For years, platforms like Netflix have tried to turn popular anime and cartoons into live-action shows, like Death Note (2017), Dragon Ball: Evolution (2009), and Cowboy Bebop (2021). However, audiences were disappointed because these adaptations often changed the original story by cutting out important characters, themes, or relationships. Another reason is that the production tried to translate the anime’s expressions, actions, and humor, which do not translate well to live-action, and the creators of the original work are not a part of the production.
The ‘curse’ of live-action anime adaptations is believed to have come to an end with the live-action series of Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece on Netflix. The first season of the show came out in 2023 and became a major hit. It stayed in the Top 10 shows (Glodaly) for 11 weeks and has 63.6 million views and 480.3 million viewing hours. The second season of the live-action series has been out for over a month and is almost as popular as the first. It has been in the Top 10 for 5 weeks, with over 39 million views and more than 320 million viewing hours. The show has ratings of 8.3/10 on IMDb, 93% from critics, and 95% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.
But what is The One Piece?
One Piece is known as the greatest and most mysterious treasure in the Blue World, left behind by Gol D. Roger, the legendary King of the Pirates. Monkey D. Luffy dreams of finding the One Piece and becoming King of the Pirates himself. He forms the Straw Hat Crew and sails through the Grand Line with his friends to chase his dream.
Why is One Piece the live-action so popular?
To begin with, the One Piece franchise has been running for almost 30 years now. It all began in 1997, when Echiro Oda published the first Manga volume in the Weekly Shonen Jump Magazine, and it became so popular that in 1999 the Anime aired. By the time One Piece live-action premiered, both the manga and the anime already had a large fan base, but many fans had doubts after past live-action adaptation attempts, as previously mentioned. The difference this time, and the reason the fans like the show, is that Netflix is using the manga as a source, and Eiichiro Oda is involved in the series’ production as executive producer to ensure everything aligns with his vision.
That is the main reason why the live-action of One Piece is so popular: it gives the fan base exactly what they want to see. And what do they want to see, you may ask? And the answer is to see the story they love become a reality, with great visual art, and a cast very close to the characters they loved for years.
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