Big Mom is one of the most powerful characters in One Piece. In the Whole Cake Island Arc, she was practically unstoppable. Unlike other villains before her, she wasn't someone to beat, only someone to stay away from. So, when she called Kaido and told him she was going to Wano to try and kill Luffy, every fan was excited. The Wano Arc just got even bigger than expected. That being said, did Big Mom live up to the Wano hype?

It turns out that having two powerful Yonko in a single arc is just too much of a writing wall. The stakes have become too high, and Big Mom always needs an excuse to get out of the way so the heroes can have a fighting chance. Ultimately, Big Mom didn't need to be in Wano.

Throughout this article, it will become clear that Big Mom should not have been in Wano as she has virtually no business being there.

The Amnesia Plot

The moment Big Mom arrived in Wano, her ship was instantly sunk by King. While this was an anticlimax due to the long wait the audience had been waiting for Big Mom to arrive in Wano, it was a worthwhile subversion. After all, if anyone could successfully delay a Yonko's plans, it would be a high-level commander like King.

By the time King drowned the Big Mom Pirates' ship, King had become a more competent character in the eyes of the audience. We understand that the Yonko Commander's League isn't too far removed from the Yonko themselves.

However, while this moment helped elevate King in the eyes of viewers, it turns out that when Big Mom reappears on the shores of a beach, she is suffering from amnesia. This is a huge disappointment because amnesia has long been understood as a lazy way of writing characters out of the picture.

Why does Big Mom unusually help the Straw Hats with their mission and not make everything more complicated than necessary? Because she has amnesia. In this temporary part of the story, Big Mom is not a threat.

In fact, she's an ally. The only reason Luffy got out of prison is because there's an unstoppable beast like Big Mom to break him out while he's still in a state of childish amnesia, whether accidental or not. After that single task of giving Luffy a way out of prison, the story of Big Mom's amnesia ended as if it never happened.

Even worse, Big Mom falls asleep immediately afterward so Luffy and the others don't have to face a completely villainous version of Big Mom. Why did Big Mom fall asleep immediately afterward? The reason remains completely unclear. Whatever the possible reason, Big Mom feels weak. For a villain who's supposed to be Kaido's equal in strength, making Big Mom feel weak is a cardinal sin.

Even Big Mom with a full memory is easy to escape

Okay, so Big Mom just got her memory back. She's teamed up with Kaido and the Beast Pirates, which means Big Mom will eventually face the Straw Hats. You'd think this would be a big deal, but it turns out Big Mom is such an easy monster to escape.

Every time Big Mom is about to kill one of the Straw Hats, she is simply pushed back. She chases after Usopp and Chopper, but they escape her. She continues to kill Luffy, but Franky bothers her. So she tries to kill Franky, but Robin and Jimbei surprise her and take her out of the battlefield. It is surprisingly easy to get away from her.

Big Mom is always portrayed as an unstoppable behemoth who will never stop chasing people. While she is consistently shown to fail time and time again to kill one of her targets, it makes her seem like a very ineffective villain.

She is said to be equal to Kaido in strength, meaning she cannot be easily defeated. There is no choice but to make her a constant threat throughout Wano.

It becomes clear what the problem is: Big Mom is changing the game too much in the story and several excuses must be found so that she doesn't change the game too much and spoil the flow of the story.

The only answer is to constantly take her out of the picture: Big Mom arrives in Wano? She gets amnesia. She regains her memories? She falls asleep for no reason. She gets too close to Luffy? Someone outsmarted her on her way out. By the end of the arc, she no longer feels like Kaido's equal. She feels like an idiot who can be outsmarted by anyone.

Even in the fight between Big Mom and Kaido Vs. In the worst generation, people are still able to trick Big Mom so she won't be a problem on the field. How many times can this happen to her?

Eustass Kid and Tralfalgar Law v. Big mom

Arguably, Big Mom's best use in the Wano Arc is her battle with Kid and Law. Big Mom may not have appeared as a threat throughout most of the Wano Arc, but she feels like one here in this fight.

Every time Law and Kid try to take Big Mom down, it turns out it isn't enough. Big Mom simply transforms into a new, more dangerous form, or heals, and continues. She repeatedly puts Kid and Law to death, only stopping each time.

As the fight nears its end, Law and Kid give it their all: their most powerful moves. Yet, it's still not enough. All they've managed to do is (you guessed it) remove Big Mom from the picture. They haven't been able to knock her out or extinguish any of her attacks. She's just been sent to another region where she can no longer play a role. Everyone celebrated Law and Kid's victory over the Yonko, but they only defeated Big Mom on a technicality.

Unlike the other times, Big Mom was chased to another area so she won't be a problem anymore. This last time is the only time Big Mom came out strong.