10 Best Fights In One Piece Season 1, Ranked

Netflix’s One Piece season 1 is full of tense fight sequences, making it worthwhile to rank the best 10 of them from worst to best. One Piece is a live-action adaptation of the iconic anime series of the same name, and it has been praised for seemingly breaking the anime adaptation “curse” that saw so many anime-to-live-action adaptations fail. One Piece is incredibly loyal to the source material, and though there are far too many episodes in the original show to adapt the story perfectly, it captures the essence of the anime with remarkable skill.

One of the best parts of One Piece‘s adaptation is the way it manages to create fight scenes that are similar to those in the original. With One Piece season 2’s renewal confirmed, fans can look forward to more riveting action sequences in the near future. However, with the next season still some distance away, reflecting on the best fight scenes in season 1 is a good way of scratching the One Piece itch. Further, ranking the 10 best fights from One Piece season 1 can give fans a vantage point to judge season 2’s fights from.

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10 Shanks And His Crew Save Luffy In Windmill Village

One Piece season 1, episode 2

In one of Luffy’s flashbacks during One Piece season 1, he is threatened by a pirate in Windmill Village. Shanks and his crew show up, and a fierce brawl ensues, scattering the pirates as Shanks and his friends make quick work of them. While this fight ranks last because of a lack of tension or any serious stakes, it’s still a great fight scene. Shanks’ crew works together with obvious familiarity, and the way the camera circles the action from a low vantage point makes it an eye-popping sequence. It also offers some hope that Luffy and Shanks could reunite in One Piece season 2.

9 Luffy Fights Alvida

One Piece season 1, episode 1

Luffy’s fight with Alvida happens in One Piece‘s pilot episode, and though it’s too brief to beat out many of the show’s later fight scenes, it benefits from being the first chance fans have to see Luffy’s devil fruit powers in live-action. Though Alvida is expected to return as one of One Piece season 2’s villains, she is beaten soundly here by Luffy, who uses his rubbery flesh to absorb her blows before finally sending her flying overboard with his Gum Gum Pistol move. Overall, this fight scene is a fun introduction to Luffy’s abilities, but it’s not nearly as impressive of a spectacle as later fights.

8 Zoro Fights The Black Cat Pirates

One Piece season 1, episode 4

Zoro’s fight with the Black Cat Pirates in Kaya’s mansion is another great action sequence in One Piece season 1. It uses some impressive stunt work to send the contestants flying around as they chase Zoro across the entryway of the mansion. Zoro shows off some remarkable sword skills as he fights two people at once, each of them wielding two weapons. The Black Cat Pirates give Zoro a run for his money, but he ultimately defeats them without too much fuss. The choreography in this fight is fantastic, but the result never seems in doubt, which prevents it from ranking higher.

7 Luffy, Zoro, And Nami Fight Axe-Hand Morgan

One Piece season 1, episode 1

Luffy, Nami, and Zoro’s fight with Axe-Hand Morgan is their first brawl as a crew, even if Nami and Zoro haven’t admitted they’re part of the crew yet. After defeating a contingent of Morgan’s marines, Luffy and Zoro work together to get Morgan on the ground and allow Luffy to knock him out with his Gum Gum Whip move. This fight is also choreographed expertly, and the feel-good factor created by watching the Straw Hat Pirates fight together for the first time gives it a big boost. It also has high stakes considering they would be captured and lose the Grand Line map if they lost.

6 Luffy, Zoro, And Nami Fight Buggy The Clown

One Piece season 1, episode 2

Luffy, Zoro, and Nami’s fight with Buggy the Clown is one of the show’s most suspenseful battles because it genuinely feels like there is no way for them to win. No matter how they attack Buggy, he can break his body apart and put himself back together. This just makes it more satisfying, however, when they figure out that all they need to do is lock his body parts in different crates to prevent him from reforming. The suspense coupled with some gorgeous acrobatics makes this an awesome fight. Despite that, some of the show’s later fights demonstrate even better choreography and more engaging camerawork.

5 Luffy Fights Garp

One Piece season 1, episode 8

Luffy’s fight with his grandfather, Vice Admiral Garp, is a tense occasion that threatens to undo the epic victory Luffy earns just before it. Garp wipes the floor with Luffy on this occasion, but Luffy’s determination proves to his grandfather that he’s ready to take the next step in his life as a pirate. The emotional satisfaction of this scene elevates it, and the suspense caused by not knowing what Garp will do with him makes it even better. While other fights have better action sequences, this one is as engaging and meaningful as they come.

4 Luffy Fights Kuro Of The Black Cat Pirates

One Piece season 1, episode 4

After Kaya’s butler reveals himself to be Kuro of the Black Cat Pirates, it seems inevitable that Luffy or Zoro will have to take him down. Luffy gets the honors, and though he is hard-pressed to keep up with Kuro’s incredible speed and wicked-sharp knuckle-blades, he finally manages to get a hold of Kuro and send him flying through the window. This fight is tensely filmed against a dark background, giving it a harrowing feel that adds to the suspense of the moment. It’s also elevated by the way it forces Luffy to think things through and realize he must stop moving and listen if he’s going to catch Kuro.

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3 Sanji And Zoro Fight The Arlong Pirates

One Piece season 1, episode 8

One Piece season 1’s climactic final episode sees Sanji and Zoro take on the Arlong pirates while Luffy deals with Arlong himself. This is no easy fight for the Straw Hats, as the Fish-men they fight are incredibly strong and resilient. Zoro is also still nursing the grievous injury he got from Mihawk, making things more difficult for him. Even so, they manage to defeat or scare off Arlong’s crew in one of One Piece‘s best fights. The innovative camerawork captures the spectacular acrobatics beautifully as Sanji whirls and kicks his enemies and Zoro slashes his way through the crowd with cold-blooded precision.

2 Zoro Fights Dracule Mihawk

One Piece season 1, episode 5

The fight between Zoro and Dracule Mihawk may not be closely contested, but it’s still one of the two best fights in the series. The emotional stakes are incredibly high as Zoro seeks to fulfill the promise he made to his childhood friend, Kuina, swearing one of them would become the world’s greatest swordsman. After Kuina’s tragic death, Zoro takes the promise even more seriously, and feels he must take his chance to defeat Mihawk, who is currently considered the best in the world. Further, Mihawk’s incredible power is a sight to behold, and One Piece films it perfectly, making the impossible look plausible.

1 Luffy Fights Arlong

One Piece season 1, episode 8

Luffy’s fight with Arlong is the climax of One Piece season 1, and it’s definitely the best fight in the show so far. Though Luffy is unable to do much damage to Arlong, he smartly realizes that he can destroy his maps and trap him under the rubble by smashing the columns that hold up his lair. This fight is incredibly suspenseful, and the outcome is immensely satisfying. It’s also one of the show’s most impressive spectacles, as Luffy brings the whole building down on Arlong’s head. Luffy’s future fights in One Piece might be able to top this one, but it won’t be easy.