One Piece's Kaido Controversy Hurts Its Fandom, Despite Not Making Sense

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Part of the One Piece fan base has been busy recently with a big debate over Kaido, the powerful villain who was defeated by Luffy after a long and hard-fought battle. The discussion, which has taken vitriolic tones at times, focused on the fact that, according to some fans, Kaido has not shown his «awakening», a powerful ultimate form connected to the powers of his Devil Fruit. However, the debate makes very little sense in the context of One Piece and the way that the story in the manga has developed.

Many fans believe that someone as strong as Kaido, who was one of the Yonko, the four most powerful pirates in the world, should have awakened his Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit a long time ago, leading to speculation and debate on why he did not use this power against Luffy. The most popular explanations are two: either Eiichiro Oda, One Piece's author, rushed through the finale of the Wano Arc, leaving out some important moments, or Kaido is not actually dead, and he will soon make an unexpected comeback, showing his awakened form. The community has split over this topic, as is often the case with these kinds of debates, leading to some toxic behavior among fans. However, fans who argue that the manga should have shown Kaido's awakened form, or that it will do so in the near future, are avoiding looking at the bigger picture.

Related: One Piece: Luffy's New Biggest Threat Now Kaido Is Gone

The recent One Piece special Road to Laugh Tale vol. 2 begins with a page declaring loudly that "two Emperors have fallen", and that "Kaido and Big Mom have been defeated", which should clear all doubts about a possible comeback. Part of the special is dedicated to the new generation of pirates and describes how the balance of the world