One Piece Season 2 Has A Surprise Cameo That Excited Me Until I Thought About It Too Much

Warning: MAJOR SPOILERS for One Piece Season 2’s second episode are ahead!

One Piece Season 2 has finally premiered on the 2026 TV schedule two and a half years after Season 1, and the show doesn’t waste anytime dropping some big moments that fans of the manga/anime will appreciate. In addition to that big Gold Roger reveal happening way sooner compared to the original source material, the first two episodes also see two major characters debuting much earlier in this adaptation of Eiichiro Oda’s beloved pirate saga. I’m here to talk about the cameo in Episode 2, and why I was initially excited to see them, but then became sad about it.

Here’s one more SPOILER WARNING for good measure. If you’d rather be safe than sorry, stream One Piece Season 2’s episodes with your Netflix subscription first.

Brook Appears In One Piece Season 2

One Piece Season 2’s second episode, titled “Good Whale Hunting,” adapts the Reverse Mountain arc, where Monkey D. Luffy and the other Straw Hates successfully make it into the Grand Line, but then have to contend with both the giant whale Laboon and Baroque Works members Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday. Just like in the anime/manga, we get flashbacks showing how a young Laboon was following along with a pirate crew when they came across lighthouse keeper Crocus. In the Netflix, however, we learn right away that this crew was the Rumbar Pirates, whose musician was a man by the name of Brook.

That’s right, we do indeed see Brook in his human form, played by Martial T. Batchamen! Not only did Netflix’s One Piece nail his look, but Batchamen crushed it performing “Binks’ Brew” to Laboon on his violin. See for yourself:

Brooke Sings Binks Brew To Laboon | ONE PIECE: Season 2 | Netflix - YouTube

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Alas, we don’t spend much time with Brook in “Good Whale Hunting,” as Crocus primarily communicates with the Captain Calico Yorki. Just like in the manga/anime, the crew leaves Laboon in Crocus’ care so he won’t be harmed as they journey through the Grand Line. Though Yorki and Brook promise that they’ll return to Laboon one day, they never do, resulting in the whale ramming his head into Reverse Mountain for decades in a futile attempt to get to the other side and try to find the pirates.

I’m Not Confident We’ll See Brook Join The Straw Hats

In case you’ve made it this far and haven’t read/watched the original One Piece, the reason Brook appearing in the Netflix show is such a big deal is because he’ll become a member of the Straw Hat Pirates. He originally debuted in the Thriller Bark arc, only now he was a walking and talking skeleton who loved to make bone jokes and puns (YOHOHOHOHO!). I won’t get into the specifics, but basically the Rumbat Pirates all died, and while Brook’s resurrection was guaranteed since he’d eaten the Revive-Revive Fruit, his body had already decayed into a skeleton by the time his soul returned to it.

The reason I became sad after my initial excitement of seeing Brook passed is because the Thriller Bark storyline happens quite a bit later in the One Piece saga. One Piece Season 2 is ending with the Drum Kingdom arc, and by the looks of it, the entirety of Season 3 will adapt the Alabasta arc. By my estimation, the earliest we could see Thriller Bark adapted is in a sixth season of One Piece, and that’s being optimistic and assuming they skip the Long Ring Long Land arc, like I hope.

Let’s be real, a streaming series running for six seasons or more is rare, particularly on Netflix, which is known for cancelling its shows after three seasons or less (I’m still pleasantly surprised The Night Agent Season 4 is happening). Even Stranger Things ended after five seasons, and while One Piece has the benefit of being a popular franchise around the world, I’m nonetheless skeptical that will be enough to get the live-action series to Thriller Bark, let alone cover the entirety of the pre-timeskip arcs.

So as great as it was to see Brook in human form, it’s bittersweet since the chances are slim we’ll get to see Skeleton Brook, especially since Chopper is already eating into the show’s CGI budget. But hey, I’ll be glad to be proven wrong! For now, I’ll just enjoy the rest of One Piece Season 2 and await more news about Season 3.