We open on a flashback to 25 years ago, a little before the Great Pirate Era began. On Gol D Roger's ship, everyone is celebrating, including Oden who is also aboard. Rayleigh discusses with Oden one last thing that needs to be done. He thanks them for their offers of help, but insists he must do it alone. When we return, Act Three of the Wano arc begins with the usual fanfare.
Orochi is aboard one of his vessels, celebrating at Habu port and enjoying the weather with his attendants. He sets off beneath the lovely falling leaves towards the Fire Festival at Onigashima. Later, the day of the Fire Festival arrives and the capital is bustling with activity. Music and dancing fill the streets, children play games, and delicious food is brought out in abundance.
At sea, however, the weather is much harsher, and the Akazaya Nine stand upon the storm-wracked shore waiting for the soldiers and ships to arrive. Kinemon wonders where the others are, crying out into the transponder snail.
We then flash back to two days prior when Kinemon sent out the call for everyone to move. Ships and weapons are built and fleets begin to move. Luffy, Chopper, and Brook receive new armor while Sanji and Zoro bicker (always nice to have normalcy in strange times). They discuss the weather and the possibility of using sulong forms in the coming battle, while reflecting on Jinbei's eventual (?) arrival.
At Ebisu town a huge arrival of gold shocks everyone. The town gets a shakedown from Kaido's forces but Otsuro promises to help them to save the village. She knows that ultimately it will help Kinemon who she knows is back in Wano – seeing Kiku let her know something was up. Back at the shore, Kinemon knows he has to press on tonight regardless of who shows – even if it is no one. We get an ominous warning that something had happened the night before and the To Be Continued page splashes.
A solid episode once again. The Wano arc continues the One Piece tradition of Yet Another Exposition Episode that has so many moving parts it is hard to do much more than skim the surface. I feel like the material is strong enough that this is never dull, but an episode consisting of mostly discussing plans and troop arrivals isn't the most exciting.
What is present though is lavishly animated, well-directed and shot, and quite revealing. Any time we get to spend with Roger and his crew feels monumental – especially baby Buggy (Buwuggy) and Shanks (Sha...well just Shanks). Any glimpse into that time of legends is such a rare treat that I'm hanging onto every word. Oden is a bear of a man in those flashbacks and the drama is palpable when he's speaking.
I think the direction did a lot of the heavy lifting in making all these scenes stand out. Kinemon's moments on the storm-wracked shore were so engrossing, especially given that he was ultimately just making a phone call on the beach, but the intensity of seeing both his tear-streamed face or him kneeling framed against the crashing waves was excellent. Another great moment was when Hyogoro was speaking and the camera is positioned down near the ground to project power and the wheel of a cannon rolls into the frame to shift the conversation.
Having read the manga already, I know we are in for huge events very soon, and I can't wait to see what the Toei crew does when things really start firing on all cylinders.
i☆Ris the Movie -Full Energy!!- is a movie best described as having big Saturday morning cartoon energy when it comes to its catchy high notes and off-key attempt at deeper storytelling.― Admittedly, when I walked into Anime Central to review i☆Ris the Movie -Full Energy!!-, I envisioned the film as the typical fare of idol dancing via 3D models in dizzyingly pastel-rich environments with little to ...
Come celebrate the 25th anniversary of One Piece with this special orchestra concert!― Come celebrate the 25th anniversary of One Piece with this special orchestra concert! The most memorable moments of the beloved TV series will be projected on a giant screen to the sound of a 50-musician orchestra! In only a few weeks, the ONE PIECE Music Symphony 25 th Anniversary Tour will premiere in the US on...
Manga's final chapter scheduled for June 26― This year's 25th issue of Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine announced on Wednesday that Hiro Mashima's Edens Zero manga will end five chapters. The magazine's 30th issue will publish the manga's final chapter on June 26. The manga entered its final arc in December 2022. Mashima (Fairy Tail, Rave Master) launched the manga in Weekly Shōnen Magazine in June...
Narrative dissonance aside, the heart of My Oni Girl still shines through its jumbled ending: that folks should speak their minds even when it hurts.― Upon first glance, My Oni Girl has all the hallmarks of a Studio Ghibli-inspired romp. You've got a globe-trodding adventure with odd-couple protagonists, a myriad of wonderfully drawn vistas, titular mouthwatering glamour shots of Japanese delicacies...
Ahead of the Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction TV anime premiere, Rebecca Silverman looks at its creator's stark, and sometimes depressing, manga work.― Inio Asano may be one of the creators whose works don't allow for middle-ground opinions. There's something in the reactions to his work that smacks of “love it or hate it,” with readers either fully embracing his dark, psychological style of s...
Furuya acknowledged threatening to hurt fan in argument, causing her to have abortion― On his X (formerly Twitter) account on Wednesday, voice actor Tōru Furuya acknowledged a recent report by the Weekly Bunshun magazine regarding an affair he had with a fan. Weekly Bunshun interviewed him for the article. Furuya admitted that he had been in a relationship with a female fan for four and a half years...
Manga about half human, half chimpanzee boy launched in 2020― TOHO Animation announced on Wednesday that Shun Umezawa's The Darwin Incident (Darwin Jihen manga will get a television anime adaptation. A new official Twitter account opened and unveiled a teaser visual: Original creator Umezawa shared an illustration to commemorate the announcement: TOHO Animation had teased on its X (formerly Twitter)...
The book feels like a deliberate combo of SAO, Log Horizon, and Suppose a Kid From the Last Dungeon Boonies Moved to a Starter Town, and that works better than you might expect.― If this story feels familiar, that's on purpose. In their afterword, author Nagawasabi64 says that they've noticed that the "trapped in a VRMMORPG" genre made popular by SAO has fallen out of favor, which made them want to ...
There's no question that Go! Go! Loser Ranger! is a dark deconstruction of Super Sentai/Power Rangers in anime form—but is that all it is? Chris and Lucas dive in to find out.― There's no question that Go! Go! Loser Ranger! is a dark deconstruction of Super Sentai/Power Rangers in anime form—but is that all it is? Chris and Lucas dive in to find out. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by ...
Umezu voiced Diamante in One Piece, Ian Vashti in Gundam 00 2nd Season― Voice talent company 81 Produce announced on Tuesday that voice actor Hideyuki Umezu died on May 17 due to interstitial pneumonia. He was 68. A funeral ceremony was held by relatives. Umezu was born on July 24, 1955 in Aichi Prefecture. Umezu voiced the characters of Diamante in One Piece, Ian Vashti in Mobile Suit Gundam 00 Sec...
This is a good series to check out if you like more bite with your vampire romances.― Going into Bloody Sweet, I expected to find a fluffy rom-com about a girl and the vampire she accidentally gets attached to. Instead, I found a story about a bullied high school girl whose bullies are smart enough to evade all of the checks and balances the school has put in place. When Naerim accidentally awakens ...
In our brand-new column, Lynzee Loveridge comes clean about her backlog, starting with one of the most popular anime ever. Use this space here for critical finger-wagging and exclamations of disbelief.― I have a secret. A no-good, embarrassing, shame-inducing secret. I'm the executive editor at Anime News Network but there are, in fact, anime I have not watched. Not just forgettable mid-tier season...
Chiu shares how she brought the SEA simulcast service to the forefront after founding it at 17 years old.― Over the past six years, many streaming and simulcast services have catered to otaku in Asia, offering simulcasts of seasonal anime and theatrical anime screenings. One such service is Ani-One Asia, a Hong Kong-based Medialink Group brand that offers a competitive lineup of simulcasts every se...