The problem is that Oda has maneuvered himself into a corner: He doesn't want to do some real lighthearted adventure arcs with a lot of gags anymore, but on the other hand he's also afraid of actually writing a more mature story with actual consequences (deaths etc.) for his characters.
That's what's annoying a lot of the older readers. He hyped up the New World to be this super tough place, where every little mistake can cause severe consequences, yet he uses even more plot conveniences than ever to make sure that nobody actually suffers any consequences (Ceasar's gas not killing the marines, Plot-Cake-Island, BM's amnesia, Law the deus-ex-machina man etc.).
So you get arcs where the writing is just not really coherent/believable anymore. You either write a more mature story with consequences or you keep your rather lighthearted pre-skip style. Pretending to go down the more mature route, while being afraid to actually kill off characters etc. is just bound to disappoint your readers.
That's what's annoying a lot of the older readers. He hyped up the New World to be this super tough place, where every little mistake can cause severe consequences, yet he uses even more plot conveniences than ever to make sure that nobody actually suffers any consequences (Ceasar's gas not killing the marines, Plot-Cake-Island, BM's amnesia, Law the deus-ex-machina man etc.).
So you get arcs where the writing is just not really coherent/believable anymore. You either write a more mature story with consequences or you keep your rather lighthearted pre-skip style. Pretending to go down the more mature route, while being afraid to actually kill off characters etc. is just bound to disappoint your readers.