One Piece, Dragon Ball Z and Toriko Crossover is Finally Streaming, What Took it So Long?

Posted by By our-little-miss-is-home November 17, 2024 21 Views 7 Min Read
One Piece, Dragon Ball Z and Toriko Crossover is Finally Streaming, What Took it So Long?

Key Takeaways

  • One Piece episode 590 is available on Netflix with a special crossover featuring Dragon Ball Z and Toriko characters.
  • The episode reveals a plot to capture Akami, a creature who can steal living beings’ power.
  • Licensing issues caused delays; Adult Swim aired it in 2023, while Crunchyroll never streamed it.



A few days ago, One Piece episode 590 started streaming on Netflix on November 1, 2024, subbed and dubbed, marking the first time it is officially available to stream in the US. This episode is a special crossover in which One Piece characters join a tournament alongside Dragon Ball Z and Toriko characters. But what became special about it to international fans was how long it took for the episode to debut outside Japan.

The episode premiered in Japan in April 2013, while One Piece was airing the “Punk Hazard” arc. It is actually the second part of a story that aired on both Toriko (#99) and One Piece (#590) programming blocks on the same day (they aired sequentially on Fuji TV).

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What’s So Special About this Crossover?

Major Characters Fighting Together

luffy goku toriko in one piece 590


Both episodes are fillers, but they feature characters from three major Shonen Jump series. In the story, the International Gourmet Organization (IGO) hosts a Food Tournament and the winner will get a rare cattle meat. Then major characters from the three series either join the tournament or watch it.

We then see all of them in action, and Luffy, Toriko, and Goku reach the finish line at the same time, so they have to battle each other to decide who is the winner. Mr. Satan accidentally joins them and the battle, and he ends up luckily “winning”. He shares the meat with everyone while a mysterious creature approaches (Toriko‘s 99th episode ends here).

Some of the characters are suspicious of the IGO, discovering the tournament was only a ploy to gather the strongest people in the world to capture Akami, the Deep Sea Gluton with the ability to steal the power of living beings. So the One Piece episode revolves mostly around the characters hunting and fighting against this creature.


The Airing Saga in the US

One Piece debuted on Cartoon Network’s Toonami in 2005, but the block was eventually canceled. Then Toonami was revived on Adult Swim and started airing One Piece from episode 207, but was removed from the block in 2017, before even reaching the Punk Hazard arc. Then it returned in 2022, with episode 517. However, when Toonami reached episode 590, it was skipped. Toriko has never aired on Toonami.

Meanwhile, neither Crunchyroll nor Funimation have ever streamed Toriko‘s 99th or One Piece‘s 590th episodes. Whilst it’s the first crossover between three series, One Piece and Toriko had another crossover (episode 492) and both services have streamed it. The episode was also never released on home video.


While there is no official information concerning the reasons, it is likely this episode is not included alongside any of the two series, and needs to be licensed separately, through a different process. All three series were adapted into anime by Toei, but that doesn’t mean the Production Committees involved in the three anime are the same (and licensing would likely involve these three committees). It is possible this episode is either too expensive or too complicated to acquire, or a company/part of any committee didn’t agree on licensing terms.

Adult Swim might have considered in 2022 that it made no sense to air only the second part of the story, or it was in the middle of the licensing process, because it aired the episode on March 4, 2023, with an English dub. Likewise, besides not streaming Dragon Ball Z or Toriko, Netflix might have seen value in streaming the episode and licensed it too. So it’s finally available for anyone to watch.


Summarized Timeline

  • One Piece started airing on Cartoon Network’s Toonami in 2005.
  • CN canceled Toonami in 2008.
  • Adult Swim revived Toonami in 2012 and started airing One Piece in 2013.
  • One Piece is removed from Adult Swim’s programming in 2017, not reaching episode 590.
  • One Piece returns to Adult Swim in 2022, but the crossover is skipped.
  • Adult Swim finally airs the crossover on March 4, 2023.
  • Netflix streams the special crossover episode from November 1, 2023.

One Piece
Episode 590 is now streaming on Netflix, subbed and dubbed. It is not available on Crunchyroll, which also streams
One Piece.

Sources: CBR, JBox



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