New details about One Piece's upcoming 25th anniversary celebration have been revealed.
The event's producers released a schedule for the "One Piece Day" broadcast, which will be livestreamed in both Japanese and English. The first day, which coincides with the exact 25th anniversary of the publication of the series' first chapter, will kick off on July 22 at 1:50AM PST. Part of day one's festivities include a broadcast from the world premiere of One Piece Film: Red, which will be held at the Nippon Budokan venue in Tokyo. The event will feature special appearances from the film's cast, including Mayumi Tanaka, the voice of Monkey D. Luffy, and Kaori Nazuka, who portrays the film's new character, the singer Uta. The movie will open in Japan on Aug. 6, followed by its North American debut sometime this fall.
The second day of the livestream will begin on June 22 at 6:00PM PST. This day's events will include a special performance from Hiroshi Kitadani, the musician behind the One Piece anime's first theme song, an exclusive look at the production of some new figures, a One Piece trivia contest and a special screening of One Piece - Take Down! The Pirate Ganzak, a rare 1998 short that features the first official animation of Luffy and friends. While much of the day will be focused on looking back at the most memorable events from the past 25 years, the producers of the series are also teasing a number of new announcements regarding the future of the One Piece anime, manga, games and more.
One Piece originally debuted in the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump in 1997. The series centers on Monkey D. Luffy, a young boy who dreams of becoming the king of pirates and whose body is given rubber-like, stretchable properties after he consumes a mysterious devil fruit. Luffy soon finds himself the captain of a crew that includes colorful characters such as Roronoa Zoro, a swordsman capable of wielding three blades simultaneously, and Sanji, a lecherous chef who is also a master of a deadly martial art, and sets sail across the Grand Line to unravel the mystery surrounding the One Piece, a legendary treasure left behind by an infamous pirate.
In the 25 years since its debut, One Piece has become the best-selling manga of all time, with over half-a-billion copies in circulation worldwide. While the series remains incredibly popular, creator Eiichiro Oda recently announced that the series' next saga will be its last. The manga is currently on a one-month hiatus and will begin its final act on July 25.
Source: Bandai Namco