One Piece Season One Review: Cheesy, but heartfelt anime adaptation with a captivating cast

Netflix aims to buck the trend of poor live-action anime adaptations with One Piece and succeeds for the most part.

An endearing lead performance by Iñaki Godoy as Monkey D. Luffy, inventive action sequences, cool villains and smart pacing turn One Piece into a heartfelt swashbuckling adventure.

Luffy has a seemingly impossible dream. One Piece is a world full of pirates where the goal is to acquire a treasure that will make the person who finds it the king or queen of the pirates. Luffy will stop at nothing to find the treasure. The problem from the outset is Luffy doesn’t have a crew or a ship, but Luffy’s determination is undeterred by these circumstances. Godoy shines in balancing Luffy’s naive qualities with a determination and warmth that’s impossible to resist.

A more jaded crew balances Luffy’s boundless optimism. Nami (Emily Rudd) and Roronoa Zoro (Mackenyu) are the first to join Luffy’s quest begrudgingly. Both are lone wolves. Nami is a thief with a desire to map the entire world. Zoro is a pirate hunter who wants to be the best swordsman. Nami’s backstory is the more fleshed-out of the crew. Unfortunately, her past doesn’t come to light until near the end of the season and makes it tough to connect with Nami. Zoro’s backstory isn’t as interesting as Luffy’s either, but it is given more layers through deadpan one-liners.

Outside of the top-notch action with a great cast, the world-building and pacing are nearly flawless. The world of One Piece is full of colorful villains like Buggy the Clown (Jeff Ward, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.). Similar to Luffy, he’s also eaten a devil fruit. The devil fruit is what gives Luffy rubbery limbs. For Buggy, the fruit gives him reverse Humpty Dumpty abilities. No matter what you cut off, Buggy can always put himself together again. Ward makes a meal out of One Piece‘s version of Joker in an awesome go-for-broke performance.

Showrunners Matt Owens and Steven Maeda excel at filling the audience in when it needs information. For instance, snails are used as communication devices. These devices are never explained. They simply exist as part of the world like a telephone in the real world. Then there are occasions when One Piece does delve into specific elements, like how devil fruit works. However, it doesn’t dwell on a specific element long enough to drag down the overarching story. The goal is to immerse you into this world and One Piece succeeds.

Some of the humor is a bit broad and Luffy’s crew doesn’t receive the same amount of character development they need, but overall One Piece is a strong anime adaptation fit for all ages.

With the overview of Luffy’s first voyage out of the way, let’s dive deeper into season one’s strongest element. There may be some minor spoilers. One Peace is streaming on Netflix.

A pirate’s life for Luffy

In a time when television prides itself on brooding protagonists. Luffy’s unfailingly positive outlook on his dream and in helping others make their dreams a reality is a breath of fresh air.

In the pilot, Luffy rescues Kobie from an evil pirate. Kobie reveals his dream of being a marine, which involves catching pirates and should go against Luffy’s dream. However, Luffy encourages Kobie to pursue it.

Luffy’s not a pushover either. When someone threatens his crew, he doesn’t hesitate to scrap and show anger in response. One Piece does a great job of acknowledging how rare Luffy’s positivity is and throwing adversity his way. Villains and his crew alike constantly challenge his worldview. When Luffy’s faith seems misplaced, his crew arrives, reinforcing his steadfast belief.

In short, Luffy’s the type of person you don’t see often in the real world and rarely see on television. For adults, never losing faith in your goals is a positive if unrealistic ideal, but it would make the world better if more people like Luffy existed. For children, it’s a reminder to pursue your dreams, but not at the expense of others.

Assembling the crew in One Piece

In most ensemble shows, the supporting characters will join forces with the main character in the pilot. One Piece appears to take this approach by having Luffy, Nami and Zoro become a crew in the pilot.

However, by the end of the season, the trio becomes a quintet with the additions of Usopp and Sanji. One Piece has a fast pace but doesn’t rush adding characters to the squad. With Usopp (Jacob Romero Gibson) and Sanji (Taz Skylar), the series devotes two episodes introducing each of them to the crew.

Usopp provides comedic relief and is an expert marksman. Like Luffy, Usopp has a famous parental figure he is trying to impress. Meanwhile, Sanji is a martial artist who dreams of being a master chef and providing great meals everyone can enjoy.

The introduction of new characters does split the trio of Luffy, Nami and Zoro into different storylines, which makes it more difficult to connect to Nami and to a lesser extent Zoro. The series does a terrific job of introducing Zoro in the pilot. While his tragic backstory is well done, it’s clear something tragic caused Zoro’s wayward existence.

By the end of the season, the quintet feels like a fortified crew who will follow Luffy wherever they go.

The Chef and the Chore Boy

Choosing the best episode of the season is a toss-up between episode six, The Chef and the Chore Boy, and the penultimate episode, The Girl with the Sawfish Tattoo. Ultimately, The Chef and the Chore Boy is the best episode of One Piece.

This is the last of a two-episode arc introducing Sanji to the crew. The prior episode ends with Zoro being bested by Mihawk for the first time in the series and in critical condition. Zoro is unconscious, forcing the emotionally detached Nami to admit she pushes people away.

The biggest moment of the episode involves Nami seemingly turning on the crew. Mihawk and Arlong arrive to take Luffy to his grandfather who has been hunting them as the head of the marines. Nami reveals she’s part of Arlong’s crew and turns over the treasure map to Arlong.

But that’s not Luffy’s only surprise. Before Nami leaves with Arlong’s crew, Luffy finds out he’s had a member as part of the crew or a piece of him to be more exact. Buggy the Clown’s ear was planted on Luffy’s staw hat and has been keeping tabs on his location.

Following the reveal, Luffy loses to Mikhawk in battle and feels like a failure as a captain. However, Zoro regains consciousness and convinces Luffy to go after Nami. Luffy finds a path forward by taking Buggy’s head hostage.

One Piece final thoughts

Overall, it’s hard not to smile while watching One Piece. The series doesn’t take itself too seriously. After all, this is a swashbuckling adventure. However, One Piece never crosses the line into parody.

The visual effects and action sequences are impressive. The score by Sonya Belousova and Giona Ostinelli keeps the series churning ahead. Godoy’s breakout performance makes Luffy a compelling series lead.

Finally, the pacing, world-building and casting are the best in a Netflix series since The Sandman. While One Piece is nowhere near the quality of The Sandman, Luffy’s first adventure does prove to be a successful anime adaptation.

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