I agree on this thought process.
Let me question you on another Trio pattern (
@Urouge sorry if it's off topic).
Seems to me that Oda uses common patterns for the Top 3 "Commanders" of every estabilished Pirate organization (aka Emperors), something he doesn't do for World Govt, Revo Army & Marines for example.
- The 1st (Zoro, Alber, Marco, Katakuri) is the Stoic Efficient. A lethal and controlled character, often depicted with a visually sleek/cool aesthetic.
- The 2nd (Sanji, Queen, Ace, Smoothie) is the Flamboyant Wildcard. A flashier character, often more theatrical than the others and sometimes more defined in terms of character and gags.
- The 3rd (Jinbei, Jack, Jozu, Cracker) is the Pragmatic Enforcer. They are no-nonsense, usually look more grounded and utilitarian, with less focus on flair or edginess.
I think it's a pretty consolidated pattern at this point.
The only Emperor crew that still doesn't fit this theme is Cross Guild. Imo we have Mihawk as a perfect 1st and Crocodile as a perfect 3rd, but we miss the 2nd... which I think will be Doflamingo, who fits perfectly in there.
What's your opinion on this?
And connecting back to the thread, it could also be that the Ancient Weapons fit this pattern similarly with:
- Uranus as the 1st
- Poseidon as the 2nd
- Pluton as the 3rd
Could be a reach but there is the basis to speculate...
I don't think all Emperors are built the same, and that's because of how Oda wanna differentiate between Generations,
Notice how Marco, Alber & Katakuri are YC1 who joined their Captains from very young age, they are basically their children,
WB Pirates, BM Pirates & Beasts Pirates don't look up to their Captains just for their Power/Authority but also their Seniority in this lifestyle,
All Three of them played this game before with other Co-Crew Members & also other Subordinates such as Streusen & Marco's Father, so their Yonko Crews are more like Retirement Plan, not their actual Crew They journeyed with similar to Roger, Shanks & Luffy ... etc
WB's Trio were Marco, Jozu & Vista,
Kaidou's Trio were King, Queen & Jack,
BM's Trio were Katakuri, Smoothie & Cracker,
Ace wasn't WB's YC2, He was his Yamato,
And for Big Mom, her Ace/Yamato should be another Female, someone with Insane Potential, and imo that's Pudding (Her Third Eye might make her Stronger than people expect, I mean look at what Oda gave Bonney & Koby & Momo, so People shouldn't sleep on Pudding),
Now if you go to Current Emperors (Mainly Shanks, Blackbeard & Luffy), you notice that their Crews feels like an Alliance, rather than an Organization, Blackbeard Pirates literally presented themselves like that to Kuzan, saying that They are just together because of their common benefits, the same applies to SHs really, it's just that as MCs, They are very loyal & have strong friendship, but ultimately They are Ten Criminals with Impossible Dreams who decided to team-up, Luffy is actually least experienced of them (Beside Chopper) when Story Started, and Shanks Crew seems to be very similar tbh.
Now for Cross Guild, They are more similar to Current Yonko than Previous Ones, but as you pointed out, it's not really clear how They rank?
That's simply because we haven't yet met actual Captain of Cross Guild, nor have we met who is Dragon gonna serve,
Cross Guild & Revos Army are reserved last, because Oda is still hiding two major characters still not introduced,
Revos Army is like watching Shandians but without knowing who their Gan Fall gonna be,
Cross Guild is same thing but for Pirates/Villain Faction instead of Rebels,
As for Ancient Weapons, I don't think they fit this pattern, because I don't believe They were created by a Villain,
I believe Ancient Weapons were created by those who opposed him based on what he had,
I believe Onigashima Raid spoiled us everything about Ancient Lore & how those Weapons were created.