One Piece Chapter 899 – Escaping Totto Land

The Sun Pirates appear!

With Luffy now back on the Thousand Sunny, the crew can finally focus their efforts on escaping but having sailed too close to Cacao Island, they have left themselves open to being cornered by the Big Mom Pirates. Fortunately, the allies of the Straw Hat Pirates have resolved to assist them and with the exit rapidly closing, the Sun Pirates appear to pry open the path to escape again. The Germa, Firetank Pirates, Mink tribe and Sun Pirates have all cast their fates in with the Straw Hat Pirates and gambled on the man named Monkey D. Luffy.

One Piece Chapter 898 – The Terror Of The Germa

The Germa VS The Big Mom Pirates

Within the heart of Cacao Island darkness descends to shield the Straw Hat Pirates from the assault of those eager to take their heads. Injured and targeted, Sanji carries Luffy toward the safety of the Thousand Sunny with the assistance of the Germa 66 who seek to express their terror onto the flesh of their betrayers. And with that in mind and filled with vengence, they unleash onto the Big Mom Pirates.

One Piece Chapter 897 – The Germa 66 Arrives

Show them the terror of the Vinsmoke name!

Finally, we get to see the Germa 66 in action and what they are capable of in all their scientific and heartless glory. The Germa 66 may have started as antagonist but over the course of the arc, they have transformed into a faction that WILL become valuable allies to the Straw Hat Pirates in the future. As things are, they are already assisting the Straw Hat Pirates in clearing the Big Mom Pirates blocking their path and helping with retrieving a fatigued Luffy. The Big Mom Pirates have grossly underestimated the Germa 66 and are now paying for it completely – when you expose your back to an assassin, you are asking to be stabbed.

One Piece Chapter 882 – Luffy VS Katakuri II

That’s…impressive…

Despite the obvious trouble Luffy is in, his battle with Katakuri is incredibly necessary towards him developing his fighting capabilities up to the point where he can stand against New World opponents. Much like it was with Crocodile in Paradise, the overwhelmed Luffy needed to find a way to defeat the overpowering opponent representative of the enemies he will face across that sea. In order for his crew to exist within the New World without the umbrella of the Yonko, Luffy, the Captain, needs to showcase how capable he is. And Luffy defeating Katakuri, the strongest child of Big Mom whom Brulee just built up to an insane degree, would definitely express Luffy’s capabilities boldly.

One Piece Chapter 871 – The Tamatebako

BOOM!!!

Well this is an awkward position to be in. I have been so strongly for Big Mom being defeated in this arc in my arguments but with this chapter, everything I was expecting has been twisted around completely. In particular, the comment Luffy made about Big Mom being his next target after Kaidou. Does Oda-sensei REALLY plan to deal with Kaidou’s defeat before Big Mom’s? I find myself at a loss for how exactly to structure my thinking now. Will Big Mom be defeated? Or as it now likely appears, will Big Mom be too strong for the Straw Hat Pirates, that they are forced to retreat to live to fight her another day (when the whole crew is gathered)?

One Piece Chapter 870 – In Order To Escape

Hell yeah, I was hoping this would happen!

Regardless of how irrational Sanji and Luffy’s decision were, it was the right decision, it felt right, it felt more than right, it felt amazing. With the Big Mom Pirates overwhelming the alliance and seemingly under the delusion that they hold a place of superiority over their enemies, it was hard not to feel the desire to want the Straw Hat Pirates to cut loose and release themselves, bringing ruin to yet another Colossal powerhouse within the world. It is not the Straw Hat Pirates who are underestimating the Big Mom Pirates but the Big Mom Pirates who are underestimating the Straw Hat Pirates, hence why they thought they had every right and power to ‘abduct’ Sanji away from the rest of the crew on Zou without any repercussions. Luffy and Sanji now intend to convey how wrong the Big Mom Pirates were.

One Piece Chapter 869 – “Assemble” GERMA 66

From the flames of destruction and the embers of villainy, they arise! GERMA 66!

From bad to worse, the situation is just compounding in problems with Big Mom returning to her senses seething with rage towards the Straw Hat Pirates and the betrayal of Capone Bege. The Big Mom Assassination Plan has failed and as a result of Perospero and Katakuri, Capone’s Big Father castle is immobilized and unable to attack. With Big Mom attacking it, it is only a matter of time before Capone wears out and the castle disappears. With the Straw Hats Pirates outgunned and the Big Mom Pirates on the hunt for them, what final cards do the Straw Hat Pirates and allies have left to play that can salvage the situation and save them from their current misfortune? How will the Germa get their revenge? And how exactly will the Tamatebako come into play?

One Piece Chapter 856 – The Captain And The Chef

Finally! Sanji finally let down his walls and opened up to his Captain who has always been there for him

Sanji finally let off the weight dragging him down into despair. The agonizing weight of having his dreams crushed and his loved ones lives used against him. A sinking weight wholly reliant on his actions. Sanji wanted to protect everyone even if it meant doing it all alone and against an overwhelming opponent. He complied with the demands required of him and played the part of a pawn in someone else’s schemes oblivious to the reality of what was going on behind the scenes. Now that Sanji is aware of the futility of his efforts, of how the Wedding is actually a precursor to a festival of death and destruction, he turns to his captain for help. And of course, Luffy being who he is, accepts the challenge of further angering a Yonko.

[Analysis] One Piece – The Relevance Of The Germa

The Vinsmoke Family, the rulers of the Germa Kingdom

What has become obvious through the Totto Land Arc is the increasing importance of the Germa and their reach in relevance with regards to the story of One Piece. They have been introduced as an antagonist group but when viewed alongside the steps Oda-sensei has taken to flesh them out, it becomes apparent that they are not being handled in a manner akin to the other antagonistic groups we have seen in the past. The Germa’s goals only conflict with the Straw Hat Pirates goals marginally and they currently have no reason to directly oppose the Straw Hat Pirates. Once the Germa realise Sanji’s marriage with Pudding is worthless not to mention a prelude to their destruction, they won’t have any reason to stop Sanji from returning to the Straw Hat Pirates. Given that, what role are they meant to play then?

One Piece Chapter 839 – Germa 66

Family dinner huh, how unusually normal

The more we learn about the Germa 66, the more I am convinced that they will serve a much larger purpose than just the events in this arc dealing with Sanji’s upcoming wedding. There is so much intrigue, history and potential surrounding the Germa 66, I cannot see how Oda-sensei would be able to cover everything within an arc centered around the Big Mom Pirates as the main attraction.  The Germa’s technology, their ambition and now their cyborg/clone/synthetic human development program, Oda-sensei definitely has something bigger planned for them, especially with the Vinsmoke Family being directly related to Sanji.