I have a pretty big One Pience POP (portriat of Pirate) Figure. These are very big and well made/detailed figures.
The show is simply amazing. You can spend more time watching theory videos on whats coming out. The artist
is simply amazing. The story is only at 60-70% completed (chapter 807 currently) he’s been working on it for over
seventeen years. I’ll add a picture of typical mangka schedules. He manages to draw, write and plan this series mostly
by himself. In a video of his work area we get to sneak at his idea books for the next 4 story arcs. All of this while follwing
this schedule to make 40-45 chapters a year.
That’s not the best part either. In the story he’s managed to foreshadow so many events to come. The complexity and depth of the series gets overshadowed by the goofy nature of the cast, main characters, abilities and art style. Without giving too much away he’s combined history, famous works, art, landscape into amazing stories and characters. Another picture below this post is an example.
Some of the higher level antagonists are designed with a mix of the rainbow, japanese folklore of the monkey, peacock and the dog fit into the roles and looks of old school Japanese famous actors in their most famous/noteworthy roles. Their abilities, names, attitudes and even how they play out come from a mixture of those design ideas. A recent story arc had the characters symbolizing Naploeon losing his alliance with France due to losses at waterloo along with the cost of Japanese’s rush towards industrialization. Most people missed out on the reference/foreshadowing of a character having two personalites. That reference was to Jackyle and Mr Hyde. The character was named for the street on which all the murders took place. The current story arc is starting and everyone missed the big clue for what the island would be like. The island so far is based on these: a Norweigen Island that looks like a creature, a painting by the guy who did the melting clocks and Yemen’s famous architecture.
In most anime especially shonen (male oriented fighting shows) there’s always the trophe of the legendary old fighter. “The World’s Strongest Man/fighter/ninja Nen user” who is both feared and respected by enemies and friends alike. In most shonen they forfeit their life for the benefit of the next generation. In the story of One Piece Whitebeard is no exception but what makes him great is the story behind him and what does. His Japanese voice actor does him just with that commanding, strong voice. It’s the character statue below that has got me so excited. He’s such a fantastic character in the series.
