One Piece, the brainchild of Eiichiro Oda, is one of the most celebrated manga and anime series that managed to attain widespread popularity among the fans. It features a world of endless oceans, hidden treasures, and exciting adventures. The story follows Luffy and his diverse pirate crew who set sail towards the dangerous Grand Line to hunt a mysterious treasure named One Piece. The Netflix adaptation of the manga series of the same name brings to life Luffy’s journey, including his encounters with rivals, exploration of mysterious islands, and pursuit of his dream to become the king of pirates.
Spoilers Ahead
Where Was The One Piece Hidden?
In One Piece Episode 1, the story began in Loguetown, where a large crowd gathered to witness the execution of Gol D. Roger, the former king of pirates. Marine Admiral Garp was responsible for carrying out the execution. Just before his death, Gol D. Roger revealed that his hidden treasure in the Grand Line, known as One Piece, could be claimed by anyone who found it. This announcement caused a great commotion among pirates as they all set out in search of the legendary treasure.
Next, we meet Monkey D. Luffy, who was sailing alone in the middle of the sea on his boat. As he encountered a unique bird known as the South Bird, Luffy’s boat suddenly started sinking. He took refuge in a barrel and drifted away from his sinking boat. Eventually, he ended up on another pirate’s ship. This ship belonged to Captain Alvida, a feared and wanted pirate known for her cruelty.
On the ship, Luffy came across Koby, a young and timid boy who was forced to serve Captain Alvida. Koby was scared of Alvida and didn’t dare stand up to her. While cleaning one of Alvida’s weapons, Koby discovered a moving barrel on the ship. To his surprise, Luffy came out of the barrel and confidently introduced himself as someone who would become the king of pirates. However, Luffy’s noisy movements alerted everyone on the ship, leading to a confrontation with Alvida. Using his unique stretching ability, Luffy managed to defeat Alvida and take control of the ship. With Luffy now in charge, he and Koby set off on their journey to find the hidden treasure. Along the way, Koby expressed his amazement at Luffy’s stretching ability, and Luffy shared his backstory, explaining how he acquired this extraordinary power.
How Did Luffy’s Body Become Stretchy?
When Luffy was a young boy, he was inspired by the red-haired pirate named Shanks. Although Luffy was just a child when he traveled with Shanks, he was determined to become a pirate. However, Shanks didn’t want to involve the young boy in the challenges of piracy. In an attempt to prove his determination, Luffy even injured his own face to appear more like a pirate. Despite this, Shanks explained that such actions wouldn’t make him a real pirate.
One day, while exploring Shanks’ ship, Luffy discovered a box containing gum gum fruit. He ate the fruit, gaining the unique ability to stretch his entire body like a rubber-band. This power made him stretchy like elastic, protecting him from any injury.
During a conversation with Koby, Luffy openly shared his ambitious dreams, but Koby was hesitant to discuss his own aspirations. Koby believed his dreams weren’t valid and kept them hidden. Luffy encouraged Koby to open up and express his desires. Koby revealed that he wanted to become a Marine, the honorable protector of those who couldn’t protect themselves. Luffy validated Koby’s dreams and motivated him to pursue his goal, leaving a positive impact on Koby’s mind.
Who Was Zoro? Why Did He Kill Mr. 7?
Meanwhile, in a different location, we witnessed Mr. 7, who was associated with the criminal organization called Baroque Works. He attempted to convince Roronoa Zoro, a skilled pirate hunter, to join their crew. However, Zoro, preferring to work independently, declined the offer to be part of their group. This led Mr. 7 to choose violence in order to force Zoro to join their team, but his efforts backfired, resulting in Zoro defeating and killing him. Known as a formidable fighter, Zoro was often referred to as the demon and showed no mercy to his enemies or whoever would come along.
Carrying Mr. 7’s mutilated body, Zoro continued on his journey and arrived at a bar on the islands of Shells Town, where Luffy and Koby were also present. In this bar, another interesting character was introduced: Nami, the thief. Nami had already managed to steal a ship that was occupied by pirates, and she had come to the bar with the intention of stealing more. However, a commotion broke out in the bar, giving Nami the opportunity to knock a Marine out and steal his uniform to infiltrate Captain Morgan’s naval base.
The commotion at the bar was caused by Morgan’s son, Helmeppo, who came across Rika as she was offering Zoro some chocolate rice balls. As Rika stumbled upon Helmeppo, the angry Marine ruined her food by knocking it to the ground. This angered Zoro, who confronted Helmeppo. Zoro picked up the food and told Helmeppo to eat it as a way to make amends. However, Helmeppo seized Zoro and took him to the naval base under Captain Morgan’s command.
Impressed by Zoro’s impressive fighting abilities, Luffy was keen on having him join his crew. He made his way to Captain Morgan’s naval base and discovered Zoro tied up. Luffy freed Zoro and extended an invitation to join his crew, though Zoro initially declined. However, unlike Mr. 7’s earlier attempt, Luffy didn’t force Zoro into joining. Instead, he respected Zoro’s choice and let him go.
Nami successfully infiltrated the base and began her search for the map to the Grand Line. She even encountered the marine she had previously knocked out in the bar, but once again, she evaded his capture by beating him unconscious. While she was trying to locate the map, Luffy suddenly burst into the room. He introduced himself as someone aiming to become the future pirate king and revealed that he shared Nami’s goal of finding the One Piece map. They discovered that the map was hidden somewhere within Morgan’s office. With this information, Nami took Luffy along and headed towards the office.
On their way, Nami had a run-in with Morgan himself. She cleverly deceived him by pretending to be a new Marine recruit who claimed to be escorting Luffy as a prisoner to the cell. Impressed by Nami’s work, Morgan went about his business. However, when he encountered the incapacitated Marine who had been knocked out by Nami, he realized that both Nami and Luffy were intruders in their base.
Did Luffy And Nami Obtain The Map?
Meanwhile, Nami and Luffy successfully located a concealed safe beneath Morgan’s table. Just as they were about to unlock it, Morgan attempted to break the locked door to capture them. Using his gum gum ability, Luffy managed to dislodge the safe from its position. However, as they tried to escape, Morgan blocked their path and picked a fight. Zoro intervened, resulting in an intense clash involving Luffy, Zoro, and Nami against Morgan.
Eventually, once again, using his gum-gum whip technique, Luffy defeated Morgan. Nevertheless, another challenge surfaced as Helmeppo, whose hair had been cut short by Zoro, stood in their way. At a critical moment, Koby intervened by delivering a punch to Helmeppo’s face. Luffy was impressed by Koby finally using his strength, so he invited Koby to join them. But Koby declined, expressing his determination to follow his own dream of becoming a mariner. As Luffy recognized Koby’s brave decision to shape his own destiny, he chose to leave him behind and continued his journey, taking the map of the Grand Line stored in the safe.
One Piece Episode 1 ended with Garp receiving information about the pirates in a straw hat who had managed to steal the One Piece map. Garp would likely take action to thwart the pirates’ quest for the treasure. However, exciting surprises await in the upcoming episodes as the story will explore Captain Buggy, who had already made a brief appearance at the end of episode 1.
The Differences From The Anime
The live-action adaptation of One Piece maintains a striking balance between creative liberties and remaining true to its source material, which is a delight for die-hard fans of One Piece. While the favorite characters come to life and the series captures the essence of the original story, there are noticeable differences that add a unique flavor.
One significant change is the introduction of the criminal organization Baroque Works in One Piece Episode 1 itself, whereas in the manga, it happened much later. Zoro’s interaction with Helmeppo now occurs in front of Luffy, whereas in the manga, it happened before Luffy’s arrival. Nami’s character has been expanded beyond being just a cat burglar. Various scenes have been tweaked, like a young girl offering Zoro a chocolate-covered rice ball instead of the prison yard setting, giving the series a unique touch. Zoro’s reaction to Luffy’s signature moves is also different, as he doesn’t vocally identify his sword styles like in the manga. In the live-action adaptation by Netflix, they’ve mixed parts of Orange Town and Shells Town. Instead of the Straw Hats taking a map from Buggy’s base like in the manga, they do it in Shells Town. Also, Vice Admiral Garp is introduced differently; he’s after the Straw Hats, not just Koby and Helmeppo. The live-action adaptation by Netflix has allowed both long-time fans and newcomers to enjoy a fresh take on the beloved world of pirates and adventure.
