@wolfwood:
Yeah i know what you mean. Just struck me that some of these guys almost never have moments. Have Brook and Chopper ever had a moment? Or Sanji and Fuhranky? I can't really remember but they feel like the Phoebe and Chandlers of the group
I think it's implied that there's comradery we're not seeing being off-screened from the manga at large. Historically, sailing, especially piracy took FOREVER to get to places, so there would need to be mingling, lest the persons on board would go mad with boredom. Also of note is that it's subtle, but there's definitely long stretches of time on the Merry/Sunny we don't see when traveling from island to island, it's just that Oda has limited pages to create a narrative for EVERY crewmember to interact with one another on screen in a meaningful way. Would I love to see Robin and Brook talking about comparative histories of music on the One Piece world at large, or Sanji and Chopper discuss the bio-chemical pros and cons of cooking? You bet your ass I would, but it's just not in the cards from a meaningful way narratively, sadly.
As for Yamato, I think it's a tough call, especially from the lens of Japanese culture, which Oda is mainly selling to. We, as a mostly Western-centric audience, know of the importance of inclusion and acceptance of other peoples' creeds, ideologies and identities (provided they don't cause conflict or hostility, but that's a whole other chestnut to crack), but I'm not so sure how that works in more Eastern societies, especially ones more traditionally conservative like Japan. I'd have to get a better read on current Japanese culture at large to give a better take, but I think, for the most part, Oda is trying to be inclusive and respectful, even if he doesn't always hit the mark. Time will tell.