 Hello and welcome to the Grand Line Review, your source for everything one piece. And today we have a review of chapter 963, Becoming Samurai. And this is what I've been waiting for. This is why I've been endlessly excited ever since the Odin flashback began. And we're going to be in straight at the end because Whitebeard is here and the final two page composition of this chapter is the sort of thing that I live for. Seeing this clash between Odin and Whitebeard felt quite surreal during the first read through. And part of that is because how powerful I felt Odin was prior to this. Because whatever that feeling was, it has immediately skyrocketed. Although I guess that actually does make some sense because at this point in time, nine years have passed since we last saw Odin in action. And I don't want to get into power levels and crap because that gets really boring really quickly, but it is simply stunning to see someone in what seems to be an equal bout against Whitebeard, even if it's only brief. In fact, the panel of the clash with Odin actually reminds me a lot of when Whitebeard and Shanks collided, as well as more recently when Big Mom and Kido started their battle. It has that same kind of epic vibe about it. And watching Whitebeard's younger crew being blown away by the clash really solidified that. The whole sequence was amazing though. There isn't a single panel on this two page finale that disappoints in any way whatsoever. Even the first one, wherever you can really see is the Moby Dick on its side and Odin's legs, which are conveying a fantastic sense of speed and impending danger that really justifies Whitebeard taking this situation seriously. And then there's the final panel of the chapter with Whitebeard looking completely befuddled after Odin essentially demands to join his crew. And this is a very rare facial expression from Whitebeard. In fact, I can't really remember another time where he has looked in any way uncertain. Even during the entire Paramount War, Whitebeard was like this beacon of confidence and nothing could rattle him, whether it be facing off against an Admiral or literally being stabbed by one of his sons. He still maintained this aura of supreme maturity like he had seen and done everything this world had to offer. Meanwhile, in this flashback, what I'm really loving about this younger incarnation of Whitebeard is that it seems like the world can still surprise and amaze him, and I really can't wait to explore him a bit more in the coming chapters. And we should also mention Whitebeard's younger crew, of course, because wow, what a group of young upstarts. Seeing everyone together at this age actually reminds me quite a bit of seeing all of the straw hats together, especially Marco, who at this age looks like he had the energy and optimism of a loofy like individual. One character who I did not immediately recognize was Vista though, because he doesn't have the glorious, thin moustache and top-back combination, but it became clear eventually thanks to the swords and of course the proudly displayed chest hair. Meanwhile, it looks like most of the other usual suspects are there. In fact, it's probably easier and more interesting to point out which of Whitebeard's commanders we have not seen thus far. So we don't see Nama, the Fishman Commander, Blamenco, Haruta, Speedjiru, Blenheim, Curio, Thatch, and Ace and Iso for obvious reasons, but wow, that's actually a lot more people missing than I thought. What is very interesting though is that some of Whitebeard's ally captains are present here like Epoida and Whitey Bay, which I find fascinating because I really love the idea that they were former crew members who along the journey found their own reasons to leave and strive towards their own personal goals while still retaining a strong bond with Whitebeard. What I also love is that the Moby Dick washed up on the shores of Wano just like the Thousand Sunny, so that it seems almost like a rite of passage for great pirates and crews to make the pilgrimage to Wano and end up in this exact situation. And I know I've said this before and let's be real, I'm going to say it again, but with how closely the Whitebeard pirates are being tied to Wano and Odin specifically, I find it incredibly difficult to believe that their part in this saga ends with Marco saying, no, not coming. These are people who have clearly not only been to Wano but who have developed a bond with the Kozuki clan. If they don't show up to help the Kozuki clan retake their nation, then it seems like gross negligence for a crew that claims to care so deeply about one another as brothers and sisters. And Odin would certainly qualify as one of those brothers. The only excuse I would accept is if they were all pretty much killed by Weevil during the time skip, but that seems to be pretty dark even for post-time skip one piece. But really there is going to have to be a damn fine reason if the remnants of the Whitebeard pirates do not show up in full force at this stage. But Whitebeard stuff aside though, my favorite part of the chapter was certainly everything to do with Nekomomushi and Inuarashi because they're just so damn cute. Watching them set out to see was kind of like getting immersed in a children's storybook with the simplistic art style and the comment showing a clear yet charming lack of knowledge of the greater world. And somehow these two kids actually make it to Wano. Even if they were shipwrecked. And that is incredible considering everything we know about how absurdly difficult it is to get to this island. They got so incredibly lucky even if it didn't seem that way after being captured. But I guess this is another one of those one piece moments where the power of fate stepped in to make sure that Nekomomushi and Inuarashi came into contact with Odin. Kalamatsu as well of course. And speaking of it has been confirmed that our kappa friend is indeed a fisherman as I think practically everybody in the known world expected. The story about him and his mother though was unexpectedly touching. Another jolt of classic fishman tragedy in the world. So I guess it doesn't really matter where in the human realm you go. Even to a completely isolated pocket fishmen still have it hard. What I'd be keen to know and I doubt we'll ever find out but I would love to know the circumstances under which Komomatsu and his mother arrived on the surface. Because as far as I'm aware it's actually super, super rare for fishman civilians to actually leave their realm of the sea. I mean most of the characters we know who did by the pirates or royalty. And I guess I suppose Kami would be an exception to that but I'd still be interested to find out what purpose they had traversing the surface. Next up though, this chapter also had a great repeat of the scene where Yasu rather generously gave Odin's vassals a ton of money after they tried to rob him which we saw in chapter 943. Except that this time around we got to see Dendro and Komomatsu non-silhouetted. And more importantly, this scene takes on a whole new meaning because we aren't just listening to Yasu's words when he says stuff like buy books to gain knowledge. We're actually seeing a montage of the vassals taking Yasu's words to heart and growing his characters as a result. And I think that this is a wonderful scene because it bridges the gap of the Kinamon we met in his Woodland phase and the Kinamon we know today. As well as the rest of the vassals of course but Kinamon is the one who strikes me as having had the biggest transformation. I mean when we met him during Pankazut he was introduced as a super formal samurai dude and it's great to see his journey to that point. Plus one of the best moments of the chapter was when Odin was wondering why they were all acting so strangely being all polite and stuff but most of all this scene was just really touching because it shows what this group of people were willing to do for the sake of Odin. A man who impacted each and every single one of their lives and changed them for the better. This is a show of loyalty in its purest form and I think that stuff like this really helps to inform the modern day events and gives us a sense of why the vassals are willing to fight an emperor of the sea to reclaim Wano in the name of the Kozuki clan. They aren't the only ones experiencing some development though because Orochi was also mentioned a couple of times in this chapter actually. The first of which occurred when Dendro questioned why Odin was lending money to him and they guessed that that implies that Orochi had lost his position working for Yasu and was feeling some pretty desperate times. However, then three years later Orochi is in a better than ever position seemingly working directly for Shogun Tsukiyaki. So there were definitely some questions here. I mean, I guess it's possible that a situation occurred where like Odin felt sorry for Orochi and somehow got him a job with the Shogun but that feels a bit off to me and I wish we had some more conclusive evidence as to what actually happened. For example, did Yasu fire Orochi after suspecting him of stealing the money from the last chapter which would make a lot of sense and I really doubt that Yasu would recommend Orochi to Tsukiyaki but you know what, whatever I guess. It doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. It's just a bit jarring to have Orochi jump around to three completely different life situations in the space of two chapters. Something much, much more important than Orochi though which was revealed in this chapter is that the mountain god is alive and I was more thrilled than I think I should have been to see that giant ball alive and well just with some handy stitches. Not only that, but the tiny ball has also grown and was given the honor of carrying Odin in his procession and speaking of that was a pretty glorious aesthetic triumph of this chapter as well. On par with the clash between Odin and Whitebeard in my opinion. Seeing all of these misfits having matured somewhat into an incredibly respectable force gave me the exact same reaction as the citizens of the capital and it's these little things that make it clear that Odin was destined for greatness with the power to unite seemingly anyone with his unintentional charm and charisma and finally, turning to the cover page this week and we have them germ dudes invading Dressorosa and there's not an awful lot to say about these guys. I mean, this is a very typical one piece cover story development where Odin will introduce a minor group of pirates marine civilians or whatever to interact with the primary individual or group in focus. I will say that I do like the design of the female pirate which actually gives off a kind of a radio vibe but I don't know if that's just me associating the word germ with germ off. I also quite like the big guy in the back very unique design. As for the rest though, they're kind of a man especially the individual who I'm assuming is the captain. He looks kind of like a budget version of East Blue Buggy but I'm really hoping that they have some sort of interesting abilities to display. I doubt it though, because this is a cover story and it wouldn't be unusual for something to happen like in the very next installment having all of them captured and tied up. So yeah, probably the weakest part of this cover story for me thus far but still very keen and on board with it. And that pretty much does it for chapter 963. If you enjoyed this video and the content this channel produces 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. And if you'd like to see more videos like this but applied to other anime and manga series then please do check out my second channel New World Review for all of your wider needs. And if you'd like to join the fun at any time then please do head over to my Discord server where a wide array of shenanigan retakes place on a daily basis. And finally please do comment with your thoughts on the chapter. This has been the Grand Line Review and I'll see you next time. According to your opinion is one piece the best manga series. All right, this is probably the easiest question I've ever had in my life because yes, absolutely 100% yes. Am I biased because I've spent something stupid like 14 years following the series weekly? Probably, but at the same time there is something so incredibly magical about one piece that has managed to hold my attention without fail for well over a decade and has me coming back each and every week for more. No other series has ever even come close to that. And I always end up losing interest when catching up with them and having to switch to weekly reading. So for example, when I started One Piece I had already previously caught up with both Naruto and Bleach which were, you know, super big at the time but I ended up dropping reading them as weekly series because they just didn't give me that zing I wanted as part of a weekly experience. They were much, much better as a bulk experience and felt incredibly lacking when you were just reading one chapter every seven days. But somehow One Piece is just so content rich that you can sustain yourself on 18 pages a week. And of course, when all of those pages are compiled into a gigantic body of work then yeah, you have nothing less than the greatest manga series of all time. Why isn't Whitebeard as popular? Even though he did everything to be the best character. Hmm, so I've never thought about Whitebeard as an unpopular character at all but I have to admit I was quite shocked when I looked up the results of his One Piece popularity polls. The highest position he's ever attained is 26 which I find a bit ridiculous because to me, Whitebeard is one of the most profound figures in the series. Like he wouldn't be in my top five favorite characters but he would probably be in the top 10 and there's no question that he would be in the top 20. But here's the thing about One Piece. This series has a stupid amount of extraordinarily well written and illustrated characters to choose from and the fact that someone like Whitebeard can only reach moderate mass popularity within this series speaks volumes about the sheer quality of the other characters within One Piece. If you had to choose, would you date Nami or Robin? Yes.