Ever since One Piece changed to its morning time slot years ago, you can tell that it's subtly been trying to de-emphasize its violence. Dragon Ball Super certainly isn't as bloody as its predecessors were, but One Piece is still adapting material that needs to get dark on occasion, so it's always a pleasant surprise to see the anime stay faithful to the dirtier stuff. First of all there's Luffy, who spends the episode trying to get out of prison by twisting his arms around his body again and again in the hopes that his arms will stretch so far that they finally tear off and he can be free. The sound effects and visuals as his arms thin out and tear like bleeding rubber bands is frightening. The other example involves the story behind Pedro and Baron Tamago losing their eyes, but we'll get to that in a moment.
Brook continues to impress as he goes head to head with Big Mom, whose powers get shown off a little in this episode. Beyond having the ability to steal and manipulate people's souls, she has an anthropomorphized sun and cloud (Prometheus and Zeus, respectively) that can flare up into monstrous balls of fire and lightning. This is a case where the anime art was never going to be as impactful or dynamic as it was in the manga, but they look pretty cool nonetheless. Brook's coolheaded nature—"When you face an Emperor, you have no choice but to turn defiant instead of being nervous."—puts a neat little bow on the whole thing. Both Brook and Pedro's sides of the episode benefit greatly from how much the Four Emperors have been hyped up as the final frontier for Luffy's adventure.
Speaking of, the real star of the episode is Pedro's fight with Tamago, where the animation kicks it up a notch with lots of smears and exaggerated limb movement. Weaved in and out of great action and ridiculous pun-based attacks like "Legs Benedict" is some of the backstory behind the fight, where Pedro and his old crewmate Zepo ran amuck on Whole Cake Island years back. They managed to take out Tamago's eye in battle but were eventually caught and subjected to Big Mom's roulette wheel, just like Jimbei in the present day.
A lot of this is material that the anime has embellished. Since Zepo is the older brother of Bepo from Trafalgar Law's crew and this flashback informs a lot of the connections between the Minks and Big Mom, it's appropriate that we give some screen time to this character who's barely seen in the manga. Big Mom wants a hundred years of life force in return for the damages, but she can only pull thirty out of Zepo before he perishes. From there it's Pedro negotiating to get the remaining number of years down so that he can survive, and this includes plucking his own eye out in penance for taking Tamago's. We don't get to watch the actual plucking, but we see blood running down his face and his eyeball sitting in the palm of his hand as he offers it. It's awesome.
This is a superb episode that respects the audience's time as it briefly detours from the Pudding story. Pedro vs. Tamago easily could have been another background subplot, but this episode is gratefully a one-off with a great final scene that sees Pedro as the victor, all set to that classic Movie 5 soundtrack and flashbacks to the Minks' belief in the "Dawn of the World", just to make it extra dramatic. The worst thing I can say about this episode is that there were several stand-out shots where the art was trying to play with perspective, and it looks awkward and ugly as a result (a worm's-eye angle is not flattering on Big Mom, let's just put it that way), but all in all this episode cuts straight to the heart of what there is to love about One Piece's more melodramatic side.
If I were to sum up Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable! in a single word, that word would be “cute.”― If I were to sum up Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable! in a single word, that word would be “cute.” Shiki and Fuyuki's interactions are a mixture of playful (and sometimes sexual) teasing and heartfelt feelings as the two come to value each other. They have real chemistry—and that drives the anime stra...
Lucas and Steve catch up on the Hunter × Hunter manga in time for the long-awaited new chapter and gush about why, even with years between releases, Hunter × Hunter is worth it.― Lucas and Steve catch up on the Hunter × Hunter manga in time for the long-awaited new chapter and gush about why, even with years between releases, Hunter × Hunter is worth it. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed...
Series previously inspired 52-episode anime in 1993― This year's 24th issue of Shogakukan's Weekly Shonen Sunday magazine revealed on Wednesday that Gosho Aoyama's Yaiba manga will be getting a new anime adaptation. Aoyama is supervising. The series follows the titular Yaiba Kurogane, a young samurai boy inspired by Miyamoto Musashi, the real-life swordsman who pioneered the Hyōhō Niten Ichi-ryū sty...
Based on the novel by former Nogizaka46 member Kazumi Takayama, trapezium asks its audience to follow one girl who will use anything, and anyone, to achieve her dream.― Trapezium is a strange movie, to say the least. On the surface, it's a rather simple movie that explores youth, their dreams, and the lengths they'll go to achieve those dreams. It's a coming-of-age story wrapped in the veneer of the...
ZeroReq011 remembers what made Spice and Wolf a story for the ages, from its fully realized world and economics to Holo and Lawrence's romantic chemistry.― Back when Funimation was still its own company and not owned by Sony, long before its in-house streaming service was terminated in favor of Crunchyroll's streaming platform, it owned a TV channel. Legal streaming had yet to dominate the Western a...
Anime will star Hiroshi Kamiya, Kotaro Nishiyama, Kotaro Nishiyama― Distribution company Remow announced on Tuesday that Yura Urushibara's Tougen Anki: Dark Demon of Paradise manga will get a television anime in 2025. The company revealed the trailer, key visual, and main cast for the anime. The anime's cast includes:
Kazuki Ura as Shiki Ichinose, the protagonist who inherits the blood of an Oni. Sh...
Nick and Chris recount some of the most frustrating anime cancellations, from the Yuri on Ice movie to the second half of Stars Align.― Nick and Chris recount some of the most frustrating anime cancellations from the second half of Stars Align to the 2007 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood movie. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views...
Welcome to the rankings for the Spring 2024 season! The perfect place to check out which hidden gems might have flown under your radar.― Let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of the season,
based on the polls you can find in our Daily Streaming Reviews
and on the Your Score page with the latest simulcasts. Keep in mind that these rankings are based on how people rated ...
Producer Masakazu Kubo shares the animation team's dedication to realism, including bringing in a pro golfer to produce the anime's sound effects.― 64-year-old Masakazu Kubo has been planning and producing anime for decades. He's had a major hand in everything from Pokémon and Detective Conan to Teasing Master Takagi-san and Dorohedoro. Recently, he sat down with us to talk about Tonbo!, his attemp...