Fans of One Piece have just received news of an anime remake, and it isn’t just surprising, but completely unprecedented. In fact, Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece may be the first ever anime series in history to receive a second adaptation while still airing, more so while its story is far from over.
In honor of One Piece‘s 25th anniversary, Wit Studio recently announced that it would be re-adapting the East Blue Saga of One Piece in collaboration with Netflix. The remake aims to present the beginning of Luffy’s adventures in a new way to draw in newer audiences. While plenty of anime have received remakes and reboots over the years, One Piece is the first to receive a remake while the original series is still airing.
Given the tremendous success of Netflix’s live-action adaptation of One Piece which drew in fans from every corner of the world, it comes as no surprise that the series would seek to capitalize on the increased interest in the series, making history in the process.
“It Makes Me Sad”- One Piece’s Remake Could Harm the Series Claims Red Animation Director
A talented animation director who played a large part in creating One Piece’s anime has expressed valid concerns regarding Netflix’s upcoming remake.
One Piece Makes History with Two Simultaneous Adaptations
Given One Piece‘s reputation for being intimidatingly long with well over a thousand episodes, adding more episodes to that ever-growing roster makes the decision appear all the more unusual. That said, the One Piece remake promises to be different from the original and has the potential to fix One Piece‘s often-complained-about pacing issues while also drawing in new fans who may have migrated from the live-action adaptation who could be put off by the older animation.
On that note, anime reboots have often been met with success, best seen in the case of series like Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Hunter x Hunter. However, One Piece‘s remake could end up being a double-edged sword depending on the ending result and its reception, both of which are difficult to gauge at present, despite Wit Studio’s reputation and repertoire of excellent adaptations.
Either way, an eventful year awaits fans of the series with Netflix’s live-action One Piece confirmed for season 2, as well as an adaptation of Eiichiro Oda’s other manga series (and the prequel to One Piece) Monsters set to release in January 2024. Clearly, One Piece fans are unlikely to run out of content to watch any time soon.
One Piece is available from Crunchyroll.
Watch on Crunchyroll
One Piece
- Created by:
- Eiichiro Oda
- First Film:
- One Piece: The Movie
- First TV Show:
- One Piece
- Cast:
- Kazuya Nakai, Akemi Okamura, Kappei Yamaguchi, Hiroaki Hirata, Ikue Ôtani, Yuriko Yamaguchi
- Video Game(s):
- One Piece: Unlimited World RED, One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3, One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4, One Piece: World Seeker, One Piece Odyssey
- Character(s):
- Monkey D. Luffy, Roronora Zoro, Nami (One Piece), Nico Robin, Usopp (One Piece), Vinsmoke Sanji, Tony Tony Chopper, Franky (One Piece), Jimbei (One Piece)
