Best the series has been since Marineford, Elbaph is the first time I've felt the series approach Pre-Time-Skip levels of quality since Whole Cake.
Wano was cursed by Film Red and Live Action preproduction destroying its pacing and consistency, and Egghead suffered a bit from that, as well.
Sadly, IMO, the biggest reason the quality has improved is more breaks.
So, the pacing has also suffered.
Art is much worse than it used to be, but I can't attack Oda over that when his body is just freaking old.
Elbaph is finally answering questions about the Void Century, and that's what disgusted me the most about Wano and Egghead.
250 chapters of dick teasing lore, we're 1000 chapters in, fucking show us shit already, GOD. Wano and Egghead spent too much time hyping up reveals then to go "nuh uh, not now, teeheehee". It's scum fuck shitty writing and the biggest reason people are actually angry, IMO.
Stop teasing reveals and fucking reveal the damn plot, you're over 50 years old, the OG readers are starting to have grandkids.
Wano and Egghead just did not respect the readers' time.
Like, how much did we actually learn about the Void Century from Vegapunk? Shit?
How much did we learn about Ancient Wano and the Ancient Kingdom from Wano?
FUCKING NOTHING
Move the fucking plot GOOOOODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD
That's why I'm so glad Imu showed up, STOP HYPING SHIT UP AND GET TO THE MEAT.
The nerve of this man's stubborn pride to actually bitch about the community making theories about this manga, when he's been teasing us FOR YEARS about reveals only to shoe-horn Luffy being a God randomly in the end of Act 3, UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Elbaph is a relief to me because Oda's finally moving the plot along rather than teasing the potential of moving the plot along.