A few hundred episodes ago, there was the Paramount War between the Whitebeard pirates and the Navy. Whitebeard, then one of the Four Emperors, was killed, kicking off the uprising of the traitorous Blackbeard as the new force to be reckoned with. Since the two year time skip where Luffy took a break from piracy to grow stronger, a lot happened in the political landscape of the pirate world. We knew Blackbeard had taken over as the new Emperor, but what happened to the rest of Whitebeard's crew has been a hanging question for a while.
Last week left us with the cliffhanger that Cat Viper was interested in seeking the help of Marco, Whitebeard's 1st Division Commander, in the fight against Kaido. He then elaborates that in the two years of Luffy's absence, Marco and the remainders of Whitebeard's crew did indeed fight with Blackbeard and lost during something called the "Grudge War", thus explaining why Whitebeard's crew seems to have slunk away into obscurity. However, Marco should still be out there somewhere, and if we're lucky, he's still willing to fight alongside some old friends. Thinking about the alliance and the ways that this new, bigger family can grow is a lot of fun, and knowing that Marco and his crew are strong candidates to join the ranks is pretty exciting.
Once again, this episode's main purpose is to hammer out more of the specifics about Luffy and the alliance's immediate plans. While Luffy runs off to Whole Cake Island to save Sanji, the rest of the group has other things to do in preparation for the upcoming fight against Kaido. Cat Viper's going to take this time to get in contact with Marco, while the samurai and much of Luffy's crew will hide out on Wano while they wait for the whole group to return. Nami, Chopper, and Brook - the Straw Hats who did not stick around for the Dressrosa arc - all announce that they'd like to assist Luffy on his trip to Whole Cake Island in the story's attempt to balance the spotlight within its main cast. We're in an era where the crew is almost never whole at this point, thanks to one story dilemma or another, so I'm counting on the eventual reunion of the entire nine person crew on Wano to be especially sweet.
These last few episodes haven't been fantastic looking, and I imagine that they're victim to resources being focused on more dramatic, action-packed episodes like we see in the preview for next week. This last batch of exposition-heavy episodes don't demand a ton of visual polish, but between the awkward pacing and thin production, you do start to feel the weaknesses of this anime adaptation. Next week's episode looks awesome, but I wish they could have condensed the last four or so episodes down just a bit.
The Zou arc nears its climax as Jack returns, using the mighty power of Kaido's fleet of ships to attack the elephant (which is the size of a country), with every intention of taking it down and killing everybody living up top. Story-wise, Jack never managed to assert himself to me as more than one of Kaido's henchmen, despite his massive strength and bounty, so I wouldn't expect a big battle to get drawn out over the next few months. That would be an instant sap of momentum after all the set-up we just got. I remember at this point when reading the manga, I was theorizing the possible death of the elephant, either by its wounds or by old age, and at the very least that's something I still suspect might happen at some point in the series, if not in this arc.
Chillin' in Another World pulls off a major dramatic spike and goes from trawling the bottom to #2 this week! See how all your favorites fared in our weekly user rankings.― Let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of the season,
based on the polls you can find in our Daily Streaming Reviews
and on the Your Score page with the latest simulcasts. Keep in mind that these ran...
If you're a Haikyu!! fanatic, or if you can overcome this background knowledge hurdle, you're in for a pretty good time and some of the best editing to come from an anime in recent memory.― To begin, I should note that this film is a continuation of the Haikyu!! anime and a canon adaptation of the manga. As such, if you're not caught up on the anime or at least generally aware of the franchise and i...
The touchstone visual novel Kanon is coming to Steam! Plus, Gundam in Call of Duty, Nintendo's latest studio buy, and more!― Welcome back, folks! Last weekend, I had a sudden pang of nostalgia, and I started missing Avalon Code. Avalon Code was one of the many offbeat RPGs released on the Nintendo DS, this one by Matrix Software (and released in the US by Xseed). It had a fun concept: the world is g...
We sat down with game creator Suda51 ahead of his MomoCon appearance to talk about his new game Hotel Barcelona, his current must-watch TV shows, and more.― The renowned Suda51 has been responsible for countless cult-favorite video games. From the psychedelia of Killer7 to the hells of Shadows of the Damned, from the sunny streets of Santa Destroy in No More Heroes to the blood-soaked setting of the...
Nestled in a Japanese neighborhood is the Tokiwaso Manga Museum, a detailed replica of the sharehouse that Osamu Tezuka, Shōtarō Ishinomori, and more manga artists called home.― In the midst of the modern Toshima ward in Tokyo, there's a two-story, multi-flat building with an appearance straight out of the 1950s. It sits behind a wrought-iron gate, flanked by children's play equipment. The outer fa...
Mokumokuren launched manga in August 2021, with English version by Yen Press― Manga creator Mokumokuren announced on their X (formerly Twitter) account on Friday that The Summer Hikaru Died manga will have an anime adaptation. The announcement did not mention any other information on the anime, including its format. Mokumokuren drew the below illustration to celebrate the announcement. Yen Press lic...
Yumi Uchiyama, Itaru Yamamoto, Kenji Hamada join cast― The official website for the television anime of Hiro Mashima and Atsuo Ueda's Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest sequel manga revealed a new visual, three more cast members, and the July 7 premiere for the anime on Friday. The newly announced cast members are: Yumi Uchiyama as Kiria Itaru Yamamoto as Madmole Kenji Hamada as Skullion Tetsuya Kakihara, ...
The ANN After Show is at episode 100! Let's reflect on some of our favorite moments, catch up on Kaiju No. 8, Yatagarasu, and more this week!― 100 Episodes of the ANN Aftershow!? The ANN After Show is at episode 100! Let's catch up on Kaiju No. 8, Yatagarasu, and more this week! The ANN After Show streams live on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter Spaces on Tuesdays at 6pm PT/9pm ET. You can listen to ...
Nick and Steve look back on director Tsutomu Mizushima's work so far, from his latest Train to the End of the World to Shirobako, Girls und Panzer, and more.― Nick and Steve look back on director Tsutomu Mizushima's work so far, from his latest Train to the End of the World to Shirobako, Girls und Panzer, and more. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are...
i☆Ris the Movie -Full Energy!!- is a movie best described as having big Saturday morning cartoon energy when it comes to its catchy high notes and off-key attempt at deeper storytelling.― Admittedly, when I walked into Anime Central to review i☆Ris the Movie -Full Energy!!-, I envisioned the film as the typical fare of idol dancing via 3D models in dizzyingly pastel-rich environments with little to ...
Come celebrate the 25th anniversary of One Piece with this special orchestra concert!― Come celebrate the 25th anniversary of One Piece with this special orchestra concert! The most memorable moments of the beloved TV series will be projected on a giant screen to the sound of a 50-musician orchestra! In only a few weeks, the ONE PIECE Music Symphony 25 th Anniversary Tour will premiere in the US on...
Manga's final chapter scheduled for June 26― This year's 25th issue of Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine announced on Wednesday that Hiro Mashima's Edens Zero manga will end five chapters. The magazine's 30th issue will publish the manga's final chapter on June 26. The manga entered its final arc in December 2022. Mashima (Fairy Tail, Rave Master) launched the manga in Weekly Shōnen Magazine in June...
Narrative dissonance aside, the heart of My Oni Girl still shines through its jumbled ending: that folks should speak their minds even when it hurts.― Upon first glance, My Oni Girl has all the hallmarks of a Studio Ghibli-inspired romp. You've got a globe-trodding adventure with odd-couple protagonists, a myriad of wonderfully drawn vistas, titular mouthwatering glamour shots of Japanese delicacies...
Ahead of the Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction TV anime premiere, Rebecca Silverman looks at its creator's stark, and sometimes depressing, manga work.― Inio Asano may be one of the creators whose works don't allow for middle-ground opinions. There's something in the reactions to his work that smacks of “love it or hate it,” with readers either fully embracing his dark, psychological style of s...
The book feels like a deliberate combo of SAO, Log Horizon, and Suppose a Kid From the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town, and that works better than you might expect.― If this story feels familiar, that's on purpose. In their afterword, author Nagawasabi64 says that they've noticed that the "trapped in a VRMMORPG" genre made popular by SAO has fallen out of favor, which made them want to ...
There's no question that Go! Go! Loser Ranger! is a dark deconstruction of Super Sentai/Power Rangers in anime form—but is that all it is? Chris and Lucas dive in to find out.― There's no question that Go! Go! Loser Ranger! is a dark deconstruction of Super Sentai/Power Rangers in anime form—but is that all it is? Chris and Lucas dive in to find out. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by ...