#op30dc

One Piece has tons of great story arcs and honestly, I have a few favourites. I suppose Arlong Park has a special place in my heart because it was what got little eleven year old me hooked all those years ago. 

I’ll try and keep this short; it added some defining emotional depth to One Piece (Nami’s past, the scene above, Luffy destroying Nami’s room,), it had some great character establishing moments (the lengths Luffy goes to for his friends, Usopp’s first real duel, Nami stabbing her own hand to save Usopp’s life, etc.), and the Walk to Arlong Park scene in the anime is still the best use of the OST Overtaken. 

Arlong Park also saw some wonderful world building (Fishmen, Luffy’s bounty) and some excellent bits of writing reflecting major themes in One Piece (oppression/freedom, friendship) and argh I love it to bits, especially with all the nostalgia the simplicity of East Blue evokes. 

[One Piece 30 Day Challenge]

Man, I love all the backstories in One Piece, so picking one for this day was a struggle too. But more than anything, the themes of freedom and brotherhood in Ace, Sabo and Luffy’s backstory really resonate with me.

Each brother has, at some point, stated their desire to be free. Ace’s declaration that he’ll live freer than anyone else, Sabo’s quote in the photoset above, and Luffy’s motivation to be the Pirate King as the person with the most freedom. Then there’s the way the ASL kids live, embodying that freedom, and Sabo’s rebellion against the circumstances of his birth, and how those same circumstances conspire to lead to his “death”. I was and still am apprehensive of being unable to live my life at my own pace and the way I wanted to. So for me, the three of them represent the freedom which I aspire towards in real life. 

As for brotherhood, it’s pretty clear how strong the bond between the three of them is. (It still makes me so sad that we’ll never cannonically see Ace, Sabo and Luffy interact as adults, although Oda’s little what-if spinoff where Sabo saves Ace at Marineford kinda fills that hole in my heart, ouch). More than anything, as a kinda lonely kid, I wanted that sort of bond, that sort of simple acceptance and unyielding trust.