While I do belive that the arc has gone long enough, it has been prety enjoyable, as I wasn't around for the last 3 normal multi year arcs. The war was anything but normal, as it counts from the moment that luffy decides to go to ID to the timeskip.
In the end, most of you whinners weren't day to day readers for Alabasta nor Skypea, and Einess Loby also had a weird structure and non-straw hats facing some oponents.
If you don't like the pace of the arc, the right way to handle it is to try and take a break, just a month, and read three chapters in a row, and see it improves.
Well spoken dude. I personally feel the biggest issue with the length of this arc (not the pacing) is that Oda has simply packed too many things into one island to address.
the amount of fleshed out characters, flashbacks, events on the island, game changer events and other things occuring its no surprise the arc has lasted as long as it had. other long arcs haven't nearly covered so much in their run of chapters. We've had three/four character flashbacks this arc even (if we count the snapshots of doflamingos past as such) I don't ever recall that many in a single arc before.
The only shame is the fight offs and conclusions and a large usage or non strawhats for those confrontations. In the past the strawhats being lined up with one to one foe face offs has always been my favourite moment in arcs and sadly since Enies Lobby we've not had that in this arc and there was a great chance for it to happen with the flesh out of the large Doflamingo family. (granted that has only happened in long big arcs like alabasta).
I think its well agreed Oda has skimmed over things and not got into detail to try and move the pace of this arc along (except the whiners would say the pace is slow and too long) which is such a shame as the content covered and used are fantastic.
I'm still enjoying this arc week to week but I do feel it could've been approached better. thats just my view.