The nice thing about Toei's first 'One Piece' film of 2000 was that it required no previous knowledge or experience to appreciate, and it was a pretty great time all on its own. With a wild, fantastical, cartoonish blend of action and comedy in its high seas adventure - and just the right amount of heart to round things out - the only issue I had with the prior film was its ridiculously swift pacing, which served as its own de facto upper limits on what it could achieve. This, the second installment in the film series, also emphatically struggles with an astonishing velocity that sometimes regrettably reduces dialogue, gags, action, or entire scenes to a mere flash. On the other hand, it also bears all the same strengths as its predecessor, and it further benefits from a more polished art style that makes the whole all the richer. 'Clockwork Island adventure' is no more an essential must-see than 'One Piece: The movie' was, but it's a reliably good time from start to finish; what more could we ask for?
The artists of Toei Animation really turned in outstanding work this time around, with even more wonderful detail and texture in the highly imaginative designs for beautiful backgrounds and settings, colorful and fanciful characters, fast-paced action sequences, otherwise vibrant active elements, and so on and so on. This franchise is one that banks on very exaggerated expressions and reactions befitting a world of superhuman powers, monstrous creatures, and non-human characters, but at all times there's gratifying refinement and fluidity in the visuals that makes it all a joy to watch (even as it flies past too speedily). With such a noted improvement on hand, it quite seems to me that this dares to be even more far-fetched and whimsical with the ideas that it throws together, invariably bolstering the viewing experience. Even at that it's not as if the animation is altogether revelatory, but it's a welcome sight for sore eyes and is a big part of what makes the picture so entertaining.
Much the same could be said for the spirited performances of the voice cast, and Tanaka Kohei's dynamic, flavorful music. Meanwhile, all such value necessarily flows from the screenplay of Hashimoto Hiroshi, and I think that the writing is also more solid and admirable than was already seen in the antecedent. No, the story isn't specifically groundbreaking; sure, the narrative sometimes makes some leaps with suspension of disbelief to conjure what is entertaining, and certainly not what would reflect judicious storytelling. But the tale is engaging and enjoyable exactly as it is, the characters are a blast - and whether any given scene is built for comedy, action, adventure, or some combination thereof, each in turn is downright delicious in its blend while laying the groundwork for the animators to demonstrate their skill and ingenuity. With a bit more of a mind for violence in this entry, a slightly but definitely darker overall tone, and arguably a meatier plot, I wouldn't hesitate to say that 'Clockwork Island adventure' is a step up from its forebear.
It's still the case that the overly quick pacing somewhat dampens the effectiveness of the action and comedy, and the only necessary revision would have been a smidgen more restraint (presumably on the part of director Shimizu Junji). Yet this flick only wanted to have fun, and from top to bottom it handily does just that with excellent contributions from all involved. I assumed that given the chance to check out 'One Piece' for myself I'd like it, and as I've begun dipping my toes in with the full-length features, that has absolutely proven to be the case so far. There's no need to go out of your way for 'Clockwork Island adventure,' but it's a terrific slice of anime adventure that should surely check off all the proverbial boxes for anyone who is receptive to the relatively unserious, swashbuckling lark that the series offers. If you have the chance to watch, I'm pleased to give this my enthusiastic recommendation!
