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. This is in contrast to the chapter title page mini-arcs, which are part of the main story, and "Romance Dawn," which was a prototype for One Piece. These comics are also distinguished by being drawn in Super Deformed (SD) style, giving all the characters large heads and tiny bodies.

1 One Piece BLUE 4-Panel Comics
2 "Log" Compilation Bonus Comics

[edit] 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.

[edit] "Log" Compilation Bonus Comics

The more well-known group of One Piece side-comics came from the Log series. The Logs were magazine-format compilations released 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 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).

[edit] Report Time

The reporter from 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.

[edit] Obahan Time

"Obahan" Straw Hat crew.

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.

[edit] Characters

Mrs. Luffyzaki (ルフィ崎さん, Rufizaki-san^?): This version of Luffy appears to be obsessed with cooking all kinds of meat. She is on a mission to find more soy sauce, but isn't having much luck.
Mrs. Zoroyama (ゾロ山さん, Zoroyama-san^?): This version of Zoro is making sashimi for dinner, inadvertently cutting both the kitchen and her bottle of soy sauce in the process.
Mrs. Chopamori (チョパ森さん, Chopamori-san^?): This version of Chopper seems to have a voracious appetite, bringing rice into the samples area and greedily inhaling the food samples there.
Mrs. Sanjida (サンジ田さん, Sanjida-san^?): This version of Sanji, despite being a woman, is a pervert. She attempts to grope the women in the supermarket and causes a stampede, earning the ire of Mrs. Namijima.
Mrs. Namijima (ナミ島さん, Namijima-san^?): This version of Nami is the stern, irascible landlady of the other characters. She does not tolerate inappropriate behavior, or late rent payments.
Mrs. Usokawa (ウソ川さん, Usokawa-san^?): This version of Usopp still likes to tell lies, and is a gossip.
Mrs. Robino (ロビ野さん, Robino-san^?): This version of Robin is soft-spoken and demure, and seems amused by the others' antics.
Tashigiko (たしぎ子, Tashigiko^?): Tashigi also makes an appearance in this comic, as a supermarket employee troubled by both Mrs. Chopamori's and Mrs. Luffyzaki's abuse of the free samples.

[edit] No Code-of-Honor Time

A scene from 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^?).

[edit] 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. 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.

[edit] 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.

[edit] Characters

Rodusa (ロデューサ, Rodyūsa^?): A gorgon version of Robin, who wears sunglasses to keep from turning others into stone. She recently lost her mystical earrings.
Usoppaka (ウソッパカ, Usoppaka^?): A centaur version of Usopp, who wants Lugyao's mystical horns for himself.
Lugyao (ルギャオ, Rugyao^?): A dragon version of Luffy, who is fishing for a mythical fish while under attack by Usoppaka.
Chopaken (チョパーケン, Chopāken^?): A kraken version of Chopper, who was scouring the sea floor for mystical treasures when he was hooked by Lugyao's bait.
Storonami (ストロナミー, Sutoronamī^?): A mermaid version of Nami, who is angry at Chopaken for trying to steal her mystical treasure.
Sanzara (サンザラー, Sanzarā^?): A kappa version of Sanji who offers to beat up Chopaken on behalf of Stronami. He later threatens to take Zoromilk's golden nosering in retaliation for the creature's own threats against him.
Zoromilk (ゾロミルク, Zoromiruku^?): A minotaur version of Zoro (though he looks more like a holstein), who wants to take the mystical dish on the top of Sanzara's skull for himself.