A new release in the One Piece fandom (a Japanese animation created by manga artist Eiichiro Oda) has been rising in popularity. One Piece is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It has been serialized in the magazine, Weekly Shōnen Jump, since July 1997. Allegedly, Oda’s interest in pirates began in his childhood while he was watching the animated series, Vicky the Viking, which later inspired him to draw a manga series about pirates. IMDB, one of the most popular online databases for films and television, states that One Piece “follows the adventure of Monkey D. Luffy and his pirate crew in order to find the greatest treasure ever left by the legendary Pirate, Gold Roger. The famous mystery treasure named ‘One Piece.’”

The casting process for the One Piece live-action series was based on the nationalities and physical attributes of the main characters. For Oda, the live-action version mainly focused on the accuracy of the characters and the plot. Steven Maeda, the executive producer and showrunner of One Piece live-action, stated in an interview that “a big challenge was figuring out how to include backstory. These backstories are all in the manga, and we made a decision early on to parcel it out and tie it into present-day story. We went by Oda-san’s SBS chapter notes, where he answers fan questions at the end of chapters in the manga. It’s full of character backstories and birth dates, and heights, their favorite foods and things like that, so we scoured those and thought that brought a lot of wonderful emotional grounding with the characters.”

Critics from the renowned film review company, Rotten Tomatoes, have left assorted reviews about the live-action series. Craig Mathieson, a critic from the Sydney Morning Herald, stated that “the result is a grand fantasy adventure with The Pirates of the Caribbean as a too-simple comparison, since it doesn’t allow for Luffy’s superpower and the vibrant otherworldly detail. One Piece is uneven, but it’s committed.” Angelica Jade Bastién, a critic from the New York Magazine/Vulture, states, “in simply accepting… small yet crucial oddities, Netflix’s One Piece proves its willingness to hold on to what makes the original property so fantastic.”

After watching One Piece live-action, I’ve noticed that the show consists of a raw, realistic aspect of the characters, but in present-day times. In comparison to the anime, the characters are exaggeratedly animated, in a sense of personality and character development. However, the live-action seemed to diminish the amount of energetic personality in the characters and replace it with an authentic atmosphere.

The One Piece live-action allegedly had an estimated budget of $138 million, which proves itself with the outstanding visuals and CGI in the show. The live-action version seemed not to include the entire context of the “East Blue Saga” (which was used in reference to the animated series in the show’s beginning episodes). Nevertheless, the saga consisted of an estimated sixty-one episodes which gives a reasonable explanation as to why the producers briefly summarized the context behind the episodes into a simple plot that new viewers can understand.

Overall, I would recommend this series to a person who wants to start on One Piece in general, as it condenses the show into eight episodes. The show consists of emotional warmth, laughter, and ways to connect/relate to the characters. The One Piece animated series consists of 1000+ episodes, which can leave some viewers feeling overwhelmed. This is why watching One Piece Live Action is a good starting point. This series is for you if you are a die-hard fan of shows that fall between action, comedy, and especially pirates.