In a recent interview, Eiichiro Oda revealed that he initially turned down an offer to adapt his one-shot MONSTERS in an anime over a decade ago.

Oda said that more than ten years ago, during Jump Festa or an Anime Tour, he received an offer to animate MONSTERS. However, he declined the offer as his main concern was that fans of One piece may not like a standalone story from early in his career.

“…Long before this adaptation happened, more than 10 years ago, was it at Jump Festa or an Anime Tour? There was an offer to animate MONSTERS. But I turned it down at the time. I thought it wouldn't be fun to show the audience, who were looking forward to ONE PIECE, something I created when I was younger (laughs).“

He elaborated on his thought process by sharing a personal anecdote. He recalled attending an anime tour for Akira Toriyama and being delighted to see one of Toriyama's previous one-shot stories adapted into an anime.

Despite this, Oda shared that he couldn't imagine One piece fans feeling the same about MONSTERS at that time.

Discussions about an anime adaptation resurfaced after the conclusion of the Wano Country Arc in One piecewhich established connections with the Thriller Bark Arc.

According to Oda, this was the perfect time to give the green light to the adaptation, as he saw MONSTERS as a fitting One piece sub-history.

“I just gave my go-ahead, but I didn't really explain ONE PIECE's connection to them, but then in the storyboard they sent me, Zoro appeared at the end, and I was like, 'Yeah, that's perfect,'” he added.

The anime adaptation of 'MONSTERS' manga, titled MONSTERS: 103 Mercies, Dragon's Doompremiered on Netflix on January 22, 2024.

The anime was directed by Sunghoo Park, known for directing Jujutsu Kaisen season 1 and Jujutsu Kaisen 0.

The anime was produced by E&H Production.

MONSTERS is a one-shot manga by Eiichiro Oda, initially featured in the 1994 Shonen Jump Autumn Special. It was later reprinted in 1998 as part of "Wanted!", a compilation of Oda's pre-One Piece works.

As part of the One Piece 100 We Are ONE celebration, a voice comic adaptation of “MONSTERS” was produced. The adaptation was released in two parts on the Jump Comics Channel on September 6 and 7, 2021.

Source: X