Eiichiro Oda’s magnum opus has become one of the greatest pieces of fiction that has taken the world by storm. Despite the show being about a young boy trying to achieve a pipe dream of becoming the King of the Pirates, it features a ton of similarities that resonate with real life.
As a result, the Shonen series has been a fan favorite work for 27 years and its popularity only keeps growing with each passing day. The series showcases the rise of the Great Pirate Age; the popularity transcends the manga and anime industry, with the show receiving a live-action series that was a massive hit from the get-go.
With overwhelmingly positive reactions from the fans, the show was renewed for a second season, but negativity followed Charithra Chandan’s Vivi casting as certain fans passed racist comments. However, they will be heartbroken to know that one of their favorite Straw Hats members is Indian, and they might be too surprised to know.
Eiichiro Oda Confirms Jinbe is of Indian Origin
One Piece confirms that Eiichiro Oda is the greatest manga artist of this generation. Despite being a Shonen series, the title decided to take a different approach from the other Shonen series of that time, which has helped it to stay a relevant name even after 27 years.
One of the many intriguing aspects of the show is how sometimes Oda-Sensei would foreshadow events from real life, extending the references to the real world itself. Interestingly enough, where other mangakas would turn a blind eye to complex issues like racism, Oda-Sensei would use the problem to add a layer of reality to his magnum opus.
With the One Piece live-action series in the works for season 2, it decided to cast Charithra Chandan for the role of Princess Vivi. However, the actress received immense backlash from fans who have blamed her for race-swapping, leading to racist comments from some so-called fans of the series.
However, they will be surprised to learn that The First Son of the Sea is of Indian origin too! The revelation might come as a shocker after their comments, but the SBS Question Corner of One Piece Chapter #549 via ScreenRant stated the different country of origin of each Straw Hat Pirate member.
During the session, he shed light on the nationalities of all the Straw Hat crew members, and he mentioned that Jinbe’s nationality is Indian. Other members of the crew include Luffy from Brazil, Nami from Sweden, Usopp from Africa, Sanji from France, Chopper from Canada, Robin from Russia, Franky from the United States, and Brook from Austria.
The fan-favorite crew belongs from all over the world, which again teaches its fans to be more inclusive and not let such petty issues obstruct them from being kind to people around them. This explains why Eiichiro Oda’s stellar work is the best-selling manga that has a host of celebrity fans, which even includes Emmanuel Macron, The President of France via BBC.
One Piece Fans’ Toxicity Leaves Chioma Antoinette Speechless
The casting of Charithra Chandan’s casting invited some racist comments, but the hate faced by Chioma Antoinette in the live adaptation was on a whole different level. The actress played the role of Nojiko, Nami’s sister, in the show, where the fans were fuming at her for not being “source material accurate.”
Recently, a fan page (@justmeight) decided to praise the female cast, but some fans decided to criticize the TV series for giving the role to a dark-skinned actress. Though some criticism was justified, which described the subpar design, a ton of the hate was quite personal and blatantly racist. They commented,
Still a weird choice for Namis sister to be black for no reason.
— Fabio 00 📯 (@Fabio_1808) September 19, 2024
Ehhh, I say 3/4 Nojiko was just black for no reason, but diversity and I’m saying that as an African American
— Astro Higashikata (@astrorobert7) September 19, 2024
Sorry, but Vivi’s casting is not good, and it has nothing to do with her skin color or the actress herself!
— 𝓛𝓲𝓵𝔂 🦋 (@NefertariLayla) September 19, 2024
The only one I was kinda iffy on was nojiko, not because of her race, but because of her accent (she grew up in a house where her mom, sister, and village Takeda like Americans but was thr only one to get a south African?). But that’s just my one pet peeve, she still did great.
— KOHEIYA art (@KOHEIYA2) September 20, 2024
The thing I don’t get is , 1 vivi was never really portrayed as brown in the anime or manga , even though it would make sense , 2 I’m not sure Nojiko was black , not trying to be rude ,just a bit confused .
— citizen (@MisfitArt2) September 20, 2024
The original post was also seen by the actress, who thanked the user while expressing her views and how “genuinely upsetting” it was to see “such cruel and unkind takes.” Nevertheless, she felt empowered by all the love and support she received from the real ones.
One Piece live-action season 1 can be streamed on Netflix, while the anime can be streamed on Crunchyroll.
