Tears of Frustration
Yamato’s Cover Page Series Vol. 27: “Tears of frustration won’t stop.”
Ulti, her beloved Page One taken hostage and her strength stripped away by Seastone, forced to simply watch as they threaten to kill him… This situation and line belong to Robin — from a specific moment in the past. That means next chapter, Yamato jumping in to save and recover Page One is almost certain!
In One Piece, when a female character says “tears of frustration won’t stop,” a supremely satisfying turnaround always follows. This is the emotional curve design in storytelling — drop the emotion first, then spike it upward for maximum impact.
One concern, though: Who’s Who is no pushover like Spandam. Whether Yamato and Otama can dominate him is questionable. They’ll probably need to free Page One and Ulti from the Seastone first and attack as four. But since both Otama and Yamato are Devil Fruit users, they can’t undo the lock the way Luffy did in the main story — they’ll need a non-user’s help. Will the kidnapped geisha join the fight?
This too is from the Enies Lobby arc — the Elbaf arc is based on Enies Lobby, with Water Seven as another foundation.
Haugen
The place name “Haugen,” meaning “hill” or “elevated ground” in Norwegian, exists in several locations across Norway and Denmark — but none of them had a recorded incident of being destroyed by a lightning-caused fire. Now — Ripley: “Those might be Elbaf’s weaknesses — ‘fire’ and ‘lightning’…” Gaban: “When you leave this island, if Elbaf is still standing, come find me again.” Both husband and wife have just raised the flag for Elbaf’s destruction.
A Woman Older Than Yarlu
Yarlu, 408 years old, says his type is older women. Usopp retorted, “There ain’t anyone like that! You’d be the oldest in the world!” — but there is one person who comes to mind. Im, who knows Joy Boy — said to be a figure from 1,000 years ago — is estimated to be over 1,000 years old.
Excalibur and Celtic Mythology
Excalibur — the sacred sword from the Arthurian legend, famous for chivalry, frequently appearing in RPGs. Its origin is Celtic mythology. In the middle of a gathering of kings, a hooded old man (Odin) suddenly appeared in the courtyard, drove a sword into a stone, declared “Whoever draws this sword is the rightful king,” and vanished. The young King Arthur was the only one who could draw it — easily. Reading about King Arthur goes a long way toward understanding Sanji’s chivalry.
Iron Thunder — Ragnil
It appears Loki’s weapon is a giant hammer. The origin of Iron Thunder (Ragnil) is undoubtedly Thor’s hammer from Norse mythology — Mjolnir. And the name of Odin’s spear is Gungnir. Ragnil, Mjolnir, Gungnir — they all share the suffix “-nir,” which probably means “iron” — indicating the material of the weapon. And “Rag” also appears in Ragnarok, so it likely symbolizes calamity (lightning) or war.
A Quick Guide to Norse Mythology
The Marvel “Thor” series is highly recommended. There’s also a Loki spin-off show on Disney+. For realistic Viking adventure, try “Vinland Saga” (“Saga” is a word meaning something like the Norse equivalent of a historical chronicle).
- Thor
- Thor: The Dark World
- Thor: Ragnarok
- Thor: Love and Thunder
- Vinland Saga (anime)
- Vinland Saga (manga)
- Game of Thrones
- Vicky the Viking
Game of Thrones is also based on Norse mythology’s Ragnarok — an [intermediate] recommendation. And Vicky the Viking is the anime that sparked Oda-sensei’s love of Vikings. All of them are recommended!
Giants Other Than Loki Are Too Gullible
Hyrdlin talks about Loki in extremely harsh terms, but I think giants as a species are as gullible as Camie or the Tontatta. That’s why they believed the story that Usopp defeated Oars, and why Oimo and Kashii guarded the gate for 50 years. Loki is probably just ordinary by human standards — not particularly gullible at all.