrade. Combined with the swirling and theatrical background music (a new song too!), this is a life affirming and symbolic moment for Robin; perhaps once and for all putting to bed her superficial attempts to escape her friends in order to save them. When Robin shouts across “Leave me alone, I want to die”, Luffy simply retorts “if you want to say those words, come over here and say them with us”. Us; your friends.
What I love about this scene, aside from what I’ve mentioned above, is that we have characters like Usopp and Nami there too. Luffy, Zoro, Chopper and Sanji are all on another level, they can stand there without feeling consumed by fear and doubt. Usopp and Nami are different though, they must know they have no chance in a fight, but they’re still there anyway, standing tall on the edge of the building, risking it all to win back their lost friend. In this scene, that’s why Sogeking is the coolest and bravest of all. And that’s also why I love One Piece.
Post meta
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12 Responses to “One Piece - High gears, high drama and why Sogeking is the coolest”
tj han Says:
May 25th, 2007 at 11:11 pm
It’s true. I never saw the one piece anime but I follow the manga. I stopped reading for a total of 3 volumes (8 months!) during this arc as it really was’nt that interesting. But somehow I just picked it up one day and read through all 3.
bateszi Says:
May 26th, 2007 at 9:04 am
Yup, I think it’s just because there is such a protracted journey to Enies Lobby via Water 7 and then the speed train that it becomes a little hard to watch. It’s kind of obvious what’s going to happen at that point, and watching/reading through it all can be a little tiresome.
Either way, I’m extremely happy to be back on the rails. This just cements my opinion that One Piece is the greatest traditional Shonen Jump export (something like Death Note isn’t traditional), way above Naruto and Bleach.
delicatessen Says:
May 26th, 2007 at 10:41 am
If you think that’s good, just WAIT until you see what’s coming up next!! ^^ No less than MIND-BLOWING!
qwertypoiuy Says:
May 26th, 2007 at 11:24 am
yes onepiece is great but i dont know if its above naruto and bleach
i think it differ from one to another
but i am sure that the smartest Shonen with best power level and amazing powers(nen) is hunter x hunter
One Piece Gift Store Says:
May 27th, 2007 at 7:42 am
I’d agree with Hunter X Hunter. Too bad it hasn’t been out much lately. I hear the mangaka is very ill.
bateszi Says:
May 27th, 2007 at 10:31 am
@delicatessen: I hope you’re right. We’re heading into Robin’s back-story next, and I’ve heard that it’s one of the most tragic.
***
As for "Hunter X Hunter", this is another that I’ve always tried to watch but never felt the immediate addiction after 3 or 4 episodes. I really need to just force myself through 10+ episodes since it seems to be on a lot of people’s favorite SJ lists.
qwertypoiuy Says:
May 27th, 2007 at 6:54 pm
when you reach part of hunter exam that is in the forest you will be hooked
and Genei Ryodan arc will be the best arc you ever seen
hxh is a must see
phlip Says:
June 3rd, 2007 at 10:52 pm
I admit that I only watched Hunter x Hunter up to where they entered the virtual world, but "smartest" isn’t how I’d describe it. It had a degree of originality (I particularly liked the torture method of training) but it still got boring after a couple of arcs.
beevazzwee Says:
January 31st, 2008 at 6:45 am
THIS IS THE GREATEST ANIME I’VE EVER SEEN…………..
I LIKE ALL OF THE CHARACTER, ESPECIALLY SANJI…..
THE WHOLE STORY ARE NEVER END TO ONE PROBLEM ONLY, BUT IT’S ALWAYS CONTINUED ALL THE TIME…..
BRAVOO…………..
AARRRGGGHHHHHHHHH………………
FU…FU…FU…..
Sogeking Says:
February 29th, 2008 at 9:16 pm
Sogeking is the coolest character (or variation of a character? XD) in One Piece~ I found http://sogeking.com after watching these episodes while i was searching for the music file, you should check it out if you like Sogeking~
iqbal Says:
March 29th, 2008 at 3:21 am
chopper has the one piece because chopper have forgot if you
what I’ve done hims to your father & your mother melody
my chopper is monster off Firefox nine tailed in the end
Norma Says:
July 15th, 2008 at 11:55 am
there are two anime i like the most in the world, one piece and hunter x hunter. I like the spirits of the characters….never give up to achieve your goals and always always be loyal to your friends. they really do open my eyes and remain me to keep strong and kind…
unfortunately i can’t watch the whole episodes of hunter x hunter, the tv station just suddenly cut it off, THAT’S MY BIGGEST DISSPAINTMENT, !!! but thanks God i still can watch One Piece. Gosh !!! LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT VERY MUCH….