'One Piece: Episode of East Blue' Air Date, Spoilers: 20th Anniversary TV Special to Hit FunimationNow This Weekend
The long-running manga series "One Piece" is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, and what better way to commemorate this milestone than to celebrate where it all began? The upcoming television special, "One Piece: Episode of East Blue" aims to do just that.
Subtitled "Luffy and His 4 Crewmates," the upcoming special is a more compact retelling of the 54-episode East Blue Saga that was first aired in 1999–2001. This is the series' first saga, and it tells the beginning of Luffy's journey towards becoming the Pirate King.
The saga is further broken down into six arcs: Romance Dawn, Orange Town, Syrup Village, Baratie, Arlong Park, and Loguetown.
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Romance Dawn tells the story of how Monkey D. Luffy ended up with the Gomu Gomu no Mi, as well as the biggest driving force behind his dream of becoming a great pirate. The final story in this arc finds Luffy crossing paths with his first crew member — the Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro — and the Marine Captain Axe-Hand Morgan.
The Orange Town Arc is also known as the Buggy the Clown Arc, owing to Luffy and Zoro's encounter with the pirate clown Buggy and his crew. This is also where they will meet the thief, Nami, who will eventually become their navigator.
In the Syrup Village Arc, also known as the Captain Kuro Arc, the merry band of Luffy, Zoro, and Nami will come upon a place known as the Syrup Village in their quest for a ship. Here, they will encounter the local village liar, Usopp, whose friend Kaya, is being held captive by Captain Kuro.
The Baratie Arc takes Luffy's crew to the restaurant ship Baratie, where they will meet their resident cook, Sanji. This is also where they will gain possession of their first ship, the Going Merry.
The Arlong Park Arc will then take their gradually expanding crew to Nami's hometown, Cocoyasi Village, which is being ruled by the tyrannical Fishman Arlong. The Loguetown Arc, the sixth and final arc in the saga, officially marks the beginning of the Straw Hat Pirates' journey towards the legendary Grand Line.
"One Piece: Episode of East Blue ~Luffy and His 4 Crewmates" airs on Saturday, Aug. 26, at 9 p.m. JST on Fuji TV. Funimation will simulcast the special for the U.S. and Canadian subscribers of FunimationNow.
