Pictured: Emily Rudd, Iñaki Godoy, and Mackenyu as Nami, Luffy, and Zoro One Piece – Tomorrow Studios
The live-action adaptation of One Piece is only around the corner, and many fans of the manga and anime will be wondering how much of the story will the live-action adaptation cover in the first season. We’ve got a good idea of how much fans can expect to see.
One Piece is a behemoth of a franchise. Eiichiro Oda’s beloved pirate Odyssey is now over 26 years old and has sold over 516 million copies worldwide. Not to mention, the anime adaptation is one of the most popular anime shows on the planet and has been entertaining multiple generations since 1999. It’s an understatement to say there’s a lot for the live-action adaptation, helmed by Steven Maeda, and Matt Owens, to live up to.
Taking into consideration the ginormous size of the One Piece story, it’s a mammoth-sized task for any live-action adaptation to faithfully adapt the story. And, practically impossible to adapt the story frame by frame. However, with the help of Eiichiro Oda, and the long history of the story, any changes made specifically for the live-action series should make the anime/manga fans happy, and introduce a brand new audience to the franchise.
The live-action adaptation One Piece series arrives globally on Netflix on Thursday, August 31st, 2023.
How much of the story will the first season cover?
*SPOILER WARNING FOR ONE PIECE SEASON ONE*
First of all, we have plenty of information from the synopsis of each episode to track where we are in the story.
The episode titles and their synopsis are as follows;
- Romance Dawn – A boy named Monkey D. Luffy embarks on a journey to attain the greatest treasure: the one piece. After the former pirate king’s public execution 22 years ago, the world has entered a great pirate era, and Luffy aims to be at the top.
- The Man in the Straw Hat – Luffy, Zoro, and Nami find themselves imprisoned on an island overtaken by the deranged clown pirate, Buggy. Koby joins the Marines and proves his mettle.
- Tell No Tales – Luffy, Zoro, and Nami land in Syrup Village, where they meet Usopp, a local who introduced the group to Kaya, a sickly shipyard heiress under the care of a trio of overbearing house staff. With the help of Koby, Vice Admiral Garp, a powerful marine, sets off in search of Luffy.
- The Pirates are Coming – Luffy, Zoro, and Nami fight their way through Kaya’s mansion, which has now become a prison. Usopp enlists the help of Koby, Helmeppo, and the Marines. Luffy finally gets the ship of his dreams as Garp closes in.
- Eat at Baratie! – Luffy and the gang are tested in their ability to fight together on the high seas. They arrive at Baratie, a floating restaurant, where they encounter Sanji, a young chef with a love of fine dining. A duel on the docks shocks the group.
- The Chef and the Chore Boy – The group is ambushed by a threat no one sees coming. After a hard-fought battle at the Baratie, Sanji finally follows his dreams while another crew member shows their true colors.
- The Girl With The Sawfish Tattoo – The crew comes to the aid of a member in dire need of a family.
- Worst in the East – A new pirate crew is born.
The eight episodes will cover almost the entirety of the East Blue Saga of One Piece. A minimum of 11 volumes (95 chapters) of the manga will be covered, and at least 45 episodes of the anime.
At the time of writing, there are currently 1090 chapters of One Piece. This means by the end of the Arlong Park Arc of One Piece, only 4% of the manga has been covered.
The table below details which manga arcs, chapters, volumes, and anime episodes will be covered in the first season.
| Live Action Episode Title | Manga Arc | Chapters | Volumes | Anime Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romance Dawn | Romance Dawn | 1-7 | 1-3 | 1-3 |
| The Man in the Straw Hat | Orange Town | 8-21 | 1-3 | 4-8 |
| Tell No Tales | Syrup Village | 22-41 | 3-5 | 9-18 |
| The Pirates are Coming | Syrup Village | 22-41 | 3-5 | 9-18 |
| Eat at Baratie! | Baratie | 42-68 | 5-8 | 19-30 |
| The Chef and the Chore Boy | Baratie | 42-68 | 5-8 | 19-30 |
| The Girl With The Sawfish Tattoo | Arlong Park | 69-95 | 8-11 | 31-44 |
| Worst in the East | Arlong Park / Logue Town | 69-95 | 8-11 | 31-44 (45/46?) |
It’s unclear exactly at what point in the story the first season will end. However, we are certain that we’ll see Luffy’s victory over Arlong, and the celebrations between the Straw Hats and Cocoyasi Village inhabitants.
We’re not sure Luffy and the Straw Hats will make it to Loguetown, as we expect that to be the location to kickstart the 2nd season.
What are some of the major changes so far?
From the synopsis we’ve seen, one of the early major changes we’ve found is Garp, Vice-Admiral of the Marines, is already searching for Luffy. He also has Koby and Helmeppo in tow. In the manga, Luffy would not reunite with Koby, or see Garp until chapter 431 of the manga, or episode 313 of the anime.
Another big change is Usopp enlisting the help of the Marines during the Syrup Village Arc, which never happened in the manga or the anime.
We’re also sure that we won’t be seeing the anime filler arc Warship Island in the live-action series.
Are you looking forward to the release of the live-action One Piece series on Netflix? Let us know in the comments below!
