One Piece Kicks Off Wano's Third Act with Newest Episode

One Piece has officially kicked off Wano's third act with the newest episode of the series! Although One Piece wrapped the final moments of the Wano Country arc's second act at the end of 2020, it has finally returned to the arc with the start of the third act for the new year. Following a few episodes updating fans on the state of the world following the World Government's Reverie meeting, it's time to finally revisit just how things are progressing for Luffy and the Straw Hats in the Wano Country as they prepare to take on Kaido.

Episode 959 of the series rejoins Luffy and the rebel forces as they continue to set themselves up to raid Onigashima, but there's some major wrenches thrown into the start of the third act overall as it seems like the raid is getting off to a bad start thus far. Not only that, but the episode gave fans an interesting peek into the past with a surprising Oden flashback.

Before the official start of the third act, fans were treated to a special flashback revealing some of Oden Kozuki's time as part of Gol D. Roger's crew. His expressed dream was to open the country's borders and usher in a new generation 20 years in the future. That's not where the surprises end, however, as it's soon revealed that none of the rebel forces seemingly made it to the rendezvous port.

The act begins with the start of the Fire Festival, and on that same day Orochi and the rest of Kaido's forces are gathering at Onigashima for the big party. The Akazaya Nine has prepared to make their way to the island, but it's revealed that the entire port has been destroyed and none of the rebel forces have arrived on the scene. With nothing but doom and gloom on the horizon, Kin'emon and the others vow to head there anyway.

But then a flashback begins not long after as it seems to be building to this major reveal about what happened at the port. Luffy and the others seem to be preparing just fine, but now it's clear that something big is going to happen before the official raid on Kaido begins. There are lots of spinning plates just at the start of Wano's third act thus far, and it's clear that the anime's really getting started this year!

What did you think to the start of Wano's third act? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or you can even reach out to me directly about all things animated and other cool stuff @Valdezology on Twitter!