Should One Piece anime fans watch Netflix’s live-action series?

❘ Updated: 2023-08-31T13:57:59

One Piece live-action adaptation of the anime

Netflix

Netflix’s One Piece live-action series is marketed towards those new to the franchise, and not just the anime community. So, should anime fans be watching this adaptation?

As Eiichiro Oda and Netflix intended, One Piece rewrites the history of live-action adaptations. The series’s first season is now available to stream in various countries, and fans and critics globally have nothing but praise for it.

Instead of recreating the original story, the series takes a different approach to the narrative while staying faithful to the character design and backstories. After seven long years of production, the amount of hard work is reflected in each scene.

The series is marketed towards those new to One Piece, and it’s not a bright and bubbly adaptation like the anime. Therefore, will anime fans find this version of the story enjoyable?

Netflix claims that One Piece live-action isn’t a remake

Netflix has emphasized time and again that they aren’t creating a “remake” of the manga. The notion is to take One Piece on a global platform, and this is the only way to do that. The director of Episodes 1 and 2, Marc Jobst, shared: “It felt like we wanted to make something that complemented what already existed, didn’t try to replace it.

“And also, you know, we wanted to make a show that everybody would love, not just the fans, and so adapting something very deeply loved with a very, very, very loyal fan base in ways which may not be completely 100% true to the manga, but honoring the spirit of it is always difficult.”

As such, while viewers can easily enjoy a new story, anime fans will notice several changes every step of the way. Everything remains the same: the characters, their backstories, their bonds, but the narrative takes a different route.

Memorable moments and characters are not included because of pacing

An image of Usopp in One Piece live-action

The live-action One Piece covers 95 chapters of the manga, the first four arcs of the East Blue Saga into just eight episodes. Naturally, fans should have expected that the series would not include some important moments and a lot of characters.

The series features a lot of original scenes apart from the ones that are already in the manga. Amid all this, we missed out on the first encounter of Luffy and Nami, which was chaotic and hilarious. Another detail we notice is the neglect of Usopp’s character development.

Before joining the crew, the Straw Hats’ sniper was a liar and a good-for-nothing troublemaker. He doesn’t initially come off as a very likable character, but the more we get to know him, the more we understand him. However, the series seems to sideline his character development and instead focuses more on Zoro and Sanji.

Additionally, Jonny and Yosaku are fan-favorite characters who appear in the East Blue Saga. They’re bounty hunters who previously teamed up with Zoro but were completely omitted in the live-action series. Anime fans will also be disappointed after not seeing Chouchou, Hachi, Momoo, and several more characters.

One Piece live-action explains certain things the anime didn’t

An image of Garp from Netflix's One Piece

One Piece’s live-action adaptation stays faithful to the original story with an entirely different narrative. In the anime and manga, Gold Roger was executed on a platform with two executioners on each side. Apart from the three, no one else was there with Roger. However, Garp’s presence during Roger’s execution begs the question: why weren’t any high-ranking Marine officers present at the execution of the Pirate King?

Roger journeyed across the world and gathered the world’s greatest treasure. Therefore, his mere existence challenged the Marines’ authority. Another major but important change was in Luffy’s introduction.

In the manga and anime, Luffy is first seen when he comes out of the barrel. He later briefly shares why he got in there, but the live-action explains the entire situation, which is kind of important. Therefore, while the series neglects some manga scenes, it also features many changes that explain certain things that the anime didn’t.

Final thoughts: One Piece live-action is worth a watch even for anime fans

Considering the vast story of One Piece, changes are definitely inevitable. However, we should still give the live-action series a chance. The storytelling, cast, soundtrack, and everything else is simply incredible.

Nonetheless, what solidifies the show’s more elaborate elements is the heart of the story, which it accomplishes through the relationships of the characters we love. Because the storytelling of One Piece live-action is completely different, the knowledge from anime and manga is only useful for the Easter Egg point of view. New viewers will not recognize the characters from several wanted posters, but anime fans will.

One Piece live-action is currently streaming on Netflix. You can also check out our other One Piece coverage below: