Hawkins' devil fruit abilities represent a twisted relationship between himself, as a headliner, and the gifters and other Beast Pirates that follow him. Even as a captain of his own crew, he would use this ability that renders his followers lives a stand-in for his own. This relationship is terrible for obvious reasons but it sets up a key aspect of this arc's thematic narrative. What is a good leader? What are good subordinates? The first antagonist of the arc being somebody of weak will, who submitted themselves to Kaido and also has this ability that completely juxtaposes Luffy's core philosophies when it comes to subordinates or, in his eyes, comrades. Hawkins' treats his subordinates like a number, the more there are, the longer they can keep him alive as the mastermind. Luffy looks at his crewmates as people who make up for his shortcomings, valuing them for their specific strengths and the ways they benefit his journey to becoming Pirate King.