‘One Piece Movie: Crimson’ Evaluate: A Pop Star Takes On the Pirates

Simply how far can Luffy stretch? That’s a query “One Piece” followers have been asking for years of the Gum-Gum hero with the go-go-gadget arms. Positive, there are limits to Luffy’s flexibility, however for those who have a look at the pirate journey collection to which he belongs — one which’s been serialized for 25 years operating, producing greater than 100 books, 1,000-plus anime episodes and 15 theatrical options — it could appear that “One Piece” creator Eiichiro Oda can stretch all the franchise just about so far as he pleases.

Living proof: The collection’ newest entry, “One Piece Movie: Crimson,” expands into musical territory, specializing in a pop star named Uta who has been made highly effective by the Sing-Sing Fruit. “One Piece” characters achieve particular skills after consuming Satan Fruit (Gum-Gum is Luffy’s), and Sing-Sing abilities permit this stylish chanteuse with two-tone hair and a worldwide fan base to whisk listeners right into a sort of parallel dimension she calls “New Genesis.” At first, this is able to appear to be a very good factor: Uta loathes battle and desires to make “a greater world with not one of the cruelty and violence.” However like Ultron within the “Avengers” motion pictures, her plan to alleviate struggling would come at an unlimited value.

Out there both dubbed or subbed within the U.S. courtesy of Crunchyroll, this blockbuster toon (already the sixth-highest-grossing Japanese movie of all time in its residence nation) opens with one in all Uta’s concert events. The daughter of Shanks — one in all “One Piece’s” most well-known pirates — Uta grew up virtually alone on Elegia, the island of music, constructing an enormous following from her distant residence due to a particular “One Piece” know-how: video transponder snails. Her id and previous have been a thriller till now. No sooner has her opening track ended than Luffy swings down onto the stage to disclose a private connection to this character.

Because it seems, Luffy and Uta had been childhood buddies (Shanks is identical pirate who gave Luffy his signature straw hat), and the long-limbed child may be the one particular person on Earth who can discuss Uta out of her harmful plan: Principally, she guarantees that her anti-war live performance will go on without end, not telling all those that attend that they danger being completely trapped in her alternate actuality.

A lot of the movie is devoted to Uta performing her hottest songs (Ado provides the vocals), which the dubbed model doesn’t translate. Subtitles convey the lyrics, however the tunes nonetheless sound too bland to have launched such a phenomenon. That’s a special technique from Mamoru Hosoda’s much better “Belle,” for which GKIDS took the difficulty to supply a terrific English-language soundtrack; ”Belle” additionally did extra with viral sensations and digital worlds within the narrative itself.

For all its pleasures, the “One Piece” TV collection is understood for its subpar-to-awful animation (spend a while on fan boards, and that grievance arises all that point). The staff at Toei have considerably improved the standard for the function, however nobody expects first-rate visuals. The “Crimson” soundtrack falls in the identical good-enough-to-better-than-you’d-expect zone. The enjoyable right here comes from shocking audiences with emotionally grounded plot twists and deep-cut cameos from characters like Mini Bepo and Rob Lucci (a villain whose motives echo Uta’s) — and naturally, Shanks’ return, to face his adopted daughter.

Satan Fruits give powers but in addition take one thing away, and performing proves super-exhausting to Uta, who retains herself going by gobbling Wake-shrooms between units, figuring out that this crutch will finally kill her. But when she realizes this, then her plan can’t work as marketed. It means the world’s No. 1 sweetheart — and self-proclaimed “savior of the downtrodden” — can’t go on singing without end, as she supposedly intends. Add within the film’s parallel realities, and issues get awfully sophisticated, particularly the struggle scenes.

The battles between pirates, Marines and Uta’s purple-cloaked private guards are each bit as spectacular as one may hope, if greater than a bit tough to observe. With the motion cut up between Elegia and New Genesis, what occurs if somebody dies in both of those worlds? Can listeners who change their minds depart Uta’s trance? And what does the Demon Lord often called “Tot Musica” need to do with the whole lot?

Secure to say that director Goro Taniguchi and screenwriter Tsutomu Kuroiwa aren’t afraid of complicated audiences and appear to have little or no curiosity in accommodating first-time viewers, who could have a troublesome time orienting themselves to the in depth “One Piece” universe of characters. For the devoted, nevertheless, Uta proves an thrilling new persona — an influencer extraordinaire and highly effective rival to the pirates — who serves to carry again Shanks and his Crimson Hair gang whereas steering Luffy and his crew on a brand new course.