One Piece anime reveals new art style for Egghead Island arc

It was a happy holiday season for One Piece fans, following a first look at the anime series’ new art style for the upcoming Egghead Island arc.

Another year, another arc for the original anime adaptation of Eiichiro Oda’s beloved manga One Piece. And, as it turns out, that’s not the only new thing for 2024.

One Piece will be kicking off its new arc with a series of new character designs. And in an early Christmas gift to fans of the series, a well-known spoiler account on X/Twitter provided us with our first look.

So, let’s take a look at Toei Animation’s “timeless” new art style for the One Piece series.

First look images of One Piece’s Egghead Island arc

On December 24, One Piece news dedicated Twitter user @Soul_StormOP revealed the first look images for the latest One Piece arc.

Could 2024 finally be the year that One Piece takes over as the most popular anime series? With a whole new art style, and the dawn of the exciting Egghead Island arc, some fans on Twitter sure think so.

In just under two weeks, on January 7, 2024, fans will get to see the Straw Hat pirates arriving at the mysterious and futuristic island Egghead, where the evil genius Dr. Vegapunk lives.

As you can see from the leaked visuals, while the storyline might be futuristic and filled with new and fantastic technologies, the art style is anything but. In a nod to the pre-timeskip episodes, the new animation style will take on a softer and more classic feel.

So far, many fans are delighted with the updated look. With one posting on Twitter that the “new artstyle gonna make the sakuga look crazy good,” while another agreed that it “opens up [the series] for even more fluid movements.”

Many have also likened it to “Oda’s old art style. [With] lengthy bodies with rounded joints.” Although, this similarity is up for debate.

However, others do have their reservations. With many accusing Toei Animations of “white-washing” Ussop, and others commenting that there’s no need for a softer art-style in a swash-buckling pirate adventure.

So, what do you think? Do you agree with the majority on Twitter that the softer animation style is the way to go? Or are you concerned that too much change could render the beloved characters of the original series unrecognizeable?

Take a look at more of our anime coverage here. And check out our One Piece coverage below:

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• 10 most powerful One Piece Devil Fruits, ranked
• Jujutsu Kaisen: Gege Akutami takes inspiration from One Piece
• One Piece Chapter 1102 spoilers: Kuma’s flashbacks inches toward the end