Eiichiro Oda’s shonen classic, One Piece, is filled with some of the most recognizable characters in anime history. Soon, fans of Oda’s manga will be able to get their hands on a “secret” notebook revealing early designs for Monkey D. Luffy and a myriad of other iconic characters.
As detailed in a recent post from One Piece’s official X (formerly Twitter) account, this notebook comes as a feature in Kaitai Shinroku, an official guidebook for the Monsters: 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation anime. This 25-minute episode is based on Oda’s 1994 one-shot manga, Monsters. Packaged as a pre-order bonus for the upcoming DVD release, Oda’s “secret notebook of ideas” contains dozens of rough character sketches created before the 1997 debut of One Piece. As shown below, one of these characters bears a striking resemblance to One Piece’s main hero, Monkey D. Luffy; another design bears a noteworthy resemblance to Nami, the Straw Hat’s famous female navigator. According to the post, the purchase window for the official Monsters guidebook and DVD will close on April 19.
Goku from Dragon Ball and Luffy from One Piece in fighting poses
Related
Dragon Ball’s First Editor Claimed One Piece Would Never Become Popular
A recently resurfaced social media post shows that the former EIC of Shonen Jump claimed One Piece would never become popular like Dragon Ball.
Eiichiro Oda’s Monsters Is Canon to the One Piece Universe
Close
While Monsters was serialized three years before One Piece, its story canonically takes place within the One Piece universe. Monsters follows a world-renowned samurai named Ryuma Shimotsuki who is forced to confront a mighty dragon after a group of vindictive bandits summon it into town. Shimotsuki’s existence, as well as his ancestral connection to Roronoa Zoro, is confirmed in One Piece’s “Thriller Bark Arc,” in which the legendary swordsman is revived by the Shadow version of Soul King Brook.
The Kaitai Shinroku guidebook includes not only the aforementioned notebook but also a full-color edition of the Monsters manga, as well as a large wall poster featuring artwork of Ryuma and Zoro. For those who wish to dive deeper into the creation of the Monsters anime, the release also contains official storyboards and a one-on-one interview with Sunghoo Park (Jujutsu Kaisen), who directed the project at Toei Animation.
Nintendo Switch with Luffy from One Piece
Related
One Piece’s 25th Anniversary Game Is Coming to Nintendo Switch
Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates are finally setting sail for the Nintendo Switch in One Piece Odyssey with new and exclusive content.
One Piece Is Set to Release Its Next Installment After Eiichiro Oda’s Hiatus
In the world of manga, One Piece remains the reigning champion, having sold over 523.3 million copies worldwide (as of February 2024). Toei Animation’s One Piece anime series recently aired its 1100th episode — an incredible milestone that speaks to the franchise’s lasting appeal. The One Piece manga is currently in the middle of its “Egghead” arc, which centers on the conflict between scientific mastermind Dr. Vegapunk and the World Government. Recently, Oda took a three-week hiatus from the series in order to attend to his ongoing health problems. The next installment is scheduled to launch in Weekly Shonen Jump on April 21 (April 22nd in Japan).
Currently, One Piece has not yet announced any international release details for the Kaitai Shinroku guidebook. The One Piece manga is available in English from VIZ Media. The series’ anime adaptation is available to stream on Netflix, Hulu and Crunchyroll.
The cast of One Piece run together
One Piece
Created by Eiichiro Oda, the One Piece franchise explores the adventures of pirate Luffy D. Monkey and his crew, the Straw Hats. Since the manga first debuted in 1997, One Piece has been adapted into an ongoing anime that has seen multiple movies. Most recently it was adapted into a live-action series by Netflix.
Created byEiichiro OdaFirst TV ShowOne PieceLatest TV ShowNetflix’s One PieceFirst Episode Air DateOctober 20, 1999CastKerry Williams, Hiroaki Hirata, Eric Valette, Kappei Yamaguchi, Ikue Ootani, Kazuya Nakai, Sonny Strait, Colleen Clinkenbeard, Mayumi Tanaka, Christopher Sabat
Source: X (formerly Twitter)
News Related-
Russian court extends detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich until end of January
-
Russian court extends detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, arrested on espionage charges
-
Israel's economy recovered from previous wars with Hamas, but this one might go longer, hit harder
-
Stock market today: Asian shares mixed ahead of US consumer confidence and price data
-
EXCLUSIVE: ‘Sister Wives' star Christine Brown says her kids' happy marriages inspired her leave Kody Brown
-
NBA fans roast Clippers for losing to Nuggets without Jokic, Murray, Gordon
-
Panthers-Senators brawl ends in 10-minute penalty for all players on ice
-
CNBC Daily Open: Is record Black Friday sales spike a false dawn?
-
Freed Israeli hostage describes deteriorating conditions while being held by Hamas
-
High stakes and glitz mark the vote in Paris for the 2030 World Expo host
-
Biden’s unworkable nursing rule will harm seniors
-
Jalen Hurts: We did what we needed to do when it mattered the most
-
LeBron James takes NBA all-time minutes lead in career-worst loss
-
Vikings' Kevin O'Connell to evaluate Josh Dobbs, path forward at QB