First off, the cover request with Hachi and the sheep was wholesome, but man, it did not prepare me for the emotional damage in this chapter. We finally get the backstory on King Harald, and it turns out he isn’t the villain we thought he was. The scene with Ida dying in the snow... heartbreaking. The way the weather changed to snow the day she died sets the tone for the whole arc. When he said, "Then it'll be just like the old days!! We can go on adventures together again!!" my heart sank because we knew she wasn't going to make it.
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But the real meat of this chapter is the LORE.
1. The Shanks Connection: We finally have confirmation! 14 years ago, Shanks was supposed to be a "Knight of God"?! The fact that he disappeared and Harald took his place changes everything we know about the God's Knights.
2. Imu and the "Depths Covenant": Seeing Imu on the Empty Throne is always chilling, but seeing them actually interact with a King is terrifying. The "Depths Covenant" mark being the same as Killingham's is a massive reveal. It explains why the World Government has such a hold on certain powerful figures. Harald didn't want this; he was tricked. He wanted Elbaph to be free and open, but Imu turned him into a puppet.
3. The Truth About Loki: This creates a whole new context for Loki. For years we thought Loki was just a bad seed who killed his father. But seeing Harald tie himself up and summon Loki and Jarul proves that Harald knew he was losing control to Imu’s power. He summoned Loki to stop him. Loki isn’t a patricide out of malice; he likely had to kill his father to save Elbaph from becoming Imu's military machine. That is tragic on a Shakespearean level.
The ending narration about the "mass slaughter" sent chills down my spine. The image of the "wise sovereign" losing his life while the narrator speaks is peak One Piece storytelling.
We are entering the darkest part of the flashback, and I don't think I'm ready for the next chapter. The break next week is going to be painful!
Pros:
Ida and Harald’s relationship adds so much depth.
Massive Imu and World Government lore drops.
Shanks' past gets even more mysterious.
Loki’s character arc is being set up for huge redemption.
Cons:
Break next week (Oda deserves it, but it still hurts!)
Verdict: An absolute masterpiece of a chapter that recontextualizes the entire history of Elbaph. 10/10.
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At first I thought I thought Oda was going to write Harald similar to Oden, but I don’t think there seems to be as much about Harald that would make him a fan-favorite like how Oden is.
ReplyDeleteSo now I get the feeling that the star of the flashback is really meant to be Loki. Even many of the things that Harald and Rocks do are done to either affect Loki’s life in some meaningful way or enhance his character in some meaningful way. Harald might just ultimately be there to make Loki look better, and in turn make Luffy look better. The fact that Oda seems to be trying to write Loki as sympathetic every chance he gets than with Harald might be a testament to that as well.
Harald had no plan. He died with a foolish self imagined hope that the World Government will help his country integrate with the world. The World Government actually never promised him this nor are they ones to fulfil promises.
ReplyDeleteWe may have underestimated the realism Oda puts into his side characters lol. Good guys doesn't equal intelligence + leadership skills. Harald and Oden are really just muscleheads with very low intelligence.
Other supporting points are. If you consider Harald's whole story line.
- He can't choose his own wife while being the all powerful king
- He lets his main love Ida live in poverty with no royal support, and any peasant can walk in and attack his family behind his back
- He lets his official wife attempt murder on his son behind his back, and he is totally clueless about it
- He is totally clueless about all the bad experience his son goes through
- His first son is not accepted by the country in general but he does nothing to correct the situation
- And finally his wife is murdered with poison by a nobody
Hes just a clueless person and big idiot in general.
The chapter made me think of when Saturn said the marines were the face or surface of the world government. Why is imu after an army that rivals the marines? You'd think incorporating elbaf to the marines would do the trick but it seems like the goal is for giants to function independently from marines. I get the feel that perhaps the WG is looking to get rid of marines.
ReplyDeleteI don’t get the hate Harald receives. Not talking about opinions, he is indeed a fairly dislikeable character, and that’s fine, but morally, he is consistent. Why would he consider the World Government and the Marines his enemies? Should he have handed over the wealth of his country and his people to a pirate asking him to join a war against the very world he was trying to integrate his nation into?
ReplyDeleteHe didn’t know about Imu or the deeply rotten core of the World Government. Sure, he may have witnessed injustices and tragedies, but not enough to see them as anything but steps toward a greater achievement of peace.
At the end of the day, he allowed Xebec to pass, an act that arguably stains his moral judgment the most, but he immediately rebels when receiving an order that could harm his people, even at the cost of breaking the agreement to join the World Government.