[One Piece] Ace Died in the War Arc — What Would’ve Actually Felt Acceptable to Fans?
#11 MARINE FORD
Portgas D. Ace (2018/06/23) What kind of ending would’ve made Ace’s death feel earned?
Ace’s death in the Marineford War is one of the most iconic moments in One Piece. But even years later, Japanese fans still argue about how it happened. If Ace had to die, what kind of scenario would’ve actually made sense?
Ace Escapes, Whitebeard Dies Instead
3: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 Ace gets rescued ↓ Whitebeard helps them escape and dies (taking one Admiral with him). Something like that?
385: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>3 Honestly either that scenario or the Sabo-interruption meme would’ve been the least bad. Ace’s death felt more pointless than Fuuka getting randomly run over by a truck.
Was Whitebeard Too Weak for a Yonko?
5: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 Even considering he was weakened, wasn’t Whitebeard way too useless? He couldn’t even take down a single Admiral or Warlord. Is a Yonko really that weak?
14: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>5 He was already half-dead. Getting stabbed in the stomach would do that to anyone.
Surviving Creates Its Own Problems
6: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 If he survives, it just creates problems for the story later.
11: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>6 The Yonko disappear, Ace and Marco rebuild the crew, and they cooperate with Luffy. That works fine.
Ace’s Provocation Was the Real Issue
18: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 I don’t mind him dying. What’s lame is him ignoring Whitebeard’s final words and falling for such a cheap taunt. That part was embarrassing.
22: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>18 Even if he hadn’t taken the bait, Luffy was already at his limit. They would’ve caught up anyway.
Power Scaling and Haki Complaints
28: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 So Whitebeard hits Akainu directly in the head with a Conqueror’s Haki quake and he’s completely unharmed? What even is that?
44: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>28 They canceled each other out with Conqueror’s Haki (probably).
Marco and Missed Chances
29: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 Why didn’t Marco just cut Ace’s arms off to save him?
47: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>29 Yeah… that’s actually a really good point.
127: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23
One Piece Fan Nice to meet you, Oda-sensei. After reading Volume 57, I was wondering about something. I don’t really understand how strong Marco the Phoenix’s Mythical Zoan-type ability is compared to Ace’s Flame-Flame Fruit. It’s kind of unclear to me.
Eiichiro Oda (Author) Yeah. That makes sense. This war arc is being pushed forward at a very fast pace, with explanations intentionally kept to a minimum to prioritize momentum.
To explain Marco’s ability just a little for now: since he’s a Zoan-type, he naturally has a very tough body. On top of that, thanks to the phoenix’s power of blue flames of regeneration, he can regenerate his wounds and effectively nullify attacks (though there is a limit to that regeneration).
In other words, his flames exist for regeneration. These blue flames don’t actually have the usual properties of real fire—like spreading or producing extreme heat. They’re completely different from Ace’s flames.
I might touch on this in the main story someday, so for now, that’s all I’ll say.
150: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>127 Does his regeneration have limits or something? Isn’t that kind of weak?
164: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>127 At this point he’s just a tough bird-man.
Conqueror’s Haki Logic Breakdown
221: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 They gathered 100,000 fodder like Coby and Helmet Guy. Whitebeard could’ve knocked out tens of thousands instantly with Conqueror’s Haki. Shanks did it to Whitebeard’s crew, and Whitebeard matched him evenly. Why didn’t he do it? Conqueror’s Haki can target people selectively, so there’s literally no reason not to. Is Whitebeard just dumb?
226: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>221 The range probably wasn’t enough.
248: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>221 Yeah, short range is just something you have to accept. After all, Nobunaga’s range in Hunter × Hunter is only 4 meters.
Nobunaga Hazama “I’m fine as long as you’re within my sword’s reach (a 4-meter radius)…!! I mean, honestly, this is my absolute limit.”
“No matter how perfectly you erase your presence or silence your movements, the moment you step into this zone, I’ll instantly sense your form and motion—and cut you down.”
497: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 Saying “Sabo should’ve saved him” is just wrong. Sabo barely existed at that point.
Akainu “So you free Ace and then immediately disband? What a pathetic bunch you are, Whitebeard Pirates.” “A captain like that… well, I guess it figures…!!” “Whitebeard was nothing more than a loser from a bygone era…!!”
Whitebeard Pirates Member “He just insulted Pops!!!” “A loser…?” “Pops…” “What the hell do you know about how great our old man was…!!!!!”
Ace “Stop it…!!!!!!” “All of you—make sure you get back alive!!!! That is…” “…my final captain’s order…!!!”
506: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 >>497 Was he even introduced yet? Wouldn’t it feel weird if some random guy suddenly saved Ace?
42: Anonymous Pirate. 2018/06/23 Just let spin-off Sabo save him.
(´・ω・`) I really wanted Sabo to show up.
👉 Why This Death Still Feels Off to Japanese Fans
Ace’s death isn’t rejected because he died. It’s rejected because the logic around it collapsed.
Fans accepted sacrifice. They didn’t accept:
Cheap provocations overriding character growth
Yonko-level fighters underperforming
Power systems bending too obviously for plot convenience
To many Japanese readers, Ace didn’t fall to fate — he fell to sloppy setup.
👉 What Fans Really Wanted from Ace’s Ending
The consensus isn’t “Ace should’ve lived.” It’s:
If Ace dies, make it unavoidable
If Whitebeard falls, let him take something with him
If power systems exist, respect them consistently
Marineford aimed for tragedy, but what lingered was frustration — and that’s why this debate never dies.
Comments