This first half is one of the best one piece arcs, and second half is probably one of the worst.

Saying that let's talk about why the first half is 5 out of 5. It's the second half of Arlong Park and we have all our major players fighting the big bad here. He's ruthless, strong, and a asshole. All the right things to get Luffy to smack this motherfucker down. On top of that you get so many great payoffs here, especially with Niami and her family and Luffy protecting his own. The 2nd half is them on adventures, first stop is Lounge town which isn't bad. It's pretty solid and get to see a new face, a mysterious one! The very last part of it is the worst arc when the crew gets swallowed by a whale.

Yeah. You read that right.

Saying that the last arc still has some funny moments but is far weaker. Bringing a near perfect volume down from 5 to 4.