Idols of the Old Generation

One Piece Chapter 1156 Review/Recap

Idols. Idols are the people that other people look up to and admire like crazy. But in Japan, the world idol can mean more than just someone that people look up to. It can also refer to incredibly attractive people that other’s like to fawn over like crazy. In this week’s chapter of One Piece, though, we get to see examples of both kinds of idols. As it turns out, not even the Roger Pirates were immune to the charms of the Kuja Pirates!

Recap

In the days when the Rocks Pirates roamed the sea, there were other groups of pirates that garnered renown. And one of them was the likes of the Kuja Pirates, led by the Empress of Amazon Lily, Gloriosa, AKA the future Elder Nyon. At this time, she was in love with the likes of Gol D. Roger. Unfortunately for her, Roger and most of his crew were in love with her first mate, Shakky, who was in love with Rayleigh. They loved her so much that when they tried to take her by force one time, she took all their treasure instead.

Afterwards, the Kuja Pirates fled as Garp and the Marines showed up, prompting him and Roger to start fighting for the umpteenth time. Soon afterwards, Gloriosa’s love sickness led to her losing her spot as Empress to Shakky.

Meanwhile, back on Elbaph, Loki continued to cause problems for everyone. All he wanted was to follow his idol, Rocks, out to sea, but he failed every time. As a result, the mutual dislike between him and his countrymen only grew, with the sole exception being his Dad and Ida. Rocks would continue to return to ask Harald to join him, only to be refused. And, in turn, he refused to bring Loki with him.

Elsewhere, the Rocks Pirates’ power only continued to grow in their base on Pirate Island. They attracted more and more powerful recruits to their side, including Big Mom, Streusen, Kaido, and more. None of them liked each other, but they were all united by Rocks’ charisma. He promised to bring them all to the summit of the world, and so they followed!

Review

So, let me get this straight: Gloriosa, AKA Elder Nyon, was in love with Gol D. Roger, the future King of the Pirates. So much so that she decided to leave to join the Rocks Pirates so she could keep chasing after Roger. And Roger was in love with Shakky, who, in turn, had a thing for Rayleigh?

This is pretty hilarious, to be honest. Not only because of how it echoes Boa Hancock’s own future infatuation with Luffy, but the fact that Luffy doesn’t want to date her anymore than Roger wanted to date Gloriosa. The only difference is that unlike Roger, Luffy has no interest whatsoever. It’s still hilarious, though.

On a slightly sadder note, though, we see once again just how jaded and cynical Loki was even as a child. Despite Ida loving him like her own son, he called her a gold digger trying to gain power for herself. The sad irony is that he’s describing his biological mother word-for-word. Estrid was a gold-digger and a horrid woman, and if there’s a hell, she’s likely burning in it. Not helping matters is that his chosen idols, Rocks and his crew, kept rejecting him. Is it any wonder he turned out like he does?

The Plot Thickens

The biggest surprise, though, is what Rocks said about what he needs to conquer the world. Firstly, he needs two legendary Devil Fruits that he believes are in Elbaph. Secondly, he’s looking for the Galleila, a group of giant shipwrights whose whereabouts are unknown. I don’t know much about the giants, but if it’s Devil Fruits Rocks was after, then that only lends credence to the idea that one of them was the Gum-Gum Fruit.

In any event, by now it’s pretty obvious that this flashback isn’t just about Loki, buti’s about the Rocks Pirates. Given how Blackbeard is confirmed to be Rocks’ son, it makes sense that Oda wants to tell us more about them now. He’s prepping us for the grand finale, whenever that may be. With any luck, we mught learn more about what happened at God Valley before this ends. If not, then at least we’ll learn the truth of how Harald died.

I Give “Idols” a 4/5

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