Then how on Earth is he melting solid gold?! If you’re telling me that he’s effectively punching it into a liquid then I’m giving up. Why can’t this masterpiece be more lore accurate, smh
In the several episodes/chapters he was in, Donquixote Rosinante stole my heart. Personally, Rosinante’s backstory involving Trafalgar Law was the moment that truly made me fall in love with Dressrosa.
Oda has always thrived in creating heart-wrenching flashbacks that add emotional layers to the present situation. After having experienced such tragic back stories such as Brook’s and Robin’s, I thought I could make it through all of One Piece without a single tear. How wrong I was.
At first, the flashback annoyed me as I saw it as simply more padding directly before the final confrontation with Doflamingo. Several episodes later I had to pause the tv, spending the next five minutes bawling my eyes out.
I think it was a combination of factors that led to my breakdown. Part of it was the emotional whiplash. I began by feeling pure contempt towards him for being related to Doflamingo then being shocked to discover he was one of the kindest souls of the New World, willing to lose everything just to save a child he didn’t know. My revelation towards his true behaviour was then followed by his demise at the hands of his brother, an act that completely set me on the path of utter hatred towards the false king of Dressrosa. I cannot describe in words how deeply I wanted Doflamingo to die in the following battle between him and Luffy. This backstory alone was enough for me to completely denounce any awe I had towards the villain, so despite his blatant aura I will not allow myself to label him my favourite villain in the series due to the cardinal sin he committed on Minion Island that day.
On top of all of this, the tragedy of Rosinante only gets worse as his efforts to stop Doflamingo conquering Dressrosa all led to naught at the hands of Vergo, a meh character until this story imo. With all my heart, I hope that Trafalgar will meet Rosinante again in another life so they can travel the seas as they said.
Despite my thinking that it was just another interruption to pad Dressrosa, Rosinante and his story were enough to fully invest me in the toppling of the pirate monarch. To introduce a flashback so late into the story may have seemed risky, but the sheer emotion it carried meant everything that followed was brought up several levels in anticipation and emotion.
Screw it being the icing on the cake, Rosinante added a whole extra cake to the picture!
In short, this is why I am voting for Rosinante in this year’s One Piece Top 100 Characters and I urge others to consider the emotional impact that he brought to one of the best arcs in the show in so few episodes.