Four reasons why you should get into One Piece – even 25 years after its inception
31.10.2022
Translation: Katherine Martin
The One Piece manga series is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and has amassed 1,000 chapters since its creation. The anime series of the same name is perfect for newbies to the genre – and today, it’s better than ever before.
Early in 1998, I’m at a Bieler bookstore when I make a life-changing discovery: a manga titled «The Dawn of the Adventure», the first volume of One Piece. As a spotty, 15-year-old loner, the story about Luffy the Rubber Human seems as if it were made for me. The tale continues to captivate me for many years until the spell is broken in 2014. Doing both a traineeship and a master’s degree at once leaves me with zero free time. Once I’m done, I don’t get around to catching up with the story – other series and life in general are just too time-consuming.
Recently, however, I needed an operation on my foot, which meant lots of bed rest. It was the perfect time to catch up on over 400 episodes of the One Piece anime. The story had me spellbound from the word go. Even when I had no trouble standing up, I’d go on lying there, watching.
What you need to know about One Piece
One Piece tells the story of Monkey D. Luffy («Ruffy» in some localisations). The 17-year-old adventurer eats the Gum-Gum Fruit – one of the One Piece universe’s many mystical Devil Fruits. This turns him into a Rubber Human, which as the name suggests, gives his body the properties of rubber. He ventures out into the world alone to become the Pirate King. Of course, he doesn’t fly solo for long. Soon enough, he assembles a ragtag team of misfits named The Straw Hat Crew, or simply, The Straw Hats, in a nod to Luffy’s signature headgear. All the crew members pursue their own goals, and believe they can achieve them with the help of Luffy and his permanent can-do attitude.
This is actually a typical premise for the shōnen manga genre, which is targeted at a young, male audience. However, One Piece sets itself apart from other shōnen mangas and animes in four ways.
1. The characters have depth
In One Piece, there’s no sign of the one-dimensional characters you get in some Marvel flicks. Every character has hidden depths and an individual backstory. Several episodes are reserved for the main characters to reveal their past and shed light on what drives them. Rather than being static, they grow and develop with time. What don’t change are the running gags, such as the fact Sanji gets a nosebleed whenever he sees a pretty woman. Or that Zoro always gets lost. The running gags have started to get on my nerves now, but they’re part and parcel of the genre.
It’s not just the main characters who’re multifaceted. Enemies are also given plenty of depth, and even room for development. They’re more than just «baddies». Although minor characters aren’t given as much space, they do have their own backstories. Depending on how long they roll with the Straw Hat Crew, they also show character development – something sorely lacking in other cinematic universes.
2. The living, breathing world of One Piece
In the One Piece world, no two places are alike. There’s Fish-Man Island on the ocean floor, Skypiea above the clouds and Zou on the back of a giant elephant. Lavish settings alone, however, aren’t enough – they need to be brought to life. In this regard too, One Piece creator Eiichirō Oda does a fantastic job. The people and creatures inhabiting each place are a perfect fit for the setting. They also have their own idiosyncrasies, which lend each place a distinct character. Not only that, but the further the story progresses, the clearer it becomes that the world of One Piece is anything but peaceful. The issues of racism, death and even genocide are dealt with just as often as friendship, dreams and personal growth.
The lore could go toe-to-toe with works like «A Song of Ice and Fire» by George R. R. Martin. Let’s take Vivre Cards, for instance. A special piece of paper made out of fingernails, a Vivre Card reflects the life force of the person the nail clippings belong to. Additionally, it can be used to tell which direction the other person is in. It’s how Luffy always knows where his brother Ace is and how he’s doing.
There’s also «The Void Century», an era dating back over 800 years, which the World Government erased from the history books. All that’s left of it are the etchings on the porneglyphs – indestructible tablets of stone.
And the aforementioned Devil Fruits, which can endow people or animals any conceivable ability. There are three types: Logia, Paramecia and Zoan. The Logia fruit gives people the ability to turn into and manipulate the elements. That’s how Luffy’s brother manages to control fire. The Paramecia can grant the person who’s eaten it a number of different abilities, which can influence and change their body or environment. After eating the Gum-Gum Fruit, for example, Luffy is now a Rubber Human. Zoan fruits mutate the body and allow them to take on the characteristics of another species. When Straw Hat member Chopper, a reindeer, ate the Human-Human fruit for example, he acquired human abilities such as speech, logical thinking and walking on two legs. If that sounds crazy, it’s because it is. Some of the special powers are too absurd to beat. Who wouldn’t want to eat the Sui Sui no Mi and gain the ability to swim in any kind of material?
3. The soundtrack is sheer brilliance
The anime has one of the best and catchiest soundtracks, with a suitable melody for every emotion. When I listen to it, I’m transported back to various points in the story and replay the moments inside my head. That’s what makes a good soundtrack. Describing music is futile, so you’d be best off listening to it yourself.
4. With 1,000 episodes, it’s ideal for bingeing
With 25 years of history behind it, One Piece is one of the longest-running mangas there is. The anime makes it into the top 16, with over 1,000 episodes. That’s a heck of a lot of material. Though this can be off-putting, it shouldn’t be. The anime in particular is made for binge-watching. Once you start, you can’t stop. In true anime fashion, the opening, recap and ending are so long that the episodes don’t normally last longer than 18 minutes. Even in my hectic family life, this is a lovely, «let me squeeze in an episode while I’ve got a moment» length.
From pimple-prone teen to adult with a busted foot, One Piece has been with me, captivating me for nearly twenty-five years. Sure, it isn’t perfect. For example, its oversexualisation of female characters irks me. This is down to its roots in the shōnen genre, where this is unfortunately common practice. As a drooling teen, I thought it was hot. Today, it leaves me cold.
I’m now almost up to date with the story, and it hasn’t lost any of its excitement. Quite the opposite, in fact. There are still plenty of unanswered questions in this wonderful world. It probably won’t take another 25 years to finish off the saga. But there are certainly still a good few years of Luffy and co. to come.
Kevin Hofer
Senior Editor
kevin.hofer@digitecgalaxus.chFrom big data to big brother, Cyborgs to Sci-Fi. All aspects of technology and society fascinate me.
