Summary
Jeff Ward’s Buggy the Clown is not the most powerful villain in Netflix’sOne Pieceadaptation, but he certainly made a strong impression. Despite being comprehensively beaten by Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates, Buggy hung around season 1 like a bad smell, even getting involved - somewhat unwillingly - in the final battle against Arlong.One Pieceseason 1’s endingthen set up Buggy’s return when it showed him plotting revenge alongside fellow small-time pirate Alvida, who had a bone of her own to pick with the Straw Hat captain.
Sure enough, Jeff Ward is confirmed to return as Buggy inOne Pieceseason 2(viaDeadline). According to the manga, however, the body-chopping clown is unlikely to receive as much screen time in Netflix’s sophomore season compared to its first. A reduced role for Buggy may be unavoidable thanks to the glut of exciting new allies and enemies thatOne Pieceis tasked with introducing in season 2, but the live-action adaptation cannot afford to sideline Buggy completely. The villain’s future importance is simply too great.
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Why Buggy May Have A Smaller Role In Netflix’s One Piece Season 2
One Piece Season 2 Might Not Please Buggy The Clown Fans
One Pieceseason 2 premieres with the episode “The Beginning and the End,” which is a reference to Loguetown. During theOne Pieceanime and manga’s short Loguetown arc, Luffy was captured by Buggy and Alvida in an act of revenge, but, since there were still 1000 chapters of Luffy-centric adventuring to go, the protagonist survived their team-up. Jeff Ward’s chief role inOne Pieceseason 2 will, therefore, be harassing Luffy at Loguetown during the opening one or two episodes.
After that, however,Buggy doesn’t appear in theOne Piecemanga or anime for a very lengthy stretch. If Netflix’s adaptation follows its source material, Jeff Ward’s Buggy will only get a fleeting guest role in season 2 - the Loguetown part - then his story will effectively be finished untilOne Pieceseason 5 or 6. Fidelity to the comic is typically the first and most important rule for making a great live-action manga and anime adaptation, but when it comes to Buggy,One Piecewould benefit from a few adjustments to Eiichiro Oda’s series.
Buggy Becomes Very Important In One Piece’s Future
Buggy Is A Master Of Falling Upwards
Buggy has appeared sporadically, but very consistently, throughout theOne Piecemanga since Loguetown. Oda’s running joke is that Buggy excels at falling upwards, accidentally finding himself in the middle of history-changing moments he’d rather avoid, proving absolutely useless during those moments, then somehow receiving unwarranted levels of adulation that inflate his status and reputation.
The best way for Netflix’sOne Pieceto keep Buggy relevant and honor his future importance is by expanding Jeff Ward’s role in season 2.
As ofOne Piecechapter #1121, Buggy is the leader of the Cross Guild alongsideOne Pieceseason 1 character Dracule Mihawk and probableOne Pieceseason 2 main villain Crocodile. He is also one of the current Four Emperors alongside Luffy, Shanks, and Blackbeard, and chapter #1121 lists him as one of the big shots vying to locate the One Piece treasure as the story’s endgame draws closer. Being realistic, Netflix’sOne Pieceis unlikely to ever reach the point of adapting Buggy’s ascension to Emperor, butto end the villain’s story after Loguetown would be a disingenuous representation of Buggy’s significancewithin Eiichiro Oda’s watery world.
The longer-form medium of manga and anime allows for major characters to come and go freely without causing problems, and pivotal figures sometimes disappear for years before returning to play big roles. Live-action TV does not work under those same rules, so the best way for Netflix’s version to keep Buggy relevant and honor his future importance inOne Piece’s ending is by expanding Jeff Ward’s season 2 role beyond just the Loguetown incident - even if that means diverging from the manga.
One Piece Season 2 Has Room To Expand Buggy’s Role
Giving Buggy More To Do In One Piece Season 2 Is Easy
Since live-action Koby received a much bigger role throughout season 1, Netflix’sOne Piecehas seemingly already realized that it cannot dump important characters like the anime and manga does so regularly. Koby should have been dropped after Zoro joined Luffy’s crew, according to Oda’s story, butOne Pieceseason 1 continued following Morgan Davies' timid marine across the entire season.
Even Buggy himself was granted extra minutes through his involvement in the Arlong Park battle - a plot point devised exclusively for the Netflix series. This is exactly howOne Pieceseason 2 must handle Buggy, keeping the villain involved beyond just Loguetown. Fortunately, theOne Piecemanga and anime has the perfect setup for further Buggy the Clown adventures.
After failing to kill Monkey D. Luffy at Loguetown, Buggy’s pirates followed their stretchy nemesis onto the Grand Line, but very little of their voyage has been detailed in canon.One Pieceseason 2 can fill the gap, introducing a subplot, similar to season 1’s Garp and Koby subplot, where Buggy calamitously navigates the perilous sea. Not only could these scenes provide great comic relief, they would fold easily into the main story. Buggy might assistBaroque Worksin tracking down the Straw Hats, for example, keeping the clown woven into the story without making sweeping or obnoxious changes to the tale Oda himself wrote.
Sources:Deadline
One Piece
One Piece follows young pirate Monkey D. Luffy and his diverse crew as they embark on a daring quest for treasure. Released in 2023, the film brings the adventurous world of the popular manga to life, capturing Luffy’s relentless pursuit of the legendary One Piece treasure.
