Third Shift Musings - One Piece Episode #17

Is it over yet??

Welp, Luffy and Captain Kuro are still fighting. Not gonna lie, I’m ready for this to be over. And so is Luffy. Kuro tries the Out of the Back Attack again and Luffy has had enough! He wraps his rubbery limbs around Kuro, trapping him so he can’t do any more of his maneuvers. Will it work? Will he finally defeat Kuro?

Meanwhile, our little pirates come to Kaya’s rescue, jamming what looks like a garden utensil up Jango’s butt, which briefly stops him from murdering Kaya. But it isn’t enough! He whacks the kids (you animal!), knocking them all down to the ground. Jango grabs Kaya again, ready to end her. But here comes Zoro!! He runs towards Jango and Kaya, slicing a large tree branch in the process. Why did he do that? To give our boy Usopp the space to use his slingshot.

Back to Luffy, Captain Kuro’s trying to get away, but Luffy has a strong hold on him. Kuro’s crew cheers Luffy on, but he stretches his neck and tells them to stfu cuz they’re bad guys too!

Usopp gets his slingshot ready with what he calls a Special Attack: Exploding Star, aiming right at Jango’s head.

Luffy still has his hold on Kuro, with his neck stretched to the limit.

Usopp fires and the Exploding Star hits Jango right in the head! All we see are his glasses flying, lenses shattering. At the same time, we see Luffy go in for the ultimate head butt, knocking Kuro clean out. FINALLY!!

Kuro’s crew is flabbergasted! Luffy has beaten their boss, something they’ve never seen before. One of them wants to know who he is and he let’s them all know.

GODDAMN RIGHT!!

Luffy let’s them all know that he’s gonna be King of the Pirates and don’t forget it. He grabs Kuro, tosses his unconscious body to his crew and tells them to GTFOH. They run for the hills, as they should.

Nami comes out of nowhere, just in time to catch a very tired Luffy before he passes out. After a brief rest, Luffy mentions wanting meat cuz of course he does.

Usopp, Kaya, Zoro and the gang have defeated Jango, who’s either passed out from getting his ass beat or dead. Either way, Jango is down the for count. Usopp wants to keep the fight a secret from the villagers since none of the shenanigans made it to the town. But Kaya wants him to tell them what happened so he can clear his name. Kaya and the boys are shocked because they want to tell EVERYONE.

Meanwhile, the villagers are flipping out because Usopp hasn’t come running down the street screaming about pirates. They’re all so used to hearing his voice they wonder where he is. People are wild.

Usopp pulls the boys aside to let him know how proud he is of them. He tells them that he’s going to sail out and become a real pirate, stunning our brave little heroes. Usopp decides to leave because after surviving the fight with Kuro and his crew, he knows for certain that the pirate’s life is for him. The boys are PISSED and rightfully upset. They want to go too but being their only nine years old (the babies!), they still have some growing up to do. Usopp flashes back to when they all became the Usopp Pirate Gang and they all start crying. Usopp pulls himself together and asks them all what they want to do in life. They tell him and Usopp lets them know he expects them all to follow their dreams. And with that, the Usopp Pirate Gang is disbanded.

Kaya meets up with Luffy, Nami and Zoro to thank them for everything they’ve done. She lets them know that she’s feeling much better and will be leaving the mansion more. At his home, Usopp is done packing and almost pulls his house down trying to leave with his giant backpack. He finally makes it out and rolls on down the hill.

To thank them properly, Kaya gives Luffy and the gang a new ship! It’s called the Going Merry and is an older model of a caravel. They’re all so excited until they see Usopp rolling towards them. Thankfully, Luffy and Zoro stop him before he crashes into the ship. Before they leave, Luffy and Zoro invite Usopp to sail with them as part of the crew. Before he can start crying again, Usopp grabs his shit and jumps on board.

Before the episode ends, we learn the true story behind Usopp’s childhood and why he always screamed about pirates coming to the village. He did it in the hopes of his father coming back after Usopp’s mother died. It was his way of coping with his loss and loneliness, and now I’m friggin crying.

Back in the village, the boys follow in their captain’s footsteps. Running through the town they yell, “PIRATES ARE HERE!” The tradition continues.