Eiichiro Oda’s beloved Weekly Shonen Jump manga One Piece began serializing in the Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in 1997 and has taken the crew to dozens of islands since then. The manga is currently in its Final Saga, and we have seen several of Luffy’s victories throughout these years. The anime, which began broadcasting in 1999, eventually became a global phenomenon. Over the decades, One Piece became the best-selling manga of all time. When it comes to the complex storylines, layers of mysteries, and world-building. If we’re talking about lore and world-building, hardly any series could compare to One Piece.
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However, despite all the incredible elements, One Piece is far from perfect. There are several shortcomings that fans often complain about, including the repetitive cycle where Luffy visits an island and liberates it from its oppressors. While his journey has been nothing short of marvelous, these drawbacks are often too hard to ignore.
3) Pacing Remains Slow Even After Almost Three Decades
The original anime by Toei Animation has been ongoing since 1999, and it has released over 1100 episodes as of now. The sheer number of episodes always overwhelms new viewers. It follows an old trend of a long-running schedule, releasing weekly episodes while the manga was still ongoing. This is why the pacing of the anime significantly slowed down, and the anime became lengthier than it should have been since it had to keep up with the weekly schedule.
It’s probably the biggest complaint fans have from the series, even after all these years. With lengthier scenes and padding, the pacing almost became too unbearable to watch. Even though the animation quality has significantly improved over the years, the pacing remains the same. While the Elbaph Arc has changed the schedule for the first time, the anime will still adapt one chapter per episode.
2) One Piece‘s Villains Are The Most Underwhelming Among Shonen Big 3
Whenever fans talk about iconic Shonen villains, One Piece is rarely ever mentioned. No villain in the series could ever create the same impact as Madara Uchiha from Naruto and Sosuke Aizen from Bleach. Villains in classic anime often have a grand purpose in mind, which piques the viewers’ interest. Oftentimes, even if a villain is wrong, fans can empathize with their actions and understand their character depth. However, when it comes to One Piece, not a lot of villains are celebrated in such a way.
Of course, with the exception of Donquixote Doflamingo, who is often argued to be the best-written villain thanks to his twisted morals, his perception of the world, and his mysterious goals. Meanwhile, villains such as Akainu and Kizaru, who are often portrayed as some of the strongest, often lack a personal agenda or any free will, making them somewhat underwhelming. It’s not just them, but almost everyone working under Imu lacks that kind of drive or personality, which is why they are not only underwhelming but just too bland to like.
1) Straw Hat Members Are Often Neglected
This may be a bit of a controversial take, but the series has very conveniently removed the Straw Hat Pirates from the center. It’s not like they have less screen time, because no matter what, the crew always sticks together. However, it’s very evident that aside from Zoro and Sanji, the others have very little room for development. Robin got one of the most iconic arcs in the story, only for her to be sidelined over the years. While she has had a few incredible moments over the years, including her fight against Black Maria, it happens only once in a while.
The same thing happened with Nami, whose dream is often never mentioned, even though it’s the entire basis of her character writing. Fans expected Usopp to have character development in Elbaph, but even after more than two years since the arc began, he barely got enough limelight. At this point in the story, the Straw Hats deserve more limelight than ever, but they get sidelined because of the condensed cast of characters introduced in every arc.
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