One Piece’s Next Big Break Is Almost Here, And It’s Hinting At A Truly Massive Cliffhanger

WARNING: LITE SPOILERS FOR ONE PIECE’S ELBAPH ARC

The new release schedule has done wonders for One Piece‘s anime, but as the series prepares for another long break, Luffy’s adventures are nearing a particularly epic moment that would be an excellent season finale for Elbaph’s first cour. Since 1999, Toei’s anime adaptation of One Piece has been releasing a new episode almost every week. The Elbaph arc saw a major transition in the series’ production, which included some dramatic pros and unfortunate cons.

Incredible upgrades to One Piece‘s long-running anime have demonstrated improved animation, pacing, and action choreography that’s helped the series trend worldwide on several occasions. However, with the increase in quality, the anime struggled to keep up with its original release schedule that aimed to release around 50 quality episodes a year. Now, Toei’s anime aims to be more consistent with its delivery of the popular series by releasing 26 episodes of One Piece a year, in two 13-episode cours.

On June 28, One Piece will be releasing its thirteenth and final episode of Elbaph’s first cour, with the second cour expected to begin later in 2026. There are several twists, reveals, and battles from Eiichiro Oda’s manga that anime-only fans will need to wait to see adapted. However, episode #1168 (the season finale of Elbaph’s first cour) has the opportunity to end with an incredible cliffhanger and battle that even Luffy and Zoro struggle against.

The Season Finale Of One Piece Can Include One Of Elbaph’s Best Fights

Since One Piece‘s new release schedule, each anime episode has covered nearly an entire chapter of the manga. With Oda packing each chapter with fascinating developments for both its narrative and characters, each episode has felt a lot less drawn out than the anime has felt in the past. And if the last chunk of Elbaph cour one’s episodes continue to follow that path, episode #1168 can end with either a massive lore tease from the manga’s chapter #1138 or an epic battle against one of the strongest members of Gol D. Roger’s crew in chapter #1140.

Episode #1164 of One Piece introduced another beautiful giantess known as Ripley. The former warrior graciously welcomed Luffy and his crew at Elbaph’s breathtaking school and library. However, in the manga, Luffy and Zoro meet her human husband shortly afterward, and his greeting is not nearly as kind.

The Elbaph arc quickly introduces the imprisoned giant, Loki, who makes a deal with Luffy for his freedom. Unfortunately, the one guarding the key to Loki’s release is Ripley’s husband, Scopper Gaban, the former left arm of the Pirate King and equal to Silvers Rayleigh. One Piece‘s anime has the chance to end Elbaph’s first cour with the exciting battle between Gaban against Luffy and Zoro fighting for the key. However, the fight could also provide a strong start for Elbaph cour two, especially if Toei decided to end cour one with a particularly intriguing lore reveal.

Elbaph Cour One May End With A Tease Of The Biggest War

Image By Joshua Fox

Many of the islands that Luffy and his Straw Hat crew have explored contain dangerous secrets, including the cryptic poneglyphs. Each is covered in a dead language that only a few One Piece characters can read. Those who can read them receive a peek at forbidden knowledge or messages that the corrupt World Government has taken countless cruel steps to keep hidden. And Elbaph is no exception, with its own huge mural known as The Harley, which displays a prophecy that may explain the world’s largest war of the past, present, and future of One Piece.

Elbaph’s Harley mural showcases colossal revelations relating to the secret ruler of the World Government and the ongoing battle against One Piece‘s gods. The vague drawings include Nika and several other mysterious forces connected to several prominent characters Luffy’s met on his adventures, who all fought in the distant past and will fight again in the story’s final arcs. Still, One Piece‘s season finale would arguably be a lot more exciting if it focused on Luffy’s next big battle than a tease of mysteries that won’t be solved any time soon, especially for anime-only viewers.

First Film

One Piece: The Movie

Cast

Kazuya Nakai, Akemi Okamura, Kappei Yamaguchi, Hiroaki Hirata, Ikue Ôtani, Yuriko Yamaguchi

Created by

Eiichiro Oda

Character(s)

Monkey D. Luffy, Roronora Zoro, Nami (One Piece), Nico Robin, Usopp (One Piece), Vinsmoke Sanji, Tony Tony Chopper, Franky (One Piece), Jimbei (One Piece)

Release Date

October 20, 1999

Network

Fuji TV

Directors

Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou

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  Mayumi Tanaka

  Monkey D. Luffy (voice)

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  Kazuya Nakai

  Roronoa Zoro (voice)