As everyone has already said a thousand times, there was never any good reason to make a live-action One Piece. It shouldn't be seen as an adaptation. It should be seen as a love letter to the fans and creators who made this franchise what it is. One Piece pulls that off at least half the time. This episode captures the sad aspects of an otherwise very happy show.
The final new director of the season is Josef Wladyka. He's best known for directing the intense 2014 thriller Dirty Hands. He also directed episodes of Narcos and Tokyo Vice. As for writers, Tiffany Greshler and Ian Stokes return. They're joined by Allison Weintraub and Lindsay Gelfand, both of whom are also the show's executive story editors.
Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji have all gotten their backstory episode. The penultimate entry in this season is Nami's turn to divulge her tragic past. Nami grew up in a small village that fell under the control of Arlong's fish-man pirates when she was a little girl. Arlong has been bleeding the territory dry since he arrived, putting the town and everything around it in constant danger. Nami has turned against the rest of the Straw Hats, falling back into servitude under the fish-man who still has her home hostage. She gave him the map of the Grand Line. The Straw Hats make a deal with what's left of Buggy to hunt her down. When they find her, it's an uphill battle to speak with her. Zoro is convinced that they should take her advice and leave her. Usopp would say anything to get away. Sanji thinks she needs to be saved. Luffy doesn't care why she did what she did. He just knows that she's his friend.
Koby has enjoyed a surprising amount of screen time in this series. He's been paired up with Axe-Hand Morgan's son, Helmeppo, not unlike the short-term cover-page arc Diary of Koby-Meppo. They're ostensibly Marine cadets, but after Koby impresses Garp, he becomes a go-to assistant for the rest of the series. Helmeppo has tagged along for unclear reasons. They've formed a charming friendship and contributed slightly to the hunt for Luffy, but their part of the story is rarely interesting narrative. Garp is the real draw of the Marine side of this conflict. His conflict between wanting his grandson to remain free and wanting him to remain alive is compelling, even though the Vice-Admiral could stand to appear in another action scene or two. It never feels like they're filling for time, but if these threads don't come to anything in the final episode, that'd be a substantial waste.
This episode reflects an aspect of the source material that often gets lost in the shuffle. Any shōnen anime will be defined by its fight scenes. They're almost always the main draw of the genre. One Piece features some of the best fight scenes in modern anime. There are so many to choose from, and many of them are excellent. Before most of those major fight scenes, the show dedicates time to establishing the villain's evil behavior. There's almost always a city under their thumb or a civilization that can't survive with them around. This gives context to the violence and a satisfying ending when their evil is reversed. This shouldn't be a high bar to clear, but One Piece is excellent at providing the necessary background before the cathartic battle. Episode 7: "The Girl with the Sawfish Tattoo" is that experience rolled into one episode, complete with sad kids, a troubled village, and a corrupt marine.
On reflection, the pacing of this show was cleverly handled. Each episode features at least one of those must-see moments that anime fans want. The first Gum-Gum Pistol, Shanks handing down his hat, the first glimpse of the Going Merry, the crew setting sail, Zoro's vow after fighting Mihawk, and so on. This episode features the iconic moment in which Luffy gives Nami his hat. It's almost shot-for-shot. It still hits, recreated in almost perfect detail. Its one weakness is timing. In the anime, it occurs the moment before Luffy fights Arlong. Arlong is right there watching Nami cut her tattoo off. In the live-action series, Luffy does the speech and puts his hat on her head, but the fight is still ages away. It's an unfortunate change that weakens an otherwise great moment.
The final battle is upon the Straw Hat crew. The stage is set, the stakes are high, and Luffy is angry. It's time to see what it's all been building toward. One Piece has been a fun ride that never quite got as far as perfecting its pitch. It's fun, charming, and joyous in places. Let it go down in history as a decent party celebrating a cultural phenomenon.