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Nov. 6th, 2023 05:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
between_time_and_42So I definitely intend to make a post about the Impel Down arc in One Piece at some point, but I did watch the first two episodes of the Marineford arc recently and something came up in those episodes that I’m just kind of thrown for a loop over, and I have to get my thoughts about it out of my head, so I just want to take a moment to say this:
I figured out a while ago that Ace was Gold Roger’s son, because I had heard about Portgas D. Rouge being Roger’s lover and I figured she must be Ace’s mother, given the name. Which means I figured out that Ace and Luffy aren’t blood-related, which actually makes the whole Impel Down arc hit even harder for me, because it shows that blood ties absolutely do NOT matter- Ace is Luffy’s brother and Luffy is Ace’s brother and that bond is just as strong as it would have been had they been blood-related. To me, this sort of reinforces the whole theme of the show- that family is what you make it, and friendship can be one of the strongest bonds of all and transcend typical boundaries. When Hancock said in the second episode of Marineford, “So Ace isn’t Luffy’s real brother?”, I just thought… Fuck that. They ARE real brothers, no matter who their respective parents were.
But let’s just back up and talk about their respective parents for a moment. Specifically, Ace’s parents… and specifically Rouge, because I’m just struggling so hard to wrap my mind around her role in the story. I don’t blame Ace for rejecting Roger as his father, as the way the World Government must have treated him all his life simply because he happened to be the son of the world’s most notorious criminal would naturally lead to resentment and not wanting to be associated with that bloodline. But I honestly don’t get why he didn’t seem to resent Rouge at all, even taking her name in her honor, because like… Was it not incredibly selfish of Rouge to give birth with the full knowledge that the child she was carrying would be a target of the World Government all his life?? And given that the strain of keeping him alive inside her is probably what led to her death via childbirth, I also find it incredibly selfish that she brought him into the world knowing that she probably wouldn’t live to raise him. Also, maybe it’s just me but even in a world as ridiculous and unrealistic as the One Piece universe, I’m sorry but the fact that Rouge was somehow able to stay pregnant for a year, and only started showing after the danger had passed and the Marines had stopped looking for Roger’s child, has absolutely destroyed my suspension of disbelief. Like. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do with this information. All I can say is that we better get more information on who Rouge was later, because I just don’t fucking understand this.
I do have to say, though, that in Rouge’s defense, a baby being born should not be considered a crime in itself, and Ace deserved the right to live if his parents truly wanted that for him. It’s not his fault, or Rouge’s or Roger’s fault, that the World Government has absolutely zero chill and apparently thinks it’s okay to punish an unborn child for crimes that their parent committed. Which makes me wonder, just what did Roger DO during his life as a pirate that was so dangerous, the World Government decided that even his offspring and lover could not be allowed to live? I really hope we eventually get more stories about how he conquered the Grand Line and just what he was doing. I also really, really wish that Ace and Robin could have met, seeing as they could have bonded over being told that their existence was a crime and hunted down by the World Government all their lives. Robin even found some peace with her existence at the end of the Enies Lobby arc, so I wish she could have met Ace after that arc and maybe helped him ease the burden that he must have been carrying with him his entire life. Finally, I found the moment where Whitebeard’s crew comes to save Ace to be really emotional, because Ace actually seemed surprised that they showed up. Did he really think they wouldn’t?! It seems that Whitebeard and Luffy share the mentality that saving a friend’s life is worth starting an entire war. Only for Whitebeard, that’s basically his son who he’s rescuing. (I love that both Luffy and Ace basically have adoptive fathers in the form of badass pirate captains. What a big happy screwed-up family.)
I figured out a while ago that Ace was Gold Roger’s son, because I had heard about Portgas D. Rouge being Roger’s lover and I figured she must be Ace’s mother, given the name. Which means I figured out that Ace and Luffy aren’t blood-related, which actually makes the whole Impel Down arc hit even harder for me, because it shows that blood ties absolutely do NOT matter- Ace is Luffy’s brother and Luffy is Ace’s brother and that bond is just as strong as it would have been had they been blood-related. To me, this sort of reinforces the whole theme of the show- that family is what you make it, and friendship can be one of the strongest bonds of all and transcend typical boundaries. When Hancock said in the second episode of Marineford, “So Ace isn’t Luffy’s real brother?”, I just thought… Fuck that. They ARE real brothers, no matter who their respective parents were.
But let’s just back up and talk about their respective parents for a moment. Specifically, Ace’s parents… and specifically Rouge, because I’m just struggling so hard to wrap my mind around her role in the story. I don’t blame Ace for rejecting Roger as his father, as the way the World Government must have treated him all his life simply because he happened to be the son of the world’s most notorious criminal would naturally lead to resentment and not wanting to be associated with that bloodline. But I honestly don’t get why he didn’t seem to resent Rouge at all, even taking her name in her honor, because like… Was it not incredibly selfish of Rouge to give birth with the full knowledge that the child she was carrying would be a target of the World Government all his life?? And given that the strain of keeping him alive inside her is probably what led to her death via childbirth, I also find it incredibly selfish that she brought him into the world knowing that she probably wouldn’t live to raise him. Also, maybe it’s just me but even in a world as ridiculous and unrealistic as the One Piece universe, I’m sorry but the fact that Rouge was somehow able to stay pregnant for a year, and only started showing after the danger had passed and the Marines had stopped looking for Roger’s child, has absolutely destroyed my suspension of disbelief. Like. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do with this information. All I can say is that we better get more information on who Rouge was later, because I just don’t fucking understand this.
I do have to say, though, that in Rouge’s defense, a baby being born should not be considered a crime in itself, and Ace deserved the right to live if his parents truly wanted that for him. It’s not his fault, or Rouge’s or Roger’s fault, that the World Government has absolutely zero chill and apparently thinks it’s okay to punish an unborn child for crimes that their parent committed. Which makes me wonder, just what did Roger DO during his life as a pirate that was so dangerous, the World Government decided that even his offspring and lover could not be allowed to live? I really hope we eventually get more stories about how he conquered the Grand Line and just what he was doing. I also really, really wish that Ace and Robin could have met, seeing as they could have bonded over being told that their existence was a crime and hunted down by the World Government all their lives. Robin even found some peace with her existence at the end of the Enies Lobby arc, so I wish she could have met Ace after that arc and maybe helped him ease the burden that he must have been carrying with him his entire life. Finally, I found the moment where Whitebeard’s crew comes to save Ace to be really emotional, because Ace actually seemed surprised that they showed up. Did he really think they wouldn’t?! It seems that Whitebeard and Luffy share the mentality that saving a friend’s life is worth starting an entire war. Only for Whitebeard, that’s basically his son who he’s rescuing. (I love that both Luffy and Ace basically have adoptive fathers in the form of badass pirate captains. What a big happy screwed-up family.)
