So despite Kid and Law being clearly set up to defeat big mom, many fans are doubting that this actually will happen, rather stating that buildup suggests Luffy will be the one to topple big mom. And Luffy will defeat her, in a way. But he won't literally return to whole cake island and fight her again.
I think purely from a plot perspective, a return to whole cake island makes absolutely no sense, nor does it make sense for big mom to be the main antagonist of elbaf. Big Mom has been the antagonist of two arcs straight. Wano is the finale of the vs 4 yonko saga, which big mom is a key component in. The main antagonist of wano, kaido, is portrayed to be even stronger than big mom is. Post wano, there are far more important antagonists, such as akainu, blackbeard, and Imu, that the story needs to focus on and there just isn't room for big mom as an antagonist.
So, while Luffy vs big mom does have some buildup, this plot progression would just make it seem forced. Why does Luffy even need to deal with big mom post-wano? He already has her poneglyph.
But many fans still cling on to Luffy saying "I'm going to fight you after kaido" and all the other times Luffy has said he would beat big mom. To that, I think it is really important to look at these statements in context. Luffy said this not knowing that big mom would follow him to wano, once big mom came to wano and allied with kaido, this is what he said:
Oda has had Luffy state this multiple times. That he/the alliance is going to beat Kaido, big mom, and orochi. I believe this statement is supposed to contextualize big mom's involvement in the war, that yes, she will fall. This is going to be the place where Luffy beats her. But obviously Luffy himself isn't going to fight big mom, rather Kid and Law will do it in his place.
But when the newspapers come out, what do you think they will say? Something to the sort of "Straw Hat Luffy lead an alliance that toppled kaido and big mom".
Ultimately, while there is decent evidence to suggest Luffy defeating big mom 1v1, I think these statements and the overall direction of the plot indicates this probably won't happen, even if perhaps Oda initially intended it to happen. Rather, Big Mom will fall by the hands of Kid and Law and Luffy will get credit for this as the leader of the alliance.
The only other issue to address is the thing I think most fans are annoyingly pedantic about, which is powerlevels. "Kid and Law can't beat big mom because powerlevels" is a bullshit statement. Big Mom isn't kaido and she is shown to be far more vulnerable than kaido due to her reliance on the homies and her mental fragility. Kid and Law already nearly defeated her by taking away her homies and throwing her into the ocean. Maybe they will win again by doing that, maybe Kid hits her on the head so hard she becomes O-Lin, maybe Law gets mortally wounded and gives Kid immortality which allows him to beat big mom, or maybe other characters join in the fight and finish off big mom. Hell, maybe big mom isn't technically KO'd by the end of the arc but leaves anyway after realizing the alliance is superior.
In any case, big mom needs to take an L here and Luffy is going to be credited as the one who gives it to her, there won't be a whole cake island arc part 2.
I think purely from a plot perspective, a return to whole cake island makes absolutely no sense, nor does it make sense for big mom to be the main antagonist of elbaf. Big Mom has been the antagonist of two arcs straight. Wano is the finale of the vs 4 yonko saga, which big mom is a key component in. The main antagonist of wano, kaido, is portrayed to be even stronger than big mom is. Post wano, there are far more important antagonists, such as akainu, blackbeard, and Imu, that the story needs to focus on and there just isn't room for big mom as an antagonist.
So, while Luffy vs big mom does have some buildup, this plot progression would just make it seem forced. Why does Luffy even need to deal with big mom post-wano? He already has her poneglyph.
But many fans still cling on to Luffy saying "I'm going to fight you after kaido" and all the other times Luffy has said he would beat big mom. To that, I think it is really important to look at these statements in context. Luffy said this not knowing that big mom would follow him to wano, once big mom came to wano and allied with kaido, this is what he said:
Oda has had Luffy state this multiple times. That he/the alliance is going to beat Kaido, big mom, and orochi. I believe this statement is supposed to contextualize big mom's involvement in the war, that yes, she will fall. This is going to be the place where Luffy beats her. But obviously Luffy himself isn't going to fight big mom, rather Kid and Law will do it in his place.
But when the newspapers come out, what do you think they will say? Something to the sort of "Straw Hat Luffy lead an alliance that toppled kaido and big mom".
Ultimately, while there is decent evidence to suggest Luffy defeating big mom 1v1, I think these statements and the overall direction of the plot indicates this probably won't happen, even if perhaps Oda initially intended it to happen. Rather, Big Mom will fall by the hands of Kid and Law and Luffy will get credit for this as the leader of the alliance.
The only other issue to address is the thing I think most fans are annoyingly pedantic about, which is powerlevels. "Kid and Law can't beat big mom because powerlevels" is a bullshit statement. Big Mom isn't kaido and she is shown to be far more vulnerable than kaido due to her reliance on the homies and her mental fragility. Kid and Law already nearly defeated her by taking away her homies and throwing her into the ocean. Maybe they will win again by doing that, maybe Kid hits her on the head so hard she becomes O-Lin, maybe Law gets mortally wounded and gives Kid immortality which allows him to beat big mom, or maybe other characters join in the fight and finish off big mom. Hell, maybe big mom isn't technically KO'd by the end of the arc but leaves anyway after realizing the alliance is superior.
In any case, big mom needs to take an L here and Luffy is going to be credited as the one who gives it to her, there won't be a whole cake island arc part 2.
