The appeal and reputation of ONE PIECE: The ultimate pirate adventure

ONE PIECE - The ultimate pirate adventure story

■ Public Media

TV anime series

■ Original Media

comics

■ Broadcast period

October 20, 1999 - January 1, 0000
1999/10/20～2001/4 Wednesday 19:00～19:30
2001/4~2006/9 Sunday 19:30~20:00
2006/10/1～ Sunday 9:30～10:00
Sunday 9:30-10:00
2014/04/23 Episode number listed from the official website

*On March 6, 2022, the show was suspended due to unauthorized access by a third party to Toei Animation's internal network. It will resume on April 17, 2022.

■Broadcasting station

Fuji TV Network

■Frequencies

half an hour

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 641

■Original Story

Eiichiro Oda (Shueisha "Weekly Shonen Jump")

■ Production

Toei Animation

■Works

© Eiichiro Oda / Shueisha, Fuji Television, Toei Animation

■ Story

It is the age of the great pirates. The man who had obtained everything in this world, the Pirate King Gold Roger. The words he uttered before his death drove people all over the world to the sea. "My treasure? If you want it, you can have it. Go find it. I left everything in this world there." Many pirates were fighting with their flags raised for the "One Piece", the treasure of wealth, fame and power that Roger left behind. And one boy, Luffy, admires such pirates. Thanks to the power of the "Devil Fruit", the boy has a mysterious body that stretches like rubber, instead of being unable to swim for the rest of his life! With the straw hat given to him by Shanks, the leader of the pirate group who saved his life, as his trademark, Luffy sets out on a voyage. Aiming to become the Pirate King. During his voyage, he encounters many incidents and accidents, but each time he adds a powerful companion to his crew.

■Explanation

Aiming to become the Pirate King, Luffy sets sail. "ONE PIECE" is a Japanese manga by Eiichiro Oda, which began serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1997. The story depicts the adventure surrounding the "One Piece", the treasure left behind by the Pirate King Gold Roger. The protagonist, Monkey D. Luffy, is entrusted with a straw hat by the pirate leader Shanks in his childhood, and continues his adventure with his friends to make his dream come true. The anime version has been broadcast since 1999 and has continued to fascinate viewers for a long time. The appeal of the story lies in the growth and bonds of Luffy and his friends, as well as the magnificent world view. The personality and background of each character are deeply depicted, making it easy for viewers to empathize with their adventure. The battle scenes and clever storytelling are also highly praised. Furthermore, through the theme of pirates, it depicts universal themes such as freedom, friendship, and justice, and is supported by a wide range of generations.

■Cast

Monkey D. Luffy/Mayumi Tanaka/Roronoa Zoro/Kazuya Nakai/Nami/Akemi Okamura/Usopp/Kappei Yamaguchi/Sanji/Hiroaki Hirata/Tony Tony Chopper/Ikue Otani/Nico Robin/Yuriko Yamaguchi/Franky/Kazuki Yao/Brook/Cho

■ Main staff

・Planning/Yoko Matsuzaki ・Production/Kazumi Fujioka ・Screenplay/Junki Takegami, Mitsuru Shimada, Yoshiyuki Suga ・Direction/Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Hidehiko Kadota, Junichi Fujise, Munehisa Sakai, Yoko Ikeda, Ken Koyama, Hiroyuki Kakudo, Katsumi Tokoro, Yukio Kaizawa, Takahiro Imamura ・Chief animation directors/Noboru Koizumi, Takeo Ide, Kenji Yokoyama, Eisaku Inoue, Kazuya Hisada, Naoki Tate, Hideaki Maniwa, Masayuki Takagi, Yuki Kinoshita

■ Main Characters

Monkey D. Luffy: His dream is to become the Pirate King, and he became a pirate because he admired the red-haired Shanks. He is a user of the Gomu Gomu no Mi. His trademark is the straw hat that he received from Shanks. He is a big eater and loves feasts. His straightforward and overly free-spirited behavior often leads people to be at a loss, but he is extremely trusted by his comrades, and his trust in them is unwavering. He acts based on his own beliefs, without being bound by common sense.
・Roronoa Zoro／A three-sworded swordsman nicknamed "Pirate Hunter Zoro." Following a promise he made to his now deceased best friend Kuina, his dream is to become the world's greatest swordsman. His goal is to become like "Hawk-Eye Mihawk," the world's strongest swordsman. Although he is calm and sometimes speaks harshly, he is kind at heart. He never misses his daily training, and is always striving to become stronger. However, he is extremely bad at directions, so his friends stop him when he tries to go out alone.
・Nami: Nicknamed "Cat Burglar Nami," she is the navigator of the Straw Hat Pirates. Her dream is to draw nautical charts of the entire world. Due to her experience living under the control of pirates, she detests them, but gradually comes to trust Luffy and his crew. She has the ability to sense changes in the weather intuitively, is skilled in navigation, and can even steer a ship. She loves gold and treasure, and sometimes uses her beauty and acting skills, such as pretending to cry, to deceive others.
・Usopp: His father was a crew member of the Red Hair Pirates, and he is proud of that, and dreams of becoming a brave warrior of the sea himself. He often lies and bluffs, and is good at sniping using slingshots. He has a bounty on his head as Sogeking, the "King of Snipers." He is a very cautious, timid, and negative person. He is skilled with his hands and has an artistic sense, and is good at making tools and weapons.
Sanji: Former sous chef of the floating restaurant "Baratie." He has a bad mouth but his cooking skills are top-notch. His dream is to find the legendary "All Blue," a place where seafood from all over the world comes together. He hesitates to do so out of gratitude for Zeff, who saved his life, but after meeting Luffy and the others, he decides to pursue his dream. He is intelligent, acting independently behind the scenes and being resourceful. However, he is an invincible womanizer and is extremely susceptible to the seduction of beautiful women.
Tony Tony Chopper: A human-human fruit user and doctor on the Straw Hat Pirates ship. A former reindeer who has acquired human abilities. He can change his appearance with the properties of his animal-type devil fruit. When he was unable to join either the human or reindeer crew, he was saved by Dr. Hiluluk, who gave him his name and hat. Determined to become a "panacea," a doctor who can cure anything, he learns medical skills from Dr. Kureha. He has a good nose and can talk to animals.
・Nico Robin - A Hana Hana no Mi user and archaeologist. Her dream is to see the Rio Poneglyph, the stone that tells the true history. She survived when her hometown of Ohara was destroyed by the Buster Call. Viewed as a threat for her ability to decipher the true history, she had a bounty placed on her at the age of eight and was pursued by the government. Although she never trusted anything, she gradually began to trust the Straw Hat Pirates and wanted to help them.
・Franky/As his nickname "Iron Man (Cyborg)" Franky suggests, he has weapons all over his body. He is an apprentice of the legendary shipwright Tom and the shipwright who built the Thousand Sunny. His dream is to see the "Dream Ship" built from the precious tree "Adam" reach the "End of the Sea". He is proud of being a pervert. In Water Seven, he was the head carpenter of the Franky family, who run a ship dismantling business and bounty hunting business. He fuels himself with cola.
・Brook: A skeleton gentleman with an afro who died once but was resurrected by the Yomi Yomi no Mi. Despite being a skeleton, he hates ghosts and is a musician and swordsman with a weakness for beautiful women. He often makes skull jokes. With the help of the Straw Hat Pirates, he recovers his shadow that was stolen by Moria. He vowed to meet Laboon the Whale head-on and fulfill the promise he once made to him, without turning back, and joined the crew.
Sengoku: Fleet Admiral of the Marine Headquarters (Supreme Admiral of the Navy). Nicknamed "Buddha Sengoku." A wise general who follows government orders without question and carries out his missions with precision.
Aokiji/Admiral of the Navy. His name is Kuzan. He has the power of the Hie Hie no Mi. His motto is "lazy justice." He often takes mysterious liberties, such as letting young Robin escape when he should have been captured.
Kizaru/Admiral of the Navy. His name is Borsalino. He has the ability of the natural type "Pika Pika no Mi", which allows him to pierce objects and kick at the speed of light. In contrast to his nonchalant tone of voice, he attacks his enemies mercilessly.
Akainu/Admiral of the Navy. His name is Sakazuki. For the sake of justice, he will mercilessly eliminate "evil" and will not hesitate to injure his allies.
Monkey D. Garp: Luffy's grandfather and the father of the revolutionary Dragon. Although he is a vice admiral, his strength is on par with that of an admiral. He throws huge cannonballs with his bare hands. He trained Luffy so hard to get him into the navy that he became feared. Even a rubber man would take damage from his "loving fist." He called Coby and Helmeppo to the Marine Headquarters for training.
・Tsuru/Navy HQ Vice Admiral "Chief Staff Officer" Tsuru.
Momonga / Vice Admiral of the Marine Headquarters. He is skilled enough to take down even large sea kings with his sword.
Onigumo / Vice Admiral of the Marine Headquarters. He does not mind injuring his allies in order to complete his mission.
・Doberman/Vice Admiral of the Navy.
・Yamakaji/Vice Admiral of the Navy.
・Strawberry/Vice Admiral.
・Rons/Vice Admiral. Giants.
・Lacroix / Vice Admiral of the Navy. Titan.
Dalmatian/Vice Admiral of the Navy.
・Cormir/Vice Admiral of the Navy.
・Kaiser Beard/Vice Admiral of the Navy.
Smoker / Navy Commodore. He is a user of the Smoke-Smoke Fruit and wields a jitte with a seastone tip. He doesn't care about the opinions of the higher-ups and strives to achieve his own justice.
Tashigi / Navy Lieutenant. Her dream is to retrieve the world's most famous swords. She has an incredible amount of knowledge about swords. Zoro tells her, "I don't like your existence!" because she resembles Kuina.
Hina: A Marine HQ Captain. A fellow Smoker and a frequent helper. She is a user of the Ori Ori no Mi, which allows her to capture her opponents with iron locks. Her catchphrase is "Hina."
T-Bone / Marine HQ Colonel. Nicknamed Ship-Slayer T-Bone, he has a scary face, but his hobby is helping people and his motto is to do a hundred good deeds a day.
Sentomaru: Captain of the Marine HQ Science Corps and bodyguard for Dr. Vegapunk. He is also a subordinate of Kizaru. He is said to be tight-lipped, but he will say anything.
・Bogard: He works with Garp and supports the strong but clumsy Garp. He is skilled with the sword and trains Coby and Helmeppo.
Coby/Alvida He was a pirate crewman, but after meeting Luffy he aimed to become a naval officer and is now a sergeant major at the Marine Headquarters.
Helmeppo: Son of Colonel Morgan. He was a foolish son who relied on his father's authority, but now he aims to become a naval officer together with Coby, and is currently a sergeant at the Marine Headquarters.
Django: A private third class at the Marine Headquarters, and subordinate to Hina. He was the vice captain of the Kuroneko Pirates, but became the captain himself after Kuro left the ship. He is quite skilled at hypnotism, but he himself is subject to hypnotism. After that, he joined the Navy. He is often together with Fullbody. He has a crush on Hina.
・Fullbody/A private at Marine Headquarters and subordinate to Hina. When he was a captain, he challenged Sanji to a fight at Baratie but lost easily. Like Django, he is in love with Hina.
Brannew / Lieutenant Commander at the Navy HQ. Investigates and reports on piracy.
・Dracule Mihawk/AKA "Hawk-Eye Mihawk". He is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea recognized by the World Government and is the world's strongest swordsman. On his back is the black sword "Yoru". With his overwhelming strength, he has even defeated Zoro.
Donquixote Doflamingo / One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Former bounty: 340 million berries. Possesses the power to control others. He held "shows" at Sabaody Archipelago, but suddenly quit the business.
・Bartholomew Kuma / One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, a paw-human with the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi. Former bounty: 296 million berries. Developed by the government's genius scientist Dr. Vegapunk, he is an unfinished government "human weapon" called a Pacifista. When a human is hit by his paw, they fly in the air for three days and three nights.
Gecko Moria: One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and a user of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit. He steals his opponents' shadows and places them in a dead doll (Mario) to create zombies, which he plans to use to become the King of the Pirates. He never takes action himself, and always relies on others. He is also one of the Four Mysterious People.
Boa Hancock / One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Empress of the women's island Amazon Lily, captain of the Kuja Pirates, and the eldest of the three Gorgon sisters. Her ability with the Love-Mellow Fruit allows her to behave however she likes. She fell in love with Luffy, and when it comes to Luffy, her reaction is that of a girl in love.

■ Theme songs and music

・TM
・We go!
Lyrics by Seiko Fujibayashi, Music by Kohei Tanaka, Arrangement by Takayuki Negishi, Singer by Hiroshi Kitadani

■ Evaluation and recommendation

"ONE PIECE" is a work that has attracted viewers for a long time, and its appeal is wide-ranging. First of all, the purity and strong will of the main character Luffy impresses viewers. Luffy's dream of becoming the Pirate King can be overlapped with the viewers' own dreams and goals, and they evoke empathy. Luffy's companions are also rich in personality, and each character's backstory and growth are carefully depicted, allowing viewers to empathize with them deeply. In particular, the stories of each character are inspiring and attract viewers, such as Zoro's dream of becoming a swordsman, Nami's growth as a navigator, Usopp's courage, Sanji's passion for cooking, and Chopper's sense of mission as a doctor.

Furthermore, the world of "ONE PIECE" is very vast, with the culture and history of each island depicted in detail. This allows viewers to enjoy new adventures and make new discoveries as the story progresses. In particular, each arc, such as the Wano Country arc and the Dressrosa arc, has a different theme and storyline, so viewers never get bored. In addition, the battle scenes are powerful and the quality of the drawings is high, making it a visual treat to enjoy.

Musically, "ONE PIECE" is also an excellent work. The theme song "We Go!" has an exhilarating feeling that makes viewers feel like an adventure is about to begin, and it lifts the viewers' spirits. The background music in each episode also plays a role in enhancing the atmosphere of the story and elevating the viewers' emotions.

The first reason to recommend it is the story that depicts the growth and bonds between Luffy and his companions. Through their adventures, viewers can feel universal themes such as friendship, dreams, and justice. The grand world view and detailed storytelling are also not to be missed. Furthermore, the powerful battle scenes and high quality music make it a visual and aural pleasure. "ONE PIECE" is a work that can be enjoyed by a wide range of generations, from children to adults, and is highly recommended especially for those who like stories with themes of adventure and friendship.

Finally, the appeal of "ONE PIECE" is its long-term story development. As viewers follow the adventures of Luffy and his friends, they will be able to relate to their own lives. "ONE PIECE" is a work that teaches the importance of chasing dreams and the strength of bonds with friends, and will give viewers a lot of inspiration and courage.