One Piece’s Cross Guild is a force to be reckoned with, but it could get even more powerful if there’s truth behind Oda’s foreshadowing.
Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece is known for its hints and foreshadowing interlaced within the narrative, panels and even the cover stories. It has been suggested that the cover of Volume 25 foreshadowed the new era of Yonko in Monkey D. Luffy, Marshall D. Teach, Buggy the Clown and Shanks. There’s also the vivre card given Lola gave Luffy at the end of Thriller Bark becoming a major plot point within the arc, or even the events of Skypiea laying the groundwork for the Sun God Nika. Incredibly, another newly-formed group may also have been foreshadowed — way back during Gol D. Roger’s execution scene.
The Cross Guild is a Marine-hunting organization under the perceived control of Buggy, including his crew and two former Warlords, Dracule Mihawk and Crocodile. Their unlikely alliance propelled Buggy, whom the World Government believed to be the group’s leader, to the rank of Yonko. Two interesting facts about Cross Guild and its three current members are immediately noticeable — all three prominent members are former Warlords, and they’ve all engaged with Luffy in combat. When considering the manga panels of Roger’s execution and two more former Warlords left unaccounted for, there is an opportunity to bring the Cross Guild back into the fold.
How Gol D. Roger’s Execution Foreshadowed One Piece’s Cross Guild
During Roger’s execution, the One Piece manga shows a string of panels across the page portraying the reactions of five pirates. Buggy, Mihawk and Crocodile are shown witnessing the execution, and on the other side of their images are the recently incarcerated pirates, Donquixote Doflamingo and Gecko Moria. Both of the latter characters fall in line with the Cross Guild’s current themes of being former Warlords of the Sea and having confronted Luffy in battle.
Eiichiro Oda could have drawn absolutely anyone from the magnitude of pirates within One Piece. There is a reason those five were chosen to be together on a line, whilst Shanks’ panel was below and unconnected. It could have simply been that they all became Warlords — but then why would he leave out Bartholomew Kuma or Jinbe? There’s almost certainly more to this and, considering where Doflamingo and Moria are currently placed within the story, it could well be more of Oda’s famous foreshadowing at play.
Recent One Piece Events Offer a Recruitment Opportunity
Moria was believed to be dead — or part of the Blackbeard crew — until a recent One Piece chapter explained he’s been locked away for refusing Blackbeard’s offer. With all the madness occurring in the Pirate Paradise and Perona’s intent on freeing him, there is a window for Moria to escape the island with her. Perona’s connection with Mihawk is also a relevant factor in where Moria could go next — joining up with a powerful group like Cross Guild could be his last remaining option. Moria may have seemed like a bit of a weakling compared to his peers, but his resilience in defying Blackbeard is certainly a considerable development.
Doflamingo’s precarious scenario and personality, however, are more problematic. His unruliness and God complex would make some believe his incompatibility with teamwork. However, another layer of foreshadowing Oda may have slipped into the series lies in Crocodile. He, too, seemed unredeemable in any fashion, but Oda was able to make the hook-armed pirate an anti-villain at the very least. The second potential tease involving Crocodile comes in their conversation at Marineford. Doflamingo may have once offered Crocodile a partnership; this time, it’s the latter who will make the discarded Celestial Dragon an offer.
Whilst this is all speculation, One Piece‘s famed creator has repeatedly shown the ability to place minute details into his manga — be it mentions, events, or even placements of artwork — to foreshadow future events. Perhaps Doflamingo and Moria’s time in the story is over, but their repeated mentions feel like a sign that Oda is not entirely through with them.
Src: cbr.com
