One Piece

Episodes 913-915

Hey folks! I'm Grant, and it looks like I'll be taking the helm of the One Piece anime reviews here on ANN for the time being. Some of you may already know me from my Twitter antics, while many (many) more of you have no clue who I am.

As a bit of background, I am a relatively recent convert to One Piece. After many years of avoiding One Piece due to its length, I finally started the manga a few years ago and went through it detailing my thoughts chapter by chapter as I went. It became a daily ritual that eventually led me to meeting the wider One Piece community, and became one of the best fandom experiences I have ever had. At this point I am current with the manga, but have yet to dive into the anime much beyond short clips here and there (and one movie, Strong World).

In my read-through of the manga I tried to detail not only my thoughts on the series' plot, characters, and larger themes, but also the evocative visuals, unique designs, and incredible craft that Eiichiro Oda and his team display week after week. As in all things, I am no expert but I am an enthusiastic amateur, so I hope my excitement for the material comes through and I look forward to discussing this series with all of you each week.

My hope is to bring that same energy and discussion to the weekly anime reviews as well. I'll be picking up where my buddy Sam left off, but for now we'll tackle three episodes at a time until the reviews are current again. With the preface out of the way, WE ARE going to get things rolling!

Episode 913

Since this is the start of my time with the review column, can I just say that Opening 22 is outrageously good? The energy bursting out of every frame, the clash between the bright colors of Wano proper and the moody dark hues of the villains – Toei did not play around with Over the Top.

(Okay, enough gushing Grant, get to the episode.)

Kaido has appeared in all his dragon-y glory, with the Straw Hat pirates, Heart pirates, and Kozuki standing atop a high cliff watching in shocked horror. Trafalgar makes it clear to everyone that Kaido's beef is explicitly with him and Luffy due to their actions stretching back through Dressrosa and Punk Hazard, and he tells the rest of them to high-tail it to safety. Law and Luffy race off down the mountainside to handle Kaido while the rest look on in horror and provide dramatic commentary.

Kaido has a jolly old time terrorizing Wano's people by doing flyovers and buzzing their villages to the increasing dismay of Jack who – in a turn of astute evil observation – notes that they are workers who are needed to maintain production. We also discover that Kaido is, in fact, quite drunk, thanks to a big alcohol-soaked dragon belch that covers Jack and his men in a cloud of post-binge stink.

(You know, it's a shame I don't get to write sentences like that more often).

Meanwhile, Kiku reveals to Kinemon that Tsuru is in danger and they break away from the pack to try and rescue her down below. The remaining Straw Hats and Heart pirates are put back in the crosshairs when Hawkins tells Kaido that Kozuki samurai are up at Oden Castle scheming against him – in part to keep him from destroying the villages Jack mentioned before. Kaido sets off in that direction and lets loose an enormous energy blast from his mouth, destroying not only Oden Castle but a huge chunk of the land of Wano itself. We see the Straw Hats, Kozuki, and Heart pirates vaporized and a smoldering ruin left in the wake of the blast.

Luffy is furious and gears up for the big fight before credits roll.

Personally, I had a blast (ha) with this episode. Kaido is the star of the show here – lots of gratuitous sequences of his vast elongated body sweeping across the sky, shaking the ground form the sheer might of his presence. We get very few shots of him that manage to contain his entire body, and most of the perspective are low angle camera shots from the villagers' perspective. This gives the entire episode a very kaiju movie vibe and that fits perfectly with the material. I particularly dig the shot with Kaido's body reflected in the mud puddle and the tremors moving through the water, destruction in close focus that actually heightens the scope of the danger.

Plenty of other smaller touches added to the experience. Obviously, Akira Toriyama did not invent this particular style of dragon depiction. But with that being said, it is hard not to feel there are elements of homage here between when you include the shots of Kaido's snaking body illuminated by lightning calling to mind similar shots of Shenron from Dragon Ball, and Oda's appreciation of Toriyama's work. Toei using the “zwee” sound effect for Law's Room adds to that sense of self-reference.

Can we talk about Kaido's energy blast? I know the One Piece anime has a… conflicted reputation, as far as adaptations are concerned. But wow! Kaido breathing his giant energy blast was terrific. Rapid cuts of gorgeous energy blast after energy blast. I think the particular emphasis to show those ground level shots was a smart move, it keeps drawing the viewer back into not only the scale of the blast but it also helps remind us that this is a violence being done to Wano and its people. Even if Kaido is just trying to obliterate a symbol of an old memory, the carnage he and his goons are wreaking on Wano exists in the present-tense. The moments of the Straw Hats, Kozuki, and Heart pirates being consumed and eventually fading to deathly white – oof. Emotionally it was not easy to watch, though technically well- executed. Yet another sequence that feels like it could have been ripped straight out of a kaiju film, and the episode is stronger for it.

On the lighter side of things, the comedy was fine if nothing stellar. I will never turn down a Brook pun and today is no different. I think the best comedy beat by far was Genda Tessho's delivery in the exchange between Kaido and Jack. That “hic” delivery is pitch-perfect, what a line read. All in all a terrific way to spend a half hour, and a great episode to start on for my tenure here.

Rating:

Episode 914

Kaido's blast sent Law and Luffy into a shocked retreat, just before Luffy shifted into Gear 3 rd and unloads with the Gum Gum Elephant Gun. As Kaido flops back from the blow, we get a brief moment with Kinemon and Kiku where she urges caution even though emotions are high. Luffy attempts to check on his friends but runs into Speed along the way. Speed recounts what happened to herself and Tama when Kaido found them, prompting a flurry of flashbacks where we revisit Tama's joy at eating full meals and the promise Luffy made to here.

Law tries to talk reason but Luffy's brain cell won't hear it and he bursts back into action. Kaido rises to meet Luffy's charge and asks who he is. Luffy states definitively that he is none other than Luffy, and he will be king of the pirates. Another battle follows with intense auras, inflated fisticuffs, and beer belch blasts that sees the surrounding area devastated. In between Luffy's spectacular spider-swinging he has one more flashback of Tama and this ignites yet more rage within him. Our plucky monkey hero unloads an Elephant Gun-flavored Hundred Crack Fist™ and Kaido is up against the ropes. If it wasn't for the next episode preview, it wouldn't be out of place to think Luffy had this in the bag.

Another exciting episode for my tastes. The real star of the show here is the bombastic devastation on display: screen-rocking punches, city-levelling blasts, and high-intensity close-ups that let you know two titans are duking it out. There are a few minor touches to enjoy – shaky interior shots of Kaido seen through the windows of a village hut, or the little added oomph those aerial bomb-drop sound effects add to Luffy's punches. But truthfully this episode is firing on all cylinders, a half-time marching band on a hot summer night with something to prove. I know a lot of folks who feel that Luffy charging Kaido seems too reckless or perhaps even out of character for him, but when the camera is pushed in until you're practically touching noses with him and the screen rumbles from those long shouts interspersed with flashbacks of Tama – you can feel it. The righteous rage is all there. I thought this episode's color palette helped pull in Wano's place as a land of stark contrasts. The largely earth-toned countryside is lit up again and again by dazzling reds and blues during Luffy and Kaido's exchanges. More than once we watch the energy from yet another earth-shaking attack burn until it's white/blue hot and leave yet more ruin in its wake, and it's a feast for the eyes every time.

One last word on the little moments. I enjoyed the of-course-it-is-obvious-but-that-does-not-make-it- ineffective metaphor of the stone labeled ODEN shattering to pieces in the wake of the castle's destruction. Additionally, I thought it was a deft touch to include a few POV shots during the Speed/Tama flashback. Having the audience see Kaido through Tama's eyes adds to his fear factor, and more importantly makes the audience feel that much more for Luffy's desire to avenge Tama (and ourselves by proxy).

Rating:

I hope you folks at home like punching, cause episode 915 is having a blowout sale on fisticuffs and everything must go. Law looks on in shock as Luffy unloads on Kaido. There is a bit of back and forth as Kaido uses fireballs and bad breath to try and keep Luffy off-balance, yet again and again our plucky rubber hero leaps back into the fray with hammer blow after hammer blow. Eventually Luffy's aura goes full Kaoi Ken blood red moments before he unleashes Gear Four and the real punching begins. Another barrage of named attacks finds Kaido laid out and in his “normal” human form. Kaido appears to be down for the count but he does once more rise to his feet with the kind of dramatic timing you would expect from a first class villain. Luffy tries to land another blow but Kaido swings his massive club and shouts “Thunder Bagua!” as it impacts with Luffy's face and lays our beloved captain out flat with a single hit.

Law attempts to save Luffy using Room but faces the minor annoyance of having his powers completely shut down by a Sea Prism Stone nail from one of Hawkins' goons. Hawkins reveals that not only does Sea Prison Stone come from Wano, only Wano craftsmen have the skill to manipulate it into such delicate forms. Our good Doctor manages to escape nonetheless by flicking out the nail with his sword and escaping, with Hawkins expressing his (understandable) frustration at Law's annoying power.

The final moments of the episode have Kaido remarking that Luffy appears to be glaring at him even while unconscious, and he mockingly asks “What kind of king did you say you'd be?” This episode might seem a smidge lopsided, as most of the runtime is Luffy unloading attacks with little to no counter-offensive only to end with Kaido one-shotting the lad. However, I think it works rather well thematically. Luffy goes through a Greatest Hits™ album of his best attacks; Elephant Gun, Giant Stamp, Grizzly Magnum, Gear Four, Kong Gun, Double Culverin, Kong Organ Gun, it's a non-stop show of force that leaves no doubt that Luffy gave his all.

And in the end it isn't enough. At all.

Kaido one-shotting Luffy is a vibe check reality check for our hero. How many times has he challenged the powers that be and come out on top? How many times has he scrambled into danger and miraculously exited unscathed? Big Mom was easily as much of a threat if not more, but Luffy had the advantage of a wedding's worth of chaos to keep him from having to face too many consequences in that encounter. Out here in Wano, Luffy takes on an Emperor mano a mano and is laid out flat without ceremony – a stark message about how much farther he has to go before he can achieve his dream. The visuals are not quite as spectacular as the past few episodes, though that's not to say that they are a disappointment by any stretch. As a Fist of the North Star fan, you can always play to my preferences by showing a highlight reel of cool punching animation. Not to mention the dazzling purple lightning effects at the edges of massive explosions or the truly intense red black hues in Luffy's enraged state. The minor nuclear detonations of Kaido's fireball impacts were particularly excellent, complete with shots of buildings shattered from the force of the shockwaves.

I think my favorite flourish was the through-line in this episode with Luffy's eyes. We get this great pair of moments in the final stretch of the fight. At first, when Kaido is laying down and Luffy is approaching and glowing red hot, there's a close-up on his eyes that's brimming with intensity and a horizontal white slash across his pupil. Then the moment Kaido hits him with his club, we get a close-up where Luffy's pupil is an indistinct bundle of sketchy lines. It's a nice way of communicating how Kaido's single blow has shattered Luffy's drive/vision for becoming king of the pirates, and in the end he is left pupil-less while on the ground. Those are the extra details that can make a scene truly memorable.

One Piece is currently streaming on Crunchyroll and Funimation.com.