Anime

10 Things One Piece Season 2 Needs To Get Right About Nico Robin

One Piece’s Nico Robin is set to appear in season 2 of One Piece. However, there’s a few things the show has to accurately portray with the character.

Even though the first season of One Piece is proving to be one of the most successful live-action anime adaptations in recent memory, it still needs to get a few things right about the beloved Straw Hat Pirate, Nico Robin. Known for her intelligence, exceptional fighting prowess, and fun dynamic with her fellow Straw Hat Pirates, Robin’s absence from One Piece‘s first season left much to be desired from the popular live-action adaptation. Considering the essential role that Robin plays in bringing the Straw Hat Pirates closer together, as well as fending off threats, Netflix will have a pretty big undertaking on their hands regarding her in her live-action debut.

In addition to the locations One Piece season 2 will need to include, Robin’s portrayal will be tough since she comes with an extensive background that’s unique to her fellow Straw Hat Pirates. As such, it begs the question as to how One Piece will convincingly portray Robin’s past while also making her a formidable addition to the Straw Hat Pirates without things feeling rushed. Furthermore, Netflix failed Usopp and Sanji’s live-action depictions since they showed up in the series far too late, and weren’t given an equal amount of care as Luffy, Zoro, and Nami. Nevertheless, there’s enough time for One Piece to ensure Robin’s portrayal is a success.

10. Robin’s Skin Tone Needs To Be Addressed

This detail would display great attention-to-detail from One Piece’s production staff

When Robin is introduced in One Piece, she’s depicted as a darker-skinned woman with perfectly symmetrical bangs that hang just above her eyes. However, after One Piece‘s timeskip, Robin is noticeably fairer-skinned with her hair slicked back, nearly making her look like a completely different woman. While neither the One Piece anime nor the manga ever addresses the change formally, the likely reasoning behind Robin’s different appearance is due to series creator Eiichiro Oda’s shift in style. One Piece is in a unique position as they can formally address this by making it a part of her backstory, or even hiring two different actresses after a set number of episodes.

9. Netflix Needs To Get Robin’s Age Right

Failure to properly handle Robin’s age can ruin the Straw Hat Pirates’ dynamic

Perhaps one of the biggest challenges that Netflix faces is properly handling Robin’s age in the live-action One Piece. In the One Piece manga and anime, Robin is twenty-eight by the time of her introduction and thirty after the timeskip, thus placing her well over the median age of her fellow crew. To put things into perspective, the second-oldest members of the crew by the time Robin joins are Roronoa Zoro and Sanji, at twenty-one each. On the surface, Robin’s age disparity doesn’t seem too important until one considers how a significantly older actress runs the risk of negatively impacting the dynamic between One Piece‘s mostly younger cast.

Furthermore, Nami actress Emily Rudd was already thirty by the time One Piece debuted in 2023, and her ability to convincingly portray the seventeen-year-old Nami while meshing well with her significantly younger co-stars is proof that an older onscreen Robin can work. However, the big difference between Nami and Robin lies in their temperaments and worldview. In the source material, Nami is selfish and more like an older sister who eventually learns how to get along with her crew. Robin, on the other hand, plays more of a maternal role aboard the Going Merry and Thousand Sunny, so casting a younger actress might not be the right move either.

8. Robin Had The Highest Starting Bounty

This reinforces how dangerous she was/how useful she will become

Another noteworthy aspect is Robin’s starting bounty at 79,000,000 berries by the time she’s introduced to the series. While most other characters accrue large bounties for particularly heinous crimes, Robin’s absurd bounty stems from false accusations that she sunk six Buster Call battleships in her youth. As the series progresses and Robin’s allegiance to the Straw Hat Pirates strengthens, her bounty also increases, but the initial number is important for One Piece to retain, as it subtly implies how much of a threat Robin can be. Moreover, it suggests to audiences Robin’s importance, since the World Government only reserve high bounties for fearsome characters.

7. Robin’s Childhood Shouldn’t Be Revealed Too Early

Robin’s childhood contains references to important future events

One of One Piece‘s greatest claims to fame is the series’ penchant for giving all of its characters intriguing backstories that recontextualize each character once they’re revealed to audiences. Whether friend or foe, Oda ensures that each of his characters have layers to them that justify, or even in certain cases, contradict their very nature. In the case of Robin, her childhood is significant because it shows audiences how she gained her Devil Fruit abilities, and how said powers led to Robin initially starting down a dubious path. Furthermore, Robin’s past shows that her time with the scholars of Ohara profoundly effected her, thus leading to her becoming an archaeologist.

6. The CGI Needs To Be Convincing For Robin’s Devil Fruit Abilities

Robin’s Devil Fruit abilities will look very jarring without a proper special effects budget

Of all the Devil Fruit users in One Piece, Robin arguably has the most sophisticated and unique abilities. While Luffy’s Gomu Gomo no Mi Devil Fruit allows him to stretch his body like rubber, Robin’s Hana Hana no Mi grants her the ability to sprout multiple arms out of her body. As Robin grows stronger, she can even manipulate this ability to turn her multiple arms into wings, thus granting her the ability to fly. Given One Piece‘s first season success and the believable effects behind the Devil Fruit already seen, it’s likely the studio will spend the necessary amount of money to make Robin’s abilities look convincing.

5. Robin’s Knowledge Of The One Piece World’s Secrets

Robin’s role as the Straw Hat Pirates archaeologist makes her more knowledgeable of the Grand Line

Robin’s time with the scholars of Ohara in her childhood would prove to be very influential on the young Robin as it provided her with a healthy way to endure the bullying she’d received as a child because of her Devil Fruit abilities, and it inspired her to develop her love and appreciation for discovering rare artifacts. Without making her overly powerful, One Piece would need to retain Robin’s voracious appetite for knowledge as it would help keep her, and by extension, her younger crew mates grounded and focused in times of stress, and set the stage for expanding the show’s lore.

4. Robin Needs To Be A Threatening Antagonist Before Her Redemption

Robin begins the series working under the infamous Baroque Works

When Robin is introduced in the One Piece anime and manga, she’s an antagonist using the alias Miss All Sunday, and is seen working with the infamous Baroque Works. Alongside Crocodile, Robin’s vast knowledge of Poneglyphs, that is, large artifacts that contain hidden knowledge regarding the Grand Line, makes her a formidable foe. Despite her allegiance to Baroque Works, Robin eventually reveals she worked with them to avoid persecution from the World Organization. As such, Robin’s early appearance should see her using her Devil Fruit abilities to combat the Straw Hat Pirates while also displaying her incredible knowledge of the Grand Line.

3. Robin’s Redemption Needs To Feel Earned

Robin’s initial villainous role made her a tough adversary of the Star Hat Pirates

Crocodile is a ruthless man who generally only cares about advancing his own goals, and as such, often sees him betray those in allegiance to him. In the case of Robin, Crocodile betrays her after ascertaining the information he needs in the Arabasta arc regarding the Poneglyphs, and leaves Robin in the desert for dead. After experiencing Luffy’s willingness to die for Robin despite her playing an antagonistic role, it moves Robin to tears, and compels her to ask to join the Strawe Hat PiratesOne Piece would need to retain the same emotion felt in the source material as failure to do so would make her membership feel contrived.

2. Robin’s Time With The Revolutionary Army

This could also set up future character appearances while developing her further

On account of Robin’s vast knowledge of One Piece‘s secrets and forgotten gems, she proves to be a valuable asset to many factions besides the Strawe Hat Pirates. Chiefly among the factions that wish to have Robin on their side is the Revolutionary Army, and this is because they believe she possesses the knowledge necessary to effectively bring down the oppressive forces of the World Government. While Robin joins them, it is only temporary so that she can learn more about the Poneglyphs before eventually rejoining the Straw Hat Pirates. One Piece could faithfully depict this juncture in Robin’s life via flashbacks, considering its brief nature.

1. Properly Portraying Robin’s Membership

Robin unique skillset and intelligence could make her overpowered early on

With Robin’s acute knowledge of Poneglyphs, the Grand Line, and its secrets, One Piece will have to find a way to accurately depict these characteristics while also maintaining a reasonable degree of power scaling. One way this can be addressed is through the use of strategically placed flashbacks that provide the necessary context for her true character, while weaving in her time with Baroque Works. Finally, when the Straw Hats confront Crocodile, Luffy’s intuition and perpetual optimism can be the motivating factor that convinces Robin to abandon her former life as Miss All Sunday, and join the Straw Hat Pirates as their archaeologist in Netflix’s One Piece.

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