One Piece Live Action: A Light Among the Vague?

One Piece is a popular ongoing anime series based on Eiichiro Oda’s

manga, One Piece. In 2023, One Piece got a Live-Action Adaptation and became
hot among fans including newcomers. Before being released, critics kept a good
eye on the series, and post-release, it made many records globally. The eight
episodes Netflix series sat on the top of the watchlist in 84 countries in one week
after release. Fans had traumas about famous anime live-action such as Dragon
Ball, Fullmetal Alchemist, and Attack On Titan. One Piece was clearly above them
and the reasons for success can be in various ways.

● Actors fitting into their roles

● Backstories Exploration
● High-budget Worlding-Building
● Pacing and storytelling
● Eiichiro Oda’s involvement
Actors fitting into their roles

Choosing the right actors for the roles is the one vital thing for anime
live-action. The main protagonists of this series were Inaki Kodoy as Monkey D.
Luffy, Mackenyu as Roronoa Zoro, Emily Rudd as Nami, Jacob Romero as Usopp,
and Taz Skyler as Sanji. They got their roles as the main ones. In addition, other
characters like Garp, Buggy, Mihawk, Koby, and Arlong were played by awesome
cast members like Vincent Regen, Jeff Ward, Steven John Hard, Morgan Davies,
and McKinley Belcher III. Before the final battle in Arlong Park, the chemistry
between Nami and Straw hats gave us many chills. Also, the natural lightweight
style of Inaki fits right into Luffy's role. There were no characters who didn't get
their roles.
Backstories Exploration

Identification of characters' backstories is also needed. That will give

viewers to learn about the characters. In this, backstories answered questions like
‘What motivates Luffy to be the king of the pirates?’ , ‘Why does Zoro want to be
the greatest swordsman?’ & ‘ What is Sanji's dream to find? ’.The child actors
were also more than excellent. Because of them, the backstories were more
emotional even for anime/manga fans. I have to say that the backstories of the
series are golden.
High-budget Worlding-Building

Show producers and directors made backgrounds and environments

look incredible. Not making ships, houses, and places too beautiful was a good
way to adjust these places with people. The setting of Baratie was magnificent and
they also added many easter eggs in it. The next places we all want to visit will be
Coby’s Small Boat, Shell’s Town, Going Merry, and Arlong Park. And there will
be more in next season to watch out for.
Pacing and Storytelling

Netflix produced the East Blue saga of One Piece as an eight-episode

series. The saga covered 1-98 chapters of the manga and was adapted into anime
for 1-44 episodes. Each episode lasted one hour on average and that was the
advantage of it. During those eight episodes, they showed Luffy and his
crew-mates, each member’s backstories and the battles smoothly. Despite being 70
percent of the original storyline minimized, the taste of One Piece didn’t disappear.
And that was also the best for newcomers.
Eiichiro Oda’s involvement
 The man himself, Eiichiro Oda, evaluated cast members’ audition
tapes and approved them. He found Inaki hilarious and chose him as he was the
most suitable for the character. He also examined how well directed or not. If he
was unsatisfied with the scenes, they reshoot the scenes again and again. That’s one
of the reasons this show was successful.
 Season one was a hit so season 2 will come out in 2025. Fans are
very satisfied with the show because there were many failed live-action shows
before. This One Piece live-action paved the way for others to come and it also
broke the curse. The anime live-action era will rise if they take this opportunity. I
want to say One Piece live action is a light among the vague anime live actions.
How did you rate One Piece live action in 1-10?