Fame and fortune are coming to our happy (when not being whooped-up on by tyrannical baddies) crew, or at least infamy, as Luffy has finally reached the attention of the Marines and earned himself the highest-ever bounty on a wanted poster! While the crew rejoices at this confirmation of their fame, enemies old and new are searching for Luffy for revenge and/or capture. As they make one final stop at Loguetown (“Log-town”) to gather supplies for their voyage into the Grand Line, Luffy insists on visiting the very spot where the previous Pirate King was beheaded in this historic town. Unfortunately, Captain Smoker, leader of the Marine division in this region, has a record of never letting a pirate escape this town…
This anime, I will grudgingly admit, is learning to temper their trademark wackiness with dramatic action, so the more I see, the more I understand the constant popularity of this series. From fighting with ridiculously powerful (and ugly) fishmen with overblown ideas of their own importance, to an encounter or two with the natural enemy of all pirates: The Marines, this collection really cements the feeling of solidarity of the Straw Hat Pirate crew and gives the viewer a chance to like the characters as a group. Also, Usopp finally proves useful and defeats someone all by himself. I felt like I was at some sort of graduation, where you’re overwhelmed with pride, but afraid to buy a gift yet because this whole accomplishment could be a one-time deal and you could need the money later for bail.
As always, the voice acting is acceptable in both languages, and the translation to English hasn’t discernably changed any of the story meaning. The music is present, but never in the spotlight, and the art is fluid if still overwhelmingly reminiscent of Dragonball. As I mentioned, however, this collection covers episodes 40-53, so I’m not sure it would be easy to interpret without watching at least a few episodes beforehand.