- Story (7.0/10):
“One Piece: Episode of Nami - Koukaishi no Namida to Nakama no Kizuna” is a retelling of the event of the Arlong Park arc, an arc so legendary with a special aura to it that it's regarded as the gateway into getting into One Piece, but still, the special isn't an excuse to entirely skip that portion of the Anime or Manga and just swallow what you get here. The pacing was very fast, going as far as removing minor to major events to not drag things too much, for instance, Arlong throwing Luffy underwater so that Genzo and Nojiko go for the rescue was like it never happened, but rather was saved by Sanji way before he was thrown underwater in the first place.
I at least give them props on the fighting scenes here, those flashy moves complimented only by the badass quotes they spit as they're hitting the action. Most of the people including myself consider Arlong Park to be one of the most heavily emotional arcs in the series, with such a deep backstory of Nami's and Cocoyashi village in general, in my eyes, this special didn't deliver on that. I rewatch clips from the Anime like all the time that I can't specify an approximate number of the times I've seen snippets from this arc and yet, every time I get my eyes watered up if not cry like a baby, it never got old. This special didn't do it for me as odd as I found it to be, it was all just, meh.
- Art (8.5/10):
The most gorgeous thing about this animation, they did the arc a great deed in this one, especially the fight enhancements.
Zoro's fight with Hacchin was definitely better in this new format, and looked even more powerful, the same about Sanji and Koroobi's.
I don't know how to put it, but the animation was so good that it felt like it had a weight on its own, the blows felt stronger, more impactful.
It certainly felt good seeing a remastered version of Cocoyashi village, it almost looked like a totally new place, in a good way of course.
- Sound (8.0/10):
The voice acting was good, but not as good as I expected it to be, and that was the down for me when it came to emotional moments. The moment when Nami asked Luffy for help on the original was so well voiced it made this one look like a hoax, for real though.
They, of course, reused the soundtracks from the parent series, and nothing is there to complain about, in fact, that was just the right thing to do.
- Character (8.0/10):
Every character in One Piece is hands down a unique one with its own motives and background, and from what I've seen and how this special turned out, it was no different. The villagers acted like they matter, Arlong did a great job at sounding like a real jerk again, and the crew members did what they were supposed to.
- Enjoyment (7.0/10):
Not the best One Piece special out there, I did enjoy the fight scenes and some comedy highlights, but that was about it for me. I am kind of disappointed in this one, expected a better summary to be honest. Maybe it's just me, maybe the Anime did this part just so well it made this one look like a retail potato brick, no hard feelings in this one.
- Overall (7.7/10):
First of all, this does not excuse you from skipping the Arlong Parl from the Anime series, as that one was miles better in every way, trust me, even the old funky art style has its own charm. I wouldn't think too much about this or put it ahead of schedule or have to put off important stuff to watch it. It wasn't as good as a special can get, but it had something to offer, and no, this is not a must watch either, only for the hardcore fans that don't mind seeing how simple things were back then when they had no bounty or attention around them.
