So over the last couple of years or so I had become a bit out of touch with anime having not really followed any since finishing Bleach and dropping Naruto Shippuden about 400 something episodes as well as Fullmetal Alchemist along with a few others. I had casually watched a few animes but nothing that really compared to seriously follow them like I used to in the past. So I decided I was going to make an effort to getting back into anime by watching Cowboy Bebop considered by many one of the best if not the best Anime series and so I did. I loved it and was instantly hooked watching it to completion over a few weeks.

After that I was left thinking about what anime to watch next and One Piece came to mind. I had watched a bit of the series in the past and remember thinking it was interesting and I had heard a lot of good things about it being touted as the best of the long running anime series (having lost my interest in Bleach and Naruto). I wanted something where you're able to grow attached to the characters more and see them going on all kinds of journeys. So fast forward another week and I got into it, I started enjoying the story and the characters who all had interesting back stories and the overarching story goal was an intriguing on eas well. Then I realized something about it... Something that seemingly rings true not just for One Piece or Naruto but all of these hundred episode spanning animes and was largely the reason I dropped it in the past.

The pacing is AWFUL. Painfully slow, to the point where I was watching it and it often times feel like a drag. I could bear it if the slow pacing was fitting to the story but it really isn't. I was sitting there and noticed so many parts that are just unnecessary to include. To take One Piece as an example, starting off the episode with a fairly long intro (which in itself is fine) but then a 2 minute long flashback to the PREVIOUS episode on top of that and even after that point you notice how they're trying to drag out the run time. Everything from the bumper used to signify breaks, to having various still shots during fights when literally nothing is going on. Not to convey a message as one might think to argue but just to drag it out more and then... The flashbacks...

They get annoying. Sometimes an episode is spent on flashbacks more than it is actually progressing the story, this was a huge part of Naruto as well. Now sure these can be interesting and down right vital to some extent when revealing back story especially about important characters like the story of how Luffy got his straw hat. However in some other cases (take the fight with captain Kuro) there are flashbacks referring to events that were already revealed. Flashbacks that yes, technically do more clearly flesh out how some events happened but at least personally I would still just much rather they progress the story so I can find out what happens next.

It is frankly ridiculous to the point where it's flat out ruining a lot of the enjoyment I should be getting watching this series. I spent a lot of time
just thinking about how much more I enjoyed Cowboy Bebop because it didn't have any of this unnecessary un enjoyable filler that ruined the flow. I never paid much attention to this in the past probably due to a few different reasons. The fact that I hadn't seen too many different animes and also having no responsibilities meant I could almost spend however much time I wanted watching it. Now that free time for me is limited (which I'm not saying to try and sound important because I'm not lol) really makes me reconsider if any of these long running animes (One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, Fairy Tail etc) are even worth watching.  I get that some compromises are unavoidable to be able to constantly produce episodes at this pace but when it's done to this extent (and even after the very first few episodes) it leaves a foul taste.

What do you think, do you agree or do you have a different take on all of this?

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