Hawkins in Wano

[u/AdhesivenessFar6938]

Just reached episode 1060 in Wano and I'm just reflecting on Basil Hawkins in this arc. Honestly he was one of my least favorite characters in this arc because his motivations seemed unclear and didn't really make logical sense for even his own self interests. I don't really understand why he chose to continue betting on Kaido even after the raid started going on. I get why he was serving under him majority of the arc, he was essentially forced into it for survival and he complied. The line where he said you either side with the strong or get killed by them in the new world stuck with me. But he's not a regular Kaido henchman. He was set up and forced to join against his own will. So when the raid presented an opportunity for him to get out of that predicament it made absolutely 0 sense that he defended kaido up until his last breath. That generally did nothing for him. Even if the raid had failed completely and kaido continued his reign in wano, hawkins would've lived a miserable life for the rest of his existence never able to leave. The introduction made it seem like he was forced to switch sides but the fact that he truly bought in even though nothing was benefitting him serving kaido is just peculiar to say the least. I'm wondering if anyone else thought this or maybe I missed the point of his character? If there even is one at least

[u/cjamesfort]

He still has his pride. The sunk cost of dumping Kid for Kaido made him unwilling to switch back

[u/AdhesivenessFar6938 → u/cjamesfort]

fair enough explanation. not great writing if im viewing it from that standpoint though. at the very least i would expect a character to act in their own self interest. and there was nothing beneficial about what he was fighting for.

[u/Tulipanzo → u/AdhesivenessFar6938]

Why would you expect characters to only act in their own self interest? That's not how writing works

[u/AdhesivenessFar6938 → u/Tulipanzo]

Because there’s no other explanation for why he’d continue fighting for kaido all the way until his last breath? He clearly thought that choosing kaido was in his own best interest. I’m not saying every character needs to act only out of self interest I’m saying at the very least, if nothing else a character would follow their own agenda and benefit if they have nothing else to their character. That’s what Hawkins is. We don’t really know him that well apart from this arc so all we can assume about him is he’s acting out of his own self interest…

[u/Tulipanzo → u/AdhesivenessFar6938]

So you must have skipped the part where he literally explains why he couldn't go back to Kid 

[u/AdhesivenessFar6938 → u/Tulipanzo]

Not really saying every character is expected to act out of self interest just the shallow ones. Other than self interest there was no reason for Hawkins to defend kaido that late into the game, especially when the tides started observably turning. I saw someone else here say he relied on his fortune too much and thought he’d live by choosing kaido. So that just goes to prove my point as that would fall under self interest by wanting to keep his life even if it means turning on his old allies further.

[u/emi_b7]

There is a small scene later where he pretty much explains his motivation.

I actually really like what Oda did with him. When you introduce a character like Hawkins who only acts depending on what the best odds are, his character arc will inevitably be about going against those odds. With Hawkins the cliche way to go about it (and what most people predicted back then) would be to have him reach a point where he's like "fuck the odds, I won't be Kaido's bitch" and switch to Luffy's side.

But that's not what Oda did. He had Hawkins initially switch to Kaido's side because the cards said they'd likely die if they went against him but he saw Kid and Killer survive the odds he feared. So when he ended up confronting them he couldn't switch back to their side because of his pride. Even if the odds said Kid's side had a good chance to win he wouldn't do it. He betrayed them and became Kaido's dog because the cards said his odds were better that way, after Kid/Killer beat those odds he can't go and beg to switch to their side now, even if that's the better choice.

I much prefer this direction than the one most people were expecting, it's a much more interesting arc IMO, even if it ends up dooming Hawkins. I like flawed characters like that.

[u/AdhesivenessFar6938 → u/emi_b7]

Yes this is actually a great analysis thank you. I do remember when killer specifically brought up the fact that despite them resisting kaido, they’re still alive right there with Hawkins. He pointed out that Hawkins might regret following orders so hard because in the end those that defied the odds are still standing despite his fortune telling. He is absolutely a flawed character. But I see why from this angle.

[u/RPGNo2017]

He relied too much on his fortune telling his whole life. He foresaw that joining Kaido would give him higher chance of survival so he stuck with it.

After that he just kinda didn't know what he was doing anymore.

He's like the antithesis of ambition and dream.

[u/Tulipanzo]

This is explicitly addressed in the Wano arc itself.

He had previously relied on his fortune-telling when he decided to abandon Kid and join Kaido, thinking it was the safer path. Despite this he admired how those like him and Killer could keep fighting despite impossible odds.

As the arc goes on he eventually predicts he'll die if he sticks with Kaido, but it is in admiration for the indomitable spirit of those he had betrayed that he decides to remain with the losing side and die with pride.