What Is Buggy's Endgame? A Post-1082 Analysis

What is Buggy's Endgame? A Post-1082 Analysis

Since the release of chapter 1082, we’ve gotten more insight into Buggy’s character than ever before, especially regarding his dreams and thoughts on past events. So, given our new information, I thought I’d revisit Orange Town Arc to see if 1082 re-contextualizes anything. What’s in the cards for Buggy as a character? What direction does Oda plan on taking him in?

To give you my answer, let me begin in a bit of a random place: the relationship between Shanks and Buggy.

From the moment Oda first introduced their relationship in chapter 19, Shanks and Buggy already solidified themselves as character foils. Their first panel together is literally a fight over whether the North or South Pole is colder, which is pretty on the nose if you ask me (sorry… I had to). Their red-blue color contrast is also pretty self-explanatory; although green is technically red’s complement, red and blue are often used as visual “opposites.”

Manga panel of Shanks and Buggy fighting over which pole is colder. They have each other by the shirts, teeth clenched, sweaty. "It's the North pole!" Buggy says. "No," Shanks says, "it's the South Pole!"

Beyond all that surface level stuff, though, what makes these two foils of each other are their opposing values. As a pirate, Shanks wants to “make time to see the world." He has no sense of urgency and no inherent desire to conquer the world — at least, not right away. Buggy, of course, calls this a “soft way of thinking.” Unlike Shanks, he views treasure as the sole purpose of being a pirate. And not just any treasure, but material wealth, gold and jewels which "make its possessor a king."

Manga panel of Buggy. His head is thrown back, laughing at the mayor for calling the town and its people treasure. "You senile old fool! The only treasure here is for termites! Gold and jewels are treasure! Treasure sparkles and makes its possessor a king!"

Manga panel of young Shanks as a cabin boy, talking to Buggy about the future. "As captain of my own ship! I'll make time to see the world," he says. "I'll do some pirating along the way, of course."

Shanks and Buggy’s contrasting viewpoints also embody the underlying themes of Orange Town Arc. One man's trash is another man's treasure, and Oda takes great care to emphasize this point, from Chouchou to the mayor.

Manga panel. Right panel shows Luffy and Nami, speechless. Left panel shows the mayor of Orange Town shouting, "This town and its people are my treasure!"

One Piece manga panel. Nami asks, "Then why does he still guard the store?" (Referring to Chouchou the dog, who is eating food out of a bowl directly beside a caged-in Luffy.) The mayor responds, "This is his master's store... It's his treasure."

Luffy's hat ends up taking center stage in Orange Town, however, which I think is a great decision. The straw hat is what tethers Luffy and Buggy to Shanks. It's a weighted symbol, one that helped shape both of their characters — albeit in antithetical ways. Thus, when it’s used as a tool to explore their relationships, it works really well.

Take Luffy, for example. In his youth, Shanks was a pillar of support, friendship, and sacrifice; the straw hat is his treasure because it reminds him of Shanks, but also because it symbolizes what Shanks gave up for him. He owes his life to Shanks, but he uses that gratitude to fuel his own ambition, and to hopefully reunite with Shanks one day as a great pirate.

Shanks allowed him to go after his dream. Luffy knows this well.

Manga panel of Luffy looking down at his straw hat. "I treasure this hat because a friend gave it to me a long time ago," he says, happy and seemingly nostalgic as he talks about Shanks. "That's when I swore I'd gather a crew and become a pirate."

Now look at Buggy. He sees the straw hat as worthless, and it’s clear why he does: it’s a painful reminder of the dream that Buggy gave up on, a representation of everything he lacks in comparison to Shanks. And to add insult to injury, Shanks gave that straw hat away to what Buggy sees as an insignificant kid. Of course that would hurt. Seeing Shanks give up Roger’s legacy so easily, abandoning his potential to become Pirate King, when that’s all Buggy ever wanted in life… I mean, wow. It's an amazing role reversal. Buggy gave up on his dream for Shanks, but Shanks gave that dream to Luffy instead.

Manga panel of Buggy. "When I sailed with Shanks... He shone so brightly with potential," he says, beaten and bruised. "I knew I couldn't measure up, so I let go of my real dream...!!"

Behind him is a flashback of Shanks smiling as he holds a sword. He is likely being praised by Roger, who has a hand on his hat and a matching smile on his partially-obscured face. In the far background, Buggy is peeking around a corner, watching them with a frown.

I think 1082’s context adds some much-needed character depth, and explains a lot of Buggy's rationale. We know Buggy does not value sacrifice or friendship like Luffy does, nor is he the type to go out on a limb for someone. He’s greedy, manipulative when it suits his interests… I could go on forever. So to see that Buggy once sacrificed his own dreams for the sake of Shanks’ — only to have it backfire — makes so much sense. Of course he became a bitter, cynical, and selfish adult. One of the people he believed in most broke his unwavering trust, and he never healed from that experience. (Not to mention that this happened directly after Roger's execution. His faith was already shaken, and it was just one heartbreak after the next.)

The impact of that betrayal only feeds into his greedier tendencies; Buggy is a character who keeps things close to his chest, figuratively and literally. He learned to fear trust, and it shows. All of his adult relationships (Alvida, Galdino, Crocodile, Mihawk) are strictly rooted in business and mutual, self-serving interests. Nothing more.

Just take a look at Buggy and Luffy's reactions to the Bara Bara no Mi story. Buggy can only focus on the things he lost, instead of what he had: a friend who was willing to jump overboard for him in a heartbeat. But Luffy, a character who values the people he loves, obviously has a different perspective. He concludes, “So Shanks saved your life?” Where Luffy sees hidden treasure, Buggy sees nothing but loss.

Manga panel of Buggy and Luffy's fight in Orange Town, after Buggy explains his history with Shanks. "Hmmm.. So Shanks saved your life!" Luffy says, unconcerned, a smile on his face. Buggy responds with comical anger, yelling, "So what!!? It was all his fault! He foiled all my grandiose plans!"

So why am I bringing this all up? Well, I don’t find it surprising at all that two of Buggy’s most prominent arcs — Orange Town and Impel Down — emphasize his struggle between selfishness and altruism. The internal conflict is played off as a joke in Impel Down, but Buggy has always been simultaneously comedic and complex. He actually parallels Luffy in that sense, but that's another meta for another day.

Manga panel of Buggy in his Impel Down prison uniform, sobbing both excessively and comically. Tears are overflowing, snot is dripping from his clown nose, and sparkles are surrounding him as he thinks to himself: "Don't look at me like that! I'm a scoundrel... A no-good pirate! You shouldn't trust guys like me!"

The position Oda has placed Buggy in is rife with potential. He's now closer than ever to the things which would fulfill his materialistic nature: the One Piece, Captain John’s treasure, and the title of Pirate King. Yet, at the very same time, he's closer to one of his most honest connections in life: Shanks. If there was ever a time for a character to be forced to make a fateful choice, I’d say it’s right about now. People have been wondering why Oda made Buggy a final contender for the One Piece. Why has he “failed upwards” for so long? Comedy aside, I think the answer is a lot simpler than we’re all making it out to be: Buggy’s story just isn’t over yet.

Oda still has something he wishes to impart to readers, and he clearly believes it will be told best through Buggy’s character. Based on what we know about Buggy — his greed, his guilty conscience, his past with Shanks — I think that story will lead his character to some very interesting places.

Do I think Buggy is going to have a change of heart? Maybe, maybe not. In that regard, he’s already been in a gray area since Impel Down. I wouldn’t be surprised if he accidentally ends up allying himself with Luffy again during One Piece’s conclusion. But with the Cross Guild putting bounties on marines, a (potential) three-emperor interest in going after Blackbeard, and an open-ended Shanks-Buggy plot thread about going to Laugh Tale... Well, there's a lot of places this could go. Would Buggy be willing to give up the greatest treasure in dire circumstances? For Shanks? For the world? Will he become king, and then lose it all? Will he make a sacrifice that parallels Shanks' when they were kids? Who knows!

What do you guys think? Is Buggy going to play a larger role in One Piece’s third act? What is your ideal conclusion for his character in the story? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Five [MASTERPOST]

A Kakashi-centric Naruto fan comic centering around the events that occurred when Kakashi was five years old, from his early graduation to his father’s suicide.

Please note that this is a story about a child soldier living in a world where being raised for war is commonplace, so there is a global content warning for this sort of child abuse, gore/violence, and death.

(1),(2),(3),(4),(5),(6),(7) (8),(9),(10)

(11),(12),(13),(14),(15),(16),(17),

(18),(19),(20) (21),(22),(23),(24),

(25),(26),(27),(28),(29),(30),(31),

(32),(33),(34),(35),(36),(37),(37.5)

(38),(39),(40),(41),(42),(43),(44)

(45),(46),(47),(48),(49),(50),(51),

(52),(53),(54),(54.5)(54.9),(55),(56),

(57),(58),(59),(60),(61),(62),(63),(64)

(65),(66),(67),(68),(69),(70),(71),(72),(…)

Also available to read on AO3.

The dark truth of the Clock Keepers - Theory

I will be talking about how there's much more to the Clock Keepers and how they are an active danger to everyone else, and and an even more terrible threat than even the pit god, at that.

For an introduction, Akane agrees: The biggest threat to the students are the Clock Keepers. But it's a much bigger threat that anyone would expect.

The Dark Truth Of The Clock Keepers - Theory

This arc is about the Clock Keepers changing the timeline that we know of into a new one, everything has gone wrong and Nene is the only one left.

But it would seem it goes much deeper than that. After all, the timeline we know of isn't even the original one.

For starters, Akane explains that while there are some who are able to regain their memories of the 'Old World', they would be rewritten with memories of the 'New World'. It's specific for 3 days due to the Festival being 3 days long, an event where the timeflow becomes unstable.

During the Festival Season of 1968, Yugi Amane attempts to get the clock moving so he can manipulate time, and Hanako states that he HAD to get it moving until the end of the School Festival, but he can't remember anything about the clock.

Sounds familiar?

To get to the point, Yugi Amane of 1968 had the memories of a 'previous world', and tried to fix the clock so he can go back. But he failed to do so, and, as a result, forgot everything about the clock.

Until Chapter 124, this is also seemingly supported by Teru and Akane.

Even if they may not be aware, their impressions are right. It's extremely unlikely that this is the first time the Clock Keepers altered time, like playing 'God'.

But now, it's even further confirmed by Chapter 124.

The past has indeed been changed several times. But why do so many people have to suffer in this way, have their souls cut and forever bound to the Boundary, some even going crazy as a result. In a way, it sounds like something the pit god would do, isn't it?

But *why* would the Clock Keepers do that? There's an easy answer. They need to bend the rules. At first glance, the Clock Keepers seem overpowered, unbeatable. They can seemingly turn back time on a whim with no repercussions- But we know for a fact that's not true.

After all, Shijima herself states it. Each Boundary of the School Mystery is bound by rules. Mysteries can't just do whatever they like- There are rules they have to respect. Especially when it comes to such an overpowered ability like messing with time, there has to be a major weakness or price to pay for it, a drawback that Kako discovered how to circumvent. Such an overpowered ability, unregulated? No way.

After all, it's not only the Clock Keepers' servants that are clockwork dolls, they themselves are also clockwork dolls.

Kako cutting up souls everytime the past is changed is not a coincidence. It's so he can have someone else pay for the price of altering time.

Wouldn't that be why Kako decided to travel to 1968, to the time he would find a 12 year old who is so desperate to turn back time?

After all, it's so much easier to find a human willing to pay the price in your stead. Especially if it's a child motivated by desperation. For every timeline change, someone has to sacrifice something. But Kako had found an easier way: Just sacrifice someone else.

Some are able to accept reality as it is and just dutifully abide by the Clock Keepers' rules as their masters, like the cat, and some don't and end up crazy, like the broken doll. Whether from the past, future or another world, they're all the same- They all used to be humans.

This cruel practice is so Kako is freely able to play 'God' without worrying about the rules every mystery has to abide to, and it's even solidified by the victims who can't recall the circumstances themselves. It's a practice that, if revealed, exposes the Clock Keepers' limits.

Why do you think Kako had asked Akane to stay alive until they wake up? Because if all else failed, the Clock Keepers would be able to exchange Akane's soul to turn back time once more. It's literally Akane that's a safety net, not just the Yorishiro.

Wouldn't that also explain why the position of the Clock Keeper of the Present is vacant and only filled by humans?

Why was that position vacant until they found Akane, a boy who similarly wanted the power to control time? The "Clock Keeper of the Present" is simply a disposable asset.

But now, Kako messed up big time. He used time as his playground to attempt to get rid of an actual God, one who now is aware of the danger the Clock poses.

The consequences for this will be lethal for the Clock Keepers, ones who treat time and lives so lightly, and karmic retribution will come swiftly.

As final words, it would seem that Nene finding the truth behind the dolls behind finding Kako is done on purpose so she cannot fall in the Clock Keepers' trap and play her cards right.

Kako will not be able to get away with treating this world as his personal playground.

147 notes View Post

doyoulikeslimes

2 months ago

Animaniacs #36 -April 1998- DC Comics

Communication Gap

writer: Dana Kurtin

penciler: Omar Aranda

inker: Jim Amash

letterer: John Costanza

colorist: Prismacolor

57 notes View Post

doyoulikeslimes

1 year ago

I’ve said the same thing in a lot more words before. You want the Warners to be in-character?

They are smart but not logical. They are wise but immature. They are refined but chaotic. And they are well-meaning but mischievous.

These are the things that make them extremely flexible characters, as well as interesting, endearing, and cute. They’re kids who aren’t kids and adults who aren’t adults.

114 notes View Post