I was honestly surprised to hear this news. While I haven't yet to watch the live-action Attack on Titan, I don't hear the dissents that the Hollywood Ghost in the Shell and Dragon Ball Evolution did. I haven't watch the live action FMA yet either but while I don't have the bad feelings that the Death Note adaptation gave me...I felt indifferent. Ace Attorney is the most faithful of all the adaptations right down to the silliness while still meshing well with the dark features the director is known for.
One Piece is long as heck. It's not even half-way finished because the Straw Hats still need to find the last two Road Poneglyphs and let's not forget the very fact that we still haven't reached the World War yet, the Games of Thrones-esque when we have some form of the Red Wedding in the latest arc. The anime had all but caught up to the current manga by now. Oda has even teased he could go for another decade and did you recall that he would die for OP? Look I love OP and enjoyed it and even now with the current arc, I still deeply enjoy the passion and writing that Oda puts his heart and soul into.
I just wonder how are they going to execute this? Because One Piece's world runs on nonsense and unpredictability. The world-building is incredible not just in the individual islands and the seas but also the entire world's history. It's also full of passion with lots of crying. Actors, you are going to cry a lot...messily as possible too because the crying scenes in OP aren't pretty like a single tear dropping down a pretty face, no, everybody cried like a fountain. Messily. Maybe that's why the Midoriya's tears are like this to the point that it might be a secondary quirk.
However, they do know just how crazy the world is, right? You are going to need a lot of CGI, animatronics, makeup, and a whole lot of special effect in order to match the world. You are going to need CGI for the main character who uses his body almost every single chapter, be it fighting or normal everyday activities like catching an apple or swinging himself up the mast. Not to mention, Brook himself. How about incredibly large characters like Kuma or Moria? I think you can find an actor for Akainu or Fujitora or Aokiji. Heck, you can find actors for the dwarves, merpeople and giants. Each island is designed exaggeratedly like Whole Cake Island or Impel Down is basically the Alcatraz. Seriously, there are so many things I can name that needs CGI in general. You are going to need CGI for Devil fruit users after all. I'm not talking about Bentham's Devil fruit users because actors can act that role.
Are you going to pull in all the stops for this one? Devil fruits, islands, people? You must go full on Games of Thrones, go Pirates of the Caribbean on this. If you honestly want to go all out, you have to get the best of everything from special effects to actors.
Normal islands like Little Garden or those in East Blue and Paradise (Drum, Alabasta, Whiskey Peak, Twin Capes, even Reverse Mountain, Little Garden, Jaya, Skypeia, Sabaody) can be done normally. Although you have to do with the dinosaurs in Little Garden though. Sanji and Zoro outright caught dinosaurs. How about the Sea Kings monsters for god's sake? How about the wolves in the Skypeia arc?
How long would the series be? We know that they are going right back at the beginning in East Blue. East Blue is relatively easy to do because the sets (aside from property damage...so much property damage...) are easy to create. You can even reuse, repaint, remake sets.
...Though in Whole Cake Island, you must make a lot of edible pastries because well...you know...actors will need to eat them.
Just how the fuck is they going to do sets like Water 7 which is practically Venice? I think they can do Thriller Bark but lots of makeup for the zombies. They can do Marineford including the iceberg Mihawke chopped.
Do you know just how much property damage there is in OP? So much property damage from swords slashes, punches, devil fruit powers... Had you seen the damage in Alabasta? Dressrosa?
How about technology? Thousand Sunny has so much tech involved from the Gaon Cannon to the Channels. We are talking about submarines here, folks. You can build individual sets after all but you have to use again. However, since we are explicitly shown ship's deck frequently where most of the action takes place including the Grand Line's wild weather. I know the sea is dangerous but you don't have the luxury of animation.
How about the costuming? There is loads of fanservice in OP from the Cyborg Franky who wears one pair of speedos and he only has one to Nami who doesn't even mind showing off her body. Hell, Nami and Robin are well-regarded as beautiful in-universe. Amazon Lily is practically littering with beautiful women of all shapes and sizes. How about Chopper? He has so many forms of the love of Godoka? There are notable jokes that are there like Kaku's nose that compared to Usopp's nose. The character designs cannot translate well into live-action. How on earth are you going to do Usopp's trademark nose? Duval? Insane character designs that would take a lot of effort in order to translate into real life? I think you guys can do Pica or even Big Mom but you would have difficulty with Duval or Usopp. Plot-driven characters like Duval is going to be difficult to recreate. Like Sanji is capable of being a plastic surgeon based on his kicks alone.
The series is ridiculous. I hope you don't tone it down one bit. Because it is high on powerful emotion and exaggeration. It's by no means realistic...it's realistic when it wants to. For example, Sanji's blood loss and the necessity to supply the blood.
It's not like they can actually match the character design-wise. You can't possibly match characters like Lola. How on earth are you going to do characters that have trademarks like Brook's afro and Franky's pompadour? Or the Square Sisters?
On actors and actresses, are you going to stick with white people despite the fact OP is not quite our own? There are places that are certainly inspired by real-life nations like Dressrosa with Spain and Italy or Zoro's hometown as Japan. In fact, there is still Japanese food still existing there with onigiri; people literally eat Japanese style for the most part including bandits living in the mountains. You could get actors from many nationalities because there is the very fact that Oda has given his characters nationalities if they exist in this world.
You can do Paulie. Hell, you can even do Hancock.
You have to be pragmatic about this adaptation after all. You can't recreate everything when the anime and manga are doing just fine. There are things you can do without trouble like the sets in East Blue or even Reverse Mountain. You are going to have to do CGI with Laboon though.
As for romance, it's open season. Unlike Naruto or Bleach which I ship SNS and Ichiruki, I don't have much inclination. Yes, I do like LuNa and ZoSan but beyond that, there are relatively little ship wars. I am utterly grateful because Oda pretty much made sure of that beyond the characters he made married or definitely lovers (Chiffon and Bege or Roger and Rouge) but he certainly left potentials in the wake after all. People still ship LawLu or LuHan or Luffy with a harem of the girls he attracted from his journey. In the OP fandom, people ship whatever they want.
Unlike in other fandoms where they would argue whether or not you can ship it based on age/whatever context and the canonicity of a pairing from age to whatever the heck you think of (I am looking at you, VLD fandom), the OP is free game. Nobody cares about who or what you ship together.
There are so little ship wars in OP that fans would rather argue which pairing would be the endgame. Yes, there are still wars a la the form of dismantling or ship sinking. You do know that regardless of ship sinking or dismantling, people can still ship, right? People still ship pairings like Katniss X Gale or RoyEd or AlEd or DeanCas when the canon says that it is nil. Regardless of whether or not the individual shippers are swayed by the argument, let it be known that it is still shipping. Shipping is subjective and should not be taken seriously. One of OP's themes is friendship so don't think for a second there will be romance. I doubt there will be an endgame couple(s).
I just worry what Hollywood would in terms of romance. They might as well tease many couples or imply an endgame couple at the end.
The series is incredibly silly and whimsical. It's insane and things like Sanji's poster ending up being a real person in the end or a talking skeleton or a talking reindeer is considered apples. We got people who can kill others by turning into candy or becoming the element of the devil fruit they ate. We are talking about characters who are not normal in design. You can get actors for characters drawn in realistic proportions and yes that includes the ladies but you would have a hard time finding an actor for Duval. You guys can even do Jimbei or any Fishman for that matter, mermaids should be fine too.
The show relies intensively on flashbacks which means child actors. Unless you get incredible actors like Stranger Things (that is still disbelieving because how on earth they manage to get together such an incredible group of child actors?), you must be thorough in your search.
I just worry a lot about this project because OP is huge in all respects. You would need brevity in order to get the essentials of each arc out. Everything is interlocked so you can't really skimp on the details unless it is absolutely necessary.
Unless you want to fall into the pacing issue the special Episodes did.
Now the series is still heavily Japanese influenced despite its western setting. When I say it's Japanese media, it's still Japanese media regardless. Cowboy Bebop is still Japanese influenced although it might not look like it. Tiger and Bunny are still Japanese despite looking every bit like a superhero show.
Regardless of its western setting (it sets around the 1500s, last I calculated), it's still Japanese in its form. Japanese names are still littered about, Japanese culture and expectations are still there albeit in less volume than Naruto... Even the Funi dub doesn't skimp the Japanese, using the names and culture. Zoro's home island is more Japanese than Cocoyashi or Dawn. You are going to need to use the Japanese names and culture that is in there, regardless of its western premise.
To be honest, I still don't like to think Jimbe as part of the Straw Hats. I can get used to the idea someday.
But I just wanted another girl into the crowd. Certainly, they have female allies including Vivi but just another girl, please. There are female pirates and the women in OP is certainly well-developed.
Just another girl...please.
We already got Jimbe who does fit the template of a Straw Hat down to losing somebody important in their life that they loved immensely. There are just too many hints that Jimbei will join the crew.
Between Jimbei and Carrot, it's a toss-up and it's more likely Jimbei than Carrot.
Doesn't mean I have to like it.
Death is the only way for Jimbe for not joining the Straw Hats.
Either he or Carrot.
Now ten members are the supposed limit. Remember that OP was supposed to end within five years, Oda had not expected the major phenomenon... It is still a valid interpretation that there will only be ten members in total. But there is another one where the cap might be at ten members.
Oda has a tendency to split the Straw Hats. Just be lucky we're not following the number of pirates as saying the Heart Pirates at 20 members or the Tonta Corps at 200 or the Charlotte Family at over a hundred family members. I would personally put an estimated number of 12 members for the Straw Hats, no more, no less.
Can you believe the Wano arc is coming soon?! We first heard of Wano as far back as Thriller Bark and now we're heading to Wano right after Whole Cake Island. I cannot wait for the arc to start!
And now the second season for Tiger and Bunny is finally greenlit! Finally! Seriously, I thought a second season would not come. There were merch of course, pretty cute ones too.
And yes, I am well aware it is the merch that supports the anime. OP has so much going for its franchise including actual lectures and published analysis! Oda pretty sure wasn't expecting that.
I mean if my works were as well-regarded as OP, I will die continuously inside while staring in awe. If my works ever get that point.
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