“Thunder Bagua! Here Comes Kaido’s Son!”

The first half features a fair bit of this running around but also some of the fighting as well, which works with a mix of seriousness and humor. Luffy’s coming into the room where there’s both Ulti and Page One definitely makes for some comedy since she’s just so over the top and comical in how she acts. He doesn’t particularly care for the way she is with him, but the two certainly have a good dynamic in being able to work together. We do get a minor flashback about them that shows more of their dynamic and how they’ve been over time, but part of it just feels like an opportunity to play up more fanservice with her, even if it leans into an explanation as to why the staircase that they’re at is basically cleaved in half as Luffy points out. 

When it shifts to the actual fight with her against Luffy, there’s a good sense of power behind it and the music hits well in what it’s presenting. There’s a good impact of power, the scale and size plays well as Ulti’s transformation takes place, and we see how Luffy has some fun tricks up his sleeve in order to try and take her on. Now, the usual problem is there in that Luffy has faced hugely more difficult opponents than her before with less problem than this, but it is fun to watch it play out and see him just get his hands dirty and deal with her and Page One in his transformed mode. The more Ulti transforms, however, the more problematic his fight gets since there’s the randomness and uncertainty of it all, especially once her brother gets taken down and she’s suddenly now really playing for keeps in a way that she wasn’t before.

In Summary:

Luffy runs into Ulti and Page One, members of the Tobi Roppo from the Animal Kingdom Pirates. Hearing that he aims to become the King of the Pirates, the brother and sister duo become infuriated and turn themselves into massive beasts. When Luffy is driven into a corner, someone wearing a demon mask appears and whisks him away.

Thanks for reading! See you next week!

乂⍱‿●乂