Most anime fans know what it’s like to go through all five stages of grief once the news of a live-action adaptation emerges, even One Piece fans. Recently, Avatar: The Last Airbender, albeit an American animated series, is also receiving yet another live-action adaptation, forcing Avatar fans to experience, once again, what it’s like to completely rewrite history and potentially ruin entire character arcs in the process. Welcome to the live-action life.
For some reason, the U.S. insists on remaking almost every piece of fiction that has been successful outside of American borders — or, more specifically, outside of a live-action format. We can’t precisely pinpoint the reason behind this, but we do know that reading subtitles can be a hassle for some Americans who are too accustomed to having everything in English. Bong Soon-Ju once said: “Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films,” so don’t just take it from me.
The Avatar: The Last Airbender live-action is doomed to fail — here’s why
While One Piece was hailed as the live-action that broke the curse and finally did justice to the story (it pains me to write this), it unequivocally made some mistakes that no one can ever forgive. These errors will undoubtedly have a lasting impact on the story. Unfortunately, despite being the reboot of a reboot of an American show, the live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender is following in the same footsteps and it is already facing significant backlash from fans, even before release.
At this point in time, with about a month remaining before the new Avatar live-action premieres on our screens, we are already aware of a major detail that will be altered in the story. Per Variety, Shokka’s personality undergoes a complete transformation into a more socially acceptable perspective, abandoning sexist beliefs. Shokka’s sexist beliefs contribute to a broader portrayal of his personality, eventually leading to a much-needed redemption arc and character development.
This immediately brought to mind Sanji’s character in the One Piece live-action. For some inexplicable reason, Netflix also chose to diminish his womanizer (frankly, perverted, if I’m being accurate) persona. To be fair, we know the reason behind this change: the live-action aimed to be suitable for all ages, and an overtly objectifying character in the story would probably not have resonated well with viewers. In the anime, we’re accustomed to it, but in a live-action? Netflix would never allow it.
Here’s the kicker, though: much like Shokka, Sanji’s less desirable character traits are equally as crucial to the story. There are at least two arcs off the top of my head — Fishman Island and Whole Cake — where we not only witness the full extent of Sanji’s perversion but also delve deep into his past, essentially exploring what led to him being the way he is. Trust me, there’s a reason and it will make you cry, as everything related to One Piece does.
Why do live-actions exist?
Unfortunately, all this only emphasizes, as an avid consumer of anime and, more specifically, One Piece, that Netflix and all the involved directors and writers ought to truly familiarize themselves with the source material before embarking on these projects. For starters, these anime do not need, in any way, shape, or form, live-action reboots. Perhaps what audiences need is to move beyond the notion that anime is solely for kids and, instead, give animated stories a chance to prove themselves. By dismissing them, you’re overlooking narratives that are comparable to seminal epics like The Lord of the Rings or Star Wars.
These stories carry a legacy, and by completely rewriting key aspects, Netflix is essentially stripping them of the essence that captivates fans. Why rewrite something that’s already superb? Is it to appease a legion of fans who refuse to embrace the greatest adventure stories purely because they are animated or spoken in Japanese (in One Piece‘s case, at least)?
As much as audiences love to criticize Netflix, whenever something unexpectedly good comes out, we are all quick to express our admiration. Sadly, this time around, Netflix is only jeopardizing its own production of live-actions, instead of capitalizing on what is already perfect source material. Every single character and every plotline is essential, and changing them signifies a lack of understanding of what the original series truly means. We know for a fact that some of the people involved do not even know the source material. So, what can we realistically expect from Netflix at this point?
