Oda’s Forgotten Arabasta Easter Egg Means One Piece Can Bring Back Shanks Way Sooner Than You Think

Netflix’s live-action One Piece is officially getting a season 2, and questions about whether it will change anime canon to reunite Luffy and Shanks early have already surfaced — though the series can also bring Shanks back using a forgotten Arabasta Easter egg. In the One Piece manga and anime, Luffy and Shanks part in the same way they do in the live-action. With Luffy setting sail on the East Blue — and then the Grand Line — it’s inevitable they’ll meet again. However, Eiichiro Oda has dragged out their reunion. Despite a few close encounters, Luffy and Shanks have yet to reunite in the manga or anime despite both surpassing 1,000 installments.

Although Netflix has grand plans for its live-action One Piece, it likely won’t run as long as the source material. It will also have to condense its storylines and character arcs to make them suitable for live-action. Maintaining a hold on a new audience may require the live-action One Piece to keep up with all its prominent characters as well. Fortunately, the Arabasta arc offers a way for One Piece season 2 to seamlessly work Shanks into its narrative without changing Oda’s canon.

Shanks Was One Of The Rebels In Arabasta

If the live-action One Piece wants to work Shanks into season 2 without diverging from the source material, it can use an Easter egg from the manga. The opening page of One Piece Vol. 20 offers a breakdown of the characters introduced so far, and it describes Shanks as one of the “Rebel Forces” from Arabasta alongside Koza. Unlike Koza, the manga and anime don’t actually show Shanks’ involvement in the Arabasta conflict. Still, this One Piece Easter egg opens the door for him to be there in a way that’s consistent with Oda’s canon.

It’s possible the live-action One Piece will play up the politics of the Arabasta arc in season 2, showing its impact on a wider range of characters — including Shanks. If the show wants to stick to anime and manga canon, it will need to work Shanks into the main storyline without having him run into the Straw Hat Pirates. The show will need to keep him peripheral if it wants to build up tension surrounding his and Luffy’s eventual reunion, making this just another missed opportunity for the pair to connect.

Why Shanks Needs To Be In One Piece Season 2

Netflix should probably utilize One Piece Vol. 20’s note about Shanks, as cutting the character from season 2 would be difficult to pull off. Although the manga goes for long periods of time without showing certain characters, this approach is less likely to work for the live-action series. For one, there’s no telling how long Netflix’s One Piece will last. Even if Netflix doesn’t cancel the show, it’s not likely to have the same lengthy run as the anime and manga. As such, it should avoid dropping certain storylines and characters for too long.

Additionally, audiences watching the live-action One Piece with no knowledge of the source material are likely to wonder where characters like Shanks are. To keep its storylines consistent and front of mind, the Netflix series needs to check in with every important character introduced in season 1. For some, that will mean adding new subplots. However, the live-action One Piece won’t need to do this for Shanks, as the manga already offers a built-in excuse to feature the character.