I think from now on you should just copy paste this answer to anyone who argues with you to be honest, saves you time
I shouldn't have to say this, I depise authoritarian arguments.. but when you completely ignore a demonstration based on narrative data, I don't have much of a choice.. ALl I can say is "I know what I'm talking about, I'm not speaking on a whim"
I might be wrong on a lot of things, but on storytelling, its very unlikely.
No, but the giant warrior pirates and the new giant warrior pirates may merge under harjudan.
This is not impossible. but I would find it odd. I think the strenght of the giant crew of the fleet is its small number specifically.
he talked about becoming king of the giants.
Oh ? Maybe, I completely forgot that.
I won't exclude the possibility of new giant joining the fleet then.
How do you know what he can and can't do?
Good question. I've explained that in that post:
I've come to understand that One Piece is written by someone with clear narrative patterns in mind. Those pattern are repeated in situations and in the characters. Most of the times, those pattern serves narrative purposes. For example:
- At the beginning of an arc, the strawhats will most likely be separated. This will allow the story to adopt multiple point of view and to enhance the different thematics.
- The way battle are structured in One Piece is always going from the outside to the inside and from the less relevant battles for the story at the time to the most revelant one (being Luffy's one), this is why the battle of the strawhats will finish mostly first, then the two commanders (Sanji and Zoro will have their times) and then Luffy will have the finishing move sometimes in tandem with the fight of the arc main protagonist or equivalent. Its important as it creates a form of countdown toward the end of the arc and a way to keep things exciting yet predictive enough for the reader to expect the following of the fights.
- In stories were Luffy is supposed to have a clear end goal, there is a narrative pattern in the way Luffy is presented in the arc : at first he will be in the discovering phase, to him is presented the reason why he will fight to the death (most of the time because of an act of kindness from the native population) and the character he will fight for, then Luffy faces a series of challenges and he is progressively cut from the narration.. this is were the story progress on the characterization and the story of the main protagonists of said arc. (Nami, Vivi, Conis/Kyros, Ace, Shiraoshi, Rebecca, Momo), then.. when everything seems lost and we arrive to the point of the narration were everything needs to feels like there is no tomorrow, when its the end for those character and their vision or when they are at their lowest, then Luffy appears.. You should CLEARLY remember those moments, the way Oda structures his narration here (Lack of Luffy (either from the readers or the main antagonist) > characterization > hope lost > reappearance of Luffy) is very simple, but extremely efficient to create amazing emotional moments and this is what transform Luffy more and more into a real hero:
So.. patterns are important in One Piece, they shape a LOT the final story so I think we should look for them or RATHER... the impossibilities of such pattern in some characters.
For example, we can't expect a character like Raizo to have the same emotionnal range as a character like Momonosuke, the reason because Raizo has a lot of attribute of a secondary character that tends - in One Piece - not to evolve too much.. BUT its not the case for a character like Yamato when we first meet them..
In reality character like Yamato have an latent "narrative potential" meaning that they do not fit into any real categories and are therefore movable in the spectra of character.
Another example of that is Bonney, we can't expect Bonney to have the secondary characterization or the same characterization as character that have pattern of characterization closer to rivals (smoker / kids / Law ) so we know that she has a narrative potential in the arc and the question is therefore: "does this potential can lead toward the crew ?
In reality, not so much as Bonney also shares a lot of characterization patterns with the "princess" characters of One Piece (Momo / Vivi / Rebecca) as they all have big external struggles that do not really have something to do with the strawhats per say and more with their environment or situations. (which is different with Nami and Robin or Sanji as their internal conflict was directly connected to their relationship with the Strawhats and Luffy)
So....
To sum up a little bit, if we want to predict a character, we must look at their NARRATIVE POTENTIAL. Its not something that is evident and will in fact be something that will jump in your face or not. This is the potential for the development of the 5 golden rules and the 10 PIllars in the characters and this can be predicted if we look a bit closer to the pattern of the character.
What we must therefore do, is rule out every characters that have very similar pattern with:
- Tiersary character: they are the character that accompagny the secondary characters or the strawhats. Most of the time not implicated emotionnally in the story, there are characterized by a quirky personnality and a few emotions.
- Secondary characters (most of the times characterized by a few emotion pattern and one funny character trait), they can have a few good impactfull moments and they are related to the prince or princess by blood or friendship
- Rivals and ally (most of the time characterized by a deep "edgy" characterization material, those are the character that you will have hard time to find in funny characterization for example)
- Strong antagonist(s) (most of the times characterized by their oppressive traits and actions)
- The funny antagonist/Antagonist allies: Those are the allies of the antagonist(s), characterized mostly by a funny cahracter traits or physical traits.
- The treasure character: This is the character that will act nicely with Luffy and will be the reason why he fight. It will be most of the time an innocent character that will face a very hard reality
- The helper of the princes and princesses and ally: Those are the character that acts as the helper of the "prince and princesses", they will most of the time sacrifice themself for the sake of the cause or help Luffy or the strawhat move forward in the adventure
- The guide of the will: This will be one type of character that will help either the strawhats or have an effect on the prince and princesses and the Kings and hidden rulers to the point that they the conflict of the story is most of the type a result of their actions. They are characterized by a the fact that they are a vessel to deliver STRONG moral values.
- The Kings and hidden rulers : The characters that are usually characterized through their status and the fact that they will most often be incapable of acting, they will most often distribute key information at the end of the arc or be a way through which key information will be delivered.
- The "prince and princesses": Sometime the treasure cahracter also, its the character that Luffy will need to save in the arc and around which the theme of the arc will be developped. Its often the character with the best range of emotion and the character that will completely change.
- The members of the fleet: Those are specifically the captains of the fleets: They are characterized by their strong will and their complete absence of fear in front of danger and most of all, their independance. The two main characters of the fleet (Bartholomeo and Cavendish) have strong character arc as well.
As you can see... a character like Yamato is not obvious at the start of their journey, so they fit COMPLETELY the description of a character with huge narrative potential. Another character that fits this description right now are Vegapunk and Stussy. They both have immension narrative potential left, their story could go in a vast number of directions.
And... what this post made me finally realize is WHY I clearly choosed to focus on Carrot's character on the first place. I knew that she had a narrative potential, but I didn't really put word on it.
Its now done. Just like Yamato, you can see that Carrot ALSO have an amazing NARRATIVE POTENTIAL.
The things you must retain, the real "lesson" I wanted to give here about storytelling.. is that when a writer create a story, they create it with a specific "style". This "style" is what makes the writer shine in comparison to other artists. The style in storytelling is not only the way they write words, it uncompass a LOT of parameters:
- How you structure your story
- How you create emotions
- How you create your protagonist
- The personnals theme you are used in your story
- The way you creates secondary characters
- The way you make your protagonist shine through the plot
- The way you arrange your plot from the introduction to the climax
- The way you structure B-C plot lines and the way you make them interact with the main plotline
- The way you milk the thematic of the story in its every aspect (characters/situations/environments/plot etc.)
- How you write dialogues
- How you create rythm through panellin (for mangakas)
- How do you explain your magic/fighting/power systems through the narration
ETC.
There are a thousands of parameters to create a specific style. And Oda's style is extremelly pronounced. Meaning that Oda's style is so powerful that it can even be seen and shine through other styles (when for example the manga was adapted in Live action).
One Piece forged me. Quiete literally. So I've tried pretty much all my life to understand why Oda impacts me so much. During that process, I've come to understand through trial and error and the analysis of the case of Carrot and the comparison with my actual knowledge about storytelling, this specific style that Oda is using and why its so different than the style of Tolkien, Rowling or much closer.. Horikoshi (for ex.).
I do not understand everything, there are a lot of things that I still need to figure out about his style, but I'm seeing through the core principles.
So..
Like I said in the QUOTED post, one of the particularity of this amazing style is the obsession of Oda with patterns. And this is logical, the usage of pattern technically restrict the range of what it is possible to create... but all artist know that constrain is the mother of creativity. So it is possible that Oda is using willingly basic pattern as a way to create basic archetypes of characters that he will later develop.
For example, Law.
This character fits one big pattern boxe: The cynic rival.
This is a type of character that will be helping the strawhats not because of the strawhats but because of their own desires and motivations which will give them most of the time a really edgy characterization. Those characters are:
- Law
- Smoker
- Kidd
- Crocodile in Impel Down
- Lucci in Egg Head
Pretty basic archetype of character. But Oda is using that archetype to expend their story and characterization in order to make them into unforgettable character. To so much extense that they can also have an entire character journey like Law.
This is just an exemple (and I forgot a few categories in my quoted post) but this can be said for most of the characters (strawhats included).
Notice how characters in One Piece are very HARD to forget. THe reason is that specific usage of strong character archetype. When mixed with a strong character traits, characters who are sometimes one dimensionnal are shining through the story.
(it very possible that Oda is creating pattern inconsciously, this is a possibility)
-----
How do I know this ? Simply because I've put work to understand the story deeply and not just analysing it like most youtuber are doing.
I can be wrong on the future of the story (and gladly so, because it wouldn't be fun anymore if I wasn't) but when I say something very specific about the narration like the fact that Oda is using the thematics of wonder and vision in the quasi entierity of chapter 888 to enhance Carrot's characterization and her place at her post, I'm not inventing anything:
- I'm first asking myself the question of the purpose of this chapter in the narration of whole cake
- I understand that this chapter is focused on Carrot
- I link the common experience of the readers with the words of the characters seeing character and notice that its all about mysticism, magic and wonder.
- I relate this information with already preexisting data showing that Carrot is mainly constructed around the search of wonder. Mainly because of her interaction with the crew and her SECOND introduction
- I understand that with the transformation its this time not Carrot who sees the world but the world who sees Carrot
- I therefore come to the hypothesis that the Sulong transformation was firstly thought for Carrot.
- I verify the narrative construction of Carrot and the Sulong transformation to see if this hypothesis has a good ground:
- First I notice that the Sulong transformation is forshadowed multiple times during Zou therefore concluding because of my experience with Oda's writing, that he already had a good idea of what this transformation might be
- Second I notice that Carrot was not introduced once, but two times. Firstly showing her look out and cold blooded skills (the skill and personnality she depicted during the Sulong) and secondly to show the bright wonder seeking side of her personnality.
- Third I notice how Oda depicted Carrot in Zou. She was the first mink to appear (for the story of Zou) and since then she stayed a compagnon for the entierity of the trip. Oda going so far to create a specific ruling bird status that would allow the characters to go willingly toward the king of the day and king of the night.
- Fourth, I notice that the role of Carrot in whole cake iscircling around her role between the crew and the lookout post and the notion that anyone who waits has their turn eventually
- Those four informations are leading me to conclude that Oda already had in mind in the beginning of Zou the fact that Carrot would be a character that would accompagny the strawhats and shine in Whole Cake through the Sulong transformation.
- In fact I'm going farther to say that Carrot was constructed to depict the Sulong from the beginning or that the Sulong was constructed to make Carrot shine.
- In both case I conclude that the characterization of Carrot and the thematic of Wonder are central to understand chapter 888
- I notice that the place of Carrot in this chapter is the look out post and that the lookout post is THE place of the transformation
- I create the hypothesis that the post of Carrot might be also linked thematically to the transformation
- I notice all the allusion to the lookout post during this chapter
- I notice the fact that most character are seeing Carrot through binocular just like Carrot is using them to see the world
- I remember that this post was first taken by Pedro
- I remember that the moment of the death Pedro was for Carrot the moment she remembered his words about the strawhats and herself.
- I conclude that during whole cake, there was a implicite passing of the torch between Pedro and Carrot in term of character. This is reaffirmated by the fact that Carrot in chapter 888 is explaining that she is acting like Pedro would in her situation.
- I also conclude that this passing of torch is also showed through the post of look out as the revelation for Carrot's future comes on this post also.
- With those information I can therefore safely say that the transformation of Carrot is also linked to her post, which is something that can be also explain symbolically by the fact that the lookout post is literally a representation of Carrot's character. Its passive and full of wonder for the surrounding during the day and completely cold, active and majestuous in front of the moon and danger.
- Notice that I concluded all of this without even thinking about Carrot as a strawhat yet.
- In conclusion, I can say that the look out post, being a post using the notion of "seeing" is central in chapter 888 just as much as Carrot and her transformation.
This is an simple example where I can say "I know" because I have ALL the elements to know. I'm not inventing those elements I deduce them from the narration and my own experience. Weither those elements are put pursposefully or not by Oda in the story, they are still creating all those patterns and thematics. They are therefore important to understand why some parts of the story are the way they are.
--- Now...
Considering HOW i would do it. I simply need to extrapolate what I learned from Oda and his patterns and do this:
- First you would need to create Yamato as a character very protective about any kind of stuff and people. This would be a character with potential deep trusting issues or completely over protective. But yet, you would make her overally adventurer in the same times.
- You would need to give her a treasure to protect, the best would be to be something alive, someone meaningfull and innocent
- Since she needs to have a link with Oden, you could linked her act of protection of her treasure with Oden in some way, your choice
- You would need to rewrite her entire story in a way were this treasure fits the relationship between her and Kaido.. hey ! Maybe you would make the treasure Yamato's young sister. Maybe its the sister who is fan of Oden in that story and Yamato is over protective of her and her dream. Maybe Yamato sister had a mother that Kaido massacred over time.
- You would also need to create a setup where there is a third child (this is important for later)
- You would need to rewrite Yamato's flashback in order to make Yamato loses her sister in the very moment that she left her to seek for adventure and when she thought her sister was safe... maybe to the hands of Kaido.. You would therefore creates a character completely traumatized by the fact of not being able to protect her treasure even if it wasn't her fault. Which would create a strawhat'ish obsession.
- You would give her -for example, but there are for sure better ones - the dream to protect the entire THINGS/people that she loves from bad people
- You would need to make Yamato eats a new kind of fruit during the present story, the "split split fruit" a mythical zoan fruit that allows Yamato to split herself character into two separate guardian entities that can transform (no just clones, but two entities with one that can dies while the other lives) and that can reform and therefore add their knowledge - the same way the clone of Naruto was were giving the added knowledge of all the clones. You would make one entities forever over protective and the other one completely thursty for adventure, thus exploring the two sides of Yamato's personnality. (I didn't explained this point the first time, but this one is done to create a character that can both live an adventure and protect the ship at the same time. You would need to create a personnality that is so bored with adventure that she wants to stay behind and one in complete opposition)
- You would need to introduced a character, alien to the story that would come and protect Yamato and Momo (remember the third child?)
- At the same time, you would need to reintroduce the notion that the Sunny is inhabited by a "soul".
- During a moment of hardship - your choice - you would make the actual kauberterman literally SAVE Yamato by giving the Sunny the appearance of her late diseased sister. (this would create a link between the Sunny and Yamato. This link is absolutely needed)
- You would of course ties Yamato story with a character arc for Franky as both love for the Sunny would become important
- Then, you would create an story arc (integrated in Wano) centered on the notion that she must overcome her grief, stop blaming herself for her sister's passing and seek actual revenge on Kaido. You would of course make her fight to the death to Kaido and you would let Luffy watch until she actually ask for help in tears. Then, you would make Luffy defeat Kaido not only for Tama, Momo, Pedro and Kinemon, but also for Yamato. (I'm not specially fan of not having Yamato give the final blow here but there must be a way to make that work if we rewrite things a little)
- During the arc, you would make of course Kaido completely wreck the Sunny. Which would be devastating for Yamato and the soul of the Sunny.
- In an emotional moment you would let Yamato have a final conversation with the klauberterman taking the shape of the sister of Yamato transforming this moment in a moment of grief overcoming where Yamato actually accept to let her sister go for who the klaubertman really is: the Sunny.
- This act of Kindness would forever change Yamato and pushes her not only to follow Luffy but also to forever protect the Sunny and the klauberterman, that would now randomly pop out because of her link with Yamato.
- You would need to reveal that the "alien" character is actually the third child, a sister/brother of Yamato and the late sister. That would stay behind while Yamato chooses to follow Luffy. (after all, someone needs to protect Wano still and you could give them the story of the actual Yamato)
- Later, when Yamato is facing on multiple side an overpowerwing ennemy that can also duplicate his body and therefore attack the strawhats while they are also fighting other ennemies, as a final act of bravery, you would actually make Yamato awaken her power and make her multiply to infinity in order to protect everyone. This would act as the shining Nakama action
Then.. and only then would you have created a story where the notion of "protection" is at the center of Yamato's development.
You see, when you write a story like Oda is doing, the post of a character not simply something that "she can do", its a literal extention of who they are as a character. Its an extention of their entire journey as a character.
I noticed that I made quite a few mistake in the first writing of this specific quote so I understand why it wasn't well understood.
I hope you understand now why it is important to have a character with a REAL thematic instead of a character with a simple addition of multiple sub thematics.