Don’t expect it to be similar to Naruto or Jujutsu Kaisen.
Summary:
- One Piece isn’t really a battle shounen, although it shares a number of elements.
- There’s no single antagonist to defeat.
- The fights are secondary to the spirit of adventure the anime invokes.
“The Big Three” commonly refers to One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach — the three series that used to consistently top the Weekly Shounen Jump Popularity Rankings. All three of them are usually considered a part of the battle shounen genre as well.
However, some argue that One Piece isn’t really a battle shounen per se — although it has elements of the genre for sure. That doesn’t make it bad, though; in fact, it being different from the rest of the genre is why it’s so good.
There’s No Single Antagonist to Defeat
Despite sharing a number of common elements with the genre (a determined protagonist who rises from zero to hero, an intricate power system, and an emphasis on the bonds of friendship), One Piece is fairly different from most of the genre when you look at its structure.
One Piece doesn’t really have a main antagonist per se — usually, there’s a different one in every major story arc. There’s no one villain that constantly threatens the main character, and the goal isn’t to defeat an enemy — it’s to find the legendary treasure, One Piece, and become the Pirate King.
There Are a Lot of Fights, but They Aren’t the Main Focus
Moreover, the anime doesn’t really focus on fights as much as many battle shounen do. Yes, it has quite a lot of them, but it still doesn’t make them the main focus. One Piece is all about adventure, and encountering and fighting enemies over its course is entirely secondary.
As such, while there is a clear goal in One Piece, the appeal is not to see Luffy finally become the Pirate King: the appeal is to see him and his friends on this long journey. This is why One Piece has managed to stay relevant despite running for over a thousand episodes: it’s a part of its charm.
Don’t Expect It to Be Your Average Battle Shounen
Overall, if you’re getting into One Piece from something like Naruto or Jujutsu Kaisen or Demon Slayer (Kimetsu no Yaiba), expecting to see something similar, you won’t find it there.
One Piece is quite different from the rest of battle shounens, yes — but you shouldn’t expect it to be similar. It’s uniqueness is the reason why it is so popular, after all.
While the overall audiences for One Piece and the battle shounen series are similar, the way these stories are told is completely different.