Elementary Tokusatsu/Anime Japanese

Need help understanding your tapes? Nothing can possibly take the place of years of intensive training in the Japanese language, but this guide holds some of the more common phrases used in Tokusatsu. (I've noted that many of the same phrases appear in anime too, hence the term "Tokusatsu/Anime".) This is NOT a guide to understanding complicated plots or mastering conversational Japanese by any means. I myself have enrolled in a Japanese class, but it is an elementary-level one, and I know full well that it will take many more years before I can even begin to understand some of my tapes. Obviously, any help or corrections rendered by a Japanese-speaking fan is truly appreciated, as many of the below are made by ear.

If you'll keep that in mind, I'll introduce some of the terms used in Tokusatsu. If you learn some of these, it's amazing just how often they will pop up again and again. Sure, this is a huge list, which is why I put it up in the first place. I suggest NOT using many of these to communicate with Japanese friends (and especially Japanese superiors), as many of them stem from someone talking to their enemy, and as such represent some of the more non-respectful or even downright disrespectful forms of communication. Example: "da" is a popular form of the verb "is" in Tokusatsu, but in the type of Japanese used to talk to other people, "desu" is more polite; "da" is usually reserved for friends.

Pronunciation is as follows - a="ah", e="eh", i="ee" like yeast, o="oh" but shorter, u="u", like the very end of you, but very, very short. All vowels are very short. Especially, make sure not to say "o" like "ou"; the Japanese "o" doesn't have that drop at the end, and make sure not to say "u" like "you"; the Japanese "u" is just a short syllable. Most of you who have watched actual Japanese dialogue are pretty aware of this anyway.

The List:

  • Ai --- Love
  • Aka(i) --- Red
  • Ao(i) --- Blue
  • Arigatou --- Thank you
  • Anata --- You (standard Japanese word)
  • Aku --- Evil
  • Boku --- I, Me (used usually by boys)
  • Chikara --- Strength, Power
  • Chikyuu --- Earth
  • Chikyuu no Heiwa Mamoru (Tame ni) --- (In order to) Defend the Earth's Peace
  • Chou --- Super
  • Dai --- Great
  • Densetsu --- Legend
  • Eien --- Eternity
  • Gatta(i) --- Combine, Combination
  • Geki --- Angry, Attack, Explosion (yes, these words bear little resemblence to each other - this word varies depending on usage - you get the idea of the word)
  • Hassha --- Fire (as in fire a gun, fire a cannon)
  • Hasshin --- Launch
  • Heiwa --- Peace
  • Hikari --- Light
  • Hissatsu (no) Waza --- Deadly Attack (Hissatsu - sure, certain; Waza - attack)
  • Hoshi --- Star
  • Iku --- Go
  • Ima --- Now
  • Inochi --- Life
  • Jin --- Person or People (in Zyuranger, Jin was used instead of Shin to indicate God(s) - this is not something I've run across anywhere but Zyuranger)
  • Juu --- Beast (NOTE: Juu is the first Kanji seen in the Zyuranger logo, and Zyuranger pheonetically is "Juurenjaa", so why does everyone say Zyuranger? Because Toei labels it Zyuranger; the spelling is labeled on many Zyuranger weapons and accessories.)
  • Jiyuu --- Justice
  • -ka? --- "ka" is literally a word designed only to mark questions - make a statement like "The flowers are beautiful", add -ka, and you get "Are the flowers beautiful?"
  • Kamen --- Mask
  • Ki(i) --- Yellow
  • Kibou --- Hope
  • Kimi --- You (standard TS word - you'll hear these much more than Anata in TS)
  • Kisama --- a very, very, VERY rude "you"
  • Muteki --- Invincible
  • -me --- an insulting term added to the end of a noun you detest, ex. Hakumenrou-me (that's the first time I heard this term used, by DaiMaOu, so that's the example you get). Popular with "Onore" - "Onore, Hakumenrou-me!!!"
  • Midori --- Green
  • Mita ka --- See That? (lit. Did you see it? Generally used to "thumb your nose" at the enemy in a taunting fashion)
  • Nakama --- Friend, Companion
  • Nanda --- What
  • Nani --- What (often used as a word by itself . . . "WHAT?!")
  • Naze --- Why
  • Onore --- literally "you", but is usually used as "Damn you!" or some such . . .
  • Ore --- I, Me (rude and disrespectful in Japanese - implies a superiority to the person spoken to - used quite a bit in TS)
  • Ou --- King
  • -ra --- plural, in certain words like Boku only
  • Ryu --- Dragon
  • Seigi --- Justice
  • Sekai --- World
  • Sen --- War
  • Senshi --- Warrior
  • Sentai --- TaskForce (lit. "Battle Team" or some comparable phrase)
  • Shin --- Okay, this one's a toughy - depending on the Kanji used, Shin can mean New, True, or God, so choose wisely
  • Sou da! (ALSO: Sou ka and Sou desu) --- Of course!; So it is!
  • -tachi --- plural - ex. Watashi-Tachi means "I" plural=We; Anata-Tachi means "You" plural="You all", referring to a group of people
  • Tai --- Team
  • Taiyou --- Sun
  • Tame ni --- In Order To, For
  • Taosu --- to Destroy
  • Tatakau --- to Fight
  • Ten --- Sky, Heaven
  • Uchuu --- Outer Space
  • Watashi --- I, Me (standard Japanese word for "I")
  • yo --- no translation: it is added to the end of a sentence to denote emphasis on the phrase - polite, but usually used only by girls or by really polite guys (like Naoki - Blue Racer)
  • Yuuki --- Bravery
  • ze, zo --- no translation; they are added to the end of a sentence to express a certain emphasis on the sentence - usually used by guys only (Iku, to go, is usually never just said as "Iku" - you'll ALWAYS hear a Sentai leader say "Iku ze!" or "Iku zo!")

    Katakana Intepretation

    Ever hear what you think is an English word on a Japanese show? More than likely, katakana was used to simulate the sound of an English word. There are natural limitations to this (most notably, no "l" sound in Japanese language). Here are some guidelines to how English words are generated using Japanese pronunciation.

  • The most important one - consonant-vowel formation. EVERY Japanese syllable is a consonant and a vowel. Only one exception - n - and it is not utilized at the beginning of a word. If you have a word, such as "press", which requires two consonant sounds, the general idea is to put a "u" between them. Watch: "press"="puresu". In this case, three katakana symbols are used - the ones for "pu", "re", "su". Look at the "su" at the end. Since every syllable is a consonant-vowel formation, a "u" is added at the end so the katakana symbol for "su" can be used. Note that the "u" sound in Japanese is sometimes pronounced rather silently, and almost always silently when using katakana. When said quickly, "puresu" is almost indistinguishable from "press".
  • There are several exceptions. Usually, the exception comes from the consonants "d" and "t". They have no "i" or "u" form. Recently, there has been established a way to make these sounds. However, old series may still use the traditional "chi" for "ti" and "ji" for "di". Some English words, used so often by the Japanese, have permanently earned a specific set of katakana, even though a method to make the word sound more English may exist now. For example, the word "multi" is always spelled "maruchi" in katakana, despite the fact that "maruti" can now be made.
  • Some consonants do not exist in Japanese. The ones that do are: k, s, t, n, h, f, m, y, r, w, g, z, d, b, p. You'll note the absence of "l" and "v". In katakana, usually the "r" sound is used for "l" and the "b" sound is used for "v". For example, the word "live" (verb, "to live", not live as in a live performance) is katakana-spelled "ribu". This is also how to spell "rib", so be careful and make sure the intended English word is clear.
  • The next obstacle is the double-vowel. Take "Carranger". In Japanese, this is "Kaarenjaa". What's with the double a's? In this sense, the double a's indicate an "r" sound, and possibly a drop in tone. Thus, "kaa" is "car". Note how similar sounding they are. In "jaa", going to "ger" in this example, the tone kind of drops from an a to an e.
  • As you get more experienced in translating katakana, you'll eventually note that many sounds are substituted for their closest relatives in Japanese. The sound "si" doesn't exist, though "shi" does. The word "silver" is "katakana"nized as "shirubaa".
  • Kei reminded me that there IS a "v" sound in Japanese, though it is rather new and not used often. It is the "u" character with the diacritical marks. You will not see this often.
  • Kei also informed me that there are two romanization styles: Hepburn, the one that most fans favor, using spelling like "Juu" - "Beast" and "Chikyuu" - "Earth"; and Japanese Romanization, which seems to be the one Toei uses, with spellings like "Zyu" - "Beast" (like in Zyuranger) and "Tikyuu" - "Earth".

    Confusing, ain't it? This is just basic - there are many exceptions to these rules, perhaps more exceptions than rule-followers! Also, note that you can translate an English word many ways. For example, take "energy". I've heard both "enaaji" and "enerugi". It can also be confusing to translate from katakana to English. Take the motorcycle dude from "Megaranger Vs. Carranger". It's "Herumedoo" in katakana. Is that "Helmed", "Helmedo", "Helmedor", "Herumedor", "Herumedo", "Herumedor", or what? I chose Helmedor for my "Mega Vs. Car" tribute. Ctenosaur Video's subbed version chooses "Helmed". Neither is more correct.

    Well, hope I helped a bit! Contributions are gladly welcomed, as a native speaker would know best. Send any help you can to me ASAP!

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