One Piece's Wano Flashback Breaks Special Manga Record

The Wano Country Arc of One Piece has been one of the biggest story lines that were ever created in the long running Eiichiro Oda and the recent story has broken an idiosyncratic record for the franchise unlike anything we've seen before. One fan has determined that due to the fact that the Wano flashback arc has been running for several months, detailing the events of the life of Oden, that this has been the longest stretch of Monkey D. Luffy not appearing in the franchise since its inception!

Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates have often been featured front and center as the crew of unlikely shipmates attempting to make Monkey the king of the pirates and discover the secret treasure discovered by Gol D. Roger in One Piece! With the Wano Country Arc taking place in both the manga and the anime, fans have been delivered some of the most hard hitting, emotional stories that the franchise has ever seen. With the story having run for over two decades, the story is inching closer to the Straw Hat Pirates reaching their goal as well further exploring the world of the Grand Line!

Reddit User BobGuy117 was the one to discover the unique record that was broken for the franchise, noting that Luffy hasn't appeared in the series since the Wano flashback arc had started in October of last year, proving that Monkey isn't necessarily needed in order to pull on the heart strings of fans of the series:

One Piece Chapter 959 was released on October 21st 2019. Chapter 973 will hopefully be released on March 9th 2020. This has been the longest stretch of time that Monkey D. Luffy has not appeared in a chapter of manga published in Weekly Shonen Jump since the first chapter was released in 1997. from r/OnePiece

With Oden's life and death having just wrapped in the flashback, we would imagine that Monkey's return will be imminent as the story returns us to the present to highlight the war between the Straw Hat Pirates, their allies, the Beast Pirates, and the forces of Wano Country. With Orochi continuing to hold an iron grip on the country he despises, it's clear that the Luffy is going to have his work cut out for him whenever he returns.

What do you think fo this record being broken? Are you excited for Monkey's return to the series? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of the Grand Line!