One Piece
1999
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Rating
85% Avg. Tomatometer 61 Reviews 95% Avg. Audience Score 10,000+ Ratings Monkey D. Luffy and his pirate crew explore a fantastical world of endless oceans and exotic islands in search of the...
- (60)
- Iñaki Godoy
- TV-14
- 1
Oct 20, 1999 · Read reviews on the anime One Piece on MyAnimeList, the internet's largest anime database. Barely surviving in a barrel after passing through a terrible whirlpool at sea, carefree Monkey D. Luffy ends up aboard a ship under attack by fearsome pirates.
- (1.3M)
- An entertaining adaptation hindered by a desire to recreate every major event in its source material
- Top 25 Best Anime Series of All Time
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- Verdict
- One Piece Review
- IGN\r Recommends
By Kenneth Seward Jr.
Updated: Dec 11, 2023 9:09 pm
Posted: Aug 31, 2023 7:01 am
One Piece will go down as one of the best shōnen anime ever created. Based on Eiichiro Oda’s long running and equally celebrated manga, it features a comical yet thematically rich story full of amazing action sequences, heartfelt moments, godlike beings, and some of the most wholesome characters this side of Disney. Capturing all of that in an entirely different style of filmmaking would take tremendous effort – something proven by the uneven handling of the pirate adventure’s most cherished characters in a new, live-action adaptation from Netflix.
Unfortunately, the adaptation doesn’t fully commit to its restructuring. Instead, it floats somewhere in the middle, trying to tell an abridged story while also including as much fan service as possible. A character’s backstory might be shared via flashback, but the more intimate encounters needed to properly establish important facets of their adult selves are absent. An otherwise impactful line from previous versions of One Piece sounds deflated, its significance dulled by context that’s either only hinted at or outright omitted. Thanks to a quickened pace that emphasizes big, memorable moments over character development, most of the earnest interactions between the cast feel unearned. This One Piece struggles to be its own thing because it keeps trying to be the anime.
That doesn’t prevent the show from being entertaining. This first season does a solid job of establishing the unique characteristics of its world: The ever-shifting power dynamics of the various pirate and governmental factions and the intrinsic harshness of a planet dominated by several large oceans. The action sequences are delightfully over-the-top, like a violent version of Peter Pan in which characters are thrown through walls, bludgeoned to death, or cut in half. The visual effects used to showcase Luffy’s elastic appendages, giant sea creatures, and other oddities are all visually pleasing. None of them compare to the practical effects though; the show is worth watching for its amazing pirate ship sets alone. Essentially, showrunner Matt Owens and crew made sure that this series elicits the sense of adventure that has long been One Piece’s calling card.
Netflix’s One Piece strives to recreate the magic of its source material in live-action, but this requires jettisoning some pieces of the plot. This creates an interesting variation on the long-running manga and anime that works in parts, and the Netflix series is at its best when it charts its own path in response to the changes made by showrunner...
Review scoring
okay
Netflix's One Piece is an entertaining adaptation that's hindered by a desire to recreate every major event found in its source material.
Kenneth Seward Jr.
Sep 1, 2023 · TV Show Reviews. Netflix’s One Piece is the rare anime adaptation that gets all of the important things right. Netflix’s One Piece succeeds where other live-action anime adaptations have...
- Charles Pulliam-Moore
Aug 31, 2023 · One Piece First Reviews: 'Campy,' 'Bighearted' Adventure 'To Delight Your Inner Child,' Critics Say. "Iñaki Godoy is a pitch-perfect lead for this wildly charming adventure" and more...
- 2 min
- Debbie Day
Aug 31, 2023 · ‘One Piece’ Review: Netflix’s Live-Action Manga Adaptation Is a Delight. The series centers on a young, superpowered pirate captain who dreams of finding the ultimate treasure. By Angie Han....
Aug 31, 2023 · Aug 31, 2023 12:01am PT. Netflix’s Live-Action ‘One Piece’ Is Loyal to a Fault: TV Review. By Alison Herman. Courtesy of Netflix. As a school of adaptation, the live-action take on anime and...
