Well, we do know one thing about the reaper: IT'S NOT FUCKING BROOK. But can we talk about that guy for a second?
Clearly many of us swear by Wano as a sequel to Thriller Bark. We see Wano as the story that makes that one significantly important, the way other stories like Alabasta or Marineford are and how Skypiea will be fully justified in the endgame. Before I even get to the characters I wanna talk about, let me say that no connection gets more explicit than the antagonist of the arc being Kaido's washed up former rival. Or two Shichibukai exchanged for two Yonko. If you think about how the narrative works you can't really avoid it.
So... Zoro is obviously the focus with what I'm talking about and we already know that he was the hero of thriller bark. It was impossible for anyone else to solve the final conflict if we understand that Sanji was supposedly saved from suicide. But...!
Brook was the third protagonist, as he debuted and joined.
Not only did he join, but the connection with Zoro after the fight is accompanied by the unique relationship during the fights. Brook's role is unlike anything we've seen, having literally been bonded to Ryuma and therefore instrumental in bringing Shusui to Wano, believed to be the remedy for a curse that befell the country. This was also a vital part of Enma through the exchange with Hiyori, who's pretty unlikely to be forgotten by Brook
These swords are important to the larger story of Wano, the bridge between the Shimotsuki and the Kozuki. Oden was the owner of Enma while the swords themselves are the remnants of the Shimotsuki clan. Koshiro is ironically impotent so the Shimotsuki clan is pretty much rendered down to the spirits of Kuina, Ryuma, Yasuie, and Ushimaru. I hope that someone can truly embody their collective wills during the fire festival, but I digress.
Brook is the swordsman who fought alongside Kinemon in another parent arc, Punk Hazard. All three fought dragons there and escaped death in the form of a creeping, barely sentient mass set to explode. Like thriller bark there are certainly several other threads you should have seen by now to get into how the parallels work. But I mention the swordsmanship of Brook because where Kinemon cuts fire and Zoro owns fire, Brook has the icy chill of the underworld. Bringing this full circle, what does new designation mean the mean in the context of camaraderie with the king of hell?
Obviously his character now is folded into the Get Robin subplot, but does any of this get you thinking about more than the obvious? The arc centered around the afterlife introduced Brook and Ryuma, and now the story where a villain chases the afterlife and the citizens send their wishes to the afterlife literally brings in the avatar of the afterlife, to face the king of hell.
Clearly many of us swear by Wano as a sequel to Thriller Bark. We see Wano as the story that makes that one significantly important, the way other stories like Alabasta or Marineford are and how Skypiea will be fully justified in the endgame. Before I even get to the characters I wanna talk about, let me say that no connection gets more explicit than the antagonist of the arc being Kaido's washed up former rival. Or two Shichibukai exchanged for two Yonko. If you think about how the narrative works you can't really avoid it.
So... Zoro is obviously the focus with what I'm talking about and we already know that he was the hero of thriller bark. It was impossible for anyone else to solve the final conflict if we understand that Sanji was supposedly saved from suicide. But...!
Brook was the third protagonist, as he debuted and joined.
Not only did he join, but the connection with Zoro after the fight is accompanied by the unique relationship during the fights. Brook's role is unlike anything we've seen, having literally been bonded to Ryuma and therefore instrumental in bringing Shusui to Wano, believed to be the remedy for a curse that befell the country. This was also a vital part of Enma through the exchange with Hiyori, who's pretty unlikely to be forgotten by Brook
These swords are important to the larger story of Wano, the bridge between the Shimotsuki and the Kozuki. Oden was the owner of Enma while the swords themselves are the remnants of the Shimotsuki clan. Koshiro is ironically impotent so the Shimotsuki clan is pretty much rendered down to the spirits of Kuina, Ryuma, Yasuie, and Ushimaru. I hope that someone can truly embody their collective wills during the fire festival, but I digress.
Brook is the swordsman who fought alongside Kinemon in another parent arc, Punk Hazard. All three fought dragons there and escaped death in the form of a creeping, barely sentient mass set to explode. Like thriller bark there are certainly several other threads you should have seen by now to get into how the parallels work. But I mention the swordsmanship of Brook because where Kinemon cuts fire and Zoro owns fire, Brook has the icy chill of the underworld. Bringing this full circle, what does new designation mean the mean in the context of camaraderie with the king of hell?
Obviously his character now is folded into the Get Robin subplot, but does any of this get you thinking about more than the obvious? The arc centered around the afterlife introduced Brook and Ryuma, and now the story where a villain chases the afterlife and the citizens send their wishes to the afterlife literally brings in the avatar of the afterlife, to face the king of hell.
