One Piece: Episode of Nami - Koukaishi no Namida to Nakama no Kizuna Review

"Episode of Nami: Tears of a Navigator and the Bonds of Nakama" is the 5th One Piece special and the 3rd recap of a saga in general.

First of all, I really enjoyed watching the "Arlong Park" arc all over again.
I like nami background story the most and seeing old characters like Genzo and Nojiko was really nice. Also, seeing it now had a great rewatch value (which I will talk about later).

Before saying more about the rewatch value, I want to talk about the changes they did from the original arc. (keep in mind that episode of nami is a special, while episode of chopper/alabasta were movies)

Thankfully, they didn't change anything major(like adding a second antagonist in episode of chopper). The most critical change was making sanji break the stone trap that Luffy had in his fight against Arlong, before getting thrown into the water(only to be later saved by Nojiko).
Apart from that, nothing that bothered me.

The special starts off with a wink to the Fishmen-Human conflict, a short and awkward introduction of the crew and how Luffy met each one.
Besides that, they did a great job with Nami's past. Nothing was rushed out or skipped.

The art was great, as expected. Nami was as beautiful as ever and the whole art direction was great. However, they did make it a bit more mature.
Scenes like Bell-mère death or Nami stabbing her shoulder were much more graphic and detailed. It was a bit harsh in some point, but no complaints.

Now for my favorite part of watching a recap, the rewatch value.
Seeing Episode of Nami after "Fishman Island" and even "Post-War" arc gave it a great rewatch value.
The most important one, is knowing about the racism along with Arlong past. (Unlike in the manga, Arlong mentioned Fisher Tiger and his death).

I mentioned Post-War arc because it ends with luffy setting out to sea which prepares the ground for episode 1 and everything that happens afterwards which made me want to watch One Piece all over again.
With all of that, you get a second perspective for the story which is a really nice thing.

In the end of the special, you get to hear the original "We Are!" with moments from the special in the background and it was SO much fun and nostalgic for me I nearly exploded.

All in all, if you don't like to watch recaps don't even bother.
If you do, I think it's the best recap yet and you get to re-live awesome moments like the walk to arlong park.

I recommend it with pleasure :)