Netflix's One Piece season one ending explained

The first season of Netflix’s live-action One Piece has dropped and given fans of the anime plenty to sink their teeth into. In just eight episodes, the show has covered the first 96 chapters of the original manga and 44 episodes of the anime, but it didn’t end without hinting at the future adventures of the Straw Hat crew. It also featured a brief cameo from a major figure in the next arc in the show, so fans might have questions about what is coming up.

Spoilers ahead for Netflix's One Piece season 1.

What happens at the end of Netflix’s One Piece season one?

The One Piece live-action adaptation largely follows the course of the manga and anime, though it moves several character introductions forward and limits others to mere cameos to fit everything into a single season. In the final moments of this season, Luffy and the Straw Hat pirates defeat Arlong and free Coco Village from his tyranny. Shortly after, Luffy’s grandfather, Vice Admiral Garp, catches up with the crew and confronts Luffy but fails to dissuade him from continuing to the Grand Line.

• The next day, the crew sets off on their next adventure, setting sail for the Grand Line together.
• Makino, who helped raise Luffy as a child, sees his wanted poster and has a proud smile on her face.
• Kaya sips tea in her home and sees the same wanted poster, but her focus is firmly on her friend Usopp in the bottom corner.
• Back at Baratie, Zeff puts Luffy’s wanted poster up on the notice board in the kitchen under the Employee of the Month plaque.
• Buggy broods over his defeat at the hands of Luffy and is soon joined by Alvida, who has a similar score to settle with the young pirate.
• Vice Admiral Garp explains to Koby and Helmeppo that he will be personally training them over the next several months.
• Mihawk delivers the news to Shanks that Luffy is finally a pirate captain and has a bounty on his head from the World Government, causing the Red-Hair pirates to celebrate.
• Luffy and the Straw Hat pirates sail on the Going Merry, looking for the entrance to the Grand Line at a river that goes up a mountain.
• A mysterious figure in a smoky room burns a hole in Luffy’s wanted poster with one of his two cigars, setting up the likely villain for season two of One Piece.

Who is the figure in the final scene of One Piece?

Fans new to One Piece will probably be wondering who this strange figure is and why he seems to have it out for Monkey D. Luffy. Though he wasn’t shown in season one of Netflix’s One Piece show, viewers who are familiar with what comes next in the story will quickly recognize the figure as Captain Smoker.

Smoker is a Marine Captain stationed at Loguetown, which is the Going Merry’s next stop in the original manga. He makes it his personal mission to bring down Luffy, using the power of his own Devil Fruit, the Plume-Plume Fruit. This allows him to transform some or all of his body into smoke, which he uses in both defensive and offensive ways. He is a formidable foe and Luffy only escapes their encounter due to the intervention of another mysterious figure from his past.

What is the entrance to the Grand Line on Nami’s map?

At the end of season one of One Piece, Nami comments that there must be a problem with their map to the Grand Line. It shows a river or canal that appears to be going up a mountain. Luffy, carefree as ever, brushes it off and assures her that she will figure it out.

This entrance to the Grand Line refers to Reverse Mountain, one of two known entrances to the Grand Line in the manga. It is located at a point where the world’s four oceans meet and the temperature differences between them and the Grand Line causes their currents to flow up the mountain in four rivers before flowing down toward the Grand Line. It is a treacherous route to take, with many pirates dying before they even reach the top of Reverse Mountain due to the unpredictable rapids and storms.

The mention of Reverse Mountain at the end of One Piece’s first season on Netflix probably means that the potential second season will probably end with the Straw Hat pirates’ adventures here. If this is true, then we’ll have to wait until season three before they spend any time on the Grand Line itself.

Will there be a season two of One Piece?

With so many of the final scenes in One Piece setting up future stories, it might seem like Netflix is already laying the groundwork for a second and potentially third season of the show. While there is plenty of speculation about the show’s renewal, nothing official has been announced by Netflix yet.

This isn’t unusual for these anime adaptations from Netflix. Famously, Cowboy Bebop waited until the final episode to introduce Ed, one of the series’ most popular characters, with a mind to use them in a future season. However, the poor reception of the show from fans meant that a second season was never commissioned. Whether that happens to One Piece remains to be seen. The ongoing strikes from both Hollywood writers and actors could also play a factor in any future release.

Does One Piece have a post-credits scene?

After Smoker’s reveal at the end of One Piece’s final episode, the credits begin, and viewers are shown a map of the regions visited by the Straw Hat pirates during the first season. Fans might wonder if there is an extra scene either during or after the credits, but Netflix hasn’t added one to the first season’s final episode. Enough story hooks are dangling in the final minutes of episode eight that anything additional would be superfluous.

What might happen in season two of One Piece?

While we won’t know if Netflix will bring back Luffy and his crew for future episodes, the teaser scenes at the end of season one certainly set the stage for what could happen in season two. In the manga, the Loguetown arc immediately follows the events at Arlong Park. In this story, the Straw Hat pirates head to Loguetown to resupply and recover from their various battles. They encounter several familiar enemies as well as the powerful Captain Smoker before escaping to seek the entrance to the Grand Line.

If season two is eventually greenlit by Netflix, it will probably also include the Reverse Mountain arc. After braving numerous natural disasters and encountering a legendary giant whale named Laboon, the second season will end with the Going Merry traveling into the Grand Line for the first time.

Which characters will return in One Piece season 2?

Several of the characters in One Piece look set to return for future adventures, though not all of them appear in the manga during the upcoming story arcs. Certainly, the Straw Hat crew will all return if the show is renewed, but some have already had their stories told so they probably won’t be back in the show for future episodes. Those who will probably make a return are:

• Luffy
• Zoro
• Nami
• Usopp
• Sanji
• Buggy
• Alvida

The biggest question that fans might be wondering is how the show will handle the story of the Marines who pursued Luffy in season one. Both Koby and Helmeppo don’t make another appearance in the manga until more than 200 chapters while Vice Admiral Garp isn’t even introduced until that point, so if they are included in season two it is unlikely they will interact with Luffy. Instead, they will probably be used sparingly in training sequences.

If Netflix’s live-action adaptation has whetted your appetite for pirate adventures, you’re in luck. Our One Piece watch guide tells you how and where to watch the more than 1000 episodes of the iconic anime.