 Hello and welcome to the Grand Line Review, your source for everything One Piece. And today we have one hell of a manga review with chapter 966, Roger and Whitebeard. And this flashback is just becoming absolutely absurd in the best possible way. Before I really get into anything though, I do want to quickly address that some prominent manga-scanlation sites providing One Piece have ceased operations rather suddenly. And to those of you who rely on such sources for One Piece, let me implore you that there has never been a better time to switch to the official release. Disregarding the legal and moral arguments because they're boring and for the sake of moving on quickly, the official translation is just better, in my opinion, and a much more quality product than anything you will find in the scanned realm. And it is completely 100% free. I don't want to preach too much, but I will have some links to the official websites where you can read One Piece weekly in the description below because I think that we can use this as a great opportunity to start supporting the official media at no cost to yourself. And hopefully also change the way that people review One Piece by no longer basing them on super sketchy fan translations. Although I am aware that new scanlation groups are going to rise up to take the spot of the previous ones, but this right here is a good chance to maybe break that cycle of piracy. In any case, with that out of the way, let's get into business because whoa, what a chapter. And I think that the only possible appropriate place to begin is by talking about what I'm highly tempted to call the most epic clash ever showcased in the series between Roger and Whitebeard. This page sent legitimate chills down my spine much more so than any other example of prominent world figures engaging, like the famous Shanks versus Whitebeard panel, or the much more recent Big Mom versus Kaido one. There's something about this that takes things to a whole new level and I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that their weapons aren't even touching. In fact, they're not even close. As a result, it gives the impression that this isn't a mere skirmish between combatants, rather it is a sheer clash of willpower via conqueror's haki being wielded at the absolute highest levels. Not only that though, but both of their weapons are also coated in armament haki, which I don't know why it caught me off guard because it makes perfect sense for Roger to be able to perform such a feat, but it was a really nice surprise to see, especially that sneaky little panel right before the actual clash, where you can see Roger infusing the blade and it looks like a sort of black flame or electricity effect. And Whitebeard also does the same, but it doesn't look anywhere near as cool, in my opinion. And of course, the thing that caps it all off of those close-ups of Roger and Whitebeard, giving these terrifying glares of delight in regards to the situation. This really is unlike anything I think we've ever seen in the series before. Seeing two rivals in a situation like this, where neither is taking on a particularly antagonistic role, and both of them are just very much in this for the heat of battle, with of course someone that they consider to be an equal. And that really is reflected amongst the rest of the Roger and Whitebeard parrots as well. As much as this chapter may have showcased what was likely an incredibly vicious battle, you don't get the impression of something overwhelmingly serious taking place because the level of respect that these individuals have for one another is on such a profound scale. I really can't think of a comparison for it when trying to apply this to the Straw Hats actually. Throughout their journey, they've only really encountered two types of people, those who are strict enemies, and those who are wonderful allies. I mean, I guess you do also have individuals like Capone who has his own ambitions and can be seen as a sort of rival, maybe. But in the end, he falls firmly into the ally camp. There's nobody that Luffy and the Straw Hats really like tousle with on a regular basis. So this is a very intriguing and charming event to watch play out in the flashback. Especially when you closely examine the panels of the two crews, and you see an excited open mouth look from Vista, as well as that sly old smile from Ray Lee. Something I also haven't touched on yet is that Whitebeard was not the only one to get in on the Roger action, as Odin rather predictably went straight for the soon to be Pirate King. And watching him get immediately wrecked was kind of shocking, yet ever, ever so satisfying. Because I guess I just assumed that Odin's action would play out very similarly to that of when he engaged with Whitebeard. It was nice to see that things did not necessarily go his way for a change, though. In fact, so that's probably putting it lightly. Odin actually got pretty thoroughly destroyed. And so it was able to provide a really great contrast between him and the actual top tier combatants of the world. Plus the way Roger just flung himself into battle is the most Luffy-like thing I've ever seen him do. And seriously, show that panel out of context when he's super casual or even non-One Piece fan. And I guarantee you that they would almost certainly even mistake him for Luffy. Which is wonderful because we're getting to see that joyous charismatic and adventurous leader come out somewhat finally after having first met this character over two decades ago. And of course, all of this culminated in a friendly gathering after several days of combat, which eventually led to the moment that I've been waiting for as Odin made his way onto Roger's crew. And I think this was done in a very nice and natural way, which is something I did have concerns over due to the fact that Odin had positioned himself as an established family member amongst the Whitebeard pirates. Although I should also say that I think the situation went so naturally because Whitebeard considered him a brother. I think it would be a very different situation if he was a son. But it all worked out rather well and also had the brilliant side effect of introducing yet another classic Whitebeard discussed face, which I'm now convinced there must be some sort of jump quota on this because it feels like we have at least one of these faces in every chapter from one character or another. Not that I'm complaining. I love it. They can't wait to see if the Roger pirates make any of these faces as well. Actually, you know what? Even better than the discussed face though, in this chapter was Whitebeard's face of extreme annoyance after Odin decided to join Roger. And I know I've said this before but it keeps just becoming more and more true. This flashback is giving us such an expanded perspective on Whitebeard as a character. It's a real treat, although it's somewhat bittersweet I guess because the fact that he has passed on in the modern era always seeps into my mind at some point. So these chapters become kind of like remembering a long lost friend or family member in regards to Whitebeard. But everything came together quite nicely with Roger having discovered the importance of the pornoglyphs and Odin just so happening to be able to read an even better right in that language which led to solving a mystery in the series that we've had ever since the end of Skype here. Being the message left by Roger on the golden bell of Shandor. Although I mean, I think as soon as it was revealed that the people of Wano were the ones to craft the pornoglyphs, it was pretty much guaranteed that Odin was the one to have left it. But even then that was only a recent revelation in and of itself. But what we have is another one of those situations where the rich history of One Piece just continues to build and entwine. And that's one of the things I love most about the series. Plus how good is it to see Skype here again? I mean, I know that many people including myself have very mixed feelings on Skype here as an individual arc but it feels so nostalgic to watch the Roger Pirates ride the knockup stream and just seeing that familiar geography of the island once more, it all made me really happy. It's also going to be a really strange thing to read or watch again in retrospect because my mind will always be drawn to the idea that Bucky has been there and wanted the golden bell. Plus having been taken on this journey to so many insane locations, it's going to be interesting to see what ultimately put Bucky on the path of mediocrity that he succumbed to. So while Odin, Tokimomo, Hiyori, Neko, Momoshi, and Inorashi decided to board the Oro Jackson, a much more subtle event also occurred which was Iso remaining with the Whitebeard Pirates. So I guess that Iso really has undergone some incredible development over the last couple of years because there was a point where he never would have left Odin's side and I was actually kind of expecting a more emotional farewell than this with Iso being forced to make a tough decision to stay but it was all an incredibly casual affair. Although I suppose the ultimate decision still has yet to be made because Iso is expecting Odin to return in a year's time. So provided that still happens as planned, I suppose that would be another good time for a moment of supreme emotion or maybe even something more casual like Odin stating that he's returning to Wano and Iso giving the disgust face and we'll end it at that. And something else we of course need to mention is Teach. As it turns out, this flashback is being used as more than a mere cameo for what would seem to be the ultimate antagonist of the series. And this chapter has provided us with an exceptional amount more to fuel the flames of thought that there is something very, very strange about this man. I mean, this has been a long time thought brought up when Marco Clementeach has a unique body structure but the part in this chapter about him not sleeping adds another layer of mystery to this incredibly funky man. I think at this stage, it's becoming more and more solid that this strange body or existence is the reason why he would have been able to consume multiple devil fruits rather than the popular thought that the Ami-Ami no Mi is able to nullify the destructive impact of wielding two powers at once. Well, who knows? It might even be a mixture of both. In any case, this chapter is also flagged that Shanks has had his eye on Teach for a very, very long time. And now it makes sense that he seems to be the only person in the world to see Blackbeard for the true threat he is. Even if it was rather interestingly, Buggy, who seemed the most interested in Teach's existence. Well, I must say that young Shanks and Buggy in general is just becoming more and more adorable with every passing sighting. It's still also quite fascinating that such infamous pirate crews were very willing in regards to allowing children aboard. I guess that's just another difference between this era and the modern one. Although to be fair, I really hope that the Straw Hats never invite a kid as a fully fledged member because they think that would be simply awful. And something else we should make mention of is that this chapter also quite radically expanded the figures that we know as the Roger Pirates. I mean, none of them were named but there were a couple of very key designs. And I've already seen a lot of people claiming that one of them might be a young Douglas bullet, the primary antagonist of One Piece Stampede. And it's difficult to deny the resemblance with a slicked back hair and the generally annoyed looking eyes. But I would be really super hesitant to say that I was bullet because I think that he is best served as a non-canon entity. But chronologically at the moment, I suppose it is technically possible because bullet left the crew after finding out that Roger had a year to live, which seems to be about where we are here. But at the same time, when he left the Roger Pirates, he did look completely different from this guy, much more stacked and built. So I think it's a case of mild stylistic coincidence. Regardless, I am very much looking forward to the idea of potentially exploring these new Roger Pirates even briefly. And that's kind of it for this incredibly action-packed chapter. I know I sound like a broken record saying this every single week but this is probably one of the best chapters of One O Thus Far and looking like one of the most phenomenal flashbacks this series has ever seen. I mean, I usually hate flashbacks, even the good ones because they take an awfully long time to play out and it basically just stalls the primary action for a couple of months. I am truly captivated by these Odin chapters though. And I guess it's actually kind of sad just how fast things are moving. But then again, if that's the only negative aspect that I can muster, then Oda, you sir, are doing a pretty damn good job. And that pretty much does it for chapter 966. If you enjoyed this video and the content this channel produced in general, then please do consider donating to the Grand Line Review Patreon because the support of all of your amazing people is what continues to make this channel possible. 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