Fans of One Piece will know that Oda has previously worked on several other stories before One Piece began serialization and one of them is titled Monsters. This is the story of a legendary samurai, known by the name of Ryuma. This incredible one-shot manga was illustrated by Oda long before One Piece even began, which means that it has been almost 30 years since Oda worked on this story.
Finally, in early 2024, fans will get a proper anime adaptation for Monsters and that is certainly very exciting. The Monsters anime is made even more special due to the fact that the character who is the protagonist in the story is actually canon to One Piece itself, and this character is who fans know by the name of Shimotsuki Ryuma.
The Story of Shimotsuki Ryuma – Wano’s Legend
When it comes to One Piece, Ryuma was first introduced to the fans and the Thriller Bark arc. There, it was revealed that Ryuma was a legendary samurai from the land of Wano who had died many centuries ago. His corpse was somehow acquired by Gecko Moria and, using the power of his Devil Fruit, he was given a powerful shadow and reanimated. Ryuma carried his legendary sword, Shusui in the arc and he was a secondary antagonist who made the plot all the more interesting. Brook fought against Ryuma on many occasions and lost.
Eventually, it fell to Zoro to take on Ryuma in battle and defeat him. After Zoro defeated him, the sword Shusui passed from Ryuma to him and the sword was with the Straw Hat swordsman for quite a while, until he eventually returned it to the land of Wano recently.
In the Monsters anime, one of Ryuma’s many adventures will be focused on, far away from the land of Wano and, at the same time, they will be other interesting characters, such as Cyrano as well. Flair is yet another interesting character who’s going to be involved in the Monsters anime adaptation that fans should be keeping an eye out for. It must be noted that the anime adaptation might take some liberties here and there with how they portray the character of Ryuma and the other characters involved in the cast. However, regardless of that, this anime adaptation should be one to be excited for.
Monsters Anime Release Date Confirmed
Earlier this year, an anime adaptation for Monsters was finally announced. However, the release date for the show was not given to the fans. That has changed now and One Piece fans finally have a release date for Monsters, an incredible story that Oda has written himself that features the samurai Ryuma. As confirmed recently, Monsters will finally be released in January 2024 on Netflix and Prime Video. This means that fans are only a month or so away from this incredible story being told in anime format.
It must, however, be noted that Monsters is not an anime series. Instead, this is likely going to be a one-off episode that will cover the story of Ryuma as effectively as possible. There has been quite a lot of misinformation pertaining to this incredible story and, sad as it may be, fans won’t see much of Ryuma’s adventures. It is going to be wrapped up in one episode and while that might make some fans sad, it is also exciting in many ways, given that this alleviates some stress from the staff working on it and ensures that they are able to deliver their best possible work.
Is Monsters Anime Canon?
There are many fans who might be wondering if the Monsters anime that is going to be released in January 2024 is canon to the One Piece world. The answer to that is yes. Monsters is canon to One Piece and the characters that exist in it exist in the One Piece world as well. However, there might be some changes between the characters that fans have seen in Monsters and the characters that appear in One Piece in some ways. Here’s what Oda has had to say about monsters in the past:
“Despite being a zombie, the character appearing in Chapter 450 is indeed Ryuma. The samurai protagonist of the MONSTERS short story. In the world of One Piece, however, he is a legendary warrior who has already passed away due to illness and etched his name in history.” – Oda, SBS Vol.47
It is quite clear for the fans to see that the legendary samurai, Ryuma that fans see in Monsters appears in One Piece as well. However, the interesting thing here to note is that Ryuma doesn’t appear to be in Wano at all. Fans know that the land of Wano had a closed-border policy which means that no samurai could have left the country other than those who did so illegally. And, at the same time, fans also know that Ryuma ended up dying in Wano because that’s where his grave was raided. So, it raises quite an interesting question as to how exactly Ryuma left the land of Wano and where exactly he slayed the dragon that he does in the Monsters anime.
Fans know that Ryuma slayed a dragon over the Flower Capital according to the legends in the One Piece world, however, the Dragon that he slays in the Monsters anime adaptation is certainly not over the Flower Capital of Wano. The place looks completely different, which certainly implies that Ryuma, at some point perhaps, left Wano. Or, these two are the same characters but in different continuities.
Another interesting thing for the fans to note is the fact that Ryuma doesn’t have the green hair that he’s shown to have in the anime adaptation of One Piece. Furthermore, Ryuma also does not appear to be a one-eyed samurai like he’s hyped up to be in the One Piece manga. That said, he certainly does look a lot like Zoro, which bolsters the connection between these two characters as they are both from the same family. Another interesting thing to note is that Ryuma is certainly seen carrying one of the 21 Great Grade Swords, Shusui, in the One Piece world that he eventually passed over to Zoro.
There are many questions pertaining to the anime adaptation of monsters currently and, fans can only hope that when it drops, Oda clarifies it for them. Regardless, fans will likely love Ryuma’s adventures as a powerful swordsman all over the world and his famous legend where he slays a dragon.
For the fans interested in the staff listing for the monster anime adaptation, the studio for this anime is E&H. It is going to be directed by Sanghoo Park, and the character designer is none other than Takashi Kojima, who fans will recognize from his work on One Piece. The Color Design is done by Ryoji Nagasawa, while Fuinao Akai is responsible for the Art Direction. The photography is handled by Lee Ju-Mi, while Hiroaki Tsutsumi worked on the Music, with Akiko Fujita serving as the Sound Director.
Monsters will be available to watch on Netflix and Prime Video.
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