RJ Writing Ink

One Piece: Egghead Arc Review

It’s felt like an eternity thanks to all the breaks, but the Egghead Arc is finally over. And what an arc it turned out to be!

When it first started, the Egghead Arc was coming fresh off the heels of One Piece’s longest and most insane arc to date. Considering everything that happened in Wano, I thought that we would be in a little breather. Getting to meet Dr. Vegapunk was a big deal given his impact on world events, but it paled in comparison to the realization of where the Straw Hats would go next. After years of build-up and flashbacks, readers were finally going to get to see Elbaf! Next to Laugh Tale itself, no other location was as anticipated by fans, and it felt like we were finally closing in on it. All we had to was wait for the Straw Hats to make their inevitable escape!

I’m not sure if I can speak for anyone else, but I’m not ashamed to admit that Oda pulled the wool over my eyes.

With One Piece reportedly entering the beginning of its final saga, the series had to get a lot of things ready. And with so many characters and events taking place at once, it makes sense why Oda would want to get started ASAP. Things that he had been foreshadowing for years, even decades, had to be revealed. And most importantly, the series had to let us know just how high the stakes were. So much happened that I had to go back and review the entire arc and everything that happened in greater detail.

I’m RJ Writing Ink, and this is my look back at the triumphs and shortcomings of the Egghead Arc! Most of them will be triumphs, though!

Oda Worked Overtime to Get Everyone in Position, and it Shows

Even though the arc was officially focused on the events at Egghead Island, a significant chunk of it was spent looking at events taking place in the larger world. Koby’s capture and rescue from Beehive Island led to Garp taking his place. Two of the pirate crews that took part in events at Wano were beaten by Blackbeard and Shanks. And we saw first-hand the truth behind King Cobra’s assassination at the hands of Im and the Five Elders. And that’s just a handful of the things that happened abroad.

Its not out of the ordinary for Oda to spend chapters catching readers up on the world of One Piece at large. That’s part of what makes him so good at world-building. But with the series entering its final saga, Oda had to start getting everyone into position for what’s to come. That meant he had to cram as much as possible when he could while he could, making the arc feel a bit bloated as a whole.

There’s also another issue that affected pacing: the breaks. In recent years, Oda has gone on more and more breaks between chapters for his own health. Which is good. The last thing I want is for him to work himself into an early grave. However, it also means that an arc that could’ve been finished a long time ago got dragged out several extra months. I dont mind it, but I know other fans do. Between these two factors, it feels like the arc played out longer than anyone thought.

The Legacy of Ohara Lives On!

In hindsight, I think learning about what happened to Robin’s homeland of Ohara was a real turning point in the series. Thanks to that, we learned just how far the World Government would go to keep people from discovering the truth about the Void Century. But while everyone besides Robin seemingly died with Ohara, this arc revealed that the WG failed to destroy the real threat: the knowledge the country collected.

Thanks to the sacrifice of the scholars of Ohara, they managed to save most of their research and books for future generations. The Giants then retrieved everything and brought it back to Elbaf where the Five Elders couldn’t get to it, and later gave Vegapunk the chance to read everything for himself so he could pick up where they left off. In addition, we learned two important things: this event inspired Dragon to create the Revolutionary Army, and that Jaguar D. Saul was alive.

Hearing that everything that Ohara did had not been in vain brought tears of joy to my eyes. Not only did the knowledge of Robin’s homeland still exist, but her first and oldest friend was alive. And now both of them are waiting for her in Elbaf. As if we didn’t need any more reasons to look forward to Elbaf, now we can expect a happy reunion between Robin and Saul!

One Piece Chapter 1054 Review/Recap

We’re in the endgame now. After a month-long hiatus, Oda brought One Piece back with a vengeance with one of the biggest chapters ever. From here on out, the Straw Hats are on the road to Laugh Tale, and the story will reach new heights of chaotic insanity! I just finished reading the latest chapter, and I’m still processing everything! All the major players start making moves, and major revelations drop. This chapter is so big, I’m going to have to break it down into multiple sections just to cover everything!

Recap

As Admiral Ryokugyu reaches the outskirts of the Flower Capital, five of the Scabbards and Shinobu block his path, refusing to let him rob Wano of its newfound happiness. However, the Admiral just unleashed his plant-based Devil Fruit powers while spouting garbage about how “prejudice keeps the world in line” and stuff. It just pisses off Yamato and Momonosuke off, though, the former head butting the Admiral, and the latter vowing to drive him from the Capital on his own.

In the seas around Wano, the Red-Haired Pirates can’t help but be amazed at how Luffy has now reached their level. All of Shank’s officers want to go and meet him already as Shanks remembers how Luffy ate the Devil Fruit he stole from the World Government. However, Shanks refuses to meet Luffy. Instead, he tells Beckman that it’s time for them to go to Laugh Tale, and claim the One Piece.

At Navy HQ, Akainu’s dealing with problems of his own. In addition to the news of the fall of Big Mom and Kaido, there’s also what happened at the Reverie.

• King Cobra was apparently killed by Sabo
• Princess Vivi has vanished
• Sabo attacked the home of the Celestial Dragons and destroyed a monument to them.
• Sabo and his Allies rescued Kuma
• 8 kingdoms are now in open revolt.

All throughout this, Sabo’s legend and reputation have started to eclipse even Dragon’s. The people are worshipping him, calling him the Emperor of Flames and rallying to the Revolution. The whole world is plunging into chaos, and the Navy can barely stop it. The road to Laugh Tale has begun.

Review

Okay, this is one of those chapters where Oda gives us a lot in one go, and I love that. It’s one of the reasons I love his manga so much.

Let’s go over everything now.

Ryokugyu’s a Jerk!

Firstly, I hate Ryokugyu. He reminds me so much of Akainu, and that man is everything wrong with the Marines. Self-serving, kills anyone to justify his actions, and says it’s for Justice. I hate Akainu, and now I hate Ryokugyu. Even if his powers are pretty cool. Hashirama Senju’s are better, though.

As much as I don’t want Momo to fight Ryokugyu, he has to do this. It’s to make a statement to the outside world: Kaido is out, but we will not tolerate the World Government walking over us. More importantly, it will show Wano and the world that he will not be trifled with as Shogun. I think Momonosuke’s got this.

Shanks Has a Plan

I’m surprised that Shanks still doesn’t want to meet Luffy yet. He’s now at Shanks level as a fellow Yonko, after all. Plus, all his officers want to see him again. However, I think he’s got his reasons. Just like how he had reasons for meeting with the Gorosei.

In fact, I think his theft of the Gum-Gum Fruit might not have been dumb luck. Maybe Shanks planned on taking it because he somehow knew a little about it’s true nature. Maybe he thought the next wielder would be the one to finish what Roger started. Or maybe I’m overthinking things. Either way, now he’s throwing his proverbial hat into the ring.

Speaking of whom…

I Don’t Buy What Happened to Cobra and Vivi

Okay, until I see proof that King Cobra is dead, I don’t buy that he is. Or that Sabo killed him. In fact, I question the entire idea that Vivi’s gone missing.

There are a few possible explanations for all of this, though:

• The World Government killed Cobra, blamed it on Sabo, and held Vivi prisoner.
• The World Government did all of that, but Vivi escaped with Sabo
• Cobra faked his death and Vivi her disappearance so that both of them could join the revolution with Sabo.

I’m very much hoping that it’s the last one. I can’t see Sabo killing someone like Cobra. If anything, the Nefertari family would likely support the Revolution since they know how corrupt the World Government is. It needs to go. The Celestial Dragons need to go (Except Mjorsgard. He’s cool.) the whole system needs to be brought down and restarted. And it looks like Dragon and Sabo will be the ones doing that.

Sabo, the Emperor of Flames. So Cool!

As an aside, I love Sabo’s new title, the Emperor of Flames, or Flame Emperor. Ace would be proud of his brother.

No matter how you slice it, there’s an even bigger war coming. One that the World Government cannot hope to stop. The road to Laugh Tale is almost open, and the world will plunge into chaos when it does. Good. Chaos can be the remedy to this kind of corruption.

The end of One Piece draws near. It will likely be several more years, but we should savor it. I know I will.

Also, I’m glad to see that Oda left a tribute to the late Kazuki Takahashi.

I Give “Flame Emperor” a 5/5

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