Summary
- Chopper & Robin's powers (Devil Fruit) will be challenging in live-action due to CGI and body-horror visuals.
- Balancing screen time for a growing crew won't be easy for the Netflix show.
- Season 2 must maintain the high bar set by season 1 in properly adapting fan-favorite characters like Chopper & Robin.
Netflix’s One Piece season 1 was a surprisingly faithful adaptation of the source material. All important heroes and villains from One Piece’s first five arcs showed up and received solid adaptations. Luffy and his friends were standouts, though, and it’s safe to say the show nailed the Straw Hat pirates.
While Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and Sanji will always be the heart and soul of One Piece, the crew only gets bigger with each new saga. Some of the most popular Netflix live-action adaptation, including a few more Straw Hat pirates. With One Piece now entering the Grand Line for the Arabasta Saga, the series is expected to introduce Tony Tony Chopper and Nico Robin, two highly important characters who could steal the show. Seeing Miss All Sunday and Chopper in live-action will be great, but getting them right could be difficult.
Chopper & Nico Robin’s Powers Will Be Difficult To Pull Off In Live-Action
Both have Devil Fruit powers
One Piece’s world only gets weirder after East Blue, with Chopper and Robin being perfect examples of it. Whereas Luffy was the only member of the Straw Hat pirates with Devil Fruit powers in season 1, there will be plenty of characters with special abilities in season 2, including Chopper and Robin. There was some concern about how Netflix’s One Piece was going to handle Luffy’s stretchy powers in live-action, especially considering characters like Marvel’s Mr. Fantastic had not always looked great outside of comics and animation. Fortunately, One Piece nailed Luffy’s powers visually.
One Piece's Current Straw Hat Pirates |
Actor |
|---|---|
Monkey D. Luffy |
Inãki Godoy |
Roronoa Zoro |
Mackenyu |
Nami |
Emily Rudd |
Usopp |
Jacob Gibson |
Sanji |
Taz Skyla |
Getting Tony Tony Chopper and Nico Robin’s powers right in live-action will be as challenging as handling Luffy’s, though, if not more. Chopper ate the Human-Human Fruit, which is why he is a reindeer with human features. Even when Chopper is not using his powers, he is a very tricky character to pull off in live-action considering he will have to be created entirely through CGI. Robin’s powers, which come from the Flower-Flower Fruit, could be more similar to Luffy’s and will require body-horror type of visuals to highlight her ability to create extra limbs.
Princess Vivi, who should also be in One Piece season 2, is considered an honorary Straw Hat but does not properly the crew.
Chopper & Robin Will Require Significant Screen Time In One Piece Season 2
One Piece already has five main characters
One Piece’s Arabasta Saga is longer than the East Blue Saga both in the manga and the anime. It’s unclear whether One Piece season 2 will have eight episodes like the first season, or if it will be a longer series now that it has more storylines to cover. Either way, balancing the screen time for all the characters amidst the convoluted saga of Arabasta will not be easy. The Straw Hats currently consists of five in Netflix’s One Piece, meaning the show already has to deal with five main characters.
The importance of getting Chopper and Robin right goes beyond season 2, as both characters become essential parts of the One Piece world.
One Piece, like many other shonen anime, continues to expand its set of main characters as the story progresses. The Straw Hat pirate crew will only get bigger, with each new character demanding its own share of screen time. One Piece season 2 may not have to focus too much on Nico Robin considering she only s the crew at the end of Arabasta, but it will have to dedicate at least one entire episode to Chopper. The original Straw Hats are important, but so are Chopper and Miss All Sunday.
Chopper & Robin Are Fan-Favorite Characters (& Netflix Cannot Fail Them)
The bar is high for One Piece season 2
Netflix’s One Piece was a great adaptation of the manga, particularly regarding how well the live-action series treated its main characters. The origin stories of Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Sanji, and Nami remained mostly unchanged, and the dynamic between the characters was exactly like in the source material. As such, the bar could not be higher for One Piece season 2. Now that the first five Straw Hat pirates have received such good live-action counterparts, nothing less will be expected from season 2’s versions of characters like Nico Robin and Chopper.
Casting Live-Action Nico Robin For One Piece Season 2: 10 Actors Who Would Be Perfect
A key element to One Piece success is its great casting of major and minor casting. Nico Robin's accurate casting can continue the trend in season 2.
Even the most optimistic One Piece fans were cautious about the live-action show considering Hollywood’s track with anime adaptations. Now, however, there is a certain level of expectation for what season 2 will deliver. One Piece season 1 was good, but the anime only gets better after East Blue. Therefore, not only does the season have to nail the character, but it also needs to feel bigger and bolder than the first one. The importance of getting Chopper and Robin right goes beyond season 2, as both characters become essential parts of the One Piece world.
One Piece (Live-Action)
- Release Date
- August 31, 2023
- Network
- Netflix
- Showrunner
- Matt Owens
Cast
Iñaki GodoyMonkey D. Luffy
Emily RuddNami
WHERE TO WATCH
One Piece follows young pirate Monkey D. Luffy and his diverse crew as they embark on a daring quest for treasure. Released in 2023, the film brings the adventurous world of the popular manga to life, capturing Luffy's relentless pursuit of the legendary One Piece treasure.
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