By Eiichiro Oda
VIZ, 180 pp.
Rating: Teen

The more I read One Piece, the more I see why it’s such a popular series. Taking place in a world mainly covered by the sea, the book follows Luffy, a young man with dreams of being king of the Pirates. Armed with the ability to stretch his body like rubber, Luffy takes off on a journey to find a crew and a way to the Grand Line, an elusive sea where the treasure “One Piece” may be found. On his journey, he meets a large cast of characters and volume 21 picks up well into the Grand Line arc, where Luffy and his crew are aiding Princess Vivi in defending her country, Albasta, from the atrocious Baroque Works.

If I could say one thing about this volume, it is action-packed! The book features some insight into Baroque Works’ plan for world domination but the main focus is the fights between the Straw Hat Crew and Baroque Works’ chief officers. The first bout we lay eyes on is literally a kicking match between Straw Hat’s culinary genius Sanji and the girliest man in the world, Mr. 2 Bon Clay. This was the most comedic of the three fights, considering Bon Clay has the ability to shape shift and the fact that Sanji can’t keep his eyes off a pretty woman. They are both very goofy characters which makes the fight all the more interesting.

Secondly, we get a front set view on a scuffle between the lovely but ever-so-sneaky Nami and the prickly Ms. Doublefinger. This fight proved to be electric as Nami discovers a weapon that finally allows her to have a piece of the fighting pie. I really liked the fact that Oda decided to put his main female lead on the frontlines, instead of waiting and whining to be saved every story arc. Finally, our attention turns to the steel-on-steel, mano-a-mano battle between top swordsman, Roronoa Zolo, and the cool Mr. 1. This bout is anything but funny, as Zolo pushes his limits in an attempt to break the steel body that is Mr. 1.

The best aspect of this volume is the focus on the supporting cast; the main character Luffy doesn’t appear in the book at all, which isn’t a bad thing. I love the Luffy character and I think he is one of the better shonen characters, but he can be overbearing at points. Sometimes it’s nice to let your other creations breathe and get a chance to really shine. Especially when Eiichiro Oda, in my opinion, is one of the best character writers in manga of our time—so much so that you even end up liking even the villains he creates. For example, the whole Baroque Work’s team is actually a very likeable group, each sporting their own quirks, whether it is a funny walk or the fact that they just happen to be a drag queen. Not only are his characters well made, his writing and artwork are top notch. The stories are believable and emotional all while still retaining those fantastic and whimsical elements that I was so drawn to. His art runs along the same lines. Normally, his style is very cartoony but when it needs to be serious, it gets tear-jerkingly so.

Sometimes there is nothing better than a good shonen fight. It’s like a short story, with an intro, where everything is going alright until the hero starts losing. Finally we reach the climax, where the hero pushes him or herself to the limit, surpassing their enemies. We learn a little bit more about the characters, giving us a chance to grow closer and root for them as they progress towards their goal. Volume 21 of One Piece offers just that—a fast-paced glance at the Straw Hat Pirates doing what they do best with great reread value!

Volume 21 of One Piece will be available on June 2, 2009