One Piece: Collection One [2011]

Finally One Piece has gotten its UK DVD Release. Manga UK did a great job releasing Dragonball Z and now it's time for another classic to get released!Firstly it's important to note that this UK Release is Region 2 and will definitely work on any UK player. Amazon seem to have mixed the reviews with the US Release so don't let any reviews that say it won't work confuse you because this is the new UK Release and it will work.I first got into One Piece when it aired on Toonami several years ago. That was the 4kids dub which was heavily censored and as a result wasn't as successful as it could have been. Many fans of the original hated the changes made to it. Because I'd never seen the original version at the time I didn't really have any problem with it.So now the show has been re-dubbed by Funimation who have done a much better job at it. This is the same voice cast who dubbed Dragonball Z So if you're familiar with that then you'll probably enjoy listening to this cast. Of course their dub of One Piece is much more recent so their acting talent has gotten a lot better since DBZ. Also all of the episodes are COMPLETELY UNCUT and have the Japanese music kept intact. Funimation have also done a great job of the opening and ending songs. And the Japanese audio version is also included.For anyone who has never seen One Piece I highly recommend you give it a chance. It's a great series with lots of action, lots of laughs and strong storylines. Or if you saw the 4kids version on Toonami and are holding out because of that then I'd recommend you give it another chance. This is the true One Piece and is much better than the 4kids version in every way. I'd even say it rivals Dragonball. In Japan it's the best-selling Manga even beating out the likes of Dragonball and Naruto and is considered a massive thing in general. Seriously if you do a search about One Piece in Japan you'll realise just how massive a phenomenon it is.The story is about Monkey D. Luffy who is a pirate setting out on his journey to find the treasure called One Piece and to become king of the pirates. He is also made of rubber thanks to eating a special fruit that gave him the ability to stretch to great lengths and use all sorts of crazy techniques. On top of that he is super strong and able to smash rocks and survive all sorts of brutal things. The crew members he gets in this set are Zorro who is a badass Swordsman, Nami who is a thief and also a navigator, Usopp who is a great Marksman and also a huge liar and Sanji who he meets in this set but doesn't join until a bit later and is also a chef who is great at kicking.If you just read it like this you don't really get that feeling of how great it really is. It's one of those shows that you can only really judge by watching it. The fight scenes are really well done and there's a lot of blood in several scenes.I liked this Collection so much I've already pre-ordered Collection 2. I say get Collection 1 just to try One Piece and see if it's your thing. Chances are it will be.

So happy one piece is in the UK. Must admit it starts off slow but really starts to get good near the end of this collection. Cant wait till colection 2, as i know the show goes from good to amazing. When I heard about one piece so many year ago i dismissed it, saying it was to childish story about pirates being happy all the time plus it was a cartoon, OHHHHHHH HOW I WAS SO WRONG!!!!!!!This show is just unbelievably good, the foreshadowing, the story, the comedy plus theres always a story inside a story, and the character development. OH that character development i never though i could feel so deeply so these characters (I mean ive even cried on several occasions to this show). I can ensure you as long as you go into this with an open mind i can guarantee that you will enjoy it. I mean this show is crazy, its got swords men on unicycle its got giant tigers, clowns, pirates, marines, a man made of rubber, a floating restaurant in the sea, fish men, giant sea monsters, devil fruits etc. But some how, it just works. I know i know, it sounds crazy but honestly it just blends together it to the most amazing STORY. And it still gets even more crazy later on.Its really hard to describe or talk about one piece, its something you have to experience. Now i know this is an extremely long running show (i mean it started in 1999) and the english dub is currently on episode 265 in USA while the japanese version which is currently airing once every week is on episode 601, Now thats a lot of episodes. Also due to its hudge popularity in japan (I mean above 16% of the population watch or read it weekly) one piece has just started to air in america and 1 am on saturdays i think, and is fetching above 1 million views which is just crazy at that time at night. So what i recommend is to try the first 2 collections, this collection and the one coming out on the 1st of july (one piece collection 2). I can ENSURE you will be HOOKED by then, otherwise just sell the dvd and forget it ever existed.I give one piece 5/5, it just an amazing story and ive enjoy every moment of it so far :)

This review is for those of you who, like me, are new to One Piece. Perhaps you avoided it because it seemed corny or bizarre. Perhaps you like your anime to have a more serious tone.Well, i took the plunge last month. Next thing i knew, i had spent too much money on all the DVDs currently out. This anime is beyond belief, and has replaced Dragonball Z in my mind as the premiere 'soft' anime (easy to get into) one i recommend to friends. Seriously, buy DVD one at least, i cannot recommend this enough.I will not describe the plot, other people have done so, and chances are you know. But i will say that Funimation did an excellent job, as usual, with their English translation. So expect some mild swearing, and no censorship whatsoever. Not suitable for young or closed-minded children, but nothing horribly offensive they couldn't get into.I laughed, i cried (seriously, i cried several times) and i am always hungry for more. From one brand new fan, you really must give this a shot.