SF Saiyuki Starzinger II – Episode 4 (68/73)

The Unforgivable Little Devil

Kugo and his friends arrived on Topaznia, a beautiful planet surrounded by lush greenery. However, children are nowhere to be seen, and the townspeople refuse to answer their questions. Princess Aurora becomes suspicious and visits the school, but is almost turned away by the principal, who tells her that there are no monsters on this planet. Indeed, the children are given good food and live without any inconvenience. Hakka, who loves children, becomes friends with a boy named Pico, but Kugo, who is suspicious, explores the school in his micro transformation and uncovers a terrible truth that has been hidden!

You can download the torrent file from Anidex or Anirena, or get direct links from AnimeTosho.

Translation Thoughts

This is the episode I liked the most from Starzinger II. I’m not sure why, though, but to me, it was entertaining and interesting.

The girl that’s being tortured looks exactly like Sayaka Yumi from Mazinger Z, maybe a little younger. No surprises here, though; both series were animated by Toei Animation.

The principal says at 13:06:

鼠のいたずらだな
Nezumi no itazura da na
It’s a prank done by a rat.

He believes Kugo is a rat and that the rat probably chewed some cables or something and broke the machine to get energy from the kids. He then uses some insecticide to get rid of the “rat”. I’m not sure if this part was clear from the translation.

Hakka says at 19:22:

くたばれモンスター
Kutabare, MONSUTAA
Drop dead, monster!

Most translators would translate くたばれ kutabare as “Fuck you!”, because it’s a very bad word. I wouldn’t, because this is supposed to be a show for kids. The direct translation is “drop dead”, since it comes from the verb くたばる kutabaru which means “to drop dead”, or “to kick the bucket”. It’s basically slang for “to die”.

It’s not usual to hear くたばれ kutabare in anime, and as far as I can recall, it’s the first time I heard it.

Here’s a nice compendium of Japanese insults. Check it out; I’m sure you’ve heard most, if not all, of them in anime.