The One Piece anime has had its ups and downs over the years due to production-related issues. Following the two-year timeskip, the quality of the series greatly decreased, especially in arcs like Punk Hazard and Dressrosa. However, since Wano, One Piece has been on the upswing, and that has been reflected even in more recent arcs of the Final Saga. This anime quality is, however, hard to maintain on a weekly schedule. That is why, in 2025, Toei Animation announced that One Piece is going seasonal. Now, One Piece is getting a total of 26 episodes a year instead of the 40 or so episodes we used to receive.
Consequently, it is now almost time to say goodbye to the One Piece anime for 2026. Having previously returned in April 2026, One Piece is leaving us once more on September 27, 2026, after the release of One Piece episode 1180. The anime won't come back for the remainder of 2026.
The One Piece shifted drastically in 2025 with the debut of its Elbaf arc. For over years of broadcasting, One Piece has been a weekly anime, with constant releases week after week and few breaks in between. But that has now changed. Toei Animation switched One Piece to a seasonal release schedule starting the Elbaf arc, and now, they only plan to release 26 episodes every year. 26 episodes a year is about half what Toei previously did. In 2026, One Piece started its broadcast on April 5 with the beginning of the long-awaited Elbaf arc, which takes the Straw Hats to the land of Giants. About 6 months later, the first part of the Elbaf arc is almost done, and it is almost time to bid farewell to the One Piece anime now.
It has now been confirmed that One Piece's final episode for the year is airing this month on September 27, 2026, and that's One Piece Episode 1180. In the finale of this batch of episodes, we are likely to finally see Imu using the power of Domi Reversi after making an entrance on Elbaf, which is set up as one of the biggest cliffhangers as of recently in One Piece. This cliffhanger will keep the fans on the edge of their seats for a comeback.
As we know, One Piece's final episode for the year is set to air on September 27, 2026. With the airing of this episode, fans might be wondering when the anime will make its return with the next batch of episodes. Because One Piece released all 26 episodes in one go, we can confidently state that there will be a 6-month-long break before it returns.
With that in mind, it is highly likely that Toei Animation will release Episode 1181 of One Piece around late March to early April 2027. Of course, the exact return date of the One Piece anime is still nowhere close, and it will likely take the studio a couple of months to present new information pertaining to the matter. But what we know for a fact is that the One Piece anime won't return in 2026.
Upon the return of One Piece in 2027, some of the biggest fights will be tackled, and we're all eagerly waiting for them. Imu's new appearance is cause for trouble, and havoc is about to be wreaked in the land of Giants. We will have to see how our protagonist Luffy, with the help of Loki, is able to fight the massive threat posed by the King of the World, whose powers seem untouchable for now.
Interestingly enough, when One Piece does return in 2027, we are likely to see a different broadcasting schedule. Instead of 26 episodes releasing at once, as observed with the first batch of Elbaf episodes, we are more likely to see two 13 episode cours instead, with a few months' gap in between. The primary reason for this is the next big One Piece movie project, which is scheduled to premiere in Summer 2027, that is, One Piece Film: God Valley.
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://gamerant.com/one-piece-anime-goodbye-2026/
