As long as I can remember, I have loved anime. The first time I got hooked on anime was watching Dragon Ball Z which was life changing indeed. Soon followed Naruto, Bleach, Hunter x Hunter, Shaman King, Demon Slayer, Attack on Titan, Jujitsu Kaisen, Fire Force, Fruits Basket, Spy x Family, you know, the mainstream ones. But the one anime I never got into during my younger years? One Piece. I remember I watched the first couple of episodes on Fox Kids and vaguely remembered the plot but was never really interested. Now, this anime has accumulated over 1000 episodes at this time, and I still did not even want to give the series a try.
But when I first saw the trailer of Netflix’s live action One Piece in 2023, it reignited my interest and I wanted to watch the anime first before the live action, so I did. As I finished the Arlong Pirates arc which was where the first season of the live action One Piece ends, I kept watching and watching and watching and before you know it, I witnessed Gear 5 in all its glory, and the drums of liberation have never stopped beating for me. There is no doubt about it, and I live by this, One Piece is one of the greatest fictional stories of all time.
To me, the narrative and storytelling that Eiichiro Oda created from start to finish is nothing short of fictional brilliance. He is creatively able to introduce a vast array of characters and later retcon them with an incredibly deep backstory. He has been able to dream up a world of absolutely absurd fantasy elements while keeping it relatable by mirroring real world issues. There are so many spectacular moments in the One Piece anime and I feel that everyone has their own list, and their own opinion of what episodes are their favorite. But these are the episodes that really affected me on a cellular level and…
DISCLAIMER: These are my opinions, not a definitive list of the best moments and there is no order so please do not hunt me down if I did not put your episode on this list.
- EPISODE 278: “Say You Want to Live! We Are Friends!!”
There is no need to explain why this moment is on the list but IYKYK. But if you don’t… this moment for me defined the Straw Hats as the ride or die crew since by saving Robin, who forcefully joined the crew at first, and later being one of the most valued members of the crew, they basically declared war on the World Government. From my perspective, this moment was also when the Straw Hats transitioned from being a simple pirate crew to becoming the Symbol of Liberation.
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- EPISODE 505: “I Want to See Them! Luffy’s Tearful Scream”
Okay, now we are moving into a more niche moment for me. This is an extremely hot take, but I really wanted the flashbacks of Ace, Sabo, and Luffy being taken care of by Dadan to be shown to me before Ace’s death. When Ace first died, I was sad but not broken until I watched the flashbacks. I swear every time I watch this moment; it makes me cry so much knowing how much Dadan loves those kids. Especially when Garp returns to her to receive punishment because he failed to protect Ace from his demise. This moment broke me and every time it gets brought up, I am in tears.
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- The One Piece Fan Letter Episode
This was a 25th anniversary episode of One Piece that takes us back to the Paramount War and fast forwards to post-Time Skip where the Straw Hats are leaving for Sabaody. First off, the animation was a cinematic masterpiece. Even though this episode may be considered “filler”, it really showed the influence the Straw Hats had for all these characters as well as putting in perspective of the Marine soldiers and their conflict within themselves.
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- EPISODE 1015: “Straw Hat Luffy – The Man Who Will Become the Pirate King”
I am 100% sure this episode is on every One Piece Fan’s list of best episodes. I cannot stop rewatching this episode because it is such a satisfying moment and a culmination of all of the story arcs that has been leading up to this. It also draws the parallels between Luffy and Gol D. Roger as well as their “unspoken” dream. And ending the moment with Luffy’s Haki-powered punch to Kaido was a COLD MOMENT.
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- EPISODE 377: “My Crewmate’s Pain is My Pain, Zoro Fights Prepared to Die”
This is also another fan favorite and showcased the absolute loyalty of Luffy’s Crew, their willingness to sacrifice and endure for his safety as well as safeguard his dream. Also, ZORO is BADASS.
- EPISODE 1136: “Kuma’s Life”
At this moment, Kuma is the MVP of One Piece. This episode concludes his and Bonnie’s backstory and will make you ugly cry at every moment.
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Even though these are some of my favorite episodes, One Piece as a whole is unmatched and I will absolutely dread the day when the One Piece is found, and the end arrives. I am hoping that day never comes but I WANT TO LIVE to see it still.
