Volume five of One Piece wraps up the Syrup Island story that began in volumes three and four, bringing the tale of Kuro and The Black Cat Pirates to a close. The crew is gifted a grand reward for their efforts and Luffy recruits another member for the Straw Hat Pirates, bringing them another step closer to the Grand Line. With their adventure on Syrup Island at an end, they set out for the open sea again. Realizing how important proper nutrition will be on their adventures, Luffy heads to a floating restaurant to recruit a cook for his crew.
Syrup Village was a great story that introduced outstanding new characters, but it wasn’t as good as the Romance Dawn arc, when Luffy and Zoro took down the corrupt Axe-Hand Morgan. One Piece’s first extended adventure had better pacing, lasting only a handful of chapters. The Buggy and Syrup Island stories lingered for too long. I suspect the author was buying time to plot out future tales, but he did so at the detriment of the current plot. Syrup Village was still a great story, but it could’ve been cut several chapters shorter, delivering a tighter, better paced arc.
Usopp definitely steals the show in this volume(which I didn’t find as egregious as volume three because Luffy still has plenty to do this time around). He is a person with many flaws. He’s a coward, he’s a liar, and his first tendency is to run. Recognizing the danger that his town and love interest are facing, he overcomes his flaws and uses the courage he summoned to stand and fight. Usopp’s arc was the heart and soul of this volume, and the reason for why he constantly lies was truly heart wrenching. Not even the most stoic man will be able to hear his past without at least tearing up.
Volume five concludes by beginning the new story: the Baratie Arc. In search of a cook for their newly acquired ship, the gang arrives at the floating restaurant Baratie. There isn’t much to say about this because it only last two chapters, but it clears that the Straw Hats won’t be leaving without a cook. Sanji, a cook with a heart of gold who won’t refuse anybody food and loves women more than the average man, is the primary target of Luffy. The few chapters are brief but they are full of humor and were a nice change of pace from the action heavy sequences that make up most of this volume.
All in all, it was another great edition of One Piece. My only hope is that the future stories will have better pacing. Oda has constructed excellent stories but drag them on well past their expiration. Everything good must end and that includes story arcs.