One Piece: Why Usopp and Sanji may have been replaced by Franky and Jinbe, explored

The One Piece world comprises pirate crews living in the great pirate era created after the death of the pirate king, Gol D. Roger. In each pirate crew, each person is assigned a specific role that is only special to them due to their expertise in that particular role.

For instance, the role of a navigator is someone who knows the weather shifts that occur in the Grand Line and is knowledgeable about everything related to this subject. Due to this, only characters like Nami, Bepo, and the related are assigned this role in their pirate crews. The same could be said about the role of a cook, musician, sniper, etc.

But the start of every crew holds a different story because some characters have to perform two roles because of the lack of personnel. In the Straw Hat Pirates, Usopp and Sanji performed two roles that didn't fit their expertise at the start. However, they were replaced by Franky and Jin for one of their roles because they were better at it.

Disclaimer: This article contains potential spoilers from the One Piece manga series.

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One Piece: How Franky and Jinbe replaced Usopp and Sanji in the Straw Hat Pirates

Usopp as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Usopp is the third member to join the Straw Hat Pirates during the Syrup Village Arc. Before joining the Straw Hat Pirates, he was the captain of the Usopp Pirates and was Kaya's close friend.

After Luffy and his crew saved Kaya from the Black Cat Pirates, Kaya gifted them with a ship, which they named the Going Merry. Usopp was appointed as the sniper of Luffy's crew, but as Merry was a gift from a dear friend, he also acted as a make-believe shipwright for the crew.

For the next couple of arcs, Usopp did his best to use his mechanical skills to reduce the damage done to Merry as much as possible. Unfortunately, the damage done to Merry could only be repaired to a certain limit, and the Straw Hats bid farewell to their first ship during the Enies Lobby arc.

Fortunately, Franky was recruited as the proper shipwright of Straw Hat Pirates. He constructed a new ship named The Thousand Sunny. Usopp was now left with his true role of being a sniper. During the Enies Lobby arc, he disguised himself as Sogeking and showcased sniping abilities that amazed everyone.

Although he could no longer be considered a shipwright of the Straw Hats, Usopp kept nurturing his mechanical abilities. Before the Whole Cake Island arc, he gifted Nami a new Clima-tact, which was the second model of her Sorcery Clima-tact.

Sanji (Mr Prince) as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Sanji is the fourth member to join the Straw Hat Pirates after the Baratie arc. Before joining the Straw Hats, he was a sous chef working under Zeff at the Baratie restaurant.

After saving Baratie from Don Kreig and his crew, Sanji was recruited as the cook for the Straw Hat Pirates. Despite being a cook, Sanji was also a good fighter who was very efficient with his kicks. Moreover, his cleverness also made him a strategist in some situations.

During the Arabasta arc of One Piece, when all the Straw Hats were in a pinch, Sanji emerged as his alias, 'Mr. Prince.' He later played some tricks and saved the Straw Hats, thus resulting in their win against Crocodile and the Baroque Works.

During the Enies Lobby arc of One Piece, as Luffy and the other Straw Hats fought the enemy, Sanji sneaked out and closed the Gates of Justice. This changed the water currents and helped Straw Hats make yet another hair-close escape from the World Government. Needless to say, Sanji performed his role as a make-believe strategist until Jinbe was introduced.

Jinbe made the arrangements for the Straw Hats to land an alliance with Bege and his crew. He was also the main reason Luffy escaped Impel Down. Although there is no job title for a strategist in One Piece, Jinbe could be considered for this role due to his input even before he officially joined the Straw Hats.

During the Wano arc, as promised, Jinbe joined Luffy and his crewmates as a bonafide member of Straw Hats. He was given the title of a helmsman (who steers the ship), but he could also be considered the strategist for the Straw Hats, just like Sanji during the pre-time skip.

And just like Usopp, although Sanji couldn't be considered a 'strategist' for the Straw Hats, he has still shown his intellect various times, just like what he is doing right now on Egghead Island.

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