This text was originally written for Arlong Park forums’ discussion thread.

This was a fun chapter, even if it felt like a little bit of a transitional one. We’re in the home stretch of volume 100 after this, so I’m expecting to see some real amping up in the next two chapters.

Kiku and Izo’s scene was sweet. I’m glad Oda found an chance to let them talk about Izo’s departure. Kiku’s Mony Python Black Knight-style determination is also really impressive.

The Scabbards are splitting up further, which still feels like an odd choice. There can’t be nearly enough roles for them all to have something to do. Cat fighting Perospero makes enough sense, but I think it would be best if Carrot gets to finish the job, especially with Bariete implying that blind anger kept her from reaching her full potential when they last fought. Kiku and Kanjuro, yeah sure, and it wouldn’t shock me if Kinemon gets involved there too. But what are Kawamatsu and Izo going to do on the Performance Floor? I can’t really see them being the endgame opponents for Queen and King, and Tama’s only a few minutes from being totally in control of the fodder war down there. Where is Oda going to find opponents for all these samurai?

And where the heck is Denjiro? Perhaps he went back for Orochi, having worked with him for long enough to know Orochi has another head left, and not wanting to let that take Raizo by surprise.

I just can’t get my head around what could be a better endgame for these characters as a group than their desperate but ill-fated clash with Kaido. Let alone how to top that for each of them individually. Oda, you madman, where are you trying to take this?

Yamato worrying about Luffy in an echo of Kaido’s introduction narration makes me worried that Kaido has some trick or secret skill we don’t know about yet. Something he only brings up when it’s just him and the last enemy standing. Like I’ve been saying, it’s too soon for Luffy’s upper hand to be as definitive as it seemed. We’re overdue for the pendulum to swing back to Kaido, and not it seems Yamato could arrive at the roof just in time to witness it happen.

Luffy and Yamato fighting as a tag team would be pretty cool, I have to admit. It wouldn’t get them all of the way there, but I think it could be a strong point for their crewmate candidacy, if it’s played right.

Sanji and Zoro’s bit is a clear highlight. There’s not much I can say that hasn’t already been said. It’s just really funny, a great homage to a classic, and a strong reminder of the comradarie hidden beneath their usual bickering. Law and Zoro falling onto Sanji’s shoulders in the flashback section was great as well.

PageOne’s looking too twitchy to be out for good. Usopp’s still going to have his chance.

I loved Nami’s attempts to manipulate Big Mom and Ulti against each other. That heart over her head when she turns to Ulti is a noteworthy inclusion 

I wonder if having a literal kick the dog (and slap the child) moment will have an impact on Ulti’s popularity. I think it makes a fun contrast going from her loud, bratty attitude to this kind of cruel reminder of why she’s a villain. You don’t get to the upper ranks of Kaido’s hyper-competitive crew by playing nice.

I’m glad Nami’s finally standing and fighting at the end. Nami gets angry a lot, but it’s usually a loving, mock kind of anger. And as such, it’s usually expressed through exaggerated face-faults. The last panel of this chapter isn’t that. None of her usual sharp-toothed caricatures, we get an actual scowl out of her. That kind of raw fury is not an expression we get out of Nami often. The blood and dirt on her face, from a battle far more hands-on and bloody than she’s usually allowed, only emphasises the effect and I love it.

I really hope the ending of this fight makes good on the setup. I definitely agree with the sentiment that Oda doesn’t handle his female characters and their fights spectacularly, but Nami VS Ulti is looking so much more like what I’d want to see.

All that said, the last spread definitely feels cramped. This is the first chapter in about nine months to drop to 15 pages, and the two page loss feels immediately apparent. May it be the last shortened chapter we have to deal with for a long time.

Next week: possibly an Usopp setup to follow the Nami one, now that running is off the table. And who knows what else with Big Mom there and definitely not the ally some expected her to be, Zeus, Law and Kid coming, and everyone else basically scattering to all corners of the map. We’re just two chapters from the probable end of a milestone volume, so keep your eyes open for big things.