Anime: Marineford Arc- Episode 468

What do you do when a thousand angry Marines have surrounded your band of renegade Okamas and you are totally trapped in the middle of a huge war? Why, go to OnePieceOfficial.com to see what the heck happens next, of course!

First Thoughts

It was as I had anticipated from the title of the episode. Still great, but mainly just more action-y fights rather than a lot of new info. Not a lot of new action here, other than the meeting with Jango and Fullbody, which was rather entertaining, and Smoker’s little vendetta with Luffy. Talk about taking the literal meaning of the word “crush”, go Hancock! Then, the very end was really important I bet, with Kuma and Doflamingo. Very important, and still wondering about Ivankov’s friendship with Kuma. All in all, a rather enlightening episode, and just inching along with the plot.


Summary

Luffy continues his assault on Marine HQ and Whitebeard formulates a few strategies as Sengoku appears to be setting up a trap of his own. The newcomers take sides, and Ace comes to a decision. I think I covered everything important…oh! Smoker figures out why he couldn’t kill Luffy in Rougetown and decides to (finally) exact his form of Justice, we learn the real reason that women should never be made angry in the form of an enraged Hancock, and Doflamingo is very evil. (But we already knew that last one, so I think it’s ok ;)

Thoughts

Probably kinda sort post today because there wasn’t all that ton of stuff to comment on in this episode, as it mainly consisted of fighting random people and the pairings for the fights.

So pretty much just a lot of fighting here going on, a lot of attacking, Luffy being determined, and Whitebeard being, well…awesome. Great how Whitebeard can just stop all those cannons at the same time, awesome.

A lot of basic moves that Luffy hasn’t used in ages…Gum-Gum Pistol, bouncing bullets back, yeah, some good stuff that he hasn’t used in a while due to the powerful people. Here he’s just in a rush, and panicked.

Ace is having way too much mental clenching. He is going to just have to let it go here really quick, or else he is going to have a panic attack or something. I mean, I understand about his inability to stop his friends and family from getting hurt on his behalf, but he can’t just clench and fret over it like this. He has got to focus, soon.

I just wanted to point out how cool this bazooka is. I don’t know why. And bandanas.

Luffy’s face here is just really strange. I mean, it is set, and determined, and all sorts of serious and freaked out…but still. I mean really, it is just so…intense.

I like Ace like this. It is scary, but he has grown up a lot in this second.

Well, now here’s Buggy. Yup, Buggy. The guy who is Mad Libbing his way through and around this huge swarm of violent prisoners and for some reason is regarded as their hero and legend. That Buggy. Well, this is a great part. I shall try to say little more.

Oh Buggy…you cannot say such things to Whitebeard. Oh Buggy…

I have to admit, Buggy is WAY in over his head with these delusional ex-prisoners. This is just too much. So great…

Whitebeard’s strategy: ask the little man what he is going to do once he kills Colossus; see how he defeats the opposing army without his strongman. This is a great trick that Whitebeard is playing, classic too so even better. This is a wonderful thing that occurred, and I give full points for it.

And Buggy has gone delusional. Well, it is better than having his head swell and actually believing his own words. That would be bad for him. At least he is just totally in a comic haze of non-belief.

AH! The tongue…oooh, the tongue…

Hm…the Marines are trying to lure and then to force the pirates into the bay…I wonder why…I think that I remember, but I’m not sure…either way, things are getting into position. Whatever “things” are.

And we’re back to the general fighting. And Ivankov is being…interesting. And Luffy is looking very cool and determined still.

Here next is Jimbei volunteering to face off against Moria again. Moria (still being a very large Beep) stealing shadows? AH, no way! (sarcasm, gotta love it)

Moria, the insistent beep.

I have to say that I have always really respected Smoker, even though I consider him to be very absurd in his “strict like a Marine” yet “my own Justice” routines. Really a paradox, and it’s a good one too. He is such a great character, and this part when he figures out what really happened in Rougetown is really good.

The add-in with Ivankov is very interesting too. Rather entertaining, yet not fun enough to overshadow that weird, looming presence that Kuma has now. It is scary.

Not to be rude or anything Tashigi, but I believe that one of her problems is maybe that every time she swings at her opponent she calls out their name in a long, drawn out manner. It is kinda a warning that you are coming, you know…

This short battle with Smoker and Luffy is really amazing. They really are the modern-age examples of Garp and Roger, of course neither of their processors were Fruit users and they were a bit different, but the context is still there, so it is really cool.

This part with Hancock was surprising, and very amusing. The wrath of a woman’s scorn…ha, and people joked about that. This is a wonderful example of why you should take a woman seriously when she is angry.

I just realized something. Probably the only really great thing that I have had an epiphany on all of this episode. Hancock has become the female Sanji (except only directed towards Luffy, not all men). This is really ironic since Sanji has become an Okama (maybe), so I just thought that I’d point that out.

I must comment lightly on this part, due to the heavy evil influence on it. I really want to know what is with Kuma, and what Doflamingo said here surprised me a lot, and even scared me a little bit. Did they really replace his whole body with machines by now? I mean…that is most likely what Doflamingo meant when he said that Bartholomew Kuma was dead: all of his “human” parts were replaced by machines. No longer a cyborg, but a full robot. Scary…and Doflamingo was perfect to tell that, being all evil and whatnot.

Preview

Looks like Doflamingo is going to be explaining what horrible cliff-hanger he gave us this week (darn you, Beeping guy), and Kuma is going to attack Ivankov some more. Luffy looks to be charging ahead again, but not after some words from Hancock. Mihawk’s sword showed up, and a few more of Whitebeard’s commanders, so there will be some appearances there as well. I saw Crocodile, so he may be up to something again. Hancock faces off with Smoker to defend her love, and Ivankov has to deal with his turned-robot friend Kuma.

Sweet. Dang, I wish I could do next weeks, haha! It looks like it will have great stuff with Doflamingo in it. I believe I have become a tad obsessed with Doflamingo, and that is probably unhealthy because he is really strange, and gives people a creepy feeling, so I really don’t know where my interest in him comes from.


Next Episode: The Change Which Occurred in Kuma! Ivan-san’s Angry Attack.

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