One Piece

[Daikun]

How long will that take to finish, 3 years?

Probably longer. A saga in One Piece consists of a few arcs bunched under one umbrella.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

If we're going by Oda's original 5-year projection back in 2020, then 3-years would he about right. But given that there's still a fair deal to wrap-up even in one saga, that length could easily double. That said, yes, after this saga the natural endpoint of the series does legitimately feel like it's in sight. A fairly distant sight, but still visible all the same.

I will truly be sad when this series ends. It really is one of the all-time greats.

[Mustang]

I will truly be sad when this series ends. It really is one of the all-time greats.

Agreed. Through all the ups and downs I've had with this series I'll also be sad when this comes to an end. The big 3 will finally be done.. Damn, despite how we all feel about them individually will there ever be a run like Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece again?

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

With the exception of One Piece, which still pulls in new, younger fans to this day while retaining a dedicated older fanbase who grew up with it, I do feel that the Big Three is a generational concept that is becoming slightly but noticeably less prevalent as the years go by. Regardless of anyone's personal feelings on them, it's impossible for anyone growing up during the 2000's to think of any of those series as any less than monumentally popular. In many ways they still are, but I've noticed a lot of younger anime and manga fans that are more or less oblivious to anything about these series other than knowing that they exist. They would pretty much have their own modern equivalent to the Big Three at this point.

[Mustang]

I guess that's what I'm asking, just terribly worded. Is there a modern equivalent? I've been out of the loop for a long time. I come back to One Piece every now and then. I've dabbled in some of the newer series before (Demon Slayers, MHA, AoT), but with forums just existing at this point and most conversations being held on twitter (I guess? I don't have an account) I don't know what everyone is talking about. I go to youtube and see reactions and whatnot, and most reactions towards some series are equal in a sense (I could be completely off with that since most of the reactions are towards fights)

[Rynnec]

Going by twitter feeds I'd wager this generation's equivalent of the big 3 would be Demon Slayer, Jujuutsu Kaisen, Chainsaw Man and MHA, if we're keeping things strictly to Jump.

[Avaitor]

Demon Slayer and MHA for sure would be a part of the big 3, but I feel like what would be the last series is dependent on if they have a new season of something out. Spy x Family is very popular right now, but I know Jujutsu Kaisen also was when its season aired a year or two ago. Some would say that Black Clover would be a part of that, but I'm not sure.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

It's more of a big five or six in that regard, with multiple series of comparable levels of popularity running in WSJ, or at least still not having their anime finished yet like with Demon Slayer. In that regard, MHA, Demon Slayer, and Jujuutsu Kaisen would be the most direct equivalent if we're sticking strictly to battle shonen series.

Kaijuu No. 8 also arguably has a shot at this as it has a solid fan-base that could grow drastically if it gets a popular anime, much like those other three series. Chainsaw Man is also just a step below that level as it has gotten very popular but doesn't quite seem to edge out any of those other three in popularity just yet. Meanwhile you have non-traditional shonen series that are also making it big which was a lot more rare in North America back when Naruto and Bleach were still at the top. Spy X Family has been a massive hit with the debut of it's anime, and even more recent titles that have a long way to go before getting a potential anime are already being discussed a lot more than they would have several years ago among mainstream fans. Akane-Banashi already netted itself a pretty solid following in less than 20-chapters, and Super Smartphone is being treated somewhat in the same vein as series like Death Note and The Promised Nederland were before it.

There's also still series like Mashle and Sakamoto Days which never garnered quite the same level of popularity as some of these other series, but could still very well get to that level if given a similar anime treatment and strong market push.

[Daikun]

Wano will wrap up in 2 chapters, then the manga will take a month-long break. When it comes back, it will enter the final saga.

Well, that turned out to be wrong--Wano isn't done yet. It still turned out to have one hell of a cliffhanger, though (and a rather insane plot twist).

Enjoy your month-long break, Oda.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

This reminds me of the 4-week break between the time-skip over a decade ago (it's hard for me to realize that it's already been that long). It's going to feel like a long wait, but Oda has earned his break.

I do wish that more people on this board could've got into the series, as I've been dying to talk about it but Lum is barely here anymore and nobody else was really able to get into it or wanted to invest the time in it (which is completely understandable). But man, Oda's long-term storytelling is really something else. I'm insanely excited to see where the story goes from here, and how much the world has changed outside of Wano.

[Avaitor]

Yeah, I tried to get back into it a few years ago and enjoyed what I got through this time, but it's just too daunting for me, which is why I stopped around Arlong Park. I may try to get back into OP soon, but it'll probably wait until I'm done catching up with Berserk.

[Markness]

I've been re-reading the manga from the beginning at my own pace since I got the first manga box set a year ago. I also started genuinely watching the anime since December. There's more but I am short on time so I'll write more later.

[Daikun]

Totally Not Mark is doing a blind read of One Piece.

This should be fun.

He's back after giving the series a break for close to two years! He focuses on the first half of the Raid on Onigashima and how the anime wildly improved to cover this event.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16MAc_lBerk

[Daikun]

At long last, Wano is done.

[Mustang]

Okay One Piece. You got me. After over 1000+ chapters and ex-amount of years, you finally got me. Ordinarily I'd give you credit on certain things but at this moment you got it all. I'd usually say something along the lines between Bleach, Naruto and One Piece that Bleach has the best artwork and I still think so, but now, even I've grown fond of the character designs. SO as of right now I'd throw One Piece up there with the YuYu's and the Kenshin's as best shonen's, at least in terms for what I tend to go for.

Re-reading the last tidbit of Wano (although, I do need to go back to the beginning since I still don't know things got to this point lol) and seeing some of the transformations and abilities, man this has been some fine stuff. Considering how sick Luffy's fight against Katakuri was, whenever I get to it, I can't wait to see some of these fights animated.

Let me speak on Luffy as a character for a minute. When I was following anime/manga heavy, and we talking back when I was about 19-24 I couldn't stand Luffy because I hated airheaded main characters. The appeal to these type of characters never clicked with me, not to mention I never really found anything Luffy did as comical. Here I am today, turning 39 in what, about 4 months, have came full circle with Luffy as a character. I still don't find him that funny, but as a character I've grown to like him (probably because this is the last of my teenage years that's coming to an end someday and the closer we get I do feel a little bit more emotional towards it all).

Ace is still my favorite character in One Piece but tied with him and even surpassing him in certain areas, SHANKS!