One Piece continues to surprise fans with its incredible story. Eiichiro Oda has truly captivated many fans around the world with Luffy’s long journey to find the One Piece treasure and become the next Pirate King. However, as the plot unfolds, Luffy has seen characters come and go, even those who are dear to him and to the fans.
That said, One Piece is no stranger to character deaths. Fans have witnessed the final moments of characters like Bellemere, Ginny, Hiriluk, and even Whitebeard. Among these dead characters, one has pushed Eiichiro Oda’s editors to suggest saving their life. This editor is just one of the many fans who asked Oda to save Portgas D. Ace in Marineford.
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Portgas D. Ace Died in Marineford Arc
Ace Died With a Smile on His Face
The death of Ace is one of the most memorable scenes in all of One Piece. Most anime fans probably know what happened to him, even without watching him in the series. As one of the most popular characters, his death has devastated countless fans around the world, even to this day. His death almost felt as if a loyal and loving older brother had been gone forever.
However, Portgas D. Ace’s death was inevitable, as he was born as the legacy of the greatest pirate in One Piece, Gol D. Roger. Without Ace dying in Marineford, Luffy would never have received a reality check. After losing Ace, Luffy took his pirate dream more seriously, having learned his lesson. In order to protect his friends, Luffy knew he had to grow stronger to tear down the world order, the Marines, and the World Government.
I'm sorry, Luffy. -Ace
Going back to Ace’s death, he died with a smile on his face, knowing he had fulfilled his dream. He originally thought his life was worthless because of his father, but witnessing his father figure, his brother, and his crew risk their lives in Marineford just to save him made him realize just how much he was loved and acknowledged.
Eiichiro Oda’s Editor Tried to Stop Ace’s Death
Editor Hattori Thought It Was Not a Good Idea to Kill Ace
- Oda's editor, Hattori, thought killing Ace was not a good idea.
- Many fans wrote Oda letters asking him to save Ace's life.
When Portgas D. Ace was incarcerated in Impel Down and later brought to Marineford, many fans were writing letters to One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda with only one intention. They want Oda to save Ace’s life at all costs. The same was true with one of Oda’s editors, Akira Jean-Baptiste Hattori, who asked him if he was really going to kill Ace. This only proves that Ace’s death was such a big deal at the time, so much so that even Oda’s editor tried to stop him.
Hattori went on and told Eiichiro Oda that killing Ace “isn’t a good idea.” While this is true for many fans who love Ace and would want to see him probably be the next generation Whitebeard, others firmly believe he had to die. After all, Ace’s death is one of the greatest deaths, not just in One Piece, but in all of anime. His death made Luffy and Blackbeard’s conflict more intense, and it made Luffy realize he needed to grow stronger.
I know I'm dying! My guts have been burned out! I'm not gonna last long. -Ace
Fortunately, Oda is generous to fans when it comes to Ace, even after killing him in One Piece. On SBS 89, fans saw what Ace would look like if he were still alive at the ages of 40 and 60 years old in two separate timelines. If only Ace were still alive, he could have been a Yonko at some point in the future. The direction of One Piece would have been different as well, especially the ending.
Eiichiro Oda Said Ace’s Death Was Harsh
Akainu’s Magma Fist Killed Ace
Portgas D. Ace died protecting his sworn brother Luffy from Akainu’s brutal magma punch. It directly hit Ace, with Akainu’s fist piercing through his torso and burning his insides. In short, it was a brutal way to die, straight out of a horror film. When Eiichiro Oda saw the episode where Akainu killed Ace, he surprisingly wondered “why Ace had to be killed in such a harsh way,” even though he was the one who had written Ace’s death in One Piece in the first place.
Most probably, Ace’s death hit Oda differently in the anime because of the animation itself, on top of the voice-acting, sound, and music, which made the death more tragic than when he drew it in the manga. Sadly, it was too late to change Oda’s mind, but he could still revive him if he could. However, a revival of Ace would be unlikely, considering Oda dislikes dead characters coming back to life in One Piece.
Source: X (formerly Twitter)
- Release Date
- October 20, 1999
- Network
- Fuji TV
- Directors
- Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
Cast
-
Mayumi TanakaMonkey D. Luffy (voice) -
Kazuya NakaiRoronoa Zoro (voice)
WHERE TO WATCH
- Writers
- Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shouji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Uesaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda
- Franchise(s)
- One Piece
- Creator(s)
- Eiichiro Oda
