After a bout with the flu, being down for five days, I have discovered the world of anime. And after doing some exploring, I’ve landed on a classic: Dragon Ball Z.
I can see why this is considered to be one of the best. The art is amazing, the characters are memorable, the dialogue is interesting, the story is unique and creative, the comedy is top-tier, and the music is awesome. The opening theme, the closing theme, and all of the audio in-between is outstanding.
I feel that the Japanese I’m learning through the show is really sticking with me, and when I look in my notebook and see what I’ve written down, I can remember almost every scene and voice from what was said. I can remember who said it, the context, and how they said it. The words and phrases are really alive. That helps a lot with learning words.
There was a scene where Gohan (5 years old), is finally getting really pissed off and ready to fight. This is after Nappa has killed three of his friends already, and has almost killed Piccolo. He’s finally had enough, and Nappa sees that he’s getting angry, and Gohan is about to say something possibly offensive, and finally talk some smack. Gohan is grunting for a minute, building up his courage and finding the words, before he unleashes this devastating line:「おまえの母ちゃんでべそー！！」
This was so shocking for Nappa to hear that the screen changed colors and became crazy (see image below). Nappa breaks out into a sweat, and says, shocked, 「“何???」(Nani?? What??) He is completely startled. He was completely unprepared for such a line from this five year old. I had to know what Gohan said that got Nappa so riled up. I knew Gohan was saying 母さん, “mom”, but after that? Nappa’s mom is what?? I replayed the audio twice, then turned on the subtitles for guidance, and I saw it. Gohan says, “Omae no kaachan debeso!!!!” meaning, “Your mom has an outie!!” And this was apparently an incredible dig, because that line sent Nappa into a frenzy.
From this scene, we learn something about でべそ – if you are fighting Japanese-speaking aliens, and you really want to piss them off, tell them their mom has an outie.
Piccolo has some really great lines. He’s cool, he’s tough, he’s sassy. I feel like every time he speaks, I want to know what he said. He doesn’t waste words.
When Gohan was turning into a raging monkey and going on a rampage, Piccolo realized that Gohan was transforming because of the full moon, and without hesitation, Piccolo destroys the moon. In one blast, he obliterated the moon. That’s badass. And afterwards, when Gohan has changed back into a regular five-year old human, Piccolo looks back up at the sky and says, 「月を飛ばすのは正解のようだ。」 ”Tsuki wo tobasu nowa seikai noyouda.” Meaning, “It seems that it was right to destroy the moon.”
Yep, you had no choice, did you Piccolo? Sorry, moon. Had to stop Gohan from going on a rampage.
Piccolo leaves Gohan in the wilderness, to survive on his own for six months. Gohan is crying, and before he leaves, Piccolo says, before he flies away,「恨むなら、自分の運命を恨むんだな。この俺のように。」
- “Uramunara, jibun no unmei wo uramundana. Kono ore no you ni.”
- “If you have to blame anyone, blame your own destiny. Just like I do.”
How badass is that? (Gohan’s destiny is to be a secret weapon and hope against fighting the super-powerful aliens who plan to eradicate humanity.)
In the fight with Radditz, Piccolo loses his arm. I thought, “Well, he’s lost an arm. I wonder if he will get it back?” Just having a feeling that he would. And after the fight, and Radditz is defeated, Piccolo takes a moment, to start screaming, and to the shock and awe of all, regenerate his arm. What incredible power.
While fighting Nappa, Piccolo drops a line that I had to rewind about five times, because he says so much so quickly. And finally, after about five replays, I caught the whole thing. Here was the line:
- 「奴を攻撃に移るわずかな一瞬に隙ができる。その時を狙うんだ。」
- “Yatsu wo kougeki ni itsuru wazuka na isshun ni suki ga dekiru. Sono toki wo neraunda.”
Which means, “When he [Nappa] goes to attack, there is a very small window for us to strike. We will aim for that.”
If we break this sentence down:
- 奴を攻撃にいつる → He goes to attack
- わずかな一瞬に → Very briefly
- 隙ができる → A window/opening presents itself / There is a window (for striking)
- その時を狙うんだ → We aim for that time
This is a great sentence, and very Japanese. Especially the word 隙 (suki), represents more than a just single word. It is a concept, which is, in this instance, an opening in the armor, or a window of opportunity for striking.
Some other good lines from Piccolo:「いずれにしても、全員殺すつもりだ。」“In any case, they plan to kill everyone.” And, 「お前のような臆病者はいらん！」“We have no need for a coward like you!”
Deep in the fight with Nappa, and they have tried multiple methods of defeating Nappa, Krillin says to Piccolo, 「ピッコロ、どうする？何が手立てはあるか？」(“Piccolo, dou suru? Nani ga tedate wa aru ka? “Piccolo, what should we do now? Is there some other way we can defeat him?”)
And Piccolo simply replies,「ない。」
Nai.
Meaning: “No.”
Nope. There’s no other way.
HAKUMUSU 