In the world of anime and manga, One Piece’s Enies Lobby is one of the most highly rated arcs of all time. Written by Eiichiro Oda, this rescue arc sees the Straw Hat Pirates set out to retrieve a crewmate, Nico Robin, from the clutches of the World Government on the judicial island of Enies Lobby, and in the process, face the mighty threat of the CP9. This arc is absolutely brilliant from start to finish, delivering high-octane action and an incredibly well-written story charged with emotions and high stakes. Enies Lobby is a brilliant arc, but there are quite a lot of other amazing anime arcs out there that rival it in terms of quality.
One Piece: 9 Strongest Characters From Joy Boy’s Era, Ranked
Joy Boy’s era had many powerful characters. These are the strongest known from that era in One Piece.
Chimera Ant Arc
- Anime: Hunter x Hunter
- Episode Count: 61 Episodes
The Chimera Ant Arc from Hunter x Hunter is one of the most incredibly well-written arcs out there. This arc sees Gon and Killua take on the threat of the Chimera Ants, who are rapidly growing and pose a significant threat to not just the Hunter Society but the whole world. Taking on a threat this massive is certainly not easy for them, but with personal agendas involved, it pushes the character growth of both of the main characters to the absolute maximum level.
Furthermore, this arc also delivers some of the most chaotic and high-octane moments in the entire series and introduces complex characters such as Komugi and Meruem to the fans, who push individual character writing to the absolute extremes. The Chimera Ant Arc is Togashi’s masterpiece and quite easily one of the very best parts of the entire Hunter x Hunter story.
Return to Shiganshina Arc
- Anime: Attack on Titan
- Episode Count: 10 Episodes
Attack on Titan has quite a lot of incredible arcs, but the one that stands on top of them all is Return to Shiganshina. This arc sees Eren and his friends return to the place where they once lost everything in the hopes of getting to the secrets behind the Titans and figuring out the truth of the world. At the same time, this is also the arc where the three main Titans standing in the path of the Survey Corps, that are the Beast Titan, the Armored Titan, and the Colossal Titan, are finally taken on.
The stakes in this arc are incredibly high, and the battles that it delivers are absolutely amazing. The character moments for the likes of Erwin, Levi, and even Eren and Armin are absolutely sensational. To this day, it is remembered as one of the best arcs in the entire shonen demographic, and it certainly rivals Enies Lobby.
Sasuke Retrieval Arc
- Anime: Naruto
- Episode Count: 29 Episodes
Few rescue arcs in anime are as good as Enies Lobby, but the Sasuke Retrieval arc from the first part of Naruto is certainly up there with it. After Sasuke’s defection from the village following his defeat at the hands of his brother Itachi Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki and a platoon of Konoha ninjas set out to bring him back. This arc sees the Konoha ninjas clash against the Sound Four, and eventually culminates with the tremendously important battle of Naruto and Sasuke.
Their first battle sets the tone for the rest of the series, and the fact that this entire arc resulted in a failure for Naruto and his friends only serves to enhance the plot even further.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
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Pain’s Assault Arc
- Anime: Naruto
- Episode Count: 22 Episodes
The Pain’s Assault Arc is absolutely incredible and quite easily one of the very best in the entirety of the Naruto series. It sees Naruto Uzumaki grow tremendously strong after the death of Jiraiya, his mentor, and more than, that pushes his character to the absolute extreme by exposing him to the injustice going on all around the world and forcing him to do something about it.
At the same time, this arc sees Pain, the leader of Akatsuki, make his move and invade Konoha, completely destroying it in the process. The battle between Naruto and Pain is one for the history books and is still remembered as one of the very best in shonen anime. Undoubtedly, this arc is the peak of the Naruto series and quite easily one of the very best stories out there.
7 Strongest Ice Users in One Piece, Ranked
There are many Ice users in One Piece, but some are stronger than others.
Farmland Saga
- Anime: Vinland Saga
- Episode Count: 24 Episodes
The Ketil Farm Saga might not deliver the most high-octane action, but in terms of character writing, few arcs can even come close to it. This arc sees Thorfinn completely transform from a vengeful brat to a pacifist who finally understands what it means to be a true warrior.
Thorfinn’s growth alone in this arc makes it one of the very best in all of anime. What’s more, the incredible cast of compelling characters surrounding him and the inextinguishable quest for Vinland Saga make this one of the best-written arcs in modern anime. While it might not deliver exciting battles similar to those in Enies Lobby, it certainly does make up for it in terms of character progression and brilliant storytelling.
Marineford Arc
- Anime: One Piece
- Episode Count: 33 Episodes
The Marineford arc is often considered to be the peak of One Piece, and some would argue that it is the peak of anime in general. This arc sees Luffy set out on the mission to rescue his brother, Portgas D. Ace from certain death, and he throws himself into a world of monsters where he is but an ant compared to the mighty.
Still, he manages to make an impression in the Paramount War. This arc also sees some other mighty players, such as Whitebeard, the Marine Admirals, the Shichibukai, and many others, make their move. Marineford is an absolutely chaotic war, and when it comes to massive war arcs, it is up there with the very best seen in the entire medium. It is this arc that pushed the sales of One Piece through the roof and made it as popular as it is today.
Ruhenheim Arc
- Anime: Monster
- Episode Count: 7 Episodes
Ruhenheim is a rather unconventional arc on the list, but it is certainly one of the very best written ones in not just in anime and manga, but the entirety of fiction. This arc sees the culmination of the character arc of Johann Liebert from Monster as he comes face to face with his savior, Dr. Tenma, who also seeks to kill him.
Ruhenheim is the final armageddon, and challenges the ultimate plot points of the Monster series. It exposes and explores a massive massacre in the town of Ruhenheim in Germany and delivers intense and thrilling moments from start to finish. The character writing and compelling plot progression only make this arc even better, and to this day, it stands tall as one of the very best arcs of all time.
Wano Country Arc
- Anime: One Piece
- Episode Count: 197
The Wano Country Arc is the very best of One Piece, as it explores the core themes of the series to the fullest and brings forth the main characters that Oda, the author of the series, built up for decades.
Wano is a story of perseverance, and resistance against oppression and colonization. It also brings forth the Warrior of Liberation of the One Piece world, the Sun God Nika, and allows Luffy to assume this role, freeing people from their misery of 20 long years. Wano is an absolutely brilliant story with a lot of impactful moments and gut-wrenching grief, but at the end of the day, it is an arc that fills readers with hope and makes them understand the true essence of One Piece being freedom above all. For that reason alone, it stands on top as One Piece’s best-written arc.
