about one piece

About One Piece


One Piece is a Japanese shōnen manga written and illustrated by Eiichirō Oda, that has been serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine since August 4, 1997. The individual chapters are being published in tankōbon volumes by Shueisha, with the first released on December 24, 1997 and 52 volumes released as of December 2008. One Piece follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy, a 17-year-old boy, who gained supernatural abilities by eating a magical fruit, and his ragtag crew of heroic pirates, named the Straw Hats. Luffy’s greatest ambition is to obtain the world’s ultimate treasure, One Piece, and thereby become the next Pirate King. When creating the series, Oda was heavily influenced by the manga Dragon Ball.

One Piece is licensed for an English language release in North America by Viz Media. The individual chapters are being serialized in Viz’s Shonen Jump manga anthology and being published in tankōbon volumes. In the United Kingdom, the series is being released by Gollancz Manga. Madman Entertainment is releasing the series in Australia and New Zealand.

The series was adapted into an original video animation (OVA) produced in 1998 by Production I.G. It was later adapted into a full anime series by Toei Animation that premiered in Japan on Fuji Television on October 20, 1999. As of December 15, 2008, 381 episodes of the series have aired. The anime series was licensed for a heavily edited English dubbed broadcast in North America by 4Kids Entertainment. It has since been licensed for a full Region 1 DVD release and broadcast by Funimation Entertainment. In addition to the anime series and OVA, One Piece has been adapted into nine feature films by Toei and multiple video games based on the series have been released.

With over 140 million copies sold, One Piece is the third highest selling manga in the history of Weekly Shōnen Jump. It is considered their most acclaimed and all-time third-best-selling title in Japan.


Stories

A boy named Monkey D. Luffy, inspired by his childhood hero “Red-Haired” Shanks, sets out on a journey to find the legendary One Piece, to become the new Pirate King. To accomplish this, he must reach the end of the most deadly and dangerous ocean: The Grand Line.

Luffy captains the Straw Hat Pirates first through the sea of East Blue and then through the Grand Line. He follows the path of the deceased Pirate King, Gold Roger, from island to island on his way to the great treasure One Piece. On his way his crew grows to have a swordsman, a navigator, a sniper, a cook, a doctor, an archaeologist, a shipwright, and a musician.

During the course of the story, the crew contend with both other less moral pirate crews and the Navy. The latter are the subordinates of the World Government, who apparently seek justice by ending the Golden Age of Pirates. Many background story elements involve the delicate balance of power between the World Government and the world’s most powerful pirate crews.


One Piece Characters

Monkey D. Luffy

Monkey D. Luffy, a 17-year-old boy, is the primary protagonist of the One Piece series and is the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates. His dream is to become the Pirate King. He is portrayed as carefree and sometimes air-headed and has a huge appetite, especially for meat. As a child, by accidentally eating a Devil Fruit his body gained the properties of rubber. Luffy is voiced by Urara Takano in the original video animation (OVA) and by Mayumi Tanaka in the Japanese version of the anime. In the English dubs, he is voiced by Erica Schroeder for 4Kids,[5] by Chuck Powers for Odex[citation needed] and by Colleen Clinkenbeard for Funimation.
Roronoa Zoro

Roronoa Zoro is the first to join the crew. He is 19 years old and a skilled swordsman, who uses up to three swords at once, clutching the third in his mouth. He is extremely poor at understanding geographical directions and gets lost very easily. He also sleeps a great deal and loves to drink. His goal is to become the greatest swordsman in the world, by beating the current greatest swordsman, Mihawk, due to a promise he made to a childhood friend named Kuina. Zoro is voiced by Wataru Takagi in the OVA and by Kazuya Nakai in the Japanese version of the anime. In the English dubs, he is voiced by Marc Diraison for 4Kids, by Brian Zimmerman for Odex[citation needed] and by Christopher Sabat for Funimation. On his journey he made a living by bounty hunting, which lead to his nickname “Pirate Hunter”. One day he was imprisoned for a month, but Luffy, who had been attracted by Zoro’s fame among other things, saved him, but only after he agreed to join his pirate crew. Since then, Zoro is also extremely loyal to Luffy, even begging Bartholomew Kuma, one of the Seven Warlords, to exchange Luffy’s life for his. Zoro is a skilled swordsman, able to use one, two and three swords in varying attack styles, and even no swords, although he is most proficient with the fictional sword style Santōryū (literally: three sword style), clutching his third sword in his mouth. Zoro is somehow able to speak with his sword held in his mouth; Eiichiro Oda has stated that it is his heart that allows him to do so. Zoro has several sword techniques at his disposal, using one sword, two swords, or all three. He is also capable of fighting effectively with no swords, and his physical strength is enough to lift a building. Zoro also has the ability to cut through solid steel, or materials as hard as steel, which he learned when fighting Das Bones (Baroque Works Mr. 1) in Arabasta. He is also capable of using the ‘Asura’ technique, which gives Zoro three faces and six arms, thus totaling nine swords. In addition, Zoro can expand the muscle mass of his arms, an ability he often employs to break through opponent’s physical defenses.
Zoro is one of the most popular One Piece characters, ranking second in the most recent Japanese fan poll. Furthermore, in a 2007 poll by Oricon, Zoro was voted as the 4th most desired character to receive a spinoff. In a review of the series, DVD Talk claims that Zoro is a great example of the show’s humorous physics, and praises his Santōryū fighting style.


Nami

Nami is the crew’s 18-year-old navigator and the second to join. She has the ability to recognize and analyze even the slightest changes in the weather up to the point of sheer intuition. She is also an excellent pickpocket. Her dream is to draw a complete map of the world. Nami is voiced by Megumi Toyoguchi in the OVA and by Akemi Okamura in the Japanese version of the anime. In the English dubs, she is voiced by Kerry Williams for 4Kids, by Alison Lestor for Odex[citation needed] and by Luci Christian for Funimation.
She grew up as a misbehaved troublemaker on an island called Cocoyashi Island with her adopted older sister Nojiko, and her foster mother, Bellemere. Bellemere was a mikan farmer and a former Marine soldier. After a battle, Bellemere was at the edge of death until she heard a baby (Nami) carried by a wandering little girl (Nojiko). At that moment, Bellemere gained a new will to live, and decided to take them in as her own. One day, the Merman Pirates lead by Arlong invaded the island and claimed it as their territory. In order for the villagers to live, they had to pay for their lives. Every month, they would have to pay fifty thousand berri per child, while each adult would cost a hundred thousand berri. Bellemere, unable to pay for the whole family, paid only for her daughters and as a result, was killed in front of them. When Arlong found out about Nami’s exceptional skills in cartography, he offered her to join his crew. Nami decided to join Arlong’s crew after Arlong said that she could buy her village with 100 million berri. Nami spent eight years drawing maps for Arlong and stealing treasure from pirates in order to save the village. Eventually, she meets Luffy and Zoro and decides to join them, as she expects to get money out of it. After the Straw Hats meet Sanji, she steals the Going Merry and runs back to the village. They follow her to the village and remove Arlong from power by force. Nami then agrees to join the Straw Hat Pirates as their navigator.


Usopp

Usopp is the crew’s 17-year-old[2] marksman and the third to join. He is a chronic liar, talented inventor and has notable artistic talent, shown in his painting of the Straw Hat’s Jolly Roger and crafting of detailed snow sculptures. Usopp’s dream is to become a “brave warrior of the sea”. According to a recent Japanese fan poll in the Shonen Jump magazine, Usopp is the 6th most popular character. In a 2007 Oricon poll, Usopp was voted the 10th most wanted character to receive a spin off amongst all respondents, and the 5th most popular amongst males.[20] Usopp is voiced by Kappei Yamaguchi in the Japanese version of the anime. In the English dubs, he is voiced by Jason Anthony Griffith for 4Kids, by Jamie Meldrum and Chuck Powers for Odex and by Sonny Strait for Funimation.
Usopp is a talented inventor, creating the Clima Tact for Nami and the dial-upgraded Perfect Clima Tact. Prior to Franky joining, he is the crew’s acting carpenter and patches up the caravel Going Merry, Merry Go in the English manga and 4kids Dub) whenever it’s damaged. He also has notable artistic talent, shown in his painting the Straw Hat jolly roger and crafting of detailed snow sculptures. Usopp has outstanding marksmanship abilities with his slingshot and his remarkable accuracy often surprises his enemies. He utilizes extremely varied ammunition, including rotten eggs, hot sauce, pepper, shuriken and powerful explosives. Using his self-developed weapon, Kabuto, a slingshot connected to the end of a long staff, Usopp is even able to out range guns. Usopp’s father left to become a pirate when Usopp was still very young. Some time after this, Usopp’s mother died. After Luffy, Nami, and Zoro help him defeat Kuro’s pirates, who were intent on raiding his home village, Usopp is inspired by the three, and decides to go out to sea and to follow his dream of becoming a “brave warrior of the sea”. Throughout the story Usopp continues to act cowardly and remains one of the weaker fighting powers of the Straw Hats. This leads him to feeling inferior and after an argument over the fate of the Going Merry on Water 7 he leaves the Straw Hat crew. He dons a mask in order to anonymously help save Robin however and later, after many tears and an apology, rejoins the crew.


Sanji

“Sanji” redirects here. For the music video director, see Sanji (director). For the seiyū, see Sanji Hase.
Sanji is the crew’s 19-year-old[7] chain-smoking chef and the fourth to join. He knows how it feels to starve from first hand experience. Therefore he will never refuse someone a meal. He has a strong sense of chivalry, because of which, he will never harm a woman, even if he dies. Sanji also seems to keep this code regardless of a woman’s appearance. His dream is to find the All Blue, a legendary sea, containing every kind of fish in the world. Sanji is one of the most popular One Piece characters, as he ranked third in a recent Japanese fan poll. He is voiced by Hiroaki Hirata in the Japanese version of the anime. In the English dubs, he is voiced by David Moo for 4Kids, by Joe Murray and Paul Pistore for Odex[citation needed] and by Eric Vale for Funimation.
Sanji is also a very skilled fighter who uses only kicks. He said that this is because a chef’s hands are his prized possession and should not be risked in battle.[51] He was trained by the once infamous pirate and chef “Red Foot” Zeff, who had been to the Grand Line himself. His fighting style’s name is taken from the alias of “Red Foot” Zeff, Sanji’s mentor and developer of the style. Sanji’s most powerful ability is Diable Jambe, which involves rotating at high speeds, heating his leg via friction until it glows red-hot. This powerful ability enhances his kick and literally burns his opponent when it connects. The more Sanji uses his kick, the more his legs are damaged, but the legs would heal after time. Oda states this is because Sanji’s heart burns even hotter.[53] A unique attack to Sanji would be his beautification attack (Parage Shot!), which he demonstrated against chef Wanze. With several kicks to the face, Wanze’s face changed to resemble one would expect from the protagonist of a shojou manga. This skill is shown again many chapters later on Iron Mask Duval. As an expert chef, Sanji is capable of preparing almost any dish imaginable, while holding to a strong sense of the aesthetics of cooking. Sanji is also skilled in fighting with kitchen knives, as demonstrated against Cipher Pol chef Wanze.


Tony Tony Chopper

Tony Tony Chopper is the crew’s 15-year-old doctor and the fifth to join. He is a blue-nosed reindeer, who gained human properties by eating the Devil Fruit Human Human Fruit (ヒトヒトの実, Hito Hito no Mi). He is capable of conversing with humans and animals alike. He is very naïve and has a tendency to believe anything told to him. And he is incapable of hiding his feelings. His dream is to create a cure for all the world’s diseases. When creating Chopper, Oda stated that he wanted a mascot who is both cute and fearless.[55] An IGN review of the manga praised Chopper’s character as one of the best in the series, and said he was able to be both touching and funny. In the most recent Japanese Fan Poll, Chopper is the fourth most popular character. Chopper is voiced by Ikue Ōtani in the Japanese version of the anime. In the English dubs, he is voiced by Lisa Ortiz for 4Kids, by Emlyn Morinelli for Odex[citation needed] and by Brina Palencia for Funimation.
His Devil Fruit gives him the ability to almost instantly transform in certain ways. His first and original form is that of a blue nosed reindeer. His second form’s proportions are quite similar to that of a human child, but has antlers and hooves among other things. The third form gives him a werehuman-like appearance and height. It is the most human form he can assume, as it leaves him with only a reindeer-like face and bodyfur to distinguish him from real human beings. In addition to his normal transformations, Chopper developed a drug he calls Rumble Ball, which allows him four additional transformations to use over a three minutes period. These forms focus certain parts of his body to improve his physical abilities. If Chopper uses a second Rumble Ball within six hours, he can’t control his transformations; if Chopper uses a third Rumble Ball within six hours of the first, he transforms into monstrous version of himself and loses self-control. This form is called Monster Point and is extremely powerful, but also has the adverse effect of draining Chopper’s life force. When he awakens he does not remember anything done during the forms destruction.


Nico Robin

Nico Robin is the crew’s 28 year old archaeologist and the sixth to join. She is extremely intelligent, having taught herself archeology and the extremely difficult Poneglyph language at a very young age. Her dream is to find and decipher the Rio Poneglyph, an ancient stone telling a long lost part of history, which is considered a crime against the World Government. Robin values ancient artifacts and buildings, and she will risk her life to protect them. She has vast knowledge of the world of One Piece, and usually keeps her head during surprising situations, allowing her to logically analyze them without losing her cool. Robin is voiced by Yuriko Yamaguchi in the Japanese version of the anime. In the English dubs, she is voiced by Veronica Taylor for 4Kids, by Natasha Malinsky for Odex[citation needed] and by Stephanie Young for Funimation.
Robin has the abilities of the Flower Flower Fruit, allowing her to create copies of any of her body parts on any solid surface that she can see, such as her own body, on the bodies of others, on objects, or even the replicated limbs themselves.[64] In battle, she most often employs grappling techniques to incapacitate her foe; by replicating her limbs on their body, she eliminates the need for close range combat. The most often imployed techniques thus far are using her hands to hold the foes limbs together or in place, or in a more cruel attack, spawning multiple limbs from the opponents body and bending their spinal collumns till breakage. On Triller Bark island, she reveals that she is able to replicate her arms into a pattern resembling wings, which allow her to fly for up to five seconds. If Robin’s replicated body parts are damaged in some way, the damage appears on her actual body.
Robin was raised on the island Ohara with her Uncle’s family after her mother, Nico Olvia, leaves the island to study the lost history of the world. Her abilities cause most of the other residents of the island to call her a demon, though she is welcomed by her mother’s colleagues. She eventually meets Jaguar D. Saul, a giant vice admiral who defects from the marines becoming her first real friend. Soon after, her mother returns with the marines close behind her, and the island and its inhabitants are bombarded and slaughtered. Aokiji, a close friend of Saul, kills Saul for his defecting, and decides to spare Robin and monitor her closely, though she has a high bounty placed on her head because of her knowledge. She eventually works with various pirates in order to survive, including joining with Sir Crocodile as “Miss All Sunday” until he is defeated by Straw Hat Luffy. She then decides that since Luffy saved her life and she has nowhere else to go she joins the crew. After many adventures with the crew, Robin grows a strong feeling for them especially after the events of Enies Lobby.


Franky

Franky, originally known as Cutty Flam, is the crew shipwright and seventh to join. He is cola-powered cyborg, who wishes to build a ship capable of sailing around the world. He is a skilled carpenter, capable of building an entire bridge in a matter of moments. Together with the Galleyla shipwrights, he builds the Thousand Sunny, a brigantine-rigged sloop-of-war, to repay the Straw Hats and take on the “spirit” of the destroyed Going Merry. The ship is built from an extremely strong wood from the “Treasure Tree Adam”, the same material of Gold Roger’s Ship, bought using money stolen from the Straw Hats. Franky is voiced by Kazuki Yao in the Japanese version of the anime and by Patrick Seitz in Funimation’s English dub.
He is the son of a pirate from the South Blue, who abandons him at the age of ten. He is taken in on Water 7 by the master shipwright, Tom, who built Gold Roger’s ship. Along with his other apprentice, Iceburg, they construct a sea train and various other small warships. Tom hold the blueprints to the ancient superweapon, Pluton, which leads the World Government to charge him for building Roger’s ship, and frame Cutty by using his ships to attack the city. Tom takes the blame for Cutty, and he is sentenced to be taken away to the Marine prison, Impel Down. Cutty attempts to stop the train, though it ends up hitting him. He reinforces his nearly dead body with mechanical parts to become a cyborg, and returns to Water 7 as Franky. He rounds up the lowlifes of the city to form the Franky Family, a group of ship dismantlers and delinquents. He ends up helping to fight CP9 after antagonizing the Straw Hats, and reluctantly joins the crew through the encouragement of the Franky Family.
Franky’s artificial body grants him incredible strength, as well as making him practically invulnerable to most frontal attacks. He is unable to modify his back, leaving it vulnerable to attacks. His fighting style focuses on projectile attacks, including an extendable right bionic arm, cannons in his left arm, and nails and fire that can be launched from his mouth. His chest contains a compartment to hold up to three bottles of cola, which fuels him and his attacks. Franky’s hair style and attitude are affected by the type of drink he uses for fuel. He can use up much of his cola to launch powerful bursts of wind from both his arms, with “Coup de Vent” taking one whole bottle.


Brook

Brook is the crew’s musician and eighth to join. He is a living skeleton, resurrected by means of the Revive Revie Fruit. He has a strange personality, being a combination of a gentlemanly persona and a perverted, crude sort. He speaks in a dignified, educated manner at most times, while having amazingly bad manners, often burping at dinner. He takes being a skeleton lightly, using any chance he can to joke about it. The idea of a skeleton musician was first conceived during 2000. Brook is voiced by Chō in the Japanese version of the anime.
Brook is initially a fighter in the surprise-attack squadron of an unknown kingdom before joining the Rumbar Pirates, which is made up entirely of musicians. The group befriends Laboon, a whale who becomes enamored with their music and Brook’s afro. They promise to return to Laboon before departing to sail the Grand Line, though the crew is slaughtered upon entering the Florian Triangle. Before succumbing to poison, they play and record one last song, and entrust the task of playing it for Laboon to Brook once his fruit revives him. Brook’s spirit takes a long time to find his body due to the vast area and constant fog, leading to it decay down to his skeleton. He spends a long time alone on the ship, which cannot sail, before being captured by Gecko Moria, who steals Brook’s shadow, and forces him to stay within the triangle to avoid the sun. He pledges himself to the Straw Hats after they help him retrieve his shadow. His goal becomes to return to Laboon after circling the Grand Line.
Brook carries a shikomizue, a Japanese cane sword, and is skilled in a fencing style that utilizes quick jabs. Brook is also an excellent musician, displaying the ability to play any instrument at a highly skilled level. Despite being a skeleton, he still processes food and becomes tired, though milk can recover him and heal any bone fractures. His hair has extremely strong roots, leading to his full afro still existing. He believes that the afro is necessary for Laboon to remember him, so he does anything that he can to protect it in battle, which can decrease his fighting capabilities. Brook’s lightweight skeleton body gives him great speed, the ability to jump extraordinarily high, and the ability to run across water. Brook can combine his shikomizue and violin to create sound-based attacks capable of confusing the enemy and forcing them to sleep.