You do not need to be an active follower of Eiichirou Oda’s One Piece manga and anime series to have a blast with One Piece Film Z. Not only does Toei Animation’s latest anime movie introduces amply the franchise’s world and key characters to first-time viewers, but the movie is really about the life story of Zephyr (who calls himself “Z” now, pronounced as “Zed”), a new character who was only recently introduced to the anime series as a lead-in to the self-sufficient film.
Formally a top marine admiral, Z now bears deeply seeded hatred for the Marines. Despite having been a loyalist and trusted comrade in the Marines Corp, for a very sane and logical reason that will be revealed at the 108-minute flick’s halfway point, Z was eventually left disenchanted with the force and chose to leave along with his left and right-hand assistants: Ain and Binz.
Like Zephyr himself, both Ain and Binz are new characters whose powers will be explained shortly after the start of the movie. Ain’s ability (the female character you see in the image below), in particular, poses a peculiar problem to four members of the Straw Hats Pirates crew – Nami, Robin, Chopper, and Brooks – that serves as a running gag throughout the film.
Personally, I’ve felt that that’s never been the case with the One Piece series, in which characters often fight while making terrific use of their environments and rely on good ol’ hand-to-hand combat (or sword-to-sword, gun-to-gun, etc), before bringing out their special attacks only in situations that truly call for it. In that sense, One Piece Film Z doesn’t disappoint as well.
There are also a few touching and awe-inspiring moments in One Piece Film Z as well. For instance, prepare to be awestruck when Luffy and gang receives from an old man the “Ultimate Weapon” to combat Z with.
Although the One Piece series is known for its numerous heartfelt moments, unfortunately this time around there weren’t really any powerful scenes that elicit a tear-jerker response the same way the Ash-Ketchum-turning-into-stone moment in the first Pokemon movie did; everyone I’ve talked to who watched that movie said they teared up as they watched Pikachu cry out desperately to a petrified Ketchum, the imagery akin to that of a young kid not understanding the concept of death and how to deal with the going-away of a loved one.
The most emotionally powerful moment in the film comes from a brief moment where an old illustration – of Red-Haired Shanks putting a straw hat on a young, crying Luffy – is flashed on the screen for about three seconds. The illustration’s effect was amplified by the context behind it in the movie, and I was close to tearing up at that point. But did it impress me? No, this is rehashing old material.
