The longest and most momentous arc in One Piece's history, the Wano Arc, gets a gorgeous cover for its upcoming volume, and a video showcasing the production process of this amazing illustration.
Since arriving on the island of Wano, Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates have gone through their biggest challenge yet. Their enemy, this time, was one of the Four Emperors, Kaido, known as "the world's strongest creature", and his powerful crew of Beasts Pirates. Contrary to what happened with Big Mom on Whole Cake Island, this time the Straw Hat had to challenge the Emperor to an all-out fight, all to free the people of Wano from Kaido's oppression and return the country to its rightful rulers. This long and complex story arc saw an infiltration mission first, then the organization of an uprising, and finally the open assault to Kaido's fortress on Onigashima.
During the final battle, the Straw Hats led an alliance made by three pirate crews, the samurai of Wano, and the Mink tribe from Zou. Standing in their way were the 30,000 combined soldiers of the Beasts Pirates and the samurai loyal to the usurper Orochi and, more importantly, Kaido's top officers, the Flying Six and his Three Calamities, Jack, Queen, and King. While Luffy challenged Kaido, and the pirate captains Kid and Law took on the newly-arrived Big Mom, Queen and King proved to be the toughest opponents for the rebels. The job of defeating them went to Luffy's most trusted companions, Sanji and Zoro, the strongest members of the Straw Hat after their captain. The battles between Sanji and Queen and between Zoro and King will occupy much of the upcoming volume 102, and that's why they are showcased on the cover, shared by Twitter user @Orojapan1.
The center of the cover is taken by Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji, the "monster trio", as their less powerful crewmates used to call them. Queen and King stand menacingly in the forefront, ready to defend the ambitions of their captain Kaido and to crush everyone that stands in his way. However, Sanji and Zoro are aware that winning this battle means that Luffy's dream to become the Pirate King will finally be in sight, and they fully accept their roles as the two wings that will lift their captain towards his goal. These were some of the best fights in the series, and the cover does a great job of teasing how epic they are.
The video shared by Orojapan is also a great way to understand how a cover illustration is realized. Eiichiro Oda still draws them with pen and paper (even if the layouts are usually done digitally), so the video shows a glimpse of Oda-sensei's artistic process. The full video of the cover production process will be released online on April 4, and One Piece fans should make sure of getting their hands on volume 102 as soon as it is released.
Source: @Orojapan1