 Did you know that the historically correct term for people living on the mainland Japanese archipelago was the Yamato people or the Yamato race? And Yamato's birthday, the 3rd of November, is known as Culture Day in Japan, a celebration of Japanese art, academia and culture, and that Yamato in Japanese can mean great harmony. Warning, this video will contain spoilers up to chapter 1051, you've been warned! Hello my Nakamotachi, this is Joygirl and let's discuss Yamato for Nakama. So the reason why I started off with those bits and details is because, going off those facts, it seems like Yamato as a character is supposed to be very much representative of Japan. And the only reason why that's interesting is because Wano is obviously an arch very much representative of Japan. And so then putting those two together, I can't help but feel that Yamato is supposed to be a very central figure, representative of Wano, as in perhaps Oda always intended for Yamato to stay behind at Wano? And look, don't click off and don't get angry attacking me for being blasphemers because this video isn't aimed to try debunk the idea that Yamato is going to join the Straw Hat crew. But you have to admit that it's quite interesting that Oda chose to characterize Yamato in this way. Not to mention Yamato's mythical zoo and devil fruit, the Oguchi no Makami, a Japanese guardian deity known to be the god of restoration, which would be a pretty handy guardian deity to have at Wano once the arc is over and the country needs to rebuild itself. But like I said, I'm not trying to convince you that Yamato isn't going to join the crew. I just found these details quite interesting and I do think that they're worth considering and worth acknowledging. Although I do have to say that essentially everything else does seem to suggest that Yamato is going to join the Straw Hat and that that would make a lot of sense. But speaking of things that make sense, I think it would make a whole lot of sense for you to subscribe to this channel. So please, make a certain joy girl extremely joyful, click that red subscribe button, and in return you'll receive regular one-piece discussions and really what more could you want. Okay and now that we've done the sensible thing, we can move on and go back to Yamato. So I discussed in my chapter 1051 review that it seems like Oda has flipped the table when it comes to other candidates in joining the crew such as Mamunosuke or Tama pretty much dashing all hopes about these two joining the crew whereas it seems like he's really strengthening the proposition of Yamato becoming the next Nakama. I mean in the latest chapter he essentially gave us reasons why Tama and Mamunosuke can't join the crew. Tama so that she can finally experience a happy and free Wano for the first time in her life and for Mamunosuke so that he can take his seat as the rightful heir the Shogun of Wano and yet in the same chapter we see yet again Yamato express desires to go out to sea and sail with the straw hats and although Jinbei summed it best when he said that nothing is absolute until Luffy confirms it for himself at this point it really does feel like Oda is really priming us to accept Yamato as the next crew member but it seems like one of the biggest problems that people have with Yamato joining the crew is that it feels like Oda hasn't spent enough time ingraining Yamato as part of the crew. I mean apart from Yamato claiming it one-sidedly that is. Usually in an arc where we're introduced to a new crew member a large portion of that arc is spent on that character and is spent exploring that character spend time with the other crewmates so that we as the audience we see the chemistry and we see how that character would mesh with the rest of the straw hats crew and the truth is is that we just really haven't seen much of that or at all when it comes to Yamato apart from a very quick very limited exchange with Frankie Yamato had pretty much only interacted with Luffy. Chapter 1051 was the first time that we saw Yamato interact with the rest of the crew I mean well almost everyone and so I'm sure to some people one chapter won't be enough to feel like proper time spent with the straw hats proper time spent you know bonding with the rest of the crew but I have to say that personally I actually felt that this interaction perfectly fit the crew it felt like a very familiar scene sort of like when Robin joined I mean everyone reacted as you would imagine all the straw hats to react you know the usually cowardly duo just reacting with Fee, Frankie with his boisterous personality, Robin just being amused and Jinbei being the reasonable one and of course obviously Sanji and Brooke just swooning at Yamato's beauty as to be expected and so in that sense even though that moment was very brief very short I really got a taste of how Yamato would fit in and for me it made a lot of sense. Now like I said something that we usually see in an arc when we get a new straw hat member is seeing them and seeing how they interact with the rest of the crew but something else that we also usually see or some other requirements that we can usually expect is a tragic backstory that explains why this character needs a family like the straw hats and how being part of this crew will help them achieve their dreams in which case in the case of Yamato we have actually seen both of these already you know a flashback showcasing Yamato's tragic past check dreams to be fulfilled check it's been made very clear from the very beginning that Yamato dreams of being able to travel the wide open seas and then witnessing Yamato's flashback you know in chains under Kaito's oppression you know seeing Yamato without freedom it's all very much in line with the other straw hats in that Luffy sets people free and lets them do what they want to do lets them follow what their heart tells them to and now I will say that just dreams of simply sailing the world does feel a little lofty I mean it makes sense for a character like Yamato who has never been able to step foot off of Onigashima but at the same time as soon as the straw hats you know leave sure it means that Yamato's dreams will have been fulfilled but then given Yamato's obsession with Odin Yamato's dreams could actually be more could be iterated more along the lines of fulfilling Odin's will in not only experiencing the wider world and going on an adventure but also bringing along the new dawn and bringing along the new era which is something that Odin was very much committed to by the end of his adventure and that is a very valid dream and so while Odin may not have stayed in line with the exact same structure that he usually employs you know having the new straw hat member interact with the rest of the crew you know having them spend time with the other crew members you know having us see them work together and fight together side by side with the same objectives but at the same time when it comes to Yamato Odin still achieved this but just in a slightly different way by having Yamato as a central figure of the alliance you know helping Luffy fight Kaito restored just how dedicated Yamato was to this cause and we witnessed the extent to which Yamato believes in Luffy I mean there were so many moments throughout this raid where it actually felt like Yamato was already a straw hat member you know with an undying loyalty to Luffy and sharing that same emotional journey it was to the extent that by the time we saw the interaction in chapter 1051 Yamato's interaction with the rest of the crew the whole thing just felt very believable very natural just seamless but then on the other hand it is also true that in the grand scheme of things Yamato was only introduced to the series very very recently or relatively recently I mean we spent a whole two acts within the one or arc before even being introduced to Yamato's existence but then we could also argue that this raid has gone on for a really really long time I mean in fact we are actually just shy of the full two-year anniversary since being introduced to Yamato in chapter 983 two years is longer than most one-piece arcs also if there's something that I've learned especially following the more recent chapters in this one or arc is that Oda doesn't always stick so strictly to the same structure or the same formula and you know nor should he have to to be fair for the most part he does and it really works but also with the way that the Luffy versus Kaito fight wrapped up with us not seeing the full extent of Kaito's backstory so that we get you know a total understanding of Kaito's characterization as an antagonist which is something that we've grown accustomed to since Doflamingo it's clear that Oda has other plans and again the way that he seems to have planned Yamato's character and is now delivering his plans it does certainly seem like it is working or at least according to the extremely large majority of the respondents to our community poll where almost 90 percent of the joy fleet responded that they would be happy if Yamato joins the crew and even if Oda hasn't stuck to this same formula or same structure of ingraining Yamato with the rest of the crew per se apart from the argument that there is obviously still time left within the one arc for us to see Yamato interact with the rest of the straw hats there is also the fact that it does seem like Oda has stuck to some other classic formulas people have been drawing out you know some patterns that can be made out with how Oda seems to be recruiting new straw hat members I mean for example we saw four crew members in the east blue you know excluding Luffy four in the grand line and so now people are also expecting that we'll get four in the new world in which case this would obviously bring us to a total of 13 straw hats including Luffy and now this actually brings up a point of you know contestation because there is there are speculations about how many straw hat members we will end up by the end of the series for example whether we're going to end up with a total of 10 crew members excluding Luffy which is based off a comment that Luffy made at the very beginning the very first chapter of the series or whether we're going to end up with a total of 13 crew members including Luffy because that's the number of slots that have been allocated to the straw hats in the Vivricard data book and then this theme or the patterns about how the straw hats get recruited actually goes further than that for example there are clear parallels between the first recruits of each sea you know Zoro chopper and Jinbei were all tied up when we were first introduced to them they're all considered monsters or beasts whether that be metaphorical because of Zoro's strength or the physical you know non-human nature of chopper and Jinbei and they're all inspired by some very notorious figures in Japanese culture so then let's look at the respective second recruits Nami and Robin are obviously both female they were both members of an antagonist group and they both proposition joining the crew themselves rather than Luffy asking them first so then the third recruits Usopp and Frankie were both the leaders of another group when we were first introduced to them both of them have pirate parents or a pirate parent who abandoned them and both of their recruitments led to the straw hats getting a ship and then when it comes to the fourth recruits the obvious one being that both Sanji and Brooke are pervs but they also actually share some other similarities you know such as the fact that they both wear suits you know they both have French named attacks and they're both associated with royalty now so far Jinbei is the only character that we have seen during the crew in the new world so that means if Yamato does join the crew this would make Yamato the second recruit and then going by the characteristics that we have just outlined Yamato would fit in perfectly I don't want to get into the whole debate but Oda's made it pretty clear that Yamato is female Yamato was introduced to us as a member of the Beast Pirates the antagonist group within this arc and as we have established already it's Yamato who keeps you know deciding one sidedly to join the straw hats and in terms of just the connection or a pattern between these two new world recruits both Jinbei and Yamato share a connection with Luffy through the fact that they have both spent some time and were friends with Luffy's brother Ace and this is something that I would love to see them you know bond over but apart from this sort of you know meta analysis of why Yamato joining the crew would make sense in terms of patterns there are also a lot of reasons as to how it would fit in terms of the story for one if Yamato leaves and joins the crew and Momonosuke stays behind Atwano it'd be really fitting in that it would represent Odin's will being carried on by both these characters you know Odin started off as this wild adventurous soul wanting to explore the world but then by the end of his life Odin was also a man who understood his responsibilities and understood his duties and Odin wanted to see these through so then it'd be really nice to see both these characteristics being carried on by Yamato you know taking over that wild adventurous side and Momonosuke his father's dutiful and honorable nature also we've seen throughout the raid what a powerhouse Yamato is and now as we delve into the end game of the series it's no secret that we need you know more adept combatants in the crew especially because we're obviously going to be facing bigger and better foes but in saying that I know that Yamato's strength does have some people worry that it will change the dynamics within the crew or more specifically the dynamics of the monster trio but I think we can be really sure that that won't happen and that we really don't have to worry about that and we got the biggest indication of this in Wano with Jinbei when Jinbei returned and formally joined the crew a lot of people were worried about how Jinbei a former Shichi Bukai a captain of his own pirate crew would fit in with the straw hats in terms of power levels I mean we've seen firsthand Jinbei's experience and his very adept combat skills but we also saw that it certainly didn't affect the monster trio dynamic when it came to fighting the beast pirates at Onigashima I mean Zoro and Sanji fought the first and second commanders of the beast pirates you know respectively as could be expected just like always and then with Luffy taking on the final boss and then Oda still made this believable and ensured that this didn't ruin our perception of Jinbei's you know fighting skills or his abilities as a combatant because whereas Zoro and Sanji were wiped out after fighting stronger opponents Jinbei although he fought a less formidable opponent in who's who it was Jinbei who had the strength and the stamina left to go on to save Onigashima using his fishman karate and so while there are some talks about Oda you know potentially creating new power dynamics or establishing some new set of trios I do still believe that the monster trio is going to remain I mean Oda isn't going to abandon this dynamic that has existed and has worked so well for decades and yes I know that monster trio is a dynamic that we've actually you know tacked on ourselves is a term that we've created ourselves rather than being this canon established term that Oda uses himself but it's still no less true that it is a dynamic that does exist and a dynamic that Oda has heavily utilized in his story because I mean hey it works and it works really really well and now as for some other reasons as to why would make sense for Yamato to become a Mugiwara it could also make sense in that it formed part of the reason why Oda held off on having you know the celebratory drink when Jinbei formally joined the crew I mean obviously there was the in series logical reason about you know wanting to celebrate with the rest of the Wano citizens but it's also true that we could just now have one large feast where we celebrate more than just one new straw hat member and now some people also feel that we actually need a bit of time between Jinbei joining to another new straw hat crew member but I actually beg to differ on this one I mean we saw both Frankie and Robin become official straw hat members at the end of the envious lobby arc which is essentially what we would be seeing here if Yamato does join in that Jinbei is the Robin who only is officially formally joining the crew after having spent you know time with the crew before and then having a truly new member like Frankie in Yamato also another counter that I've seen is that on account of Yamato having read Odin's journal Luffy won't allow Yamato to join because he obviously won't be happy about having his adventure spoiled but I think this one can be easily refuted as well I mean I'm sure Yamato would have much more sense than just blurting out all the secrets in Odin's journal and it certainly wouldn't be the first time that a straw hat member has withheld critical information you know concerning Luffy that they are privy to but then in saying that despite all of this it's also true that Yamato joining the crew is still not confirmed I mean like I said at the beginning of the video I'm not trying to convince you that Yamato won't join the crew but I'm also not trying to convince you that Yamato will join the crew and I mean that despite this whole discussion I mean at the end of the day all of these points that we've discussed so far all of these potential clues could be you know just a red herring for example it's my understanding that during the water seven saga everyone expected and everyone wanted poorly to join our crew you know before Oda revealed that it's actually Frankie so you know who knows maybe it'll be another character who joins the crew or maybe it'll be no new Mugiwara at all personally I'm just really excited to see where all of this is going because despite the fact that Wano is wrapping up there is still obviously a lot that is still left unresolved and as it also pertains to Yamato's character for example Kaito's flashback didn't clarify who Yamato's mother was and we also didn't get to see that very intriguing relationship between Yamato and Fuga get further fleshed out so whether Yamato ends up joining the straw hats or not I would very much like to see Yamato's character get further fleshed out but anyways those are just some of my thoughts I'd love to hear what you have to say so please do let me know by leaving comment below don't forget to like and share the video please do subscribe for more one-piece discussions you can also join our joy fleet discord server or even become a patreon member and I do want to thank all our patrons for help supporting the channel this is joy girl and I'll see you again soon