Elbaph is already feeling like a major One Piece era
One Piece fans, the Elbaph anime arc is not just another island stop. After the anime returned from its three-month break, Toei Animation shifted the series into a new release rhythm: instead of the old non-stop weekly grind, One Piece is now running on a seasonal-style schedule with 26 episodes a year.
The important bit? The pacing itself has not been changed. This is still the Elbaph story fans have been waiting for, just with the studio getting more breathing room to polish the arc properly. For Malaysian and SEA fans who have sat through years of weekly anime pacing debates, this is honestly a healthy move. Better episodes, less production crunch, and hopefully fewer moments where the anime has to stretch one manga chapter macam rubber band.
WT100 poll winners are getting new Elbaph eyecatchers
The big update is tied to One Piece’s second global popularity poll, the WT100 project. The poll is set to wrap up in June, with Luffy currently leading the midterm results.
According to One Piece update account @pewpiece on X, the Top 15 characters from the poll will receive brand-new eyecatchers during the Elbaph Arc in 2027. For newer anime fans: eyecatchers are those short visual bumpers that usually appear around the ad break point of an episode. They are small, but in a series like One Piece, they become part of the whole weekly ritual.
This is where SEA fans should pay attention. Global polls like this are one of the few times international fans can visibly push their favourites. Whether you are voting for Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Nami, or even a wildcard pick, the result will actually show up in the anime later. That is a pretty fun feedback loop between fandom and production.
Fans can vote through the official WT100 website and check the ongoing rankings there.
Why Elbaph matters so much
Elbaph has been a long time coming. The island of the Giants was teased way back during Little Garden in the Alabasta Saga, when the Straw Hats met Dorry and Brogy. More than two decades later, the anime is finally entering that promised land.
The arc also connects heavily to Sun God Nika, which instantly raises the stakes after everything revealed in the Final Saga so far. The manga has already gone deep into new lore, new characters, and long-running mysteries, but the anime is still near the beginning of the arc.
That means anime-only viewers in Malaysia are in a sweet spot right now. You are early enough to enjoy the build-up without being completely buried by spoilers, but close enough to the manga hype to feel that something huge is coming.
Rocks D. Xebec is the name to watch
One of the most interesting names linked to Elbaph is Rocks D. Xebec, who is already sitting inside the Top 15 of the global popularity poll. The character is expected to make his anime debut next year, and the story is set to reveal more about his background, including his lineage.
Elbaph is also expected to bring in a major flashback involving an incident that changed the world’s power balance. On top of that, the Straw Hats will eventually face an enemy described as the most powerful in the world, while the arc continues building toward the massive war that has been hanging over One Piece’s endgame.
Basically, this is not just a cool Viking-Giants island arc. Elbaph looks like one of the final keys to understanding the past, the World Government, Nika, and the chaos that is about to hit the One Piece world.
For local fans, this is the kind of arc that will dominate anime Twitter, TikTok edits, mamak table debates, and convention cosplay plans for years. If Toei lands the adaptation properly, Elbaph could become one of the defining anime runs of this final stretch.
Source: ComicBook Anime