Information on all three pilots came from episode 370 of the One Piece Podcast, where the crew were invited to Funimation's headquarters. The dub featured some localized names and the original soundtrack. Unlike their current dub, Luffy was played by Eric Vale and Helmeppo was played by Chris Sabat. It also retained the original Japanese score.įunimation's pilot was also recorded in Texas. It was allegedly directed by Teri Snelgrove and was described as being more faithful to the original's script. The second Ocean pilot was recorded in Calgary, Canada at Bluewater. This version of the show was described as having a localized script with name changes and the addition of wacky sound effects but retained the show's original Japanese score, including a dubbed rendition of the "We Are" theme song. The first Ocean pilot was recorded in Vancouver, Canada and starred Andrew Francis as Luffy, Sam Vincent as Zoro, Jillian Michaels as Nami, Trevor Devall as Gaimon, Chantal Strand as Apis, and Don Brown as Bokuden. Two were from the Canadian company Ocean Productions, while one was from the eventual licensee of One Piece, Funimation. Prior to 4Kids acquiring the show's license, Toei Animation had commissioned at least three separate English pilots to help sell the show internationally.
In 2007, Funimation Entertainment picked up the license and began dubbing the series in Texas. Their heavily altered English dub, which used voice actors based in New York, was cancelled in 2006.
In 2004, the anime series was acquired by 4Kids Entertainment. An ongoing anime adaptation by Toei Animation began broadcast on Fuji TV in 1999. One Piece is a Japanese manga series created by Eiichiro Oda that originally launched in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1997. Cover art for the first volume of the manga.