One Piece season 9

One Piece
Season 9
Enies Lobby
The cover of the first DVD compilation released by Avex Mode of the ninth season.
No. of episodes73
Release
Original networkFuji Television
Original releaseMay 21, 2006 (2006-05-21) –
December 23, 2007 (2007-12-23)
Season chronology
← Previous
Season 8
Next →
Season 10
List of episodes

The ninth season of the One Piece anime series was directed by Kōnosuke Uda and produced by Toei Animation. Like the rest of the series, it follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirates from Eiichirō Oda's One Piece manga series.[1] The majority of the season covers the "Enies Lobby" (エニエス·ロビー, Eniesu Robī) story arc,[2] which adapts Oda's manga from the end of the 39th through the 45th volumes. Between Enies Lobby episodes there is the five episode arc "Straw Hat Theater & Straw Pirate Tales"[n 1] (麦わら劇場&麦わら海賊譚, Mugiwara Gekijō & Mugiwara Kaizoku Dan), with the flashback scenes being shown in 4:3 fullscreen format and are pillarboxed within the 16:9 widescreen format, and three episodes covering the "Historical Drama Boss Luffy" (時代劇 ｢ルフィ親分捕物帖｣).[3] "Ice Hunter" deals with the Straw Hats taking on the Atchino Family to retrieve their flag. The final episode is a stand-alone storyline featuring Chopperman.

Having crossed the yearly occurring storm called Aqua Laguna (アクア·ラグナ, Akua Raguna) on the prototype sea train Rocketman (ロケットマン), piloted by sea train conductor Kokoro (ココロ), the Straw Hats, including Usopp, disguised as his alternate ego, the sharpshooting superhero Sniper King, and their allies, the Franky Family (フランキー一家, Furankī Ikka), the Galley-La Company (ガレーラカンパニー, Garēra Kanpanī) foremen, and the sumo-wrestling frog Yokozuna (ヨコズナ), assault the government's stronghold island Enies Lobby to reclaim their comrades Franky and Nico Robin from the secret assassination group Cipher Pol No. 9 (CP9). Afterwards, they avoid annihilation by the dreaded military operation Buster Call (バスターコール, Basutā Kōru). And once back on the city island Water 7 (ウォーターセブン, Wotā Sebun), the Straw Hats add Franky to their crew and acquire a new ship, the Thousand Sunny (サウザンドサニ, Sauzando Sanī). Lastly, they encounter a group of bounty hunters, called the Atchino Family.

Each episode of "Straw Hat Theatre & Straw Pirate Tales" features a 21-minute recap of the Straw Hats' backstories and 3-minute omake adaptation of a short comic by Oda which was originally published in the One Piece Log fan magazine.[4][5] The "Historical Drama Boss Luffy" episodes are sequels to the fourth One Piece television special which take place in Grand Jipang.

The season initially ran from May 21, 2006, through December 23, 2007 on Fuji Television.[6][7] Since then, nineteen DVD compilations, each containing three episodes of the "Enies Lobby" arc, were released by Avex Mode between January 9, 2008 and July 1, 2009.[4][8] A 20th DVD, containing two episodes, was released on August 5, 2009.[9] A 21st DVD, containing four episodes, was released on September 2, 2009.[10] The special arc was released on a single DVD on May 23, 2008.[5] In July 2012, Funimation announced they had acquired this season as part of their own US "Season Five".

The season uses six pieces of theme music: four opening themes and two ending themes. The opening theme for the first part of the "Enies Lobby" arc is "Brand New World" by D-51 for the first fifteen episodes; the special arc of five episodes open with "We Are! (7 Straw Hat Pirates Ver.)" (ウィーアー!〜7人の麦わら海賊団篇〜, Wī Ā! Shichinin no Mugiwara Kaizokudan Hen), sung by the Japanese voice actors of the first seven Straw Hat Pirates; the second part of the "Enies Lobby" arc uses "Crazy Rainbow" by Tackey & Tsubasa, up to episode 325, and "Jungle P" by 5050, until the end of the season. The two ending themes are "Adventure World" by Delicatessen, used in the first 15 episodes of the "Enies Lobby" arc, and the special ending theme, "Family", also sung by the Straw Hats' voice actors, which was used to end the episodes of the special arc. All episodes of the second part of the "Enies Lobby" arc and after have since aired without an ending theme.

  1. ^ "One Piece". Toei Animation. Archived from the original on May 10, 2009. Retrieved March 16, 2009.
  2. ^ "REGULAR BD&DVD: エニエス・ロビー編". 「ONE PIECE ワンピース」DVD公式サイト (in Japanese). Avex. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  3. ^ "REGULAR BD&DVD: その他TVスペシャル". 「ONE PIECE ワンピース」DVD公式サイト (in Japanese). Avex. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  4. ^ a b "One Piece ワンピース 9thシーズン エニエス·ロビー篇 Piece.01" (in Japanese). Toei Animation. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2009.
  5. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference SpecialDVD was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference j264 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference j335 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "One Piece ワンピース 9thシーズン エニエス·ロビー篇 Piece.19" (in Japanese). Toei Animation. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2009.
  9. ^ "One Piece ワンピース 9thシーズン エニエス·ロビー篇 Piece.20" (in Japanese). Toei Animation. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2009.
  10. ^ "One Piece ワンピース 9thシーズン エニエス·ロビー篇 Piece.21" (in Japanese). Toei Animation. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2009.


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