Many fans didn’t think that it was possible forOne Pieceto have a successful live-action series, but they were swiftly proved wrong. However, the recent reveal of everyone’s favorite emergency food supply, Tony Tony Chopper, has divided the fandom. Whether fans like him or not, they can’t deny that Netflix’s live-action adaptation ofOne Piececan’t do justice to every single character, as proven by Don Krieg, Johnny, and Yosaku.
While I have complete trust in the team to faithfully adapt and reinventOne Piece, I know they can’t hit a home run on everything, which is whythis list will highlight ten characters that I don’t think they will do justice to. This could mean that these characters will be difficult to adapt due to their appearance, size, design, and personality, or that the writers will change or reduce their role.
10Crocodile
Main Arc: Alabasta
Many fans thought Alabasta would be part ofOne PieceSeason 2, and while that isn’t the case, fans will still see one of their favorite villains, withJoe Manganiellocast as Crocodile. As the leader of Baroque Works, he planned to take over the kingdom of Alabasta and use an ancient weapon for power, and the live-action series looks to be setting him up as the big bad for the next couple of seasons.
Crocodile finds himself on this list for different reasons than most, because I believe they will faithfully adapt his character and do him justice, especially afterManganiello met Eiichiro Oda. The main issue is the sand, which Oda said was a pain to draw. I imagine it will only be morechallenging to bring Crocodile’s sand to life with CGI, with the potential for it to look weird and out of place.
Main Arc: Reverse Mountain
While everyone is focusing on the big-name characters, fans need to consider the lesser-utilized ones, asOne Piece Live-Actioncan either increase a role, as seen with Coby, or decrease it, as seen with Don Krieg. Crocus was the doctor on Gol D. Roger’s ship, thestrongest pirate crew inOne Piece, and makes an appearance in Reverse Mountain, where he is the lighthouse keeper.
They have already cast Crocus withClive Russell, who looks perfect for the role. However, the only issue is Crocus' status; will he get an enhanced part, or will he only be a minor addition? Crocus is one of the only characters in Season 2I can imagine receiving a similar treatment to Johnny and Yosaku,minimizing his role to focus on bigger things ahead.
Main Arc: Water 7
One of the biggest strengths ofOne Piece Live-Actionwas nailing the casting for the Strawhat pirates, but that doesn’t mean they will continue to do so in the future. Franky is the crew’s shipwright and a former enemy of Water 7, but he helped them save Nico Robin. However, as a cyborg, the production team may have a bit more trouble bringing him to life than other characters.
I’ll never get tired of Water 7, and Franky’s inclusion is a big part of it, but it’ll be tricky to get him right in live-action. He’snot unique enough to be entirely CGI, but he’snot normal enough to be just an average person. The show will have to add prosthetics to make him look believable, and even then, it will be tough. It isn’t impossible, but they have a tough task ahead of them whenever Franky is ready for live-action.
7Dorry and Brogy
Main Arc: Little Garden
Little Garden will be one of the arcs the live-actionOne Pieceshould cover, and that means fans will get to see the rival giants, Dorry and Brogy, some of the best characters, who only appear in one arc. After a disagreement, these giants have been fighting for over one hundred years, but they seem to have settled things in the manga.
Dorry and Brogy are another pair of characters set to debut inOne Piece’s Season 2, withWerner CoetserandBrendan Murrayplaying the giants respectively.The main issue is obvious: the size. The show and the actors can realistically pull this challenge off, but I worry thatthe stark difference will look awkward in live-action, failing to do justice to some of the best minor characters inOne Piece.
Main Arc: Thriller Bark
As previously mentioned, casting has done an excellent job with the Strawhats; however, Franky can see some issues, while Brook is even more challenging to adapt faithfully. Thriller Bark is one of thebest arcs inOne Piece, and sees the introduction of Brook, a perverted skeleton whose shadow was stolen, prompting the crew to defeat the Warlord and set Brook free.
Thriller Bark will be a tricky arc in general if they make it that far, and Brook is only the first issue they face. Since he is a skeleton,they have two options: full prosthetics, like Arlong’s,or complete CGI, like Chopper’s, and neither will turn out well. Brook will either looktoo scary in CGI or too weird when done practically, meaning it’s a losing game. Maybe they can lean into the creepiness and change his character to work, but that won’t do justice to him.
5Emporio Ivankov
Main Arc: Impel Down
One Pieceis known for its weird sizes and proportions, and Emporio Ivankov is arguably the most distinct, with its massive head and slightly smaller body. Everyone wants to see the Revolutionary Army take actionbeforeOne Pieceends, and Ivankov is a key figure in that revolution. However, they present a series of problems if they ever appear in live-action.
We can assume they will make Ivankov a normal person, but that is precisely why they won’t do justice to the character.Eliminating their unusual proportions and size detracts from their goofiness, but again, it’s unrealistic to portray them accurately without creating something too uncanny, making it an impossible task from the beginning. Then the otherissue is with representation, as many fans have already found Ivankov offensive, they will receive more backlash in live-action if they don’t do them justice.
4Shirahoshi
Main Arc: Fishman Island
Fishman Island is a polarizingOne Piecearc, with horrible pacing, a boring villain, and a lack of animation detracting from a profound story. One of the biggest characters in this arc, both literally and figuratively, is Shirahoshi, the princess of the island who must hide away from Vander Decken. Her story was a significant part of the arc and extends into the overall lore, as she is the ancient weapon of Poseidon.
One Piecehas had issues with scantily clad women, and while the live-action can easily solve that, gettingShirahoshi’s size and mermaid tail will be much bigger problems. The size difference will appear wonky if not done correctly, and the added CGI or practical effects for the tail will only exacerbate the issue. Not to mention the way Shirahoshi acts can be annoying, meaning the production team has a lot of steps to fix, and it’s unlikely they will succeed in all of them.
3The Mink Tribe
Main Arc: Zou
Fans will get their first look at aZoan Devil Fruit in theOne Piece Live-Actionseries in Season 2 of Netflix’sOne Piece, but Chopper’s teaser has alleviated concerns that the CGI will be subpar. However, later in the series, when the Strawhats travel to Zou, they meet a tribe of Minks, a humanoid animal species that helps them in the Raid on Onigashima.
One or two CGI humanoid animals are no issues, but when dozens are in the same scene, it becomesincreasingly challenging to make them look good. Not to mention that Minks are much different from Chopper, with the former being more humanoid. CGI animal can look good with a big enough budget, but that’s a very, very big ask, and practical effects and costumes will also look uncanny and potentially too silly.
2Gecko Moria
As previously mentioned, Thriller Bark will be challenging to adapt to live-action, as it is the least natural and features thousands of spooky props and a unique atmosphere. But the most challenging part will be doing justice to Gecko Moria, one of the seven warlords of the sea and afantasticOne Piecevillain.
Like Ivankov,Moria has weird proportions, witha bulbous lower half and a skinny neck, resembling something out of aTim Burtonmovie. The next issue arises when he enters his powered-up form, creating a hulking menace that bulges with shadows to the point where he might burst. Netflix can do the character some justice practically, but there’sno way they will bring out Moria to the fullest in live-action; however, I would love to be proved wrong.
1The Charlotte Family
Main Arc: Whole Cake Island
Like the Mink Tribe, this entry features a group of characters rather than just one. Even though Big Mom would also work by herself, her entire family is full of weird designs and unnatural proportions. The Charlotte Family is the followers and children of Big Mom, one of the emperors of the sea. They were a significant part of the Whole Cake Island arc and contributed to makingOne Pieceone of thebest anime seriesof all time.
Who knows if Netflix’sOne Piecewill actually go this far into the story, but if it does, it has a serious problem bringing the entire Charlotte Family to life. Toning down the Charlotte Family would be a bummer, but there isn’t much they can do about it. I have faith in the costumes and actors, but there isno way to faithfully make them with their normal proportions and size, especially Big Mom.
NEXT:The 10 Greatest ‘One Piece’ Characters Who Only Mattered in One Arc
