Discussion How will Earl of Millennium be defeated?

[Arjuna]

As the title says.I personally think it will be through love of Earl has towards NEA/Allen which will make Earl to sacrifice and ultimately end this war instead of brute force factoring here?What do you all think?

 

[Lord Ainz]

Highly doubt that's gonna be it considering that only takes care of the Noah side. You still have the Innocence who are every bit a villainous as them

 

[Arjuna]

Highly doubt that's gonna be it considering that only takes care of the Noah side. You still have the Innocence who are every bit a villainous as them

Yeah I agree then what other options they have?As you know defeating Earl is nearly impossible because he is probably the strongest character in the series.

 

[capricorn]

As the title says.I personally think it will be through love of Earl has towards Nea/Allen which will make Earl to sacrifice and ultimately end this war instead of brute force factoring here?What do you all think?

I personally find this to be the most likely option. Story wise it seems most consistent with the current developments without being too obvious. In fact Wisely sums it up nicely at the beginning of chapter 219 when he summarizes the relationship between the Noah, the fourteenth, the heart and the Earl. Where basically we learn that the 14th's presence alone makes the Earl extremely unstable and thus volatile - this volatility could lead to the destruction of the not only the Earl but subsequently the Noah themselves. Whilst I don't see the Earl himself being done in by the heart or even the 14th in such a straightforward way, I do feel like each will have their part to play in weakening his forces. At the end of the day however to fully tie together the story of d gray man as a whole I think Hoshino will go for one of the much more personal conflicts that lie at the core of this phase of the war which is the relationship between Mana and Allen. One way she could do that is by having Mana's consciousness overtake the Earl's in order to finally end his rain of terror. The only way I see this happening is by having Allen/Nea somehow call Mana's soul from wherever its being held much like how Allen was called back in most recent chapters because of the love that Johnny and his friends had for him. If Allen ends up being the one to call him back then it could be a bridging point to finally rectify if the dude was ever really ever loved at all.

Also I don't agree with this belief that the innocence is evil at all (it seems to be very popular in the fandom however). I don't think the innocence is evil. Rather I actually think it is people who are the ones who succumb to evil and do evil things whilst giving excuses to those evils (you know like real life).The innocence as far as it has been in operation has functioned in accordance to simple rules and guidelines that have not changed for years and unless it was the innocence that somehow whispered in the ears of the Black Order higher ups to fund the horrors of 2nd and 3rd exorcist projects, then no the innocence is not the evil party here and has possibly never been. From what i've seen in this story thus far, man is indeed his own greatest foe and whilst one's perception of the d gray man God could understandably be cold, aloof and distant, or even emotionally disconnected where he only seems to view his creations as pawns for his purpose to ultimately save said pawns from Armageddon (perhaps better yet from themselves) still not necessarily a solid argument for evil. Apocryphos is also not necessarily evil in and of him-self, just robotic-ally geared towards his mission. It was Link's persistence that caused him to get a hole in his chest not Apocryphos's desire(LOL). Tim-campy is not a natural human or creature and was yet another obstacle in his way and responsibly he had to get rid of him. Kanda on the other hand was spared if you recall. But the Noah as we've seen are free game which should be okay at this point given that regardless of their purpose or motive their atrocities have been largely unjustifiable (they deserve it irregardless of how charming this story makes them out to be). The thing is the argument for the innocence being evil seems to exist only from a standpoint that eliminates humanities' role entirely, and unlike the charismatic and charming noah family that has been presented to us we don't have an equally charming and charismatic dgm God of the innocence to justify or even represent himself in a way that averts our gaze from his seemingly shady methods.
Sorry for long post.

 

[Skylent]

I honestly have no idea how the earl will be defeated. I think it will be heavily linked to the origin of Innocence and the Noah family (7000 years ago). With the current state of things I don't think the earl can be defeated. I mean, he seems pretty much invincible on his own and what's more he is protected by Noahs and an army of akumas; There must be another way than simple power levelling.

I also don't think Innocence is evil. Well, we can't say that it is fondamentally good neither. Innocence is a weapon, and as a weapon the morals of its actions are left to the user. It is called the crystal of God but after all, there is no concrete proof that God provided it.

 

[Chloesong]

Spoilers up to current chapter.

However it ends, I bet it’ll be tragic/bittersweet for Allen and his relationship with Mana/the Earl. In my opinion, in terms of stories Hoshino-sensei likes it tragic, while for battles she keeps them relatively safe (most characters magically survive etc). Ie. Aria of the Night Sky, both lovers die; Alma dies; Eliade dies.

Pure speculation follows.

Ridiculous Happy route: The “evil” Suit persona of The Earl seperates from Mana Walker. Allen exorcises it away as the two swords merge into one. The spirit of gentleman Earl, who became tired and chose to split into Mana and Nea, reappears briefly, smiles, and disappears, thus ending the war. Noah are also cleansed with the disappearance of the Earl and remain alive as humans or go into hiding. Akuma also are cleaned up/exorcised. The Heart/Innocence/Church was either partly evil or completely evil, and that subplot is resolved with the corruption inside the church being purged politically before this final battle. 3rd exorcists recover their freedom. Mana briefly regains sanity as well as his memories, and confirms that he loves Allen Walker and wasn’t just confusing him with a dog or using him. Mana’s guilt toward Nea is also resolved in a scene where he talks with Nea. Even in an happy ending scenario, I can’t imagine Mana living on in his old man form, therefore he dies, but after a bittersweet reunion with Allen. The Nea persona also disappears, perhaps merging with Mana. Maybe the spirit of the brothers hold hands and they disappear/walk away, leaving behind a greiving Allen, who finally knows who he is. Story ends with the Order being no longer necessary and the exorcists being free. Allen repays all his debts, quits poker, and takes up a job being a traveling clown. Or since the remaining Akuma having to be tracked down, without using Innocence (which was evil and manipulative) and using the power of science instead, Allen’s adventures as an exorcist continue.

Bad/typical shounen-like ending: Allen as Nea, through sheer greater strength, murders the Earl, thus winning the war. The Church as it is wins. Allen as Nea gains the needed power-ups by murdering the Noah one by one.

Worst ending: Nea kills the Earl and becomes the next Earl. DGM 2 hinted and manga ends with “to be continued”.

I personally think Innocence is evil.
-The way the parasitic-type user’s lifespan gets shortened.
-The way it selects without consent and forces a user to remain in the war or end up like Suman.
-The way it’s been hinted at being creepy when it controls Allen like a puppet on strings to fight even when he’s too beat up, and the way it was hinted at being creepily attached to Allen when the particles grafted onto his heart.
-The way it’s been associated with pain, fear, and something more than just a weapon used by humans, but rather a weapon taking advantage of the humans.
-The way Apo is the closest sentient embodiment of Innocence and it’s clearly malignant.
-DGM is about things being “grey” and appearances not what it seems. The Noah are evil, but they are also personable and likeable. “Innocence” being not what it seems wouldn’t be too surprising.

 

[Dlanor_A.Knox]

I just hope that the Earl takes the Innocence with him when he dies.

(In my opinion) best case scenario:
-The last Arc is an all out war, Noahs vs. Church.
-The Earl dies but takes the Heart with him, hence killing all the Innocence.
-A few Noahs might have died as well, but others just go back to society as a family.
-Allen (&Neah, if he's still alive) die peacefully.
-The Bookman stop excisting.
-All the remaining excorcists/scientists/etc. go back to society as well, some probably helping with the after math of the war.

Or a doom scenario ending:

The noah side fullfill their destiny to cover the earth with water once more and reset the world, trying it over and over and over again till they can kill the Heart.
This time with Allen as the new Earl.
The cycle never ends...

 

[NonExisted]

Or a doom scenario ending:

The noah side fullfill their destiny to cover the earth with water once more and reset the world, trying it over and over and over again till they can kill the Heart.
This time with Allen as the new Earl.
The cycle never ends...

Knowing Hoshino, I'm kinda sure that it will be the doom scenario. Allen may not build Akuma though

 

[SheuOgama]

HEHEHEHEHEH ALLEN BECOMING THE NEXT EARL BOOM DONE YES

 

[Arjuna]

How do you think Earl will be defeated @Erinyes