Do we like them?

Do we like Brook?

A character from One Piece (1999–present)

Our score: 9 out of 10. Yes. He's a gentle, funny gentleman with a loyal heart, and he's very good with a sword. Just keep your underwear and your skull jokes to yourself.

Brook is a tall, afro-haired skeleton in a fine suit who joins Monkey D. Luffy's Straw Hat Pirates partway through their search for the legendary treasure One Piece. He plays violin and guitar, fights with a sword cane, and greets everything with a cheerful 'Yohohoho!' He is polite and theatrical, and he regularly makes jokes about being dead.

Under the gags he is warm and honest, and he cares about people. He treats his new crewmates as a real family, and he steps up as a fighter when it matters. His 'Soul King' music brings comfort and courage to friends and sometimes even to enemies.

His backstory is the emotional core of his first big arc. His old crew was lost long ago, and he spent decades alone at sea, keeping a promise to a friend he left behind. That loneliness explains why he values the Straw Hats so much.

We give him a 9. He's funny, brave and kind, with only the inappropriate jokes counting against him. We'd back him on any voyage.