ONE PIECE: EAST BLUE PART 1 (ROMANCE DAWN)

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ONE PIECE: EAST BLUE PART 1 (ROMANCE DAWN)

January 13th 2012 21:58

Category: Manga

Story & Art by: Eiichiro Oda
English Adaptation: Lance Caselman
Translation: Andy Nakatani
Touch up art & Lettering: Bill Schuch
Cover & Graphic Design: Sean Lee
Publisher: VIZ Media
Cost: AU$12.95/US$7.95

Apparently this series is huge, it’s already well into six hundred and fifty plus manga chapters alone and as far as anime episodes are concerned I’ve got no idea. My first contact with One Piece actually occurred around the same time as I discovered Naruto on early morning television; usually One Piece was on before the adventures of the number one knucklehead ninja of the Hidden Leaf so I only ever caught the tail end of things. Still even though I didn’t bother to actually watch the series it was in the back of my mind for quite some time, then finally I decided to see if I could track down the source as it were, the very beginning of the manga. After all I generally prefer to start at the start if at all possible with a manga and this manga series is huge not only in terms of its appeal but in its sheer length.

So what is all the hype about? Just what makes One Piece tick? Well you could pretty much say that it takes some classic swashbuckling style action and milieu and employs it a really enjoyable, engaging manner whilst at the same time adding its own unique taste to the mix. Essentially One Piece is a story about pirates, piracy and adventure on the high seas set in its own fictional world that on some levels resembles the era of the Spanish Main and the Caribbean. Strangely though the story doesn’t actually begin with the key protagonist per se, in fact it begins in the past with a pirate known as Gold Roger…
Now even though he doesn’t have much of a part in this volume Gold Roger does have a tremendous impact on the narrative that drives things along. One could say he is the ultimate McGuffin, once known as the “King of the Pirates” he was a terror on the high seas until finally he was caught and executed for his trouble. Prior to his demise though he claimed that his treasure was right where he left it, though those looking for it would have to search the entire world to find it. And with these simple words Gold Roger ushered in a golden age of piracy as whole swathes of would be treasure seekers took to the high seas to find his legendary treasure and using whatever means necessary to achieve their objective.

Enter Monkey D Luffy, the key protagonist of this drama; he’s a guy with a burning ambition just like every other similar character in a shonen manga. He also has a rather unique ability which has in turn left him with a serious handicap in terms of achieving his goals. When he was younger Luffy at the gum gum fruit, a treasure of the sea that allows him to become as flexible and stretchy as rubber; in essence a real rubber man. Sounds rather cool, and it certainly proves to be an asset for Luffy but the downside to all this is that he will never be able to swim which when you’re a pirate is something of a potential career ender. Still this doesn’t seem to dampen Luffy or his spirit; he intends to become King of the Pirates.
Of course when he leaves his home village in a dinghy with as much rations and fresh water he can gather and safely carry you get the feeling that in the words of the Prince of Tennis, he still has some ways to go. But that is all part of the story, Luffy knows that to achieve his aim he needs the help of others and that means building a pirate crew. Sounds pretty simple really although Luffy doesn’t really have much of an idea of where he should be looking and as he has little to no navigation skills he’s got no idea how to get to where he should be looking, in essence he’s just metaphorically jumping into the river of fate and letting it carry him to where it will. Zen questing if you will…
Still at the end of the day though this approach pretty much works to his advantage. He eventually ends up on an island where he hooks up with a cabin boy Koby who in turn inadvertently leads him to a serious potential recruit that would be a major asset to Luffy’s crew; the demonic pirate hunter Roronoa Zolo. Zolo himself is in something of a pinch being held in prison by the naval forces, an honourable man he believes that the deal he’s made with the base commander’s son is a done deal. Sadly though the son has no real intention of keeping the deal nor does his father the infamous, tyrannical and egotistical Captain Axe Hand Morgan. Naturally a monster like Morgan is going to get up the nose of a free spirit like Luffy and he in turn is going to irritate Morgan to no end – the stage is set for a titanic confrontation that could have some major repercussions…not only for Luffy’s nascent career but the people of the village whom Morgan has been leeching taxes from in the name of the navy and the world government.
When the dust finally settled I had become totally engaged in this particular manga, I could see what the appeal was and saw that it was a real rip snorter of a yarn. One Piece has all you could ask of an action/adventure manga; laughs, one liners, pathos, action and some really cool moments that just want to make you cheer the characters on. One Piece: East Blue Part 1 – Romance Dawn is well worth taking the time out to track down and get your hands on, so do yourself a favour, buckle that swash and enjoy some One Piece…

ONE PIECE: EAST BLUE PART 1 (ROMANCE DAWN)

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