Eiichiro Oda Reveals Why He Doesn’t Take More Breaks

Key Takeaways

• Oda’s recent hiatus was due to poor health, a pattern he has shown reluctance to break.
• Oda values fans’ expectations and struggles with the idea of taking a break.
• Lessons from other authors emphasize Oda’s need to prioritize health over manga production.

One Piece fans were shocked to learn about Oda taking a sudden two-week break in November. Fans were worried because Oda had taken a two-week break in October to help with the production of the One Piece Live Action series. When reports of the One Piece author taking a hiatus suddenly started to float around, fans were eager to know the reason. It was later confirmed that the manga would take a two-week hiatus because of Oda’s poor health.

While One Piece fans know that Oda has been suffering from poor health for many years, they don’t quite understand why he refuses to take an extended break from drawing manga. However, Oda has actually talked about his reason for not taking a break.

Why Does Eiichiro Oda Not Take Breaks

Oda’s Love For His Fans Binds Him

In 2022, Eiichiro Oda did an interview in which he mentioned his reason for not going on an extended hiatus. He stated that One Piece fans would be disappointed if he were to stop drawing the manga for too long. This makes it difficult for him to put his pen down and stop working on the manga. From his statement, it’s quite clear that Oda values his fans dearly, and he does not want to let them down at any cost.

However, he also spoke about how he feels a bit more relaxed about taking breaks nowadays due to the stellar performances of the up and coming mangaka.

The statement shows Oda’s dedication towards his fans. He is jeopardizing his own health for the sake of millions who eagerly await the release of the new chapters of One Piece. However, the One Piece author must realize overlooking his health is going to cause many problems in the future. So, he must prioritize his health over drawing the manga. If he does take an extended break, he won’t be the first mangaka to do so.

Other Manga Authors Have Taken Breaks

Yoshihiro Togashi, the author of Hunter x Hunter, has been dealing with health complications for many years, and they have been affecting his ability to write and draw manuscripts. But after a long break, his health began to improve, and he finally resumed drawing. Togashi’s Hunter x Hunter appears in the Weekly Shonen Jump occasionally. He draws the manga at a slower pace, which makes sense as he wouldn’t want to ruin his health again.

Aside from Togashi, there are many more manga authors who have fallen ill due to working for such a long time without any reprieve. Oda should take this as a lesson and try not to overwork himself. One Piece fans love One Piece, but they love Eiichiro Oda more. They know without him, there is no One Piece. If something happened to Oda, they would be devastated.

The Manga Industry Has Lost Several Legends

The Industry Lost Toriyama And Miura Recently

• A break woukd do wonders for Eiichiro Oda’s health
• The anime has also gone on a hiatus

In the last few years, the manga industry has lost Kentarou Miura and Akira Toriyama, both of whom were considered legends. Miura’s Berserk inspired many seinen titles, and its influence can be found in video games, mainly the souls-like games FromSoftware.

Akira Toriyama is widely considered one of the most influential manga authors of all time. His work inspired countless others, and his influence can still be found in their work. Losing two of the biggest names in such a short is no joke, and it goes to show that nobody should take things for granted.

When all is said and done, there is no doubt that Oda should take a prolonged break from drawing the manga. Even the One Piece anime has gone on a hiatus till April 2025. Some fans were surprised, but nobody was enraged as they understood the amount of hard work Toei Animation puts into making the episodes.

The animators have to work endlessly for hours on a single episode, and they get very little time for themselves. Since the anime has been airing such high-quality episodes for several years, it makes complete sense for them to take their foot off the gas. Oda can do something similar and just focus on getting better. This way, he can draw the manga without any problems.

One Piece is available to watch on Crunchyroll.