Current Events Rate The Oden Flashback
- Thread starter Topi Jerami
- Start date
2/10
1. Oden...Worst character post timeskip. Instead of adding emotional weight to the arc, rallying readers to cheer for the protagonists of the current day even more, it had the opposite effect. Oden was beyond a joke. Aside from being unoriginal af, he really serves to undermine the whole operation as the cause of Wano's decline is in huge part Oden's own fault for being a dumb fuck.
2. Scabbards sucked. Went into the flashback only liking Inu and Neko, and being mildly interested Ashura. Came out of the flashback disliking all of them. Their bond with Oden comes across as very superficial and seems at best like the relationship between the fleet commanders and Luffy, rather than that of Luffy and the straw hats. Just a pack of fanboys that don't really have any meaningful interactions at all until Oden's death which came across as almost comedic.
3. Toki was a mistake. Insane that you could have a character with time travelling powers from the void century and have her be as much of a forgettable background character as she was.
4. Orochi is a trash villain. His rise to power was idiotic and unconvincing, his relationship with Kaido was ignored. I don't hate him, I simply don't care at all for his character.
5. The pacing was awful. Classic Oda with slowing things down to a crawl during moments like the mountain god incident, then blitzing through Oden gathering the scabbards, Roger and WB's meeting etc.
6. The usual off panelling of things that could be interesting
7. Kaido is a joke and this flashback singlehandedly ruined his character and was a mess thematically for the arc
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1. I liked the chapter where Roger laughed. That is solely due to the nostalgia and the fact that the focus of the series was actually relevant for once
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Overall, really terrible flashback. We knew most of what happened in advance and honestly Oda could've just left it at that, because what we got was so underwhelming it wasn't even slightly worth it. So much lazy, and downright awful writing, underused characters, just a total waste of time tbh.
1. Oden...Worst character post timeskip. Instead of adding emotional weight to the arc, rallying readers to cheer for the protagonists of the current day even more, it had the opposite effect. Oden was beyond a joke. Aside from being unoriginal af, he really serves to undermine the whole operation as the cause of Wano's decline is in huge part Oden's own fault for being a dumb fuck.
2. Scabbards sucked. Went into the flashback only liking Inu and Neko, and being mildly interested Ashura. Came out of the flashback disliking all of them. Their bond with Oden comes across as very superficial and seems at best like the relationship between the fleet commanders and Luffy, rather than that of Luffy and the straw hats. Just a pack of fanboys that don't really have any meaningful interactions at all until Oden's death which came across as almost comedic.
3. Toki was a mistake. Insane that you could have a character with time travelling powers from the void century and have her be as much of a forgettable background character as she was.
4. Orochi is a trash villain. His rise to power was idiotic and unconvincing, his relationship with Kaido was ignored. I don't hate him, I simply don't care at all for his character.
5. The pacing was awful. Classic Oda with slowing things down to a crawl during moments like the mountain god incident, then blitzing through Oden gathering the scabbards, Roger and WB's meeting etc.
6. The usual off panelling of things that could be interesting
7. Kaido is a joke and this flashback singlehandedly ruined his character and was a mess thematically for the arc
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1. I liked the chapter where Roger laughed. That is solely due to the nostalgia and the fact that the focus of the series was actually relevant for once
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Overall, really terrible flashback. We knew most of what happened in advance and honestly Oda could've just left it at that, because what we got was so underwhelming it wasn't even slightly worth it. So much lazy, and downright awful writing, underused characters, just a total waste of time tbh.
In all honesty: Why are you still reading OP?
That's not meant to sound offensive or anything, just honestly interested. It has been clear that you're on a personal little warpath with the series since at least WCI or your last days at OJ.
Nothing wrong with that, I get that sometimes we just don't like things as much as we liked them before.
I just don't get why you don't drop the series then.
Instead of coming back week after week to voice your displeasure, you could do things you actually like.
Most of us got that stretch, where we weren't really happy with how things went down in OP, but it was that - a stretch.
To continue reading for multiple years, when all you really feel about it is bitterness is just confusing imho. Especially since nowadays a lot of your "arguments" really only reflect pure hatred on the series.
It really doesn't seem healthy to me and dropping it outright might be the best for you.
That's not meant to sound offensive or anything, just honestly interested. It has been clear that you're on a personal little warpath with the series since at least WCI or your last days at OJ.
Nothing wrong with that, I get that sometimes we just don't like things as much as we liked them before.
I just don't get why you don't drop the series then.
Instead of coming back week after week to voice your displeasure, you could do things you actually like.
Most of us got that stretch, where we weren't really happy with how things went down in OP, but it was that - a stretch.
To continue reading for multiple years, when all you really feel about it is bitterness is just confusing imho. Especially since nowadays a lot of your "arguments" really only reflect pure hatred on the series.
It really doesn't seem healthy to me and dropping it outright might be the best for you.
Lol, you don't need to worry about me. There's tons of much better stuff for me to read atm, so I really don't care what happens to OP. A while back OP was literally all I read so it was really annoying when it sucked, but now there's so much to choose from that I simply don't care. I'm not raging, I'm not mad, someone tagged me asking for my opinion, so I gave it honestly.
I'm almost 1000 chapters into a series I've been reading weekly from childhood, I'm not going to drop it regardless of how bad it gets, solely because I've invested so much time into it.
I'm almost 1000 chapters into a series I've been reading weekly from childhood, I'm not going to drop it regardless of how bad it gets, solely because I've invested so much time into it.
I feel like everyone is being way too harsh on this flashback mini-arc, overall it was actually pretty good in regards to the mind-blowing legend of Kozuki Oden and his untimely demise by the hands of Orochi.
What I don’t think a lot of people noticed is that this was not only Oden’s flashback, this was the Land of Wano’s flashback. We got some key information on not just the histories of Kozuki Clan yet also the treacherous past of the Kurozumi Clan. This laid down the groundwork for the anniversary of revenge during the Fire Festival.
I would also like to point out that this flashback mini-arc will probably go in tandem with the eventual Kaido flashback.
Of course, this flashback was certainly flawed with some of its lackluster moments and characters but for what it’s worth, it’s probably some of the best content we’ve ever had in One Piece. The lore was not expanded as far we might have wanted, but the Roger moments alone make up for the less appealing moments.
Honestly, this flashback should have ended 2 chapters ago but that’s One Piece for you, nothing unusual about Oda overdoing things.
Yes, Toki should have been more relevant/useful but I’m sure she’ll get her focus.
What I don’t think a lot of people noticed is that this was not only Oden’s flashback, this was the Land of Wano’s flashback. We got some key information on not just the histories of Kozuki Clan yet also the treacherous past of the Kurozumi Clan. This laid down the groundwork for the anniversary of revenge during the Fire Festival.
I would also like to point out that this flashback mini-arc will probably go in tandem with the eventual Kaido flashback.
Of course, this flashback was certainly flawed with some of its lackluster moments and characters but for what it’s worth, it’s probably some of the best content we’ve ever had in One Piece. The lore was not expanded as far we might have wanted, but the Roger moments alone make up for the less appealing moments.
Honestly, this flashback should have ended 2 chapters ago but that’s One Piece for you, nothing unusual about Oda overdoing things.
Yes, Toki should have been more relevant/useful but I’m sure she’ll get her focus.
I actually don't get it either.
I'm usually one of the first ones that comes out and critizises shaky writing, which is why I've been very critical of the second half of WCI. While it had its moments, I think it also had quite some sizable problems.
I really don't see any significant and objectively bad points about the flashback though. Trust me, I looked for them, just couldn't find any big problem with it. There are some shaky moments here and there and pacing could be a bit better at points, but the amount of hate it gets from some is just confusing and not really based on facts imho.
It's more like those guys had their mind made up once something happened that they didn't predict/like and after that they automatically downvoted every single flashback chapter in order to save face and avoid cognitive dissonance.
Funny thing is that going away from this forum, you immediately see that the flashback was actually even celebrated by the vast majority. While I wouldn't really celebrate it, it's still quite telling about the atmosphere on this forum though ...
I mean I usually listen to every criticism, too, but here I failed to understand 90% of the "arguments" brought up against the flashback. Those just weren't credible or legitimate arguments being made, just personal taste/disappointment.
I'm usually one of the first ones that comes out and critizises shaky writing, which is why I've been very critical of the second half of WCI. While it had its moments, I think it also had quite some sizable problems.
I really don't see any significant and objectively bad points about the flashback though. Trust me, I looked for them, just couldn't find any big problem with it. There are some shaky moments here and there and pacing could be a bit better at points, but the amount of hate it gets from some is just confusing and not really based on facts imho.
It's more like those guys had their mind made up once something happened that they didn't predict/like and after that they automatically downvoted every single flashback chapter in order to save face and avoid cognitive dissonance.
Funny thing is that going away from this forum, you immediately see that the flashback was actually even celebrated by the vast majority. While I wouldn't really celebrate it, it's still quite telling about the atmosphere on this forum though ...
I mean I usually listen to every criticism, too, but here I failed to understand 90% of the "arguments" brought up against the flashback. Those just weren't credible or legitimate arguments being made, just personal taste/disappointment.
I give it an 8/10.
Everything up to the last handful of chapters was really good. It had WB, Roger and some nice teases to the treasure that is one piece. Plus it was a good introduction to Oden and his nine scabbards. It's just the ending and Oden's characterization fell apart for me. I guess Oda was in a hurry to get back to the main storyline, but I just think the ending needed a bit more fleshing out. Despite that the last chapter had a nice emotional punch, and I do hope there's a little more to it by the end of Wano if only to expand on a few more things.
Everything up to the last handful of chapters was really good. It had WB, Roger and some nice teases to the treasure that is one piece. Plus it was a good introduction to Oden and his nine scabbards. It's just the ending and Oden's characterization fell apart for me. I guess Oda was in a hurry to get back to the main storyline, but I just think the ending needed a bit more fleshing out. Despite that the last chapter had a nice emotional punch, and I do hope there's a little more to it by the end of Wano if only to expand on a few more things.
I won't rate it but it doesn't pass for me.
I think this flashback always had some major problems in its very basis. First of all, a well-known issue is that we already knew most of what we've seen to a point of redundancy. We never needed a explicit statement about how Oden died, nor about his travel with the Whitebeard Pirates, nor about his position as a division commander, nor about his feat cutting Kaido... There were so many pieces of information we were told in advance that seeing them happen lost part of their impact.
A second problem is Oden himself. From day one I could tell Oden didn't need to be so strong and I think this flashback supported such prediction. Personally I found way more interesting the "big fish in a small pond" approach, with Oden understanding that he's smaller than he thought and ultimately facing the consequences of leaving the country as a significantly strong individual would have taken over it with no way to stop him. This was slightly worked during his journey (one of the first things he experiences is the superior strength of Whitebeard and Roger, which amazes him), but at the end of the day resulted in a cheap narrative in his conflict with Kaido.
A weaker Oden would have justified way better his dancing behavior. Theoretically it "makes sense" as we've seen it, and Oda could certainly make a case for it, but a really weak one. The problem with how those five years were managed isn't much about its core but the context. Orochi is shown to be evil way too explicitly for Oden to ever believe him; Oden has travelled too much with the top dogs of the history for him to trust Kaido; and more importantly, Oden is one of the very few people to live the most enlightening experience in the whole world, which is learning about the Void Century. It gets to a point that naivety is literally impossible, Oden couldn't be so naive anymore. Especially as a character that isn't portrayed in a childish way like Luffy but as a cynical individual who basically didn't give a shit from day one and was smart enough to write his own story. There are some big inconsistencies in Oden's character that reminds me of Sanji's arc during Whole Cake Island, when Oda forced us to believe that our cook was kind to a point of contradicting previous showings of his personality (such as Punk Hazard, Skypiea or Zou). But in Oden's case it is especially disturbing because not only he learned the forbidden truth but such truth directly involved Wano and the Kozuki heir. So an Oden overwhelmed by the circumstances, with a foe impossible for him to overcome in spite of the whole legend built about his strength, with the pressure of what he discovered yet with a close-minded personality (which we saw in a previous chapter) forcing him to manage the problem by himself would have justified better his choices, I think. A way more imperfect Oden, overall, that would have given space for the Scabbards to shine.
This last chapter we come to know that Oden knew about a supposed prophecy about the Joy Boy who would arise after eight hundred years, which again reinforces the needlessness of his individual strength. And this is because, at the end of the day, I don't understand why Oden had to be so important in every way (everybody is amazed by him and loves him for no sufficient reason, basically, to the point of cringe). He's a dead man, the ones opening Wano are the Scabbards, and this flashback the one that should have established their characters. Yet it was Oden's flashback; just think about such absurdity for a second, it's like seeing Linlin's flashback as Carmel's instead of hers, or Sanji's as Zeff's, and so on. In my ideal view of the events Oden would have followed the "big fish" thread I mentioned in a way more dynamic description of the events, with both sides clashing, Oden cutting Kaido but exhausting himself by throwing all his haki in the attack, yet giving an opportunity for the Scabbards to run away but for Orochi to boil him down. How Oda chose to narrate the events felt boring and clumsy, which leads to the following point: the absolute lack of inventiveness.
In Oden's case this is especially painful because Oda had all the ingredients to narrate his death by following a parallel with an oden's recipe. This isn't the first time he does such thing and it usually works brilliantly; for example, the Rumbar Pirates die one by one as Brook compares it to different levels of musical interpretation depending on the people involved, and Linlin devouring the croquembouch is similar to eating her "family" as they are crunchy in mouth too. It would have been really effective to narrate Oden's last moments, from the preparings for war (mise en place) to the battle (the cooking) and his death (culmination), but Oda just missed this opportunity and chose the easy way to go. This choice leads to filling more chapters with content that not only feels anticlimatic (Oden and co. getting caught and put in a cage) but also has some big issues (Oden was allowed to keep his swords in prison, was given the opportunity to trust the bad guys once again for no reason, Toki could approach him while caught, etc.). Not only that, but it takes the space of other events that we know happened (Denjiro and Ashura versus Kaido, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi fight, Kaido confronting Momonosuke...) and which I hope will be shown later in the arc.
Two big problems are the two significant forgets. First, Oden was expected to come back to Whitebeard's crew after the year with Roger; we even have the Whitebeard Pirates hoping to get some souvenirs once he's back. While I don't really find troublesome that Oden didn't try to ask for external help to solve Wano's issues (he saw it as a Kozuki thing and bringing a force like Whitebeard to Wano would have threatened the whole country), I don't buy that the Whitebeard Pirates didn't find it weird that his crewmate never contacted them after five years in spite of expecting to meet again sooner than later. It is unbelievable that the crew didn't hear about Kaido's take over nor about the bad situation of Wano as the Roger Pirates disembarked in an already industrialized country and Oden noticed that things weren't going well. And these are the Whitebeard Pirates we're talking about, who dared to face the World Government in direct war.
The second problem is that we were said that the Beast Pirates attacked Oden beause they wanted to know about the secrets of Laugh Tale. This is explicitly stated back in Zou and makes no sense for Oda to have completely ignored it. Not only that, but it is an objective mistake that damages the quality of the flashback.
The best of this flashback wasn't Oden related, which is a bad thing. I'm very disappointed with this, I don't think Oden was interesting enough to carry the weight of the flashback nor I think the events were narrated in a smart way. Things like skipping Moria versus Kaido, how Oda didn't take advantage of the battle to hint other important Beast Pirates, the almost zero relevance of Toki (I'm confident this was just setting up her character and we will see her again during the Void Century flashback, though), the weak treatment of the Scabbards in spite of being the actual protagonists of the arc, the absurdly huge significance given to Oden when he didn't need to be so strong and a weaker himself would have worked better... I don't know, it's just an uninspired mess.
I think this flashback always had some major problems in its very basis. First of all, a well-known issue is that we already knew most of what we've seen to a point of redundancy. We never needed a explicit statement about how Oden died, nor about his travel with the Whitebeard Pirates, nor about his position as a division commander, nor about his feat cutting Kaido... There were so many pieces of information we were told in advance that seeing them happen lost part of their impact.
A second problem is Oden himself. From day one I could tell Oden didn't need to be so strong and I think this flashback supported such prediction. Personally I found way more interesting the "big fish in a small pond" approach, with Oden understanding that he's smaller than he thought and ultimately facing the consequences of leaving the country as a significantly strong individual would have taken over it with no way to stop him. This was slightly worked during his journey (one of the first things he experiences is the superior strength of Whitebeard and Roger, which amazes him), but at the end of the day resulted in a cheap narrative in his conflict with Kaido.
A weaker Oden would have justified way better his dancing behavior. Theoretically it "makes sense" as we've seen it, and Oda could certainly make a case for it, but a really weak one. The problem with how those five years were managed isn't much about its core but the context. Orochi is shown to be evil way too explicitly for Oden to ever believe him; Oden has travelled too much with the top dogs of the history for him to trust Kaido; and more importantly, Oden is one of the very few people to live the most enlightening experience in the whole world, which is learning about the Void Century. It gets to a point that naivety is literally impossible, Oden couldn't be so naive anymore. Especially as a character that isn't portrayed in a childish way like Luffy but as a cynical individual who basically didn't give a shit from day one and was smart enough to write his own story. There are some big inconsistencies in Oden's character that reminds me of Sanji's arc during Whole Cake Island, when Oda forced us to believe that our cook was kind to a point of contradicting previous showings of his personality (such as Punk Hazard, Skypiea or Zou). But in Oden's case it is especially disturbing because not only he learned the forbidden truth but such truth directly involved Wano and the Kozuki heir. So an Oden overwhelmed by the circumstances, with a foe impossible for him to overcome in spite of the whole legend built about his strength, with the pressure of what he discovered yet with a close-minded personality (which we saw in a previous chapter) forcing him to manage the problem by himself would have justified better his choices, I think. A way more imperfect Oden, overall, that would have given space for the Scabbards to shine.
This last chapter we come to know that Oden knew about a supposed prophecy about the Joy Boy who would arise after eight hundred years, which again reinforces the needlessness of his individual strength. And this is because, at the end of the day, I don't understand why Oden had to be so important in every way (everybody is amazed by him and loves him for no sufficient reason, basically, to the point of cringe). He's a dead man, the ones opening Wano are the Scabbards, and this flashback the one that should have established their characters. Yet it was Oden's flashback; just think about such absurdity for a second, it's like seeing Linlin's flashback as Carmel's instead of hers, or Sanji's as Zeff's, and so on. In my ideal view of the events Oden would have followed the "big fish" thread I mentioned in a way more dynamic description of the events, with both sides clashing, Oden cutting Kaido but exhausting himself by throwing all his haki in the attack, yet giving an opportunity for the Scabbards to run away but for Orochi to boil him down. How Oda chose to narrate the events felt boring and clumsy, which leads to the following point: the absolute lack of inventiveness.
In Oden's case this is especially painful because Oda had all the ingredients to narrate his death by following a parallel with an oden's recipe. This isn't the first time he does such thing and it usually works brilliantly; for example, the Rumbar Pirates die one by one as Brook compares it to different levels of musical interpretation depending on the people involved, and Linlin devouring the croquembouch is similar to eating her "family" as they are crunchy in mouth too. It would have been really effective to narrate Oden's last moments, from the preparings for war (mise en place) to the battle (the cooking) and his death (culmination), but Oda just missed this opportunity and chose the easy way to go. This choice leads to filling more chapters with content that not only feels anticlimatic (Oden and co. getting caught and put in a cage) but also has some big issues (Oden was allowed to keep his swords in prison, was given the opportunity to trust the bad guys once again for no reason, Toki could approach him while caught, etc.). Not only that, but it takes the space of other events that we know happened (Denjiro and Ashura versus Kaido, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi fight, Kaido confronting Momonosuke...) and which I hope will be shown later in the arc.
Two big problems are the two significant forgets. First, Oden was expected to come back to Whitebeard's crew after the year with Roger; we even have the Whitebeard Pirates hoping to get some souvenirs once he's back. While I don't really find troublesome that Oden didn't try to ask for external help to solve Wano's issues (he saw it as a Kozuki thing and bringing a force like Whitebeard to Wano would have threatened the whole country), I don't buy that the Whitebeard Pirates didn't find it weird that his crewmate never contacted them after five years in spite of expecting to meet again sooner than later. It is unbelievable that the crew didn't hear about Kaido's take over nor about the bad situation of Wano as the Roger Pirates disembarked in an already industrialized country and Oden noticed that things weren't going well. And these are the Whitebeard Pirates we're talking about, who dared to face the World Government in direct war.
The second problem is that we were said that the Beast Pirates attacked Oden beause they wanted to know about the secrets of Laugh Tale. This is explicitly stated back in Zou and makes no sense for Oda to have completely ignored it. Not only that, but it is an objective mistake that damages the quality of the flashback.
The best of this flashback wasn't Oden related, which is a bad thing. I'm very disappointed with this, I don't think Oden was interesting enough to carry the weight of the flashback nor I think the events were narrated in a smart way. Things like skipping Moria versus Kaido, how Oda didn't take advantage of the battle to hint other important Beast Pirates, the almost zero relevance of Toki (I'm confident this was just setting up her character and we will see her again during the Void Century flashback, though), the weak treatment of the Scabbards in spite of being the actual protagonists of the arc, the absurdly huge significance given to Oden when he didn't need to be so strong and a weaker himself would have worked better... I don't know, it's just an uninspired mess.
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I liked the panel of Queen/King in the war.
I liked the Scabbards interactions (not Oden).
I'm iffy on Orochi's motivation, seems to be too similar to Doffy's now that I've had time to sit on it.
Not a fan of the flashback or Oden's character, made that abundantly clear. So a flashback focusing on said character is obviously going to rate very low for me.
I liked the Scabbards interactions (not Oden).
I'm iffy on Orochi's motivation, seems to be too similar to Doffy's now that I've had time to sit on it.
Not a fan of the flashback or Oden's character, made that abundantly clear. So a flashback focusing on said character is obviously going to rate very low for me.
Pros
- Roger & WB clash
- Kaido earned some mastermind cred
- Seeing past DF users
Cons
- The flashback came right before the war
- Oden was a dick
- the Scabbards were boring (minus Raizo)
- Kaido lost some Brute cred
Based on this, I give it 5/10
What made everything worth it for me was this right here
The giddy look of excitement Roger has as he charges past he top men to call dibs on Oden is the 1st time I really saw the resemblance between him & Luffy.
Plus Scopper & Rayleigh's reaction:ROFLMAO:. It's like a Monster Trio Christmas future
8/10
- Roger & WB clash
- Kaido earned some mastermind cred
- Seeing past DF users
Cons
- The flashback came right before the war
- Oden was a dick
- the Scabbards were boring (minus Raizo)
- Kaido lost some Brute cred
Based on this, I give it 5/10
What made everything worth it for me was this right here
The giddy look of excitement Roger has as he charges past he top men to call dibs on Oden is the 1st time I really saw the resemblance between him & Luffy.
Plus Scopper & Rayleigh's reaction:ROFLMAO:. It's like a Monster Trio Christmas future
8/10
I am still not clear with myself on how I rate/view this flashback
The flashback was not perfect.
I think it lacked the emotional impact on multiple layers :
- the scabbards : I didn't like the rushed joining of the scabbards. Just a few panels for each was not enough : I wanted to see how their lives were before and really how Oden convince them to change path and join him. Nearly one chapter for each or one half a chapter wouldn't have bothered me.
We also lacked interactions between scabbards themselves as a family and with Oden during the years after when they improved.
I do not feel very connected to the scabbards and Oden relationship.
Same for Oden and Wano relationship when he improved Kuri etc.
For me this is maybe the major flaw of the flashback.
- Toki : yes I would have loved more interactions between them : I don't care at all that Toki didn't reveal anything about void century etc we know Oda now we know that he loves delaying stuff but I want character and relationship to be fleshed.
- the end for the execution and when Oden came back to Wano : maybe it lacked too in that area between Oden and Wano population.
But the flashback was not garbage either there were good things and very good things :
- Whitebeard is a legend and seeing him in his all might was awesome. Same for the original crew and the young ones : Marco, Vista etc.
- more Roger and his crew : and more lore for One piece. Prophecy, JoyBoy, Laugh tale etc.
- I like some character traits of Oden : I really like the blunt of the beginning when he ate on the corpses haha. I also liked even more when he discovered the world with WB crew and felt that the world his bigger than he dreamt of. In this moment Oden feelings felt real and I felt the impact as a reader.
I also liked the fact that Oden didn't come back to Wano to keep sailing and discovering the world secrets. He learnt the implication of his clan and the closure of Wano borders and he wanted to know more.
I like that because it showed his personality : he had a lot of things in Wano but he wanted more and that dream was stronger than anything.
I also like the fact that his adventures changed him.
But I wanted maybe more panels of Oden's youth which showed how Oden thoughts about Wano, how closed it is and how much he wanted more liberty and discover new things.
- Orochi is a big bitch and I like that. Maybe his rise to power was a little cliche mbut why not. And I think with Kaido they make a good team.
- Kaido for now is not an awesome villain but not a bad one too. Some of his traits are nice : smarter than we thought, and sometime more calm than the big brute we could have thought.
All in all I give this flashback a 12/13 out of 20.
The flashback was not perfect.
I think it lacked the emotional impact on multiple layers :
- the scabbards : I didn't like the rushed joining of the scabbards. Just a few panels for each was not enough : I wanted to see how their lives were before and really how Oden convince them to change path and join him. Nearly one chapter for each or one half a chapter wouldn't have bothered me.
We also lacked interactions between scabbards themselves as a family and with Oden during the years after when they improved.
I do not feel very connected to the scabbards and Oden relationship.
Same for Oden and Wano relationship when he improved Kuri etc.
For me this is maybe the major flaw of the flashback.
- Toki : yes I would have loved more interactions between them : I don't care at all that Toki didn't reveal anything about void century etc we know Oda now we know that he loves delaying stuff but I want character and relationship to be fleshed.
- the end for the execution and when Oden came back to Wano : maybe it lacked too in that area between Oden and Wano population.
But the flashback was not garbage either there were good things and very good things :
- Whitebeard is a legend and seeing him in his all might was awesome. Same for the original crew and the young ones : Marco, Vista etc.
- more Roger and his crew : and more lore for One piece. Prophecy, JoyBoy, Laugh tale etc.
- I like some character traits of Oden : I really like the blunt of the beginning when he ate on the corpses haha. I also liked even more when he discovered the world with WB crew and felt that the world his bigger than he dreamt of. In this moment Oden feelings felt real and I felt the impact as a reader.
I also liked the fact that Oden didn't come back to Wano to keep sailing and discovering the world secrets. He learnt the implication of his clan and the closure of Wano borders and he wanted to know more.
I like that because it showed his personality : he had a lot of things in Wano but he wanted more and that dream was stronger than anything.
I also like the fact that his adventures changed him.
But I wanted maybe more panels of Oden's youth which showed how Oden thoughts about Wano, how closed it is and how much he wanted more liberty and discover new things.
- Orochi is a big bitch and I like that. Maybe his rise to power was a little cliche mbut why not. And I think with Kaido they make a good team.
- Kaido for now is not an awesome villain but not a bad one too. Some of his traits are nice : smarter than we thought, and sometime more calm than the big brute we could have thought.
All in all I give this flashback a 12/13 out of 20.
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