Manga is kinda cool. I was in a bookstore a couple of weeks ago and picked up a boxset of My Hero Academia manga on a whim. Within the first volume I was hooked with this form of visual literature, and I had to have more.. so now I also have the One Piece Boxset. Here is my look as a newbie of the first volume of One Piece: Romance Dawn.
One Piece is a series always talked about, and from the outside it’s just a funny looking pirate anime. Let me tell you that after Chapter 1 I could understand the potential for loving this series. The first chapter acts as a prologue to the protagonist Monkey D. Luffy. This chapter is about his first real brush with pirates, and the understanding of the danger that comes with that lifestyle. It’s quite an informative chapter as we see where Luffy’s power comes from, as he is like a rubber man. We are given insight into how he wants to be the ‘World’s greatest pirate,’ no matter the cost, and the pirate that shaped his vision at a shocking cost. It’s very unusual for any episodic story to only carry over the protagonist to the next story, but One Piece does. Chapter 2 takes place ten years later seeing Luffy set sail on his first adventure. This chapter sees Luffy’s powers in action as he takes on a pirate ship. Chapters 3 through 7 is a longer adventure that sees Luffy bring on Roronoa Zero, as a new crew member. The final chapter of volume one is the start of the next adventure that continues into volume two. It appears that another character is going to be recruited into Luffy’s crew.
One Piece volume one is the start of a fun pulpy adventure. The main foundations set up what appears to be a grand adventure. As the roster of characters grow and join the crew the story must shine. I need to say going into One Piece I was skeptical about the lack of interest I have in a pirate themed show, but it feels a lot like a western to my joy. The series must evolve in such a way I can’t even imagine for there to be more than a 1000 chapters in the series to date, however it looks like the series is nearing to a conclusion in the next couple of years. Now with the new game One Piece Odyssey launching this week, I think I’m in for the adventure.
Have you read or ever wanted to jump into One Piece?
Robert Ring
KissTheGames 