The One Piece series has been running for over two decades, and it seems the series is finally entering its final phase. With the recently concluded Wano arc of the series, fans got to see the beautiful animation of Luffy’s Gear 5 abilities.
One Piece: Is Luffy The Perfect Protagonist?
There have been tons of great shonen protagonists over the years, but there's something about Luffy that makes him stand out from the rest.
Despite the One Piece anime having a large fan base, many would argue that the manga is inadvertently better. With a lack of pacing issues and Oda’s original work being shown to fans, the manga has portrayed many moments in ways that fans prefer. While the anime often suffers from pacing and a few altered scenes, which arcs are the most affected and way better in the manga?
8 Whole Cake Island
Did Better With The Luffy And Katakuri Battle
- Manga Chapters: 825-902.
- Anime Episodes: 783-877.
This arc of the One Piece series is often considered Sanji’s arc. The arc highlights Sanji’s backstory and character development in Big Mom’s territory. Despite the animated version of Luffy versus Katakuri being portrayed in this arc, the manga did it better.
To avoid catching up with the source material, the animated fights were elongated, and filler episodes were inserted, which reduced the overall engaging experience of the arc. Moreover, scenes such as when Jimbei rejected Big Mom carried more weight in the manga than in the anime, as fans were able to enjoy them without alterations present in the anime.
7 Enies Lobby
Better Visuals And Details
- Manga Chapters: 375-430.
- Anime Episodes: 264-278, 284-290, 293-302, 304-312.
Whether it be on screen or in the manga, this arc has one of the most touching moments ever portrayed in the One Piece anime and manga series. The scene where the Straw Hats lined up to talk to Robin as they declared war against the world government was particularly heartwarming.
Despite the success the Enies Lobby arc had on the screen, many fans of the manga agree that the manga did it better. Whether it be through the pacing or lack of filler episodes, the manga manages to portray the visuals with intricate detail, while the anime series had not yet adapted the best of animation.
6 Wano
Went Straight To The Point, No Fillers
- Manga Chapters: 909-1057.
- Anime Episodes: 890-894, 897-906, 908-1028 and 1031-1085.
The recently concluded Wano arc of the One Piece series undoubtedly had the best animation ever portrayed in the One Piece anime series. From Luffy turning into Gear 5 and raining lightning on everything to Zoro’s battle with King to Kaido’s many ‘devilish’ intense portrayals, this arc has incredibly good visuals.
One Piece: The 14 Most Confusing Things In The Wano Arc
The Wano Arc in One Piece is fantastic, but it does have some strange plot points that are a bit confusing.
While the anime could be said to portray better visuals than the manga, the manga’s pacing, the introduction of key details, and overall conclusion stand above the anime in several ways. Moreover, as Wano was such a long arc, the anime portrayed various filler episodes not present in the manga.
5 Thriller Bark
Besides Everything Else, Portrayed Zoro, And Kuma Well
- Manga Chapters: 442-489.
- Anime Episodes: 337-381.
Many One Piece fans would agree that the single best visual of the Thriller Bark arc is the moment in which Zoro is seen bartered and on the verge of death, but still manages to utter “Nothing happened” when Sanji asks what happened to him.
The anime did a good job portraying this visual and the entirety of the Thriller Bark series; however, the manga undoubtedly did it better. Zoro’s bloodied appearance and the appearance of Kuma to the battered and tired Straw Hats, who just defeated Oz and Gecko Moria, carried more tension in the manga than in the anime.
4 Sabaody Archipelago
The Straw Hats' Defeat And Luffy Punching A Celestial Dragon
- Manga Chapters: 490-513.
- Anime Episodes: 385-405.
As this arc portrayed one of the Straw Hats’ first major losses, it was an emotionally gruesome moment as Luffy and his crew mates were utterly defeated by Kuma and Kizaru.
One Piece: 5 Times Oda Subverted Expectations
Here are some instances where Oda surprised his readers.
One of the many key details that make this arc better portrayed in the manga than in the anime is the level of intensity portrayed with the Straw Hats' defeat and Luffy punching a celestial dragon. In the anime, the moment in which Luffy punched a celestial dragon was animated so that it followed a black-and-white manga style. This shows just how much the manga was able to capture the moment better.
3 Alabasta
Key Gruesome Moments Better Portrayed
- Manga Chapters: 155-217.
- Anime Episodes: 92-130.
Unknown to many, the degree of intensity portrayed in One Piece’s manga is often toned down to make it easier for a wide range of viewers to appreciate on TV. While this does have some benefits, many key gruesome moments are often toned down, reducing the intensity of a certain visual, and the Alabasta arc of the series suffers greatly for this.
With Luffy's many defeats at the hands of Crocodile came many injuries that Luffy shouldn’t have survived. The hideous nature of many of his injuries was toned down to reduce their intensity. Moreover, during Luffy’s final fight with Crocodile, the latter resorted to using his blood to put down Crocodile, and the sight was not as pretty as what was portrayed in the anime.
2 Marineford
The Battles Were More Direct And Not Elongated
- Manga Chapters: 550-580.
- Anime Episodes: 457-489.
The Marineford arc remains one of the best arcs ever portrayed in One Piece. The plot, battles, and deaths of Ace and Whitebeard made it an arc like no other.
While the Marineford arc in the One Piece anime series was certainly not bad, many would agree that if the arc was to be reanimated with the standard used for Wano, it would be miles better than it was. This is due to many key visuals and pacing that would be improved upon. In the One Piece manga series, the pacing was done nicely, and the battles were portrayed without being unnecessarily elongated.
1 Skypiea
Better Pacing
- Manga Chapters: 237-302.
- Anime Episodes: 153-195.
One Piece’s Skypiea anime arc is arguably known as one of the most boring in the series. While how boring the arc appears to be is highly relative, many would agree that the arc was not so enjoyable in comparison to arcs like Wano, Marineford, and even Sabaody.
Various fans of One Piece have been seen to skip the Skypiea arc; however, because Luffy’s new Gear 5th form is connected to Skypiea, many fans had to check out the Skypiea arc and preferred checking it out through the manga rather than anime. What makes the Skypiea manga arc drastically better than its anime counterpart is predominantly the pacing. The pacing in the anime was done slowly, and various episodes felt like they were dragging and contained little vital information.
One Piece (1999)
One Piece is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. The series follows protagonist Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirate crew as they explore the Grand Line to find the King of the Pirates' ultimate treasure, the One Piece, in order to become the next king. The manga's popularity helped it spin off into a larger media franchise, including an anime with more than 1,000 episodes.
- Main Genre
- Anime
- Seasons
- 20
- Studio
- Toei Animation
- Creator
- Eiichiro Oda
- Number of Episodes
- 1082+
- Streaming Service(s)
- Crunchyroll , Netflix , Hulu
