Oda Reveals The Secret To One Piece’s Long Term Success

Eiichiro Oda has created quite a phenomenon in One Piece, and this story that has been continuing for over two decades now is still going incredibly strong. It is safe to say that One Piece has etched its name in history, and that it is unlike any manga to have ever existed. One Piece is considered to be the best manga ever written, and some even hold it so high in regard as to say that it is the best piece of fiction in history.

Of course, opinions can vary on such a subjective matter, however, what one can say with certainty is that One Piece has successfully left its mark on history, and that it has enjoyed quite a lot of success, thanks to its incredible popularity, despite running for more than two decades.

The Depth of One Piece

One of the many reasons as to why One Piece has been incredibly successful is the depth that it dives into. While One Piece might look like a cheerful pirate story on the surface, the depths of this story are incredible. Oda is quite a meticulous writer and focuses on his characters unlike any other author. Oda dives deep into the past of his character, and he builds them as if they were actually real. These characters are special to Oda, and, as a result, one ends up with characters that they attach themselves to dearly. Of course, Oda also associates incredible themes with his characters, and what is even more important is the fact that he actually manages to pull them off very well. It is clear for the fans to see that Oda’s writing of One Piece is impeccable, and one of the reasons why is the stunning depth that it has.

In fact, since One Piece began, the story has been getting deeper and, the further the fans travel with the Straw Hat Pirates on their journey, the more complex the story gets. This is very well reflected in the chapters that Oda produces. For instance, One Piece chapter used to be quite less dense long ago, however, now, the chapters are much denser, with a lot of content, which goes to show that Oda pays quite a lot of attention to detail, and he wants to put in as much information in his story as possible.

Of course, pulling something like this off is not easy for any author, however, Oda has successfully managed to do it and he continues to do it even today. Now, One Pieceis in the final saga, and here, Oda has decided to go all out, since this is the story saga that he has wanted to draw the most. One Piece fans might be in for a surprise as Oda’s story is only getting better and better.

The Many Events That Are Covered In a One Piece Chapter

When it comes to the popularity of One Piece, much of it depends on the week-to-week entertainment that it provides the fans. Often, stories have gradual drops and their own peaks, however, maintaining consistency is what matters when it comes to long-running stories. That is how one can keep these stories entertaining and ensure that they become successful over time. Oda himself acknowledges this fact and he has previously spoken about this. According to Oda himself, he likes to cram three times as much information as an average manga author into his chapters to keep the fans entertained. With a story as long as One Piece, if he does not do that, then there would be a gradual drop off of interest, which would lead to the story losing popularity, and at the same time, becoming stale.

That said, Oda has managed this very well over the years, and successfully created a legendary take. The density of the story keeps on growing with each passing chapter, and where Oda used to limit his pages to maybe three or four panels, now, every page that Oda draws has around 7-8 panels on it. Oda maximizes the usage of space on his pages, and he crams in as much dialogue as possible This allows him to illustrate his story better, and make his point in more emphatic ways. It also gives him more time to illustrate his characters and their nature properly, and that is certainly how he has managed to keep up this intensity.

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While this might look like an easy task at first, it certainly isn’t. Oda can only cram in these bits of information because he has planned that far ahead. At the same time, Oda is a master of storytelling, and as a result, him fitting a lot of information into his chapters makes a lot of sense. Furthermore, putting a lot of information into chapters isn’t necessarily a good thing. For instance, a lot of the time, it can simply be padding, which would lead to the story simply running in circles and missing the main point on purpose. Oda certainly doesn’t do that.

Every character and every interaction that he draws is important, and even the fans know that the smallest of interactions matter in One Piece. This is why One Piece fans are incredibly observative, and they notice even the smallest of panels and theorize quite a lot about them. This is because they are aware of how Oda writes his stories, and how he makes the best of every single corner of the page.

The Negatives Of Cramming Too Much Into a Chapter

While One Piece has certainly amassed quite a lot of popularity and intrigue over the years, thanks to Oda filling his chapters with exciting information, there are also downsides to his strategy. For one, this leads to bad paneling in the manga. One Piece has often been under fire for subpar paneling, especially in the post-timeskip. While this criticism is somewhat forced, it is one that, at times, does make sense. Furthermore, at the same time, the chapters being way too dense means that the art of the story suffers. In manga, big pages allow the author to express themselves the best. If there are too many panels on the page, the art quality, along with the paneling structure will inevitably suffer. These are two things that One Piece has received a lot of criticism over the years, and it certainly does make sense.

However, to Oda, and all the One Piece fans, this doesn’t matter. It is a trade they are willing to make, give it the incredible story that they get in return. Oda is one of the very few writers who has such deep characters, and such an incredible depth attached to his story. Fans can only hope that it continues for long.

One Piece is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus app. The release date for the next chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1110, is set to be March 17, 2024.

One Piece

Studio

Toei Animation

Story By

Eiichiro Oda

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