One Piece quietly beats one of the anime’s most impressive records after 13 years
Crunchyroll2024 has been a banner year for One Piece, and among all the major festivities, the anime has managed to set a new standard for the franchise.
After 25 years, One Piece is more powerful than ever. We’re heading into the Elbaf Arc in the manga, as part of Eiichiro Oda’s bumper final saga for Luffy and the Straw Hats.
Meanwhile, Netflix has The One Piece, a complete anime reboot, on the way. This isn’t to say the existing anime show is slacking, since it actually beat its own ratings this year.
The Straw Hats previously held a franchise high of four top-rated episodes on IMDb in one year, in 2011. 2024 has now produced five, with Episode 1115 from August 11 being the fifth to the gold standard 9.7 on the site.
The others are Episode 1089, Episode 1100, Episode 1112 and Episode 1114, showing a recent hot streak. Admiral Garp’s appearance and the ensuing fight was particularly beloved by fans, as was Episode 1100, since it showed Luffy using Gear 5 for the first time.
It’s remarkable how, even after all this time, One Piece finds ways to outdo itself. Many huge properties have come and gone since Luffy first set sail, with Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen being the latest to really dominate the landscape of anime.
But none come close to One Piece’s longevity. Even Dragon Ball took a break for years between GT and Super. It’s in a league of its own that keeps evolving, as evident by a small but notable record getting broken after 13 years, and the year isn’t over yet either.
Wherever the story takes us next, you can guarantee Eiichiro and Toei will find a way to outdo themselves. Have a look at our guides to The Man Marked By Flames and the Iron Giant’s fate if you want to go deeper on recent events in One Piece.