Every difference between the live-action One Piece and the original manga

While the anime attempts to be a shot-for-shot remake of Eiichiro Oda’s manga, Netflix’s live-action One Piece makes several changes from the source material. Most are minor, like changing the location of a fight or cutting down on the supporting cast to make the story flow a bit smoother, while some result in major antagonists being written completely off the show.

Some of these changes in the live-action One Piece adaptation are sure to cause some heated discussions among fans because there is nothing that the anime community loves more than arguing with itself. If you’re wondering if your favorite scene or villain made it into the Netflix show, here are all the changes the live-action adaptation makes.

Spoilers ahead for Netflix's One Piece season one.

Live-action One Piece: All Romance Dawn Arc changes

The opening episodes of Netflix’s One Piece adaptation employ a bit of non-linear storytelling to intersperse scenes from Luffy’s backstory into the story of how he put together his first crew. However, the story doesn’t deviate much until he reaches Shells Town and encounters Zoro, Helmeppo, and Captain Morgan. The major changes during these episodes are:

• The criminal organization known as Baroque Works is introduced in the first episode of the live-action One Piece rather than more than 100 chapters later in the manga.
• Luffy is present when Zoro angers Helmeppo and is captured by Captain Morgan.
• Captain Morgan’s vanity and corruption are toned down from the original manga.
• Nami is present when Luffy breaks into the Marine base and fights to help free Zoro shortly after.
• A young girl gives Zoro a chocolate-flavored rice ball in a bar instead of in the prison yard.
• Zoro expresses disdain for Luffy naming his signature attacks in the live-action One Piece. In the manga, he often did the same.
• The Straw Hats steal a map to the Grand Line from Captain Morgan rather than Buggy the Clown as they did in the manga.
• Vice Admiral Garp makes his appearance at the end of the first episode, much earlier than he did in the manga.

Live-action One Piece: All Orange Town Arc changes

When the budding Straw Hat crew arrive at Orange Town, they discover it has been taken over by Buggy the Pirate and his crew. The original anime took five episodes to tell this encounter, but the live-action adaptation of One Piece shortens it to a single one-hour episode. As you’d expect, the story is heavily edited and slimmed down, with most of Buggy’s crew removed or limited to brief cameos.

• The fight against Buggy takes place almost entirely within a circus tent rather than across the entire town.
• Buggy’s first mate Mohji and the local dog Chouchou play a large part in the story in the manga but are removed entirely from this version.
• Cabaji, Buggy’s second mate, and Orange Town mayor Boodle have heavily reduced roles in the live-action One Piece.
• Buggy steals the Straw Hat’s map of the Grand Line before they steal it back, while in the manga they stole it from Buggy originally.
• The first hints that Nami will betray the crew are shown at the end of the episode.

Live-action One Piece: All Syrup Village Arc changes

Syrup Village is where the Straw Hats get their first real ship as well as one of their longest-serving crewmates, Usopp, after saving Lady Kaya from her insidious butler, Klahadore. Like in previous episodes, the battles have been massively scaled down with many of the supporting characters removed or changed entirely. Perhaps some of the biggest changes in the live-action One Piece show are present in these two episodes.

• Arlong is first mentioned in a conversation between Kuroobi and Buggy the Clown.
• In the original manga, Lady Kaya’s illness is due to her grieving her parents’ death. Here, she has been slowly poisoned by her butler, Klahadore, over the past three years.
• Merry is Lady Kaya’s financial advisor in this adaptation rather than another butler as he was in the manga.
• The three young boys who make up Usopp’s Pirates are omitted entirely.
• Most of the Black Cat Pirates are removed from the story entirely, including Jango, Captain Kuro’s first mate.
• Buchi and Sham are the only Black Cat Pirates included in the live-action One Piece but are included in Kuro’s plan to steal her wealth.
• Merry is killed in Netflix’s One Piece while he was merely wounded in the original manga.
• The fight against Captain Kuro takes place in Lady Kaya’s mansion rather than on the beach.
• Vice Admiral Garp continues his pursuit of Luffy at the end of the episode. The revelation that Garp is Luffy’s grandfather comes at the end of episode four rather than significantly later in the original manga.

Live-action One Piece: All Baratie arc changes

The floating restaurant of Baratie is the Straw Hats' next stop. The floating restaurant gives Luffy and his crew some much-needed rest and introduces their next crewmate, Sanji. However, fans will notice that a major character from the One Piece manga is completely omitted from these two episodes, replaced with the first appearance of Arlong.

• Luffy is enlisted as a chore boy aboard Baratie because he failed to pay his bill, while in the original manga, he is paying off the damage he did to the restaurant when they first arrived.
• The battle against Don Krieg and his entire crew is removed from the live-action One Piece.
• Dracule Mihawk is sent to retrieve Luffy at the behest of Vice Admiral Garp rather than as part of his pursuit of Don Krieg.
• Arlong arrives and takes the place of Don Krieg as the primary antagonist of this portion of the show.
• Johnny and Yosaku, two bounty hunters who have teamed up with Zoro in the past, are completely omitted from Netflix’s One Piece.

Live-action One Piece: All Arlong Park Arc changes

The final two episodes of the live-action One Piece follow the crew’s attempts to rescue Nami after she seemingly betrayed them. Her backstory as an orphan raised by a former Marine in Coco Village is revealed, as is her subsequent enslavement by Arlong. The biggest difference between the live-action One Piece and the anime is the motivation behind Arlong’s hatred of humans. During this arc of the manga, he is merely dismissive of humans for being physically weaker than Fish-Men. The live-action show explains that Fish-Men were previously enslaved and oppressed by humans, something that wasn’t revealed until much later in the manga.

• Hachi, the octopus Fish-Man member of Arlong’s crew, and Momoo, the giant sea cow in service to Arlong, are both excluded from Netflix’s One Piece.
• Captain Nezumi attempts to demand more money from Arlong in the live-action show.
• The residents of Coco Village are unaware of Nami’s attempts to purchase their freedom from Arlong in the live-action One Piece. In the manga, they knew why she was working with their enemy.
• Vice Admiral Garp arrives at Coco Village after Arlong is defeated and fights Luffy before ultimately letting him go. This encounter happens several hundred chapters later in the manga.
• At the end of the fight against Vice Admiral Garp, each member of the crew places their feet on a barrel and each declares their individual dreams. This scene happens after the next story arc in the manga.
• Genzo doesn't wear a pinwheel on his hat. Instead, the pinwheel in Nami's past was created by her adoptive mother out of a tangerine skin.

Which characters have been removed from Netflix’s One Piece adaptation

There are countless iconic characters in One Piece, with many making their first appearance in the chapters covered by the live-action adaptation from Netflix. However, with only eight episodes in the first season, there just wasn’t enough room for everyone to be included. Here are all the characters that we didn’t see during the live-action One Piece.

• Mohji: Buggy’s first mate
• Chouchou: a stubborn and loyal dog from Orange Town
• Jango: Captain Kuro’s first mate
• Usopp’s Pirates: Three young boys from Syrup Village
• Don Krieg: One of the most powerful pirates in the East Blue
• Johnny: A bounty hunter who has worked with Zoro in the past
• Yosaku: A bounty hunter who has worked with Zoro in the past
• Hachi: An octopus Fish-Man who wields six swords at once
• Momoo: A giant sea-cow that is originally from the Grand Line

If the live-action show has got you craving more from the Straw Hats, our One Piece watch guide can help you get up to speed with the more than 1000 episodes of the anime that are available. It’s a long journey but one filled with iconic faces and stellar animation.