One Piece’s Sabo Finally Steps Out of Ace’s Shadow With Genius Move

A big problem with Sabo’s character has always been how much he was overshadowed by Ace, but chapter 1083 finally fixes that in a genius way.

One Piece chapter 1083 was filled with plenty of dramatic moments, and in a genius move, one of them allowed Sabo to finally step out of Ace’s shadow. Ever since Sabo appeared in the Dressrosa arc, a common criticism has been that too much of his character overlaps with Ace’s due to them both being Luffy’s strong and supportive older brother, with Sabo even ending up with the same Devil Fruit as Ace. Add in how little screen time Sabo has, and it was easy to see Sabo as serving little purpose outside allowing the story to have a character like Ace while still killing off Ace.

Sabo’s character has always had trouble being distinguished from Ace’s, but One Piece chapter 1083 finally does that in a major way. When Sabo and Dragon are discussing Cobra’s death, Sabo bluntly states that while he didn’t want Cobra to die, he’s okay with it because it helped further the Revolutionary Army’s goals, making Sabo come off as a cold pragmatist, something that was never part of Ace’s characterization. That does a lot to separate Sabo’s characterization from Ace’s to the point of almost making him his opposite, and it works even better because it plays off of what little has been explored of the Revolutionary Army up until now. Better yet, given Sabo’s hinted massive body count in One Piece, it makes total sense with what readers already know about him.

One Piece Fixes Sabo By Making Him Ace’s Opposite

One of the biggest things to take away from One Piece establishing Sabo as a pragmatist is that it essentially makes his character the opposite of Ace’s. One of Ace’s defining traits was how honorable he was; he never ran from a fight and never allowed the people who mattered to him to be disrespected, even when doing so led to his death. As such, Sabo being the kind of person willing to take advantage of a good man’s death to further his goals characterizes him in a way that’s the exact opposite of Ace, and that does a lot to make him a unique character in his own right.

One Piece chapter 1083 did a lot to flesh out Sabo’s character, but the question now is whether the story will stick with that. With One Piece having entered its final saga, Sabo is bound to take on a larger role in the story, meaning that there will be more moments for the story to explore what kind of person he is. The series could easily double down on Sabo’s pragmatism, but it could also scale things back to make him less ruthless than what chapter 1083 started to set up. There’s no way of knowing what will happen, but either direction would be great for Sabo’s story.

One Piece’s Revolutionary Army Justifies Sabo’s Character

Another reason why Sabo’s characterization in One Piece chapter 1083 works so well is how it’s perfectly justified by how the Revolutionary Army has been portrayed so far. While the Revolutionary Army hasn’t received that much focus, they have been established as a group that doesn’t have a problem with using violence to achieve its goals, even going as far as pushing people into inciting their own rebellions. There’s always been an element of the ends justifying the means with the Revolutionary Army, so it makes sense that being associated with them would have Sabo develop a pragmatic mindset of sorts.

The idea of the Revolutionary Army supporting Sabo’s pragmatism shows itself the best through Monkey D. Dragon. When Sabo says that he’s fine with Cobra’s death for how it advances their goals, Dragon simply says that he likes his attitude, showing that he at least accepts the benefits of Sabo’s attitude. What little has been shown of Dragon’s origins also supports this, as he quit a peaceful protest group when he realized that the World Government could only be dealt with through force. That mindset of Dragon’s more than justifies Sabo’s pragmatism, and as a result, it more than justifies Sabo finally developing independently of Ace in One Piece.

Src: screenrant.com