2024 was a banner year for One Piece, and among all the major festivities, the anime managed to set a new standard for the franchise.
After 25 years, One Piece is stronger than ever. We’re heading into the Elbaf arc in the manga, part of Eiichiro Oda’s exceptional final saga for Luffy and the Straw Hats.
Meanwhile, Netflix is preparing The One Piece, a complete reboot of the anime. That’s not to say that the existing anime series is on the decline, as it even beat its own ratings this year.
The Straw Hats previously held a franchise record of four highest-rated episodes on IMDb in one year, in 2011. 2024 has now produced five, with episode 1115 on August 11 being the fifth after the site’s gold standard of 9.7.
The other episodes are episodes 1089, 1100, 1112, and 1114, which show a recent success streak. Admiral Garp’s appearance and the ensuing fight were particularly popular with fans, as was episode 1100, as it showed Luffy using Gear 5 for the first time.
It’s remarkable how much One Piece has managed to outdo itself despite all this time. Many major franchises have come and gone since Luffy left, with Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen being the last to truly dominate the anime landscape.
But none of them come close to One Piece in terms of longevity. Even Dragon Ball took a multi-year hiatus between GT and Super. It’s in a league of its own that continues to evolve, as evidenced by a small but notable record breaking 13 years in, and the year isn’t over yet either.
No matter how the story goes, you can be sure that Eiichiro and Toei will find a way to outdo each other. Check out our guides on The Man Scarred by Flames and The Fate of the Iron Giant if you want to learn more about the recent events of One Piece.
