Netflix’s live-action One Piece secured a second season faster than their Cowboy Bebop got canceled. The first season defied expectations by simply being decent. Fans reasonably believed the anime would be impossible to translate, but Netflix pulled it off. The second season is coming out, promising beloved characters like Smoker and Chopper in their live-action debut. How could the series top itself with the hotly anticipated One Piece season 2?
Give Character Moments Room to Breathe
One of the best elements of Netflix’s One Piece is its cast. Iñaki Godoy seems to have walked directly out of the manga. Mackenyu is in his element playing anime swordsmen. Taz Skylar has Sanji’s charm in his DNA. The performers are excellent this season, but the characters don’t always get their time in the sun. The way the show truncates and moves details around doesn’t always serve their narratives. Zoro’s shift from self-interested bounty hunter to dedicated first mate is awkward. Nami’s relationship with her home village is rushed and toxic. One Piece season 2 needs to revel in these character-building moments. That often requires time they don’t have, but some arcs need to play out with suitable interactions between the cast. The show’s casting agents did a lot of hard work that shouldn’t go to waste.
Decide Which Characters Are Minor
I think the most shocking moments in Netflix’s One Piece are the couple of characters they kill off before their time. Don Krieg isn’t exactly anyone’s favorite, but he dies without a second of his usual appearance. He isn’t iconic, but some of the moments he incites are. Losing him forfeits a few great scenes later on. Merry is a more significant loss. When Captain Kuro kills Merry, I was stunned. He’s a lovable minor character in a fun early arc. He’s the namesake for the Straw Hats’ first ship. To see him be dispensed with like one of Zoro’s unnamed bounties is simply gutting. Now, I didn’t catch a #JusticeforMerry campaign on social media. Maybe I’m the only one who cares about the lamb-themed butler. But, supporting characters can be critical to One Piece arcs, and the Netflix adaptation’s writers must be careful how they treat them.
Nail Down the Production Design
Netflix hired crews to build real ships for One Piece. Aside from the casting, that’s their best decision during production. The first shot of the Going Merry and the reveal of the Straw Hats’ Jolly Roger are magical. That is the kind of extravagance and texture that made the show worthwhile. However, not all of the props in One Piece‘s first season were as well handled. Elements that should look colorful look flat and awkward. Alvida’s ship barely stands out. Zoro’s sheaths bend like cheap plastic during a fight scene in the first episode. These could have been fixed in editing, but they all speak to weaknesses in the live-action anime format that can only be resolved by talented artists with tons of cash. Netflix has both, whether they use them or not is a different story.
Write More Jokes
Iñaki Godoy is really funny in and out of character. He gets a few gags that don’t fit the source material. The anime’s sense of humor is silly and joyous, while Netflix gives One Piece snarky, Marvel-ready quips. This is partially an issue of allocation. In the anime, everyone takes part in comedic bits, either as the source of the laughter or as straight men and women. These live-action series have an unfortunate habit of picking out certain characters as “the funny ones” and letting them hog the jokes. One Piece should be hilarious, and spreading the laughs around in season 2 would fix that.
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Spend Less Time On the Marines
Dividing One Piece between the Straw Hats and the Marines worked well enough in season one, but season 2 needs that precious time. It was wise to give Garp, Koby, and Helmeppo a greater role than they received in the anime. It allowed their relationships with Luffy to emerge naturally. Smoker will step in as the new main Marine hunting down the Straw Hats next season, and he doesn’t need the spotlight. As entertaining as Smoker is, play him like one of the villains until his anti-hero turn, and use the spare screen time to flesh out the Straw Hats. Splitting the show worked once, but there’s no reason to try it again.
