User blog comment:UndeadHero/9/30/XX12 - WHO INSPIRES YOU?/@comment-3560963-20160625035127

Who in the show inspires me? That's a VERY tough question, because there're so many that come to mind. I suppose if you had to twist my arm and choose...I'd go with Brook. With Luffy VERY close behind.

The reasoning is simple and the reason their so close is equally so: They show the greatest amounts of dedication ever seen in the show thus far.

Luffy, no matter how hot-tempered he gets, no matter how stupid he may act at times, will gladly lay down his life if it means his friends remain unharmed. That. Takes. BALLS! More so than I think many people even in One Piece have!

But what puts Brook further up in the Dedication-O-Meter is his backstory. Here is a guy that only wanted to travel the world after fighting in...wherever the hell he came from (he never said specifically), while musically cheering up the whole world in the process. And along the way, he gains a close kinship with a whale named Laboon.

He holds on to this flame of friendship LONG after he died and rebirthed into a skeleton. The difference is obvious: Luffy was kinda destined to lay down his life for others since he's the main character and, let's not kid ourselves here, will likely gain the One Piece in the end.

Brook had no such interests, and only cared about returning to Laboon long after the fact. And he kept this flame of friendship for over 50 years! That takes more dedication than I think anyone (say for Luffy, but that's normal for him) could muster! Granted, Luffy's done more in terms of story, but I go for quality over quantity in this one. And Brook takes the cake and swallows it...though to what stomach he has we may never know.