SBS Volume 17

Drum Island climax / pre-Alabasta. Major canon leaks: “Tony Tony Chopper” spelling correction (NOT Tony-Tony Chopper); Sea Beasts vs Sea Kings biology distinction (Sea Beasts = sea mammals like Momoo, Sea Kings = giant non-mammalian sea animals); Nefertari = ancient Egyptian “most beautiful” (queen-name appropriated); Elbaph giants modeled on Vikings; Dr. Kureha is “almost 140 years old” (first explicit longevity fix); Dalton “likes chestnuts” / Kureha “likes dried plums”. Also: Oda’s complete 10-step manga production pipeline disclosed.

Q&A

Chapter 156, Page 20 — Volume 17 SBS Vol. 1 (chapter-end column)

Q-a (gag) — Oda’s open fly

D: Oda-sensei!!! Your fly is open!! O: Hmm? Oh, you’re right. (Oda removes his pants to answer the column properly, theatrical-gag register.)

Q-b — Dr. Kureha secret of youth

D: Dr. Kureha, what is the secret of youth? O: Be happy!! Dr. Kureha is probably going to be around for a long time. (Authorial signal — Kureha is not a one-arc-character.)

Q-c (gag) — reader threatens Oda over assistant’s lunch money

D: Oda-sensei, I’m holding your assistant’s lunch money hostage. Pay up! O: (panic-react gag.)

Chapter 147, Page 46

Q1 — CMC (Chotto Machigae Chatta) Corner — Chopper name fix

O: Before I start the SBS, I present the CMC (“A Little Mistake”) Corner!! For anyone who bought the first printing of Volume 16. It said that Chopper’s name was “Tony-Tony Chopper”, but that was a mistake on my part. It’s really supposed to be “Tony Tony Chopper”.

Q2 — Hijack-split gag

D: Let’s split it halfway! “START THE SB”. O: “S”. Ah… HUUHHHH…?!!

Q3 — Where is the Okama Way?

D: WHERE IS THE OKAMA WAY? Is it my house? O: Hmmm. Where? That’s a difficult question… since it IS the “path of those who have opened their eyes”. I THINK IT COULD EXIST ANYWHERE ♡… AAAH!!

Q4 — Elbaph giants = Vikings

D: The giants Dorry and Brogy’s helmets look an awful lot like the Celts’ horned helmets and Verden-era Swedish crested-helmets. Am I right? O: Yes you are. The giant “Warriors of Elbaph“‘s image came from my original love for those pirates of the north, the “Vikings”. ALL HAIL THEIR VALOR!

Chapter 148, Page 66

Q5 — Greeting gag

D: Oda-sensei!!! OHHHAAAAAAA!!! O: OHHHAAAAAAAAA!!! (Playing along).

Q6 — Momoo classification: SEA BEAST vs SEA KING

D: Is Momoo a “Sea King”? One of my friends says “He’s a Sea King!!”, but I don’t know… O: Momoo? To be precise, Momoo is classified as a “Sea Beast”. It’s the same thing in “One Piece” as what we call sea-dwelling mammals in our world, like seals or whales. Therefore, simply think of “Sea Kings” as giant, non-mammalian animals living in the sea.

Q7 — Official homepage

D: Does One Piece have an official home page? O: Not specifically, but there is a Jump page, and in there is a One Piece corner. The webpage is “Pop Web Jump”.

Q8 — NEFERTARI = “the most beautiful” (Egyptian queen-name)

D: Is there some kind of connection between Vivi-chan and ancient Egypt? Vivi-chan’s full name is Nefertari Vivi, and her father’s name is Nefertari Cobra. In ancient Egypt, the name “Nefertari” meant “the most beautiful” or “the most wonderful”, and was often affixed to portraits of queens and princesses. Also, Arabasta is a sand kingdom, and her father’s name is Cobra. — By Maimai. O: I see… Is that what it means? Nefertari, I mean. Nice. I most certainly used ancient Egypt as a model for Arabasta, so I just flipped through a book about Egypt and picked out names that sounded nice. I see… I picked out a good name (for a person). Okay! I’ll acknowledge it! You are a rival to Knowledgeable Himeko!!

Chapter 149, Page 86 — ODA’S PRODUCTION PIPELINE (10 steps)

Q9 — How a volume of comics is created

D: How is a volume of comics created? Like, where exactly does the “name” get decided? O:

• Step 1: Space Out — Space out dejectedly.
• Step 2: Meeting — Talk to the people at Jump about what will be in the next chapter.
• Step 3: Planning — Think about what will actually go in the chapter.
• Step 4: Name — Write a “name” on a blank piece of paper.
• Step 5: Show the Name — Fax the name to the boss. If he doesn’t like it, we fight, or I rename it.
• Step 6: Master Copy — Call the assistants over to my house, and we go nuts for 2 or 3 days. We draw the master copy.
• Step 7: Jump goes on Sale — Jump goes on sale around the country.
• Step 8: Meeting — Now I talk with the high-tech boss Y-san about the cover of the book and how to color it.
• Step 9: Make the Extras — Draw the cover pages and make the SBS.
• Step 10: Book goes on Sale — It’s already complete a full month before it’s available in stores.

Chapter 153, Page 166

Q10 — Toei animation address

D: I would like to send fan letters to Toei Animation but I don’t know the address. O: Okay. I’ve gotten permission from Toei Animation. (Address image). Even a single postcard with a one-line sentence cheers them up.

Q11 — Dalton likes chestnuts / Kureha is 140 years old

D: Dalton-san, the Captain of the Drum Civilian Defense Force — when he’s asked a question, he says something extra after it that doesn’t matter at all. Is it because he’s a nice person? O: He does certainly say some unnecessary things. But I bet it’s because he’s just a good guy. Oh, and he likes chestnuts, by the way.

(Scene excerpts)

• Dalton: There’s no denying that she has skill. But she is a rather… strange old woman… She’s almost 140 years old.
• Sanji: A… 140?!! And she’s alive?!
• Dalton: Well… yes… she does like those dried plums.

Chapter 154, Page 186

No questions, just a little game made by ‘Meso-chan from Hokkaido’

Notable canon leaks