Netflix’s live-action adaptation of One Piece has been a huge success, breaking the streaming platform’s previous challenges with anime adaptations. Based on Eiichiro Oda’s popular manga and anime series, One Piece follows Monkey D. Luffy, a young pirate on a quest to become the King of the Pirates.
Along the way, he forms a diverse crew and sails to the Grand Line in search of the legendary treasure known as the One Piece. Fans eagerly anticipated seeing their beloved series come to life with real actors. After its release, One Piece broke numerous records and became the most successful anime adaptation of all time.
In its first week of release, Netflix’s One Piece became the top-ranked original streaming series. Despite its success, the One Piece adaptation on Netflix hasn’t surpassed the popularity of Meghan Markle’s show Suits.
One Piece Has Strong Debut on Netflix But Can’t Match Upto Suits’ Longtime Popularity
Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Eiichiro Oda‘s One Piece quickly rose to the top of the original streaming series rankings in its first week of release.
During the week of August 28 to September 3 (it premiered on August 31), it garnered a remarkable 1.31 billion minutes of viewing in the United States. This impressive number translates to roughly 21.85 million hours of viewing, which accounts for nearly 16 percent of the total worldwide viewing reported in Netflix’s own top 10 rankings for that week.
However, Meghan Markle’s Suits maintained its dominance as the top overall title in the rankings for the 11th consecutive week, accumulating a staggering 2.45 billion minutes of viewing on Netflix and Peacock.
This achievement tied Suits with Ozark for the most weeks at the overall No. 1 spot in Nielsen’s streaming charts, though Ozark achieved this over multiple seasons rather than consecutively.
One Piece Succeeds While Other Anime Adaptations Didn’t
Netflix’s One Piece is a standout anime adaptation, overcoming the platform’s previous challenges. They took a grounded approach, recognizing that live-action can’t replicate the exaggerated actions and expressions of anime but still aimed to make the beloved characters relatable.
Collaboration with the original creator, Eiichiro Oda, ensures faithfulness to the source material. The casting is exceptional, with actors embodying characters’ qualities and adding depth for live-action audiences.
One Piece impresses with costumes, hair, makeup, and CGI, successfully conveying the anime’s essence. CGI excels in fantastical moments, like Luffy’s stretching or Buggy the Clown’s dismemberment, appearing smooth and lifelike visuals.
In summary, One Piece bucks the trend of disappointing anime live-action adaptations on Netflix, standing out for its faithfulness, performances, and visuals.
One Piece Live Adaptation is available to watch on Netflix.
Source: Deadline