Omg Omg Omg I’ve Read Your Post For The Gear 5 Luffy Charm Giveaway And I ABSOLUTELY Agree With You.

a lengthy breakdown of why ch. 878 is one of the best luffy moments in the entire series (to me)

question: favorite luffy moment?

oooomg it would have to be the scene in ch. 878 immediately after pedro's death--when luffy 1) snaps the crew out of their grief because they're in danger, 2) comes up with an extremely efficient escape plan for his crew 3) comes up with an extremely efficient plan to deal with katakuri 4) snaps the crew out of their grief again 5) gets the crew to execute their escape 6) executes his own plan (+ bonus moment in 880/881 because it's technically the "end" of this scene).

this whole moment on the ship is the Captain Of The Straw Hat Pirates moment for me. hang on, i'm gonna include manga caps because i dont think ive ever talked about the way the dialogue is set up in this scene before and im stealing this opportunity lmao

like, we almost never see luffy really engage with his role as captain and leader in a traditional sense--yes, he's captain, but in most arcs he fits the "The Big Guy" role more than the leader, and often the broader captain-ish duties fall to other characters (e.g. planning and executing strategy outside of battle, mostly). like, half of the entire joke in both dressrosa and wano is that luffy doesn't plan (even though we, the readers, know that he does) and yet in WCI he not only showcases his skills as a leader but does so flawlessly.

(for context, "The Big Guy" is basically the trope of like... the most powerful person, the one you know is always going to win/solve any problem by the end of it--the character who's going to fight the biggest bad in a story and who often can't deal with "little" problems within a story because it would undermine the internal logic of a story's power-scaling. i have many thoughts on The Big Guy and i think one piece is one of the few series that does it well, along with spyxfamily re: yor... but i digress.)

so here's where i think the "moment" starts in ch. 878. for a refresher, in ch. 877 luffy+co reach the sunny, fine chopper/brook encased in candy, katakuri attacks, big mom attacks, the sunny gets stuck in candy, and then pedro sacrifices himself. at this point in time, luffy+co have been on the ship for all of a few seconds--in 877, nami is trying to set up a coup de burst and explain how it works to jinbei at the same time, luffy is holding off katakuri, but nothing is really happening. when pedro sacrifices himself no one knows what his plan is so they don't have time to incorporate it into their escape strategy (which is basically nonexistent at this point). then--wham! pedro is down, the candy breaks, and there's a split-second of decision time that luffy jumps on, which brings us to 878

everyone is shocked and grieving, their tentative set-up is completely derailed, and luffy immediately takes charge--starting with "can we fly, nami?!"

he addresses nami as the navigator/in charge of the physical ship itself a this point (+ she set up the coup de burst in 877), then addresses the crew as a whole in "let's set sail, people!!"--like, the way this is phrased sets him apart slightly as someone with the authority to speak to the group as a whole; he's getting everyone's attention. then his declaration!!! "if we waste this moment... then we throw away his sacrifice!!"

he's completely taking charge of the situation and focusing on getting the rest of the crew to safety. it is his job as captain to look out for the whole, so he doesn't waste a second--which is so incredible, because we know luffy is emotional, that's his whole thing. he's incredibly emotionally-driven and emotionally-intelligent, but during this entire scene he is being emotionally driven to protect his crew, which in turn gives time for his (often-overlooked) intelligence and pragmatism to shine.

once he has everyone's attention as a group, he goes back to addressing crew members individually--which i think is really important because that's, like, literally what you do in a crisis when you're taking charge. you get everyone on the same page, then you single people out so no one feels lost or unmoored--everyone has something to do, everyone feels included in the solution in some way.

in these two pages alone, he addresses nami, chopper, and brook individually, and then jinbei responds (so he's also participating individually). i think the fact that carrot is excluded here also kind of supports this whole thing, because carrot isn't technically a straw hat--luffy isn't her captain, even though she's under his protection at this point. here, he's ordering his crew in his capacity as a leader.

and then, of course, there's the moment:

yes, he's talking to katakuri here, but he's also on the sunny's deck screaming--and his address to the crew doesn't have a distinct "end point" from a dialogue perspective, he just gets cut off when katakuri attacks carrot. here, i think he's declaring this as much to katakuri as the straw hats themselves. i think the "end" of this whole scene in 880/881 when he reassures the crew (after holding the fucking mirror shards in his mouth--god this whole scene is just so good) that everything will be fine supports this, too, because that feels like the end of the crew address to me. but i'll get there.

now that he has the crew on track to execute their own escape (by giving them step by step orders to do so, basically), he tackles the katakuri problem. at this point, he's already figured out what to do, because he's gearing up for the elephant gun grip that he uses to pull katakuri into the mirror world, and he doesn't tell anyone else his plan because it's his responsibility as captain to take care of the crew (as opposed to just his responsibility as The Big Guy to take out the strongest enemy, which--if we were just adhering to The Big Guy trope, i think he would have shouted his plan along with everything else. basically authority [no one needs to know my plan because it's my responsibility to handle it and i know i will] vs. equality [im the strongest but we're all in this together so here's what im going to do], and he's authority.)

then we get another crew address, this time starting individually then talking to the group. they see the shadow--they realize pedro has died but perospero has survived--nami is seconds from absolutely spiraling again (just look at that panel of her, oh my god). further proof that luffy is the most emotionally intelligent character in the entire series, luffy immediately redirects everyone's attention a second time, focusing them away from their grief again and onto their own escape again.

since this is, like, a second wave of grief/horror, he starts with the individual address--snapping everyone out of it directly because a whole-crew address might not cut it and he needs to include carrot, here.

then mid-address, he grabs brulee and starts executing his katakuri takedown plan. his focus here is entirely on keeping his crew safe in the most efficient way possible, and in two pages we get: assessing the situation (grief 2) -> solving the immediate problem (the escape plan starts to derail, everyone needs to snap back out of it) -> solving the next problem (katakuri) -> inspiring them to carry on because he's about to leave.

(seriously. i cannot overstate how great the brulee grab mid-dialogue is in the broader context of this scene. seriously.)

(also, the way the group -> individual -> individual -> group address works in this whole scene feels like such a beautiful closed dialogue loop... even on a structural level it's designed to have the biggest possible impact. love u oda.)

then, of course, we have the culmination of this whole thing--the mirror smash. with ruthless efficiency, he not only isolates the biggest immediate threat (katakuri) but also the character who poses the biggest danger to the crew's escape--brulee. all three of them have been completely separated from his crew, and now he can both keep an eye on brulee and the mirrors (which is most of 880/881), the "intelligence" part of the plan, and confront katakuri directly, the "battle" part of the plan.

also, the decision to isolate katakuri works both ways here--he's not only protecting the crew from katakuri as an enemy, but he's also protecting the crew from their fight. we see in subsequent chapters that the katakuri fight absolutely decimates the mirror world. if they were to face off anywhere near the sunny, people would get hurt. if katakuri were to escape, not only could he harm the crew but luffy would have to give chase and bring the fight back to katakuri, wherever he ends up (attacking the crew). i fully believe the decision to isolate brulee shows that he's aware of this--their fight has to stay in the mirror world, because the only way he'll win is by operating at full power and his full power is destructive.

also--this moment is just really cool, okay? it's so, so cool.

honorable mention to the rest of this "scene" as it's continued in the next few chapters, specifically the way this whole thing culminates--luffy holding the last mirror shards in his mouth to make sure he can communicate his final reassurances to the crew without the risk of those shards falling into enemy hands.

to me, this is as solidly and completely an "i'm the captain of this ship!" moment as the declaration itself, and every time i think about it for more than 0.2 seconds i start to go crazy. but. it it technically a different "moment" (and is also extremely self-explanatory) so i won't go into it here.

also, side note because this didn't fit anywhere--i think this scene not only stands on its own as one of luffy's most badass moments but also works as a really amazing example of his character growth--particularly compared to scenes like the usopp fight in water 7 (different scenario technically because usopp isn't an enemy, but it is one of the premier moments when he struggles with the burden of being captain).

anyway, sorry this got stupid long *jazz hands*

Shanks' Savior Complex

A few months ago, I posted a joke tweet about Shanks’ savior complex and Buggy’s inferiority complex. While Buggy’s feelings of inadequacy are pretty obvious in the source material, Shanks is constantly evading serious analysis because of how little he appears in the manga and how nebulous those few appearances are. So, naturally, I was met with a lot of confusion. (What do you mean by ‘savior complex?’ Why Shanks specifically?) I thought I’d address all that now in one comprehensive, all-inclusive post.

Before I dive in, please note just a few things:

A SAVIOR COMPLEX is a pattern of unconscious behaviors. It is associated most often with self-sacrificial people – those who help others even at the cost of their own personal well-being, mental or physical.

Within the field of psychology, ‘complexes’ are just constructs. My goal is not to diagnose. Rather, this post is a conceptual analysis using the idea of a “savior complex” to better explore Shanks as a character.

Now that all that’s out of the way, let me begin!

For a character who is so significant in the grand scheme, Shanks is remarkably absent for the better part of One Piece. Really. He is so nonexistent, actually, that the first chapter of the manga is probably the most we’ve ever seen from him uninterrupted. This is for good reason, though; Shanks is the catalyst for Luffy’s entire journey. He owes a lot to Shanks: his devil fruit, his life, and even his dream, to an extent. Luffy learned a lot about being a captain from Shanks, and much of his advice – like picking and choosing your battles, for example – Luffy puts to good use later down the line.

So, considering his role as Luffy’s mentor, it’s fitting that Shanks’ character is defined by RESPONSIBILITY. He’s goofy, sure, but don’t let that devil-may-care attitude fool you – Shanks is a knowledgeable pirate, grounded by the weight he carries. His dialogue and actions throughout the first chapter reflect this. When Luffy demands to be taken out to sea, Shanks refuses, claiming he is too young. While the rest of his crew wax poetic about the freedom and joy of being a pirate, Shanks is the one bringing them back down to reality, telling them not to fill Luffy’s head with “crazy ideas.”

Those who know him best seem to agree. “The captain’s just doing what’s best for everyone,” Beckman states. “The safety of the entire crew and ship rests on his shoulders.”

Although Shanks is realistic, he is not a pessimist, and he certainly still values dreams. Let’s not forget: Shanks entrusted Luffy with Roger’s hat. Not only that, he asks Luffy to give it back when Luffy has become a great pirate – not if. Of course Shanks has hope for the future and the new generation. He's just also experienced enough to know the dangers and horrors of the current world, and curbs his own expectations as a result. Yet again, Beckman reinforces this when he talks to Luffy.

The future needs a strong foundation. Anything is possible, including what Luffy wants to achieve, but there are necessary sacrifices to make dreams a reality.

I believe Shanks sees himself as one of those necessary sacrifices.

Oda may not have envisioned Shanks losing an arm in the original draft of the story, but this decision sets a precedent going forward, for both Shanks as a character and the series at large. Sacrifice is at the core of One Piece’s identity; previously, I’ve discussed its emotional significance as an act of love. But sacrifice also serves as the foundation for the new generation. Corazón’s sacrifice, for example, enabled Law to outlive him and change the future. Toki and Oden’s sacrifices enabled their children and the Nine Red Scabbards to change the future. Queen Otohime, Fisher Tiger, Shimotsuki Yasuie… although these characters died without ever seeing the future they hoped for, their sacrifices are the foundation upon which their successors enact change.

And who do we also see facilitating the changing world, ensuring the “new age” succeeds?

Shanks.

Whenever Shanks reappears in the manga, it is usually on the precipice of a dangerous conflict, or at exactly the perfect moment to intervene in said conflict. Take Shanks visiting Whitebeard, for example; here, he attempts to navigate the growing tension between Ace and Blackbeard, which eventually results in the war at Marineford. Although he fails at convincing Whitebeard to stop Ace’s revenge quest, it’s clear that Shanks has a vested interest in balancing the current forces at play, including marines and pirates.

At Marineford, not only does Shanks intervene to stop the war, but he saves Koby, a member of the new generation who will undoubtedly change the future on the marines' side of things. His words also reflect my point about sacrifice as a foundation for change. As he stops Akainu, he praises Koby for putting his life on the line: “The seconds of courage you bet your life on creating, for good or bad, have just now greatly changed the fate of the world!”

This aspect of his character remains consistent in Film Red, too. Even though he has grown to love Uta as a daughter, Shanks still encourages her to stay behind because her singing brings happiness to a world where "peace and equality don't exist." Afterwards, when Uta causes the massacre on Elegia, Shanks shoulders all the blame, effectively hiding the truth to protect her. He sacrifices his own connection with his daughter for what he believes is the greater good. Note that Shanks’ own personal feelings on that decision are never explored or discussed; obviously, Shanks loved his daughter, and it's safe to assume he didn't want to leave her. But he set aside his own happiness and made the hard choice anyway. (Sound familiar? The "savior complex" alarm bells should be ringing in your head.)

Even as an emperor, Shanks sacrifices his own strength, influence, and reputation. His fleet is “notoriously weak.” The pirates within it even admit that they never would have survived this long without Shanks protecting them. This fleet is another responsibility weighing Shanks down, and yet he takes on that burden anyway for their sake. 

We don’t have the full context behind Shanks’ decision at Loguetown either, but it’s likely that his refusal to go Laughtale right away ties back to responsibility, too. We know whatever Roger said to Shanks the day their crew disbanded rendered him to tears. (Did Roger’s answer to his question change his mind?) We also know he regards Luffy as Roger’s successor, and claims Luffy acts just like he did as a kid. (Shanks "crowning" Luffy with Roger's hat also parallels Shanks' moment with Roger visually, placing them in similar roles.)

Given this, it’s possible that Shanks believed he could take on Roger’s legacy, but later realized he would not be the one to change the world. Roger might have even tasked him with finding the “true” successor, who will “turn the world upside down.” (Shanks’ fixation with the “new age” would also make sense in that case.) This is all speculation, but I thought I’d throw it out there anyway, because if this were true, Shanks would have sacrificed his own dream for the sake of the world. (Very fitting!)

But how does Shanks feel about his role in the bigger picture? The short answer: we don’t know, and I think that’s purposeful. Oda consistently draws Shanks looking wistful and resigned when it comes to his choices; although he has severed relationships and damaged his body, not once has he expressed resentment, anger, or sorrow. In fact, he's usually smiling.

Shanks also has his own monologue where he discusses the act of crying.

If you apply his advice to his own character journey, it raises a lot of questions. Does Shanks view his current sacrificial actions as “overcoming” his own tears from back then? Is that why we so rarely see him cry now? Considering how reserved Shanks is in expressing negative emotions, I think it’s possible. His emotional restraint could also be seen as “saving face” for the sake of others – something I’ve discussed before. That is my own interpretation, though, so take it with a grain of salt. 

Speculation aside, Shanks has shown time and time again that he prioritizes the future over his own life. His dedication to/fixation with the "new age," his role as a mentor, how he believes in putting his life on the line and "overcoming" negative emotions... these indicate a pattern of behaviors seen in those with savior complexes. Even if it's at the cost of his own mental/physical well-being, Shanks plans to facilitate the world as Luffy changes it.

Is the "new age" his dream, or did he sacrifice his real dream for the sake of the new age? Does that dream even matter to him, anymore? The reasoning for Shanks' motives is still unknown, but the answer must lie in whatever mysterious question he asked Roger – otherwise, why hide the context for his massive turnabout at Loguetown? Once the curtain is drawn back on that moment, I think we will begin to see Shanks in a new light.

“Don’t worry! It’s just ✨SNUFKIN✨”

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Local doctor tries to comprehend wtf just happened to him

Wanted to draw him with scribbly lines and conflicting vibes.

luffy now using 'dawn' in his gear 5 attack names gives me the opportunity to point out something i don't know if i've mentioned before on this blog but that's been on my mind for actual years.

so, the english word 'dawn' is written in japanese as ドーン/dōn; for example, that's also how it's written in these attack names, and also in the name of dawn island (ドーン島/dōn-tou). and don/dōn is the same sound effect one piece uses ubiquitously to emphasize impactful or important panels or beats. (i think the official english translation usually renders it DOOM?) it also shows up in tom the fishman's speech pattern and the lyrics of binks no sake- i associate it very heavily with the comic as a whole.

and in thinking about gear 5, it's also occurred to me that the constant use of don for emphasis is potentially reminiscent of the sound of a drumbeat- especially since in wano, it's partially supplanted as the default 'emphasis' sound effect by the べん/ben or べべん/beben of hiyori's shamisen, another instrument.

hc that Dazai made a point of calling Chuuya small when they met because Dazai was used to being the small one.

like, finally there was someone shorter than him. because let’s be real, Dazai was barely taller than Chuuya in Fifteen.

i think people forget how small Dazai was too— not just in height, but also in weight. He was underweight in Dark Era, but in Fifteen & even at present he's barely within the healthy weight range for his height. he was constantly described as a twig in Fifteen, and almost every time he's introduced in the light novels he's called lanky, slender, etc.