Netflix’s One Piece has taken the world by storm and has already beaten the popularity record set by the two popular shows; Wednesday and Stranger Things. Developed by Matt Owens and Steven Maeda, the live-action adaptation is based on the One Piece ongoing manga series that was written by Eiichiro Oda. The story follows the journey of the Straw Hat Pirates who search for a treasure that will make their captain, Monkey D. Luffy the King of the Pirates.
Once the Netflix series was released on August 31, it quickly received plenty of positive reviews from fans and critics. As per FlixPatrol, a website that offers streaming charts and data on VOD, One Piece season 1 has managed to beat a record set by the two popular Netflix shows Stranger Things season 4 and Wednesday. The live-action series currently occupies the top place on Netflix’s charts across 84 different countries. On the other hand, both Stranger Things season 4 and Wednesday occupied the top spot in 83 countries on their launch weekends.
Positive Reviews Have Helped Netflix’s One Piece
Netflix’s One Piece launched to positive reviews, receiving an 84% score on Rotten Tomatoes on the basis of 40 reviews. The unanimous agreement was that the adaptation strictly followed the source material, with a certain charm and excitement that attracted both new and old viewers. The entire cast of One Piece also received plenty of positive assessments, including Taz Skylar, Emily Rudd, Jacob Romero Gibson, Iñaki Godoy, and Mackenyu.
Previously, Netflix has faced plenty of difficulties in developing successful series based on manga or anime. Titles such as Death Note have been released without attracting a lot of viewers or creating any sort of hype. Not only this but an adaptation of Cowboy Bepop was also completely canceled after only one season. However, with One Piece it seems like a new chapter has started for the platform.
We’ll be sure of the show’s popularity once we find out how long One Piece stays at the top on the Netflix charts and if it has a Top Ten presence in Nielsen’s streaming tracks. If it somehow does manage to stay at the top, then this is a powerful indication that the live-action adaptation will be renewed for a second season.
One Piece season 1 is currently available to stream on Netflix.
