After many long weeks, One Piece is back. What a glorious day.
This episode is a solid return to form for the consistently strong Wano arc. There are plenty of fight scenes and more than a few flashbacks, and it all fits together well without feeling overwhelming. There's no big standout moment, but being consistent and, well, back is sufficient enough.
There are lots of fun little moments in this episode as well, such as scenes of Chōpper demonstrating battlefield medical science – it's rare that he gets any screen time, let alone showcase his medical background. We also get lots of Marco showing off his blazing pineapple powers which I know will please the Marco lovers out there.
But the real meat of the episode is a rumination on what Wano means to Ace, and what Ace means to Wano. Ace's place in One Piece is interesting because his demise is one of the few high-profile character deaths in the entirety of its 25-year run. It was definitely one of the definitive moments of the series and I still get pangs in my chest (sorry, too soon) just thinking about him. So it's interesting that Oda has Chōsen to tie Wano into his past through flashbacks as a way to loop it more fully into Luffy's personal story.
Oda is a huge proponent of hard-hitting flashbacks, but I think using Ace this way is smart. Because we so rarely get much information about Ace, having his dream be tied to Wano gives us that much more reason to root for Luffy's success. The flashbacks to Yamato and Tama spending time with Ace further underscores how important they are, while adding a bit of gravitas to their relatively recent appearances in the story.
There are a few bombastic fight sequences to round out the episode too. Queen and King make their “official” combat debuts against Marco, plus we get some really terrific Musou-esque explosions of goons when Luffy comes in swinging right at the end. All in all a great episode that hopefully heralds a return to regular airing for the show.
Crystal Kay previously sang themes for 2004's Fullmetal Alchemist and Nodame Cantabile― Recently, Anime News Network was able to sit down with singer-songwriter Crystal Kay and talk about not only her involvement with anime over the years but also what it was like to grow up in Japan as the child of a Korean-Japanese mother and an African-American father. Anime fans likely know of Crystal Kay throug...
The plot is excellent in the romance camp. Everything that happens is to get Eui-joon and Gunwoo together, and it works pretty well.― You can read The Dangerous Convenience Store in English two ways. The first is to read it on the manhwa site/app Manta, which has all seventy-five chapters and four bonus stories available. The second is to read Seven Seas' print (or ebook) edition, which, as of this ...
Some older mysteries inch closer to resolution as the true nature of the Abyss slowly comes into view, and long-posed questions start to be answered.― Sometimes, being a fan of Akihito Tsukushi's acclaimed Made in Abyss series means acclimating to suffering. Like many Western devotees, I was introduced to this bizarre, squishy, disturbing world via the 2017 first season of Kinema Citrus' fantastic a...
Anime premieres in 2024― Adult Swim's YouTube channel began streaming a first look video for the Rick and Morty: The Anime series on Saturday. The show will premiere on Adult Swim and Max in 2024, and will also run on Adult Swim Canada. The anime will be an original work, with adapted themes and events from the main Rick and Morty animated series. Takashi Sano (Tower of God) is writing and directing...
As Slam Dunk reached its final stretch, I can see why this series is considered the sports classic that it is today.― This is the largest batch of Slam Dunk episodes that I've reviewed thus far. Originally, I wanted to review the show in more even seasons, but given its overall pacing and release, it wasn't easy to find a moment where it felt right to stop and start again. However, as we approached ...
2nd part opens in Japanese theaters on June 7― The staff for the four-part Code Geass: Rozé of the Recapture (originally titled Gode Geass: Z of the Recapture, or Dakkan no Zetto) anime project revealed a trailer and a visual on Saturday for the second part in the project. The below video previews MIYAVI's opening theme song "Running In My Head." The anime's first part premiered in Japan on Friday. ...
James and Lynzee discuss the latest episode of Yatagarsu. Plus, GoHands keeps making anime, and we don't know WHY.― Yatagarasu Gets Violent! James and Lynzee discuss the latest episode of Yatagarsu, in which Wakamiya plays his hand to find out the truth behind his older brother's scheming to obtain the throne. Plus, GoHands keeps making anime, and we don't know WHY; Hunter x Hunter manga is on its ...
Making a sequel to Code Geass is a daunting task. But with its fantastic main character and a story that doesn't undercut what came before, Rozé of the Recapture is on the right track.― Making a sequel to Code Geass—especially one set close to the end of the series—is a daunting task. Any story that involves an ongoing war massively undercuts both the finale of the original anime and the sacrifices ...
The Switch sequel console is finally happening! The details are scarce, but you can find out more in this week's column. Also: an interview with El Shaddai's Sawaki Takeyasu, Microsoft layoffs, and more.― Welcome back, folks! What a wild week this has been for the gaming industry. We'll go further into it, but jeez. This past week also saw the disappearance of Capcom's Dark Void and Dark Void Zero. ...
The Code Geass creator discusses his new project with Web3 company Azuki, Enter the Garden, and his hope that this new path could help the medium evolve.― Los Angeles-based Web3 anime-styled brand Azuki and advertising conglomerate Dentsu debuted the first nine-minute episode of their joint anime endeavor, Enter the Garden, on April 30. The episode, which has already racked up a quarter of a million...