Manga Diaries – One Piece Volumes 16 to 18

One Piece Volume 16 One Piece Volume 17 One Piece Volume 18
If you don’t know what my Diaries are, please go here. Spoilers ahoy!

Otherwise, let’s go!


Volume 16:

Why do the animals in this series have even sadder stories than the people?? Whyyy??

First, I’m going to be very disappointed if there’s no “Chopper the Blue-Nose Reindeer” character song. I’m writing this in July, so nothing says Christmas in July than a clear reference to Rudolph.

*checks*

Ok, good.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a long flashback right in the midst of an attack that doesn’t even involve the battling parties. I mentioned last time I’d prefer not to be treated by Dr. Kureha. But I guess it’s better than being treated by Dr. Hiriluk. Yeesh. I had a great-uncle who had staples in his head from a brain tumor. When it came time to have his staples removed, his doctor recommended someone. So we made an appointment to get the staples removed. Got a bus to take us to the doctor, waited, went into the proper waiting room, waited some more, and then he goes in. The doctor takes one look at his paperwork, goes, “Oh, the staples are in his head? I don’t do those.” ( – _ – ) No one bothered to read where it clearly said it was from a brain tumor operation? Yeah, I wouldn’t visit that doctor or nurse again. But at least you can feel Dr. Hiriluk’s passion.

Oh, and onion cake. Yuck! I’ll stick to marble.

Will One Piece ever answer the question of what happens to a person who eats the Human-Human Fruit? Do they become superhuman? Stay a regular human? By the way, shouldn’t local governments take better care of these devil fruits? I wonder if we’ll ever meet someone who ate two different fruits…

Volume 17:

Let’s get ready to rummmmbbbblle!

Okay, is it supposed to be “TonyTony Chopper” or “Tony Tony Chopper”? In one of the SBS corners, Oda says it’s supposed to be “Tony Tony Chopper”, but then a few pages later, the dialogue says “Tony Tony Chopper”. Is this a translation error, or was there an extra dot in his name in Japanese or what?

So the Merry Go finally has a doctor. It’s too bad Kureha can’t come along since she was pretty funny. One Piece finally has a mascot character, and it’s pretty late compared to most manga. Usopp was already kind of in the role of mascot with his full-of-himself attitude but still able to help out in a pinch. From the ending, it seems like they’re two birds of a feather deer of an antler.

OK, the fact that there were numbers and days as code names in Baroque Works was pretty obvious, but what the heck is doublefinger? All Sunday is pretty weird, but doublefinger reminds me of either a) Goldfinger, b) jewelry, c) a term that seems like the Internet would corrupt. I am familiar with several Japanese holidays, but I don’t know how doublefinger would play into any of them.

I thought Crocodile would be more crocodile-like. He’s wearing a fur coat… I guess his hand is a tribute to Captain Hook. Did you know Disney is removing the crocodile and alligator images and jokes from their parks after that little boy’s death? The crocodile was the funniest part of Peter Pan. Otherwise, the movie’s boring.

Volume 18:

This volume seems really thick. Which is ironic since most of this volume is a wild goose chase.

Doublefinger = 1/1 = New Year’s

Did anyone figure this out before Oda revealed it?

Luffy has a brother. Huh. And they actually get along? That’s extremely rare. My first thought was to light a flame underneath the paper to find the hidden message. But I guess that’s an arc for another day. I loved everyone’s shock at how different Luffy and Ace are. Ace’s power seems perfect for attacking ships, and I’m looking forward to his return.

I always find it hilarious when someone gets a tattoo that’s misspelled or has incorrect grammar. NO REGERTS! Always make sure you have someone double-check your design. And if the artist screws up, make them pay. But what do I know? I’m too wimpy to get a tattoo. I’m too wimpy to get my ears pierced.

Anyways, tight now, Luffy and friends need to save Alabasta. Note to all rebels: make sure your information is up-to-date before preparing to meet the enemy. The flashback to that village’s founding came at a weird time, but I wonder how Vivi’s friend became the rebel leader. Is he a double agent, or is really upset with the kingdom? I guess it’s not too surprising since he confronted the king at a young age, but was the rain dust the last straw? Is he worried about Vivi? I guess we’ll find out next time. Or maybe the volume after the next. Luffy is heading straight for a Boss fight. Good to see the leader actually has a point and that negotiations are not really useful in their situation.

Final Comments:

Chopper seems like a fun character, but I’m hoping he’s more than just Usopp 2. They talked about a Zoa fruits (or something like that), but I don’t remember them talking about different types of devil fruits before.

So far, I think that’s One Piece‘s biggest issue: setting up doesn’t seem to be Oda’s strength, at least at this point. Everything is introduced just as needed. Monster appears. “Oh, yeah, that’s a xxx.” “Let me inform you of Baroque Works’ system way late.” “Oh, yeah, Luffy has a brother.” I want to see more animals and creatures in the wild, and not just suddenly showing that lizards can act as messengers. Hopefully the paper is a sign that Oda is preparing for the long-term.

This post may contain reviews of free products or news featuring products which gave me bonuses. I may earn compensation if you use my links or referral codes. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure policy here.

7 Comments

  1. Arria Cross

    Ace!!! I love how the anime expanded his appearance compared to his very brief appearance in the manga. I miss him.

    Reply
    1. Krystallina

      How was his appearance expanded?

      Reply
      1. Arria Cross

        They have this filler episodes just after Ace’s appearance where they crossed the dessert and had some adventures there before they reached Alubarna. Ace joined them there, so his appearance was expanded there and he was able to bond with the other Straw Hats, unlike in the manga. Those filler episodes were awesome. I’m glad that they did that.

        Reply
        1. Krystallina

          For as much hate as the word “filler” brings up in people, lots of anime-exclusive storylines are actually good. Sounds like this is one of them! 🙂

          Reply
          1. Arria Cross

            Exactly! ONE PIECE is a good example of great fillers and of course, we can’t forget the Prince of Tennis fillers. 😉

  2. The Otaku Judge

    The first time I saw Chopper I thought he was a shape shifting Teddy Bear.

    Reply
    1. Krystallina

      A shape shifting teddy bear sounds awesome!

      Reply

Leave a Reply to KrystallinaCancel reply

%d bloggers like this: