One Piece Fans Would Lose Their Minds at Blue Exorcist's Latest Twist
Warning! Spoilers ahead for Blue Exorcist chapter 134!
Blue Exorcist's latest twist follows a major formula in One Piece that many fans view as key to its success. Mangaka Kazue Kato executes her version of the trope so well in the latest chapter of Blue Exorcist that, had it been done in One Piece, fans would consider it one of Eiichiro Oda's crowning achievements.
Aside from the excessive amount of world-building that goes into One Piece, mangaka Oda undoubtedly devotes much of his time to mapping out various characters by means of where they will appear and when (most likely ahead of time). This is done to such an extent that when these characters eventually move away from the main events of the plot, how they eventually return will have already been planned, so by the time they do come back, it will be with a vengeance.
Mangaka Kazue Kato brings this dynamic to Blue Exorcist with the reintroduction of a character named Reiji Shiratori in chapter 134. The first half of Reiji''s unexpected cameo adds some depth to his character, portraying him as a boy who so blindly believes that his father isn't avoiding him and is only away on business that when someone kindly tells him otherwise, he reacts vehemently, even violently, regardless of whether or not the person is elderly. But what matters from the perspective of One Piece's aforementioned formula is that, at the end of the chapter, a demon suddenly possesses his body.
Before this chapter of Blue Exorcist, Reiji had only been featured a few times. In fact, his first appearance happened towards the beginning of Blue Exorcist, for he's discovered to be a delinquent who's possessed by the demon king named Astaroth. A battle inevitably ensued, and Astaroth was exorcised from Reiji not once, but twice. Since then, Reiji has only appeared one more time, though, it's intriguing that he's almost a different person to how he acted when he was possessed. This latest chapter brings Reiji's character full circle, portraying him as a person who's unfortunately susceptible to being possessed by demons. It's ironic, too, that he might be possessed by Astaroth again, as Reiji's latest transformation features horns that share a resemblance to the ones he had previously. This realization creates the impression that Astaroth choosing Reiji wasn't random and that the two are connected more deeply than originally believed. Reiji's relationship with his dad, as explored in this latest chapter, also explains why Blue Exorcist first depicted him as a delinquent since parental abandonment can have a detrimental effect on a child's psyche.
While an intriguing development, most fans who have commented on the chapter via Shonen Jump's app are more amused by the fact that none of them even remembered Reiji. That's because Blue Exorcist transcends this type of formula and isn't defined by it. Unlike One Piece, every single character doesn't have to be connected nor does every action have to somehow relate to something later on. In the case of any story, it's interesting when something like this happens but it's unrealistic and seems forced when every minute detail has to have some hidden meaning like in One Piece. In Blue Exorcist, Reiji's return can be celebrated as a well-thought-out addition to his character, especially since it builds upon an aspect of his past as opposed to him being blindly reintroduced. But if this happened in One Piece, it would be heralded as another example of why Oda is king because of how he masterfully connects things in some all-encapsulating web. But storytelling is more than that. Luckily mangaka Blue Exorcist mangaka Kazue Kato understands that, unlike One Piece.
from ScreenRant - Feed https://ift.tt/ZzurFHG
via Whole story
Post a Comment