About Amanda Rush
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Some can break into pieces, some can breathe fire and some are made of rubber. What are they? The pirates of Shonen Jump’s One Piece, and they’re after treasure!
It’s one of Shonen Jumps’ bestselling titles. It’s broken sales records in Japan, and spawned ten movies. One Piece is the story of Monkey D. Luffy, pirate extraordinaire. Determined to find the biggest treasure in the world, the legendary One Piece, Luffy puts together a crew of clever and trustworthy pirates and thieves to achieve his goal.
Luffy manages, in these first thirteen episodes, to recruit the swordsman Zoro (whose name I desperately wanted to mock but I found myself loving the character too much to do so) and Nami (a thief who only steals from pirates). Usopp enters into the plot by the latter third of the set, but the show cliffhangers before he has a chance to join the crew.
You root for the heroes. They amuse you. They draw you in. The villains are spectacular, and there are pirate references all around, though tweaked in fun ways. And pirates aren’t the only ones referenced - Michael Jackson pops up in the form of a truly weird guy. The powers bestowed on those who eat the devil fruit are fantastic, and Luffy’s never-ending idiocy makes him not only hilarious, but a great guy to boot.
One Piece has had a strange history in the United States. Originally aired here for children, the show was heavily edited and even had imagery changed (cigarettes magically became lollipops!). In this collection the show is set right again. There is swearing, violence, and (gasp!) smoking. The show regains its quippy humor, over the top antics, and enjoyable style. This version of One Piece is vastly superior, and bound to make anime fans happy.
The two DVDs come in a lovely case, and have the usual features (trailers and textless songs). Where One Piece stands out from its DVD brethren is in the marathon function, which allows you to play through all the episodes on a disc without constantly seeing theme songs, previews for the next episode or recaps of previous episodes. It’s fantastic. Add to that a little bit of commentary, and this DVD set is better than your average bear.
I genuinely enjoyed this anime. I laughed. I got caught up in its silliness and the fight scenes. I went in not wanting to like Luffy, but its impossible not to love him. As one would expect of such a successful manga, the anime is golden.
