she was first shown with her parents. On the island of elbaf, they were abandoning her. She, apparently was too much to handle and thus they were left with no choice but to leave her here, in the care of someone named Carmel, a person running an orphanage.
A new mother, that she grew to love, a place that she could call home. For a 5 year old child, its some of the basics of a healthy childhood..
But linlin, as was said earlier, was a lot too handle. Her already monstruous physicall strength was a problem. Although gentle and well meaning, as a child you need guidance and be taught right from wrong, something Linlin never received.
In fact, she was being enabled by this mother Carmel. At this point, you would be thinking, why is she doing this? Is she really that forgiving that she would let an unruly child like linlin do whatever she wanted?
But then we get this
The woman whom Linlin loved, the mother she cherished was a fake. She was a child trafficker working for the WG. The place she called home was merely a warehouse for products set to be shipped away, children who were robbed from their youth without them even knowing it.
It all made sense now, the reason she was so forgiving with linlin, is not because of some saintly personality or misguidied sense of parenting, no. It was pure self serving greed, linlin was so valuable as a product, her potential so high that she would be admiral or even fleet admiral, a perfect shield fo the Celestial dragons the marines serve. That she was willing to sacrifice everything else.
Its all set now, these children are soon to be sold. Afterwards is a birthday party that the children and mother carmel prepared for BM's 6th birthday. A day supposed to be joyfull, but we as readers knew what was coming right after.
They had prepared one of big mom's favorite sweets, semla. Overjoyed with her new loving family. Big mom starts eating and crying, eating and crying...
And then
We get this panel, the narrator starts to ominously say that one day, on Linlin's birthday, Mother Carmel simply vanished, as well as the children. A family she just found, a mother that (on the surface) accepted her and whom she loved. A place she could call home. Everything vanished in an instant...
We as readers, slowly come to the realization that in her overjoyed feeding frenzy, she actually ate them all. A good natured young girl who had no one to teach her right from wrong,who was about to lose her family again. Ended up alone, but i guess.. in way, now they will always be with her...
Conclusion
All of this to say, that big mom, despite her flaws and the way she has been executed, is a deep and complex character. Who without proper guidance turned into the selfish and evil adult persona she has now, a persona who still carries her childish attribute. A woman whose childhood was robbed from her, and thus never outgrew it.
A lost soul ironically.
I am hoping for her to find her way back to the gentle soul she was before, i am hoping she gets past her trauma and comes to term with it, i feel like oda has been going this way with her interractions with chopper, and his interest in curing her.
I feel like, Olin is her true self, something thats trying to resurface and was only allowed to after all the years of being molded by evil meaning people led her to her current personality.
I leave you with this, this is big mom or what she could become. A positive force. The force that Lola thought she was, and i feel like lola's words will come true. Big mom or should i say Charlotte Linlin will help the strawhats down the line.