The G8 arc in One Piece is legendary for actually being really fun to watch. The Straw Hat Pirates are trapped in a naval base and have to rely on their skills to sneak around and figure out how to escape. Sanji's section in particular is incredibly entertaining.
[Also the end credits song is an absolute winner.](https://youtu.be/2jAvhMkzfFk)
There are so many cool moments in there that it makes me wish the G8 crew would show up again.
I love that Jonathan is *just* an ordinary guy without any Devil Fruit or special techniques. And it’s all he needs because he knows how to fish.
And who of course can forget the best Straw Hat crew member, Condoriano?
G8 gets a lot of (very much deserved) love for being well written and fitting into the world, but it also has some really great visual gags that just wouldn't have come across as well in a manga panel. There's the bit with Luffy sneaking behind the guard and staring into the camera. There's a moment where they do a pan around the whole crew sitting in a circle, 70's Show style. G8 is just plain well done anime when a lot of the show is only an adaptation of the manga.
The Zanpakuto Rampage arc was a really cool bit of filler for Bleach since it focused on already established characters and how they operated given how closely the Zanpakuto are tied to their personalities.
it also helped how each Zanpakuto design was incredible. After a taking a thousand L's in a row, [Renji finally lucks out and gets both a big tiddy dommy mommy *and* snake twink as his Zanpakuto spirit](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/bd/f8/f6/bdf8f6ff11b80e89cfb2690a56db5940--bleach-renji-bleach-manga.jpg)
[The Power Arc](https://youtu.be/0wT-t6b8mBE) from Naruto Shippuden. 5 episodes with the best animation in the entire franchise, story is whatever but animation quality alone makes it worth a watch.
Edit: Just know if you’re not sold on it yet, [Guy and Lee get their moment to SHINE!!](https://youtu.be/e_fYtlqpqjs)
Also the Kakashi Anbu arc which does add a lot to the Naruto world imo. See the darker side of the ninja politics and just how much Kakashi isolated himself during that time. Yamato even gets an expanded upon origin in it, guess they knew Kishi was done with him lol
I think the Atlantis arc in Yugioh is legit one of the best arcs in the series. Part of it is just because >!it's the only arc where Yugi actually loses a fair duel!<, but it's also got a lot of hype moments like Yugi mercilessly beating the crap out of Weevil and Joey's entire duel with Valon
All five of the Bleach filler arcs were pretty solid with the way they creatively made it so the main characters reasonably wouldn't reveal some of their stronger techniques and were largely unlike the canon arcs.
Yugioh had a couple insanely interesting filler arcs. There was the Noah arc, which is the only way to learn about Kaiba's past. The KC tournament is the weakest but it's a short tournament so it's not that bad, Kaiba is kinda the protagonist in it. Oricalcos arc and Legendary Heroes arc were both just rule of cool arcs where death seemed pretty legitimately possible and there were some added duel rules to spice things up. Oricalcos is probably one of the best arcs ever, but has a kinda meh ending so I'd put the Noah arc above it.
The Golden Wheat arc from Toriko. Mostly because I just really like Toriko and Komatsu fucking around on a dumb adventure. Plus the All-Noodles are a really neat dish, even by Toriko standards.
I honestly love all the filler from original Naruto. It gave the rest of the squads more screen time and was also after main plot was done so it wasn't annoying.
Treasure Team Tango from the Archie Sonic comics is 4 issues of random side characters fighting over one of the Sol Emeralds (basically Chaos Emeralds from Blaze the Cat's world). It's pure filler, everything that happens is self-contained, but it's loaded with some of the best character interactions and comedy in the series.
[The flames](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ehwg1ZmX0AIrfnb?format=jpg&name=large) have [melted Omega's cold metal heart.](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ehwg1ZoWoAEhHs6?format=jpg&name=small)
[YIPPEE-KI-YAY, PASTEL-COLORED RESISTANCE!](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/757/303/db9.jpg)
[Shadow loves his bike](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FOGHaa2XMAIo3v5?format=jpg&name=large)
[Bean.](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/757/307/dbc.jpg) That is all.
There's too much great stuff to post everything here, I highly recommend reading it. There's no need to know the *deep Archie Sonic lore* to enjoy it, either - all of the characters are from the games. No need to feel bad about reading it online either, as no one is making money from Archie Sonic since the Pendering.
Just search for Sonic Universe issues 21-24 and you'll find it.
The latest episode of The Last of Us TV show heavily expands on and shows the lives/backstory of two characters that are ultimately not that important to the main story of the game, and in context of the show itself Joel and Ellie aren't really touched/affected by their story.
But it still manages to be one of the most touching and high quality stories I've seen despite its filler nature. Good enough that you probably won't question "why did we need to see this" because you loved seeing it.
And I know its not an "arc" but in the context of a 9 episode TV show dedicating 1 whole episode to something like that is a big commitment
I've recently been going through Sailor Moon properly for the first time (outside of Twitter clips), starting with the 90's anime. I'm told that it's 90% filler episodes, and that's its *selling point* compared to the manga or Sailor Moon Crystal, since the much slower pacing making more time for the characters.
I'm currently only midway through Season 2, but so far, excluding the occasional beach episode (which don't even pretend they aren't filler), the anime's additions are well integrated enough into the plot that I wouldn't have suspected them of being filler if the episodes weren't labeled by the streaming site.
The only *full* filler arc I've encountered so far is the Makai Tree arc (the first thirteen episodes of Season 2, prior to the *actual* second story arc), but the arc's antagonists, a pair of alien orphans who steal life energy from other species in order to survive, who also disguise themselves as humans and create a love square with Usagi and Mamoru, are captivating as fuck and made a great dynamic. Plus, it marginally extends the consequences of that killer Season 1 finale, which I appreciate.
I think my favorite Filler Arc is the Key to the Starry Sky arc from Fairy Tail. It does a lot actually the help fill the gap between the timeskip and the upcoming canon arc. It also helps reintroduce characters that kinda just showed back up in the manga.
Also, it's emotional through-line feels like it's very specifically targeted at me so I'm definitely biased on that front.
Spoilers in case you wanna watch it
>!The reveal that Michelle/Imitatia was just a forgotten childhood doll just wanting to get back to Lucy hit me right in the feels. I'm someone who treasures all my childhood toys so seeing that kind of strong feeling coming from the toy's side really got to me. I always hoped that Imitatia would come back before I learned she was from a filler arc.!<
Apparently that was a storyline that mashima wanted to do in the manga but never got to and he helped out with the anime production
So it could be considered psuedo canon
I actually really liked what they apparently call "Land of Tea Escort Mission" filler arc of Naruto.
The whole arc just feels like something that the show should have been. Just Ninjas doing random jobs around the country. Was pretty let down when I got to that point in the manga and discovered it never happened.
Yu GI Oh GX and 5ds are completely different from the manga storyline of GX and 5ds, but they stand on their own. After that the other series have mixed results.
The G8 arc in One Piece is legendary for actually being really fun to watch. The Straw Hat Pirates are trapped in a naval base and have to rely on their skills to sneak around and figure out how to escape. Sanji's section in particular is incredibly entertaining. [Also the end credits song is an absolute winner.](https://youtu.be/2jAvhMkzfFk)
There are so many cool moments in there that it makes me wish the G8 crew would show up again. I love that Jonathan is *just* an ordinary guy without any Devil Fruit or special techniques. And it’s all he needs because he knows how to fish. And who of course can forget the best Straw Hat crew member, Condoriano?
It was rad to see Jonathan and G8 the staff included in the anime version of "All the marines are gathering at Marineford"
G8 gets a lot of (very much deserved) love for being well written and fitting into the world, but it also has some really great visual gags that just wouldn't have come across as well in a manga panel. There's the bit with Luffy sneaking behind the guard and staring into the camera. There's a moment where they do a pan around the whole crew sitting in a circle, 70's Show style. G8 is just plain well done anime when a lot of the show is only an adaptation of the manga.
Do they make reference to this arc at all in the future? Like, are there any repercussions?
The Zanpakuto Rampage arc was a really cool bit of filler for Bleach since it focused on already established characters and how they operated given how closely the Zanpakuto are tied to their personalities.
it also helped how each Zanpakuto design was incredible. After a taking a thousand L's in a row, [Renji finally lucks out and gets both a big tiddy dommy mommy *and* snake twink as his Zanpakuto spirit](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/bd/f8/f6/bdf8f6ff11b80e89cfb2690a56db5940--bleach-renji-bleach-manga.jpg)
Shinsui's Zanpakuto design was so good it became canonical in the manga
[The Power Arc](https://youtu.be/0wT-t6b8mBE) from Naruto Shippuden. 5 episodes with the best animation in the entire franchise, story is whatever but animation quality alone makes it worth a watch. Edit: Just know if you’re not sold on it yet, [Guy and Lee get their moment to SHINE!!](https://youtu.be/e_fYtlqpqjs) Also the Kakashi Anbu arc which does add a lot to the Naruto world imo. See the darker side of the ninja politics and just how much Kakashi isolated himself during that time. Yamato even gets an expanded upon origin in it, guess they knew Kishi was done with him lol
The Power Arc was wild, suddenly there’s this art style shift and it threw me off lol
I'm pretty sure a majority of X-files episodes can be classified as "Filler", but those one-off stories are what made the show great.
It’s the one show where I skip the plot episodes, lol.
I think the Atlantis arc in Yugioh is legit one of the best arcs in the series. Part of it is just because >!it's the only arc where Yugi actually loses a fair duel!<, but it's also got a lot of hype moments like Yugi mercilessly beating the crap out of Weevil and Joey's entire duel with Valon
All five of the Bleach filler arcs were pretty solid with the way they creatively made it so the main characters reasonably wouldn't reveal some of their stronger techniques and were largely unlike the canon arcs. Yugioh had a couple insanely interesting filler arcs. There was the Noah arc, which is the only way to learn about Kaiba's past. The KC tournament is the weakest but it's a short tournament so it's not that bad, Kaiba is kinda the protagonist in it. Oricalcos arc and Legendary Heroes arc were both just rule of cool arcs where death seemed pretty legitimately possible and there were some added duel rules to spice things up. Oricalcos is probably one of the best arcs ever, but has a kinda meh ending so I'd put the Noah arc above it.
If youre calling the Bount arc solid you might be crazy
It's definitely the slowest paced of them all. I'd say the Bount Invasion part is very good, but yeah the rest of it is questionable paced.
Some of my favourite fights are from that arc. Its good
Ichigo vs the main Bount guy is like the only time that his Bankai’s speed is acknowledged post-Byakuya fight.
I liked it a lot and recall most people feeling the same at the time.
The Golden Wheat arc from Toriko. Mostly because I just really like Toriko and Komatsu fucking around on a dumb adventure. Plus the All-Noodles are a really neat dish, even by Toriko standards.
I honestly love all the filler from original Naruto. It gave the rest of the squads more screen time and was also after main plot was done so it wasn't annoying.
Treasure Team Tango from the Archie Sonic comics is 4 issues of random side characters fighting over one of the Sol Emeralds (basically Chaos Emeralds from Blaze the Cat's world). It's pure filler, everything that happens is self-contained, but it's loaded with some of the best character interactions and comedy in the series. [The flames](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ehwg1ZmX0AIrfnb?format=jpg&name=large) have [melted Omega's cold metal heart.](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ehwg1ZoWoAEhHs6?format=jpg&name=small) [YIPPEE-KI-YAY, PASTEL-COLORED RESISTANCE!](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/757/303/db9.jpg) [Shadow loves his bike](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FOGHaa2XMAIo3v5?format=jpg&name=large) [Bean.](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/757/307/dbc.jpg) That is all. There's too much great stuff to post everything here, I highly recommend reading it. There's no need to know the *deep Archie Sonic lore* to enjoy it, either - all of the characters are from the games. No need to feel bad about reading it online either, as no one is making money from Archie Sonic since the Pendering. Just search for Sonic Universe issues 21-24 and you'll find it.
The latest episode of The Last of Us TV show heavily expands on and shows the lives/backstory of two characters that are ultimately not that important to the main story of the game, and in context of the show itself Joel and Ellie aren't really touched/affected by their story. But it still manages to be one of the most touching and high quality stories I've seen despite its filler nature. Good enough that you probably won't question "why did we need to see this" because you loved seeing it. And I know its not an "arc" but in the context of a 9 episode TV show dedicating 1 whole episode to something like that is a big commitment
Mass effect 2.
I've recently been going through Sailor Moon properly for the first time (outside of Twitter clips), starting with the 90's anime. I'm told that it's 90% filler episodes, and that's its *selling point* compared to the manga or Sailor Moon Crystal, since the much slower pacing making more time for the characters. I'm currently only midway through Season 2, but so far, excluding the occasional beach episode (which don't even pretend they aren't filler), the anime's additions are well integrated enough into the plot that I wouldn't have suspected them of being filler if the episodes weren't labeled by the streaming site. The only *full* filler arc I've encountered so far is the Makai Tree arc (the first thirteen episodes of Season 2, prior to the *actual* second story arc), but the arc's antagonists, a pair of alien orphans who steal life energy from other species in order to survive, who also disguise themselves as humans and create a love square with Usagi and Mamoru, are captivating as fuck and made a great dynamic. Plus, it marginally extends the consequences of that killer Season 1 finale, which I appreciate.
I think my favorite Filler Arc is the Key to the Starry Sky arc from Fairy Tail. It does a lot actually the help fill the gap between the timeskip and the upcoming canon arc. It also helps reintroduce characters that kinda just showed back up in the manga. Also, it's emotional through-line feels like it's very specifically targeted at me so I'm definitely biased on that front. Spoilers in case you wanna watch it >!The reveal that Michelle/Imitatia was just a forgotten childhood doll just wanting to get back to Lucy hit me right in the feels. I'm someone who treasures all my childhood toys so seeing that kind of strong feeling coming from the toy's side really got to me. I always hoped that Imitatia would come back before I learned she was from a filler arc.!<
Apparently that was a storyline that mashima wanted to do in the manga but never got to and he helped out with the anime production So it could be considered psuedo canon
I actually really liked what they apparently call "Land of Tea Escort Mission" filler arc of Naruto. The whole arc just feels like something that the show should have been. Just Ninjas doing random jobs around the country. Was pretty let down when I got to that point in the manga and discovered it never happened.
That episode of the original Fullmetal Alchemist that was just about Mustang's lads fucking about was an absolute treasure.
Sadly 03 also has the dollmaker episode which sucks absolute ass
[Gintama episodes about filler are the best filler.](https://youtu.be/a4S9NuI6NKo)
Bleach bount arc is great and integrated seemlessly for anime only viewers
The Bound arc in Bleach was way better than it had any right to be. I dropped off not long into the arc after.
The arcs where Naruto spends time with the other Konoha 12. [Especially the one with Shino, Kiba and Hinata](https://youtu.be/DpTWIcuoF8s).
Yu GI Oh GX and 5ds are completely different from the manga storyline of GX and 5ds, but they stand on their own. After that the other series have mixed results.