One Piece Arcs With The Best Action

Summary

• One Piece features top-tier action, with unique choreography, high stakes, and exciting superpowers throughout the series.
• The Fish-Man Island, Arabasta, and Dressrosa arcs stand out as some of the best action-packed storylines in One Piece.
• The Wano Country Arc showcases incredible animation and epic battles, with memorable fights like Luffy vs. Kaido and Zoro vs. King.

There are countless reasons to read or watch One Piece, like its lovable characters, its ambitious narrative, its flawless world-building, or its hilarious comedy. But there’s another major area in which this legendary shōnen franchise stands out, and it’s the action.

After all, every story arc in this series is packed with countless different fights that always manage to keep audiences engaged and excited with their unique choreography, their high stakes, and the incredible superpowers of all the characters involved. But, of course, some One Piece arcs are inherently more appealing for those who are looking to enjoy some solid action, and the following eight are the absolute best ones in that regard.

8

Fish-Man Island Arc

The Straw Hat Pirates Got To Show Off Their New Skills After The Time Skip

• Duration: Chapters 603 to 653 (Manga), Episodes 523 to 574 (Anime)

The Fish-Man Island Arc may be one of the most divisive arcs in One Piece, but there’s no denying that it did not disappoint when it came to the action. After all, this is the first major story arc in the series that takes place immediately after the two-year-long time skip, which means that the entire Straw Hat crew got to show off how much stronger they had gotten after their extensive training.

Almost every member of the main crew has an individual fight against a member of the New Fish-Man Pirates, and they are all very exciting, satisfying, and creative, with some of the biggest standouts being Luffy vs. Hody Jones, Zoro vs. Hyouzou, and Franky vs. Ikaros Much. While the original animated adaptation of the Fish-Man Island Arc suffered from some limited animation and frustrating pacing, Toei Animation recently remastered it and gave it a fresh new coat of paint that made every fight scene look and feel even better.

7

Arabasta Arc

An All-Out War For The Fate Of An Entire Country

• Duration: Chapters 155 to 217 (Manga), Episodes 92 to 130 (Anime)

The Arabasta Arc changed One Piece forever because the Straw Hat Pirates were not fighting another pirate crew or a bunch of marines, but a giant military organization named Baroque Works, and the fate of an entire country depended solely on them. The stakes were high, which made every single fight and action scene all the more intense and exciting.

Fortunately, the agents of Baroque Works were as goofy as they were intimidating, and they wielded all sorts of bizarre powers that gave the main characters a lot of problems, which ended up being a great thing because it allowed the crew to grow and evolve their fighting skills. It’s also important to point out that some of the best and most beloved battles in One Piece originated from the Arabasta Arc, like Sanji vs. Bon Clay, Zoro vs. Daz Bones, and the three different encounters between Luffy and Sir Crocodile.

6

Dressrosa Arc

Another Intense Political Conflict, But With Even More Players Involved

• Duration: Chapters 700 to 801 (Manga), Episodes 629 to 746 (Anime)

The Dressrosa Arc is supposed to be a throwback to the Arabasta Arc in many ways since it’s also centered on the Straw Hats taking down an evil organization that took over an entire country. But since it takes place after the time skip, the stakes are a lot higher, and it involves a lot more people than just the Straw Hat Pirates and their enemies (like Trafalgar Law, the Revolutionary Army, Admiral Fujitora, and all the combatants from the Corrida Colosseum). This, of course, resulted in one of the most epic, ambitious, and entertaining story arcs in One Piece.

The first half of this arc, which takes place mainly in the Corrida Colosseum, is already quite solid in and of itself since it introduces audiences to many memorable characters with all sorts of crazy abilities, like Cavendish, Bartolomeo, Don Chinjao, and more. But the second half of the Dressrosa Arc is what cemented it as one of the most action-packed arcs in the series since Luffy and his allies unleash an all-out war against the Donquixote Family. While it can’t be denied that most of the ensuing encounters are excellent (like Zoro vs. Pica or Franky vs. Senor Pink), the highlight of this arc is the climactic battle between Luffy and Doflamingo, which introduced audiences to the main character’s epic new transformation: Gear 4.

5

Whole Cake Island Arc

Elevated By One Of The Best Fights In The Series

• Duration: Chapters 825 to 902 (Manga), Episodes 783 to 877 (Anime)

The Whole Cake Island Arc does not focus on action as much as other similar arcs, since it also has to juggle many narrative elements, but it still features some of the most epic and memorable encounters in the series. This is mainly due to the fact that the stars of this arc are Big Mom and the entire Charlotte Family, which is made up of multiple bizarre characters with creative food-based abilities.

The initial battle between Luffy and Charlotte Cracker is very solid, and it perfectly proves that the main character truly needs to step up his game if he wants to take down the crew of one of the Four Emperors. But the best part of the Whole Cake Island Arc was the climactic encounter between Luffy and Charlotte Katakuri, which is often considered one of the best fights in all of One Piece: their contrasting personalities, their philosophies, their similar powers and moves, their transformations, the choreography, etc. Everything works together to construct an extensive but incredible action sequence that One Piece fans love to talk about, even to this day.

4

Egghead Arc

Introduced Some Of The Most Powerful Antagonists In The Series

• Duration: Chapters 1058 to 1125 (Manga), Episodes 1086 to 1124 (Anime)

The Egghead Arc is the most recent completed arc in One Piece, and it has already managed to captivate fans with its story and action, mainly because it featured some of the most intimidating and powerful antagonists in the entire series. The initial fights against the likes of Rob Lucci and Borsalino were not only really exciting but also incredibly satisfying since Luffy was able to fight at the same level as two strong villains that had defeated him in the past.

But everything changed when the Five Elders arrived to Egghead and showcased their terrifying transformations, as it required Luffy and all of his unexpected allies to use their full power to come out of the island alive. While the Egghead Arc still hasn’t been fully adapted into the anime, the fights that were animated so far looked downright incredible, and they featured some of the best animation in the show’s history, like Blackbeard vs. Law, Luffy vs. Rob Lucci or the Straw Hats and CP0 vs. the Seraphim. It’s safe to say that all the upcoming battles in this arc are going to look amazing in the anime.

3

Marineford Arc

A World-Changing War That Featured All The Important Characters In The Story

• Duration: Chapters 550 to 580 (Manga), Episodes 457 to 489 (Anime)

There’s arguably not a more important arc for the world of One Piece than the Marineford Arc. After many years, chapters, and episodes of impeccable buildup, the Whitebeard Pirates and the Marines finally confronted each other to fight for the life of Portgas D. Ace, and Monkey D. Luffy ended up in the middle of this incredible war because he also wanted to rescue his beloved big brother. Due to its narrative importance, almost every relevant One Piece character that had already been introduced appeared in the Marineford Arc, like the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the Three Admirals, Whitebeard’s entire fleet, and even the Blackbeard Pirates.

Because of this, this is an arc that greatly delivers when it comes to action, as it’s basically an all-out war between multiple characters that are fighting each other with some of the most impressive powers and techniques in the entire series. It rarely lets the audience rest, which is a good thing for those who are looking for some high-quality animated action. Needless to say, none of these fights would be effective if the plot of Marineford Arc didn’t have some high emotional stakes behind it, and they were perfectly displayed when Akainu murdered Ace and provoked Whitebeard, which resulted in one of the most satisfying clashes in the entire series.

2

Enies Lobby Arc

Every Straw Hat Pirate Got Their Own Battle Where They Unlocked A Brand-New Power-Up

• Duration: Chapters 375 to 430 (Manga), Episodes 264 to 312 (Anime)

The Enies Lobby Arc is highly regarded as one of the best story arcs in One Piece, with most fans citing it as the moment they fell completely in love with the series. While this can be chalked up to its emotional storyline and unforgettable moments, the incredible action of this arc should not be underestimated. After all, this is one of the very few arcs in One Piece in which every single Straw Hat pirate gets their battle against a formidable opponent.

All the CP9 agents come off as intimidating but charismatic villains, and they all serve as perfect foils for the main characters. Not to mention that all their fights are especially exciting for fans because they marked the first time the Straw Hat Pirates showcased some of their most impressive and iconic abilities: Chopper using Monster Point against Kumadori, Sanji using Diable Jambe against Jabra, Zoro using Ashura against Kaku and, of course, Luffy using Gear 2 and Gear 3 against Blueno and Rob Lucci respectively. Even Franky had a hilarious battle against Fukuro that proved to audiences that he was worthy of becoming the new member of the Straw Hat Pirates.

1

Wano Country Arc

Features A Lot Of Fights That Were Elevated By Their Incredible Animation

• Duration: Chapters 909 to 1057 (Manga), Episodes 890 to 1085 (Anime)

The Wano Country Arc is infamous for being one of the longest story arcs, not only in One Piece but in the entire anime/manga industry. But it justified its length by featuring a gripping narrative, a beautiful main setting, memorable characters, and of course, a collection of exciting battles that were elevated by some of the most detailed and fluid animation Toei Animation has ever delivered. It’s no surprise that a lot of One Piece fans think that the anime got a significant upgrade during the Wano Country Arc.

The first two acts of this story arc were already very entertaining and featured many solid battles (like Luffy vs. Kaido, Oden vs. Kaido or Zoro vs. Kamazo), but its biggest highlight is the Raid on Onigashima, an epic action-packed conflict in which every member of the Straw Hat Pirates and their allies – from Kid and Law to the Nine Red Scabbards – got involved in a battle against the Beasts Pirates. Some of the absolute best One Piece fights originated from the Wano Country Arc, like Franky vs. Sasaki, Jinbe vs. Who’s-Who, Robin vs. Black Maria, Law and Kid vs. Big Mom, Zoro vs. King, Sanji vs. Queen and, of course, the legendary encounter between Luffy and Kaido on the rooftop of Onigashima, which resulted in the legendary reveal of Luffy’s Gear 5 form. Anybody who is looking for some well-made and satisfying animated brawls should take a look at the excellent Wano Country Arc.