Black Cat may not have the most innovative or sophisticated plot ever conceived—our hero and his friends face off against a mentally unbalanced bad guy and his lackeys—but it’s executed so well and the characters are so likable that I can’t help but be thoroughly entertained each time I consume another chunk of the story.

In volume twelve, Train and friends meet with Dr. Tearju, a nanotech expert who might be able to help Train (now in the body of a child) return to normal. Tearju’s advice enables Train to overpower the nanomachines causing his condition and use them to develop a new power—immediately dubbed the “rail gun”—which essentially allows him to electrify his bullets. Creed’s forces attempt to draft Tearju, and when that fails, they use a monkey with clone powers (I am not making this up) to steal both her appearance and her knowledge. All of this makes Eve decide that the time has come to go after Creed, as he’s much too dangerous to remain free.

Train agrees, and after revealing the story of his past and deciding that he wants to administer justice as a sweeper rather than pursue vengeance as the Black Cat, he sets about acquiring intel on Creed’s whereabouts. While Sven goes off to train his “vision eye,” which allows him to see a few seconds into the future, Train and Eve enter into an alliance with some other sweepers. This is quite a fun twist on things, and the fourteenth volume ends with a (literal) boatload of sweepers making their way to Creed’s island hideout.

There are six volumes left of this series, and if they’re comprised of a huge epic battle between the sweepers and Creed and his goons, I think I could be quite happy indeed. As I said, this isn’t the deepest series ever, but it’s genuinely enjoyable to read and whenever I finish the volumes I’ve got on hand, I always wish I had more. I like that the characters seem to genuinely like each other, too; some of the best moments are things like child-sized Train and Eve going to see a movie called “A Dad and His Dog” together.

Lastly, I rejoice that I have finally gotten an answer about those weird things on Train’s jacket! Tucked away in a character popularity poll was the information I’d been seeking. Yabuki writes that the “donut-shaped accessories on Train’s chest are made of wood with a metal interior. They serve as a sort of shield.” Not that we ever see them function in that capacity, but at least we need wonder no more!

I had originally checked out about a dozen volumes of One Piece from my local library with high hopes of reading them all in the allotted time, but life intervened and I sadly ended up turning most of them back in. I did, however, manage to read these three volumes, in which the Straw Hats attempt to prevent civil war from erupting in Princess Vivi’s kingdom (Alabasta) due to the devious meddlings of the head of the Baroque Works criminal organization, Sir Crocodile.

In volume nineteen, Luffy and the gang arrive in the town where Crocodile, thought to be a good guy by the townspeople, is living, and some of them are very promptly captured. We learn more about the rebels in Alabasta—and how all they’ve really wanted is for the king to prove that he hasn’t done the dastardly thing Crocodile has pinned on him—and this volume succeeds in making the country’s troubles much more compelling than I found them to be in the previous batch of volumes I read.

As the rebellion heats up, Crocodile gives Vivi the choice of rescuing her friends or attempting to save her country. Sanji arrives at a timely moment and proceeds to be a fabulous badass for about a panel, before eagerly asking Nami, “Do you love me now?” After rescuing the navy captain who’d attempted to capture them, the group heads for the palace in Alubarna, where the rebels and royal forces are set to converge within hours. Luffy is recaptured by Crocodile, but insists that Vivi and the others carry on without him. Vivi’s reaction to Luffy’s devotion to her cause is quite touching, and is another example of a member of the group learning to trust the others and let themselves be helped.

While volume nineteen features a lot of good character moments, volumes 20 and 21 are chiefly devoted to fighting, as the Straw Hats split up to draw away the Baroque Works agents and give Vivi a chance to make it to the front. First, Luffy faces off against Sir Crocodile, culminating in an awesomely shocking skewering; Usopp and Chopper (whose delight in being of use is extremely sweet) take on the slow-witted Mr. 4 and his partner, Miss Merry Christmas; Sanji engages in a particularly memorable encounter with Mr. 2 Bon Clay; Zolo faces off against Mr. 1, whose body is made of steel; and Nami tries out a new weapon in her fight against Miss Doublefinger. It’s particularly nice to see Nami obtain some combat prowess at last, and it feels like forever since we’ve seen Zolo in action, too.

Although I don’t generally like the battles as much as the rest of One Piece, Oda handles them so skilfully I can’t help but be impressed. There are multiple events going on here in multiple places, but one is never confused for the slightest moment. Everything is paced well, the reader knows where everyone is at any given moment, thanks to some handy maps, and we’re reminded of what’s going on in other places just frequently enough to reinforce the epic scale of what’s going on. Lines like “Their hopes are about to collide at Alubarna” elevate the skirmishes beyond mere displays of Devil Fruit powers and again exemplify why this series is a shining example of shounen manga.

Although the civil war situation is not resolved by the end of volume 21, matters are definitely coming to a head, though it might still be a couple of volumes before this arc concludes. The temptation to check out another huge chunk of this series is strong, and it’s possible I won’t be able to resist it, but I shall at least attempt to get to the next few volumes in a timely manner this time!