I love how this channel is not another lore geek or theorist but rather someone who explores the deeper meaning and intricacies of one piece from a fresh perspective I have found joy having one of my favorite stories be acknowledged by someone with literary merit
That's also something i wanted for a while, it's not secret the average Anime/Manga fan aren't exactly scholars, especially fans of the Shonen genre which is by definition for children/young teens. Oda's writing is enjoyable for kids and teens but goes deeper into places that many fans can't appreciate, sometimes due to lack of literature knowledge and often by the language mistranslations.
You should check out Mr. Morj, he does some more structured videos thematically analysing the arcs, alongside talking about weekly chapter releases and some theory-crafting, though I like that his theories tend to rest heavily on his thematic analysis. He's standout in that regard as far as OnePiece fan channels go.
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy I never thought about that way, but you're right. It's more than a silly joke about male vs female taste in what games to play, or robots vs dolls.
Back in Enies Lobby Usopp was told by Sanji "Everyone has things they can and cannot do. I'll do what you can't do, and you do what I can't do." Against Perona Usopp does what no one else on the crew can do and stands up against a foe that has brought everyone else to their knees.
Brandon Sanderson in his more kid books series has someone whos super power is always being late. He survived a bullet because he was late for his own death.
Brook knows himself as bones and grief for longer than he knew himself alive. He is a person stuck in time and a stranger to human mannerisms, yet he is arguably one of the most positive and humorous characters in this series
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy yea idc what people think this is a good arc cause Its kinda like foxys arc where you either love or hate it tbh tho i think it mainly boils down to moria the main villain doing literally nothing until oars spirit from luffy is weakened spirit and can be controlled and also namis role in this arc is vary dissapointing with the reason why being absalom probrably is in the top 5 most hated characters and like foxy not in a good way it also has the unfortunate placement of being between 2 of the greatest pieces of writing ever published so anyone reading it is just trying to get to the next saga quickly and until moria shows up again this entire arc kinda gets forgotten
Love Thriller Bark and Moria's character His motto '' You Do it '' tells a lot about the tragedy of his character He mentions being defeated by Kaido and losing all his crew To never suffer such a loss ever again he decides to make an army of undead to avoid experiencing that pain, he's a broken pirate who had dreams too. And now he's only a shadow of his past self, pun intended.
Moria is, in essence, someone like Luffy, who lost. He had the ambition, the dreams, and the friends, but he was crushed by the New World, and he was traumatised and grew bitter. He lost his dreams and his crew, and is a shadow of his former self. No pun intended. His monologue just before he's defeated still gives me chills. His eyes are almost popping out of his head and he seems enraged, amused and weirdly, like he's about to cry, he tells Luffy that he WILL lose everything, because he sees his young self in Luffy, and he has to believe it is inevitable for someone like that to lose. If it's not, then it'd mean he could've prevented it. And for someone who's trauma is about losing someone, that guilt and the question of "could I have done something differently?" is always present. Moria's projecting himself onto Luffy, and he's trying to in essence prevent "himself" from going through it all again, if he in that moment believed Luffy could succeed, it'd mean Luffy isn't like him, that Luffy is somehow different than he is, which would mean that he COULD have done something different, so he could've been like Luffy. And for a traumatized person the idea of "It's my fault for not being better" is the worst kind of poison, it eats away at you and can drive you insane if you let it. Moria never dealt with his trauma. In his mind, he lost his crew because THEY died. It's easier to blame them on it, and then replace them with something you can lose, and something you don't get attached to. The Zombies. He can't bring the dead back to life, not really. But it's something he imitates constantly with his powers. And that's at the very core of his character. He keeps zombifying the dead around him in order to protect himself from the fact he lost the living around him, the ones he would raise in a heartbeat if he could. Oda does something similar with a few other characters going forward, and deals with this exact issue later on, but I wont spoil anything too harshly. However, if you want to avoid even some non-descriptive, vague explanations that may in theory spoil you, don't read any further. And for those who have read far enough: Look at Moria when he was young. Does he remind you of someone? Someone with a similar aesthetic, full of vigor and dreams, someone who headed into the New World with nothing but pure ambition pouring out of his every pore, and who tested his mettle against a Yonko, just like Kaido, only to be absolutely crushed? Someone, who like Moria, is another "mirror" for Luffy?
The scene where brook cried over how happy he was to be alive was so so emotionally affecting. Seeing someone(even a fictional skeleton) live through that much grief, and STILL come out the other end truly happy actually helped me come out of a funk I had been in for what felt like years. It’s amazing how long the series is and it still gets me teary eyed sometimes 😅
“We made a selfish promise and died under a distant sky where our voices couldn’t reach him. “I’m sorry, we died.” could never cut it! That death isn’t an apology! We gave our word as men that we would return!!!” I’m crying with Franky every time. I love that damn skeleton too! Yohohohoho! 😭😭😭
@AnimeCritical That One Piece is written by a human who lives in a society where sexual harrassment is unfortunately rampant-- but One Piece still treats women the best out of any other shounen out there, so I'm willing to overlook that flaw. Alsp, how I view the pervy gags has changed over the years. In Loony Toons, someone gets hit on the head with an anvil or something, it's funny, right? That's an act that would hurt or kill someone IRL, but it's not serious in animation. When pervy gags in anime are NOT at the expense of a minor or very unwilling participant that can't do anything about it, I still find them gross, but I've become more loony-toons rules when the women lean into it (Nami's hapiness punch) or hit back and there's consequences for the creep now. It's an act that is harmful in real life, but doesn't have the same in-universe consequences for the characters, and I really think if consent was more of a mainstream teaching (we all innately know dropping an anvil on someone would be bad, but kids in general DON'T innately know we shouldn't peep on people, that's gotta be taught) I think it would land more harmlessly. I still think it's valid to absolutely hate them, though. They are gross, because we DON'T live in that kind of society where we are all taught consent. But I, PERSONALLY, am no longer bothered by the gags and can even find them amusing.
Man it is hard to talk about Brook's death without being absoloutly choked by all the emotions both possitive and negative in that scene. Pride, grief, celebration,shame, comradery, defiance, recognition, sadness humor, and finally...lonelyness, impotency. This scene as an 15 year old anime watcher, not long after a pretty sad time in my life was finally turning for the better was exactly what i needed to grow as a person.
I love the moment at the end of this arc when Moria is simultaneously threatening/warning Luffy that if he continues on his path to the New World, he'll eventually suffer defeat and loss the same way Moria did. He essentially says "yeah, you beat me, but there are bigger monsters in these seas"
Bink's sake is one of my favourite fictional things in any piece of fiction. The music, the lyrics, the history it brings to the story. Oda specifically went to Kohei Tanaka( japanese musician) to have the melody written first and then oda wrote the lyrics for it for the manga. And then years later the anime adapted it with the melody. Both the japanese and English version of the songs are great.
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy btw, he's not joking about the breaking. not sure about "the best stretch" GOda has this thing where he keeps surprising you when you think you cannot be surprised anymore.
These next few arcs made me believe One Piece was special. I wish future arcs had maintained the quality and feel of Water Seven into Marineford. For a while here, the pacing, themework, and inter-connected stories were just unrivalled. It was truly an Epic, and walked the fine line between comedic innocence and epic fantasy story. The characters all seemed to be moving and growing. The world seemed to be growing and reacting. And every storybeat contributed to the over-arcing narrative in a way that felt deliberate. Each Arc felt so important and each character moment felt like an evolution that brought their relationships to a new level. I cannot say that fishman, wholecake, dressrossa or Wano ever brought back this feeling for me. Otherwise One Piece would have become my favorite work of fiction ever. These arcs have highlights, but the magic of the series faded, we entered the powerscaling phase, characters stagnated, series defining antagonists were let downs, and the fights became repetitive.
About Ryuma: Ryuma first made his debut in the oneshot "Monsters" that Oda drew in 1994, 3 years before the realease of One Piece and 2 years before the first versions of Luffy and Nami in "Romance Dawn" (the One Piece pilot). Oda has said on a SBS that "Monsters" and the Ryuma in it are in fact canon to the One Piece universe, which makes Ryuma the oldest character in One Piece from a conception perspective.
To give a bit more context the one shot are essentially 1 chapter short stories authors write in hopes to get published, with Ryuma specifically being written when Oda was 20 years old
@@mmem4264 I mean, that's not Ryuma you're seeing. It's his body with Brooks shadow animating it. He even uses brooks "fencing" sword style". There's none of Ryuma's personanility in it.
Fun fact- Cindry’s hatred of plates is a reference to a famous traditional Japanese ghost story called the Dish Mansion at Banshō. I recommend looking into it. It’s really creepy
Brooks line of “I am so glad to be alive” always hits Since this arc Kuma become a person covered in mystery and made me ask so many questions. Gecko Moria has an amazing laugh. Also I feel many people overlook Gecko Moria and how tragic he is as a villain.
16:30 I really love Thriller bark because of how well it developed the coward trio (Nami, Chopper and Usopp) in particular. Nami gets to develop a friendship and it secures her safety and then treasure afterwards; Chopper finds out that the best human doctor isn't that great of a guy, and he immediately rejects that, which guarantees that he's developed a pure passion to become a doctor who can cure any disease; and for Ussop, that he can withstand scary situations more than he thinks. I love your channel and arc by arc discussions, sir. Thank you for being a refreshing person here on the Internet! 🙏
Cindry’s plate thing is based on a Japanese myth, which I also why she’s introduced coming out of a well. The Japanese truly have a ghost story for every occasion. And Ryuma was a character from a short anthology Oda wrote before starting One Piece. It was recently animated with some tweaks that make it proper One Piece canon. It’s on Netflix and is called Monsters. And as someone who has worked in nursing homes their entire adult life, I find Brook’s attitude towards life and loss more and more appealing. It’s so easy to lose hope after you lose everyone you love and as you age, but Brook is the person I want to be when I’m in my 80s (minus the party jokes).
God, book fans becoming One Piece fans truly is a blessing, y'all love One Piece for the same reasons I do. I'll admit I find it hard to talk about One Piece with most anime fans, because they tend not to love the show for the same reasons I do, and a lot of the times they don't read that deep into the themes. They still love and appreciate it, but it's different.
One cool thing about a story like One Piece is that it's possible to love it for a variety of reasons. I personally love the themes and the character work the most, with the humor being right up there too. All the best!
I completely agree. I feel like a lot of anime/shonen fans tend to not look into the depth of the story and characters and mainly focus on the most epic and badass moments (nothing wrong with that) but there is a minority who analyze the story and the depth of their characters effectively.
I feel that so hard! I'm a book person AND an anime person. I was sucked in by the Shonen anime hype, but then stuck around for the incredibly complex storytelling. Oda is impressive at being able to straddle those two worlds so well. Arguably, he's not perfect--but a dud One Piece arc is still better than some entire series, and he still finds a way to make them matter. I love seeing the literary side, since we can get dozens of "this power-up was very cool" analyses.
I am an anime fan but have been a fan of Tolkien for way too long. I love huge ever expansive world-building. That is why I love One Piece the most. There are nuances among us anime fans. Many times people aren't great at expressing why they love it. They love it because they laugh when the characters laugh, and cry when they cry. Absolutely nothing wrong with that.
To my fellow philip Chase's fans i urge you to reread your comments and then do it again. Dont spoil anything, include only the things he knows so far. He will figure stuff out as he reads. Part of the fun is assembling the pieces of the puzzle by yourself and being surprised. No matter how small a hint our comments might have, they might lessen his experience, even if just a little. I understand the excitement we feel seeing his passion for a good story, but lets do our best
Many thanks! I deeply appreciate the thoughtfulness as well as the enthusiasm of this beautiful fandom. After all, we nakama want the best experience possible for each other, and we help each other to love One Piece even more in the process.
This arc also touches on family with Gecko's mentioning of his original crew. He sees himself in Luffy... he too was optimistic with a crew he really cared about. But he wasn't ready for the later part of the Grand Line and lost them. And that tragedy explains so much of Thriller Bark... he's building a large disposable crew he doesn't have to care about so he'll never feel that pain again.
12:25 In the anime they added a scene where the General Zombies are trying to help Tararan (spider monkey) in his fight against Franky and Robin, they all march towards a door to reach them, and Jigoro goes in the opposite direction. It's way too perfect!
In this arc, Robin finally starts calling the crew by their names. Previously she had only called them by their role (cook, doctor, navigator, etc). She only used Luffy’s name due to him saving her in Alabasta but after the events of Enies Lobby she finally sees herself as part of the crew, stops keeping the Straw Hats at arms length.
TH-cam knows what it’s doing by putting your One Piece reviews at the top of my recommended lol. I’m glad you loved Thriller Bark! It’s one of my personal favs.
We actually have heard the name.vegapunk before at this point. Miss merry Christmas in alabasta said to usopp that the dog gun was made by him. He was the one who created the technology to give items devil fruit powers, though I guess only zoans(animals). I like how Oda gives as the feeling of a living world beyond the things we see in the main story.
The idea that one demonstrates their inherent humanity through the struggle against domination by an outside power, even if it is ultimately unsuccessful, is an incredibly resonant reading of Thriller Bark with the main themes of One Piece.
16:35 The whole thing with Usopp and Perona is masterful. Immune to her negative ghosts because he's already so negative on his own, Perona trying to cheer him, Usopp proudfully declaring that Perona could never beat him in a battle of negativity and lies... Everything about it is so good!! And of course, Sogeking appearing to encourage him, so Oda can pluck some emotional fibers as well. Not one part of that fight is out of place, not one part of that fight is not great.
Really enjoyed your analysis as always. I have to say there's much more about Moria as a character to dig into, he's not a chaotic evil type. He's the first warning the Straw Hats get about the dangers of the New World, as Moria lost his whole crew and he now sits on Thriller Bark depressed and scared (paralleling Brook). Moreover, Moria is STRONGER than the Straw Hats. Way stronger. If you notice, Moria lost the fight because of his own powers going awry in the form of Luffy's nightmare powerup and the Shadow's Asgard being more shadows than Moria could handle. The danger of the New World is a major theme of the next saga.
as someone who has been invested in this story for almost a year and a half now its so amazing watching someone else experience it with no prior knowledge. It's really hard to contain my excitement of what is to come in the story and what your thoughts will be
A fun fact about Ryuma, the zombie who had Brook's shadow that Zoro defeated and claimed his sword, he was the main character of one of Oda's earlier works, a one shot about a samurai who fought a dragon found in his book "Monsters". The short story was adapted this year to anime, as the series on netflix "Monsters" (though the splash art refers to it as "Monsters 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation") if you can't track down a copy of it. Granted its some of his earlier work, but it was interesting to see him referencing his older works with his Magnum Opus
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy I would really suggest that you look into it. It will strike you as odd as it is supposed to be the same world as One Piece, yet it will feel different. And there lies part of the mystery and intrigue.
Brook has one of my favorite back stories in the entire series. He had already lived a life and lost everything and everyone very suddenly and very abruptly. He then had to live in solitude for 50 years during which he lost his shadow, essentially his soul, plunging him into even deeper sadness. Then Luffy and crew show up and literally and figuratively pull him out of his eternal darkness and loneliness. It also explains his character, he’s a little crazy which makes sense for anyone who was totally alone for 50 years.
His back story is also one of the first big call backs to something that happened much earlier in the manga, Specifically Laboon and Dr Crocus at the very start of the Grand Line.
Your intuition on one piece characters are spot on. I always miss the subtle clues from Oda but you seem to see them right away. I won't say anything more so as to not spoil anything but you seem to think in the same wavelength as Oda
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy If you can you should do a one piece talk with JoyboyTheories a youtuber like the one you did with Merphy. He is also an author and great at one piece theories and analysis. I think you two will make great content
@@nathandanczak7822 The clue Oda gives. I know that you like to hate on One Piece (seen some of your other comments) but how do you think that Philip Chase found a clue that gets delivered on throughout the rest of the series if it didn't even exist. Sometimes things are just a matter of reading comprehension.
@@water7962 At best, it's just telling the appearance of something that oda hasn't well truly thought out 10 years ahead of bringing it into the story.
Had me going at the start there until the "fleshed out" bit. Glad you watched the anime version of the Brink's Brew bit, it really is such an earworm. Such a goofy arc, but it still holds a lot of meaning shows the heart of the crew, I appreciate how Oda can do both at the same time. I still recommend watching just a single filler episode, Episode 384. Since it's filler I feel I can just tell you it centers around Brook as he's the newbie of the crew and is both hilarious and then turns very heartwarming at the end.
Happy to see that you enjoyed Thriller Bark! I feel like it tends to be one of the more overlooked arks in the series even though it holds so many memorable and significant moments
I'm super excited to hear your thoughts on Thriller Bark, professor! Before that, I have to say that words can’t describe how excited I am for you to experience the upcoming saga. In my opinion, it’s peak Oda, where One Piece transcends from being story into a full-fledged world.
Thriller bark isn’t without its issues but I really love just the idea of the one skeleton being the most alive out of all of the zombies and Moriah’s crew. Just very ironic. And as many big awesome moments in this arc I love some of the understated stuff just as much, like how someone tells Cindry she looks nice and there’s a visible reaction from her. Or how Nami and Lola form a bond with one another through their trauma. But my favorite thing in this arc is indeed Bink’s sake. I love how Oda can give a character a silly quirk or nature and then we find out just how messed up the reason behind it is, like with Brook being alone for 50 years, consistently having to remind himself that his crew is an illusion. And how he’s being pushed forward to live because of the very human nature of his bond with Laboon, to persevere at any cost, for the sake of humanity. So he has to come up with bizarre things to do like standing at a 90° angle just to keep himself sane, which makes him a bit eccentric and full of life ironically. And the song is just so beautiful and brilliant. This arc is really good.
Bink’s Sake is my single favorite scene in all of One Piece. You articulated it perfectly - the camaraderie, joy, and sorrow all blend into such an impactful moment. I can’t tell you what emotion I felt upon first viewing but it’s really stuck with me all this time. Almost always manages to get me teary eyed.
26:37 I'm so excited you picked up on the hint of Kuma's humanity what that has to do with this Vegapunk character. I think you'll be revisiting this moment, along with many others, in the months and years to come.
Thriller Bark is one of the funniest sections of the story. Especially the moment of Luffy pushing the zombie back into the ground. If you haven't, I highly recommend looking the anime clip up on TH-cam. I'm sure you know this through all of your conversations with Merphy but this arc takes heavily from _The Castle of Otranto_ by Horace Walpole, a book I had never heard of until Merphy did her literary inspirations video last year. This and subsequent arcs made Kuma one of my favorite characters, simply for how mysterious he is.
Ah, very cool! The Castle of Otranto is often credited as the first gothic novel. As such, it has had a lot of influence on horror and fantasy. I mention it a little bit in my dissertation.
Carefull with searching One Piece clips on TH-cam. So easy to get spoiled. And the algorithm will pick up on it and might recommend you videos with spoiler titles
its truly interesting how Luffy in the beginning of one piece wanted a musician as a crew member before a navigator or a doctor, and right before they found Brook, he was already saying he wanted a skeleton as a crew member. Luffy meeting brook was a faithful encounter both of them had subconsciously premeditated, and laboon is the link that fortifies their connection. In binks sake there’s also a lyric “all thats left of us is bones”, and Brook being the one to sing it to us for the fist time is just golden👌
15:20 Talking about that precisely, the Opening song for Water 7 is called Kokoro no Chizu (Map of the Heart), the last part of the song (and my favourite) says: "If we unite the pieces of our dreams, they'll become a map towards Tomorrow. That's why we bond our wishes under the same flag -- We are one, one piece". Dreams uniting us with people that help us be the best we can be, that we can support and be supported by along our journey, is such a powerful message that One Piece gives us. As a great man once said: "In this sea, no one is born to be alone". PD: I love that you could see this perceptive side of Luffy that most people didn't see (me included). He's already my favourite character but you made me gain much more appreciation for him.
@@ReallyGoodandKind I’m extremely happy that you’re still alive, Kal! I hope things are good. And that Terry has been behaving. I myself have been staying out of mischief. Mostly. 😁
I feel like this was your best one yet. Thriller bark is such a unique arc. I could never explain why the chapter with binks brew made me so joyful yet melancholy, but I think you nailed explaining it in this video.
I always look forward to these videos!! I too am experiencing the one piece story for the first time albeit with the anime instead of the manga! 850ish episodes in!
As a One Piece fan, I'm so glad I came across your channel. Because of your knowledge of literature you are able to give us insights into underlying themes that go over the heads of most people. I'm excited to hear your though on the rest of the sagas, especially the upcoming one, summit war. I'm sure there will be multiple videos about it, since there is so much to unpack!
25 seconds in and I had to come down and leave a comment. Great little intro, especially tying "Nothing happens" into it. Got multiple actual laughs out of me.
I feel like Philip encapsulates the perfect teacher. You can tell how much appreciation and understanding he has in the way he talks about literature. Love these videos as always Philip, thank you.
@6:05 I love your channel because your takes are different from any other's and it makes me think of what I didn't think before (but I've already told you this eheh). I also agree about the peak/climax being in Brook's backstory and Laboon. The juxtaposition between the past sorrow and the present joy is just genius. Also a bit of Buddhism in Zoro's selflessness (considering his attack names as well)? Keep up the good work! 🌱
27:10 Vegapunk has been mentioned at least 3 times already: In Alabasta and Enies Lobby we see objects that have "eaten" Devil Fruits (Lassoo the daschund cannon, and Funkfried the elephant sword), and I think it's Spanda that explains it was a technique developed by Vegapunk that allows it to happen (or maybe Koby mentions it in Post Enies Lobby?). In PEL we learn he also developed a way to coat the Marine ships with Sea Prism, so that they can traverse the Calm Belt without being constantly attacked by Sea Kings.And now he's mentioned again by Kuma, as the one who made him into a Pacifista.
Hey Philip! Just wanted to say I love all of your One Piece videos! Your analyses have been putting everything I think about One Piece into words I wasn’t able to find myself. I’m also currently on my One Piece journey (about episode 577). One Piece has helped shape my outlook on life in such a positive way! And all of your thumbnails and One Piece puns always put a smile on my face! Again, thank you for the amazing videos and I hope to branch out to your other videos outside of One Piece as well!! ❤ Yohohohoho!!!
Thank you so much for your comment -- it makes me genuinely happy to know that the videos have been helpful to you. My best wishes to you for your continued One Piece journey, nakama!
As someone who loves all of One Piece I really appreciate your ongoing discourse and keep looking forward to future episodes. This arc, like others, is often disowned by the community because it’s too long or too boring or too something. But to me, the so-called skippable arcs are often the most thematically rich. It really only gets better too - I’m excited to hear you discuss all that comes next, particularly Fishman Island. Works like One Piece, certain video games and other pieces of media make me wonder: will the greatest story ever told be a book? A comic? A game? A medium we don’t even have yet?
Whoooo congratulations on finishing Thrillar bark! You got me in the first half of your opening, not gonna lie. And you finally got to one of my favorite characters in the show. Brook is constantly fighting Luffy and Robin for my number 1 straw hat, it's too difficult to choose between them. Like usual, i'll try to write along as i'm watching the video. IIRC, Oda started One Piece when he was just 17 and still in highschool. Since OP came out in 1997, he's an 80's kid. Seeing as he makes references to other western media, and his naming schemes, i would not be surprised if Thriller Bark was areference to MJ. Brook's skeleton jokes never get old. I don't know how many years he's been part of the show, but his jokes and laugh always crack me up. I loved the way you explained the meaning behind "nothing happened". Many people look at the scenes when he says it, and think that it is him being a badass that is unfazed by the challenges. Now, he IS a badass that did amazing things, but he is not downplaying the things that happened. The fight with Ryuma was difficult, but it was something that NEEDED to happen. It was Zoro's duty to fight the strongest swordsman of the enemy and beat them. No matter how hurt he got, he fullfilled his duty and so "nothing (out of the ordinary) happened". As for the other moment, guess i'll write that later lol. Chopper is so incredibly human. Of course every character has humanity in them, but i love the fact that the members who are least considered human (physically), have the greatest humanity in them. Chopper, Brook and Franky had great moments in this arc. Nightmare luffy is amazing and underrated when it comes to Luffy forms. I absolutely love and respect your knowledge of literature and myths. Knowing about the Enherjar and pronouncing all the words right, unlike who me probably misspelled that term. The final fight against Oars might be my favorite fight in the entire series, except for one that happened relatively recently. The fights in between were by no means bad, but seeing the straw hats work together as a unit like they did with Oars just hits something deep. I wanted to write about the kuma scene but you said everything on my mind, and more. Bink's sake was probably the time i cried the most in the series. The anime does it beautifully, but the back and forth and seeing Brook's old friends die while also seeing his new friends celebrate. And yeah, on a personal note, Brook's "i'm glad i lived" hits incredibly deep. Brook is literally a walking skeleton, stereotypically the scariest member of the crew by looks alone. The rest are all humans, look human, or are reindeer in the form of a teddy bear. And Oda gave the skeleton the role of musician. Yes he is a swordsman but his main role is to provide music. Something so magical and tied to emotions and people, it goes beyond border and language. Amazing video like always, great singing at the end and good luck with the next arc!
Binks no Sake is one of my favorite musical pieces ever. It's so filled with life and joy that make me just keep living in the moment and enjoy life in general. Also, hearing him talking about Kuma makes me giggle, not saying more for now.
It gave me actual goosebumps when you talked about Kuma arriving to the island to make sure the power of the world government stays intact, the way you described the energy in that momemt made me feel like i was reading it all over again. Thriller Bark is something special and I think it doesnt get the love it deserves.
@@Cloudsheep93 Thriller Bark hides those deep themes under some much needed goofiness and comedy, but, as always with Oda’s storytelling, those deeper themes are there. All the best!
Thriller Bark is really underrated! Not my favorite arc, but still a good one. Binks Sake is such a great song :D The next arc though, this is my absolute favorite! Cannot wait for you to talk about it ... no spoilers!! :D
Amazing review as always! I also love the exploration of how you cannot face the light (or move forward) if you abandon your shadow (your darkness). You have to embrace the whole of you to reach out for your dreams and be truly free:)
Great analysis as always, feels like 30 minutes goes by in an instant. Have you ever thought of doing a livestream about one piece? Maybe for when you are caught up with the manga?
Great video as always. Listening to you break down this arc, I genuinely forgot how many things about the future Oda teased or introduced in this arc. Glad you had a blast, and get ready! Some of OP's most incredible moments are on the near horizon.
I’m so excited for you to experience the next few arcs (that will hopefully end with another discussion with Merphy). This next saga is one of the greatest in fiction, and there are huge events and reveals that will occur. Please do everything you can to avoid spoilers!!!
Will do! I'll definitely be chatting about One Piece with Merphy again, but I'll be chatting with Allen and Jimmy (from Dudes Talking Manga) when I finish the Summit War Saga. All the best!
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy I’ll be looking forward to seeing your video with Dudes Talking Manga! I was following Jimmy’s OP journey up until he stopped posting videos after being spoiled. I’m not sure if you’ve seen any of his OP videos for risk of spoilers, but is there any chance of creating separate OP arc videos following his format in the future, where he films small check-ins during his read-through whenever a big event or reveal has happened, and then combines them into one video? It was really cool to see his instant reactions to major events and see his theories and predictions as he progressed through the arcs. I love your long-form, whole arc recaps like this, and especially enjoy your discussions on the overall themes in the arc and how you provide insights into where Oda likely drew inspiration from, but if you have the desire/bandwidth (I already don’t understand how you’re able to juggle so many projects) it would be really cool to see a separate video (or even a blog) for each arc with your reactions/predictions as you progress through the story!
Your analysis brings me such joy ❤ I was humming bink's brew for alot of the end to my walk home. I appreciate being able to still learn more about the modern odyssey that is one piece. Much love and joy to you in your life and your journey through Oda's master piece. When I was a lonely kid with no one to talk to about this story, I dreamed of a day to have friends, family and contemporaries to share this wonderful story with. Thanks for being a part of the realization of that dream. 3 of my siblings share in this story now, countless friends, and many great content creators as well. Good luck with your next analysis, I am patiently waiting to hear more from you. ❤
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy you had me going at the beginning of this video, until I paused and saw Zoro in my mind haha. Your added humor is appreciated and valued by me. I am about to watch the newest episode 🙃 You have such a good pulse on the narrative. You remind me of the teacher I had for literature that grew my love for reading a decade and a half ago. I am 30 now and find such joy in processing our human experience through the words and stories written by other people. I hope your Sunday is brilliant and peaceful. And thanks for the connection. No need to respond again I just wanted to make my appreciation known. Cheers Yo ho ho hooooo yo ho ho hooo yo ho ho hoooo yo ho ho hoo
was so excited for you to get here! I have a love for music and Brooks story and joy for it is one of the reasons he is a favorite of mine! I love the party scene at the end of the arc! Keep on enjoying the journey Philip!
I love the way you speak about Kuma the Warlord. I got the same interpretation when I first read it (I started reading One Piece in 2003, when the Strawhats were at Skypeia, so I have been a fan for a minute!) and remembered asking myself...How would the Straw Hats get away from this Warlord? Having said "NO MERCY" towards the crew and making it known that he is on another level. It was agonizing to be waiting each week for the new chapter to drop! I'm glad you into One Piece and seeing you fall deeply in love with the story will always bring me to smiles!!! Enjoy the next saga, its my favorite!
@@HelenourRigby Thanks so much! I envy you being a fan of One Piece for so long, but one little advantage I have is not having to be in suspense waiting for the next part of the story . . . at least until I catch up. All the best!
I think the importance of showing that it is Zoro that takes Luffy's burden instead of Sanji is to bring the depths of their characters into the light. Sanji is kind, but also self-sacrificial. He puts himself on the danger path all alone because that's how he thinks he can contribute to the crew. Like being Mr. Prince in Alabasta arc, or following Robin and sneaking into the sea train. He will lay on a bed of nails so his nakama can stay out of harm. "I'm doing it, because nobody else should do it," that's how Sanji's mind works. Which is why, I'm 100% sure that Sanji will die if he takes Luffy's burden. He thinks little of himself, he'd be okay if he died right then and there. On the other hand, Zoro is dutiful. He believes that his contribution is by taking on the worst danger to the crew. He does something because he believes he has to do it. He has to be able to cut steel to defeat Mr. 1 in Alabasta, so he does it. He has to fight Mihawk even if it kills him, so he does it. He has a duty to protect Luffy, so he takes Luffy's burden. He also has a duty to make Luffy the Pirate King, so he knocks Sanji unconscious and survives the unspeakable pain. It is his duty and he simply does it against all odds. That's why it's Zoro and not Sanji. It is such a masterful writing. You don't see it until you think about it. Oda is a God of his craft.
I always get excited when I see a new video for this series. It’s great having someone with a literary background explore a profound work like One Piece
There truly is so much to explore in One Piece, and I am confident there will be whole university courses dedicated to it someday, if they don't already exist. All the best!
A pretty nice detail is that Bink's Sake is hear in the One Piece Life Action in one of the Shanks and Luffy flashback. It's nice because is a song that should be sing in the whole world by pirates.
![[MV] A leap of faith...ความเชื่อใจครั้งสุดท้าย (From "Petrichor the series")](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/U1piZH2CNXA/mqdefault.jpg)
Philip's wife: "What on Earth is happening with these thumbnails?"
Philip, crossing arms: "Nothing happened."
I'm always excited to show her my latest thumbnail! I know how good the thumbnail is from how much she rolls her eyes . . . 😁
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy great review, and excited for the next arc review 😉
lolol
😂😂😂 iconic
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy That's a PERFECT way to find out
I love how this channel is not another lore geek or theorist but rather someone who explores the deeper meaning and intricacies of one piece from a fresh perspective I have found joy having one of my favorite stories be acknowledged by someone with literary merit
I'm so glad you enjoy the videos! Thank you for watching!
That's also something i wanted for a while, it's not secret the average Anime/Manga fan aren't exactly scholars, especially fans of the Shonen genre which is by definition for children/young teens. Oda's writing is enjoyable for kids and teens but goes deeper into places that many fans can't appreciate, sometimes due to lack of literature knowledge and often by the language mistranslations.
You should check out Mr. Morj, he does some more structured videos thematically analysing the arcs, alongside talking about weekly chapter releases and some theory-crafting, though I like that his theories tend to rest heavily on his thematic analysis. He's standout in that regard as far as OnePiece fan channels go.
I really like how booktubers talk about One Piece because they focus more on the writing and not much about the battle shonen part of it.
This channel and mompiece by drawk are the best ones for that
Wow, he took one of the funniest jokes of the whole series (Robin's refusal to complete the docking) and actually found meaning in it.
It was also a very funny joke! But I love how Robin doesn't go along with it just because everyone expects her to.
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy I never thought about that way, but you're right. It's more than a silly joke about male vs female taste in what games to play, or robots vs dolls.
Back in Enies Lobby Usopp was told by Sanji "Everyone has things they can and cannot do. I'll do what you can't do, and you do what I can't do." Against Perona Usopp does what no one else on the crew can do and stands up against a foe that has brought everyone else to their knees.
Great connection - thank you so much!
Usopp is far from the strongest member of the crew, yet there are ways he is still relevent.
“I’m just… A VERY NEGATIVE PERSON!”
Very true! Back in Enies Lobby he was the only one capable of attacking the enemy form distance while there wasn’t a bridge
The power of depression
There’s a fan theory that says Zorro died, taking up Kuma’s challenge, but he got lost, heading towards the light and wondered back into his body
Ha ha! I love this!
I have never heard this
But it is now my headcanon
Oda confirmed that this happened in an sbs
Brandon Sanderson in his more kid books series has someone whos super power is always being late. He survived a bullet because he was late for his own death.
Brook knows himself as bones and grief for longer than he knew himself alive. He is a person stuck in time and a stranger to human mannerisms, yet he is arguably one of the most positive and humorous characters in this series
Exactly!! He mirrors humans, and it’s such a fun exploration of what makes a man/human.
Some would say he knows himself close to the bone
Beautifully said! I'm glad to have met him.
*humerus
@@CricketBonez Fancy meeting you here
Loved how Thriller bark starts off with a spooky ghost adventure and ends in classic One Piece fashion with the most heartbreaking story yet
So true!
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy yea idc what people think this is a good arc cause
Its kinda like foxys arc where you either love or hate it tbh tho i think it mainly boils down to moria the main villain doing literally nothing until oars spirit from luffy is weakened spirit and can be controlled and also namis role in this arc is vary dissapointing with the reason why being absalom probrably is in the top 5 most hated characters and like foxy not in a good way it also has the unfortunate placement of being between 2 of the greatest pieces of writing ever published so anyone reading it is just trying to get to the next saga quickly and until moria shows up again this entire arc kinda gets forgotten
"Turns out, Brook is very much fleshed out" nice touch yohohoho
Love Thriller Bark and Moria's character
His motto '' You Do it '' tells a lot about the tragedy of his character
He mentions being defeated by Kaido and losing all his crew
To never suffer such a loss ever again he decides to make an army of undead to avoid experiencing that pain, he's a broken pirate who had dreams too. And now he's only a shadow of his past self, pun intended.
Sounds like I'll have more of Moria to look forward to!
🎉@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy
Moria is, in essence, someone like Luffy, who lost. He had the ambition, the dreams, and the friends, but he was crushed by the New World, and he was traumatised and grew bitter. He lost his dreams and his crew, and is a shadow of his former self. No pun intended. His monologue just before he's defeated still gives me chills. His eyes are almost popping out of his head and he seems enraged, amused and weirdly, like he's about to cry, he tells Luffy that he WILL lose everything, because he sees his young self in Luffy, and he has to believe it is inevitable for someone like that to lose. If it's not, then it'd mean he could've prevented it. And for someone who's trauma is about losing someone, that guilt and the question of "could I have done something differently?" is always present. Moria's projecting himself onto Luffy, and he's trying to in essence prevent "himself" from going through it all again, if he in that moment believed Luffy could succeed, it'd mean Luffy isn't like him, that Luffy is somehow different than he is, which would mean that he COULD have done something different, so he could've been like Luffy. And for a traumatized person the idea of "It's my fault for not being better" is the worst kind of poison, it eats away at you and can drive you insane if you let it. Moria never dealt with his trauma. In his mind, he lost his crew because THEY died. It's easier to blame them on it, and then replace them with something you can lose, and something you don't get attached to. The Zombies. He can't bring the dead back to life, not really. But it's something he imitates constantly with his powers. And that's at the very core of his character. He keeps zombifying the dead around him in order to protect himself from the fact he lost the living around him, the ones he would raise in a heartbeat if he could.
Oda does something similar with a few other characters going forward, and deals with this exact issue later on, but I wont spoil anything too harshly. However, if you want to avoid even some non-descriptive, vague explanations that may in theory spoil you, don't read any further.
And for those who have read far enough:
Look at Moria when he was young. Does he remind you of someone? Someone with a similar aesthetic, full of vigor and dreams, someone who headed into the New World with nothing but pure ambition pouring out of his every pore, and who tested his mettle against a Yonko, just like Kaido, only to be absolutely crushed? Someone, who like Moria, is another "mirror" for Luffy?
@@netapel2625 No spoilers man, please delete your comment or at least mark as SPOILER at the beginning
The scene where brook cried over how happy he was to be alive was so so emotionally affecting. Seeing someone(even a fictional skeleton) live through that much grief, and STILL come out the other end truly happy actually helped me come out of a funk I had been in for what felt like years. It’s amazing how long the series is and it still gets me teary eyed sometimes 😅
It's truly beautiful!
“We made a selfish promise and died under a distant sky where our voices couldn’t reach him. “I’m sorry, we died.” could never cut it! That death isn’t an apology! We gave our word as men that we would return!!!”
I’m crying with Franky every time. I love that damn skeleton too! Yohohohoho! 😭😭😭
What do you have to say about his harassment of women?
@@AnimeCritical Nothing, He asks them for panties and they can decide if they want to show it or not.
Franky's reactions to the pathos of another's story are so endearing.
@AnimeCritical That One Piece is written by a human who lives in a society where sexual harrassment is unfortunately rampant-- but One Piece still treats women the best out of any other shounen out there, so I'm willing to overlook that flaw.
Alsp, how I view the pervy gags has changed over the years.
In Loony Toons, someone gets hit on the head with an anvil or something, it's funny, right? That's an act that would hurt or kill someone IRL, but it's not serious in animation.
When pervy gags in anime are NOT at the expense of a minor or very unwilling participant that can't do anything about it, I still find them gross, but I've become more loony-toons rules when the women lean into it (Nami's hapiness punch) or hit back and there's consequences for the creep now. It's an act that is harmful in real life, but doesn't have the same in-universe consequences for the characters, and I really think if consent was more of a mainstream teaching (we all innately know dropping an anvil on someone would be bad, but kids in general DON'T innately know we shouldn't peep on people, that's gotta be taught) I think it would land more harmlessly.
I still think it's valid to absolutely hate them, though. They are gross, because we DON'T live in that kind of society where we are all taught consent. But I, PERSONALLY, am no longer bothered by the gags and can even find them amusing.
@@Blackberryfae I did not ask you. I asked the original commenter.
Man it is hard to talk about Brook's death without being absoloutly choked by all the emotions both possitive and negative in that scene.
Pride, grief, celebration,shame, comradery, defiance, recognition, sadness humor, and finally...lonelyness, impotency.
This scene as an 15 year old anime watcher, not long after a pretty sad time in my life was finally turning for the better was exactly what i needed to grow as a person.
@@segafan2437 It’s wonderful when stories give us exactly what we need for our lives. It never ceases to amaze me how they can do that. All the best!
I love the moment at the end of this arc when Moria is simultaneously threatening/warning Luffy that if he continues on his path to the New World, he'll eventually suffer defeat and loss the same way Moria did. He essentially says "yeah, you beat me, but there are bigger monsters in these seas"
Bink's sake is one of my favourite fictional things in any piece of fiction. The music, the lyrics, the history it brings to the story.
Oda specifically went to Kohei Tanaka( japanese musician) to have the melody written first and then oda wrote the lyrics for it for the manga. And then years later the anime adapted it with the melody.
Both the japanese and English version of the songs are great.
That's beautiful, and he really succeeded in making the song such an integral part of the story.
Not just any musician, but the composer for the One Piece anime
And with this, the best stretch of One Piece begins; the entirety of the next saga will break you!
I'm ready to be broken! Cheers!
What do you mean man... clearly the best moment was Luffy vs Buggy... the legendary moment the Pirate King and Luffy did battle back in Orange Town 😂
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy btw, he's not joking about the breaking. not sure about "the best stretch"
GOda has this thing where he keeps surprising you when you think you cannot be surprised anymore.
"And Here We Go"
These next few arcs made me believe One Piece was special.
I wish future arcs had maintained the quality and feel of Water Seven into Marineford. For a while here, the pacing, themework, and inter-connected stories were just unrivalled. It was truly an Epic, and walked the fine line between comedic innocence and epic fantasy story. The characters all seemed to be moving and growing. The world seemed to be growing and reacting. And every storybeat contributed to the over-arcing narrative in a way that felt deliberate. Each Arc felt so important and each character moment felt like an evolution that brought their relationships to a new level.
I cannot say that fishman, wholecake, dressrossa or Wano ever brought back this feeling for me. Otherwise One Piece would have become my favorite work of fiction ever. These arcs have highlights, but the magic of the series faded, we entered the powerscaling phase, characters stagnated, series defining antagonists were let downs, and the fights became repetitive.
About Ryuma: Ryuma first made his debut in the oneshot "Monsters" that Oda drew in 1994, 3 years before the realease of One Piece and 2 years before the first versions of Luffy and Nami in "Romance Dawn" (the One Piece pilot). Oda has said on a SBS that "Monsters" and the Ryuma in it are in fact canon to the One Piece universe, which makes Ryuma the oldest character in One Piece from a conception perspective.
To give a bit more context the one shot are essentially 1 chapter short stories authors write in hopes to get published, with Ryuma specifically being written when Oda was 20 years old
To give further context, the monster one shot has had an anime adaptation in recent years. I would recommend watching it
This is very cool to know! Thank you!
Ryuma sure comes off as a jerk in this arc lol. Was he the same in his one shot or did becoming a zombie make him more bitter or something? 🤔
@@mmem4264 I mean, that's not Ryuma you're seeing. It's his body with Brooks shadow animating it. He even uses brooks "fencing" sword style". There's none of Ryuma's personanility in it.
Fun fact- Cindry’s hatred of plates is a reference to a famous traditional Japanese ghost story called the Dish Mansion at Banshō. I recommend looking into it. It’s really creepy
@@vspence2 Ah, cool! Thanks for sharing that!
Brooks line of “I am so glad to be alive” always hits
Since this arc Kuma become a person covered in mystery and made me ask so many questions.
Gecko Moria has an amazing laugh. Also I feel many people overlook Gecko Moria and how tragic he is as a villain.
I imagine I'll be seeing more of Moria and learning about his tragedy -- I look forward to it!
I hope to see how him and perona will go in a few chapters or something. Also yeah That laugh is contagious.
16:30 I really love Thriller bark because of how well it developed the coward trio (Nami, Chopper and Usopp) in particular. Nami gets to develop a friendship and it secures her safety and then treasure afterwards; Chopper finds out that the best human doctor isn't that great of a guy, and he immediately rejects that, which guarantees that he's developed a pure passion to become a doctor who can cure any disease; and for Ussop, that he can withstand scary situations more than he thinks.
I love your channel and arc by arc discussions, sir. Thank you for being a refreshing person here on the Internet! 🙏
I’m so glad you enjoy the videos! Thank you for watching!
Nothing happened in this arc, but a certain character rose to a legendary status for me. Great review, Philip!
Ha ha! It was fun to read about nothing happening, for sure! All the best, my friend!
Cindry’s plate thing is based on a Japanese myth, which I also why she’s introduced coming out of a well. The Japanese truly have a ghost story for every occasion. And Ryuma was a character from a short anthology Oda wrote before starting One Piece. It was recently animated with some tweaks that make it proper One Piece canon. It’s on Netflix and is called Monsters.
And as someone who has worked in nursing homes their entire adult life, I find Brook’s attitude towards life and loss more and more appealing. It’s so easy to lose hope after you lose everyone you love and as you age, but Brook is the person I want to be when I’m in my 80s (minus the party jokes).
Thank you for your insights and the information here!
God, book fans becoming One Piece fans truly is a blessing, y'all love One Piece for the same reasons I do.
I'll admit I find it hard to talk about One Piece with most anime fans, because they tend not to love the show for the same reasons I do, and a lot of the times they don't read that deep into the themes. They still love and appreciate it, but it's different.
One cool thing about a story like One Piece is that it's possible to love it for a variety of reasons. I personally love the themes and the character work the most, with the humor being right up there too. All the best!
I completely agree. I feel like a lot of anime/shonen fans tend to not look into the depth of the story and characters and mainly focus on the most epic and badass moments (nothing wrong with that) but there is a minority who analyze the story and the depth of their characters effectively.
I feel that so hard! I'm a book person AND an anime person. I was sucked in by the Shonen anime hype, but then stuck around for the incredibly complex storytelling. Oda is impressive at being able to straddle those two worlds so well. Arguably, he's not perfect--but a dud One Piece arc is still better than some entire series, and he still finds a way to make them matter. I love seeing the literary side, since we can get dozens of "this power-up was very cool" analyses.
I am an anime fan but have been a fan of Tolkien for way too long. I love huge ever expansive world-building. That is why I love One Piece the most. There are nuances among us anime fans. Many times people aren't great at expressing why they love it. They love it because they laugh when the characters laugh, and cry when they cry. Absolutely nothing wrong with that.
To my fellow philip Chase's fans i urge you to reread your comments and then do it again. Dont spoil anything, include only the things he knows so far. He will figure stuff out as he reads. Part of the fun is assembling the pieces of the puzzle by yourself and being surprised. No matter how small a hint our comments might have, they might lessen his experience, even if just a little. I understand the excitement we feel seeing his passion for a good story, but lets do our best
Many thanks! I deeply appreciate the thoughtfulness as well as the enthusiasm of this beautiful fandom. After all, we nakama want the best experience possible for each other, and we help each other to love One Piece even more in the process.
This arc also touches on family with Gecko's mentioning of his original crew. He sees himself in Luffy... he too was optimistic with a crew he really cared about. But he wasn't ready for the later part of the Grand Line and lost them. And that tragedy explains so much of Thriller Bark... he's building a large disposable crew he doesn't have to care about so he'll never feel that pain again.
12:25 In the anime they added a scene where the General Zombies are trying to help Tararan (spider monkey) in his fight against Franky and Robin, they all march towards a door to reach them, and Jigoro goes in the opposite direction. It's way too perfect!
In this arc, Robin finally starts calling the crew by their names. Previously she had only called them by their role (cook, doctor, navigator, etc). She only used Luffy’s name due to him saving her in Alabasta but after the events of Enies Lobby she finally sees herself as part of the crew, stops keeping the Straw Hats at arms length.
@@kirbyhm I love this!
TH-cam knows what it’s doing by putting your One Piece reviews at the top of my recommended lol. I’m glad you loved Thriller Bark! It’s one of my personal favs.
@@Nathan-yt9lr It was excellent, especially in its resolution!
We actually have heard the name.vegapunk before at this point. Miss merry Christmas in alabasta said to usopp that the dog gun was made by him. He was the one who created the technology to give items devil fruit powers, though I guess only zoans(animals). I like how Oda gives as the feeling of a living world beyond the things we see in the main story.
Thank you for the reminder! Much appreciated!
The idea that one demonstrates their inherent humanity through the struggle against domination by an outside power, even if it is ultimately unsuccessful, is an incredibly resonant reading of Thriller Bark with the main themes of One Piece.
@@LobsterSpecial Well said, and thank you!
16:35 The whole thing with Usopp and Perona is masterful. Immune to her negative ghosts because he's already so negative on his own, Perona trying to cheer him, Usopp proudfully declaring that Perona could never beat him in a battle of negativity and lies... Everything about it is so good!! And of course, Sogeking appearing to encourage him, so Oda can pluck some emotional fibers as well. Not one part of that fight is out of place, not one part of that fight is not great.
It was good of Sogeking to show up!
"music is one of the most power forms of story telling we have" - Philips wise words
@@MattIsAMage 😊Cheers!
I have never been won over as a subscriber quicker than with this intro. I felt it in my bones, I swear it
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it, and the fact that you would subscribe is a lovely bone-us! 😁
Why did I expect you to shout "SKULL JOKE!" in your intro :D
Yohohohohohohohoho!! 💀
I literally thought he was setting it up, missed opportunity 😅
I will be shouting "SKULL JOKE!" from now on in my house. 😁
Really enjoyed your analysis as always. I have to say there's much more about Moria as a character to dig into, he's not a chaotic evil type. He's the first warning the Straw Hats get about the dangers of the New World, as Moria lost his whole crew and he now sits on Thriller Bark depressed and scared (paralleling Brook). Moreover, Moria is STRONGER than the Straw Hats. Way stronger. If you notice, Moria lost the fight because of his own powers going awry in the form of Luffy's nightmare powerup and the Shadow's Asgard being more shadows than Moria could handle. The danger of the New World is a major theme of the next saga.
I look forward to more of Moria!
Vegapunk was also mentioned by Koby in Chapter 433
I cannot stress how much I look forward to these whenever I see an update from your channel I get hype for some fantasy!
I'm so glad you enjoy the videos -- that makes me happy!
as someone who has been invested in this story for almost a year and a half now its so amazing watching someone else experience it with no prior knowledge. It's really hard to contain my excitement of what is to come in the story and what your thoughts will be
A fun fact about Ryuma, the zombie who had Brook's shadow that Zoro defeated and claimed his sword, he was the main character of one of Oda's earlier works, a one shot about a samurai who fought a dragon found in his book "Monsters". The short story was adapted this year to anime, as the series on netflix "Monsters" (though the splash art refers to it as "Monsters 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation") if you can't track down a copy of it.
Granted its some of his earlier work, but it was interesting to see him referencing his older works with his Magnum Opus
I love this! The fact that Oda has incorporated Ryuma into One Piece is another little indication of how much he cares about his stories.
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy I would really suggest that you look into it. It will strike you as odd as it is supposed to be the same world as One Piece, yet it will feel different. And there lies part of the mystery and intrigue.
Damn that's a great ending to the video, gave me chills. I can feel the writer in you in these moments.
@@Exilum That’s a wonderful compliment - thank you! 🙏
I love how you point out Franky's humanity and being the most emotional of the crew because of the comedic irony that he's a cyborg.
As someone living with chronic depression, hearing Brook cry saying, "Im so happy to be alive!" always makes me tear up.
@@Aging_Casually_Late_Gamer It’s a beautiful moment!
Brook has one of my favorite back stories in the entire series. He had already lived a life and lost everything and everyone very suddenly and very abruptly. He then had to live in solitude for 50 years during which he lost his shadow, essentially his soul, plunging him into even deeper sadness. Then Luffy and crew show up and literally and figuratively pull him out of his eternal darkness and loneliness. It also explains his character, he’s a little crazy which makes sense for anyone who was totally alone for 50 years.
For sure. That kind of isolation would do things to someone, which makes Brook's zest for life even more miraculous.
His back story is also one of the first big call backs to something that happened much earlier in the manga, Specifically Laboon and Dr Crocus at the very start of the Grand Line.
Your intuition on one piece characters are spot on. I always miss the subtle clues from Oda but you seem to see them right away. I won't say anything more so as to not spoil anything but you seem to think in the same wavelength as Oda
The clue oda gives or the clues you've deluded yourself into thinking he does 4d clues.
Thank you! Oda has given us such a great story for analysis, including some truly lovely character work. I'm thoroughly enjoying the experience!
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy If you can you should do a one piece talk with JoyboyTheories a youtuber like the one you did with Merphy. He is also an author and great at one piece theories and analysis. I think you two will make great content
@@nathandanczak7822 The clue Oda gives. I know that you like to hate on One Piece (seen some of your other comments) but how do you think that Philip Chase found a clue that gets delivered on throughout the rest of the series if it didn't even exist. Sometimes things are just a matter of reading comprehension.
@@water7962 At best, it's just telling the appearance of something that oda hasn't well truly thought out 10 years ahead of bringing it into the story.
I can’t wait for you to complete the next saga! You are absolutely going to enjoy it!
I'm looking forward to it!
Had me going at the start there until the "fleshed out" bit. Glad you watched the anime version of the Brink's Brew bit, it really is such an earworm. Such a goofy arc, but it still holds a lot of meaning shows the heart of the crew, I appreciate how Oda can do both at the same time.
I still recommend watching just a single filler episode, Episode 384. Since it's filler I feel I can just tell you it centers around Brook as he's the newbie of the crew and is both hilarious and then turns very heartwarming at the end.
Thanks so much! Well said about the goofiness and the depth. I appreciate the recommendation too!
Happy to see that you enjoyed Thriller Bark! I feel like it tends to be one of the more overlooked arks in the series even though it holds so many memorable and significant moments
It definitely has some gorgeous scenes!
I'm super excited to hear your thoughts on Thriller Bark, professor! Before that, I have to say that words can’t describe how excited I am for you to experience the upcoming saga. In my opinion, it’s peak Oda, where One Piece transcends from being story into a full-fledged world.
Thank you, Jeremy! I'm very happy to be at this point of the story!
i look forward to every new arc breakdown you post, you always delve into such interesting discussions
Thank you! It makes me happy that you enjoy the videos!
Thriller bark isn’t without its issues but I really love just the idea of the one skeleton being the most alive out of all of the zombies and Moriah’s crew. Just very ironic. And as many big awesome moments in this arc I love some of the understated stuff just as much, like how someone tells Cindry she looks nice and there’s a visible reaction from her. Or how Nami and Lola form a bond with one another through their trauma.
But my favorite thing in this arc is indeed Bink’s sake. I love how Oda can give a character a silly quirk or nature and then we find out just how messed up the reason behind it is, like with Brook being alone for 50 years, consistently having to remind himself that his crew is an illusion.
And how he’s being pushed forward to live because of the very human nature of his bond with Laboon, to persevere at any cost, for the sake of humanity. So he has to come up with bizarre things to do like standing at a 90° angle just to keep himself sane, which makes him a bit eccentric and full of life ironically.
And the song is just so beautiful and brilliant.
This arc is really good.
You said it perfectly! Cheers!
You should see in the anime the joke of Luffy pushing the zombie back into his grave. That's pure comedy.
One of the funniest moments lmao
It's a brilliant comedic moment -- so Luffyesque!
@@bcool9272 th-cam.com/video/PxFgK_A1F0Y/w-d-xo.htmlsi=v46oCJjJjwZWfCEv
My favourite joke in all of One Piece. So well timed and constructed.
Bink’s Sake is my single favorite scene in all of One Piece. You articulated it perfectly - the camaraderie, joy, and sorrow all blend into such an impactful moment. I can’t tell you what emotion I felt upon first viewing but it’s really stuck with me all this time. Almost always manages to get me teary eyed.
It's such beautiful storytelling -- definitely an iconic One Piece moment!
26:37 I'm so excited you picked up on the hint of Kuma's humanity what that has to do with this Vegapunk character. I think you'll be revisiting this moment, along with many others, in the months and years to come.
@@Mognet_t I look forward to finding out more!
One of the funniest panels in OP is the one with Luffy trying to shove a zombie back in his grave. 🤣
So many people hate on this arc in the fan base, but it is in my top 5 arcs. Brook and Laboon, I can't wait for that 😭😭😭
I'm not sure anyone can be fully prepared for that reunion. Tissues will be mandatory!
Thriller Bark is one of the funniest sections of the story. Especially the moment of Luffy pushing the zombie back into the ground. If you haven't, I highly recommend looking the anime clip up on TH-cam. I'm sure you know this through all of your conversations with Merphy but this arc takes heavily from _The Castle of Otranto_ by Horace Walpole, a book I had never heard of until Merphy did her literary inspirations video last year. This and subsequent arcs made Kuma one of my favorite characters, simply for how mysterious he is.
Ah, very cool! The Castle of Otranto is often credited as the first gothic novel. As such, it has had a lot of influence on horror and fantasy. I mention it a little bit in my dissertation.
Carefull with searching One Piece clips on TH-cam. So easy to get spoiled. And the algorithm will pick up on it and might recommend you videos with spoiler titles
its truly interesting how Luffy in the beginning of one piece wanted a musician as a crew member before a navigator or a doctor, and right before they found Brook, he was already saying he wanted a skeleton as a crew member. Luffy meeting brook was a faithful encounter both of them had subconsciously premeditated, and laboon is the link that fortifies their connection. In binks sake there’s also a lyric “all thats left of us is bones”, and Brook being the one to sing it to us for the fist time is just golden👌
@@daarya Beautifully said! Thank you!
incredible timing i was literally thinking "huh I wonder when he's going to post next lol"
Here we are! 😊
15:20 Talking about that precisely, the Opening song for Water 7 is called Kokoro no Chizu (Map of the Heart), the last part of the song (and my favourite) says: "If we unite the pieces of our dreams, they'll become a map towards Tomorrow. That's why we bond our wishes under the same flag -- We are one, one piece". Dreams uniting us with people that help us be the best we can be, that we can support and be supported by along our journey, is such a powerful message that One Piece gives us. As a great man once said: "In this sea, no one is born to be alone".
PD: I love that you could see this perceptive side of Luffy that most people didn't see (me included). He's already my favourite character but you made me gain much more appreciation for him.
So beautifully said! One Piece is a perfect story for showing us the beauty of this truth about connection.
It's so awesome watching your unspoiled thoughts on the future of the series!
@@michaelbrady7104 Cheers! 😊
Thriller bark is fantastic. Especially the ending.
Yes I am still alive
@@ReallyGoodandKind I’m extremely happy that you’re still alive, Kal! I hope things are good. And that Terry has been behaving. I myself have been staying out of mischief. Mostly. 😁
So nostalgic to see people react to Thriller
Bark.
Sniper king showing up to save Ussop with the sudden music change to his theme songs is one of my favorite parts of Thriller Bark in the Anime.
One of the best intros to a TH-cam video I've legit ever seen. Had me ACTUALLY laughing my ass off.
I’m glad you enjoyed it! 😁
These reviews give me a whole week of joyyyyyyy
It makes me happy to hear that you enjoy the videos! Thank you!
I feel like this was your best one yet. Thriller bark is such a unique arc. I could never explain why the chapter with binks brew made me so joyful yet melancholy, but I think you nailed explaining it in this video.
@@yoyoyowhity Cheers! 😊
I always look forward to these videos!! I too am experiencing the one piece story for the first time albeit with the anime instead of the manga! 850ish episodes in!
My best wishes for your One Piece journey!
Thank you! That's beautiful singing, I wish we can get the full version some day though🤣
Thank you! You are very kind!😊
Wow, you made a really good analysis of this saga!
Thank you! I ended up enjoying Thriller Bark very much!
As a One Piece fan, I'm so glad I came across your channel. Because of your knowledge of literature you are able to give us insights into underlying themes that go over the heads of most people.
I'm excited to hear your though on the rest of the sagas, especially the upcoming one, summit war. I'm sure there will be multiple videos about it, since there is so much to unpack!
Cheers! 😊
25 seconds in and I had to come down and leave a comment. Great little intro, especially tying "Nothing happens" into it. Got multiple actual laughs out of me.
Thank you! I'm glad the intro tickled your funny bone! 😁
I feel like Philip encapsulates the perfect teacher. You can tell how much appreciation and understanding he has in the way he talks about literature. Love these videos as always Philip, thank you.
Many thanks for the kind words!
I cant wait for him to become caught up… i think he wiil be caught up midway elbalf
@6:05 I love your channel because your takes are different from any other's and it makes me think of what I didn't think before (but I've already told you this eheh). I also agree about the peak/climax being in Brook's backstory and Laboon. The juxtaposition between the past sorrow and the present joy is just genius. Also a bit of Buddhism in Zoro's selflessness (considering his attack names as well)? Keep up the good work! 🌱
@@MarioBeart I love the idea of looking for Buddhist inspiration in Zoro’s outlook! Cheers!
Man I am so excited for you to get to the next arc, the next saga actually. It's my favourite I've read so far
Thank you so much! I'm looking forward to it!
27:10 Vegapunk has been mentioned at least 3 times already: In Alabasta and Enies Lobby we see objects that have "eaten" Devil Fruits (Lassoo the daschund cannon, and Funkfried the elephant sword), and I think it's Spanda that explains it was a technique developed by Vegapunk that allows it to happen (or maybe Koby mentions it in Post Enies Lobby?). In PEL we learn he also developed a way to coat the Marine ships with Sea Prism, so that they can traverse the Calm Belt without being constantly attacked by Sea Kings.And now he's mentioned again by Kuma, as the one who made him into a Pacifista.
Cheers!
Hey Philip! Just wanted to say I love all of your One Piece videos! Your analyses have been putting everything I think about One Piece into words I wasn’t able to find myself. I’m also currently on my One Piece journey (about episode 577). One Piece has helped shape my outlook on life in such a positive way! And all of your thumbnails and One Piece puns always put a smile on my face! Again, thank you for the amazing videos and I hope to branch out to your other videos outside of One Piece as well!! ❤ Yohohohoho!!!
Thank you so much for your comment -- it makes me genuinely happy to know that the videos have been helpful to you. My best wishes to you for your continued One Piece journey, nakama!
As someone who loves all of One Piece I really appreciate your ongoing discourse and keep looking forward to future episodes. This arc, like others, is often disowned by the community because it’s too long or too boring or too something. But to me, the so-called skippable arcs are often the most thematically rich.
It really only gets better too - I’m excited to hear you discuss all that comes next, particularly Fishman Island.
Works like One Piece, certain video games and other pieces of media make me wonder: will the greatest story ever told be a book? A comic? A game? A medium we don’t even have yet?
@@PretentiousYogi Excellent question! We will have to keep reading and watching to find out!
You made it to Thriller Bark! Congratulations Philip, have blessed week 🎉. Onto the next adventure!
@@geramiah6039 Thank you! I hope you have a blessed week too!
Its such a nerdy thing to admit but i learned how to phonetically sing Bink's Brew in Japanese because its such an amazing song
I love it! I think it's beautiful that you did this!
Whoooo congratulations on finishing Thrillar bark! You got me in the first half of your opening, not gonna lie. And you finally got to one of my favorite characters in the show. Brook is constantly fighting Luffy and Robin for my number 1 straw hat, it's too difficult to choose between them. Like usual, i'll try to write along as i'm watching the video.
IIRC, Oda started One Piece when he was just 17 and still in highschool. Since OP came out in 1997, he's an 80's kid. Seeing as he makes references to other western media, and his naming schemes, i would not be surprised if Thriller Bark was areference to MJ.
Brook's skeleton jokes never get old. I don't know how many years he's been part of the show, but his jokes and laugh always crack me up.
I loved the way you explained the meaning behind "nothing happened". Many people look at the scenes when he says it, and think that it is him being a badass that is unfazed by the challenges. Now, he IS a badass that did amazing things, but he is not downplaying the things that happened. The fight with Ryuma was difficult, but it was something that NEEDED to happen. It was Zoro's duty to fight the strongest swordsman of the enemy and beat them. No matter how hurt he got, he fullfilled his duty and so "nothing (out of the ordinary) happened". As for the other moment, guess i'll write that later lol.
Chopper is so incredibly human. Of course every character has humanity in them, but i love the fact that the members who are least considered human (physically), have the greatest humanity in them. Chopper, Brook and Franky had great moments in this arc.
Nightmare luffy is amazing and underrated when it comes to Luffy forms. I absolutely love and respect your knowledge of literature and myths. Knowing about the Enherjar and pronouncing all the words right, unlike who me probably misspelled that term.
The final fight against Oars might be my favorite fight in the entire series, except for one that happened relatively recently. The fights in between were by no means bad, but seeing the straw hats work together as a unit like they did with Oars just hits something deep.
I wanted to write about the kuma scene but you said everything on my mind, and more. Bink's sake was probably the time i cried the most in the series. The anime does it beautifully, but the back and forth and seeing Brook's old friends die while also seeing his new friends celebrate. And yeah, on a personal note, Brook's "i'm glad i lived" hits incredibly deep.
Brook is literally a walking skeleton, stereotypically the scariest member of the crew by looks alone. The rest are all humans, look human, or are reindeer in the form of a teddy bear. And Oda gave the skeleton the role of musician. Yes he is a swordsman but his main role is to provide music. Something so magical and tied to emotions and people, it goes beyond border and language.
Amazing video like always, great singing at the end and good luck with the next arc!
Thank you for all your comments and insights! The Luffy/Oars battle is the stuff of epics, for sure! I love how Oda goes for it!
the upcoming arcs are truly the best one piece has to offer, godspeed philip. I'm looking forward to the videos on the upcoming arcs :)
@@barbdon3148 Cheers! 😊
Binks no Sake is one of my favorite musical pieces ever. It's so filled with life and joy that make me just keep living in the moment and enjoy life in general.
Also, hearing him talking about Kuma makes me giggle, not saying more for now.
I love that the blending of past and present is framed within the promise of the future. I cannot wait for them to reunite with laboon.
I imagine that scene will cause a worldwide shortage of tissues.
It gave me actual goosebumps when you talked about Kuma arriving to the island to make sure the power of the world government stays intact, the way you described the energy in that momemt made me feel like i was reading it all over again. Thriller Bark is something special and I think it doesnt get the love it deserves.
@@Cloudsheep93 Thriller Bark hides those deep themes under some much needed goofiness and comedy, but, as always with Oda’s storytelling, those deeper themes are there. All the best!
Thriller Bark is really underrated! Not my favorite arc, but still a good one. Binks Sake is such a great song :D The next arc though, this is my absolute favorite! Cannot wait for you to talk about it ... no spoilers!! :D
I’m excited for the next arc!
Amazing review as always! I also love the exploration of how you cannot face the light (or move forward) if you abandon your shadow (your darkness). You have to embrace the whole of you to reach out for your dreams and be truly free:)
Beautifully said!
Cant wait for you to reach Sabaody next video, its one of my top 5 arcs in One Piece
Agreed!
I look forward to it very much!
Great analysis as always, feels like 30 minutes goes by in an instant. Have you ever thought of doing a livestream about one piece? Maybe for when you are caught up with the manga?
I would enjoy that very much, and I think it would make sense to do it when I'm caught up. Perhaps as a celebration!
I was waiting for this for too long. Thanks man
My pleasure!
Great video as always. Listening to you break down this arc, I genuinely forgot how many things about the future Oda teased or introduced in this arc. Glad you had a blast, and get ready! Some of OP's most incredible moments are on the near horizon.
Thank you! I'm excited for what's next! I hear a lot of praise.
I’m so excited for you to experience the next few arcs (that will hopefully end with another discussion with Merphy). This next saga is one of the greatest in fiction, and there are huge events and reveals that will occur. Please do everything you can to avoid spoilers!!!
Will do! I'll definitely be chatting about One Piece with Merphy again, but I'll be chatting with Allen and Jimmy (from Dudes Talking Manga) when I finish the Summit War Saga. All the best!
I really enjoyed Dude Talking Mangas videos. Very sad that he stopped uploading (apparently because he got spoiled)
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy I’ll be looking forward to seeing your video with Dudes Talking Manga! I was following Jimmy’s OP journey up until he stopped posting videos after being spoiled. I’m not sure if you’ve seen any of his OP videos for risk of spoilers, but is there any chance of creating separate OP arc videos following his format in the future, where he films small check-ins during his read-through whenever a big event or reveal has happened, and then combines them into one video? It was really cool to see his instant reactions to major events and see his theories and predictions as he progressed through the arcs. I love your long-form, whole arc recaps like this, and especially enjoy your discussions on the overall themes in the arc and how you provide insights into where Oda likely drew inspiration from, but if you have the desire/bandwidth (I already don’t understand how you’re able to juggle so many projects) it would be really cool to see a separate video (or even a blog) for each arc with your reactions/predictions as you progress through the story!
Your analysis brings me such joy ❤ I was humming bink's brew for alot of the end to my walk home. I appreciate being able to still learn more about the modern odyssey that is one piece. Much love and joy to you in your life and your journey through Oda's master piece. When I was a lonely kid with no one to talk to about this story, I dreamed of a day to have friends, family and contemporaries to share this wonderful story with. Thanks for being a part of the realization of that dream. 3 of my siblings share in this story now, countless friends, and many great content creators as well. Good luck with your next analysis, I am patiently waiting to hear more from you. ❤
@@evanmccord5396 It’s a pleasure to share this story with you, nakama!
@@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy you had me going at the beginning of this video, until I paused and saw Zoro in my mind haha. Your added humor is appreciated and valued by me. I am about to watch the newest episode 🙃 You have such a good pulse on the narrative. You remind me of the teacher I had for literature that grew my love for reading a decade and a half ago. I am 30 now and find such joy in processing our human experience through the words and stories written by other people. I hope your Sunday is brilliant and peaceful. And thanks for the connection. No need to respond again I just wanted to make my appreciation known. Cheers
Yo ho ho hooooo yo ho ho hooo yo ho ho hoooo yo ho ho hoo
Hi Philip ! Love the Laboon and Brook backstory too. Love how diverse the crew keep getting. Great thumbnail and review. 🎉
That's such a great point! The diversity of the crew is definitely part of the beauty and magic for me. I love all those weirdos!
You’re in for it now, it’s full throttle from here on
was so excited for you to get here! I have a love for music and Brooks story and joy for it is one of the reasons he is a favorite of mine! I love the party scene at the end of the arc! Keep on enjoying the journey Philip!
That is definitely my favorite One Piece party so far, and it will be hard to top it. The sense of melancholy along with the joy is just so powerful.
I love the way you speak about Kuma the Warlord. I got the same interpretation when I first read it (I started reading One Piece in 2003, when the Strawhats were at Skypeia, so I have been a fan for a minute!) and remembered asking myself...How would the Straw Hats get away from this Warlord? Having said "NO MERCY" towards the crew and making it known that he is on another level. It was agonizing to be waiting each week for the new chapter to drop!
I'm glad you into One Piece and seeing you fall deeply in love with the story will always bring me to smiles!!! Enjoy the next saga, its my favorite!
@@HelenourRigby Thanks so much! I envy you being a fan of One Piece for so long, but one little advantage I have is not having to be in suspense waiting for the next part of the story . . . at least until I catch up. All the best!
I think the importance of showing that it is Zoro that takes Luffy's burden instead of Sanji is to bring the depths of their characters into the light.
Sanji is kind, but also self-sacrificial. He puts himself on the danger path all alone because that's how he thinks he can contribute to the crew. Like being Mr. Prince in Alabasta arc, or following Robin and sneaking into the sea train. He will lay on a bed of nails so his nakama can stay out of harm. "I'm doing it, because nobody else should do it," that's how Sanji's mind works. Which is why, I'm 100% sure that Sanji will die if he takes Luffy's burden. He thinks little of himself, he'd be okay if he died right then and there.
On the other hand, Zoro is dutiful. He believes that his contribution is by taking on the worst danger to the crew. He does something because he believes he has to do it. He has to be able to cut steel to defeat Mr. 1 in Alabasta, so he does it. He has to fight Mihawk even if it kills him, so he does it. He has a duty to protect Luffy, so he takes Luffy's burden. He also has a duty to make Luffy the Pirate King, so he knocks Sanji unconscious and survives the unspeakable pain. It is his duty and he simply does it against all odds.
That's why it's Zoro and not Sanji.
It is such a masterful writing. You don't see it until you think about it. Oda is a God of his craft.
Beautiful insights here -- thank you so much!
I always get excited when I see a new video for this series. It’s great having someone with a literary background explore a profound work like One Piece
There truly is so much to explore in One Piece, and I am confident there will be whole university courses dedicated to it someday, if they don't already exist. All the best!
A pretty nice detail is that Bink's Sake is hear in the One Piece Life Action in one of the Shanks and Luffy flashback. It's nice because is a song that should be sing in the whole world by pirates.
Well done by the live action folks!
I truly do love Thriller Bark. The themes, setting, character work, and so many other things bring me as much joy as any of the other arcs I love.
I recommend Merphy's video with all the literature reference in this arc, lot of them were new to me until that video
Thank you for the recommendation!