23 years ago, a young kid adventurer set out to sea, only to lose his rowboat and travel the sea’s rocky waters in a dingy barrel, setting the events of One Piece in motion. Today, that kid now sails on a ship of his own, leads and inspires thousands of crewmates, and is battling against a dragon to save a mystical country. Like how it does for diamonds from coal, time has a funny way of turning humble beginnings into some of the largest and most profound movements.
For One Piece, this doesn’t just mean the grand adventure of the future pirate king, Monkey D. Luffy, and his Straw Hat Pirates but the massive following that has helped carry Shueisha’s One Piece over 20 years and into its 1000th Chapter (with plenty more still to come). For those who are doing a double-take right now, there is no need to adjust those glasses.
The Shonen/pirate adventure has really reached its 1000th Chapter, and its publisher, Shueisha, plans to celebrate the momentous occasion with a bigger bang than any New Year’s firework or cannon could accomplish. Last Sunday, Shueisha launched the World Top 100, the publisher’s 1st global One Piece popularity poll and one of the largest popularity polls ever released.
From January 3 to February 28, Shueisha is proving that “WE ARE ONE” by allowing fans from across the globe to vote for their favorite One Piece characters and show who really rules the seas within their respective regions. There’s no charge, and everyone gets one vote per day and a special, random AR model to take photos with as a prize. New AR models will be made available throughout the poll’s duration.
Full details can be found on the official One Piece website, as well as a variety of other promotional materials, including the WT100 Commemorative PV, a live-action teaser, and some news on the anime’s 1000th episode. The New York Times has even advertised the event with a full-page, color ad.
This is on top of some other, upcoming activities hosted by Shueisha in celebration of One Piece’s crowning achievement, such as their largest insert poster yet, cover art showing One Piece characters being drawn by other Shonen Jump artists, collaboration projects with Shueisha imprints, and Volumes 1-71 being released for FREE on the Shonen Jump+ and ZEBRACK mobile apps. In commemoration of this milestone, series creator, Eiichiro Oda, even has some beautiful words to share with his fans:
1000 Chapters!!
I, uh, wow…Words pretty much fail to describe the whirlwind these past 23 years have been. Literally half of my life has revolved around the almighty ‘WEEKLY SERIALIZATION’ hehe. But it’s not just me, Luffy and the Strawhats have navigated themselves to so many different islands and found themselves caught up in so many adventures. At this point, even I’m not sure how many lives they’ve touched along the way! But it’s thanks to them that so many special people have entered my own life; first and foremost among them being my family. All of these people have supported me through the years and I am deeply indebted to each of them. Meanwhile, my readers have been leading their own bustling lives. There’s a certain theory that exists for long-term readership in the entertainment world that states, “A given pool of readers will rotate out of a series after five years.” And so for a while now, I’ve avoided calling my readers, ‘fans’. It’s like they say, “Pride cometh before a fall.” I convinced myself that I shouldn’t get too full of myself because my readers would eventually leave the series and move on with their lives. Let me say that all of you have put me to shame for thinking such a thing. Your belief in Luffy has led me to believe in all of you, and that is what allows me to continue drawing exactly the kind of manga I want to draw. So here we are, ready to dip our toes into the final stages of the story. It’s taken us a long time to reach one thousand chapters. However, it’s because I’ve completed a thousand chapters that you must believe I’ll take us to the end. The story waiting for you will defy expectations! I mean it!!
I have a favor to ask. This is for everyone with whom —by some means or another— I’ve managed to create a bond, in other words, the ONE PIECE FANS of the world! My story is a long one. But for just a while longer, please watch over Luffy and his crew as they continue their adventure!
January 2021 Eiichiro Oda
Eiichiro Oda, a creative genius and charitable figure, has managed to bring what was initially supposed to be just a five-year story across 20 years of publication, hundreds of episodes, more than a dozen movies, more than 50 video games, and a couple of kabuki shows.
Longtime fans likely won’t have any trouble sticking around, and while new fans may be harder to come by, they certainly have an enviable catalogue to go through if (and when) they get hooked by Luffy’s crew. As Shueisha looks out to prove, the One Piece family is large, diverse, and still growing.