Bonnie punching the WG agent as she leaves the Sorbet Kingdom definitely felt like the way Luffy knocked out the sea monster to leave Windmill Village.
Alpha doesn't seem to be destroying the letters on orders. To me it feels like a personal decision of hers because she appears to be a spiteful, hateful person that rejoices at the pain of others. It could imply that she never had a good relationship with her parents and as CP Agent, that could essentially be true. Anyways, if she hadn't done that, then Bonney would most likely never have gone out to sea. Because if she had received the letters, she would be quite content with Kuma's messages and wouldn't have the need to find him and figure out what was happening.
Most of cipher pol are sold orphans - some have their parent as a higher up in cipherpol but were more than likely never even in the same place for more than an assignment
Yeah, I don't think Saturn ever objected to the letters, so she's just petty bully. Really shows how the World Government attracts the worst kind of people.
My favorite theory right now is that Alpha is Kalifa's unsuccessful sister. One is stuck in a common Ciphor Pol and the other went from the super secret CP9, to the extra important Aigis Zero.
The reveal about the fact that Bonnie, while reading through Kuma mind, was crying down her knees because she may have found out about those precious letters written until the events of Marineford is heartbreaking 😭🌊🖤💖
I love how she says "I'm sure you guys have watched this movie in your spare time" meaning "One Piece is not spare time, One Piece is serious business". kkkkkkkkkkkkkk
Getting a prediction correct in one piece is like getting rewarded for having good grades 🤣 always love the feeling. Also love how during this arc we not only have Joyboy but also the hands of liberation in kuma and JoyGirl in Bonney both liberating themselves and others.
"i'm a little short on time, but, ppffffffff, *handwave* sure let me just... *creates an absolute masterpiece that brings multiple tears to my eyes*" OH. OKAY.
I'll be honest, I'm easy to forgive but Dragon's line about a "child being a parent's weak point" really, not only resonated with me in terms of ALL the parental death that's happened in this series all in order to protect their child, but it also made me respect his decision to stay out of Luffy's life; not only to protect him, but also protect himself from the hurt and trauma that comes with that; almost as if to admit that he's mentally quite weak, like he said, a "weak spot":
that's interesting, i havent read it but most online seem to hate him now. Most fans never say oda did things wrong, and imo he did fine from what i heard, im anime only. Why do you think people hate it. I see people today hate jjk, my hero, etc popular shows or manga...they said they all fell off, so whats the good one?
Personally I think the Age-Age fruit can't actually duplicate other fruit powers, it can just give you something similar. I don't think Bonnie's body actually became rubber in her distorted future, it just became stretchy enough to mimic the effect. I don't think she'd be able to turn people into logia users
I think the only other fruit she could do with that interpretation is the kilo-kilo fruit. I cant think of any more because like how would you mimic the chop-chop fruit for example. And i also think Zoans are impossible with this interpretation. I like this a lot because it makes sense and isn’t absolutely broken lol
@@braydenswinhart I think she could *maybe* imitate zoans by going to a distorted future where she has Mink heritage or something, but yeah stuff like the chop-chop fruit probably wouldn't be possible
@@Shinntoku i can see the *maybe* but i think that the future has to happen from somewhere, like the possibility has to be there. Maybe one of the celestial dragons is a mink, but I think that she has what she has from birth, but her future can go any way, even the smallest possibility. Thats my theory though but i do agree with the limited information we have yours is just as likely if not more.
My take is that her distorted fitire can tap into another relaity where she has different heritage And her stretchiness could be an extinct species for example, maybe Nika wasn't a fruit user but was a memeber of a ancient species who could naturally stretch
Seeing that CP8 agent destroying Kuma's letter, that he has written to make sure that his daughter knows that he thinks about her every day and to give her a lifetime of love, makes me extremely angry. On the other hand, it is really nice to see that Dragon does geniunely care for Luffy. Considering that Dragon was a marine, he probably knows better than anyone what the World Government is capable of.
@@harizwain4969It's already confirmed in the 1101, that' the agents were just giving her bitter lemon syrup ( as a placebo), as Dr . Vegapunk already gave her all the medicine she needed, it just needed the certain amount time, for the cure to start to take action .
"Dragon genuinly cares for Luffy" - was that meant as a joke? Because the chapter proved the opposite; He couldn't care less about Luffy. Luffy's existence is in his own words a weakness (in other words just a "thing" to be used against him).
@@tobiaswedinthen why did he visit him time to time when he was in goa kingdom? If he didn't care at all , he just asked kuma to not talk about it as it could be used against him that's all.
It's a testament to Oda's writing ability, that he can make characters he created on the fly in one day (the Supernovas) into legitimate shonen protagonists in their own right. Both Bonney and Law specifically could have entire mangas written from their POV. Bonney has a "main character" backstory on par with Luffy and the SH crew. And just like Law, Bonney is given an extremely overpowered potentially story-changing DF (signifying her relevance to the story). Also VP totally stored Kuma's memories as a failsafe in case the govt. reneged on their deal (which they are by going after Bonney).
The talk of Kuma pushing all his pains onto Saturn at around 17:00-18:00 made me think of a line from Tales of Symphonia: "Feel the pain! Of those inferior beings! As you burn in Hell!"
Really enjoy chapters like this that give new context to previous chapters, especially with how long One Piece has been going on and the crazy amount of breadcrumbs Oda likes to leave around, its always a great experience re-reading One Piece and coming across those breadcrumbs with new knowledge and feelings.
Personally, I don't think Bonny can mimic just any devil fruit - she doesn't even know a Nica fruit exists. She knows of the character (!) and envisions being him, and I think this is part of her limitation.
If her fruit is awakened, maybe she can change her lineage factor on some level to become any possible version of herself. Basically Bonney can access the multiverse of Bonneys.
Dragon’s comment about children being a parent’s weakness makes complete sense. It’s always been clear that Dragon cares about Luffy. Why do you think his first spoken line is “A pirate, eh? Not a bad idea”? Dragon is sacrificing everything he cares about for the safety of the world. That’s what makes him so interesting and why I want his backstory. It was great to see Stussy and Stella talking and to see more of who Stussy really is. Also, Alpha can go to hell! That scene with Kuma, Stella, and Stussy talking about writing Bonney nearly made me cry. And I’m not a crier. I hope the anime writes the CP8 agents spilling the beans as Conney actually spying on them. I think that would be awesome! I like Bonney saying "Give me a ______ future". I would love it if from here on Distorted Future had sub-names like "Distorted Future: Buccaneer" or "Distorted Future: Nika”. Prediction: Bonney is going to tell Luffy the true name of his devil fruit because she knows about the rubbery body. I don’t know if this is a Hot Take or not because I love this backstory and Kuma is now my second favorite One Piece character but I’m ready to get back to the main story.
13:00 This reminds me of Cindry on Thriller Bark. She was able to be herself one more time and go against Hogback. Now that I think of it, the Seraphims/Pacifista and Clones could potentially mirror the shadow monsters Hogback created through Moria. Like Vegapunk is Hogback and Moria is Saturn in terms of mirroring Thriller Bark.
18:10 With the Elders, I'd be ok with anyone besides Luffy dealing the final blow. In this case, Saturn in particular, I think it belongs to Bonney. Big Mom was taken by a tag team of Kid and Law, we can have Bonney and Kuma tag here, while Luffy's role is to keep Kizaru at bay. Otherwise, a tag team of Bonney and Luffy would work as well, and Sanji would be the one keeping Kizaru from joining the fight (nobody else would be able to match him in speed, he is an Observation Haki specialist and that could compensate any potential lack of speed, and him and Nami are the only ones besides Luffy with vertical movement)
OH EM EFF GEE!! FINAL BLOW Luffy + Bonney tag team: - G5 Luffy: Gomu Gomu no... - Nika Bonney: Distorted Future... - Both: ...DAWN GATLING! as they both proceed to punch Saturn through the face a gazillion times, but one-upping every version of Gatling we know: faster than any other version of Gatling Luffy has used, of course, but also with multiple arms like Katakuri's version, and 2X, as Bonney would also be doing it
15:00 Thinking back, wasn't Bonney one of the only Supernovae at Sabaody to _not_ encounter a Pacifista at all? IIRC only her and Bege avoided it. And only the Strawhats met the real Kuma.
I was surprised to see such mixed reactions to this chapter across the fandom. To each their own. For me, this was a possible top 10 chapter of the year contender. Bonney for Straw Hat! I know Oda probably won't do that, but I can hope.
I don't think Kuma knew Luffy was Joyboy or Nika exactly, just that his powers were similar. I think he was reminded of Nika and maybe even suspected a connection but didn't pursue it any further because of his connection to Dragon. I just like the idea that Kuma looked out for his friend's kid for no other reason than friendship, kindness and being reminded of his own child.
Wouldn't it be awesome if both Bonney and Luffy deliver the final punch to take down Saturn? Like Luffy is for sure going to do that because he is the Hero Of Liberation, while for Bonney, delivering that final punch is like getting revenge for all the things that Saturn has done to Kuma and basically ruin her life and the way they deliver those final punch is Luffy in his G5 and Bonney, know that we know her true potential, age up herself again to Nika-ish future and we get to see JoyBoy and JoyGirl punching Saturn at the same time. I get goosebumps just by thinking of this.
For me Dragon and his relationship with Luffy is the perfect example of the phrase said by the character of Deckard in the movie Blade Runner 2049 "Sometimes to love someone, you got to be a stranger." I believe that Dragon really loves Luffy but due to his position as leader of the revolutionary army he can't be with him for fear of being used like the government has used Kuma in these chapters using Bonney.
Let's goooo Merph!!!! Oda has been able to make me care for multiple characters in a single flashback, and I love that!!! I personally believe Bonney is being written to be a future Strawhat. I also think it's amazing how Oda is using love as the thematic emotion for Bonney, instead of the other heavier emotions he has used in the past for others (Pride for Franky, Loneliness for Brook, Tragedy for Robin, etc). Bonney has been loved and protected by her dad, her mom, the Sorbet folk, and as sad as she is now and recently learnt the sacrifice her dad took in his love for her, she will definitely be loved and protected by the strawhats should she lose her dad. She has become my favourite character in this flashback and love is consistent with her. Also, she has a loveable personality since she is a kid, but we have also been shown how smart and strong she is meaning she can hold her self in a fight when the situation calls for it. Edit; Wrote this comment a minute into the video. Lovedhearing your thoughts on the love Kuma has for bonney, later on
You kinda forgot that each new crew member needs to fit a role on the ship, not just have a emotional connection to the crew/Luffy. And there is no such role that would fit her. At best she might tag along like Momo, but without her own role on the Sunny = no membership.
@@tobiaswedinAnd here I was thinking the only prerequisite/ "fit" that matters is whether Luffy wants you as Nakama... It's not like the idea of the princess who wanted to adventure the sea, travelling with the Sun God she grew up hearing about liberating people under the sun as promised, is a compelling enough fit. I wonder...But alas.. Anywho, a gluttonous lil kid running around the Sunny sounds fitting to me
@@kamvantutuka1523 Well, based on 100% of previous Nakama; no. That's not enough to become a Straw Hat. Not saying I wouldn't want Bonney roaming around the Sunny but there is nothing to base it on more than the age old "new character focus = new nakama" banter that never fails to be incorrect.
@@orbboom6119 Not everything is a Roger parallell... Luffy has absolutely zero need for a "pirate in training" (which was Shanks' and Buggy's role on the Oro Jackson). Not to mention how Bonney, although young, is already an established pirate in her own right.
Thank you for bringing up the Thriller Bark fight! As much as the arc has its problems, I always thought the fight against Oars was severely underrated.
btw merphy when you started theorizing about being unable to erase the core of a being, do you remember the first thing we learned in this island? Lilith said that despite all her efforts she couldn't strip away the instincts from the mecha-sea beasts. I think you might be in the right thread :O
To be fair about the writing from Oda regarding CP8 spilling the beans, that actually tracks. Back during Enies Lobby, we were introduced to the missing three members of CP9--the more incompetent ones. Fukurou the Silent (the one with the zipper mouth) was incredibly loose-lipped, and it's why their covert operation failed and they had to kill 23 people instead of three.
I view bonneys alternate future as her embodying a possible future where say her fist grew really really large, mimicking what she thinks nika would do. But this power only works so well because she’s still a child and has a lot of future ahead of her for alternate futures.
My headcanon is that the WG never specified if he can sends letters or not so he just does it with hope that it reaches her and also Alpha is the disappointing older sister to Khalifa in the secret agent family so she was just bitter to see such a loving dad.
fun review and great art. There is no con firmation that sure Kuma knows Luffy was Nika at the time when he saw Luffy training he could have his suspicions then of course but maybe later he became sure the flashback is not over yet
everyone mentions how they cant wait for bonney to see gear 5. but i cant wait to see ivankov meet bonney. i think thatd be rather heart warming for bonney to see her uncle and have ivankov crying while saying how much she looks like her mom and whatnot
Just an awesome moment from Grandma Connney. She knew the whole time they were CP8 agents. And damn the Line from Stussy was so dark. Also Kuma said you have to choose to take the Pain, otherwise it goes back to person it came from
Wait is that what the distorted timeline is?! For me she was just channeling a timeline in which she was super buff, not one in which she had a rubber body!!! Oh my god that's so broken! That's like, even better than Blackbeard's devil fruit!
A hopefully not annoying question: What's the best way to suggest a manga to you? I found your channel via your Dragon Ball videos, and you loving that + One Piece makes me think you'd absolutely love a favorite manga of mine that (sadly!) flies under the radar. I see the Reading Spreadsheet has a tab for suggestions, but seemingly only for Patreon supporters (and yes, nobody has suggested mine yet!). You do have an email listed, is that fine for general communication or is that only for business matters? (Email would work well since the series has a weird licensing history and I could link community resources I help manage which explains where to find everything!)
What is really tragic is that Kuma's last course of action before losing his free will was spending two years on Shabody to defend Luffy's ship while their crew was gone. That meant that Kuma was on the same island as Bonnie and had just barely missed each other. Bonnie had no way of knowing Kuma would show up at Shabody and had to leave early because of the arriving navy. Meanwhile, Kuma himself wasn't allowed to meet Bonnie so even though he probably was aware Bonnie was right there, he couldn't go meet her. And because of this circumstances, they couldn't meet one last time before Kuma lost his free will.
I’ve seen the post online a ton, but the examples of “a child being a parent’s weakness” in OP is very compelling as a theme I’ve never looked at until this chapter. Not sure what I think it means in the totality of OP’s story, but it’s definitely something I’ll look for going forward
I think that Merph's prediction about Kuma still having a "core" part that is still him is 100% going to happen becauee this arc has had a running theme of people's innate nature being unchangeable: no matter what Lilith does the Shark Sea Beast always hunts, because sharks hunt, S-Snake defies the entire command hierarchy to listen to Luffy, because Boa loves Luffy, and S-Bear was being brought to Egghead in the first place because he was being "disobedient", because no matter how much gene-splicing and cyborg augmentations he gets, Kuma is a sweetie
The fact that Bonney is out there one-hitting Cipher Pol agents at ten years old is insane. I am guessing the distorted future attack only affects physical attributes. I can't even freaking contemplate it temporarily gives you any devil fruit out there, that is too much! Joy Girl incoming.
14:50 Not only is it a cliché but Oda did build up to this with Vega punk. the sea beast that Vega punk created, cannot completely remove its true nature even under his control
It would be cool to see again the crew working together to defeat Saturn. And someone brought up a great theory that what if Gear 5 Luffy uses a gum gum axe to Saturn like he was stepping on a spider
15:14 your choice of words made me think about how different fruits awaken...Luffy was awoken by the need for him to save/free people (same at Alabasta), maybe Kuma is awakened by attachment. like the World Government repelling Bonnie and Kuma from each other actually creates a magnetism between them that will awaken him? in the same vein, Bonnie would be awakened by being with Kuma again and just being allowed to be a child for the first time in 3ish years
I think Boney's distortion ability only allows her to change her shape and physical characteristics somewhat. She didn't really have a rubbery body, she only imitated it by shaping herself like it.
Regarding the possibility of Kuma using his own pain bubble against Saturn and how thematic it would be, this flashback and in fact the entirety of Kuma's life has been a thematic and ideological struggle between Kuma and Saturn. Back when Saturn encountered Kuma at God Valley, he told him "Someone of your ilk can only be allowed to be a slave or dead." And Kuma replied "If I have some kind of power, I'm going to use it to save as many people as possible, just like Nika." As it stands now, Saturn has won. Kuma is both a slave AND technically dead, because as much as he's dedicated his life to being like Nika and saving others, he never really tried to save himself as well. Which is why the REAL Nika will have to step in, to pull off a genuine miracle to free Kuma from both slavery and his apparent death, and finally defeat Saturn thematically, ideologically and physically.
Well, the thing you say about Kuma's "strongest attachment" is basically how this arc started, with Lilith explaining that basic instincts cannot be removed...
I'm convinced Oda purposefully had all those breaks just to throw off Murphy's video schedule and turn her into a permanent weekly chapter reviewer now
This chapter reminded of a book called "the last lecture", it's about a professor, a father who has terminal cancer and wants to leave a book for his children of his experiences and what he wishes he would have the time to say, with stories and advice.
I think the way Bonnie gets to Kuma is by reverting him back to a past before he became what he is now. Even if just for a little while so that he can help everyone in his last moment
I’m so ready to come back in a couple years and look at how significant this backstory will be. I feel it has foreshadowed some massive end game items that we just don’t see yet.
![[RPCS3] One Piece Pirate Warriors 2 - Whitebeard's Death and Blackbeard Steals His Power](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/CM5WnWW-2zA/mqdefault.jpg)
Bonnie punching the WG agent as she leaves the Sorbet Kingdom definitely felt like the way Luffy knocked out the sea monster to leave Windmill Village.
Alpha doesn't seem to be destroying the letters on orders. To me it feels like a personal decision of hers because she appears to be a spiteful, hateful person that rejoices at the pain of others. It could imply that she never had a good relationship with her parents and as CP Agent, that could essentially be true.
Anyways, if she hadn't done that, then Bonney would most likely never have gone out to sea. Because if she had received the letters, she would be quite content with Kuma's messages and wouldn't have the need to find him and figure out what was happening.
Wouldn't be surprised if Oda reveals in a SBS that Alpha's Dad abandoned her in her childhood which is why she's jealous of Kuma's love for Bonney
Most of cipher pol are sold orphans - some have their parent as a higher up in cipherpol but were more than likely never even in the same place for more than an assignment
Yeah, I don't think Saturn ever objected to the letters, so she's just petty bully. Really shows how the World Government attracts the worst kind of people.
@@ThatkidsinmiI like the theory that she's Kalifa's sister. She's the one CP9 member we know who's dad was also in Cipher Pol.
@@jackroberts2704 yeah my headcanon is that she is Kalifa's disappointing older sister
My favorite theory right now is that Alpha is Kalifa's unsuccessful sister.
One is stuck in a common Ciphor Pol and the other went from the super secret CP9, to the extra important Aigis Zero.
Especially since her dad was also in CP9. Kalifa is the favorite child.
The reveal about the fact that Bonnie, while reading through Kuma mind, was crying down her knees because she may have found out about those precious letters written until the events of Marineford is heartbreaking 😭🌊🖤💖
On the bright side, she finally got to read those letters.
I love how she says "I'm sure you guys have watched this movie in your spare time" meaning "One Piece is not spare time, One Piece is serious business". kkkkkkkkkkkkkk
okay but One Piece IS serious business
@@merphynapier42💯
How dare your artist visualize that heart-wrenching pain so beautifully 😭
Getting a prediction correct in one piece is like getting rewarded for having good grades 🤣 always love the feeling. Also love how during this arc we not only have Joyboy but also the hands of liberation in kuma and JoyGirl in Bonney both liberating themselves and others.
Weeell, she's kinda half correct at best. There was no actual confirmation that he was able to make the connection.
@@tobiaswedin surely more than half! There have been more than enough hints, gotta be at least 85%...
Just had to say: Tissine did an *INCREDIBLE* job with that artwork. How in the world was that something they did when they had little time?
I KNOW RIGHT
"i'm a little short on time, but, ppffffffff, *handwave* sure let me just... *creates an absolute masterpiece that brings multiple tears to my eyes*"
OH. OKAY.
Just like Franky on Thriller Bark when he built a bridge.
I'll be honest, I'm easy to forgive but Dragon's line about a "child being a parent's weak point" really, not only resonated with me in terms of ALL the parental death that's happened in this series all in order to protect their child, but it also made me respect his decision to stay out of Luffy's life; not only to protect him, but also protect himself from the hurt and trauma that comes with that; almost as if to admit that he's mentally quite weak, like he said, a "weak spot":
that's interesting, i havent read it but most online seem to hate him now. Most fans never say oda did things wrong, and imo he did fine from what i heard, im anime only. Why do you think people hate it. I see people today hate jjk, my hero, etc popular shows or manga...they said they all fell off, so whats the good one?
KUDOS FOR BEING RIGHT MERPHY!!! I am kinda happy that there is a break next week and that we ended on a slight high note...
Personally I think the Age-Age fruit can't actually duplicate other fruit powers, it can just give you something similar. I don't think Bonnie's body actually became rubber in her distorted future, it just became stretchy enough to mimic the effect. I don't think she'd be able to turn people into logia users
that makes sense
she may be able to modify parts of her body, having a giant arm for exemple, but not reproduce entire abilities
I think the only other fruit she could do with that interpretation is the kilo-kilo fruit. I cant think of any more because like how would you mimic the chop-chop fruit for example. And i also think Zoans are impossible with this interpretation. I like this a lot because it makes sense and isn’t absolutely broken lol
@@braydenswinhart I think she could *maybe* imitate zoans by going to a distorted future where she has Mink heritage or something, but yeah stuff like the chop-chop fruit probably wouldn't be possible
@@Shinntoku i can see the *maybe* but i think that the future has to happen from somewhere, like the possibility has to be there. Maybe one of the celestial dragons is a mink, but I think that she has what she has from birth, but her future can go any way, even the smallest possibility. Thats my theory though but i do agree with the limited information we have yours is just as likely if not more.
My take is that her distorted fitire can tap into another relaity where she has different heritage
And her stretchiness could be an extinct species for example, maybe Nika wasn't a fruit user but was a memeber of a ancient species who could naturally stretch
Seeing that CP8 agent destroying Kuma's letter, that he has written to make sure that his daughter knows that he thinks about her every day and to give her a lifetime of love, makes me extremely angry.
On the other hand, it is really nice to see that Dragon does geniunely care for Luffy. Considering that Dragon was a marine, he probably knows better than anyone what the World Government is capable of.
and also i think they aren't even giving bonnie medicine
@@harizwain4969It's already confirmed in the 1101, that' the agents were just giving her bitter lemon syrup ( as a placebo), as Dr . Vegapunk already gave her all the medicine she needed, it just needed the certain amount time, for the cure to start to take action .
"Dragon genuinly cares for Luffy" - was that meant as a joke? Because the chapter proved the opposite; He couldn't care less about Luffy. Luffy's existence is in his own words a weakness (in other words just a "thing" to be used against him).
@@tobiaswedinI feel like you’re trolling but can’t tell. He does care about him. It’s plain and simple
@@tobiaswedinthen why did he visit him time to time when he was in goa kingdom? If he didn't care at all , he just asked kuma to not talk about it as it could be used against him that's all.
Now I understand the words of zoro when he said "nothing happened", kuma went through much more.
I can fix Alpha.
Lmao
She'd go on Beta
😂😂😂😂
good luck 😂
She doesn't need fixing. She needs humbling.
It's a testament to Oda's writing ability, that he can make characters he created on the fly in one day (the Supernovas) into legitimate shonen protagonists in their own right. Both Bonney and Law specifically could have entire mangas written from their POV. Bonney has a "main character" backstory on par with Luffy and the SH crew. And just like Law, Bonney is given an extremely overpowered potentially story-changing DF (signifying her relevance to the story). Also VP totally stored Kuma's memories as a failsafe in case the govt. reneged on their deal (which they are by going after Bonney).
The talk of Kuma pushing all his pains onto Saturn at around 17:00-18:00 made me think of a line from Tales of Symphonia:
"Feel the pain! Of those inferior beings! As you burn in Hell!"
Really enjoy chapters like this that give new context to previous chapters, especially with how long One Piece has been going on and the crazy amount of breadcrumbs Oda likes to leave around, its always a great experience re-reading One Piece and coming across those breadcrumbs with new knowledge and feelings.
this art an your narration made me cry even more than when I read the chapter 😭
Personally, I don't think Bonny can mimic just any devil fruit - she doesn't even know a Nica fruit exists. She knows of the character (!) and envisions being him, and I think this is part of her limitation.
If her fruit is awakened, maybe she can change her lineage factor on some level to become any possible version of herself. Basically Bonney can access the multiverse of Bonneys.
KEEP BLACKBEARD AWAY FROM HER
Dragon’s comment about children being a parent’s weakness makes complete sense. It’s always been clear that Dragon cares about Luffy. Why do you think his first spoken line is “A pirate, eh? Not a bad idea”? Dragon is sacrificing everything he cares about for the safety of the world. That’s what makes him so interesting and why I want his backstory. It was great to see Stussy and Stella talking and to see more of who Stussy really is. Also, Alpha can go to hell! That scene with Kuma, Stella, and Stussy talking about writing Bonney nearly made me cry. And I’m not a crier. I hope the anime writes the CP8 agents spilling the beans as Conney actually spying on them. I think that would be awesome! I like Bonney saying "Give me a ______ future". I would love it if from here on Distorted Future had sub-names like "Distorted Future: Buccaneer" or "Distorted Future: Nika”. Prediction: Bonney is going to tell Luffy the true name of his devil fruit because she knows about the rubbery body. I don’t know if this is a Hot Take or not because I love this backstory and Kuma is now my second favorite One Piece character but I’m ready to get back to the main story.
13:00 This reminds me of Cindry on Thriller Bark. She was able to be herself one more time and go against Hogback. Now that I think of it, the Seraphims/Pacifista and Clones could potentially mirror the shadow monsters Hogback created through Moria. Like Vegapunk is Hogback and Moria is Saturn in terms of mirroring Thriller Bark.
Remember what VP said about the modified sea beasts, their instinct cannot be easily changed. What is Kumas natural instinct?
I do watch Disney movies in my spare time, and don't call me Shirley.
18:10 With the Elders, I'd be ok with anyone besides Luffy dealing the final blow. In this case, Saturn in particular, I think it belongs to Bonney. Big Mom was taken by a tag team of Kid and Law, we can have Bonney and Kuma tag here, while Luffy's role is to keep Kizaru at bay. Otherwise, a tag team of Bonney and Luffy would work as well, and Sanji would be the one keeping Kizaru from joining the fight (nobody else would be able to match him in speed, he is an Observation Haki specialist and that could compensate any potential lack of speed, and him and Nami are the only ones besides Luffy with vertical movement)
OH EM EFF GEE!! FINAL BLOW Luffy + Bonney tag team:
- G5 Luffy: Gomu Gomu no...
- Nika Bonney: Distorted Future...
- Both: ...DAWN GATLING!
as they both proceed to punch Saturn through the face a gazillion times, but one-upping every version of Gatling we know: faster than any other version of Gatling Luffy has used, of course, but also with multiple arms like Katakuri's version, and 2X, as Bonney would also be doing it
That drawing breaks my heart in the best way possible.
And bonney did this when she was NINE just imagine how strong she would be if she was luffy's age and had more time to master her devil fruit.
15:00 Thinking back, wasn't Bonney one of the only Supernovae at Sabaody to _not_ encounter a Pacifista at all? IIRC only her and Bege avoided it. And only the Strawhats met the real Kuma.
Do you now have an answer to Jay's question?
The question being "how much did it anger you?" - Jay d legend
ALL THE ANGER
I wonder if Bonney can REVERSE Kuma in years to a point before he became a Cyborg. That would be really cool.
Bonnie shows just how important imagination is for Devil Fruit, and how that is the real limitation to what you can do with them
I was surprised to see such mixed reactions to this chapter across the fandom. To each their own. For me, this was a possible top 10 chapter of the year contender. Bonney for Straw Hat! I know Oda probably won't do that, but I can hope.
I know I'm watching a power scaler when Alpha ripping up the letters doesn't get a second glance, and Bonnie using Nika powers is a deal breaker.
I don't think Kuma knew Luffy was Joyboy or Nika exactly, just that his powers were similar. I think he was reminded of Nika and maybe even suspected a connection but didn't pursue it any further because of his connection to Dragon. I just like the idea that Kuma looked out for his friend's kid for no other reason than friendship, kindness and being reminded of his own child.
Wouldn't it be awesome if both Bonney and Luffy deliver the final punch to take down Saturn? Like Luffy is for sure going to do that because he is the Hero Of Liberation, while for Bonney, delivering that final punch is like getting revenge for all the things that Saturn has done to Kuma and basically ruin her life and the way they deliver those final punch is Luffy in his G5 and Bonney, know that we know her true potential, age up herself again to Nika-ish future and we get to see JoyBoy and JoyGirl punching Saturn at the same time. I get goosebumps just by thinking of this.
I can’t believe she had her prediction right, take that W Murphy 😂😂, great artwork by artist by the way.
For me Dragon and his relationship with Luffy is the perfect example of the phrase said by the character of Deckard in the movie Blade Runner 2049 "Sometimes to love someone, you got to be a stranger." I believe that Dragon really loves Luffy but due to his position as leader of the revolutionary army he can't be with him for fear of being used like the government has used Kuma in these chapters using Bonney.
Let's goooo Merph!!!! Oda has been able to make me care for multiple characters in a single flashback, and I love that!!! I personally believe Bonney is being written to be a future Strawhat. I also think it's amazing how Oda is using love as the thematic emotion for Bonney, instead of the other heavier emotions he has used in the past for others (Pride for Franky, Loneliness for Brook, Tragedy for Robin, etc). Bonney has been loved and protected by her dad, her mom, the Sorbet folk, and as sad as she is now and recently learnt the sacrifice her dad took in his love for her, she will definitely be loved and protected by the strawhats should she lose her dad. She has become my favourite character in this flashback and love is consistent with her. Also, she has a loveable personality since she is a kid, but we have also been shown how smart and strong she is meaning she can hold her self in a fight when the situation calls for it.
Edit; Wrote this comment a minute into the video. Lovedhearing your thoughts on the love Kuma has for bonney, later on
You kinda forgot that each new crew member needs to fit a role on the ship, not just have a emotional connection to the crew/Luffy. And there is no such role that would fit her. At best she might tag along like Momo, but without her own role on the Sunny = no membership.
@@tobiaswedinAnd here I was thinking the only prerequisite/ "fit" that matters is whether Luffy wants you as Nakama... It's not like the idea of the princess who wanted to adventure the sea, travelling with the Sun God she grew up hearing about liberating people under the sun as promised, is a compelling enough fit. I wonder...But alas..
Anywho, a gluttonous lil kid running around the Sunny sounds fitting to me
@@tobiaswedin she could be like the shanks and buggy of the strawhats, like roger had the kids of the crew
@@kamvantutuka1523 Well, based on 100% of previous Nakama; no. That's not enough to become a Straw Hat.
Not saying I wouldn't want Bonney roaming around the Sunny but there is nothing to base it on more than the age old "new character focus = new nakama" banter that never fails to be incorrect.
@@orbboom6119 Not everything is a Roger parallell... Luffy has absolutely zero need for a "pirate in training" (which was Shanks' and Buggy's role on the Oro Jackson). Not to mention how Bonney, although young, is already an established pirate in her own right.
Connie reminds me A LOT my recently passed grandma, so yeah, I love her and I hope she is still alive.
Thank you for bringing up the Thriller Bark fight! As much as the arc has its problems, I always thought the fight against Oars was severely underrated.
How does Alpha even report the incident 😂?
"We were outsmarted by a geriatric dwarf and overpowered by a toddler."
Can't wait to see her in a demoted G6 agent position or something haha
btw merphy when you started theorizing about being unable to erase the core of a being, do you remember the first thing we learned in this island? Lilith said that despite all her efforts she couldn't strip away the instincts from the mecha-sea beasts. I think you might be in the right thread :O
After reading this chapter, I was sure Merph put a bug in Oda's studio. She says she rarely predicts things right but I think otherwise.
I really want Bonney to use her powers to age Luffy to his prime pirate king form for a few minutes to absolutely obliterate Saturn.
9:16 this is the "Agenda Piece" Jay always talk about
I'm LOVING these art pieces
To be fair about the writing from Oda regarding CP8 spilling the beans, that actually tracks. Back during Enies Lobby, we were introduced to the missing three members of CP9--the more incompetent ones. Fukurou the Silent (the one with the zipper mouth) was incredibly loose-lipped, and it's why their covert operation failed and they had to kill 23 people instead of three.
Excited Merphy is totally a vibe
Destroying the letters was so evil
I view bonneys alternate future as her embodying a possible future where say her fist grew really really large, mimicking what she thinks nika would do. But this power only works so well because she’s still a child and has a lot of future ahead of her for alternate futures.
Symbolically representing all the possibilities kuma and Ginny fought to give her in life
This makes zoro scene hit even more now
The art was really good. The letters in the foreground and Bonny center 👌
Watching you go over Kuma’s backstory after I read it really hits me harder and I start to tear up. Such a good review! You’re awesome!
My headcanon is that the WG never specified if he can sends letters or not so he just does it with hope that it reaches her and also Alpha is the disappointing older sister to Khalifa in the secret agent family so she was just bitter to see such a loving dad.
Bonney's power: Everything, everywhere, all at once
Wow, that art is amazing!
Great thumbnail background ❤❤
The artist you hired is actually insane wth
That art of Bonney is absolutely gorgeous!
i love one piece it has everything that i would ever want in a story
I super enjoy your chapter/ manga videos. Keep up the great work! 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾🤩🤩
fun review and great art. There is no con firmation that sure Kuma knows Luffy was Nika at the time when he saw Luffy training he could have his suspicions then of course but maybe later he became sure the flashback is not over yet
Thousand Sunny, a name deserving of being the Sun God ship's. With a Sun/lion decoration.
Yeah dont mind me, just watching while on my lunch break and casually being brought to tears with that art piece 😢
Yo what? That's a simple piece?
Your artist is amazing, they captured the amotion so well !!
everyone mentions how they cant wait for bonney to see gear 5. but i cant wait to see ivankov meet bonney. i think thatd be rather heart warming for bonney to see her uncle and have ivankov crying while saying how much she looks like her mom and whatnot
Just an awesome moment from Grandma Connney. She knew the whole time they were CP8 agents. And damn the Line from Stussy was so dark. Also Kuma said you have to choose to take the Pain, otherwise it goes back to person it came from
You got a channel artist now? DOOOOPE
I wonder if luffy is going to defeat Saturn with an axe attack, like he's about to splat a literal spider with his foot 🤔😏🤣
Bruh. What’s with that custom art piece. 20/10
Wait is that what the distorted timeline is?! For me she was just channeling a timeline in which she was super buff, not one in which she had a rubber body!!! Oh my god that's so broken! That's like, even better than Blackbeard's devil fruit!
Granny Connie is the MVP of this flasback!
Bonnie's devil fruit truly just takes the phrase told to children "You can be anything you want to be when you grow up." and just says, yeah, I can.
Great video and the art piece is absolutely stunning!!!
A hopefully not annoying question: What's the best way to suggest a manga to you? I found your channel via your Dragon Ball videos, and you loving that + One Piece makes me think you'd absolutely love a favorite manga of mine that (sadly!) flies under the radar. I see the Reading Spreadsheet has a tab for suggestions, but seemingly only for Patreon supporters (and yes, nobody has suggested mine yet!). You do have an email listed, is that fine for general communication or is that only for business matters? (Email would work well since the series has a weird licensing history and I could link community resources I help manage which explains where to find everything!)
..... Merphy.... I'm billing you for the extra therapy that artwork is going to make me need...... damn....
Love this new set up
The artpiece is beautiful
What is really tragic is that Kuma's last course of action before losing his free will was spending two years on Shabody to defend Luffy's ship while their crew was gone.
That meant that Kuma was on the same island as Bonnie and had just barely missed each other.
Bonnie had no way of knowing Kuma would show up at Shabody and had to leave early because of the arriving navy. Meanwhile, Kuma himself wasn't allowed to meet Bonnie so even though he probably was aware Bonnie was right there, he couldn't go meet her.
And because of this circumstances, they couldn't meet one last time before Kuma lost his free will.
I’ve seen the post online a ton, but the examples of “a child being a parent’s weakness” in OP is very compelling as a theme I’ve never looked at until this chapter. Not sure what I think it means in the totality of OP’s story, but it’s definitely something I’ll look for going forward
I think that Merph's prediction about Kuma still having a "core" part that is still him is 100% going to happen becauee this arc has had a running theme of people's innate nature being unchangeable: no matter what Lilith does the Shark Sea Beast always hunts, because sharks hunt, S-Snake defies the entire command hierarchy to listen to Luffy, because Boa loves Luffy, and S-Bear was being brought to Egghead in the first place because he was being "disobedient", because no matter how much gene-splicing and cyborg augmentations he gets, Kuma is a sweetie
OMG! I just get it... "SUN god nika" sailing on the "thousand SUNNY". Damn, that is genius!
Damn it artistic you did not need to go that hard! So beautifully sad it’s perfect for the whole theme.
The punch mirrors Luffy’s first day of travel against the lord of the coast. Both had to punch their way so they can start their pirate life!
The fact that Bonney is out there one-hitting Cipher Pol agents at ten years old is insane. I am guessing the distorted future attack only affects physical attributes. I can't even freaking contemplate it temporarily gives you any devil fruit out there, that is too much! Joy Girl incoming.
14:50 Not only is it a cliché but Oda did build up to this with Vega punk. the sea beast that Vega punk created, cannot completely remove its true nature even under his control
Morj had a prediction come true, Tekking had a prediction come true, and now Merphy. Congratulations, you made it to the big leagues. 😁
16:40 Merphy, remember that Haki protects you from some devil fruit effects. so Bonnie probably isnt strong enough to use her power directly on Saturn
It would be cool to see again the crew working together to defeat Saturn. And someone brought up a great theory that what if Gear 5 Luffy uses a gum gum axe to Saturn like he was stepping on a spider
15:14 your choice of words made me think about how different fruits awaken...Luffy was awoken by the need for him to save/free people (same at Alabasta), maybe Kuma is awakened by attachment. like the World Government repelling Bonnie and Kuma from each other actually creates a magnetism between them that will awaken him? in the same vein, Bonnie would be awakened by being with Kuma again and just being allowed to be a child for the first time in 3ish years
I think Boney's distortion ability only allows her to change her shape and physical characteristics somewhat. She didn't really have a rubbery body, she only imitated it by shaping herself like it.
Regarding the possibility of Kuma using his own pain bubble against Saturn and how thematic it would be, this flashback and in fact the entirety of Kuma's life has been a thematic and ideological struggle between Kuma and Saturn.
Back when Saturn encountered Kuma at God Valley, he told him "Someone of your ilk can only be allowed to be a slave or dead." And Kuma replied "If I have some kind of power, I'm going to use it to save as many people as possible, just like Nika."
As it stands now, Saturn has won. Kuma is both a slave AND technically dead, because as much as he's dedicated his life to being like Nika and saving others, he never really tried to save himself as well.
Which is why the REAL Nika will have to step in, to pull off a genuine miracle to free Kuma from both slavery and his apparent death, and finally defeat Saturn thematically, ideologically and physically.
I also find it interesting that Kuma is a foil to Dragon in parenting. Kuma left everything for his kid, Dragon did the opposite.
Bonnie as the next Strawhat? Seeing his powers and his demeanor making her see him as Nika and not wanting to leave now.
Well, the thing you say about Kuma's "strongest attachment" is basically how this arc started, with Lilith explaining that basic instincts cannot be removed...
Vegapunk's introduction WAS "No matter how much we alter someone, we can never truly get rid of who they are" so you definitely onto somethin
I'm convinced Oda purposefully had all those breaks just to throw off Murphy's video schedule and turn her into a permanent weekly chapter reviewer now
This chapter reminded of a book called "the last lecture", it's about a professor, a father who has terminal cancer and wants to leave a book for his children of his experiences and what he wishes he would have the time to say, with stories and advice.
I think the sbs with Oda showing the good and bad futures of the straw hats was low key a hint to whats going on now with Bonnies devil fruit powers
I think the way Bonnie gets to Kuma is by reverting him back to a past before he became what he is now. Even if just for a little while so that he can help everyone in his last moment
Jay did an incredible job keeping spoilers away last stream ...i thought he would spill something about yhe letters
I’m so ready to come back in a couple years and look at how significant this backstory will be. I feel it has foreshadowed some massive end game items that we just don’t see yet.