One Piece 19-21 by Eiichiro Oda: B+

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!