One Piece shipping fuel: Manga Vs. Anime
This was made by One Piece fans from the Orojackson forum. More specifically the LuffyxNami FC from that site
It seems that a considerable amount of people, non-shippers included, can acknowledge the remarkable strength and the impact of this potent relationship. Still the fact people are able to grasp it is a great accomplishment for the manga, because the anime adaptation is not always on point when it comes to adapting the source material
Sometimes this happens because the staff at the time merely provide with their own interpretation of characters and story. And this interpretation is what defines the way they adapt the manga into the anime. So they ignored, changed, and altered scenes; and their take on characters and story affected the way anime-only watchers percieved characterization in One Piece
However, we should also recognize that sometimes they did something that could highlight the premise of LuNa. Something fans appreciated. One example would be the first anime episode, although their choice at that time was more likely a nod to Oda’s original intent of having Nami as Luffy’s first companion.
Other times the changes they made were justified because of censorship, such as this scene in the Kuro arc…
…or Whitebeard getting half of his face instantly melted away.
Both changed in the anime to something less “intense” (ultimately a good call on this 2nd panel)
But there are many times when they arbitrary overlook scenes, change them, and even add to them. And this trend heavily impacts the position people take regarding the relationships set in the story
This post will showcase how the anime adaptation downplayed one premise to overplay another. Most of the times it’s subtle, sometimes it’s not…
In the manga, we see Nami feeding Luffy and saying she basicaly has nothing against him, so she’ll let him out later, which showcases Nami’s morals aren’t entirelly Lost and rotten. She is a kind person inside and can even overlook the fact that Luffy is a pirate, because he wasn’t “bad” to her
In the anime… this scene doesn’t exist. It was adapted out of the anime. What reason could they had to make such a call? We’ll see it soon enough
2) Ending of the Kuro arc:
In the manga, Nami’s reaction to Luffy’s odd mix of stubbornness and carefreeness is merely a sweatdrop…
In the anime Nami reacts more violently towards Luffy’s attitude at that moment
It doesn’t seem like much, but it’s the start of a pattern that would be upheld by the TOEI for years to come. They started subtle but little by little they gained confidence in their very own way of portraying characterization
3) Sanji meets the SHs
In the manga, Nami manipulates Sanji and warns the others to be careful. Next thing she sees is Sanji letching around…
In the anime, this moment is conspicuously missing. Sanji just flirts with Nami and gets interrupted by Zeff. What reason could have TOEI to remove that scene? Were they trying to show Sanji only focusing on certain girl?
4) Arlong Park…
The arc that provided with, what many readers considered, he third most impactful pre-timeskip One Piece moment. What did TOEI changed?
In the manga we a simple yet beautiful and meaningful way during the conclusion of this arc: After Luffy provided with hope, comfort, strength, and emotional support, all through a highly significant gesture. Nami returns said gesture to Luffy in a silent scene…
In the anime, this was downgraded to a mere high-five (granted some shippers enjoyed this anyway, but others found it kinda upsetting)
What reason could TOEI have to water down what the arc stablished as a meaningful gesture between two characters? Well, if you lived in Japan by that time you probably got the answer
But, to be fair. They later corrected this in the OVA: Episode of Nami
Still, that doesn’t mean TOEI animation stopped the trend that started during these earlier days
5) Before they arrived to Jaya
In the manga, Nami angrily refuses Sanji’s shell and walks away…
In the anime, we had another not so obvious change: while they kept her “funnily” aggressive reaction toward Luffy. They toned down Nami’s reaction to Sanji:
So in the anime adaption Nami gave Sanji more of a preferential treatment when compared to the manga
Some of you might think this sounds like an exaggeration. But keeping in mind that TOEI offers their own take on charactes and story, take a look at the movies animated by Eisaku Inoue: “The Giant Mechanical Soldier of Karakuri Castle” and “Episode of Alabasta”, Luffy recieves the full force of Nami’s overplayed wrath while Sanji gets, once again, a preferential treatment: either toned-down reactions or no anger at all
6) Skypiea (note: this one is a little bit tricky…)
I guess some people remember this AP scene:
When the AP building collapsed upon Luffy…
Well, during the Skypiea arc we had the Sanji/Usopp team helping Nami to scape Enel. Sanji stays back to buy some time, which leads to this…
And then they immediately jump off
But the Anime extended the scene in a way that could properly mirror that AP moment:
While the manga had a move or be toasted situation. The anime added scenes and dialogue where Nami questioned Usopp’s quick call, adding an impact the manga version didn’t have. It might not seem as much but as soon as we get to the latest ones, the pattern will be easier to notice
What makes this change impressive is that while they tried to both “improve” and “re-create” the impact of another scene, they also downplayed other scene involving a different character setup, which we’re going to see right now…
7) Skypiea: Luffy & Nami exchange…
In the manga we get a lot about Nami prioritizing Luffy over the fate of Angel Island; Nami seems to make the point across that her priority in that moment was Luffy’s life
While in the anime the conversation about Luffy’s life ends here:
8) Skypiea: Luffy & Nami, again…
The manga gives us this little jewel, mutual trust/faith in action:
The anime once again downplays this scence. They even altered the dialogue and conveyed something quite different from the manga…
Why would they ingore and/or alter dialogue of such scenes? Yet try to add more impact to others involving a different character setup…
9) Convo during the Fishman Island arc
I was going to add the fact they adapted out Nami’s first flashback after hearing about Luffy’s hardship in MF. But by that time TOEI was a little bit more tamed, after all SW (written by Oda) was released. Also this post is already long enough.
As noted by some fans, old habits die hard, so TOEI started once again: In the manga, we had Nami recieving tea from Sanji but letting Luffy drink it instead…
In the anime, this scene doesn’t exist. Luffy gets the tea off-screen
10) Zou arc: Most obvious pander ever
Manga: Nami and the rest watches hopelessly as Sanji is taken away by Capone
The Anime: Nami, in a very emotional manner, runs after Sanji…
By this point, subtlety is obviously out of the window. With this little bit we put into context most of the arbitrary changes and additions made by the anime adaption. If you still skeptical, the next one will be even more obvious…
11) Stealing moments (again), TOEI style
Recall how number 6 didn’t seem like much? Well, let’s highlight another manga scene concerning Nami and a speech she gave about Luffy…
Nami’s weatheria speech is acknowledged by some readers as a moment that highlights the dynamic and the chemistry between both characters from Nami’s perspective
What did TOEI do during WCI? While Nami is facing Cracker to buy time for Luffy to recover, the anime adaptation gives us a “WCI speech”:
Nowhere to be found in the manga
Fun thing is, I’ve seen shippers stealing moments from rival relationships and re-creating them in their preferred ship. But that’s to be expected from shippers, not from the staff in charge of adaptaing a best-selling manga into an anime
While it’s true they did a nice job with several LuNa scenes. Most of the times they do it because the source material doesn’t let them do anything different
In spite of the anime adaptation providing with a not so reliable take on the author’s work, we still can draw three positive things from their animation…
1) Thanks to TOEI’s anime adaptation many people were introduced to One Piece and became fans of Oda’s work
2) The fact there were a least two groups of animators who tried to emulate the impact of LuNa and re-created in another premise, reminds us of the saying: “Imitation is the highest form of flattery”. The need to imitate LuNa to make another premise look believable is a proof that LuNa is far more solid and impactful than any other alternative
3) Despite all of TOEI’s changes, alterations and additions, many people acknowledge the strenght of the LuNa bond as one of the most potent, compelling and believable relationships in manga/anime. That’s quite an accomplishment for as we saw, their moments and interactions are diluted many times by the desires of the anime staff
Feel free to check the club where this post came from: https://orojackson.com/threads/♕♡♔-luffy-x-nami-fc-♔♡♕.36249/
Does this mean fans and/or shippers are not allowed to enjoy the anime adaptation? Of course not, I’ve seen fans and shippers alike (LuNa fans included) who still enjoy the series, and all of them still can. As long as TOEI delivers something faithful to the story along awesome to decent action scenes and awesome moments, any fan can enjoy the show. Although being honest, TOEI often drops the ball when it comes to their animation quality, but that’s a subject for another time and another post
I hope this post helps some people to think before they use an argument if they’re basing their premise on TOEI’s adaptation, or the author’s work
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