With the Anime “”One Piece”” currently on its biggest arc, some may wonder if they should start watching it. However, given that there are already 1040 episodes, each going for thirty minutes, some may reconsider starting from the beginning and skip around to fan favorite parts or choose to not start watching it at all.

The anime starts with a quick prologue about the story: Gol D Roger, the king of the pirates, was going to get executed. Nonetheless, he decided to reveal the fact that he hid his treasure and If anyone wants it, they can have it. However, they must find it first and with that, the world entered a Great Pirate Era.

The story revolves around a seventeen year old named Monkey D. Luffy, an energetic, charismatic guy that ate the gum gum fruit. His entire goal is to find the “One Piece” and become king of the pirates. 

But it won’t be easy, there are so many strong antagonists that have sick designs such as Crocodile and Donquixote Doflamingo. In order to rival these villains, Luffy needs a pirate crew full of friends which increases as time goes on. 

Powerful moves and abilities can be earned by eating devil fruits. There are three different types of devil fruits: Paramecia, Logia, and Zoan. Logia types allow the user to control a certain element, Zoan types allow the user to transform and gain the powers of an animal, and Paramecia types usually have the capability to control a specific thing, except for some cases. 

Eating a devil fruit isn’t the only way to gain powers in the “One Piece” universe though. Many characters have a certain fighting style or weapon they use. That way it keeps the show fresh and does not make the abilities, characters, and most importantly the fights and battles from getting too bland.

Although the main story is straightforward, the events that surround the story are humorous, heartbreaking, and exciting. “One Piece” also tends to touch on serious topics every now and then such as extreme tyranny and blatant discriminaton. Although these are sensitive topics, they are handled in a sensitive way.

One of the many things I like about “One Piece” is how not only Luffy gets stronger after every big arc, but his friends also get their fair share of a power boost as the show progresses. One of my favorite examples of this is how Zoro, Luffy’s right hand man and best friend, gets new swords which in turn allows him to do more potent moves.

The fights in “One Piece” are superb from the light tussles to the extremely important battles. Everytime one would start, I would find myself jumping out of my seat yelling and getting hype.  

The animation is surprisingly decent in the beginning. Occasionally, there will be a small sign of laziness spotted, but it is hardly noticeable unless you are actively searching for it. Then, the animation becomes extraordinary. Around episode 600 and up, the animation looks brilliant and clear because the colors used become a lot warmer, softer, and brighter. They gained a huge budget which made the animation drop my jaw. 

One of, if not the only, problem “One Piece” faces other than the long episode list, is the horrendous pacing. From episode 1 to 515, each episode animates roughly two to four chapters from the manga; now, every episode hardly reaches a single chapter. Considering how one chapter has around 19 pages, the fact that an episode can hardly animate all of a single chapter is baffling

Despite some of the rough edges “One Piece” has, they’re hardly noticeable due to the sheer amount of fun I had while watching. An easy ten out of ten for me.