Gear 5 episode

Yes

First saw it about a month ago and yes, I loved it.

I had no idea what to expect. I only knew that whatever form Gear 5 took, it would happen during the Kaidou fight. Maybe because Gear 4 didn't especially impress me (in light of Gear 5, Gear 4 now makes a lot more sense to me as a zoan ability now though), I wouldn't have expected much of interest until I saw articles in mainstream Western media about it coming soon, making a big deal out of Gear 5 for some reason. I was in no rush, but I decided to catch up about 3 months or so ago.

Love that everything about Luffy from the very beginning of the series got tied in together, from his goofy antics to his relentless pursuit of both his own personal freedom as well as the liberation of entire nations of people. Even his face-splitting grin (in Japanese, nika/niko) is revealed to be the true name of the fruit now. Some might think the animation was a bit over the top, but I was laughing out loud during of most it, while also feeling nostalgic since I'd missed how silly Luffy was in his fights early in the series. I think that was the point.

I totally agree with Oda's statement about not letting the series get too serious. One Piece was always supposed to be about a kid with ridiculous powers (that you shouldn't underestimate).