© Eiichiro Oda/Shueisha, Toei Animation
Episode 1120 continues to raise the stakes higher and higher as we build toward what must (or could?) be the series finale.
This is a continuation of Sabo's escape from Mary Geoise. Well, I suppose Sabo, Vivi, and Wapol—but mostly about Sabo and from Sabo's perspective. I have to admit that I found this part quite engaging. I tend to not care about Sabo, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that I'm pretty neutral about him as a character. I appreciate what he has to say and represent for Luffy—as well as his relationship with Ace—but as a rule, I don't jump out of my seat to watch him read solo stories. I tend to like it when he's paired with a character to make it more interesting (in my case, Koala or especially Robin).
All of this really worked for me, though. Sabo being injured and on the run made for a tense escape/fugitive story. Despite his strength and skill, he's in no better position than Vivi or Wapol—and their attempts to evade patrols and hide on the ship were a nice, grounded story for a change. It's a tension we rarely see these days due to the sheer scale of power displayed by the entire main cast.
On the other end of the spectrum we have some heartbreaking scenes with the Five Elders and Imu. Imu’s entire story is disturbing and the room with the butterflies is eerie in any color scheme. The introduction of Imu as a figure on the throne of the world government wielding weapons from ages past is part of why I feel like we’re heading towards a conclusion to the series. There’s probably more to come after that but it’s hard to imagine who or what that could be at this stage.
Rating:
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