Usopp's story isn't as dramatic as the others, I just love him as a character. The rich girl has the 19th-century wasting illness that turns out to be plain old depression and he tells her stories to cheer her up until they discover the caretaker is evil. (And yeah, his fake kid pirate gang all had vegetable names, I don't know what that was all about.) And they get Merry from the nice butler who inexplicably has sheep hair.

The death-by-stairs IS pretty ridiculous, but I get a little misty whenever they flash back on him swearing he'll become even stronger so he can carry her share (how do you even translate that "bun" thing? that never seems to come across properly in translation...). It's more bittersweet than tragic/romantic, I guess.

Also, agreed on episode 37. Though it had me long before that.