ANIME REVIEW | ONE PIECE: ARABASTA SAGA EPS. 62-130 (SPOILER FREE)

 Episodes: 62-130
Arc:
1. Reverse Mountain (ep. 62-63)
2. Whiskey Peak (ep. 64-67)
3. Little Garden (ep. 70-77)
4. Drum Island (ep. 78-91)
5. Arabasta (ep. 92-130)



The "Arabasta Saga"[1] (アラバスタ編 Arabasuta-hen?) (usually referred to as the "Baroque Works Saga") is the second saga in the manga and animeOne Piece. It follows the Straw Hat Pirates and their efforts to help Princess Nefertari Vivi try to reach her homeland before a massive war breaks out. However, an evil organization called Baroque Works will stop at nothing to keep the crew from reaching Arabasta. This saga is made up of five story arcs.

The Straw Hat Pirates finally enter the Grand Line, only to be targeted by the criminal organization Baroque Works. They meet Nefertari Vivi, and decide to help save her country, Arabasta. Making their way across the Grand Line, they fend off Baroque Works' assassination attempts while meeting Luffy's older brother, Portgas D. Ace, as well as a pair of giants named Dorry and Brogy, and gaining a new crew member: Tony Tony Chopper.

With the fate of Arabasta hanging in the balance, the saga climaxes with a full-out confrontation between the Straw Hats and Baroque Works, led by Mr. 0, aka Crocodile, a Shichibukai. After Baroque Works is defeated, Luffy and Zoro earn a bounty of Beli.png100,000,000, and Beli.png60,000,000, respectively. (Source: One Piece Wiki)





Arabasta Saga is one of the most liked and famous One Piece saga. I can honestly see why the saga received innumerable amount of good reviews. Let me tell you why. 
PLOT

The story starts off when the Straw Hat Pirates finally entered Grand Line via Reverse Mountain. Merry Go was blocked by a huge black whale in the middle of the ocean. Then, they met these two weird people which eventually led them to Whiskey Peak Island. At Whiskey Peak Island, it was bizarre that pirates were welcomed so warmly. Only to find out it was just a pretense. Later, they were ambushed by Baroque Works, a bounty hunter corporation. 
The plot kicked off at Arabasta Arc when Luffy and the others finally made their way to Arabasta. Arabasta Kingdom was at its downfall. The country surrounding the capital city of Arabasta, Alubarna, hadn't been raining for years except the capital city itself. The people of Arabasta were anguished and famished. The city reeked of poverty. It was rumoured that Alubarna stole the rain from the surrounding cities which evoked division among the citizens resulting in Rebel Army against the Royal Army. 
I cannot explain how much the Arabasta Arc represents reality very VERY close to the point I forgot I was watching anime and not the news. All the events, the conflicts, the politics, the schemes and the rebellion are extremely realistic. I respect Oda’s mind. SALUTE. The fact Oda wrote this arc in the early 2000’s and yet still remains relevant to this day, 2 DECADES later is saying something about how messed up the current world we’re living in. 
The fight between Luffy and Crocodile at the dune before they arrived at Alubarna and Luffy almost died, I got goosebumps. Luffy never failed to impress me. And I’m not saying this to be a pervert, I’m saying Luffy is one of the character that taught me courage and it worked. Normally when anime main characters try to be courageous, I found it pretentious. But not in One Piece. One Piece is anything but pretentious.
If you think East Blue Saga (click to read my review of East Blue Saga) isn’t convincing enough to start One Piece, TRUST ME this saga is 100x better. 

SOUNDTRACK
KYARGHH I LOVEEE opening 3 so much. It sounds so cute, heartwarming and upbeat. My smile automatically spreads across my face every time the op starts. One of the op I won’t skip.

 

CHARACTERS
A new character is introduced in this saga named Vivian. She's the Princess of the Arabasta Kingdom. And honestly, I love her so much. But not as much as I love Nami. Vivi is a great driving force of the saga. 

There is one scene when hope was nowhere to be found and despair hung in the air. The Royal Army and Rebel Army wouldn’t stop killing each other and the dispute was all started due to a misunderstanding, and Vivi was almost fed up but she couldn't because she’s the Princess, so she must try everything she can to stop her country from falling apart. Thus, she climbed to a higher place and persistently screamed AT THE TOP OF HER LUNGS FOR PEOPLE TO STOP FIGHTING but nobody was listening to her as her voice was drowned out by the chaotic mess. But she never gave up. Not even once. She’s SUCH an inspiration. Damn, I’m getting goosebumps writing this.

In Drum Island Arc, a new crew is recruited to join the Straw Hat pirates as the Doctor. His name is Tony Chopper. He’s okay. I don’t like him that much but I love his friendship with Luffy and Usopp. I love how they got along well and vibe with the same frequency. It’s adorable.

RELATIONSHIP
Okay, I’ve been waiting to FINALLY FANGIRL ABOUT THIS. But listen, SANJI AND NAMI FOREVERRRRRR HUAAAAAA. 
In this saga, I decided to dedicate my life to these two dorks 🥺 My chest hurts when they’re in the same room together. And when Sanji tagged along with Luffy to meet Dr. Kureha, when he fought the giant rabbit (which I forgot what’s it called) because he didn’t want Luffy to fight as he was carrying Nami on his back MADE MY HEART SWELLS. He constantly reminded Luffy about Nami awwww 😽
When Dr. Kureha’s castle was being attacked and Sanji got jealous because Luffy was wearing Nami’s jacket 😍😘 
And then Nami was supposed to get rest for another 3 days but she insisted to leave for Arabasta ASAP because Vivi was desperate to save her befallen kingdom, and Sanji asked her if she was sure to leave early as she was still sick and I just 🥺🥺 He was hella concern for Nami. We have to understand Sanji is a womanizer and he gawked at Vivi but here he showed his concern for Nami more 🥺😩 My man is actually in love but in denial 🤌🏼
I’m planning to write a full-on post dedicated to SaNa some time in the future 🤞🏼

OVERALL
I love this saga but I haven’t caught up with the latest episodes yet, so I’m not sure if this is my most favourite saga! 
Rate: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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