One Piece boasts of having a very vast and detailed lore. So much so that the manga continues to expound on it up to the present. Unfortunately, there is only so much that Eiichiro Oda, the legendary mangaka behind One Piece, can cram into the limited manga panels. He often has to cut out details from his work or brush over some details. Fortunately for fans of the series, the SBS column exists.
One Piece has been published since 1997, with new chapters continuing to be released weekly. As of March 2023, the series has reached over 1076 chapters and 105 tankobon volumes. The manga has also been adapted into a highly successful anime series, which began airing in 1999 and is still ongoing. It has also received numerous video game releases — One Piece Odyssey being the latest — as well as live-action adaptations.
What Is The SBS column?
The SBS, which is short for “Shitsumon wo Boshu Suru” and translates to “I’m Taking Questions”, is a popular question-and-answer column that appears in the tankobon volumes of One Piece. The column is first announced in the series’ second volume, but it still continues to provide answers up to the present. The SBS column is the method Oda uses to answer his fans’ queries regarding the story, the franchise or Oda himself. The questions are typically silly, nonsensical, or just plain weird, but Oda always gives entertaining and often informative answers.
However, the SBS column isn’t just about humor. Oda also uses it as an opportunity to share additional information about the world of One Piece that may not have been included in the main story. For example, he has revealed the names of characters that were previously unnamed, explained how certain characters’ powers work and even provided sketches of characters in various outfits or situations. Oda has been providing so much information in the SBS that One Piece fans who are not reading it are missing out.
A fanwiki has done a great job compiling the many questions and answers from the SBS, but as with every other wiki on the internet, every piece of information on the webpage must be taken with a grain of salt. All the more reason fans should read the official SBS!
What Kind Of Information Does the SBS Contain?
The questions cover a wide range of topics, from plot points and character development to Oda’s personal life and interests. Some fans even use the column as a way to share their own theories and ideas about the series. There is also information about the characters that simply can’t be added to the franchise, like the heights and birthdays of many of the main characters. He has also provided detailed explanations of the unique abilities of different Devil Fruits and the mechanics of the series’ power system.
More importantly, the SBS serves as some sort of dump for information that didn’t make it into the manga proper. In the latest SBS, Oda reveals Zoro’s entire family line, including how he is related to the Samurai of Wano Country and the legendary swordsman Ryuma. He also reveals O-Tama’s lineage. While these pieces of information may not necessarily affect the plot of One Piece, knowing them adds another layer of excitement to the reading experience.
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