(As a brief aside before we jump into this, I just recently finally updated the Home Page of this blog to include a search bar! Now you can look up past articles with ease, as the search pulls from article titles, descriptions, and the content itself. I hope this is a nice convenience for everyone!)
If you’ve even remotely followed the very shaky history of Netflix’s adaptations of popular anime into live-action, than you either rolled your eyes or cursed the very heavens when they revealed that they’d next be tackling One Piece. One Piece is a beloved anime and manga (one of the longest running of all time), cherished by millions the world over. In fact, it was probably pretty hard to hold even a shred of hope for this production given Netflix’s track record. It was assumed by most that this would just be another butchering of the source material, and a trainwreck of a television show.
Having never watched/read One Piece, I wasn’t too interested in the discourse surrounding the project, nor did I intend to watch this Live-Action adaptation when it premiered. Slowly, though, I started hearing rumblings about how faithful the production was looking, and how seriously the cast and crew seemed to love the source material and their commitment to adapt it. Then, the show itself came out, and received incredible reviews and praise, and absolutely absurd viewing numbers (shattering records held previously by Stranger Things).
Intrigued, I bit the bullet and gave the show a watch…and it’s phenomenal! I don’t think it’s a stretch (get it?) to say that One Piece is unequivocally the best live-action anime adaptation that Netflix has ever done, and also just one of the best adaptations of an existing story that I’ve seen in general!
And really, the craziest thing about watching this show is how often you sit there with a dumb smile on your face and wonder how this series possibly turned out this good when it had the entire deck stacked against it. Stigma against Netflix and its adaptations aside, One Piece is known for its over-the-top action and humor, crazy character and world designs, and increasingly complicated plot with innumerable storylines and a cast list in the hundreds. Surely, at best, this show should’ve only been passable, right? Well, here’s what you get when you have a cast and crew that intimately love and respect the source material!
Anime fans can be an annoyingly fickle bunch, but no one can deny that the casting director of this show really put in their work and research to find the best possible candidates for each position. From our main protagonist Luffy (Iñaki Godoy), to the suave master chef Sanji (Taz Skylar), to the egomaniacal pirate clown Buggy (Jeff Ward), the casting is immaculate! Newcomers and longtime fans alike can take one look at these actors and actresses and know that they were the right picks for their jobs!
Looks are only part of the deal, of course, so it should go without saying that each of these actors are also able to perfectly capture their characters through their acting. Anime is often plagued by extreme over-acting (which isn’t a critique, since it usually works for the animated medium), but these actors know just how to reflect that animeness enough while still being grounded in a more palpable realism owing to their live-action status. Emily Rudd (who plays the habitual thief Nami) is particularly outstanding, as is Vincent Reagan as the grizzled marine vice-admiral Garp.
In a world of entertainment that is increasingly filling up with an overuse of CGI (which should be married with practical effects, not replacing them entirely), One Piece is refreshingly tangible. Almost shockingly so, considering how much effort was poured into the costume design, prosthetics, and sets. Every character is well-represented and visually striking, and the oddball character appearances (like the fishmen) look incredible in their makeup. I can see many of these outfits being popular Halloween costumes in the coming years, even more so than they may have been because of the anime and manga’s influence.
The sets are something that needs to be seen to be believed. Even the relatively mundane sets (like the sprawling manor of shipbuilding heiress Kaya) feel thoughtfully constructed and lived-in. Buggy’s evil circus is great too, as is the baddie-infested abandoned amusement park. It’s the ships, though, that really sell the effort put into One Piece‘s practical production. The majority of these massive, impressive pirate ships were completely real, built from scratch by the production to achieve that unmatched level of reality that just can’t be mimicked by green screen technology.
It’s an often over-looked aspect of television production, but I was oddly struck over and over again while watching One Piece by the quality of the cinematography. Shot composition isn’t exactly something that I typically notice when watching a show, but again and again I took note of just how good so many of the shots in this show are. From still frames to tracking shots to lengthy oners during action scenes, One Piece continuously ups the bar in this department. Even the standard shot-reverse-shot technique for dialogue scenes is enhanced through the use of dynamic angles and intense framing. So many shots are just plain beautiful, while others look like they jumped right out of the pages of the manga.
It’s a tightly edited show, maintaining a brisk pace that simultaneously feels fast, but not too fast. Here or there, you might’ve wished they took an extra minute or two, but they didn’t have to. You, as the viewer, just want even more time with these characters and this world! A methodical use of CGI brings the world to life as well, used only when practical effects can’t get the job done (such as for Luffy’s stretchy abilities, or a big explosion here or there). A mythical sea beast in an early episode leaves a fun impression!
Shonen anime (the genre of which One Piece falls into) are typically known for their high-octane action scenes, so it was a necessity for this live-action adaption to nail them. Hardly an episode passes without a throw-down, so I’m pleased to say that One Piece not only provides adequate action scenes, but incredible ones! All of the facets of this show that I’ve mentioned above (acting, effects, cinematography) all work hand-in-hand, combined with some truly stellar and creative fighting choreography, to create some of the best television action I’ve seen.
There’s a lot of highlights, like a one-on-one sword duel that takes place in a flashback, a melee between a bunch of hapless marines and our core trio, and the elaborate takedown of a superpowered evil clown pirate. My nod for the best action scene has to go to the showdown between the green-haired swordsman Zoro and two seemingly silly pirate goons that prove to be a formidable team when fighting as a pair. The perfectly executed fight involves spins, flips, impeccable wirework, incredible use of the spacious set and its multiple elevations, some good character work, really high-energy camera movement, and an outstanding musical score!
Ah, of course! How could I have put talking about the soundtrack off for so long?
Simply put, the live-action One Piece‘s soundtrack is amazing, and one of the best I’ve heard this year. Just like the source material, it’s got a lot of theoretical genres to work with (rock and roll, epic orchestral, swashbuckling shanties, etc.), but it really makes them all work. To top it all off, the show somehow manages to craft a plethora of unique and memorable leitmotifs for a few of the protagonists and all of the villains, and I guarantee you’ll be humming at least a few of them as you turn off the tv! It’s an awesome soundtrack that goes above and beyond what it had to be!
On paper, it might be difficult to believe that this live-action adaptation tells in eight episodes the story the anime took forty-four to do. A concise pacing helps matters (the eight episodes are broken up into four two-parters, each focusing on a specific villain and core cast member), and while it moves briskly it also effectively tells the tale of young upstart Luffy and his desire to assemble a loyal crew and become King of the Pirates. The main plot, subplots, and flashback storylines (man, especially those flashbacks) are all excellently written, acted, and shot.
My two big takeaways in this regard were how extremely effective the villains were, and how shockingly emotional the storyline could be. Despite the comparably minimal runtime of this show (especially with regards to the anime), the big baddies really stand out with their exceptionally costume design, menacing presence, and arresting acting. Those emotional moments hit with serious punch too, and have the tendency to catch you off guard right when the last thing you thought you’d be doing was crying. I have a feeling it’s basically impossible to make it through this show without getting at least a little misty-eyed.
Honestly, it’s difficult for me to put my excitement and enjoyment of this show into words. The sheer mastery of the art form, and the clear love and passion from the cast and crew, are both palpable in every single frame. We’ve been burned through so many adaptations that we’ve forgotten how excellent the final product can be when passionate and loving fans were hired (and trusted by the producers and shareholders) to create an impeccable product. Even more than that, One Piece supremely impresses as a television show even divorced from its origins as an adaptation. This show is seriously top-notch across the board!
And hey, hopefully we don’t have too long to wait for further high-seas hijinks, because Season Two just got confirmed! Huzzah!
The “objective reviewer” part of me wants to rate this show a 9 out of 10, simply because it obviously has a few tiny missteps (nothing is perfect, after all). One or two characters feel like they missed out on some additional development, a late-season fight is a tad underwhelming given the build-up to it, and it takes a little bit for Luffy to really click as a character despite being the main hero. However, I can’t deny how this show makes me feel, so I’ll just go ahead and do it!
10/10
But hey, that’s just my opinion!
The Contrarian Corner 