One Piece Diaries #70 – Fishman Island Arc #1

One Piece is one of the most beloved anime in history, but at over 1,000 episodes, it’s tough for those who haven’t been watching from the start to jump on board. One Piece Diaries tracks one writer’s experience with this daunting rite of passage. With hype for the highs and critique for the lows, this column will help you decide whether to take your own One Piece journey – or let you relive the one you’re already on. It will be updated biweekly every other Thursday.

Episodes Watched: 523 – 531

Once again, I come to you with an apology. I am late with my scheduled update because I’m in Sri Lanka on vacation. Preparing for the trip took basically all of the time that wasn’t spent working, so unfortunately my One Piece journey took a backseat. It’s going to continue to do so until I get home – apparently the Sri Lankan edition of Crunchyroll only has the most recent seasons, so I can’t watch anymore One Piece until the end of June. Luckily, I did watch some episodes before leaving, so I have something to talk about. Let’s get into it.

During this set of episodes, the Straw Hats finally head to Fishman Island. To do that, they have to coat their ship in a substance that will protect it from the ocean’s pressures and dangers, and allow them to breathe. It was interesting to see how they dealt with the complications caused by being underwater, especially once they ran into other pirates. One group seemed like they might be ghosts…not sure what’s going on with that, but we’ll see. They also have to deal with Caribou, a bizarre-looking pirate who hitches a ride with the, and tries to be villainous but is generally just annoying. They also meet Surume, a giant octopus who Luffy wants to befriend. I am very fond of this particular detail.

Once they get to Fishman Island, they meet up with Camie and Papappagu. They encounter multiple mermaids, learn that Pappagu is a famous designer, and are about to be welcomed by royalty before their resident psychic gets a vision that Luffy will destroy Fishman Island. Meanwhile, trouble seems to be brewing involving a pirate group called the New Fishman Pirates, who seem to have a lot of disdain for humans. That’s where I left off – with trouble brewing. So far, I’m not sure if I’m frustrated or intrigued. The New Fishman Pirates issue seems like a meaningful conflict, but the psychic vision issue feels like it’s just there to add chaos without substance. I could be totally wrong, though – we’ll see!

In a previous review, I mentioned that I didn’t like Sanji’s ridiculous, over-the-top perversion. I still don’t…but I also sort of do. Why? Because it’s so over-the-top that it actually takes its own ridiculous premise seriously. Sanji faces actual consequences for the blood that’s spurting out of his nose. Seriously, he needs a blood transfusion. This is the kind of commitment to the bit that I actually like. If he’s going to spew massive amounts of blood multiple times a day, he logically would need to replace it. As you might have guessed, I didn’t really appreciate the fact that his donors looked like residents of the island he’d just left. Even if the joke had been funny to begin with, it would have outworn its welcome by now. And it wasn’t. It was just transphobic.

Still, I did like that Sanji’s weird behavior was taken seriously. I also like that it wasn’t just an overblown joke – it was a lead-in to something that’s important to the plot. It was nearly impossible to find someone who could give Sanji blood. He has a rare blood type, which meant none of his friends were compatible. Most of the Fishmen wouldn’t even consider it. That’s because there’s a major taboo against mixing human and Fishman blood. So far, it’s not clear why this is, only that it has to do with a Fishman named Fisher Tiger. The extreme racism faced by Fishmen implies that things are about to get disturbing. I can’t say I’m excited for what might be coming, but I am intrigued.

I hate to say it, but I probably won’t be back in two weeks. I can’t watch any more One Piece until July 1st, which is when I get back to the USA and have access to the whole series again. I hope that Sri Lankans can get it somewhere, because otherwise that’s completely unfair. Everyone should be able to set sail for One Piece if they want to! Anyway, when I get home, I’m likely going to be unconscious for a bit, and then I have to do a lot of life things that mean I probably won’t have seen enough episodes to make up a review. But I’ll try my best not to be more than a week late. Thanks for bearing with me, and I hope to get back on track schedule wise soon.

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