While Netflix’sOne Piecewill have to reckon with an increasingly overt cast issue, this so-called problem can actually fix a part of Eiichiro Oda’s manga that doesn’t completely make sense. Against all odds, the live-actionOne Pieceadaptation has been widely hailed as a leading example of how to translate a beloved anime and manga series into a real-life setting, and playing no small part in that success was the impressiveOne Piececast. Iñaki Godoy captured the spirit of Monkey D. Luffy without feeling too over-the-top, the remaining Straw Hats possessed genuine chemistry, and Jeff Ward’s Buggy provided a surprising highlight.
Top to bottom, Netflix’sOne Pieceensemble was perfectly picked, and I eagerly await their returns inOne Pieceseason 2. Nevertheless, the series may eventually become a victim of its own success. As each season passes,One Piece’s live-action cast will be pulled further and further away from their anime and manga counterparts. Avoiding this phenomenon will be impossible, but there is one saving grace.
If One Piece Lasts Until The Later Arcs, The Cast Will Age Way Faster Than The Characters Should
Their Backs Will No Longer Be In One Piece
FromHarry PottertoStranger Things, many long-running franchises that feature predominantly youthful casts have encountered the problem of actors growing up faster than their characters.One Piece’s main players aren’t quite as fresh-faced as the residents of Hogwarts and Hawkins, ranging from their early 20s to early 30s, but the age factor still risks rearing its ugly head.One Pieceseason 1released in August 2023 and covered in the region of 95 manga chapters.Season 2 looks set for either 2025 or 2026and will cover around 60 chapters.
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At the time of writing,One Piecestands at over 1140 chapters, and the live-action show’s producers believe the entire saga can realistically be adapted within 12 seasons. Looking at the best-case scenario, therefore, withNetflix lettingOne Piecerun for 12 seasonsand each season taking two years to put together,One Pieceseason 12 would finally air circa 2045, by which point the Straw Hat actors would be in their 40s and 50s. By way of comparison, the same characters at the current point in Oda’sOne Piecemanga are still in their late teens and early 20s.
The Length Of Luffy’s Voyage Makes No Sense In One Piece
The timeline of Luffy’s voyage in the originalOne Piecestory is straightforward enough to decipher, albeit quite surprising. Luffy sets sail at the age of 17, then spends a few months with his crew before the Straw Hats disband for two years to train separately. They reunite, and an unspecified number of months then pass before the current point in the manga. Ultimately, therefore,Monkey D. Luffy has been a pirate for, at the most, three years, and two of those years were spent training, which puts his cumulative experience as an active, sailing pirate at one year or less.
All the Straw Hats' achievements happening inside such a short expanse of time feels unfeasible.
For two reasons, this makes very little sense. Firstly, the Straw Hats feel like a tight-knit family where the crew members know each other better than anyone else in the world. The fact thatOne Piecehas been running for over 25 years creates the illusion that the Straw Hats have been together far longer than they actually have. In reality, the main characters have barely spent a year in each other’s company.
One Piece Season 2 Release Window Teases How Long Netflix’s Show Will Take To Adapt The Entire Story
As One Piece season 2’s potential release date sails closer, it’s possible to figure out roughly how long Netflix will take to adapt the entire story.
The second wrinkle inOne Piece’s realism is Luffy’s rapid rise to fame. All ofOne Piece’s most powerful pirates- Shanks, Big Mom, Kaido, the Warlords, etc. - have been plugging away on the seas for many years or decades by the timeOne Piecebegins, which is how they became such respected and feared figures. Luffy has reached the same level in just shy of 12 months, and while his talent and Devil Fruit go some way toward explaining that, all the Straw Hats' achievements happening inside such a short expanse of time feels unfeasible.
Netflix’s Straw Hats Aging Can Make The Live-Action Voyage Seem Longer
Luffy’s Live-Action Crew Can Take Their Time On The Seven Seas
Netflix’sOne Piececast being in their 40s and 50s if and when the live-action series reaches season 12 may, then, not be a huge problem. Indeed, it could actually smooth over the aforementioned timeline issues from the manga. The series would never need to directly address how much time is passing in the show, but Luffy looking like a 30-year-old man by the timeOne Pieceseason 6 airs would at least create the impression that as many years are passing in-universe as they are in the real world.
One Piececould get away with having the Straw Hats age a little more visibly.
That way,the Straw Hats sharing such a strong bond would make more logical sense, and the pace of Luffy’s milestones as a pirate would broadly line up against the likes of Shanks and Kaido. The only real drawback would be thatOne Piece’s adult characters would have to age too, meaning fan favorites like Shanks andOne Pieceseason 2 newcomer Dragonbecome much older men in the story’s final stages. Veteran pirates like Silvers Rayleigh and Scopper Gaban would, alas, be very aged indeed.
Dragon’s full name is Monkey D. Dragon. He’s the son of Garp and Luffy’s father.
As long as Netflix’sOne Pieceremains vague about the exact timeline, however, it could get away with having the Straw Hats age a little more visibly than the experienced, grizzled pirates. It would certainly be a better alternative than asking actors in their 40s to play characters 20 years younger.
