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crack_van2012-06-03 06:08 am
One Piece Fandom Overview
Hello! I'm so excited to be reccing One Piece here, for the first time in the comm! My entrance to this fandom took a number of twists and turns, like some sort of cheezy romance novel....it holds a special place in my heart. Sorry for the slight delay passing the starting line, all, it took more time than I expected to get the floaties and propeller attached to the van.
Cause where we're going we're gonna need them.
One Piece: World, Characters, and Fandom Resources
One Piece by Eiichiro Oda:
14 years of fun, and counting.
When a young man named Luffy dreams of becoming King of the Pirates, it is the beginning of a journey that will take him and the crew he gathers around the world. Just before dying, the famous pirate, Gol D. Roger, declared that he had hidden a massive treasure (called "One Piece") at the far end of a dangerous sea called the Grand Line. Since then, many people have gone there seeking it. Due to the immense difficulty and danger associated with seeking the treasure—danger which comes both from others looking for it and from the surrounding world itself—whoever does find the treasure and claim it will be regarded as King of the Pirates. Monkey D. Luffy, not particularly interested in gold, but entranced with the idea of a grand adventure and the title of King, sets off from his home island, slowly assembling a crew full of people with unique personalities and dreams to aide him in his quest.
This world, mostly ocean dotted by islands, is divided into four areas of sea: North Blue, South Blue, East Blue, and West Blue. It is generally impossible to move from one Blue to another, because of two uncrossable expanses that circle the globe: the Red Line, which is made up of impossibly high mountains, and the Grand Line, which is a dangerous strip of sea bordered by strips of windless, monster-filled ocean on both sides. These strips, called Calm Belts, are uncrossable except when using specially-equipped ships, and such ships are owned almost exclusively by the World Government.
Because of the extreme conditions and the nature of the islands found on the Grand Line, it is impossible to navigate there with a regular compass. Instead, one must use a "Log Pose", a device which gives headings by locking onto the next island's magnetic signature. Most of the time in the the series is taken up by adventures on the new islands that Luffy and his crewmates encounter.
Special Terminology and Series Concepts
One major drawback of having DF powers is that collected areas of water—the sea, lakes, rivers—become dangerous. DF users are unable to swim, and it's said they are "cursed by the sea." When falling in water, they become unable to move and are sapped of all strength, unable to actively use their abilities. They become similarly weakened when they come in contact with a type of stone called seastone (kairoseki).
Berry / Beli / Beri / Berri / 
This is the world currency of One Piece, and the ways in which authors spell the word in English varies widely. The symbol for the money is in far right above. In canon, the poorest have little more than 100,000 berry in their savings, while rich World Nobles find spending amounts as high as 500,000,000 berry to be like spending pocket change.
Merfolk—the traditional mermaid or merman. Like fishmen, they are not well understood by humans, though merfolk are more peace loving than fishmen, and tend to stay away from humans altogether.
Giants—their size lives up to their name, and they are easily 10 times larger, or more, than the average human. They are considered humans, and can mix with regular size humans and even fishmen, a combination which is called a wotan.
Kuja—a tribe of all-female warriors from the island called Amazon Lily.
World Nobels/Celestial Dragons—descendants of the 20 kings that established the World Government.
Longarm or Longleg tribes—look like humans, but live up to their names.
Void Century—A 100-year period 800 years prior to the series start, during which time the 20 kings who first formed the World Government destroyed the "Ancient Kingdom." Very little is know of this period, though it is the key to understanding world history, and how the current world order came into being. The World Government has banned all research into it.
Poneglyphs—large cubes of stone written upon in an ancient language that recount the truth of the Void Century in bits and pieces.
Getting overwhelmed yet? I sure hope not! Let's move on to the major characters and then call it a day, so you can start reading some far-more-interesting-than-this recs!
Major Protagonists
Left to right, top to bottom:
Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Brook, Luffy, Franky, Sanji, Robin, Chopper
Monkey D. Luffy
"Of course I don't know anything about swords, you moron! I can't navigate! I can't cook! I can't even lie! I know I need friends to help me if I want to get ahead in life!"
Luffy has a lot of the traits common for a hero in the shōnen genre of anime/manga: he's a youthful, energetic guy with a big dream, who enjoys eating (a lot). Sometimes he can be rather stupid or simple, to the point of exasperating or amusing others, depending on their personality. However, despite his honest stupidity and bull-headed nature, Luffy has an innate sense for people when it counts. His simplicity masks a deep acceptance and understanding for his friends. Luffy prefers the romance of adventure and close companionship over fortune and displays of power. He doesn't care what others think about his intelligence or if logic dictates his opponent is stronger and he should avoid a fight with them. Being mocked for who he is doesn't bother him for a second—the strong using their power to hurt the weak one of the few things that makes him furious.
In battle, Luffy employs his monster strength as well as the abilities granted by a Devil's Fruit—the Gum Gum Fruit. Due to this fruit, Luffy is basically made of rubber. He favors brute-force attacks like punching and kicking. While he can be sliced or stabbed with blades or points, round projectiles are simply slung back by his rubbery body, making him effectively impervious to bullets, cannonballs, and the like.
Roronoa Zoro
"Well, how about this? My 'luck' versus this thing's 'curse'... wanna see what's stronger...?"
Also known as "Pirate Hunter Zoro" because he used to make a living as a bounty hunter, he was the first to join Luffy's crew. Zoro is something of a first mate, particularly in the perception of outsiders, and has even been mistaken for captain. He has a strong sense of honor regarding battles and personal conduct, and his serious nature is an excellent foil to Luffy's overactive tendencies. His dream is to fulfill a promise he made with a childhood friend by becoming the world's greatest swordsman, and he can frequently be found either training with ridiculously large, heavy weights or sleeping. He likes taking on challenges that others find absurd. He has a sense of direction that is so bad it is hilarious.
Zoro generally carries three swords which he uses in battle in varying number, depending on his choice of attack. When all three are in use, he holds one of them in his mouth. He possesses incredible strength, endurance, and a high tolerance for pain and injury. When he is serious in battle, his manner can become very intense. That, coupled with his never-say-die fighting style, have lead some who've seen him to call him "demonic."
Nami
"Don't you think its kind of odd that you smashed through all those buildings and you don't have a scratch on you?"
Also known as "Cat Burgler Nami" for her strong abilities in thievery, Nami is the ship's navigator, and has an ability to sense weather changes before they hit, making her a valuable asset to the crew's safety on the unpredictable Grand Line. A talented cartographer, her dream is to map out the entire world, a feat not yet achieved by anyone. Although in the beginning of the series her strength is that of an average human and she has a tendency to flee battle, once Usopp creates the Clima-Tact, a weapon that can heat and cool the air, she begins to obtain a command over weather and atmospheric-type attacks and abilities. As the series progresses the weapon becomes increasingly modified and even more powerful.
In part due to her past, Nami places a high value on gold and loves, or would love, to be rich. She tends to be very pragmatic, at least in comparison to a number of her crewmates, and frequently is frustrated by others' "unrealistic" expectations or ridiculous behavior.
Usopp
"When I left Syrup Village, I left everything behind! Tranquility… Safety… They face hardships every day, and they laugh like they’re really having fun! That’s why I decided to go out to sea! I want to laugh ’til I cry, too!"
Sometimes, this average hometown guy thinks he's way in over his head, but he wants to become a respectable "warrior of the sea." Physically speaking, he has the most typical level of human body strength, and at first glance looks like an easy target in a fight. However, his skills as a sharpshooter are impressive, and he is a tinkerer and creative strategist that has learned how to hold his own in battle. As the series progresses, he develops a five-prong slingshot he calls Kabuto (you can check out a video of a real model someone built here.) Usopp uses it to shoot projectiles with various effects, from explosions to smoke. Later he adopts the use of seeds called pop greens, which have a wider range of possibilities, such as spawning a giant leaf boat.
Usopp lacks personal confidence, but what he lacks he makes up for with tenacity, and lives up to his name (uso means lie in Japanese) by frequently telling tall tales and oft-ridiculous lies!
Sanji
"Food is a gift from the heavens. Spice is a gift from the devil."
Sanji is the ship's cook and a devoted ladies' man. His dream is to find a legendary sea called All Blue, where it is said fish from all four seas mix together in abundance. Rarely seen without a cigarette in his mouth, he usually dresses in dark suits, and takes great pleasure in serving Nami and Robin his finest creations. Though he tries very hard to affect a smooth, cool manliness, he is frequently foiled in his attempts. He has a particularly short fuse when dealing with Zoro—and Zoro not only takes it, he also dishes it back out in equal measure.
Sanji fights using the Black Leg style of martial arts, which mainly focuses on using the legs to hit the enemy with powerful blows. Over time he has grown increasingly speedy. Since his hands are valuble tools in his cooking, he tends to avoid anything that could injure them.
Tony Tony Chopper
"Pain is a signal to protect the body. Not feeling it isn’t something that makes you stronger."
Chopper was once a normal reindeer, but then he ate the Human-Human Fruit, and took on a human's intelligence and self-awareness. He is a doctor, and wants to find out how to cure any disease or illness. Like most users of the type of Devil Fruit he has eaten, he has the ability to vary his body shape, emphasizing different elements of his dual human-reindeer nature. He also invented something called the "rumble ball" which allows him to attain further, strong morphs for a limited amount of time. Mentally, he is the youngest member of the crew and tends to be both excitable and gullible.
Nico Robin
"When all I want is to learn of a history, there are too many enemies within my dream."
The last survivor of the island of Ohara, which the World Government destroyed for getting too close to the truth of the Void Century, Robin has been on the run since she was a small child. Already in her 30s, her profession before joining Luffy's crew was assassin for hire. She spends a great deal of time reading and researching, and her dream is to complete the research into the Void Century that was begun by her homeland. Her Devil Fruit ability allows her to duplicate various parts of her body, either on her own body or other visible surfaces. Damage done to these extensions carries back to her original body. Robin is very level-headed and serious, with a morbid sense of humor.
Franky
"Existing isn't a crime!"
Also in his 30s, Franky is a cyborg who began building parts for his body when he became horrifically injured for trying to prevent his mentor's execution. Since then, he has made extensive modifications to himself that include various weapons and tech-based abilities. His body generally runs on cola, though it is possible for him to run on other liquids. A shipwright by trade, he built the ship Thousand Sunny for Luffy and his crew after they lost their first ship, the Going Merry. His dream is to see his ship go all the way around the world. Franky has a dynamic personality given to bursts of enthusiasm. His catchphrase? "SUUUUPEER!!!"
Brook
"Might I see your panties?"
Fifty years ago, Brook was member of the Rumbar Pirates, who were all musicians. He was also the user of a Devil's Fruit that allowed his soul to return again to his body after death. When he died, however, he had trouble finding his body again, and by time he did only his bones and afro remained. Although he has senses and body functions such as eating, how they work without flesh is a mystery which Brook frequently makes jokes out of. His manner of speaking is somewhat formal, and though on the surface he is a gentleman, he can also be somewhat perverted. His dream is to reunite with Laboon the whale, who he left back at the beginning of the Grand Line fifty years ago.
Brook fights with a sword, though he is not as skilled as Zoro, and over time has learned to affect people by playing music.
Fandom Resources
One Piece Wikia—For everything you ever wanted to know about the series.
On LJ:
General One Piece comm
Capslock comm for fun news and fanning
Fic sets challenge comm
Drabble challenge comm
Episodes of the anime, subs and some dubs, on Hulu
For the brave: One Piece section on FF.Net
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And thanks liashi for making a post for OP! Looking forward to the recs.
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