One Piece Episode 1088 Review

Rayleigh to the Rescue

One Piece 1088 is the final episode grouped within the Wano arc (on Crunchyroll). But, the content of this episode, and the previous two episodes, falls under the Egghead arc. Why is that the case? Because it has more to do with Egghead than Wano.

Also, before I get into this episode, I want to say that I’m not as close to being caught up as I thought. There are (currently) five more episodes out. But, considering I’m doing two One Piece episode reviews per week right now, I should catch up soon.

Alright, now, there were two big surprises at the start of Episode 1088. The first is that Silvers Rayleigh rescued Boa Hancock. He arrived just in time and negotiated the withdrawal of both Blackbeard and the Marines. And, that was a shock considering this is Blackbeard we’re talking about.

Now, I know Blackbeard is a smart pirate. He’s a schemer, which is how he’s gotten this far. But, I wasn’t expecting him to fall for Rayleigh’s bluff like that. Sure, this is Silvers Rayleigh we’re talking about. But, Rayleigh himself even admitted he’s not strong enough to beat Blackbeard.

I guess Blackbeard’s thought was that it wouldn’t simply be him versus Rayleigh. He’d also have to fight Boa Hancock (and probably Koby) at the same time. However, I still think he would have had the upper hand in that battle. After all, he has both the Dark Dark and Tremor Tremor Fruits.

The second big surprise was that we finally learned what pirate crew Shakuyaku was part of. We knew she had been a pirate in the past. But, we now know she was the captain of the Kuja Pirates. Shakuyaku was the Empress of Amazon Lily two generations before Boa Hancock.

Sabo and Cobra

The Reverie happened quite a while ago in the anime. But, what we have to keep in mind is that it was actually happening at the same time as the events of Wano. So, news from the Reverie is only now getting out to the rest of the world.

The big news (as Morgans would say) is that Sabo killed Cobra. As we know, Sabo is a high-ranking member of the Revolutionary Army as well as Luffy’s sworn brother. And, Cobra Nefertari is the King of Alabasta and Vivi’s father.

So, the question on everyone’s mind is, did Sabo actually kill Cobra? It seems unlikely for a variety of reasons. First of all, Sabo’s dream is to create a world in which everyone can be free. He’s not someone who’s going to kill others unless absolutely necessary.

Second, Cobra isn’t an enemy of the Revolutionary Army. Sure, he’s one of the rulers who make up the World Government. But, that’s not who the Revolutionary Army is fighting against. They’re fighting against the Celestial Dragons who oppress the people of the world. It’s the Celestial Dragons, the Five Elder Stars, and Im who are the tyrants.

Though speaking of Im, I’m not sure if the Revolutionary Army knows about him. I mean, we barely know about him. And, I don’t remember if Sabo ran into him during Reverie since that was so long ago. He might have. I guess we’ll find out soon enough.

Anyway, why did this news come out about Sabo and Cobra? Well, Im or the Five Elder Stars likely had Cobra killed. Then, since Sabo infiltrated the Reverie, they used him as a scapegoat. As for Vivi’s disappearance, we also know that Im’s interested in her for some reason.

Luffy’s Dream

At the end of the episode, Luffy reveals his dream to the rest of the Straw Hat crew. And no, I don’t mean his dream of becoming King of the Pirates. Everyone knows that one. I mean his other dream that’s even more important.

Becoming King of the Pirates is something Luffy wants to achieve, of course. But, one of the main reasons he wants to achieve that is so that he can fulfill his true dream. And, from what I remember, it’s implied that this is the same dream Roger once had.

However, we still don’t know what this dream is. I really thought we were finally going to learn it considering the title of the episode. But, no. We’re not important enough. Luffy has only ever told 12 people — the 9 other Straw Hat crew members, Ace, Sabo, and Shanks.

With that said, it’s not as if Luffy’s trying to keep this dream a secret. He genuinely didn’t realize that he’d never told his crew before. He thought they all knew what his dream was. So, he tells them without making a big deal about it.

What could Luffy’s dream be, though? We know it’s more than becoming the King of the Pirates. And, we can assume it’s not the same as Ace’s or Sabo’s dreams. So, it’s not to become a famous pirate or to create a world in which everyone can be free.

Everyone who hears his dream thinks it’s ridiculous, and most of them laugh. Is that a clue? He didn’t say he told Tama. So, it’s not to create a world in which everyone can eat as much as they want. But, it could be to create a world in which everyone laughs together.

Final Thoughts

What do you think of One Piece Episode 1088? Do you think Blackbeard could have beaten Boa, Koby, and Rayleigh? Do you think Sabo really was the one who killed Cobra? And, what do you predict Luffy’s true dream is? Do you think it’s something we’ve already heard him say before?

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My review of Episode 1089 is available now.