Carrot will be Nakama during or after the Wano Arc. This is a sorta long post and I might get a little rambly and speculative, especially by the end. These are just my predictions, but I’m certain I’m not the only one who believes this!
As it stands now, Carrot is a distant second behind Jinbe (who is basically 100% Nakama by the end of the WCI arc) to join the crew as she has not fulfilled a few requirements that many fans believe are necessary for a character to join the crew. I believe Carrot WILL remain with the crew from now on, but she will not be an “official” Straw Hat until the Wano arc.
There are a few reasons to believe that Carrot wont become an official Straw Hat until the events of Wano begin to unfold, or possibly come to an end. Why? Simply because Carrot has not been completely developed yet, and will most likely not be during the Whole Cake Island arc. From a writing stand point it makes sense that she hasnt:
1. Whole Cake Island has A LOT going on already. Just in terms of flashbacks we have already had Sanji, Big Mom, Jimbei, and even Pedro flashbacks. Oda has put a lot of time and effort into developing the Big Mom Pirates and Totland and I’m sure we can all agree that fleshing Carrot’s character out during this arc will add even more story lines that don’t need to be there just yet. Oda has done a great job teasing us with tiny bits of Carrot’s story and abilities, but only as much as necessary to advance her overall plot as a character.
2. The Wano arc will feature the mink tribe heavily and there will be high stakes for all the minks, including Carrot. It seems thematically appropriate that Oda would develop Carrot in an arc where her people are featured heavily, thereby giving many venues to receive her actual backstory, like speaking to Wanda or something. Oda will have a lot more time to dedicate to Carrot as he will not have as much nakama-drama as he had in WCI.
Nami and Robin both joined on similar grounds.
They both “joined twice” – with their “official” status being solidified following the full development of their backstories, dreams, and a bold declaration by Luffy that they are nakama and that he will put his life on the line for them. To this point, everything that Luffy has done in WCI has been for Sanji – not Carrot – and Jinbe has already gotten his in the Fishman Island Arc.
Nami initially joined to get 100 million berries to buy back her home town and Robin joined because she had no where left to go. In Robin’s case, Luffy didn’t even invite her to join (sounds familiar right?). It wasn’t until Arlong Park and Water 7/Enies Lobby respectively that the two ladies joined officially. I believe Carrot will do the same. She will remain with the crew and will be welcomed by the crew wholeheartedly – but her bonds with the crew and specifically Luffy will be solidified in the Wano Arc.
My predictions:
1. Jinbe will officially join and Pedro will be confirmed dead at the end of the arc and we will be treated to a flashback of Carrot with Pedro (similar to the one that was teased earlier in the arc) at some point after WCI.
2. Early in the Wano Arc, Carrot will rejoin the mink tribe and be scolded by Wanda. She will share the news of Pedro’s sacrifice and final wish, and will be chosen to personally assist the Straw Hats.
3. Carrot will fight alongside the Straw Hats during the war, possibly defeating a key Beast Pirate fighter (not a samurai).
4. In her attempt to help out as much as possible and inspired by Pedro’s sacrifice, Carrot will attempt to take on her Sulong form for too long but will be stopped by Luffy before she sacrifices herself in vain. Why else would Oda add the detail of the self-destructive feral nature of the full moon? I’d imagine Luffy putting his straw hat on Carrot to cover her eyes. The panel of Carrot covering her eyes in the latest chapter reminded me a lot of Nami pulling on Luffy’s hat back in Arlong Park.
5. There will be a flashback to Pedro talking about the meaning of Nox and the Dawn, the struggle against Jack back in Zou, and perhaps even a young Carrot training and longing to join the Pedro, Nekomamushi, and Inuarashi on their adventures on pirate ships. I believe Carrot will even think back to the events of Zou and WCI and decide that she wants to be more than just a servant to the Straw Hats, but their friend, a sentiment that will sit well with Luffy.
That’s all my speculation… Sorry again for the long post!!! Let me know your thoughts!
TL;DR Like Nami and Robin, Carrot will join the crew “twice”, officially joining the crew during/after the Wano Arc following suitable character development!
Comments
Post a Comment