Rating - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
"When the Straw Hat Pirates enter the Grand Line, they encounter the whale Laboon. Then, they set sail to Whisky Peak where they're targeted by the criminal organization Baroque Works and also decide to help Nefertari Vivi. After adventures on Little Garden and Drum Island, the Straw Hat Pirates and Vivi reach Arabasta, Vivi's home, where a war is about to take place, caused by Baroque Works' head, Mr. 0."
The Arabasta Saga is the second saga in One Piece, a manga series by Eiichiro Oda.
Covering arcs 7-11 and a total of just over 100 chapters, this saga ups the anti as the Stray Hat Pirates enter the Grand Line and encounter even more dangerous foes.
Surprisingly, I don't have too much to say about this saga. Like the previous saga, there is still a lot of setup in this one and further character development to be had. In all honesty, the first couple of arcs in this saga have nothing to remark upon as not much really happened until they reached Drum Island. The only thing that happened was the introduction of the saga's main antagonist as well as another member of the Straw Hat Pirates and some important secondary characters. Once it picked up though a lot ended up being revealed that I assume is going to become important later on.
Despite the reveals though which made things interesting, I do wish there was slightly more character development in this. Usopp and Nami still bother me though she did get a bit stronger unlike Usopp, and the addition of Vivi didn't help because she was also of no help whatsoever. The other new characters do make up for it though, and I am excited to see what happens next.
Overall, this was a pretty solid arc. You do end up getting sucked into the story despite the minor flaws in the form of annoying characters and decisions.