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There is a saying in the anime community that, when the heat death of the universe finally arrives, there will only be the light of the last dying star and Eiichiro Oda will use its fading embers to furiously sketch the next chapter of One Piece. With over 1100 chapters, Oda’s body of work is legendary, something that isn’t lost on the English cast of the One Piece anime.

During their panel at MCM London in May 2024, the One Piece English cast was asked what they thought of Oda, prompting several members to express their admiration for the mangaka’s work ethic as well as his storytelling ability. “He’s a genius,” Ian Sinclair, who plays Brook on the English dub, told the crowd. “An absolute genius.”

Luffy’s voice actor, Coleen Clinkenbeard, went into a bit more detail about what she admires about the One Piece creator. “How he has managed to write this many chapters and keep it not only interesting but keep us, like, hanging from the edge of our seats and waiting for the next chapter to find out what happens next is beyond genius. Incredible.”

“I absolutely love his work,” Sonny Strait, the English voice of Usopp, chimed in. “I’m a cartoonist too and I’m just amazed at how he can keep that storytelling and all these characters have their own major story arcs. It’s just the best.”

What has always been fascinating about One Piece isn’t just the grand scale of its storytelling but that Oda has managed to pull long-forgotten characters back into the forefront. Characters who seemed to have fulfilled their purpose in early chapters like Toby and Buggy the Clown come roaring back after a time skip and prove Oda won’t let any potential plotline be left unexplored.

Even if One Piece does come to an end one day – everything eventually does, right? – we at least know Eiichiro Oda will have crafted a legendary adventure along the way.

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