Netflix is ordering a second season of the new Japanese pirate series One Piece after the live-action, comic-book-based show was the top-watched TV title worldwide for two straight weeks.
The eight-episode series, based on one of Japan's biggest manga franchises, took the No.1 spot on Netflix in the week after its Aug 31 launch and has stayed there through mid-September, attracting 37.8 million views globally in its first 10 days.
One Piece is Japan's top-selling comic book, with more than 500 million copies sold worldwide since 1997. The show has attracted huge support from fan communities of the manga created by Eiichiro Oda, with viewers generating memes on social media platforms such as X and TikTok.
One Piece follows the adventures of young pirates on an ocean journey to find a fabled treasure. An animated TV series based on the comics spans 1,000 episodes, and One Piece is expanding through PlayStation games, films and merchandise.
Although Netflix didn't confirm plans beyond the next season, the company sees potential for longevity in the comic books many characters and story lines. Details for Season Two, including episode count, will be announced later, Netflix said in a statement.
"It'll still take a while to get the scripts ready, so please be patient, Oda said. "From here on, it seems to me the Straw Hats will need a great doctor...We will see
"We are all on this adventure together, Friedlander said. "We are sailing off for the next one."
