In the Anime One Piece, there are various pirate factions. The creator of One Piece claims that he has exaggerated with two of the pirate factions. They are the reason why One Piece is still not at its conclusion.
Which pirate factions are we talking about? As the first pirate group he exaggerated with, he mentions the Seven Samurai (via twitter.com). These are pirates who serve the Marines. They enjoy the protection of the Marines, but must also fulfill their duties.
Meanwhile, Eiichiro Oda, the mangaka of One Piece, has disbanded the Seven Samurai. Their founding members were the following:
- Sir Crocodile
- Boa Hancock
- Dracule Mihawk
- Jimbei
- Donquichotte de Flamingo
- Bartholomew Kuma
- Gecko Moria
Over time, individual members were replaced by Buggy, Edward Weevil, Trafalgar Law, and Marshall D. Teach. In the special “One Piece The 23rd Log”, Oda mentions that he regrets introducing so many members for the Seven Samurai. He should have only picked two or five members:
I thought seven would be a cool number! Besides that, I regret nothing because I drew what I wanted … I regret it a little!!
Eiichiro Oda, One Piece The 23rd Log (via twitter.com)
The Seven Samurai are the main reason why One Piece has been running for over 20 years. Oda actually wanted to conclude the series this year, but that did not happen. The Seven Samurai were supposed to serve as an intermediate step so that Luffy does not have to directly deal with the Four Emperors.
It will take a while until Luffy reaches that point in the Netflix series. Here you can see the trailer for Season 1:
What about the other group? The second faction that Oda says takes a lot of time is the Worst Generation. These pirate rookies were introduced on the Sabaody Archipelago so that the arc would become “more interesting” (via twitter.com).
Monkey D. Luffy is also part of the Worst Generation:
- Monkey D. Luffy
- Eustass Kid
- Basil Hawkins
- X Drake
- Trafalgar D. Water Law
- Scratchmen Apoo
- Killer
- Jewelry Bonney
- Capone Bege
- Roronoa Zoro
- Urouge
The 11 pirates have already made a name for themselves through their adventures on the Grand Line. All have a bounty of over 100 million Berry. Oda also feels that he exaggerated with the number of characters here:
I should have reduced the number of the Worst Generation, as there were too many of them, but in the end, I let them all appear in the manga!!! I am really surprised they have survived this long, as I thought half of them would have left the New World by now. They are the worst! They are actually the worst generation.
Eiichiro Oda, One Piece The 27th Log (via twitter.com)
The creator also did not think that Law would become a fan favorite. He had in mind that Eustass Kid would be an important figure.
Why have they prolonged the ending so much? Everyone in both factions has played an important role throughout the manga or anime. Sir Crocodile, Donquichotte de Flamingo, and Gecko Moria were, for example, strong enemies against whom Luffy had to stand his ground.
Trafalgar Law even played a larger role and temporarily formed an alliance with the Straw Hat crew. Jimbei became so important that he even became a member of Luffy’s crew.
During the Wano Country arc, some characters of the Worst Generation received significant appearances, which also took a lot of time. Currently, on Egghead Island, it is Jewelry Bonney we learn more about.
The many characters have led to Oda not being able to stick to his plan to finish the manga by 2023. A current battle in the anime is even considered the longest battle in history:
The longest anime battle in history is over – finally has a winner after a year and 61 episodes
