Spoiler Warning: This article contains spoilers for the One Piece Live Action (OPLA) and slight spoilers for the One Piece anime and manga.

A rubber guy in a straw hat, a moody, green-haired swordsman, a cat burglar, a lying sniper, and a suave cook. The long-awaited live-action adaptation of One Piece, a popular Japanese anime, was released on Netflix on August 31, 2023.

With over 1000 episodes, the One Piece anime is still ongoing and has been running since 1999. Both the anime and the live action are adaptations of the manga or Japanese comic book (which has been going strong since 1997) by mangaka or manga author Eiichiro Oda. The series gained so much popularity that its protagonist Monkey D. Luffy was even featured in balloon form during the 2023 Thanksgiving Day Macy’s Parade.  One Piece is widely known as one of the ‘Big Three’ anime series alongside Bleach and Naruto. However, it is the only one that has not been completed.

The epic One Piece saga follows Monkey D. Luffy, who ate the Gum-Gum Fruit which allowed him to stretch his limbs at will. Donning his iconic straw hat, Luffy aims to be the King of Pirates by finding the legendary One Piece — a mysterious treasure — at the end of the Grand Line (the ocean route that is at the center of the One Piece world). And he starts the story by recruiting members of his crew. The Strawhat Pirates, a fitting name for Luffy’s crew, travel the Grand Line and go on many adventures to places ranging from an island in the sky to a land of samurai. 

The first season of the live action adaptation focuses on the Strawhats’ humble beginnings as a rookie pirate-crew slowly making a name for themselves. The live action opens with a still-shot of a barrel out at sea — just like the original manga. It is later revealed that Luffy was floating at sea inside this barrel because he did not have a ship. The humor, albeit a bit cringey sometimes, is what keeps the adaptation so faithful to the original.

Although toned down from the usually over-dramatic reactions anime characters have, the actors embody their characters so well. A relatively unknown actor before One Piece, Iñaki Godoy captures Luffy’s carefree and happy-go-lucky nature so effortlessly. It seems he never breaks out of character, evident from his chaotic interactions — much like Luffy — with the cast in off-screen interviews and promotional segments.

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In season one, we are introduced to five of the Strawhat Pirates. Iñaki Godoy (Monkey D. Luffy), Mackenyu Maeda (Roronoa Zora), Emily Rudd (Nami), Jacob Romero (Usopp), and Taz Skylar (Sanji) debuted as the live-action adaptations of some of anime’s most beloved characters (pictured in the order of the slides).

In this season, we are introduced to four other Strawhats in the East Blue (one of the four major seas that surround the Grand Line), the starting point of the One Piece saga. Luffy meets his first crew member, Roronoa Zoro, who is a moody pirate hunter who fights with three swords — one of which is located in his mouth. He is played by Mackenyu Maeda, who is one of the more experienced members of the main cast. He has played roles in other anime adaptations and movies, including Rurouni Kenshi (2012) and Knights of the Zodiac (2023). 

However, besides Mackenyu, OPLA is most of the actors in the main cast’s first major role. The energy they bring to their characters makes the live action feel even more aligned with the anime and manga. As a One Piece fan, I find myself feeling that the actors fully encapsulate their characters’ personalities, mannerisms, and especially the chemistry between the crew.
Playing the second character to join the cast of Strawhats, Emily Rudd does a fantastic job peeling back the layers of Nami’s character. We are introduced to her as a scheming, selfish cat-burglar with manipulative tendencies, but as the show progresses, it is revealed that she has sacrificed the most, working her whole life (unbeknownst to the people in her village) to gather enough Berries — the currency of One Piece — to buy her village from the occupying Arlong Pirates, a vicious fishmen pirate crew. 

Jacob Romero plays Usopp, a cowardly sniper who wields a slingshot. Usopp is one of my favorite characters in One Piece because he is the most “human” of the crew. Born without special powers, his dream is to become a brave warrior of the sea. This dream is one that is unique in that he himself must believe he is brave to become a brave warrior of the sea. Although I love the energy Romero brings to Usopp, his character is one that I wish the OPLA developed a bit more in this season. While it is understandable that some storyline had to be cut due to budget constraints (Netflix reportedly spent $18 million per episode, according to Collider), one of Usopp’s most memorable moments in the anime is when he defeats Jango, the vice captain of the Black Cat Pirates, who are threatening his village. This moment of bravery is necessary to the story because it shows that Usopp is willing to put aside his fears to defend his village and friends. Instead, we get a few feeble shots of Usopp trying to defeat Kuro, the captain of the Black Cat Pirates, until Luffy one-shots the villain. 

Lastly, Taz Skyler as Sanji, a cook that fights only with his legs, is a stand-out amongst the crew. It was revealed that he spent much time preparing for his role, training intensely  through kick-boxing classes to do his own stunts and even becoming a chef in an actual restaurant. His preparation paid off as he portrayed Sanji in such an authentic way. In the anime, Sanji loves women a bit too much, but the live action toned that aspect of his character down, which was a welcome change.

With these castings, the OPLA is one of the most — if not the most — successful anime adaptations. Live action anime adaptations get a bad reputation for being cringe-worthy, tacky, and all-around disasters. Netflix, themselves, just recuperated after a horrible adaptation of Cowboy Bebop in 2021, with the live action receiving a 60% average audience score on Rotten Tomatoes compared to the anime’s 95% average audience score. In contrast, the OPLA’s 95% average audience score on Rotten Tomatoes is rated higher than even the original anime’s score of 90%, demonstrating the show’s exceptional performance in terms of popularity. 

To the other shows’ credits, anime live-action adaptations are notoriously hard to make due to the outrageous stunts, costumes, and high expectations that come with making a live-action adaptation. The fact that the OPLA was able to surpass even the animes’ ratings is an enormous feat in itself. Translating over-the-top anime reactions onto the big screen takes some serious tweaking. And that’s exactly what the OPLA team did.

There were several notable changes to the show. The most obvious for anime and manga fans especially was the early introduction of Vice Admiral Garp, who is revealed to be Luffy’s grandfather. Garp is not introduced in the anime and manga until after Luffy and his crew enter the Grand Line, the main setting for the majority of One Piece. However, Steve Maeda, the show’s executive producer, chose to include Garp earlier to heighten the stakes in the East Blue Saga (which season one takes us through). 

Other creative decisions include the idea to use prosthetics instead of CGI for the Arlong Pirates’ fishmen, the primary antagonists of season one, in order to create a more realistic look. Oda, the creator of One Piece, also had a large role in the creative decisions made in the adaptation, a choice that led fans to accept even the larger changes in the live action. As reddit user Ombs1993 said on a thread addressing Oda’s comments on the live action, “Whether people love it or hate it, you won’t be able to say it wasn’t Oda approved.”

Overall, One Piece is known for its fantastic world building and lore. With the live action, it’s only expanding the beloved series’ popularity — reaching a “Brand New World” of people (yes, that was a One Piece reference).