Next Strawhat Crewmate (Vol. 6)

[Jabra]

Zeus isn't there willingly though.

You mean like Miss Wednesday and Carue?

[AvocadoInTheRain]

You mean like Miss Wednesday and Carue?

?
Vivi and Carue were there willingly.

[Razh]

But, like, how long is he going to last? If Big Mom is defeated, won't he go away, too?

Hard to say. If Ope Ope is any indication, the DF effects last after the user's death. And I doubt any changes Ivankov has made to people would be negated if he died.

Plus where exactly would all the souls that BM had shuffled return to? Some of them probably belong to dead people. Keeping everything as is, even if BM dies, would be the most simple solution for Oda.

[Jabra]

?
Vivi and Carue were there willingly.

Mrs. Wednesday was knocked out and thrown into the ocean, then forced to sail with the Straw Hats if they wanted to go anywhere (no ship, no logpose). Then again forced to sail with the Straw Hats because she had no other option after Baroque Works revealed their identity.
Vivi and Carue were not literally taken hostage, but the circumstances still forced them to cooperate with the enemy.

Anyway, I'm saying that Zeus being on the ship against his will is a non-issue. He already had very little loyalty towards Big Mom, and very little animosity towards the crew. He's not a seething Caesar, more like a useful idiot like Wadatsumi during Fishman Island.
So the only question is how much physical power Big Mom has over him. At the very least he can defy a direct order screamed at him, so he does have a free will. Any other rule is on Oda, and since her fruit is a Paramecia he can do whatever he wants. Could be that BM can release Zeus' soul at any point. Maybe only if she has the chance to confront him with her "stay or life" move. Maybe she can't do anything at all once a homie is created, except for killing it through traditional means.

I guess we will see in the next chapter what happens to Zeus, assuming that Big Mom chasing them on her new Frog Homie (?) has to lead to something, but if he's here to stay I think it's worth discussing his role on the crew. He's way too sentient to be compared to Usopp's weapon, but he also didn't show the dept of Carue or Lashes. I can't picture Zeus just living in Nami's Clima Tact though, only popping out when she has a major fight. He either becomes a real part of the crew or Nami releases him soonish.

[Hedron]

I can't picture Zeus just living in Nami's Clima Tact though, only popping out when she has major fight.

Wow, like a pokémon.
It's awkward but I love it.

[FelRes]

Is Zeus' power level as high as Huff N. Puff?

[BobLoblaw]

I can't picture Zeus just living in Nami's Clima Tact though, only popping out when she has a major fight. He either becomes a real part of the crew or Nami releases him soonish.

It's gonna happen. Just look at the current situation. He's nowhere to be found.

[fapfapfap]

I think the fact that Jinbe plans to show up for Wano seals the deal that Wano arc is the last stop for the new nakama train. Well that and several other reasons.

I think Jinbe is joining but Oda's conveniently having him duck out between WCI and Wano arc which Oda has hinted in an interview that the Strawhats "greatest enemy ever" will stand in their way which sounds like they'll be fighting someone before Wano, probably Weevil or Jack. Maybe it would have been too easy if Jinbe was around?

Personally I think we're getting Jinbe, Carrot, 1 more nakama. Then we might get some non-members like Zeus or maybe even Momo.

[AvocadoInTheRain]

Personally I think we're getting Jinbe, Carrot, 1 more nakama.

What are you basing this on? Everything we know is pointing to the final total being 10 crewmembers + Luffy.

[BobLoblaw]

I thought at this point we could all at least agree on 11 total. Luffy said he wanted at least 10 and Blackbeard currently has 10. There will only be 11. Sorry, fap.

[Long John Silvers Rayleigh]

Mrs. Wednesday was knocked out and thrown into the ocean, then forced to sail with the Straw Hats if they wanted to go anywhere (no ship, no logpose). Then again forced to sail with the Straw Hats because she had no other option after Baroque Works revealed their identity.
Vivi and Carue were not literally taken hostage, but the circumstances still forced them to cooperate with the enemy.

Anyway, I'm saying that Zeus being on the ship against his will is a non-issue. He already had very little loyalty towards Big Mom, and very little animosity towards the crew. He's not a seething Caesar, more like a useful idiot like Wadatsumi during Fishman Island.
So the only question is how much physical power Big Mom has over him. At the very least he can defy a direct order screamed at him, so he does have a free will. Any other rule is on Oda, and since her fruit is a Paramecia he can do whatever he wants. Could be that BM can release Zeus' soul at any point. Maybe only if she has the chance to confront him with her "stay or life" move. Maybe she can't do anything at all once a homie is created, except for killing it through traditional means.

I guess we will see in the next chapter what happens to Zeus, assuming that Big Mom chasing them on her new Frog Homie (?) has to lead to something, but if he's here to stay I think it's worth discussing his role on the crew. He's way too sentient to be compared to Usopp's weapon, but he also didn't show the dept of Carue or Lashes. I can't picture Zeus just living in Nami's Clima Tact though, only popping out when she has a major fight. He either becomes a real part of the crew or Nami releases him soonish.

Since this oda we're talking bout I can imagine Nami keeping him in the Hammer Space of her shirt.

[fapfapfap]

What are you basing this on? Everything we know is pointing to the final total being 10 crewmembers + Luffy.

Mostly speculation: colors, 12 zodiac signs, questionably the early concept art from the databook indicating more members for both Luffy and BB's crew.

I think the biggest thing though for me is the Thousand Sunny itself. The default setting of the soldier dock doors themselves give the appearance of a giant #13.

And yes, you could say that the numbering is arbitrary until this arc.



Personally, I think the #13 will eventually represent the Thousand Sunny as "Strawhat #13".
EX. Luffy is #01, Zoro is #02, Nami is #03, ...., Sunny is #13

Ever since the start of the escape the door numbers have magically -- and impossibly -- changed positions. And I guess we'll have to see if the changes remain after this arc but its been consistently written as a #14 since chapter 874 except for the one scene where Brook is loading the Sharksub III. It's also worth pointing out that the Sharksub III with the #3 on it is right next to the #4 dock door. Given that and the fact that this has been going on for almost 30 chapters its near impossible for me to think this is a mistake.

So the 2 major possibilities for this are either....

A. It's meant to read #14, with Pedro being memorialized as a Strawhat post-humously.

B. It's not really a giant #14 but to display the #4 which represents death. Although the same could be achieved by simply rotating the doors to 2 and 4. But instead the dock doors were impossibly changed from "1 and 3" to "1 and 4" because...?

I just thought I point this out. The #14 is such a minor but consistent detail since that change in ch. 874. You'll even see #1 and #4 on Sunny in last week's chapter.

--- Update From New Post Merge ---

I thought at this point we could all at least agree on 11 total. Luffy said he wanted at least 10 and Blackbeard currently has 10. There will only be 11. Sorry, fap.

BB having 10 members right now doesn't not mean that he won't gain members before EOS. One Piece Green's early concept art of BB's crew might hint at as many at a crew total of 13. We really don't know much about the make up of BB's crew that once you start digging into it it could wildly vary. Everyone assumes the 10 titan captains consist of BB's pre-TS crew and 1 more person but I wonder about someone like SanJuan Wolf being given a special status compared to the other members.

[.access timeco.]

I can see someone sending this to Oda and he answering it in the SBS "uh huh, I totally hid a message in the dock system. That's me, that's how I do things."

Also, Sunny being a numbered SH while Merry wasn't?

[fapfapfap]

I can see someone sending this to Oda and he answering it in the SBS "uh huh, I totally hid a message in the dock system. That's me, that's how I do things."

Also, Sunny being a numbered SH while Merry wasn't?

The spirit of Merry lives on in the Sunny. Also the Klabautermann thing resembles the shipwright dwarf-thing from the early concept art.

And it wouldn't be the first time Oda did some hidden numbering scheme/wordplay. He dodged the question of the Strawhat's DF numbers (ex. Gomu = 56; Hito = 110; Hana = 87; Yomi = 43; ???? = 29). The fact that the numbers add up to 325, "San-Ni-Go" the name of the ship, makes this mathematically improbable to be pure coincidence.

The reason I bring all this is up is because it points to Oda finalizing his plans for the crew sometime between Alabasta and The Sunny's introduction. Either he made it so that the Strawhat's DF numbers add up to 325 or he named the ship after adding up their DF numbers. And The Sunny being Strawhat #13 was probably factored into that.


You can disagree with my interpretation that the Sunny's dock door represent #13/#14 but based on the last ~30 chapters its incredibly unlikely that its a mistake or changed the numbers "just because lol".