21 Fascinating Facts about the Record-Breaking Manga - One Piece

1. Author Oda came up with the idea for a pirate-themed manga after watching an anime called "Vicky The Viking," and then "One Piece" was born.

2. In a survey conducted by TV Asahi with 150,000 Japanese workers to determine the top 100 favorite manga, "One Piece" mentioned the top spot with an impressive 33,600 votes.

3. Between 2004 and 2006, the "One Piece" anime was licensed and distributed by 4Kids Entertainment. However, due to significant changes and edits compared to the original version, 4Kids had to stop airing the show.

4. To avoid negative impacts on children, 4Kids edited certain elements in the show, such as changing cigarettes to lollipops, alcohol to juice, guns to water pistols, and cutting out scenes with blood entirely rather than modifying them.

5. At the end of 2014, "One Piece" had achieved a Guinness World Record for the most printed and published manga series, with nearly 321 million copies sold worldwide. Continuing its success, the manga surpasses its own record eight years later, with over 500 million copies officially sold worldwide.

6. In an interview with Jump magazine, author Oda shared that when Naruto gained popularity, he always thought of defeating it. However, upon meeting its creator, Masashi Kishimoto, he abandoned this notion due to his admiration for Kishimoto-sensei.

7. To commemorate the 10th anniversary of "Naruto" in 2009, Oda-sensei presented Kishimoto-sensei with a hand-drawn painting.

8. The voice actor for Captain Luffy is a female actress.

9. Located in Shibuya, Tokyo, BragMen is the world's first One Piece-themed gym designed like a pirate ship, featuring decorations such as crates, boxes, large chains, and compass patterns on the floor. The gym even boasts meat-shaped dumbbells, inspired by Luffy's favorite food.

10. Several islands and kingdoms visited by the Straw Hat Pirates in the series draw inspiration from real-world architectural marvels. For instance, the Rommel Kingdom is reminiscent of London's capital city, the Kuja Castle is inspired by China's Hanging Temple, and Water Seven is a rendition of Venice, Italy.

11. Before creating the “One Piece” manga in 1997, Oda-sensei worked as an assistant for several famous mangakas, including artist Shinobu Kaitani, the author of “Liar Game”, and Nobuhiro Watsuki, the creator of “Rurouni Kenshin”.

12. Author Oda met his wife, Chiaki Inaba, at the Shonen Jump Fiesta 2002 when she was cosplaying as the character Nami from “One Piece.”

13. In 2021, a Japanese wedding planning company called ESCRIT INC introduced a One Piece-themed wedding service. Couples who ordered this service have their wedding decorated according to the manga's theme, featuring elements like a wanted poster welcoming guests, a life-size picture of the Straw Hat Pirates, a special menu inspired by Chef Sanji's dishes, and more.

14. In addition to editing and cutting scenes considered inappropriate for children, 4Kids Entertainment also changed the opening song of the “One Piece” anime, replacing "We Are" by artist Kitadani Hiroshi with a rap song called "Pirate Rap."

15. Alongside being inspired by "Vicky The Viking," the “Dragon Ball” manga also influenced author Oda in creating “One Piece”.

16. Since the debut of One Piece, Oda-sensei has developed a close friendship with artist Akira Toriyama, the author of Dragon Ball, leading to collaboration on projects like "Cross Epoch", a special short story combining One Piece and Dragon Ball, released in 2006.

17. The interactions between Captain Luffy and Monkey Goku have extended beyond paper crossovers into games and animations like the "Jump Crossover" series, "Battle Stadium D.O.N," and the "Dream 9 Toriko and One Piece and Dragon Ball Z Super Collaboration Special" aired on Fuji TV in 2013, which also featured Toriko.

18. During the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, athletes embraced their love for Japanese manga and anime by cosplaying as their favorite characters. For example, Greek long jumper Miltiadis Tentoglou greeted the audience with Luffy's Gear 2 move, and American shot putter Payton Otterdahl imitated Franky's pose, even exclaiming "Super" before his performance.

19. Ole Loken, an animator for Warner Bros' Looney Tunes series, hinted on Twitter that he contributed drawings to the "One Piece" anime on May 16. Fans speculate this may be related to Luffy's Gear 5. Oda-sensei mentioned that the The inspiration for the battle between Luffy and Kaido came from "Tom and Jerry," a classic cartoon.

20. According to Oda, the cartoon Tom and Jerry sparked his inspiration for creating Gear 5. He initially found it challenging to integrate comedic elements like those in "Tom and Jerry" into "One Piece," where only Luffy exhibits humor while Kaido remains serious, but ultimately resolves these concerns effectively.

21. The fashion brand A/X Armani Exchange collaborated with author Oda to design costumes for the Straw Hat Pirates in the One Piece Film: Z in 2012.

These facts showcase the rich and fascinating world of the One Piece series. Feel free to share your thoughts or additional insights below. Goodbye for now!