A fever dream One Piece but still very One Piece in its core Warnings: Blood here and there, one nudity scene but nothing full frontal, self harm
For the nonfans of One Piece or anime:
The source material is goofy and not truly based on any Earth history. The show leans into it so expect some hokey ridiculous looks. Costumes will have ranges of modern looks to 18th century etc. Some characters might even give you uncanny valley because of the absurdity. Think like The Mask, Scooby-Doo LA, Lazy Town, or Series of Unfortunate Events.
The fights aren't grounded but more akin to Wuxia or Wirefu. If you've watched shows like Kung Fu Hustle, Shaolin Soccer, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, RRR, or Shang Chi then that's similar to it. You get humans jumping really high. Running on walls in a 90 degree angle. Spinning mid air etc. Basically don't think of the rules of Earth physics.
Don't be fooled by what you just see however, the story and themes gets serious too. One Piece tackles themes like oppression, slavery, racism, family loss etc...It's one of the best world building story that's 25 years in the making. And the show takes advantage of that benefit of hindsight.
Overall it's an uplifting yet dramatic story in an inventive world that runs towards optimism. Luffy (Inaki Godoy) is a force of nature. He affects and inspires people around him. The Strawhat crew- I do not exaggerate when I say- is one of the best Found Family there is.
If you like absurdism fantasy action adventure do check this out!
For the fans and my general review:
"Stop counting only those things you have lost! What is gone, is gone. So ask yourself this. What is there that still remains to you?" --Oda
One has to remember this show is not a recreation. It's an adaptation. There's also no such thing as 1-1 adaptation. Game of Thrones had changes. Harry Potter had changes. Lord of the Rings had changes. But these became loved because they succeeded in translating the heart of the story and essense of the characters. As a fellow fan for over 10 years...I believe One Piece Live Action did it too even with all the changes. The Manga and Anime will always be with us and now we just have additional content through the live action. I'd say it's about 70% faithful to how the manga progresses? Like if you remove what they added and just compare the core of the plotlines it'll be similar.
Anyway, I followed the live action news, got into the production perspective and I'm happy that these people are in love with One Piece even more than I am. Their decision not to ground too much in reality is so refreshing. I'm so tired of live action adaptations always looking so gray and gritty!! Realistic but not grounded by realism is what we need!! That's how you lose magic when you limit yourself in always keeping it "real". Embrace the absurd and goofy. Look at it with a child-like wonder filter. Get into that Romantic adventure. Take in the corny and cheesy stuff.
Overall this show is far from perfect. I'd say as an adaptation it's about 7.5/10 but I'm rating it a 9 because I enjoyed it for what it is and it greatly entertained me as a show. There's plenty I can nitpick from especially since they didn't include some scenes that I personally love but I can forgive the negatives over the many positives it has. This show is truly one made by fans and you can feel that from the costumes, the world, the characters...down to the easter eggs they sprinkled in. I truly enjoyed it as a whole. It's like a fever dream One Piece but still very One Piece in its core.