or maybe it’s just random crazy stuff?
spoiler
spoiler
Spoiler
spoiler for One Piece 350 onward:
The One Piece crew meet “Just Dead Bones” Brook a reanimated skeleton. Brook has been stranded in the Florian Triangle all alone for 50 years. It’s enough to drive anyone crazy. Anyway, occasionally he falls against the wall with his body rigid and loudly proclaims “45 degrees”. Is this some obscure Japanese joke or is Brook just spouting crazy talk?
Most likely, the character is inspired by Jack Skellington and Michael Jackson.
Michael Jackson’s skeletal looks were noticeable even before he passed away. The joke is not a reference to Thriller (although there was a One Piece episode that had zombies dancing and even a disco ball), but to the 45 degree step used in “Smooth criminal”
Bumping this thread because I wanted to respond to it but didn’t get a chance to earlier.
The episode you’re referring to was a short called “Jango Dance Carnival,” in which the Straw Hat crew is visiting a town that is celebrating its annual carnival (hence the disco ball) when they run into Jango the hypnotist, who is seen dancing like Michael Jackson on a bar, and he hypnotizes the townspeople into dancing all night. Luffy and friends join the dancing as well. The last we see of them, they are all collapsed on the deck of the Going Merry (did I get the name right?), worn out from dancing, except for Luffy, who is running on the now-floating disco ball with Jango.