After three months of waiting, One Piece fans can breathe again. The anime wrapped up the Egghead Incident last December the first arc of the Final Saga and has been on hiatus since. But the wait is almost over. The show is officially returning on April 5th, 2026, kicking off what might be the most anticipated arc in the series' history.
If you've been wondering what to expect from Episode 1156 and beyond, here's the full breakdown.
What happened before the hiatus?
To catch you up: after Luffy and the crew helped take down Kaido and Big Mom in Wano, the Straw Hats sailed to Egghead Island, where they crossed paths with Dr. Vegapunk. The Egghead arc was huge it pulled back the curtain on the Void Century and set the stage for everything that's coming next. Now, with that chapter closed, the story moves to Elbaph.
Why is Elbaph such a big deal?
Honestly, fans have been waiting for this one since the Little Garden arc back in the Alabasta Saga. That's where we first met Dorry and Brogy two giant warriors who'd been fighting each other for a century and where Luffy and Usopp first got fascinated by the land of the Giants. It's taken nearly three decades of the manga's run to finally get there.
The manga started the Elbaph arc in September 2024, and it's already over 50 chapters in, making it one of the longest arcs in the series. There are new characters, major revelations tied to the God Valley Incident, and big questions about the legend of the Sun God Nika. The fight has barely gotten started, so anime-only fans have a lot to look forward to.
What's changing about how the anime airs?
This is actually a pretty significant shift. One Piece has run on a weekly schedule since the anime debuted in 1999. Starting with the Elbaph arc, it's going seasonal meaning only 26 episodes per year instead of the constant weekly grind. Whether you see that as a good thing or a frustrating one probably depends on how you feel about filler episodes.
A sneak peek at the new opening theme was shared on the anime's official X account a 15-second teaser that confirmed the full theme reveal happened on March 28th, 2026.
Where and when can you watch it?
The anime will stream on Crunchyroll with episodes dropping shortly after the Japanese broadcast. Netflix will also carry episodes, but with a one-week delay same setup as the Egghead arc. Here's when new episodes go live depending on where you are:
- Pacific Time – 5pm Saturday
- Eastern Time – 12pm Saturday
- UK – 5pm Sunday
- Central European Summer Time – 6pm Sunday
- India Standard Time – 9:30am Sunday
- Philippine Time – 12am Monday (midnight Sunday evening)
- Australia Eastern – 2am Monday
If you're in the UK specifically, you've got an extra option: BBC iPlayer streams the English dub exclusively, while Crunchyroll and Netflix only carry the Japanese version with subtitles. One catch BBC iPlayer requires a valid TV licence (£174.50/year). Netflix is a decent middle ground if you're already subscribed, since you get the new episodes a week after broadcast plus access to the live-action series.
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