[Predictions] One Piece Manga Chapter 789 Discussion and 790 Predictions

[Kamui Sama]

I didn't catch it in the mangapanda translation but Gatz whole speech was to draw attention from Doffy and buy some time for Luffy to save Rebecca and Viola

 

[Kiiszame]

Another "Build Up" chapter.
The pacing was great in this arc until the last 4 or so chapters and now we get a break.

Now Luffy and his plot move will take down a seemingly unstoppable Doflamingo.

 

[Skylar Knight]

Ah, all these comments sure take me back. I remember when members lost it over the pacing at the start of this arc, as well, over two years ago. They argued about how the tournament was useless, how no one cared about the Colosseum fighters, how they'd rather see Law do some fancy moves or some sh*t, blah blah blabety blah. Now, two years later, we know a bunch of the Colosseum fighters has had an impact on the arc. Hell, they could impact the whole story as we know it.

If Oda could skip a chapter, he would. If he thinks a panel or a page is completely meaningless, he wouldn't even bother drawing it. At least that's the kind of impression Oda's given me of himself. Also, I don't even see how the pacing is complain worthy. People seem to forget that it's only been three chapters since Gear 4th stopped working. In Alabasta, it took almost six whole chapters for a ticking time bomb (with two and a half minute left on the clock) to explode.

 

[Akuma]

The entire chapter could have been put into 5 pages, there wasn't any excitement, only disappointment that we would reach the last page and see no progression with the battle. Atleast Luffy has endless motivation now.

Can't win them all Oda. 3/5

 

[Caliburn]

This is one of these chapters that you will be glad that are there when you read the entire series/arc again in the future. Chapters like these are meant to set a specific mood. When there are one or two weeks between chapter, they seem useless because you always have to wait, but that's not how Oda works. He's not going to start cutting edges so that you could be maximum entertained each week, that wouldn't work either. Great chapters require most of the time a great build up and when you read them all together, you get an amazing arc. When this arc is done and you read it all again in one go, then you can determine whether chapters like these were now really necessary or not.

Seriously Fairy Tail gets continuously pissed on because they supposedly one-shot enemies, plot armor and blablabla, but yeah FT is a quick-paced manga. That's why I like it so much as it's a nice change of pace, not too much thinking, they just go strait at it and entertainment guaranteed. Op does the opposite as Oda takes his time, but now people also piss on that =/ I always wondered if people are even aware of this contradiction in their behavior as it seems in the end it's never good.

 

[saw2097]

This is one of these chapters that you will be glad that are there when you read the entire series/arc again in the future. Chapters like these are meant to set a specific mood. When there are one or two weeks between chapter, they seem useless because you always have to wait, but that's not how Oda works. He's not going to start cutting edges so that you could be maximum entertained each week, that wouldn't work either. Great chapters require most of the time a great build up and when you read them all together, you get an amazing arc. When this arc is done and you read it all again in one go, then you can determine whether chapters like these were now really necessary or not.

Seriously Fairy Tail gets continuously pissed on because they supposedly one-shot enemies, plot armor and blablabla, but yeah FT is a quick-paced manga. That's why I like it so much as it's a nice change of pace, not too much thinking, they just go strait at it and entertainment guaranteed. Op does the opposite as Oda takes his time, but now people also piss on that =/ I always wondered if people are even aware of this contradiction in their behavior as it seems in the end it's never good.

That is precisely why Fairy Tail became one of my favorite manga, it gets to the point, One Piece drags it out.

I still like One Piece and I understand the need for these chapters, but I prefer how Fairy Tail maintains the mood while moving at a faster pace.

 

[jiraiya lives]

I've been disappointed by One Piece the past few weeks, this arc had potential to be the best but now its just silly. Fujitora can take care of Doflamingo, yet sits idle as the entire town and his own life is at risk, hoping for an exhausted pirate to finish the job. He's really a failure of an admiral, because any other would do what has to be done. Instead of pushing the cage why not a combined attack from the Haki users? How about going under ground? (Since bird cage seems to only be at ground level) Law shouldn't be able to move, if Princess Mansherry's effects wore off the Colosseum fighters, who were giving most of the support, that cage should be closing in much faster and there wouldn't be any citizens strong enough to "replace" them. Oda made Bird Cage and Doflamingo much more than what they actually are, there's no logic behind this arc anymore.

Fuji is nothing but a slacker, He's done nothing but half assed this entire arc. If he has the gravitational force to pull a meteor outta orbit then I don't see why he lacks the gravitational force to repel the birdcage or focus a gravity attack on it to bring it down from a single point. He's being held back by plot sooo hard right now. If an admiral really can't escape an attack by a single pirate a tier below them then that really makes the marines look pitiful.

 

[Yubel]

I remember a time when Doflamingo effortlessly stopped Jozu, threatened Sengoku, was compared to Mihawk, was talked about being one of the final villians of the series, now he's about to get one shotted, let's all mourn the degradation of his character for a minute.

 

[bajram]

This is one of these chapters that you will be glad that are there when you read the entire series/arc again in the future. Chapters like these are meant to set a specific mood. When there are one or two weeks between chapter, they seem useless because you always have to wait, but that's not how Oda works. He's not going to start cutting edges so that you could be maximum entertained each week, that wouldn't work either. Great chapters require most of the time a great build up and when you read them all together, you get an amazing arc. When this arc is done and you read it all again in one go, then you can determine whether chapters like these were now really necessary or not.

Seriously Fairy Tail gets continuously pissed on because they supposedly one-shot enemies, plot armor and blablabla, but yeah FT is a quick-paced manga. That's why I like it so much as it's a nice change of pace, not too much thinking, they just go strait at it and entertainment guaranteed. Op does the opposite as Oda takes his time, but now people also piss on that =/ I always wondered if people are even aware of this contradiction in their behavior as it seems in the end it's never good.

There is a difference between slow pacing and dragging the shit out of it, the last two chapters were that slow that I was having a hard time to find the difference between them, there are simply 2 chapters wasted and a shitton of panels wasted on crying citizens, or having a old women that cant walk or someone with a broken ankle, I mean really? Do u think its good writing to drag the shit out of something that he could have ended long time ago, and I will say again Dressrosa is not slow-paced its way too much dragged out, the last 3 chapters could have been put together in 1 chapter alone, the last chapter could have been done in 4 or 5 pages, literally.

Do u think the guy has the luxury to drag an arc so much that its closing in 100 chapters, and the manga is getting near to its 800s without having a glimpse of the yonkos, the thing of OP ending in 10 years after the star of second part was so bullshit, I mean dressrosa is already 2 years and 3 months old.

 

[Hexuze]

There is a difference between slow pacing and dragging the shit out of it, the last two chapters were that slow that I was having a hard time to find the difference between them, there are simply 2 chapters wasted and a shitton of panels wasted on crying citizens, or having a old women that cant walk or someone with a broken ankle, I mean really? Do u think its good writing to drag the shit out of something that he could have ended long time ago, and I will say again Dressrosa is not slow-paced its way too much dragged out, the last 3 chapters could have been put together in 1 chapter alone, the last chapter could have been done in 4 or 5 pages, literally.

Do u think the guy has the luxury to drag an arc so much that its closing in 100 chapters, and the manga is getting near to its 800s without having a glimpse of the yonkos, the thing of OP ending in 10 years after the star of second part was so bullshit, I mean dressrosa is already 2 years and 3 months old.

Yet its an amazing arc. IMO this is one of the greatest arcs. Oda knows what he's doing, we will get shorter arcs to compensate for this long one. Dressrosa as a whole is an arc that will setup a lot of events for the future, even more than the average OP arc. I find it quite alarming that you're looking down on Oda's planning. If there's one thing I learned from reading OP is that Oda is well known for planning ahead. Have some faith. We should know this by now.

I don't think the arc is perfect but I don't see how you can say its a dragged on arc over a small number of chapters.

 

[arv993]

I remember a time when Doflamingo effortlessly stopped Jozu, threatened Sengoku, was compared to Mihawk, was talked about being one of the final villians of the series, now he's about to get one shotted, let's all mourn the degradation of his character for a minute.

amen. i hate how this arc unfolded he should have been an admiral tier character.

 

[Kamui Sama]

I remember a time when Doflamingo effortlessly stopped Jozu, threatened Sengoku, was compared to Mihawk, was talked about being one of the final villians of the series, now he's about to get one shotted, let's all mourn the degradation of his character for a minute.

when did that happen? :lol
and Doffy taunting sengoku doesn't mean much at all considering he was unfazed

No downgrading happened at all, it just shows how powerful Luffy has become in those two years

 

[Skylar Knight]

There is a difference between slow pacing and dragging the shit out of it, the last two chapters were that slow that I was having a hard time to find the difference between them, there are simply 2 chapters wasted and a shitton of panels wasted on crying citizens, or having a old women that cant walk or someone with a broken ankle, I mean really? Do u think its good writing to drag the shit out of something that he could have ended long time ago, and I will say again Dressrosa is not slow-paced its way too much dragged out, the last 3 chapters could have been put together in 1 chapter alone, the last chapter could have been done in 4 or 5 pages, literally.

Do u think the guy has the luxury to drag an arc so much that its closing in 100 chapters, and the manga is getting near to its 800s without having a glimpse of the yonkos, the thing of OP ending in 10 years after the star of second part was so bullshit, I mean dressrosa is already 2 years and 3 months old.

You do realize that there's still, like, 400 chapters left to go, right? He's going to end it at around 1200 chapters. That alone would take him over a decade, so don't go thinking it's going to end any time soon. You can put a lot of material into that amount of chapters, you know. 400 chapters ago, in chapter 389, Luffy had just won over Blueno. Do you realize how long ago that is?

 

[A v i]

Then start from here and read the next two chapters, if you ever feel like it. Zoro and the rest of the Strawhat crew are just quietly watching as Luffy fights Gecko Moriah for a chapter and a half. "But Zoro was tired from his battle with Oars!" Yet he decided to take on Kuma all by himself. It's not like he couldn't put up a fight against Gecko Moriah, he just didn't. They all had little to no time left before the sun had risen and killed them on the spot. The crew believes in Luffy, simple as that. That's the kind of story One Piece is. I can't explain it better than that.

Don't bother mate. I have already told you I have good enough understanding of manga so you don't have to explain everything to me. I am well aware of their reasons for their actions. There are multiple occasions in which Zoro involved in battles with Luffy despite having 100% faith in Luffy's capabilities. It's because he understands better than anyone that Luffy can't do everything by himself. We have a similar situation in which Luffy needed an outside help and Zoro refused to make a move despite being aware of Luffy's condition which makes 0 sense.

Zoro doesn't know that Luffy is hurt. Nor is Luffy outnumbered.

Again, what is it that doesn't make sense to you? Zoro believes in Luffy, and doesn't want to involve himself in his captain's fights. It was the same thing on Punk Hazard. "Oh, Luffy's gonna fight a guy with 300,000,000 in bounty? Let's go save the children with Nami!" There was also the time when he let Luffy fight Crocodile all by himself. "Luffy's gonna fight a Shichibukai with 81,000,000 in bounty for the first time ever? Better stay on this crab and keep an eye on Usopp or something, I don't know."

He was with Viola and co as soon as his battle was over. It's extremely odd to even think Zoro didn't ask Usopp/Viola about Luffy's battle. I don't remember Luffy being at complete disadvantage against the characters you've listed,. At least not as far as Zoro's knowledge goes but he's at disadvantage against Doflamingo and family and Zoro knows it. What makes no sense here is the fact that Zoro displayed no concern for Luffy despite being aware of Luffy's condition. It's not a matter of whether it makes sense to me or not. It doesn't make sense in general. Even if Zoro blindly trusts in Luffy, there is no way for him to ignore the fact that Law and Bellamy can be used as hostages. They can simply threaten Law or Bellamy and restrain Luffy form fighting back. It's easy to trick Luffy, they can take advantage of hostages and kill Luffy by playing dirty and Zoro understands it better than anyone at Dressrosa yet he refused to make a move.

What..? This is literally what I've been saying all along. Even in my previous post, I was agreeing with you about how Oda's obviously making Luffy to be the hero. What I don't agree with, however, is that the way Oda's restraining characters doesn't make sense, which is what you seem to think.

It makes perfect sense. He made some characters do things they usually doesn't do for the sake of shining Luffy. Zoro's actions are prime examples. I won't complain about it but Oda often bends the logics for the sake of Luffy which is what I have been trying to point out from the beginning.

If you know how Pica feels, then why're you making such a big deal out of this? People do stupid sh*t when they're angry. Pica was angry. Pica didn't want there to be competition to the throne, so he attempted to get rid of Riku Dold III. Also, Pica is without a doubt the fastest character in Dressrosa at the moment. With his ability to travel through stone, he can move from one side of Dressrosa to the other in almost an instant. He could've easily killed Riku Dold III, then returned to Zoro before he had ever reached Doflamingo.

No matter how stupid you're, you can't simply abandon the life of someone important to you. It doesn't matter if Pica is fastest , the thing is he has no reason to ignore his duty and go after Riku on a whim like that no matter how much you try to bend the logic. Pica wasn't angry and I don't even get what part of his face gave that kind of impression. As I said he can kill Riku whenever he wants, he's not running away , not going after Joker. He was just standing there and doing nothing and Pica decided to go after him at such a time because? Well god know why he even come up with such an idea.

I thought you were talking about Fujitora in your previous post, not Zoro. My mistake. Still, again you're coming up with your own made up facts. Fujitora never once stated that the reason the Straw Hats and Law were the main target, was because they could end up destroying the city and whatnot. That is your own interpretation of it, but don't make it out as fact.

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Here is where he said that Luffy won't mind destroying things on his way in order to beat Joker which is why he decided to stop Luffy form going after Joker. It's because of that reason he stopped Zoro from fighting Joker. He knows what Zoro and Luffy are capable of so he decided to restrain them from confronting Joker. Luffy eventually ended up destroying stuff during his battle with Joker and Fujitora wanted to avoid it at the beginning as they might end up hurting civilians. It's not my own interpretation. It's literally what he said and what he did in manga.

Then let me ask you this: Why didn't the Marines arrest Doflamingo after he attacked Smoker and the rest of G-5? There were witnesses. There was proof. The reason for that is because he's simply no ordinary Shichibukai. If they wanted to get rid of Doflamingo from the start, they could've easily dispatched all three Admirals and take care of him in days, or even hours. But they can't. Like Doflamingo himself stated, "I was inside the deepest of inner circles in the sacred Marijois, and therefore I know about a most important National Treasure. Its existence alone could shake the very core of this world. To them I was but a fugitive who possessed the worst trump card. Since they don't have the power to kill me, they became quite cooperative." The World Nobles would do anything to avoid a conflict with Doflamingo.

Also, did you notice how Smoker didn't seem to know about Doflamingo's past as a World Noble? This could possibly mean that Doflamingo's past is classified information. This also suggests that marines with the rank of Vice-Admiral and below don't know jack sh*t about any of this, which would explain why Vice-Admiral Bastille and Maynard want to arrest Doflamingo so badly, without knowing that they actually can't.

Smoker can't report Joker's arrival to HQ as a question will arise about how they're still alive despite being attacked by Joker. Can they report that Kuzan appeared out of nowhere and saved their asses? No. So it's better for them to to restrain themselves from reporting it. Not even Akainu is aware of the fact that Joker is a CD so and I don't see how higher ranking officers are aware of his secret. Only world nobles knows about him being a former CD and his knowledge on this secret weapon or whatever it is. So I don't see how Navy would restrain itself from revoking his title and arresting him. Fujitora already said that he'd go after his title despite directly hearing Joker's tale from him.

From World Nobles prospective Fujitora doesn't know a thing about Joker's status as former CD. Thanks to Bird Cage he can't report a thing or take orders form outside so he can simply follow his own decisions. He has evidence to go after Joker, He doesn't know about Joker's past (For outsiders), He has authority to revoke Joker's title, He has personal reasons to go after him, he has Bird Cage to use it as an excuse for lack of communication, he has enough strength to defeat him and what not? Yet dude decided to count on Luffy, the same one who was seen as a threat to civilians by Fujitora himself.

He never said he'd point his sword on Doflamingo or any of the other Shichibukai. There's nothing to interpret, he's literally saying right here that, in some way or another, he'll make the total discarding of the Shichibukai system happen at the Reverie. The Reverie is a place for politics.

You seriously think simply revoking his title would put an end to Joker's actions? Seems like you're totally overlooking their conversation after that. Fujitora said that Dressrosa ended up as it is because of the perks Joker gets by being a warlord. Same thing may happen with others as well hence he's planning to make a proposal about destroying the whole system so that the countries such as Dressrosa will be saved. Again simply revoking his title won't do jack, he need to be targeted and annihilated in order for Dressrosa to be saved. So ya he's planning to go after his head.

Whatever makes you sleep at night. For all it's worth, I disagree with you. I don't see the flaws that you're trying to point out. Fujitora's decisions, Pika's decisions, Sabo and Koala's decisions-- I personally think they make perfect sense.

I am not into a manga to a level where it effects my personal life. You don't see the flaws because you don't want to see them not because they're not there. And Ya I have no problem if you say so, lets agree to disagree. I have never really expected you to agree with me in the first place. But let me tell you that you've been doing exact opposite of what those that are bashing manga have been doing. You guys are literally no different so there is no point in arguing with each other as it'll result in a never ending battle.

Fuji is nothing but a slacker, He's done nothing but half assed this entire arc. If he has the gravitational force to pull a meteor outta orbit then I don't see why he lacks the gravitational force to repel the birdcage or focus a gravity attack on it to bring it down from a single point. He's being held back by plot sooo hard right now. If an admiral really can't escape an attack by a single pirate a tier below them then that really makes the marines look pitiful.

His gravity waves didn't effect the cage when he dropped Meteor on Sabo so I doubt it'd work like that. And it'd be more appropriate to say that he's not attempting to escape the cage than saying that he can't escape it.

 

[Skylar Knight]

@Z e r e f, did you really just continue this God-forsaken discussion? Yeah, I'm not doing that sh*t. Reply to me on my profile instead if it's so important to you.

 

[Caliburn]

That is precisely why Fairy Tail became one of my favorite manga, it gets to the point, One Piece drags it out.

I still like One Piece and I understand the need for these chapters, but I prefer how Fairy Tail maintains the mood while moving at a faster pace.

I like both of them. I read a lot of series and I consider OP the best manga ever, but yeah reading the same types of manga all the time gets boring after a while, so FT is a very nice change of pace. The opposite is also true, if every manga would be like FT, I would get bored of it too. So yeah it's a very good chance of pace.

I remember a time when Doflamingo effortlessly stopped Jozu, threatened Sengoku, was compared to Mihawk, was talked about being one of the final villians of the series, now he's about to get one shotted, let's all mourn the degradation of his character for a minute.

DD has practically threatened almost anyone, so nothing really special about it. Boa Hancock mocked the marines around the clock.

Jozu was fighting Crocodile, a former Shichibukai and someone who pretty much looked down on DD, so you need to place that into its context as expecting that the 3rd division commander of the WB pirates can keep two Shichibukais in all that turmoil under complete control is a bit too much.

There has never a comparison between Mihawk and DD as far as I know, at least not specifically between the two of them as individuals. They have been named several times though in the same breath, but that was when someone was listing all or several of the Shichibukai. That had nothing to do with specifically the both of them.

There have been many people that have been considered to be the final villain: Blackbeard, Akainu, Buggy, DD... in the end there can only be one final villain. People have also been talking about for years now who would become a new Strawhat. Are all the characters that got mentioned now become a Strawhat?

And I really think some people need redefine their notion of "one-shot". One-shot literally means beating the opponent in one shot, meaning you only use one attack for the entire fight. DD has had skirmishes with Sanji, Kyros and a group of gladiators; has fought Law; has fought Law and Luffy and now is fighting Luffy alone. He has been hit severely by several powerful attacks, Law turned his organs into scrambled eggs. To save his own life, he had to stitch himself immediately. This is as far you could possibly be from a one-shot. If you call this a one-shot, by default every one on one fight will end in a one-shot and by extension most other fights. Two characters could have been hitting each other 10 000 times, with the 10 001th punch one finally succumbs and following your logic that was a one-shot fight.

One one hand people are complaining it's taking too long, on the other hand people are complaining DD is too weak. Realistically if you look deeper into this arc, it's very atypical for OP. Among others because this is the NW and DD is a villain of a completely different caliber.

There is a difference between slow pacing and dragging the shit out of it, the last two chapters were that slow that I was having a hard time to find the difference between them, there are simply 2 chapters wasted and a shitton of panels wasted on crying citizens, or having a old women that cant walk or someone with a broken ankle, I mean really? Do u think its good writing to drag the shit out of something that he could have ended long time ago, and I will say again Dressrosa is not slow-paced its way too much dragged out, the last 3 chapters could have been put together in 1 chapter alone, the last chapter could have been done in 4 or 5 pages, literally.

Do u think the guy has the luxury to drag an arc so much that its closing in 100 chapters, and the manga is getting near to its 800s without having a glimpse of the yonkos, the thing of OP ending in 10 years after the star of second part was so bullshit, I mean dressrosa is already 2 years and 3 months old.

Luxury? Ooh it's not just about luxury, Oda has the sole privilege to decide how he wants to write the story. This is his story, so he can decide how he wants to tell it and where he wants to focus on. Tolkien once said that he didn't care whether someone actually read his works or not, even if no one was interested in them, he would still have written it because it was his story. The Lord of the Rings is in fact a very atypical book, it doesn't follow the same structure most books normally do. Why? Because Tolkien wanted it like that. Well Oda can decide how he writes it. There are hundreds of times during the course of the story he could have removed stuff, however he brings the story as how he wants it. These panels you are complaining about is what makes OP OP, it's what creates the OP verse. One individual panel doesn't matter, but all of them combined subconsciously or not makes you aware that there is an entire world out there, something that's a problem with many series where you only have the main characters and the main storyline with nothing outside that, which automatically shatters the illusion.

Frankly this entire chapter is what they do in the movies all the time: creating the ideal atmosphere to have maximum impact. We already knew that Lucy and Luffy were the same, but most people in Dressrosa not. The fighters were falling left and right, Viola and Rebecca were in grave danger and they still needed to stall some time. So Oda created an atmosphere of tragedy and despair that almost is going to strike, but then boosted the moral of everyone. I mean who would have guessed that Gatz, the host of the colosseum would set his life on the line the provide the last necessary seconds for Luffy? And while doing so having the entire country of Dressrosa calling his name out while the fighters who he competed with in the arena are doing their very best to keep the birdcage at bay? Now Luffy's final strike will be under such circumstances. Subjective opinion but I don't find that dragging out nor slow-paced, that's how you write not a good story, but an amazing one. If I read this chapter together with the future ones where Luffy finally delivers the final blow, I'm going to be ecstatic.

 

[Uzumaki Macho]

I remember a time when Doflamingo effortlessly stopped Jozu, threatened Sengoku, was compared to Mihawk, was talked about being one of the final villians of the series, now he's about to get one shotted, let's all mourn the degradation of his character for a minute.

Lmao how can you get one shotted when you've already taken more than one hit in a fight?

 

[Yubel]

I like both of them. I read a lot of series and I consider OP the best manga ever, but yeah reading the same types of manga all the time gets boring after a while, so FT is a very nice change of pace. The opposite is also true, if every manga would be like FT, I would get bored of it too. So yeah it's a very good chance of pace.



DD has practically threatened almost anyone, so nothing really special about it. Boa Hancock mocked the marines around the clock.

Jozu was fighting Crocodile, a former Shichibukai and someone who pretty much looked down on DD, so you need to place that into its context as expecting that the 3rd division commander of the WB pirates can keep two Shichibukais in all that turmoil under complete control is a bit too much.

There has never a comparison between Mihawk and DD as far as I know, at least not specifically between the two of them as individuals. They have been named several times though in the same breath, but that was when someone was listing all or several of the Shichibukai. That had nothing to do with specifically the both of them.

There have been many people that have been considered to be the final villain: Blackbeard, Akainu, Buggy, DD... in the end there can only be one final villain. People have also been talking about for years now who would become a new Strawhat. Are all the characters that got mentioned now become a Strawhat?

And I really think some people need redefine their notion of "one-shot". One-shot literally means beating the opponent in one shot, meaning you only use one attack for the entire fight. DD has had skirmishes with Sanji, Kyros and a group of gladiators; has fought Law; has fought Law and Luffy and now is fighting Luffy alone. He has been hit severely by several powerful attacks, Law turned his organs into scrambled eggs. To save his own life, he had to stitch himself immediately. This is as far you could possibly be from a one-shot. If you call this a one-shot, by default every one on one fight will end in a one-shot and by extension most other fights. Two characters could have been hitting each other 10 000 times, with the 10 001th punch one finally succumbs and following your logic that was a one-shot fight.

One one hand people are complaining it's taking too long, on the other hand people are complaining DD is too weak. Realistically if you look deeper into this arc, it's very atypical for OP. Among others because this is the NW and DD is a villain of a completely different caliber.



Luxury? Ooh it's not just about luxury, Oda has the sole privilege to decide how he wants to write the story. This is his story, so he can decide how he wants to tell it and where he wants to focus on. Tolkien once said that he didn't care whether someone actually read his works or not, even if no one was interested in them, he would still have written it because it was his story. The Lord of the Rings is in fact a very atypical book, it doesn't follow the same structure most books normally do. Why? Because Tolkien wanted it like that. Well Oda can decide how he writes it. There are hundreds of times during the course of the story he could have removed stuff, however he brings the story as how he wants it. These panels you are complaining about is what makes OP OP, it's what creates the OP verse. One individual panel doesn't matter, but all of them combined subconsciously or not makes you aware that there is an entire world out there, something that's a problem with many series where you only have the main characters and the main storyline with nothing outside that, which automatically shatters the illusion.

Frankly this entire chapter is what they do in the movies all the time: creating the ideal atmosphere to have maximum impact. We already knew that Lucy and Luffy were the same, but most people in Dressrosa not. The fighters were falling left and right, Viola and Rebecca were in grave danger and they still needed to stall some time. So Oda created an atmosphere of tragedy and despair that almost is going to strike, but then boosted the moral of everyone. I mean who would have guessed that Gatz, the host of the colosseum would set his life on the line the provide the last necessary seconds for Luffy? And while doing so having the entire country of Dressrosa calling his name out while the fighters who he competed with in the arena are doing their very best to keep the birdcage at bay? Now Luffy's final strike will be under such circumstances. Subjective opinion but I don't find that dragging out nor slow-paced, that's how you write not a good story, but an amazing one. If I read this chapter together with the future ones where Luffy finally delivers the final blow, I'm going to be ecstatic.

So Doflamingo gets scared shitless of hearing Kaido's name yet somehow has the balls to talk down on Sengoku in his head office? Also Blackbeard/Akainu are the ones most talked about being final villians in whatever order they come. I've seen several comparisons between Doffy and Mihawk as to who is the strongest Shichibukai and everyone was torn between the two untill they showed him in Dressrosa. Also, Jozu is the guy who made Aokiji bleed, Crocodile is fodder, Luffy beat him early on in the series without any gears yet he requires Gear 4th against Doflamingo post timeskip, that should tell you he's an ant compared to Doffy and Jozu wasn't having trouble with him at all. Oda nerfed Doflamingo hardcore, he could stop Jozu with parasite yet somehow he can't seem to do it to Luffy, that alone is complete bullshit. He hasn't even attempted to do it, also all these named attacks are nothing compared to the what he could do before, all he had to do was move his finger and limbs were gone, these current attacks might seem more powerful but they're only more fancy, he's not being effective with his string ability at all. As pointless as Sasuke having Amaterasu shuriken compared to just using Amaterasu to manifest where he wants instantly.

 

[Reaper]

This arc could have been really something but I feel Oda wrote himself into a corner with the whole birdcage thing and trapping suppoused powerhouses inside that should generaly be able to dispose of it easily but because that would obviously kill the danger part of the arc he couldnt do it. All in all I cant say I enjoyed this arc that much apart from a few moments

 

[saw2097]

This arc could have been really something but I feel Oda wrote himself into a corner with the whole birdcage thing and trapping suppoused powerhouses inside that should generaly be able to dispose of it easily but because that would obviously kill the danger part of the arc he couldnt do it. All in all I cant say I enjoyed this arc that much apart from a few moments

That's one of the flaws of the arc, but a simple solution would have been that they could destroy it but it would reassemble itself each time they did as long as Doflamingo was conscious.