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One Piecehas an advantage that not many shows and projects get. As a Shonen work, Eiichiro Oda’s masterpiece carries an extraordinarily lengthy runtime. Needless to say, such an advantage should be able to incorporate incredibly fleshed-out characters. While for some of them, the case remains true, it same cannot be said for many others.
For a series that has received so much praise, it wouldn’t be fair to mask its flaws either. It may hold some of the most captivating and fresh arcs but not every character gets to see the light of day in ways that they deserve to. As such,One Piecehas many villains, most of whom do a great job of expressing their menacing behavior.
The Unfortunate Case of Kaido
What makes a good villain? It is not someone who simply looks scary and talks scary. It is the deeds they do and the crimes they commit. It is their goals and how well they execute them. Are they just a villain for the sake of it or do they have a compelling story that makes them so? It is a simple ideology, villains are made. They do not simply exist.
Kaido is introduced as a villain who is supposed to be this big bad ofOne Piece.He is this menacing figure who looks fearsome and vicious. Just because he doesn’t kill people doesn’t make him a bad villain. Villains exist in almost every genre of storytelling and the way they are so good regardless of their kill count makes them much better.
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That is the case for Kaido, however. He is the kind of antagonist who is introduced to be this powerful being that everyone fears. While he may look like a good villain, in front of Doflamingio, and Big Mom, he seems extremely underwhelming and that is a fault on Eiichiro Oda’s part.
Eiichiro Oda’s Biggest Mistake with Kaido
The rules of writing suggest that a villain should have some qualities that make him likable to the audience. There can certainly be exceptions where it is not to humanize the antagonist but to make them so frightening that even readers and viewers jitter at their presence. The Joker and Homelander are the best examples of such characters. Unfortunately, Kaido falls in neither category.
Eiichiro Odahad one rule to maintain while writing, show not tell. It is a basic necessity to make any project captivating no matter the medium. In Kaido’s case, the audiences have always been told about his villainy and his deeds. It is through other characters that fans know anything about him. The writing for him is sloppy at best.
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He feels like a flat antagonist who can be forgotten just as quickly as he was introduced. There is not much depth to him that doesn’t entail from a past that fans weren’t even shown. It is not difficult to give Kaido at least a moment to shine that doesn’t portray him as a lousy excuse of a villain who Luffy would be able to defeat anyways because of plot armor.
One Pieceis available to watch on Crunchyroll.
Adya Godboley
Anime Content Manager
Articles Published :1879
Adya Godboley is the Anime Content Lead at FandomWire with over 1800 published articles. She is a Rotten Tomatoes-certified critic with a background in literature. From The Case Study of Vanitas to Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint, her anime knowledge is one she’s gathered with years of experience. She also enjoys Marvel, DC and Superhero media with her works having been recognized by prominent figures such as Dwayne Johnson, Abby Trott and the Blood of Zeus creators.
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