One Piece Vol 15
From Little Garden to Drum Island. (Dalton! CHOPPER!)
VOLUME 15
127
Broggy weeps floods (literally!) of tears for Dorry, until it turns out Dorry wasn't really dead, just knocked out. (He was saved by the fact that both their weapons were too worn-out by a century of fighting to deliver a killing blow.)
Cut back to Sanji on the phone with Mr. 0.
Mr. 0's not too bright. How does he manage to have a whole conversation and not notice that he's talking to the wrong person (he thinks he's talking to Mr. 3)? By contrast, Sanji is pretty quick to catch on. (Secret Agent Sanji!)
Sanji tells Mr. 0 that Princess Vivi and the Strawhats have been eliminated, as ordered.
The banana crocodiles are disturbing.
The Unluckies show up at the wax hut to confirm that the mission was carried out, and immediately attack Sanji; Sanji knocks them out. (Poor Sanji, he has no idea why he's being attacked by a vulture and an otter. He was asleep when the Unluckies showed up at Whiskey Peak.)
Sanji tries to explain away the sounds of fighting by saying that he just killed the last of the Strawhats (which leads Mr. 0 to conclude that Mr. 3 was lying when he said all the Strawhats had been eliminated).
Flower in the drink when Croc gets mad -- the first hint of his devil fruit power.
Mr. 0 orders Miss All Sunday to dispatch an assassin to eliminate Mr. 3 on his way back from Little Garden to Alabasta. (He doesn't take kindly to failure or deceit in his subordinates.)
Aw, Miss All Sunday scratching the crocodile under its chin. Cute. And kind of creepy.
Sanji discovers the Eternal Log Pose pointing to Alabasta that the Unluckies dropped (it was supposed to guide Mr. 3 and Miss Goldenweek back to Alabasta).
Somewhere on the Grand Line, a marine reports to Smoker, saying they've intercepted an interesting transmission. (Crocodile knew his line was being tapped by the marines.)
[Post-Enies Lobby]Are they in the Calm Belt? There's a sea monster (sea king?) in the foreground, possibly indicating that Smoker is using a ship with a kairouseki hull. The fact that the marines use kairouseki hulls to navigate the Calm Belt is not fully explained until Coby shows up after Enies Lobby.
128
Tashigi the "katana-baka", hee!
Black den-den mushi = wiretap device.
Smoker and Tashigi correctly surmise that they are dealing with a criminal organization that uses numbers for code names and communicates using written orders (they captured "Mr 11" at Luness the day before).
Smoker is intrigued by the mention of Princess Vivi, recognizing her as the princess of Alabasta whose current whereabouts are unknown.
Alabasta is in the midst of "one of those coup d'etat's that's so popular right now" -- another reference to widespread political instability.
[Speculation]How much of that might be due to Dragon's revolutionary activities? Alabasta, at least, can't be laid at his door (as far as we know).
I like that both Tashigi and Smoker are knowledgeable about world news and politics and quick to work out possible connections, so that they can bounce ideas back and forth off each other. They make such good partners.
Smoker makes up his mind to head for Alabasta, since it's their only clue to the whereabouts of the Strawhat pirates. (Hee, the Strawhats are the whale to Smoker's Captain Ahab. Seriously, Smoker, you haven't got better things to do? Criminal organization? Civil war? Missing princess? YOUR JOB?)
Every single distance shot of Smoker's ship has a sea monster in the foreground. [Post-Enies Lobby]They must be in the Calm Belt.
Cut back to Little Garden.
Vivi is about to go into a guilt-spiral for the fact that her coming to Little Garden almost got the giants killed for their hundred-year-old bounties, but Nami smacks it out of her.
LOL Luffy, Usopp and Karoo munching on the remains of Miss Goldenweek's rice crackers. (Nami: "Where did you get those...?")
More LOL: Sanji shows up. "Nami-san! Vivi-chan! And the rest of you leftovers (ato omake-dono)!"
Sanji has no idea why they're all so astonished (and overjoyed) to see that he has an Eternal Log Pose for Alabasta (he never heard about the log taking a year to reset).
Sanji and Zoro fighting over who won their hunting competition. ("My catch is bigger!" "No, mine!")
Dorry & Broggy agree to sacrifice their broken-down weapons in one final gesture of friendship: defeating the "demon" that lives in the sea to the west of the island.
"Pirate flag" (kaizoku-ki) glossed hokori (honor), aw (this is the title of the chapter).
The fearsome "island-eater" emerges from the water.
129
IT'S USOPP'S GOLDFISH. USOPP'S GOLDFISH!
(This is straight out of one of the tall tales Usopp told Kaya when he was trying to cheer her up. Usopp: "A giant goldfish? Where have I heard that before?")
Luffy and Usopp insist on sailing straight into the goldfish's maw, just as giants told them to ("Trust us, and keep going straight ahead!").
I don't know which thing I love better about this frame -- that Karoo is trying to cram himself through the door to escape into the hold, or that Nami is actually eating the last rice cracker that Luffy gave her.
Like Usopp's goldfish, the goldfish is so enormous that its poop can be mistaken for an island... a place called "Nothing Island," to be precise. Dorry and Broggy landed on it once.
LOL, so Nothing Island is the goldfish's poop. (That was where Miss All-Sunday wanted to send the Strawhats.)
[Alabasta]ROBIN YOU ARE A SICK WOMAN ILU <3.
The giant's blasting attack on the fish ("hakoku sovereignty").
[GIANT speculation]
This scene raised all kinds of questions for me, and I was surprised not to find any of them addressed on the wiki. It reeks of unexplained foreshadowing.
Japanese (someone check me on translation accuracy here):
D: 我らに突き通せぬものは ＊血に染まるヘビ＊のみよ
B: エルバフに伝わる巨人族最強の＊槍＊みよ！
D: The only thing we (it?) cannot pierce is "a snake soaked in blood."
B: Behold the mightiest "spear" of the race of the giants, handed down by Elbaf!
...
Together: HAKOKU! (覇国)
A snake soaked in blood, wtf? Yes, that's in quote marks in the text.
"Spear" (also in quotes in the text) is "yari," the same word that Zeff used when he was talking of Luffy's "shinnen" (conviction) during the fight with Krieg.
Hakoku: It's spelled with the same ha as haki (that can't be a coincidence), but the word isn't in the dictionary. Literally "ambition-kingdom." Viz translates it as "Hakoku Sovereignty," which... doesn't really mean anything.
OPW just calls it the Elbaf giants' most powerful attack, but it looks like it might be something a lot more significant than that. If I'm understanding the Japanese correctly, their people received the technique directly from the god of Elbaf (suggesting a very ancient origin). Something which dates back to the time of the Poneglyphs, perhaps?
Usopp comments that the giants can "cut through the sea itself."
[Water 7/Enies Lobby]Maybe a forward-looking hint to when Zoro and Sanji did just that on the way from Water 7 to Enies Lobby?
Dorry and Broggy's weapons are shattered for good.
Flashback reveal: Dorry and Broggy's epic battle began when they got into a quarrel over who killed the biggest sea king. (Just like Sanji and Zoro's hunting contest, LOL forever.)
Ahaha, NOW I understand why there are big caves on the island (Luffy was very insistent on pointing those out, when he was first looking out over the island from atop the dinosaur's head) -- those are the skeletons of the sea kings.
An exhausted Nami hands the Alabasta log pose over to Vivi to watch for her, saying that she's happy Vivi can return to her country now.
The flashback to Igaram asking Vivi if she has the resolve NOT to die. No matter who else she has to sacrifice, Vivi must live if Alabasta is to be saved.
Zoro resolving to become strong enough to cut iron.
Cut to "Sandy Island," just south of Alabasta, where Mr. 2 is arguing with his men (they're begging him to take on the job of eliminating Mr. 3). We only see "Mr. 2 Bon Kurei" (Mr. 2・ボン・クレー様) from the back here, revealing the lettering on the back of his coat: おかま道, Okama Way.
(Mr. 2 is often called Bon Clay, but apparently bonkure (盆暮れ) refers specifically to the combination of Obon and year's end, two traditional dates for the giving of gifts or work bonuses, so his name contains both a number and a holiday. More on this later.)
Mr 2 calls Crocodile "Zero-chan", hee. I also love his "achishi" for himself, which I gather is an even more effeminate version of atashi.
Back on the ship, Nami collapses and is found to be running a dangerously high fever.
130
No one knows what's wrong with Nami, but Vivi fears she might have a disease that is fatal if left untreated. Alabasta is at least a week away.
Vivi: "Doesn't anyone on this ship have any medical knowledge?" Everyone: *points to Nami*
Sanji frets that he knows how to serve nutritious food, and a few basics about preparing food for a sick person, but that's it. ("As it is, I serve Nami-san and Vivi-chan all the best food. If anything is rotting, I give it to you guys." Usopp: "HEY." Luffy: "But it's yummy anyway!") Plus, he can't determine which is the right sickbed diet for Nami if they don't even know what disease she has.
Luffy, Usopp and Sanji are all stumped, because none of the three of them has ever been sick. (Vivi: "Are you FREAKS?")
Nami refuses to let them leave their course to look for a doctor, because Vivi can't afford to lose any time. She's been concealing a newspaper article about the worsening situation in Alabasta to avoid frightening Vivi unnecessarily.
LOL, when Nami tries to put on a brave face and resume her duties, she finds Zoro is completely failing in the role of substitute navigator. ("What? I was following that cloud straight ahead of us, see?")
Vivi insists on making straight for Alabasta -- as soon as they find a doctor for Nami. "That's this ship's maximum speed!" Aw, Vivi. And she's right -- without Nami, they're screwed.
The ship barely averts an enormous cyclone because Nami sensed it coming before they could see it. Vivi comments that her skill as a navigator is uncanny.
[Speculation]Could this be a form of observation haki, or is she just drawing on subtle cues that most people aren't experienced enough to pick up on? Unclear.
As they sail south, the climate on board shifts toward winter (this is explained in two chapters later).
[Random and really not important, but... how on earth did they know how to find an island with a doctor? What navigation tool are they using?]
Zoro, up in the crow's nest, observes a person apparently walking on water.
131
Wapol's submarine-ship surfaces with Chess perched on top.
Wapol and his minions, meh, so tedious.
Wapol demands help finding his way back to Drum Island, and when he doesn't get it, he starts eating the ship.
Wapol's devil fruit power, the baku-baku (munch-munch) fruit, revealed.
Just before Luffy tosses Wapol overboard, Vivi pokes her head out of the cabin.
I completely missed the fact that Vivi recognizes Wapol -- didn't catch it until it comes up again later.
132
Awwww, love the scene where everyone is sacked out snoring in Nami's room to keep her company. (Look at Luffy with his foot tangled around Usopp, and Zoro with his head pillowed on Karoo -- I think Zoro likes animals.)
Flashback to Wapol's men retreating (to rescue Wapol before he sinks in the ocean, since he's a hammer), full of threats and keigo.
Vivi explains that the cold weather on board means they're approaching a winter island.
Another One Piece world geography lesson: winter islands and summer islands. When moving between islands, the climate at sea is highly unstable, but it stabilizes as one gets closer to land.
Arrival at Drum Island, where they meet with a very hostile reception. The people of Drum Island hate and distrust all pirates on sight.
Vivi giving Luffy lessons in how to be a proper pirate captain: learn when it's time to bow your head and ask for help. <3
Dalton (as yet unnamed) reluctantly agrees to take them to town, but warns that the country has only one doctor -- a crazy old witch.
133
Dalton: "This is a country without a name."
Hiking Bear!
Zoro's happy that his ankles have finally healed (oh Zoro!) so he can resume a proper training regimen. He decides to go for a winter swim.
It's kind of ridiculously adorable that Karoo seems to have borrowed Vivi's coat.
Luffy and Usopp bowing to the bear-lady, hee.
One of the villagers wishes Dalton luck in the upcoming election, but he says he's a criminal unfit for office (罪深い男).
Dalton officially introduced.
Dalton asks Vivi if they've ever met (he thinks her face is familiar), but Vivi denies it.
[Looking ahead]Of course Dalton recognizes Vivi, they met when she was a child!
Luffy and Usopp are at it again, building snow-monsters. Together, their collective mental age is five. (Also, LOL, the snow-monsters are all smashed two panels later. Sanji!)
Atop the highest mountain, Dalton points out a castle (a castle without a king, now).
I forgot Doctorine actually has a name (Dr Kureha).
Dalton explains that Dr. Kureha is a good doctor, but a bit eccentric. She's 140 years old (and she likes umeboshi a lot).
(Hee, I completely missed that Dalton's quirk is to add random facts to everything he says -- it's pointed out in an SBS later.)
I have to admit, I don't really get the Santa Claus motif, though it's hard to miss with Chopper the blue-nosed reindeer. Why, Oda?
When Dalton says that Kureha has been seen going around with a strange creature, Usopp immediately decides that it must be an abominable snowman.
[Punk Hazard]Heh, kind of funny considering that the Strawhats actually do meet a pair of abominable snowmen (the Yeti Cool Brothers) later on. I'm convinced that the Yeti Cool Brothers have some as-yet-unrevealed connection with Drum Island.
Sanji thinks it's awfully weird that there would be only one doctor for the entire island.
Luffy decides to take Nami and climb the mountain so they can see Dr. Kureha. Vivi thinks this is crazy, but Nami agrees right away (she doesn't want to slow the others down any longer).
Aw, Luffy and Nami high-fiving each other. "Leave it to me!"
Sanji volunteers to go with Luffy.
Aw, Dalton sitting down in the snow to keep Vivi and Usopp company while they wait. He explains that the country was devastated by a pirate attack less than a year earlier.
I had forgotten that Blackbeard was the pirate captain who attacked Drum Island.
[Volume 25]Nice silhouette of him and his crew, only, what, ten volumes before they're properly introduced? Why Drum Island, I wonder? Blackbeard never does anything without a reason, but he's really hard to figure out.
Blackbeard devastated the island with a crew of five, but some people are grateful for it, because it resulted in their king Wapol fleeing the country.
The others recognize Wapol as the name of the pirate who attacked their ship.
[Looking ahead]This was where I remembered why Vivi would recognize Wapol. Although, it seems like it's only at this point that she figures out why his face was familiar to her.
134
Cover arc: it doesn't really have much to do with Jango, but yay, Kaya's medical studies are going well. And Usopp's ex-pirate crew are looking out for her.
Vivi lets slip that she met Wapol when she attended a "meeting of kings" with her father when she was a child.
Vivi's fury when she learns that Wapol and his soldiers abandoned their kingdom and ran off without putting up a fight -- she's a queen through and through.
More than anything else, the people of Drum Island fear the return of Wapol and the restoration of the monarchy.
Cut to Luffy (carrying Nami) and Sanji.
It's Luffy's police policy - never wear long pants. (Luffy, quit with the shota bait.)
I absolutely love the scene where Luffy and Sanji are nonchalantly swapping snow legends while dodging the enraged baby Lapin. (Who told Luffy the whopper about people not sleeping in snow countries, I wonder? He says he heard it in Makino's bar. Yasopp, maybe? Usopp had to get his lying talent from somewhere.)
Every time I see the Lapin, all I can think of is the carnivorous bunny from Monty Python. (LITTLE! POINTY! TEETH!)
Luffy and Sanji encounter an army of adult Lapins.
Back in the village, the bear lady happens to walk by (lol, Usopp is bowing to her AGAIN, hasn't he figured out she's not actually a hiking bear?) and mentions that Dr. Kureha just showed up in a neighboring town.
Wapol's ship sights Drum Island at last.
Chopper! (So cute in Walk Point.) First introduction of Dr. Kureha; Chopper introduced as her "pet reindeer."
I don't know why Dr. Kureha is obsessed with telling people about "the secret to her youth." (She's only 139! She doesn't like people saying she's 140.)
Is she a quack or a real doctor? Only her patients know for sure.
135
Cover arc: Jango discovers Mirror Ball Island. *dies laughing* (Port Dance!)
Dalton, Usopp and Vivi head for the neighboring village (Cocoaweed, wtf village name) to try to catch Dr. Kureha.
Sanji warns Luffy to stay back and let him fight the Lapins, because if Luffy fights, Nami might get hurt.
Wapol's ship arrives in the harbor. Wapol and his minions Chess and Kuromarimo: still tedious.
Finding that Dr. Kureha has already left Cocoaweed, Dalton and co prepare to head for her next destination, Gyasta. (Dalton points out that ice skating is big there.)
When the news of Wapol's return arrives, Dalton leaves Vivi and Usopp to follow Dr. Kureha on their own.
Dalton begins to transform into his animal form as he races to meet Wapol.
136
The Lapins conspire with each other to trigger an avalanche.
Vivi and Usopp are so busy arguing over the map that they completely miss the sign to Gyasta. (LOL Usopp: "You're a princess, do something!" Vivi: "What does that have to do with anything!")
Kuromarimo reports to Wapol that Luffy and his crew are headed up to the king's (former) castle, in search of Dr Kureha (Wapol is horrified to learn she has been living in his castle).
Wapol's elite medical team: tedious AND creepy.
Dalton was once Wapol's subordinate (and he regards himself as partly responsible for the former government's many crimes), but he was the only soldier who stayed to defend Drum Island when Blackbeard came.
Drum Island was renowned for its medical knowledge, until Wapol recruited the country's best doctors for his own labs and exiled all the rest.
The only reason Dalton remained loyal to Wapol so long was out of a sense of duty to the former king, Wapol's father.
Dalton's bison form: the first time we see a Zoan type devil fruit user identified as such (the ushi-ushi fruit, model bison). (I think this is the first time the term (blank)-kei is used to refer to there being different types of devil fruits. Zoan-kei is the only type identified here.)
Dalton, Chess and Kuromarimo were once the three highest ministers of state under Wapol.
Chess knows that Dalton's greatest weakness is his willingness to sacrifice himself for others. Dalton wounded by Chess' arrows.
Having lost their way, Usopp and Vivi are stranded in the snow.
The avalanche triggered by the Lapins begins.
VOLUME 15
127
Broggy weeps floods (literally!) of tears for Dorry, until it turns out Dorry wasn't really dead, just knocked out. (He was saved by the fact that both their weapons were too worn-out by a century of fighting to deliver a killing blow.)
Cut back to Sanji on the phone with Mr. 0.
Mr. 0's not too bright. How does he manage to have a whole conversation and not notice that he's talking to the wrong person (he thinks he's talking to Mr. 3)? By contrast, Sanji is pretty quick to catch on. (Secret Agent Sanji!)
Sanji tells Mr. 0 that Princess Vivi and the Strawhats have been eliminated, as ordered.
The banana crocodiles are disturbing.
The Unluckies show up at the wax hut to confirm that the mission was carried out, and immediately attack Sanji; Sanji knocks them out. (Poor Sanji, he has no idea why he's being attacked by a vulture and an otter. He was asleep when the Unluckies showed up at Whiskey Peak.)
Sanji tries to explain away the sounds of fighting by saying that he just killed the last of the Strawhats (which leads Mr. 0 to conclude that Mr. 3 was lying when he said all the Strawhats had been eliminated).
Flower in the drink when Croc gets mad -- the first hint of his devil fruit power.
Mr. 0 orders Miss All Sunday to dispatch an assassin to eliminate Mr. 3 on his way back from Little Garden to Alabasta. (He doesn't take kindly to failure or deceit in his subordinates.)
Aw, Miss All Sunday scratching the crocodile under its chin. Cute. And kind of creepy.
Sanji discovers the Eternal Log Pose pointing to Alabasta that the Unluckies dropped (it was supposed to guide Mr. 3 and Miss Goldenweek back to Alabasta).
Somewhere on the Grand Line, a marine reports to Smoker, saying they've intercepted an interesting transmission. (Crocodile knew his line was being tapped by the marines.)
[Post-Enies Lobby]Are they in the Calm Belt? There's a sea monster (sea king?) in the foreground, possibly indicating that Smoker is using a ship with a kairouseki hull. The fact that the marines use kairouseki hulls to navigate the Calm Belt is not fully explained until Coby shows up after Enies Lobby.
128
Tashigi the "katana-baka", hee!
Black den-den mushi = wiretap device.
Smoker and Tashigi correctly surmise that they are dealing with a criminal organization that uses numbers for code names and communicates using written orders (they captured "Mr 11" at Luness the day before).
Smoker is intrigued by the mention of Princess Vivi, recognizing her as the princess of Alabasta whose current whereabouts are unknown.
Alabasta is in the midst of "one of those coup d'etat's that's so popular right now" -- another reference to widespread political instability.
[Speculation]How much of that might be due to Dragon's revolutionary activities? Alabasta, at least, can't be laid at his door (as far as we know).
I like that both Tashigi and Smoker are knowledgeable about world news and politics and quick to work out possible connections, so that they can bounce ideas back and forth off each other. They make such good partners.
Smoker makes up his mind to head for Alabasta, since it's their only clue to the whereabouts of the Strawhat pirates. (Hee, the Strawhats are the whale to Smoker's Captain Ahab. Seriously, Smoker, you haven't got better things to do? Criminal organization? Civil war? Missing princess? YOUR JOB?)
Every single distance shot of Smoker's ship has a sea monster in the foreground. [Post-Enies Lobby]They must be in the Calm Belt.
Cut back to Little Garden.
Vivi is about to go into a guilt-spiral for the fact that her coming to Little Garden almost got the giants killed for their hundred-year-old bounties, but Nami smacks it out of her.
LOL Luffy, Usopp and Karoo munching on the remains of Miss Goldenweek's rice crackers. (Nami: "Where did you get those...?")
More LOL: Sanji shows up. "Nami-san! Vivi-chan! And the rest of you leftovers (ato omake-dono)!"
Sanji has no idea why they're all so astonished (and overjoyed) to see that he has an Eternal Log Pose for Alabasta (he never heard about the log taking a year to reset).
Sanji and Zoro fighting over who won their hunting competition. ("My catch is bigger!" "No, mine!")
Dorry & Broggy agree to sacrifice their broken-down weapons in one final gesture of friendship: defeating the "demon" that lives in the sea to the west of the island.
"Pirate flag" (kaizoku-ki) glossed hokori (honor), aw (this is the title of the chapter).
The fearsome "island-eater" emerges from the water.
129
IT'S USOPP'S GOLDFISH. USOPP'S GOLDFISH!
(This is straight out of one of the tall tales Usopp told Kaya when he was trying to cheer her up. Usopp: "A giant goldfish? Where have I heard that before?")
Luffy and Usopp insist on sailing straight into the goldfish's maw, just as giants told them to ("Trust us, and keep going straight ahead!").
I don't know which thing I love better about this frame -- that Karoo is trying to cram himself through the door to escape into the hold, or that Nami is actually eating the last rice cracker that Luffy gave her.
Like Usopp's goldfish, the goldfish is so enormous that its poop can be mistaken for an island... a place called "Nothing Island," to be precise. Dorry and Broggy landed on it once.
LOL, so Nothing Island is the goldfish's poop. (That was where Miss All-Sunday wanted to send the Strawhats.)
[Alabasta]ROBIN YOU ARE A SICK WOMAN ILU <3.
The giant's blasting attack on the fish ("hakoku sovereignty").
[GIANT speculation]
This scene raised all kinds of questions for me, and I was surprised not to find any of them addressed on the wiki. It reeks of unexplained foreshadowing.
Japanese (someone check me on translation accuracy here):
D: 我らに突き通せぬものは ＊血に染まるヘビ＊のみよ
B: エルバフに伝わる巨人族最強の＊槍＊みよ！
D: The only thing we (it?) cannot pierce is "a snake soaked in blood."
B: Behold the mightiest "spear" of the race of the giants, handed down by Elbaf!
...
Together: HAKOKU! (覇国)
A snake soaked in blood, wtf? Yes, that's in quote marks in the text.
"Spear" (also in quotes in the text) is "yari," the same word that Zeff used when he was talking of Luffy's "shinnen" (conviction) during the fight with Krieg.
Hakoku: It's spelled with the same ha as haki (that can't be a coincidence), but the word isn't in the dictionary. Literally "ambition-kingdom." Viz translates it as "Hakoku Sovereignty," which... doesn't really mean anything.
OPW just calls it the Elbaf giants' most powerful attack, but it looks like it might be something a lot more significant than that. If I'm understanding the Japanese correctly, their people received the technique directly from the god of Elbaf (suggesting a very ancient origin). Something which dates back to the time of the Poneglyphs, perhaps?
Usopp comments that the giants can "cut through the sea itself."
[Water 7/Enies Lobby]Maybe a forward-looking hint to when Zoro and Sanji did just that on the way from Water 7 to Enies Lobby?
Dorry and Broggy's weapons are shattered for good.
Flashback reveal: Dorry and Broggy's epic battle began when they got into a quarrel over who killed the biggest sea king. (Just like Sanji and Zoro's hunting contest, LOL forever.)
Ahaha, NOW I understand why there are big caves on the island (Luffy was very insistent on pointing those out, when he was first looking out over the island from atop the dinosaur's head) -- those are the skeletons of the sea kings.
An exhausted Nami hands the Alabasta log pose over to Vivi to watch for her, saying that she's happy Vivi can return to her country now.
The flashback to Igaram asking Vivi if she has the resolve NOT to die. No matter who else she has to sacrifice, Vivi must live if Alabasta is to be saved.
Zoro resolving to become strong enough to cut iron.
Cut to "Sandy Island," just south of Alabasta, where Mr. 2 is arguing with his men (they're begging him to take on the job of eliminating Mr. 3). We only see "Mr. 2 Bon Kurei" (Mr. 2・ボン・クレー様) from the back here, revealing the lettering on the back of his coat: おかま道, Okama Way.
(Mr. 2 is often called Bon Clay, but apparently bonkure (盆暮れ) refers specifically to the combination of Obon and year's end, two traditional dates for the giving of gifts or work bonuses, so his name contains both a number and a holiday. More on this later.)
Mr 2 calls Crocodile "Zero-chan", hee. I also love his "achishi" for himself, which I gather is an even more effeminate version of atashi.
Back on the ship, Nami collapses and is found to be running a dangerously high fever.
130
No one knows what's wrong with Nami, but Vivi fears she might have a disease that is fatal if left untreated. Alabasta is at least a week away.
Vivi: "Doesn't anyone on this ship have any medical knowledge?" Everyone: *points to Nami*
Sanji frets that he knows how to serve nutritious food, and a few basics about preparing food for a sick person, but that's it. ("As it is, I serve Nami-san and Vivi-chan all the best food. If anything is rotting, I give it to you guys." Usopp: "HEY." Luffy: "But it's yummy anyway!") Plus, he can't determine which is the right sickbed diet for Nami if they don't even know what disease she has.
Luffy, Usopp and Sanji are all stumped, because none of the three of them has ever been sick. (Vivi: "Are you FREAKS?")
Nami refuses to let them leave their course to look for a doctor, because Vivi can't afford to lose any time. She's been concealing a newspaper article about the worsening situation in Alabasta to avoid frightening Vivi unnecessarily.
LOL, when Nami tries to put on a brave face and resume her duties, she finds Zoro is completely failing in the role of substitute navigator. ("What? I was following that cloud straight ahead of us, see?")
Vivi insists on making straight for Alabasta -- as soon as they find a doctor for Nami. "That's this ship's maximum speed!" Aw, Vivi. And she's right -- without Nami, they're screwed.
The ship barely averts an enormous cyclone because Nami sensed it coming before they could see it. Vivi comments that her skill as a navigator is uncanny.
[Speculation]Could this be a form of observation haki, or is she just drawing on subtle cues that most people aren't experienced enough to pick up on? Unclear.
As they sail south, the climate on board shifts toward winter (this is explained in two chapters later).
[Random and really not important, but... how on earth did they know how to find an island with a doctor? What navigation tool are they using?]
Zoro, up in the crow's nest, observes a person apparently walking on water.
131
Wapol's submarine-ship surfaces with Chess perched on top.
Wapol and his minions, meh, so tedious.
Wapol demands help finding his way back to Drum Island, and when he doesn't get it, he starts eating the ship.
Wapol's devil fruit power, the baku-baku (munch-munch) fruit, revealed.
Just before Luffy tosses Wapol overboard, Vivi pokes her head out of the cabin.
I completely missed the fact that Vivi recognizes Wapol -- didn't catch it until it comes up again later.
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Awwww, love the scene where everyone is sacked out snoring in Nami's room to keep her company. (Look at Luffy with his foot tangled around Usopp, and Zoro with his head pillowed on Karoo -- I think Zoro likes animals.)
Flashback to Wapol's men retreating (to rescue Wapol before he sinks in the ocean, since he's a hammer), full of threats and keigo.
Vivi explains that the cold weather on board means they're approaching a winter island.
Another One Piece world geography lesson: winter islands and summer islands. When moving between islands, the climate at sea is highly unstable, but it stabilizes as one gets closer to land.
Arrival at Drum Island, where they meet with a very hostile reception. The people of Drum Island hate and distrust all pirates on sight.
Vivi giving Luffy lessons in how to be a proper pirate captain: learn when it's time to bow your head and ask for help. <3
Dalton (as yet unnamed) reluctantly agrees to take them to town, but warns that the country has only one doctor -- a crazy old witch.
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Dalton: "This is a country without a name."
Hiking Bear!
Zoro's happy that his ankles have finally healed (oh Zoro!) so he can resume a proper training regimen. He decides to go for a winter swim.
It's kind of ridiculously adorable that Karoo seems to have borrowed Vivi's coat.
Luffy and Usopp bowing to the bear-lady, hee.
One of the villagers wishes Dalton luck in the upcoming election, but he says he's a criminal unfit for office (罪深い男).
Dalton officially introduced.
Dalton asks Vivi if they've ever met (he thinks her face is familiar), but Vivi denies it.
[Looking ahead]Of course Dalton recognizes Vivi, they met when she was a child!
Luffy and Usopp are at it again, building snow-monsters. Together, their collective mental age is five. (Also, LOL, the snow-monsters are all smashed two panels later. Sanji!)
Atop the highest mountain, Dalton points out a castle (a castle without a king, now).
I forgot Doctorine actually has a name (Dr Kureha).
Dalton explains that Dr. Kureha is a good doctor, but a bit eccentric. She's 140 years old (and she likes umeboshi a lot).
(Hee, I completely missed that Dalton's quirk is to add random facts to everything he says -- it's pointed out in an SBS later.)
I have to admit, I don't really get the Santa Claus motif, though it's hard to miss with Chopper the blue-nosed reindeer. Why, Oda?
When Dalton says that Kureha has been seen going around with a strange creature, Usopp immediately decides that it must be an abominable snowman.
[Punk Hazard]Heh, kind of funny considering that the Strawhats actually do meet a pair of abominable snowmen (the Yeti Cool Brothers) later on. I'm convinced that the Yeti Cool Brothers have some as-yet-unrevealed connection with Drum Island.
Sanji thinks it's awfully weird that there would be only one doctor for the entire island.
Luffy decides to take Nami and climb the mountain so they can see Dr. Kureha. Vivi thinks this is crazy, but Nami agrees right away (she doesn't want to slow the others down any longer).
Aw, Luffy and Nami high-fiving each other. "Leave it to me!"
Sanji volunteers to go with Luffy.
Aw, Dalton sitting down in the snow to keep Vivi and Usopp company while they wait. He explains that the country was devastated by a pirate attack less than a year earlier.
I had forgotten that Blackbeard was the pirate captain who attacked Drum Island.
[Volume 25]Nice silhouette of him and his crew, only, what, ten volumes before they're properly introduced? Why Drum Island, I wonder? Blackbeard never does anything without a reason, but he's really hard to figure out.
Blackbeard devastated the island with a crew of five, but some people are grateful for it, because it resulted in their king Wapol fleeing the country.
The others recognize Wapol as the name of the pirate who attacked their ship.
[Looking ahead]This was where I remembered why Vivi would recognize Wapol. Although, it seems like it's only at this point that she figures out why his face was familiar to her.
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Cover arc: it doesn't really have much to do with Jango, but yay, Kaya's medical studies are going well. And Usopp's ex-pirate crew are looking out for her.
Vivi lets slip that she met Wapol when she attended a "meeting of kings" with her father when she was a child.
Vivi's fury when she learns that Wapol and his soldiers abandoned their kingdom and ran off without putting up a fight -- she's a queen through and through.
More than anything else, the people of Drum Island fear the return of Wapol and the restoration of the monarchy.
Cut to Luffy (carrying Nami) and Sanji.
It's Luffy's police policy - never wear long pants. (Luffy, quit with the shota bait.)
I absolutely love the scene where Luffy and Sanji are nonchalantly swapping snow legends while dodging the enraged baby Lapin. (Who told Luffy the whopper about people not sleeping in snow countries, I wonder? He says he heard it in Makino's bar. Yasopp, maybe? Usopp had to get his lying talent from somewhere.)
Every time I see the Lapin, all I can think of is the carnivorous bunny from Monty Python. (LITTLE! POINTY! TEETH!)
Luffy and Sanji encounter an army of adult Lapins.
Back in the village, the bear lady happens to walk by (lol, Usopp is bowing to her AGAIN, hasn't he figured out she's not actually a hiking bear?) and mentions that Dr. Kureha just showed up in a neighboring town.
Wapol's ship sights Drum Island at last.
Chopper! (So cute in Walk Point.) First introduction of Dr. Kureha; Chopper introduced as her "pet reindeer."
I don't know why Dr. Kureha is obsessed with telling people about "the secret to her youth." (She's only 139! She doesn't like people saying she's 140.)
Is she a quack or a real doctor? Only her patients know for sure.
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Cover arc: Jango discovers Mirror Ball Island. *dies laughing* (Port Dance!)
Dalton, Usopp and Vivi head for the neighboring village (Cocoaweed, wtf village name) to try to catch Dr. Kureha.
Sanji warns Luffy to stay back and let him fight the Lapins, because if Luffy fights, Nami might get hurt.
Wapol's ship arrives in the harbor. Wapol and his minions Chess and Kuromarimo: still tedious.
Finding that Dr. Kureha has already left Cocoaweed, Dalton and co prepare to head for her next destination, Gyasta. (Dalton points out that ice skating is big there.)
When the news of Wapol's return arrives, Dalton leaves Vivi and Usopp to follow Dr. Kureha on their own.
Dalton begins to transform into his animal form as he races to meet Wapol.
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The Lapins conspire with each other to trigger an avalanche.
Vivi and Usopp are so busy arguing over the map that they completely miss the sign to Gyasta. (LOL Usopp: "You're a princess, do something!" Vivi: "What does that have to do with anything!")
Kuromarimo reports to Wapol that Luffy and his crew are headed up to the king's (former) castle, in search of Dr Kureha (Wapol is horrified to learn she has been living in his castle).
Wapol's elite medical team: tedious AND creepy.
Dalton was once Wapol's subordinate (and he regards himself as partly responsible for the former government's many crimes), but he was the only soldier who stayed to defend Drum Island when Blackbeard came.
Drum Island was renowned for its medical knowledge, until Wapol recruited the country's best doctors for his own labs and exiled all the rest.
The only reason Dalton remained loyal to Wapol so long was out of a sense of duty to the former king, Wapol's father.
Dalton's bison form: the first time we see a Zoan type devil fruit user identified as such (the ushi-ushi fruit, model bison). (I think this is the first time the term (blank)-kei is used to refer to there being different types of devil fruits. Zoan-kei is the only type identified here.)
Dalton, Chess and Kuromarimo were once the three highest ministers of state under Wapol.
Chess knows that Dalton's greatest weakness is his willingness to sacrifice himself for others. Dalton wounded by Chess' arrows.
Having lost their way, Usopp and Vivi are stranded in the snow.
The avalanche triggered by the Lapins begins.