Anime Expo 2023

ANN’s coverage of Anime Expo 2023 sponsored by Yen Press!

The One Piece Episode 1000 Dub World Premiere had perhaps more logistical issues than any other event in or around Anime Expo this year. It was held a block and a half away from the Los Angeles Convention Center at the GRAMMY Museum, and the line to enter the Rooftop Terrace event space sprawled nearly back to the convention campus. Would-be attendees stood adjacent to traffic, making sidewalks difficult to navigate, as they received little to no direction from GRAMMY Museum security or local law enforcement. Line and event access accommodations also did not appear to be available for the disabled, leaving many with mobility issues exposed to the Los Angeles afternoon sun and unable to navigate the crowded space.

This is a shame, as the event itself was rich with One Piece-related activation, held in a gorgeous venue, and offered a rare look at the production of the sensational anime.

Speaking with fans of One Piece in the queue, many had anticipated that this event would take place in a theater venue that could accommodate several hundred people or that the entire museum had been rented out exclusively for this premiere. In reality, only the Rooftop Terrace was utilized, which was implied in the Anime Expo listing but not explicitly stated. While listed as having a standing capacity of 400 people, a significant portion of the venue was occupied by the event stage, tables related to activations, and roped off for VIP guests only. This left only roughly 100 or so fans with room to attend the premiere event. With doors scheduled to open at 6 pm PT, and episode 1000 set to begin at 9 pm PT, there was no cycling out for those who entered. This left the vast majority of people who stood in line—some since 3 pm PT—unable to attend the event, although a few were gifted copies of storyboards of the special episode 1000 opening sequence while waiting.

Even VIPs had difficulty entering the Rooftop Terrace. As this terrace venue is only accessible through a side door, and museum security was unaware of the names of attending guests or press, both groups waited with general admissions well past the event’s scheduled start time. At no point before or during the event were the general entrance museum doors opened for attendees to clear the street or get out of the sun.

Those who managed to reach the terrace were greeted with a gorgeous view of downtown Los Angeles and a wide array of One Piece paraphernalia. Starter decks for the One Piece card game were given away for free, complete with tutorials and designated desks for people to play. There were also demo stations for the One Piece Odyssey video game, a photo station featuring a statue of Shanks giving Luffy his iconic straw hat and a free swag giveaway table.

However, the venue did not provide seating. So, once One Piece anime series director Yasunori Koyama, animation director Kenji Yokoyama, and production manager Tetsuji Akahori took the stage, attendees sat on the concrete-tiled floor. A panorama of downtown Los Angeles framed the guests as they shared their feelings toward One Piece and their work on the anime.

As he began a live drawing of Luffy, which would be raffled off later, Yokoyama revealed that Sanji is a surprisingly easy character for him to draw, while Nami and Robin’s more detailed designs and “softness” make them more challenging to depict. When presenter Lauren Moore asked him about his favorite character to draw, he exclaimed, “Brook!”

While giving advice on how people could someday work on an anime like One Piece, Akahori stressed the importance of being able to collaborate effectively across a large team and be able to speak Japanese. In the panel, Koyama revealed that the sequence in the special episode 1000 opening, where the composition transitions from 4:3 to a 16:9 aspect ratio, was a late addition to the project that he felt helped it “better capture the passage of time.”

The premiere of the English dub of the 1000th episode of One Piece was the most understated part of the event, having an energy much more similar to a watch party than a blowout premiere.

In speaking with attendees after the event, many expressed joy at being able to view the episode alongside a room full of One Piece fans. However, even those who got inside were frustrated by the lack of space, seating, and communication. Those who weren’t able to get inside said they assumed this premiere was happening at an off-site location so that it could accommodate a larger number of attendees than the convention hall and felt that these issues could have been mitigated if the event were ticketed or reservation-only.