One Piece Shares New 25th Anniversary Art

To celebrate One Piece's anime, new art focuses on the evolution of Luffy.

By Evan Valentine

In 1997, the Straw Hat Pirates were introduced by One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda to the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump. Only two years later, Toei Animation would help to bring the Going Merry to the small screen with an anime adaptation that has taken the world by storm ever since. To help celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of Monkey D. Luffy's anime series, new art has been released that focuses on the evolution of the swashbuckler who is hoping to become the king of the pirates.

Monkey D. Luffy has managed to power up over the history of the shonen series thanks to his "Gears", transformations that have allowed his rubber body to retain some serious power. During the War For Wano and the fight against Kaido, Luffy is able to achieve his ultimate form, Gear Fifth, which effectively transforms him into a cartoon character. While the form almost makes Monkey invincible, it also drains a serious amount of stamina, meaning that Luffy has to monitor if his body can hold up in the face of such pressure. With the Final Saga playing out in both the manga and the anime, it's clear that creator Eiichiro Oda is putting these new powers to the test.

One Piece 25th Anniversary Art

To help celebrate twenty-five years of the Straw Hat Pirates on the screen, new art has been created for a new exhibit that is taking place in Japan. Running from August 12th to September 1st, "One Piece Emotion Exhibition" is prepared to show off new sides of the Grand Line. Here's how the event describes the new art highlighting Luffy's evolution, "This visual was specially created for the 25th anniversary event of the TV anime broadcast, with the concept of "the process of turning original drawings into animation" and "the growth of the main character, Monkey D. Luffy"."

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Toei Animation has been doing some serious heavy lifting for the Grand Line's animation style. Anime fans have marveled at recent fights, most specifically when it comes to Luffy's ultimate form. As Monkey is now taking on the World Government once again, Gear Fifth is front and center and Toei is firing on all engines.

Do you want more updates on the Straw Hat Pirates' anniversary celebration? Follow along with Team Anime on ComicBook for all the latest updates on the Grand Line and hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics and anime. 

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