The Netflix series based on One Piece is supposed to keep the original essence of the manga. However, with the main character Sanji, it becomes clear that he has lost one of his most distinctive traits.
Which trait was lost? Sanji’s enthusiasm for women is one of his most well-known character traits in the manga. The author uses this trait for exaggerated comedic moments:
- Whenever he sees an attractive woman, his eyes pop out of his head and turn into huge hearts. His body seems to lose its structure and becomes wavy. He then dances around the woman.
- In particularly dramatic cases, he even experiences nosebleeds. On Fish-Man Island, there were instances where Sanji was in life-threatening situations and urgently needed a blood transfusion.
- Sanji especially pampers the women of the Straw Hat crew and even gives them nicknames.
That is even evident in battle: Sanji refuses to fight against women. This has often put him in dangerous situations, for instance, in Wano Kuni, when he fell into the clutches of Black Maria and had to be rescued by Nico Robin.
This trait is not visible at all in the live-action series. It would be easy to animate the heart-shaped eyes and nosebleeds using CGI. However, actor Taz Skylar has clearly spoken against it.
Sanji loses important traits due to his past
Why was this changed? When changes are made compared to the manga, these decisions usually come from the showrunners and writers Steve Maeda and Matt Owens. In the end, the creator of the universe, Eiichiro Oda, must give his approval. He is even consulted for small appearances of characters that actually appear later in the manga.
The actor playing Sanji also appreciates this decision:
Well, I think in our live-action adaptation, Sanji is as he is, and his relationship with women is much less – I would say, much less romanticized and much more focused on care. My reasoning for this has always been that I think it makes absolute sense because women were the only people who were good to him when he was growing up.
In his past, Sanji was despised by all men. Only his sister and mother would be the two people who gave him love, according to Skylar. They would have cared for him and supported him, so it makes perfect sense that he would try his best to give the same kind of support back to every woman.
The actor playing Sanji gives his all for his role to portray the original as faithfully as possible in the series. As Sanji is the ship’s cook, Skylar has even taken cooking lessons to improve his culinary skills: Actor from One Piece shows his cooking skills, fans amazed: “He has truly become Real-Life Sanji”
