With volume 45 we finally finish up on the best arc that shonen manga has to offer. Water 7 and Enies Lobby are over. But we still have a few important things to get through, so let’s have a look at everything that happens in this volume.
Let’s start with the crew themselves. They get to rest and stay in Water 7 for a little bit while Franky and some of the Galley-La men build them a new ship. Franky spent the money his men stole from Luffy to buy special wood on the black market. This wood is from the Adam Tree and is supposedly indestructible. The Pirate King’s ship the Oro Jackson was made from the same material. It was Franky’s dream to build the ultimate ship and he’s finally getting to do so. The other members of the Franky Family try to convince him to join the crew and sail on the ship he built, but he doesn’t seem to be having it. During all the celebration and ship building we have a problem that arises. The navy shows up. And it’s not just any navy officer, it’s Vice Admiral Garp, the legendary hero of the navy. He’s one of their most formidable officers and he’s also Luffy’s grandfather. Having a strong presence must run in the Monkey family. Speaking of Luffy’s family, we finally learn who his father is. It’s Monkey D. Dragon, the revolutionary leader who saw them off all the way back in loguetown. But forget about that, Garp wasn’t supposed to say that out loud.
Garp also brought Coby and Helmeppo with him, who are no longer recognizable as the wimpy kids they once were all the way back in Shell’s Town. They’re proper navy soldiers now although they’re still not on the level of Luffy and Zoro. They chat for a while and Garp eventually leaves, claiming he’ll just tell Sengoku that he’s not going to kill his own grandson. At the same time, Aokiji shows up and talks to Robin. He tells her that he wanted to see her find friends to honor his old friend Saul, and to make sure the will of Ohara continues. We’re getting a lot of small hints about important things that might happen in another 500 chapters here, but that’s a story for another time of course. With all the celebrations out of the way, everyone works together to convince Franky to join the Straw Hat crew by stealing his underwear and forcing him to forgive himself for being part of why Tom died. Everyone else has already forgiven him after all. Franky sees his friends off, who are a reflection of how good of a person he truly is, and the crew set out to leave. We also learn about their bounties, with Chopper being treated as a pet and Sanji’s bounty poster having a drawing because the lens cap didn’t work. Seems like a weird choice, but it’s funny.
Unfortunately, Garp got scolded by his boss about letting Luffy go so he’s come back to fight them after all. He shows off why he’s so feared by throwing cannonballs with his bare hands at the crew. While all of this is happening, Usopp is finally showing his face. After Zoro convinces everyone that Usopp can only return if he apologizes first, they’re all eagerly awaiting his return and luckily he finally bursts out in tears and apologizes, to the relief of everyone on the ship, including Zoro who was probably really worried under that harsh exterior. They get Usopp aboard and with a large cola-fueled blast they escape the navy’s onslaught and make their way towards Fishman Island. But first they have to get through the terrifying Florian Triangle.
Besides the crew’s antics on Water 7, there are many other things happening in this volume. The first important thing that happens is a meeting between Shanks and Whitebeard, with Shanks trying to convince Whitebeard to stop Ace. We get a good show of Shanks’ incredible presence here as he knocks out a lot of Whitebeard’s crew just by existing near them. The two talk and clash for a second, but ultimately nothing gets resolved. We learn that the scar on Shanks’ face was given to him by Teach/Blackbeard. We also hear Buggy’s name once more, it’s good to know he’s not forgotten. It’s impressive that two of the four emperors know of him, for such a weak pirate in the East Blue.
Lastly we see a clash between Ace and Blackbeard, when Ace has finally caught up to Blackbeard. The latter invites Ace to join him, but Ace refuses. Blackbeard’s crew attacks to their captain’s dismay as they’re not nearly on Ace’s level. We get to see the rest of their clash in the next volume.
Also, Enel has found people on the moon? So much is happening that it’s almost hard to keep up. Luckily things will calm down a bit in the next arc, but we’re not there yet. For now, I have so much work to do that I’ll leave today’s post at this. Thanks for reading!
PS. Due to a combination of NaNoWriMo and this being the end of an arc, One Piece Wednesday will be on break next week as I catch up on other writing projects. It will be tough not reading a volume on Sunday, but I’ll read something else. See you back here in two weeks, hopefully.
Opal Kaharis 