News
One Piece Character Tony Tony Chopper Gets Own Mini-Anime on January 5
posted on by Joanna Cayanan
A stage presentation for the One Piece franchise at the Jump Festa '26 event on Sunday revealed a mini-anime adaptation titled CHOPPER's, featuring the titular One Piece character Tony Tony Chopper. The mini-anime will air starting on January 5 within the Japanese morning program Mezamashi TV at 7:36 a.m.
CHOPPER's is a new project themed around the character. In the project, Chopper has left the world of pirates and is now living among us in this world.
Ikue Ōtani voices the character Tony Tony Chopper in the One Piece anime.
Toei Animation and One Piece anime producer Ryūta Koike announced on October 28 that the anime will reduce its annual episode output to a maximum of 26 episodes moving forward starting in 2026. Following the conclusion of the Egghead arc this year, the anime will take a three-month production hiatus from January-March 2026. The anime will return in April 2026 for the first of two cours (quarters of a year) with the start of the new Elbaph arc.
According to Toei Animation, the new schedule will allow episodes to "incorporate more content, tempo, and pacing of the manga while continuing to leverage the unique storytelling that is only possible with animation." Historically, with only few exceptions, the anime has aired most weeks since its premiere in 1999. However, the pace has slowed considerably over the years.
The Egghead arc in the anime debuted in January 2024. In mid-October 2024, the franchise announced that the anime's Egghead arc would pause to "recharge," and then the arc would continue in April 2025. Part 2 of the Egghead arc premiered with its first episode (1,123rd overall episode) on Fuji TV on April 5 and aired alongside a recap episode of Part 1 of the Egghead arc. The second episode (1,124th overall episode) aired on April 6 with its new timeslot at 11:15 p.m. JST (10:15 a.m. EDT).
During the Egghead arc's break, One Piece Log: Fish-Man Island Saga; a 21-episode abridged version of the Fish-Man Island arc of the anime with reshot scenes, retouched art, and other improvements; aired in its place.
The anime will start the Elbaph arc on April 5, 2026.
The ongoing anime adaptation of Eiichiro Oda's One Piece manga premiered in 1999.
Source: Jump Festa '26 Jump Super Stage livestream
this article has been modified since it was originally posted; see change history