One Piece side comics
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One Piece side comics is an umbrella term which applies to a variety of short (less than 5 pages each) manga drawn by Eiichiro Oda and featuring the characters of One Piece, but unrelated to the plot of the series. These comics are distinguished by being drawn in super deformed (SD) style, giving all the characters large heads and tiny bodies. The three-page SD comics are also collectively known as "Straw Hat Theater", after their anime adaptations.
One Piece BLUE 4-Panel Comics
The first appearance of these comics is in the book One Piece BLUE: Grand Data File. Included among the various information sections were 8 new 4-Panel comic strips, referred to collectively as "Luffy Pirates 4-Panel Theater" (ルフィ海賊団四コマ劇場, Rufi Kaizokudan Yon-Koma Gekijõ). Each strip featured one of the Straw Hat Pirates including Vivi in absurd situations. Of particular note here was the comic devoted to Tony Tony Chopper, entitled "Justice's Ally 'Chopper Man'" (正義の味方「チョッパーマン」, Seigi no Mikata 'Choppāman'), which is the first appearance of the "Chopper Man" character. Here, he is asked to save the people from a rampaging giant robot, but becomes lost in a daydream about flying through the sky on its back.
Straw Hat Theater
The more well-known group of One Piece side-comics were born from the Log series. The Logs were magazine-format compilations released initially between the end of 2005 and April 2006, which covered the beginning of the series up until the end of the Baroque Works Saga. These short bonus comics were featured at the end of the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th Logs, and advertised as "Brand-New from Oda-sensei! Special Manga" (尾田先生描きおろし！スペシャルマンガ, Oda-sensei Kakioroshi! Supesharu Manga). According to the author, for each comic he was given three sheets of blank paper by his editor and told to "draw anything", with these being the result.
These initial five comics were brought to television as "Straw Hat Theater" (麦わら劇場, Mugiwara Gekijō), airing as shorts alongside One Piece episodes 279 through 283 in October 2006. The episodes of the show during this period were made up of filler and flashback material, so it is generally believed to have been a move on the part of Toei Animation and Fuji TV to give viewers an incentive to keep watching, until the start of the fight against CP9. These shorts are narrated by Masaya Takatsuka (in contrast to the usual One Piece narrator, Mahito Oba).
In August 2007, a new comic was released with the 10th-Anniversary commemorative magazine One Piece: 10th Treasures; the most recent addition to the series was published in April 2008, in the 10th Log compilation (featuring the end of the Skypiea arc).
The original five LOG bonus comics have since been reprinted in One Piece YELLOW: Grand Elements,which was released on 2 April 2007. These are accompanied by a new original bonus comic, "Space Time," featuring Franky as a character. The two most recent installments in the series postdate the publication of this book, and will most likely be collected at a later date.
Report Time
The first of these comics, "Report Time", was published in November 2005 in The 2nd Log: "SANJI". Of the bonus comics that appeared in the Logs, it is the only one to feature Luffy and crew in-character, as themselves. The one addition to the cast is "Affiliate Yakuza Reporter" Tsubaki, who interviews the Straw Hat Pirates about what life was like before Sanji joined the crew. The reporter's favorite phrase is "I'm so happy, I can't express it in words." Chopper and Robin do not appear, as The 2nd Log focuses on Sanji's introduction and acceptance into the crew, long before the two of them are introduced. Its anime version aired alongside One Piece episode 280, on 8 October 2006, with the role of Tsubaki voiced by Keiichi Sonobe.
Obahan Time
The second comic, "Obahan Time", was published in December 2005 in The 3rd Log: "NAMI". The anime version aired along with episode 281, on 15 October 2006. "Obahan", derived from the Japanese "Obasan", meaning "aunt" and applied more generally to middle-aged women, refers to a stereotype of middle-aged housewives who tend to be rude and demanding. In this comic, the author investigates the hypothetical situation of "if the Straw Hat Pirates were Obahan, who would be the strongest?" The story follows Mrs. Luffyzaki as she attempts to get soy sauce in order to cook a variety of meat dishes, but eventually ends up fleeing to Mrs. Robino's in order to avoid the wrath of her landlady Mrs. Namijima. The author concludes that Mrs. Namijima is, indeed, the strongest.
In December 2006, at Shueisha's annual Jump Festa event, Eiichiro Oda and the voices of all current Straw Hat crewmembers except for Ikue Ohtani (Chopper) and Yuriko Yamaguchi (Robin) appeared on stage dressed as their "Obahan" incarnations. For Oda, this meant a pink apron and matching pink afro.
No Code-of-Honor Time
The third comic, "No Code-of-Honor Time" (仁義ない TIME, Jingi nai TIME), was published in February 2006 in The 5th Log: "CHOPPER"." The anime version of this story aired alongside One Piece episode 282, on 22 October 2006. The comic is apparently the dream of a bored moai statue, and features a mafia theme. Don Luffyone wants all the meat to himself, so he and his rival bosses Don Zoroscia and Don Sanjino set out to be the last man standing, as each of the Straw Hats is killed off one by one. Eventually, only Luffyone is left, though he is now terribly lonely. Note that "jingi" in the title more accurately translates to "humanity and justice", a byword for a kind of moral code that is said to be lacking among yakuza. In fact, the title header for the comic seems to have been ripped directly from the title card for the 1973 yakuza film Battles Without Honor and Humanity (仁義なき戦い, Jingi naki Tatakai).
Chopper Man
The fourth comic, "Chopper Man", was published in March 2006 in The 6th Log: "ARABASTA". It is notable for building on the previously-introduced "Chopper Man" character, as well as its page-and-a-half of introductions prior to the page-and-a-half comic itself. The anime version aired alongside One Piece episode 279, on 1 October 2006; it has since spawned a Chopper Man CD with a theme song sung by Chopper and an audio drama, as well as a full-length episode of the One Piece anime (episode 336) devoted to another Chopper Man adventure.
In this story, Chopper Man infiltrates the lair of the evil Dr. Usodabada, tames his henchmen with the power of his cuteness, and makes friends with Usodabada's secret weapon, Giant Luffy Bomber, which he uses to destroy the Doctor's castle. He intends to fly in the Giant Luffy Bomber to face his next foe, but he comes home to find that his assistant Namifia has already sold it.
Monster Time
The fifth comic, "Monster Time", was published in April 2006 in The 7th Log: "VIVI". In this, Luffy and company are all mythical beasts at the "carefree monster town", Monston. The anime version aired alongside One Piece episode 283, on 29 October 2006.
Space Time
The sixth comic first appeared as a bonus comic in One Piece YELLOW: Grand Elements, released on 2 April 2007. It is the first four-page side comic and the first comic to feature the newest member of the Mugiwara crew, Franky. In this story, which features a science-fiction theme, San Vader and Zorodadener plot to invade the Moon with their giant space robots. The Queen of the Moon, Robiya-hime, orders her soldier Luffytarou to search for the space hero Mugiwaraman, unaware that Luffytarou secretly is Mugiwaraman. En route, Luffytarou transforms into Mugiwaraman in order to save Planet Namitan from an octopus-shaped asteroid. Unfortunately, he deflects the asteroid into the moon, destroying it.
All the characters speak "Space-ese," which is accomplished by sticking out one's lower jaw in an exaggerated grimace while speaking. It refers to the facial expression that accompanies the utterance of popular comedian Ken Shimura's nonsensical catchphrase, "Ai-in."
Red-Hair of Class 3-Sea Time
The seventh comic in the One Piece Theater series, published in the commemorative 10th-Anniversary One Piece: 10th Treasures magazine. It is a parody of a clichéd storyline found in various Japanese media, about an inspirational teacher who manages to turn around a problem class. This is the first comic to feature Brook, as well as many other characters voted on by fans. The comic involves the Straw Hat Crew as juvenile delinquents of varied types (excluding Luffy and Brook). Many teachers at the school attempt to deal with the problematic Class 3-Sea, until one day the principal, Bon Kurei, calls in "Mr. Red-Hair" (Shanks) to set them straight. In spite of a rough start, the students of Class 3-Sea grow to love him. Mr. Red-Hair leaves them with words of becoming pirates, leaving behind an irate Principal Bon Kurei.
Märchen Time
The eighth and most recent comic, "Märchen Time", was published in April 2008 in The 10th Log: "BELL". In this, Luffy and company are fairy tale characters, drawn primarily from The Three Little Pigs and Snow White. Aside from his cameo in 3-SEA, this is Brook's first appearance as a member of the Straw-Hat crew.
