I recently just finished watching the live adaption of the Japanese animated/manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. My honest opinion about the Netflix series is it gave me a sense of joy and happiness while building a real authentic connection with each of the main characters in the series. At the end of watching the series, I felt really emotional while throughout the whole show smiling at a lot of scenes. I believe that it captured the essence of the animated version while making its own whole story. The details to keep in mind is that the show is very weird in the best way possible, and the genres of the show are Action, Adventure, and Fantasy which you can do a lot of things with.
The plot of the story is about a boy named Monkey D. Luffy whose dream is to find a lost piece of treasure called the One Piece and to become King of Pirates. However, in order for him to accomplish those things he needs a crew by his side, a map, and a real pirate ship. One Piece as a whole doesn’t have an actual time period, it is set in a whole different universe and takes place on an unnamed planet. The main characters of the show are Luffy, Nami, Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji who are part of the Straw Hat Crew.
Luffy is played by Inaki Godoy in a Teen Vogue video called How Inaki Godoy became Luffy of One Piece Godoy explains the mental prep of playing Luffy saying: “Getting into character with Luffy was a big challenge he is very optimistic/explosive. He’s a crazy guy in a lot of ways but is also kind and he doesn’t speak too much he listens a lot. To me, it felt like Luffy was an optimistic big dreamer who cares a lot about his friends, who’s committed, and who will do anything for his dreams so understanding that was a key factor for me to play this character. After that, it was finding a balance between how can I be fun, energetic, and crazy.” I believe Inaki captured the personality of Luffy to the highest peak and never lost his touch throughout the show. He was my favorite among each of the Straw Hats.
Emily Rudd who played the bossy and intelligent tangerine-haired Nami Emily is a big fan of anime she explained that during a video of Still Watching Netflix Geeked Edition, she said “I grew up on Dragon Ball Z, Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh. I saw Spirited Away in theaters when it came out here in the States. So all of the anime stuff that like made me into me and who I am. I made my parents rent the Sailor Moon movie all the time and they were so sick of it, but I was just like ‘Oh my gosh women are so cool and so powerful, and they can do anything.’ And it also just really solidified anime in my life.” In my honest opinion, I felt like no other actress could have played her any better. The way she played her character was on point in each episode.
Mackenyu who played the Swordsman Zoro is very stern, serious, and distanced. During an interview, he was asked “You’ve done quite a few stunts. What do you love the most about your character Roronoa Zoro ?” He responded, “Besides having green hair, fighting with three swords was a lot of fun. I was familiar with using two swords from live-action shows I’ve done in the past, but three swords were a new challenge.” His acting in my opinion was the most different because going from his real life to Zoro he is totally different when dressed in full costume; in looks, physique, and voice.
Jacob Gibson plays the coward by nature and sharpshooter Usopp. During an interview, Jacob was asked “Are you a good shot? Was that something you had to work on?” His answer was “Oh I absolutely was immediately. I was like okay you guys need to get me a slingshot and we need a target and let’s get it poppin’ because I need to be deadly with the slingshot so absolutely. I had a lot of time training my marksmanship and making sure you know just getting my rhythm, position, and the way that I shoot it.” In my opinion, Jacob played being a coward well and has a ton of heart and it shows in the live-action series.
Lastly, Taz Skylar who played the composed, nonchalant, and calm cook Sanji. During an interview, Taz was asked “You’re playing Sanji one of the main Straw Hat Crew members. What are the three words that most define Sanji and why?” His answer was “Romantic, fierce, caring. Romantic for the obvious reasons I think he is a romantic. He romanticizes not just other people, but he romanticizes things. He romanticizes what he does, he romanticizes the world.“ In my opinion, Taz played Sanji to perfection. His consented flirting never got old, and he felt so natural in certain scenes.
The overall message of the TV series is really very clear from beginning to end. It relates to people who think they’re not good enough for anything they set their mind to. It’s about following your dreams and not letting adversity define or stop you. This message relates to Luffy because he sees special things in others that they don’t see themselves and he doesn’t let anybody tell him what he can’t be. I believe everybody needs someone like Luffy who wants the best for you no matter what you want to be in your life. He wants you to just be happy for the things you do. This show is a breath of fresh air for all the failed live-action movies/shows. One Piece gave some of us life from these other awful adaptations.
This TV show is rated TV-14. It has some foul language, graphic violence, and creepy imagery that’s ideally suitable for teens and adults but in my opinion, this series didn’t feel like mostly TV-14 but a good chunk of just PG things that blended into a mature tone.
Scale from 1-10 Luffy’s
10
