Summary
Netflix’sOne Pieceis a rare success thatbroke the live-action anime adaptation curse. The combination of high-octane action and zany character design in shonen anime often proves difficult to translate into live-action. The Toei Animation show has both of these in extremes, but somehow,One Pieceshowrunners managed to pull together a well-crafted series that delivered on its action sequences while staying true to its source. Despite this success, however,one upcoming Zoro fight is going to increase the challenge.
With the first season covering all of East Blue, the confirmedOne Pieceseason 2looks to follow on to the Arabasta saga, the second major arc in the franchise. This section of the anime featured a memorable Zoro fight that saw him battle over a hundred members of the Baroque Works, the Arabasta saga antagonists. It is an awesome moment that Netflix’sOne Piececan’t afford to skip, buttranslating it into live-action will prove very difficult.
Please, One Piece Season 2, Take Care Of My All-Time Favorite One Piece Character
One Piece live-action treated Luffy and the others very well, and now I can’t wait to see how the Netflix show will portray my favorite Straw Hat.
Zoro Fights Hundreds Of Baroque Works Members During Whisky Peak
This Memorable Battle Is Crucial To The Arabasta Saga
The Whisky Peak arc sees the Straw Hat crew land in a town that appears to adore pirates, treating them like celebrities. All goes awry when the welcoming townsfolk are revealed to be members of the Baroque Works, an elusive organization of assassins and bounty hunters who have lured the crew into their trap. As the scores of Baroque Works henchmen, known as the “Millions”, descend on Zoro,he vows to face them all single-handedly,declaring"I’ll take you on."
Zoro is true to his word. He achieves this feat in an awesome fight scene that has become one of the character’s most memorable moments.It’s the first time that viewers see Zoro fighting at his full, terrifying capacity,fully healed after his encounter with Mihawk. The episode also sets up the threat of the saga’s antagonists, contrasting the Millions' farcical defeat with Baroque Works' more powerful, ranked members. It’s one of many importantOne Piecescenes that the Netflix live-action must get rightin season 2.
What Could Zoro Vs. The Baroque Works Look Like In Live-Action?
The Sequence Will Present A Huge FX Challenge
The Baroque Works fight is going to be difficult to pull off. In fact,much of the Arabasta Saga will put a strain onOne Piece’stalented FX team.The second act of the anime is its first great storyline, expanding the world introduced in East Blue with more epic locations and bizarre characters. Netflix’sOne Piecehas been successful so far in adapting outlandish fight sequences for live-action. Itstayed authentic to the source material whilegrounding its fight-scenes in realism:Zoro’s emotional challenge against Mihawk in season 1 is an example of their great execution.
That same toned-down, intimate approach won’t do when Zoro faces the Baroque Works, though.The scene’s impact comes from its scale.It’ll take an army of extras to properly replicate the Millions, and since they all wear distinct costumes and wield unique weapons, it won’t be a simple matter of duplicating sections of the crowd to boost the numbers in post. It’s likely that theOne Piecelive-action will have to scale back the fight to make it work, focusing on the individual Baroque goons that Zoro takes down.
Netflix Shouldn’t Skip One Of Zoro’s Coolest One Piece Fights
But A Truly Authentic Portrayal Risks The Show’s Grounding Realism
Cutting the scene out altogether is out of the question. Not only is the Baroque Works stand-off indisputably cool, butit’s also a key moment in Zoro’s character arc.His fighting quirk is his mastery of the three-swords style, and his feat in Whisky Peak is an important demonstration of Zoro’s unique sword-fighting prowess. It shows how his skills have increasedas he progresses in his quest to become the world’s greatest swordsman.Zoro’s season 2 power-up has been foreshadowedbyactor Mackenyu’s impressive workout transformation. The show can’t afford to skip this fight which demonstrates Zoro’s development.
Netflix’sOne Piecehas been successful so far in adapting outlandish fight sequences for live-action.
Still, the effect the scene has in the anime will be lost if the live-action is forced to tone it down. Zoro’s Baroque Works battle is supposed to be ridiculous. There’s slapstick humor as waves of increasingly eccentric goons line up to be taken down. The Netflix series will find it hard to replicate this without sacrificing the tenuous realism they have been able to maintain. If they play it comedically, it could undermine the earnest side of Zoro they have portrayed well so far, butthe fun in this scene is what makes it so enjoyable.
The creative team behind theOne Piecelive-action has proved their skill and dedication in paying homage to their source material. Their hard work on season one made the show an unlikely success.Zoro vs. the Baroque Works must be included to stay faithful to his character,but the anime episode relies on humor and spectacle. The live-action will have to decide whether it wants this to be a comedic sequence or an epic battle. As it moves into the next phase of its tale,One Piecemay find that some scenes just work better in animation.
One Piece
Cast
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.
