Ranked #80

One Piece

There are two responses I get, without fail, every time I try to get someone new to watch this show. "I don't like the art style," or "I've seen the dub - NO THANKS." I'm guilty of both of these myself. But if there's one thing I need to stress before even getting started on this review, it's that the 4Kids dub is NOT One Piece. For the love of god, PLEASE do not think it is. If you've suffered the misfortune of seeing some of the 4Kids episodes, just erase them from your mind and start fresh. They butchered it, there's really no other way to put it. They cut episodes, changed the dialogue to fit a MUCH younger and apparently far less intelligent audience (almost insultingly so), gave the characters RIDICULOUS voices, and pretty much watered down the entire series. FUNimation has done a much better job so far from what I've seen, but regardless, watching it in its original Japanese form with subtitles is really the way to go.

As for the art style, it's true, it's completely different from almost anything else I've seen. Much more "cartoonish" and maybe not what you'd expect from an anime. Despite that, you end up loving it. I wouldn't even say that you have to "get used to it" because it's not something that detracts from the rest of the series in any way. It didn't even take me two episodes before I was thoroughly enjoying it and seeing it as a fresh, new style, exciting almost and unlike anything I'd experienced before. Now, some 300+ episodes later, I can't remember ever NOT liking it, or even why I would have. Especially now with One Piece being aired in high definition, the art is crisp, clean, colorful - VERY sharp and wonderful to look at.

Now that we've got those two points out of the way...

One Piece is actually one of the best shows I've ever seen, anime or otherwise. The plot is pretty basic at first. Monkey D. Luffy has just set out on his own to find the legendary treasure 'one piece' and become Pirate King, and he's looking for a crew to sail with him. You'll find yourself falling in love with each and every new member as Luffy finds them. They're all extremely well developed, with interesting backgrounds and unique, fun personalities. They form one very quirky crew that's always discovering new adventures and somehow getting themselves into trouble as they strive to achieve their dreams. Each main story arc introduces new minor characters as well, and they're just as much fun and easy to fall in love with as the Straw Hat crew. Not one character is left out or feels like they're there for no reason. Everyone has a purpose and adds to the storyline, and one of the really cool things about One Piece is that these 'purposes' often resurface at later points in the series. No detail is left untouched, and you'll seriously be amazed by the way Oda threads together plots and characters and blends all their stories perfectly the more the series progresses.

The plot itself, though fairly straightforward at first like I said, quickly evolves into something HUGE. Much of the beginning of the series is dedicated to forming the crew and letting you get to know the characters, though it's definitely never lacking in action, but once they reach the Grand Line, you're swept up in adventure after adventure and following some of the most fantastic story arcs you'll ever watch. The battles and fights are well-paced, with the final boss fight almost always being completely EPIC. But even through the action, One Piece never quite loses it's lighthearted, humorous edge. The episodes are sprinkled with PLENTY of funny moments, never too many and never too few. There's always a wonderful balance of action and humor.

One Piece also has its fair share of heart-wrenching moments, which may take you by surprise! There are some EXTREMELY powerful scenes and episodes that kind of blindside you and leave you wondering when you became quite so emotionally attached to certain characters or other things. I've definitely found myself near tears or actually crying at more than one point. One Piece has it all - amazing characters, the never-ending yet never TOO over-the-top humor, exciting battles, fun adventures, heartbreaking moments with quick to follow touching moments. And underneath everything, there's always the theme of friendship and teamwork, of working to reach your dreams and helping those closest to you achieve theirs, of growing and maturing as a person and discovering the power within yourself to overcome obstacles of any sort, of just BEING THERE for the rest of your crew when they need you - of being NAKAMA.

In a word, One Piece is perfect. And perhaps I'm just biased, being an obviously OBSESSED fan at this point, haha, but what can I say? It's been running for 344 episodes so far and not ONCE have I wondered or hoped that it would start to reach an end. It is, simply put, amazing.

So why should you watch One Piece?

Because you're missing out on one hell of a fantastic show if you don't at least give it a try. read more

One Piece is honestly the most amazing series I have ever watched or read. The plots are well-written and hold my attention without taking themselves too seriously and adding unnecessary drama that causes me to lose interest. The characters are some of the most endearing, well-developed and likable characters and the art, while not appealing to me at first, took a grand total of TWO episodes to get used to before I found it to be incredibly unique and my favorite anime art style to date.

While this series has serious moments, it never stops being funny. Something important about the humor in this series is that it's ORIGINAL. None of the typical jokes that are recycled in every anime and even the serious moments I was talking about are sprinkled with clever and endearing humor that keeps me watching.

Something that is important to me in a series is the characters. If I don't like characters, chances are, I'm not going to like the series. The lead cast to One Piece has won me over in their own individual ways. There is not a single one I don't like and I seriously thought that was IMPOSSIBLE.

I could go on and on about this series but it's not my job to tell you EVERYTHING great about it! Just take my word on it! read more

In my personal opinion, One Piece is one of those animes that is easy to love and is just as easy to hate. Funnily enough, those who love One Piece love it for exactly the same reasons that others hate it; the extreme characters, zany abilities, and classic artstyle all contribute to both sides. This review's goal is neither to covince you to love One Piece, nor is it the opposite. The review merely expresses my own personal views of the series.

And by the way, this review is based upon the original Japanese version. If you have had the bad luck of viewing the 4Kids dubbed version, you have my heartfelt condolences. Right, well, anyway, moving on...

PLOT: The story of One Piece mostly consists of the Straw Hat Pirates traveling from island to island and having crazy adventures. Although each crewmember has a different reason for this, they all share the same goal: to reach the end of the treacherous Grand Line. Bound by this promise, they pass through unbelievable adventures. Given this pattern, you would think the plot would get boring and predictable, right? Amazingly enough, unlike shonen anime with similar plot devices, One Piece manages to become less and less predictable as its plot advances. As it advances, it also delves into serious situations. There is actually much tragedy involved with One Piece, but the show maintains a balance of comic relief as well. I've actually been driven to tears many times while watching this show, but I've laughed out loud just as many times, if not more.

ART: One Piece's art style is one of the elements that turns many people off to the series. The style is fairly old-school, remniscent of 90's shows like Dragonball Z. Then again, I guess One Piece started out in the late 90's, too, so that's to be expected. Either way, the quality of the animation steadily improves as the show moves along. The show is now broadcast in HD, and the quality simply blows me away with every new episode. But the show's animation style remains the same, just greatly improved in terms of quality. After all, with a show as crazy as One Piece, modern animation styles just wouldn't fit. I simply cannot imagine Monkey D. Luffy with eyes like Uzumaki Naruto; it simply does not work.

SOUND: I absolutely adore the music of One Piece. There are so many different kinds of situations in One Piece: happy, sad, angry, confused, funny, sleepy, scared, epic, cryptic, foreboding, intense, etcetera, etcetera. For each of these situations, there is a unique musical piece which plays in the background. What's more is that each character has their own style of music and their own theme. Whenever I hear a background song, I immediately know what's going on, and fall into the according state of mind. It happens subconsciously, and it adds to both the predictability and spontaneity of the show. If Zoro's 'epic' music begins to play, he may still lose his current battle. However, whenever I hear that music, I immediately know, "Zoro is going to dominate in this scene," regardless of whether or not he actually does.

CHARACTERS: I cannot think of enough synonyms for "incredible" to sufficiently describe One Piece's character development, so I'll just say that it's definitely SUPER!!! Ahahaha...yeah, that was a reference to the show...anyway, the characters of One Piece are one of its major selling points. In fact, it was the characters, not the story, that hooked me to this show. Each character has their own personal reason for sailing the Grand Line and for joining the Straw Hat Pirates, and this goal pushes them to new heights with each passing adventure. This goal is backed by an emotionally engrossing backstory which usually can encompass more than two episodes. I have been moved to tears by so many touching flashbacks I no longer possess enough fingers to count them all. The characters are all very personable as well, and are the one aspect of One Piece you can nearly always predict. You always know Luffy will be Luffy, and Usopp will be Usopp. Never would you expect Sanji to suddenly lash out at Nami, but you would certainly expect Nami to lash out at everyone else. Do not misunderstand me; I am not implying that the characters of One Piece are static. They are all decidedly not static. By comparing the current Luffy with the Luffy of the first few episodes, you can discern an obvious difference. The same holds true for all of the crewmembers. Yet the changes take place gradually over time, not all at once. That is my favorite part of this anime. Just like actual humans, the One Piece characters develop new traits and discard old traits, but always remain the same person they were when first introduced.

ENJOYMENT: When trying to convince my friends that they should watch One Piece (mostly so I can discuss the latest episodes with them), I inevitably have to ask myself why I personally enjoy the series. And then I am stumped. I mean, I could say all the above and people still wouldn't be satisfied. There would be people asking, "Well, why do you like that kind of plot? I saw this one show that had a different kind and I liked it." How am I supposed to respond to that!? That's the equivalent of saying, "Why do you like chocolate ice cream? I like vanilla, and it's way better." Whether you enjoy something or not all depends on how your brain is wired and your attitude when you try it. Just because I love One Piece doesn't mean you will, and just because someone hates One Piece doesn't mean I have to. Erm...I kind of got on a rant. Ehehehe...uh, yeah. So, I enjoy One Piece because of the above reasons. Is...that all I'm supposed to put here? It seems inadequate for some reason...

OVERALL: In conclusion, I find One Piece to be epic! Whether you do or don't, please don't discount it for any reason until you've actually begun watching it. While I can attest to the fact that the story doesn't really become exciting until the crew reaches the Grand Line, the material before that is still crucial to the rest of the story, and is still very enjoyable. Oh, and as a matter of precaution, DO NOT WATCH THE 4KIDS DUB! If you do, then you may very well suffer severe damage to your cerebral cortex. If you must watch the show in English, I recommend the FUNimation dub. Their DVDs contain about 13 episodes each, and are available wherever you buy your anime. I forget how much they cost...well, you can Google it if you really want to. read more

One Piece is by far the best shounen anime out there that I have watched.
But not all share the same views as I do, lets remedy that, shall we?

A long time ago, there live a fearsome pirate king who goes by the name of Gold D. Roger. He was able to attain everything. But alas he was captured and sentenced to execution. In the brink of death, he proclaimed that he left the great treasure, One Piece, somewhere in the Grand Line and it is for anyone to claim. This event ignited the Great Pirate Age.

In the world of One Piece, there is such a thing as a Devil Fruit. A devil fruit is a fruit bearing some supernatural ability and whoever devours it will get a unique ability however its origins are unknown. There are three types of Devil Fruit, Paramecia, a fruit that can materialize your body into a property. Zoan, a fruit that gives humans the ability of a certain animal, but if its an animal, it gives the ability of humans. And the last but certainly not the least Logia, is a fruit that makes the consumer manifest a certain element. But of course nothing is perfect. If you eat any of the Devil Fruit, you will be rendered immobilize when submerge in the water.

And where is our protagonist? The anime revolves around our mentally impaired boy, Monkey D. Luffy or a.k.a The Straw Hat Pirate(title came from his worn-out straw hat that he always have on). When our boy here ate a devil fruit that turns the consumer's body into rubber, he sets off to find Shanks, his pirate idol to return his straw hat as promise and find One Piece to be able to earn the title of Pirate King. Along the way he gathers all kinds of oddballs for his crew, The Straw Hat Pirates.

Now how exactly is One Piece different from the hundreds of shounen out there. Well, it isnt. It is exactly what a shounen should be. It follows the lose-train-win formula. So how is it any better? Bingo. Because it incorporates the formula into something fresh and simple.

One Piece arcs can be surprisingly good. There were even times that I was shocked at some plot twists and revelations. It has a very interesting setting as well. And what might that be? The World. The whole world is One Piece's oyster. It varies from vast, scorching deserts to cold snowy mountains, the concept of adventure here is well defined, it really makes you feel that world isnt small after all. And that my friend, is what an adventure anime should really be.

One Piece knows how to pull it off, be it comedy or serious, and believe me, One Piece knows how to be serious when it needs to be. But it never forgets its roots at the same time, and that is the emphasis of friendship and the bond of Nakama/Friends that glues the whole crew together.

Most shounen anime's suffers immensely from originality. Because of this, it is hard to distinguish characters from each other, especially in my case as I have my fair share as an otaku. And most of the characters in em lack depth and substance, its hard to remember a character when you know very little about him. But One Piece is immune from this disease. Each character of One Piece is very... say....unique that you'll find it hard to forget about them. They all have their individual motives, strengths, weakness and even quirky traits. Plus, each individual of the Straw Hat Pirate Crew has an immersing past, that'll be hard for you not to get delve into. And they all have a certain role, not one character gets overshadowed by the other. They do meaningful interactions with each other. And regardless, that each member is vastly different from each other, they all formed a formidable bond. Even the by-passing characters are memorable.

In contrast to the majority, I find the animation to be creative. Just like how the characters are different and distinguishable. Unfortunately people see it as something of a turn off, and quickly judges One Piece as something infantile. I am not going to lie. One Piece will not go beyond the borders of a shounen. It is not mature. But thats not the point here. An anime doesnt need to be ripe to be good. It just needs to be entertaining. Although I do enjoy a deep, thought-provoking anime, an anime doesnt need to be complex to be satisfying. It can be anything, as long as it offers gratification. And One Piece does.

Another potential problem is its popularity. Most people consider mainstream anime's to be somewhat of a failure because of its targeted demographic, and that is everyone. "If its able to attract toddlers, then it sucks" that seems to be case for most people. Some people neglect any anime that is able to summon countless little children in its area, thus abruptly convicting it as over-rated. Heck, some people even constantly hunts threads, just to be able to crack Narutard jokes off some newcomer. Do not judge One Piece from its fans. Judge it for what it is.

Do not be mistaken, I am not saying One Piece is for everyone. In the end, its all about taste. But if your have any hint of love for shounen surging in your veins, there is no reason for you not to watch this, not one bit.

In short, the plot is very promising, the main cast is several but well flesh out, the battles are very diverse, and engaging and the comedy doesnt get old, even after 300 episodes. But One Piece is not a masterpiece. It does not break any ground whatsoever. No matter how you see it, its still your typical shounen.

Regardless of this, the level of enjoyment I receive from One Piece is insurmountable. And sometimes thats all you need. Scratch that. Most of the time that's all you need. read more

Well my first review, Ill try and make it a good one.

One Piece, well i gotta be honest, I didn't like it at first. I thought that the voices were stupid and that it had really no plot whatsoever. This is all thanks to 4kids making the crappiest dub ever. I stopped watching it after, ep 20 or so, but then i heard to try it again using subs. I thought nah, it might sounds really stupid, but i still tried. After episode 20 or so, I was like "WOW", this is awesome and from then on i was watching it non stop until episode 280 where i caught up. (yea i watched about 250+ episodes non stop) :D If you plan on watching it, watch it subbed please. Well that's enough of that. Onwards.

Story
The story is really amazing. At first i didn't find anything entertaining, but I pressed on and continued watching. The plot is really amazing. Its different from what most mangaka does, and that is power. The story is all about achieving your dreams, getting nakama(companions/friends), and overall having a grand adventure. The story is original in a sense that it gives you a feeling of ease and hilarity when reading it. I for one, have always enjoyed a chapter and in each chapter is very powerful and/or funny.

Art
Well to be honest, I find the art interesting. I mean its cool at times but then in some episodes its really crappy. Thats probably the only thing I dont like. But the fight scenes are amazing. The character design is very interesting and very original. The animation is pretty...crappy at times but that's to be expected in some animes. I mean not all of them would be amazing but there are quite a few that really have good animation. The animation for most fight scenes are really well drawn and intricate.

Sound
I have only one thought for this. JAPANESE VOICE ACTORS OWN AMERICAN VOICE ACTORS. Seriously, they sound so much better and once you hear them, your instantly hooked to them. 4kids really did the crappiest dubbing ever, and that was mainly why i stopped watching it. Also their gum gum rap( american opening) was so terrible. Thanks to Funimation for at least making an "ok" dub. But subs are still the best. Their voices mesh with the characters personality so much that it's amazing.

Character
Wow. The characters are really amazing. From the air-head captain to the greedy, money-loving navigator, it really is the most unique anime ever. They are all different characters with all different dreams that power them throughout the show. They all have alot in common, but really the biggest thing they have in common is that they all believe and support their captain, because he has saved them where they needed it the most. Every character in One Piece is different from everyone and they are all entertaining. Every episode is funny and most of the time it is Luffy that makes it funny. Luffy is pretty much the most unique character made. He is a simple minded captain who has no other thought other than one piece, his nakama, and MEAT. Yes meat, he loves meat, but if you watch it you will learn that :p

Enjoyment
Well, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The fillers are much better than Naruto or Bleach fillers and they are alot more exciting. Again the fight scences are amazing. Every episode you will definitely laugh, because Oda-sensei (the mangaka- the one who made One Piece) is awesome. He is pretty much the most creative mangaka, and the person i definitely want to meet.

Overall
Overall, I give One Piece a 10/10, well because it is pretty much amazing. The characters are very loveable, especially Luffy. Every episode i laughed, every episode I was always at the edge of my seat. If people tell you that One Piece sucks or that its not all that great, then don't listen! The only bad thing about One Piece is that 4kids made the dub first and then ruined it in America, don't listen and just watch it. Listen to me and not them okay :D

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One Piece recounts the story of Monkey D Luffy, a young man who wishes to become the Pirate King; and the rest of the crew of the Mugiwara ('Straw Hat') Pirate crew, each of whom join the crew to realise lifelong dreams of their own.

Luffy ate a Devil's Fruit as a child, more accurately the 'Gomu Gomu' fruit (gomu means 'rubber'), thus his body took on the form of rubber, enabling him to stretch and inflate himself at will - though the downside for anybody who eats a Devil's Fruit is that they can no longer swim: something of a disadvantage for a pirate. Luffy is a bit of of a unique character in all of the anime series I have watched: he's not smart, but he's not stupid. Perhaps 'simple' is the best way of describing him, as he has the same thoughts and ideals no matter what the situation is, sees no reason in pretending to be something he isn't, and often has trouble adjusting his fun-loving character to act appropriately in serious circumstances. Although he is the captain of the Mugiwara Pirates, he is pretty much held in line by the rest of his crew, especially Nami. He does, however, usually get the final word.

Luffy's aim is to become Pirate King and to claim the ultimate treasure that the old and greatest Pirate King, Gol D Roger, announced at his execution was at the end of the Grand Line: the most dangerous, treacherous and feared ocean in the world. This treasure, 'One Piece', gives the series its name. It is yet unknown exactly what One Piece is, or what it does. However, with every island of the Grand Line that the crew traverse (the only way to sail the Grand Line being to hop from one island to the next) they are one stop closer to finding Gol D Roger's heritage.

The rest of the Mugiwara Crew consists of characters just as well-rounded, though still retaining their individuality. Roronoa Zoro, a green-haired 3-sword-wielding (one in each hand, one in his mouth) bounty hunter who has come to be known as 'Pirate Hunter Zoro' (though the name was neither coined nor furthered by the man himself) joins the crew in order to realise his childhood dream of becoming the best swordsman in the world, figuring the Grand Line should bring him a plethora of worthy opponents.

Nami, the navigator, is a beautiful yet intelligent orange-haired girl whose dream is to draw a map of the whole world - though her main passion is accumulating vast sums of money, usually via theft. She is generally the brains of the crew, but occasionally needs Luffy to show her that her heart is in the right place.

Usopp, a long-nosed man whose penchant for stretching the truth is made evident in pretty much every episode, wishes to follow in his father's footsteps and become a great pirate. Although he's not as strong as other members of the crew and has no specific 'special powers', his quick-thinking and ingenious-yet-comedic inventions have too often been known to save the day.

Sanji, self-professed 'Love Cook', is a talented chef from the floating restaurant Baratie, who can cook as well as he can kick - Sanji is generally characterised by his inability to resist stepping in to rescue a beautiful lady, especially Nami (even though she manipulates him simply because she knows she can). Sanji joined the crew after great persuasion in order to find All Blue, the legendary ocean where the four seas meet, and thus fish from all the seas can be found - a gourmet cook's paradise.

Tony Tony Chopper is the ship's doctor. Here's where it starts getting a little, well, let's say idiosyncratic. Chopper is a reindeer (not a tanuki, a reindeer!) who ate the 'Hito Hito' Devil's Fruit (hito means 'man'), meaning that he is not only able to talk (to both humans and animals - a skill that comes in very useful), but also walk on his hind legs, and even transform himself from cute to somewhat monstrous forms. Chopper wants to become a great doctor and help people, and eventually, after much persuasion from Luffy, sees piracy as a way to give his wish meaning and direction. An ongoing joke with Chopper is for him to shout "Doctor! We need a doctor!" whenever anybody gets injured, before realising that he's the ship's doctor, and so gets to work. Chopper is a cutesy/comedy character but also gives us plenty of reasons to take him seriously.

Finally we have Nico Robin, a woman with a mysterious past, and another with the power of a Devil's Fruit. Robin ate the 'Hana Hana' fruit (hana = 'flower'), and thus is able to grow hands from any surface - an ability which sounds pointless on paper but has saved the Mugiwaras from so much danger over the episodes that it has become almost integral to their survival. Robin is an archaeologist who joined the Mugiwaras at her own behest, as Luffy had saved her life against her will. She spends most of her time reading history books, and someday dreams of finding the 'one true history' of their world by traversing the Grand Line in search of 'lodestones', which have ancient documents inscribed on them.

Even at the early stage of introducing Luffy and watching him recruit the first few crewmates, I had fallen in love with this anime series. The first 20 or so episodes are somewhat slow-paced, as well as a little confusing, as the quirky sense of humour that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda gives the series takes a little getting used to for a gaijin. The other members of the crew don't want to join Luffy's outfit immediately, but Luffy manages to convince them that becoming a pirate with him is the best way to realise their dreams, and also helps them to tie up loose ends in their homeland before setting off under the straw hat-wearing Jolly Roger.

It's important to bear in mind that these are not your classic Western, rum-toting, eye patch-wearing, "YAAAAAARRRRR"-shouting pirates, with huge beards, peg legs and hooks for hands. That isn't to say there aren't characters who fall under these categories (except for the "YAAAAARRRR"ing), but One Piece is a world filled with intensely interesting, larger-than-life characters who bring a dimension to the anime you wouldn't have thought possible. The powers of the various enemies of the Mugiwara crew bring an almost rock-paper-scissors element to the show, as the party is often split up into groups who have to survive and meet back up with the others in order to continue their journey, some characters' expertises being more useful against certain enemies than others - although the rubberman never knows when to accept defeat!

This anime contains some of the most imaginative and out-of-this-world story arcs I've ever come across in an anime series, especially one that does not take itself too seriously. One arc sees the Mugiwaras sail up into the sky to 'Skypeia', or Sky Island, where they take on an evil God who has the power of lightning. The final 'showdown' battles can span 10 or more episodes and are, for want of a better word, epic. Simply the journey undertaken to get onto the Grand Line itself is a tale worth rewatching for its many highlights, as well as being an introduction that comforts you by subtly indicating that the future escapades of the Mugiwara crew will pique your interests further.

The Mugiwaras are to a point misunderstood as pirates - they don't plunder, rape or murder everybody they meet. In most cases, they actually help those they come across, but are still very much wanted by the Marines (the main governing body of the sea), who set huge bounties for Luffy and Zoro in order to garner help from bounty hunters, as well as the many other pirate factions sailing around.

The animation sometimes lets the show down slightly - it seems the budget for the animators seems to rise and fall depending on the importance of the arc. Some battles are brilliantly animated, such as the showdown between Luffy and Crocodile, leader of the Shichibukai, but many of the filler arcs look poor in comparison. However, this does not take anything away from the fact that One Piece is a masterpiece, with a quirky Japanese sense of humour and a narrative that can be appreciated by all, but loved only by some. My advice is to give it a try - if you're anything like me it will certainly captivate your interest, and then some.

Quick warning: stay WELL away from the 4KIDS English dub. They gutted the show, stripping it of many of its best features, and hired a voice cast that could test the sanity of anybody, be you 3 or 43. The lush orchestral musical score and lively J-pop intro has been replaced by awful faux hip-hop in order to market it to Americans, some of the blood is cut while some remains (this is NOT a gory anime by any stretch of the imagination - blood is used as more of an indicator that a fight has been going on a while), characters are renamed according to whim (Zoro is renamed Zolo, either to escape copyright infringement, give a closer transliteration from katakana, or just as an effort to be utterly, utterly lame), and there are some frankly ridiculous amendments - the one that really sticks out for me is Sanji's cigarette. Sanji likes to smoke, and he always has a cigarette hanging from the side of his mouth. In the 4KIDS dub, this cigarette is replaced - in every frame - with a lollipop.

Kaizoku-Fansubs (http://www.kaizoku-fansubs.com) make by FAR the best, most comprehensive, accurate and best-looking fansubs for this show, and episodes can be downloaded by BitTorrent or by XDCC transfer via IRC (#kaizoku-fansubs on irc.rizon.net). read more

One Piece truely is one of the greatest anime series I've ever seen. Its a long running Shounen series but I can honestly say, excluding fillers (which aren't that bad, either) I haven't found a moment of the show to be boring. Its enjoyable and exciting to watch. The characters are some of the best, well developed, loveable characters ever. Every member of the straw-hat crew have their own dream that they are trying to achieve, they all have their own strenghts and weaknesses and contribute well to the story. One Piece has no useless characters that are just their for the sake of it. The story is full of so much emotion, there are lots of tearjecking moments aswell as hilarious moments (Its the funniest anime I've ever seen, definatly) and tones of inspiring and generally happy moments.

The animation is good through out, and, although there isn't anything perticually special about the background music - One Piece has some of the greatest OPs and EDs I've ever come across.

I recomend One Piece to ANYONE who likes enjoyable, adventurous storys; Especially if your a fan of Naruto, Bleach, Hunter X Hunter, Dragonball, Shaman King..and..any other..shouneny storys. :33

Stay away from the English dub though. It put me off at first. I am a big fan of English dubs and their are only a few dubs I could actually label as "bad" and One Piece is one of them.
Also, don't be put of by the odd (but unique and awesome! ^^) animation style.

GO. DOWNLOAD. NOW. read more

Well I thought it was a good idea for me to wright a review for my favorite anime and seeing as how I am a major fan of it I might over rate it but I will try to control this. :D

Story: The story is about a boy named Monkey D Luffy he wants to become the greatest pirate and claim the title King of The Pirates. Now I will be honist here the first couple of episodes are not nearly as good as they are now, but hey he gets better soon. The story dosent pick up till Luffy gets four other crew members and the Fifth story arc (they are short atfirst). The fifth story is what made me love Op it has everything a person could want, humor, action, plot, emotion. Then after this point in the series it just gets better and is why it is one of the top anime/manga's of this day and age.

Animation: The animation is a little differnt. I guess you could say it kinda looks like its a cartoon/anime and the characters can look kinda goofy sometimes but it does fit the setting of the show. I gave it a 8 even though I love how it looks.

Sound: OMG some of the best music ever it is amazing. The sound tracks to OP is outstanding, that is the only way to describe it. (why they took it out of the english version and replaced it with rap still makes me wonder)

Enjoyment: There is only a few other things that I enjoy more that watching OP. Including every above plus it has very good movies and fillers. I will actualy watch One Piece's fillers and enjoy them, thats how good they are.

Overall: I would say check out this anime no matter what. read more

Ask any person on the internet what their favourite kind of warrior is and you are bound to get one of these 2 answers. Ninja or Pirate. Now we ALL know Ninja's are a plenty in anime. But Pirates? Try finding a anime about that!

Eiichiro Oda to the rescue!

The legendary Pirate Gol D Roger. Once acquired everything a pirate could. But before he was executed he told people he hid his treasure "One Piece" at the end of the Grand Line. This started the great age of pirates!

One Piece is set in the time of pirates. Even though there are references to real pirates. Bellamy, Alvida etc, its more of a fantasy world. And what a fantasy world it is! Weird creatures, giant monsters and people with a "Devil Fruit" ability. Devil Fruit grants the person who eat it unique abilities such as transforming their body, or giving them special skills. The one consequence is it takes away their ability to swim.

One of the people who ate a "Devil Fruit" Is the young man Luffy. Blessed with the Gomu Gomu fruit (Rubber) He is a rubber man. and he wants to be the "Pirate King" (The person who acquires "One Piece") He and his crew of weird but unique characters set of to the "Grand Line" to find One Piece.

Eiichiro Oda created some really amazing characters! Rorona Zoro a swordsman who uses 3 swords. Liar Usopp, Navigator and Money maniac Nami, Chef and Love freak Sanji, Reindeer misfit Chopper and more. Even though the characters seem a little bland at first after a few episodes their characters really start to shine.

Humour is a really big part of the series. You will constantly laugh your ass off at the weird and just downright funny humour this series has to offer. But its not all comedy. Heck no! Fans of action and drama will also love this series. the fights are simply incredible! with the Devil fruit users being the highlights of the series. But just like that the series can take a much darker turn. And will certainly manage to bring a tear to your eye. (Nami's background being one of those times DAMN YOU ARLONG!)
But it never turns into a emo fest.

Its a pretty long series (counting over 310 episodes) and even though there are some filler arcs. It just keeps getting better and better. read more

One Piece is definitely a must-watch anime series if anyone is looking for an amazing series with tons of character development, an intricate and engrossing story, very emotional moments, character companionship, some amazing fight scenes, as well as a lot of comedic moments. This anime has been in the top 10 in Japan for a long time, and for good reason. Right from the get go, the anime introduces you to Monkey D. Luffy, our protagonist of the anime, as well as a few more of his crew that will be sailing the Grand Line with him.

Each character that ultimately ends up joining the Strawhat pirates all have a big dream that they want to follow, and usually, that is the reason as to why they join to crew. It's amazing to see how everyone's dream is tied together and Oda has woven it almost flawlessly. Each character also has their strengths and weaknesses which come into play throughout the entire anime.

If you haven't tried One Piece, I urge you to give this show a try. If you're not used to its animation, please, don't let that be the sole reason that you don't watch this show. In time, you'll grow to love the animation, and as the series goes on, the animation just gets better and more crisper than before. read more