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[MangaDex]

 

[kurohanani]

Plot has devolved to become super formulaic at this point.
They always split up when they arrive at some new place, zoro gets in trouble,
the weaker crewmembers get picked on, and luffy does something stupid like falls asleep while everyone's getting their ass kicked.
Fast forward 20-30 chapters, crew comes together against some random enemy, and luffy finally wakes up to swoop in and save the day.
Literally the second they met the mermaid it was obvious she would get kidnapped.

 

[ThalesT]

Well, that's one way to minimize all the wildly different things that happen this arc.
It sure does happen several times, but I think Oda is aware of that seeing how he treats future arcs. Also, that's not the "plot".
And of course it was obvious, it was set up to be. The last like 10 chapters are about kidnappers and slave owners.