One Piece is a mammoth of an anime. With over 1000 episodes, it can be a pretty daunting task to begin viewing the series. Like any long-running anime, however, the story has filler episodes and arcs that pad the overall length. One Piece has over 100 filler episodes, or about 10 percent of the whole series.
A filler is an episode or arc in which nothing happens to affect the overarching story. There is no character development, no returning characters outside the main cast, and it is usually considered non-canon. Fillers occur when the anime's story has come close to or caught up with the manga, so the studio needs to stall time to wait for further chapters to be published. These episodes can't progress the plot because they are not written by the mangaka, and therefore do not know where the story is heading.
Which One Piece Episodes Are Filler?
With so many episodes, it's hard to tell which One Piece episodes are fillers and which aren't. Some episodes occur inside canon arcs, while other times entire arcs are themselves filler. Here's a list of every filler episode in the One Piece anime, as of March 2023.
One Piece Filler Standalone Episodes
- 50-51: The stories of Usopp and Sanji's escapades in Loguetown.
- 93: Sanji and Chopper go off to find supplies in the harsh desert of Alabasta.
- 98-99: The Straw Hats run into trouble as they attempt to save Alabasta.
- 102: The crew begins hallucinating as they trek their way through Alabasta's desert.
- 213-216: An extension of the Davy Back fight in the "Long Ring Long Land" Arc.
- 279-283: A series of flashbacks the crew has during the "Enies Lobby" Arc, detailing their journey to joining Luffy.
- 291-292: The introduction of Boss Luffy, a story of the One Piece characters set in an alternate timeline, 19th century Japan.
- 303: Boss Luffy is accused of stealing the ancient cherry tree just before the village's annual festival.
- 317-319: A series of crew-centered episodes that occur in the "Post-Enies Lobby" Arc.
- 336: A special where the adorable hero, Chopperman must save his favorite radio station from an evil villain.
- 406-407: Boss Luffy returns again, this time to compete in the Great Portable Shrine Race with his friends.
- 418-420: The stories of where the other Straw Hats landed after their encounter with Kuma.
- 453-456: A check-in on the lost Straw Hats, and how they are doing in their new environments.
- 457-458: Retrospective episodes that occur as the Marines prepare for war.
- 492: Crossover special with characters from Toriko.
- 497-499: An extension of Luffy's post Summit War flashback.
- 506: The scattered crew of the Straw Hats learn of Ace's fate.
- 542: Another crossover special with Toriko.
- 590: A crossover with both Toriko and Dragon Ball Z.
- 737: The tale of Sabo's journey to joining the Revolutionary Army.
- 775: The Straw Hats attempt to heal Zunesha after the encounter with Jack and the Beast Pirates.
- 907: A special adaptation of Eiichiro Oda's precursor work to One Piece, Romance Dawn, to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the series.
- 1029-1030: Movie-linked episodes exploring Luffy and Uta's childhoods
One Piece Filler Arcs
- 54-61: "Warship Island" arc: The Straw Hats try to help a young girl and her dragon escape the Marines.
- 131-135: "Post-Alabasta: arc: A group of one off character episodes taking place after the Alabasta Arc.
- 136-138: "Goat Island" arc. The crew must race the Marines in finding an old man's hidden treasure.
- 139-143: "Ruluka Island" arc. The Straw Hats get trapped in the Rainbow Mist, a place which warps space and time.
- 196-206: "G-8" arc. The crew decends from Skypeia and lands directly in a heavily fortified Marine base.
- 220-224: "Ocean's Dream" arc. The Straw Hats wake on a strange island with no memories of their time on the crew.
- 225-226: "Foxy's Return" arc. Luffy and company re-encounter the Foxy Pirates.
- 326-335: "Ice Hunter" arc. The crew loses there Jolly Roger to bounty hunters, and must work with other pirates to get it back.
- 382-384: "Spa Island" arc. The Straw Hats decide to rest on the Island of Relaxation, but not everything is as it seems.
- 426-429: "Little East Blue" arc. A setup story for One Piece Film: Strong World.
- 575-578: "Z's Ambition" arc. A setup story for One Piece Film: Z.
- 626-628: "Caesar Retrieval" arc. The Straw Hats and their new ally must take back their prisoner, Ceasar Clown, from a mysterious enemy.
- 747-750: "Silver Mine" arc. A setup story for One Piece Film: Gold.
- 780-782: "Marine Rookie" arc. The Straw Hats must sneak into a Marine base to replenish their food supplies.
- 895-896: "Cidre Guild" arc. A setup story to the film One Piece: Stampede.
- 1029-1030: "Uta's Past" arc. Tying into the One Piece: Red film, this is the sixth after time-skip filler arc.
How Much Filler Is in One Piece?
One Piece has been airing since 1999, so over a 20+ year run there are bound to be fillers. But how does it match up to other long-running anime? Looking at the other members of Shonen Jump's "Big 3" -- Naruto and Bleach -- it seems that One Piece has done very well to keep the fillers to a minimum.
Over the 366 episodes that aired in the original run of Bleach, around 164 are fillers -- that's almost 45% of the entire series. Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden on the other hand, had 205 fillers over their 500 episodes, approximately 41% of the show. One Piece has clearly limited its filler count compared to other big shonen series, keeping the main plot moving forward without much deviation.
Which One Piece Fillers Are Worth Watching?
The "G-8" arc is the perfect showcase of what makes One Piece so popular, as each of the Straw Hats gets to shine in their own way. It is easily one of the funniest arcs, with great bits like the Condoriano mix-up, and Luffy's rather strange hiding spot for the octopus balloon. Not to mention the arc's main villain, Vice Admiral Jonathan, is a pleasure to watch as he uses his wit and patience to try and capture the rambunctious crew that's infiltrated his base.
One Piece Film: Strong World is another great watch, as it is easily one of -- maybe even the best -- One Piece film. It's a gripping tale with a great main villain and incredible action. As the first One Piece film to be written by Eiichiro Oda himself, the quality is unmatched. Before that, however, it's crucial to watch the main series' "Little East Blue" arc. It is a fun lead-in to the movie and gives great nostalgic moments as the crew members from East Blue get to indulge in things from back home.
Episode 590: "History's Strongest Collaboration vs. Glutton of the Sea"
One Piece Episode 590 is a crossover with Toriko and Dragon Ball Z. There's a massive tournament, a fight between the three protagonists over meat, and a final combo attack to beat the villain. It's like something a kid would dream up with his action figures, just pure fun. This is the second of a two-part event -- the first episode is Toriko Episode 99, titled "Run, Strongest Team! Toriko, Luffy and Goku!"
One Piece Special 3: "Protect! The Last Great Performance"
Although this is not technically a One Piece filler, it is still worth mentioning because it's hilarious. The Straw Hats accidentally get involved in a play and chaos ensues as the pirates try their hands at acting.
None of these fillers affect the story in any way, but when it comes to a series like One Piece, it's hard not to have fun when watching the adventures of the Straw Hat Pirates all the way through.
One Piece is available to stream on Crunchyroll.