I have to agree this episode rocked.
Just like I thought! Lucci noticed Chimney but didn't say anything because he doesn't respect Spandam or his goals. He had a childish smirk on his face when he told Spandam about the loophole he found in his orders LOL. It makes sense though. There clearly isn't any respect for Spandam in Lucci's eyes and he only wants to do what's absolutely necessary for him. Spandam stays interesting basically purely from his relationships with others like this and that's awesome. It does also make me realize the possibility of Lucci himself taking out Spandam under the right circumstances!
Luffy hit that door even harder than he hit Blueno and we got a teaser for how strong he becomes, well before turning chibi. It reminds me of Choppers rumble balls. He gets strong for a bit then turns small and cute and weak. There is something off about these characters pulling out moves out of nowhere though. Chopper using that projectile-looking attack on Yoyoi man, or Luffy getting insanely super human strength through kaioken without properly building up to it may not be a flaw but its certainly not perfection. To be totally fair I think I'm being too extreme because Chopper is always finding new things and Zoro is always training and it makes sense for them, as it may perfectly make sense how Luffy gained this gear technique as the show goes on.
After Luffy blew up the door Chimney said to Gonbe something quite interesting "lets get back to work!", it made me realize maybe all the saving they're doing isn't luck. Maybe these 2 cuties are running around exploring but doing it very purposefully!
I think Khalifa was seducing Sanji to stall for time but now shes bathing in front of Nami... Well I shouldn't assume she's not doing the same for Nami I guess...
And finally, Franky comes out with his second fight and one of the best fights in One Piece too. Maybe not from a character exploring perspective like his last fight was, but instead through the raw satisfying action. I swear Franky could easily become my favorite in terms of fights due to how good it feels to watch them. Every single block, grapple, and punch is so powerful. I loved the way he blocked Fukurou and tossed him by his mouth, the way he tanked a punch to the face and hit back even harder, and the way he bullied him into a prideful slugfest. It was so over the top and juicy. Every single blow was felt. The gags in the fight were hilarious too with Chopper locking Yoyoi man in the fridge and opening and closing it numerous times to try out different drinks on Franky, as well as the aftermath of those drinks. The way it developed Franky and Choppers relationship by showing Chopper he's not just a bad guy but a really cool bad guy, and the final cola'd up one shot punch all made this one to remember. Sure, like I said, its not super character developing or exploring, but as a purely awesome fight this one takes the cake.
Franky put up a good fight with little cola in him! It's lucky Fukurou didn't figure out his weakness- his back though...
Last thing I want to mention is my understanding of the CP9 powers like Shave. It seems they can only do one at a time, such as shave in close, stop their super speed, then attack. Or Iron Body only works as a defense tool if they do it right before they hit, like how Blueno tried to tank the second gear blow with it in his fight. Fukurou seems to be an exception though, he was combining speed and strength and his special move was one that seemingly let him shave around in circles pummeling Franky while hitting him at the same time. They're probably intensive to use on the body and hard to combine without mastery.
To be fair this could be a false analysis, I do remember Lucci using shave and his pistol finger technique very close together to kill Nero, but at the same time he could have shaved behind him, stopped it, then used that, or he could be such a master he can combine them flawlessly.
Edit: Upon watching the preview I realized the Fukurou fight may not be done, if so then it could get even better! |