I thought the 'One Piece is too long' crowd was right until I hit episode 45 | Anime Discussions - Freelance Forum - The Community for Independent Professionals
I thought the 'One Piece is too long' crowd was right until I hit episode 45
For years I avoided it because everyone said the 1000+ episode count was insane. I finally started last month, telling myself I'd drop it if it was boring. The East Blue saga felt slow, but right around the Baratie arc, something clicked. The character backstories, especially Sanji's, actually got me emotional. Now I'm 80 episodes deep and completely get the hype. Has anyone else had a show they wrote off for its length totally win them over?
Got me right before the Arlong Park payoff. I was still on the fence, then Zoro took that walk to the park and everything clicked. Felt like a fool for almost dropping it. That arc is the real hook they don't tell you about.
Was it the walk to Arlong Park that got you too? I almost quit during Syrup Village honestly (that was a rough one). But then Baratie made me care about the crew, and by Arlong Park I was fully in. That moment when Luffy puts his hat on Nami's head, man, I knew I was watching something special. It's crazy how one scene can flip a whole show for you.
My buddy actually dropped the show during Syrup Village and I gave him SO much grief about it for years. He finally came back during a long flight and texted me at 3 AM from the Arlong Park rooftop fight saying he finally got it. Now he's caught up and won't stop sending me theories about who the next Straw Hat will be.