Set in Kasukabe, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, the series follows the adventures of the five-year-old Shinnosuke “Shin” Nohara and his parents, baby sister, dog, neighbours, and best friends. Many of the jokes in the series stem from Shin-chan’s occasionally weird, unnatural and inappropriate use of language, as well as from his mischievous behaviour. In fact, some of them cannot be translated into other languages.Ĭonsequently, non-Japanese readers and some viewers may find it difficult to understand his jokes. In Japanese, certain set phrases almost always accompany certain actions many of these phrases have standard responses. A typical gag involves Shin-chan confounding his parents by using the wrong phrase for the occasion for instance, saying “Welcome back” (“おかえりなさい” “okaeri nasai”) instead of using a more suitable wording such as “I am home” (“ただいま” “Tadaima”) when he comes home. In scolding Shin-chan and attempting to educate him in proper behaviour his parent or tutor may use such a phrase to indicate the correct action.Īnother difficulty in translating arises from the use of onomatopoeic Japanese words. Often through misinterpreting such a phrase as a different, though similar-sounding phrase, or through interpreting it in one sense when another is intended, Shin-chan will embark on a course of action which, while it may be what he thinks is being requested of him, leads to bizarre acts which serve only to annoy his parents or tutors even more. This is not restricted to onomatopoeic words, since almost any word can become a source of confusion for Shin-chan, including English loanwords, such as mistaking "cool” for “pool” (“That’s pool!” or “Pūru da zo!” (“プールだぞ!”) for “That’s cool!”). Some other humorous themes which are repeated in the series are of a more universal nature, such as gags based on physical comedy (such as eating snow with chopsticks) or, as a child, unexpectedly using adult speech patterns or mannerisms. #CRAYON SHIN CHAN EPISODES IN JAPANESE SERIES#
But even there, many of the gags may require an understanding of Japanese culture and/or language to be fully appreciated for example, his “Mr. #CRAYON SHIN CHAN EPISODES IN JAPANESE SERIES#Įlephant" impression, while being transparently obvious as a physical gag, also has a deeper resonance with contemporary Japanese culture since it refers to the popular Japanese children’s song “Zou-san” (ぞうさん).