One Piece on Ice Has Found Its Straw Hats
One Piece is aiming to have a big 2023. As the anime adaptation continues to explore the War For Wano, the manga is seeing the Straw Hat Pirates navigate their final saga. Of the many projects arriving this year, one of the strangest might be the first time that we've seen Monkey D. Luffy, his allies, and his enemies on the ice. Taking place later this summer, One Piece on Ice has cast three of the essential members of the Straw Hats.
If you don't know a lot about the upcoming anime ice performance, the show is set to take place in Japan from August 11th to the 13th at the KOSE Shin Yokohama Skater Center and from September 2nd to the 3rd at the Aichi Dolphins Arena. Specifically, One Piece on Ice will recreate the Alabasta Arc, one of the earlier sagas that helped to flesh out the world of the Grand Line. Luffy is set to be played b Shoma Uno, a three-time Olympic medalist who is looking to bring the rubber-armed swashbuckler to life. On the flip side, Crocodile will be played by skater Takahito Mura while Bon Clay will be played by Rika Hongo.
Straw Hat Pirates on Ice
To start, skater Keiji Tanaka will be taking on the role of the Straw Hats' green-haired swordsman Roronoa Zoro. Joining Zoro as Nami, skater Miyu Honda is taking on the role of Nami, Luffy's trusted map maker and cat burglar. Finally, the Straw Hat Pirates' chef, Sanji, is set to be played by skater Koshiro Shimada. At present, the performance hasn't been confirmed to make the leap from Japan to the United States.
One Piece on Ice isn't the only big live-action adaptation of the Straw Hat Pirates that is planned to release this year. Netflix has been hyping the arrival of the live-action One Piece television series, which will be the first of its kind. While the series won't be focusing on placing the Straw Hats on ice, creator Eiichiro Oda is acting as the executive producer for the adaptation and hyping the new take on the Grand Line.
Would you love to see a One Piece On Ice in the West? What anime would work well as ice shows? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of the Grand Line.