8) What does he look like?
In human form, Tarou is a somewhat effeminate-looking man, with
bluish-black, styled hair and earrings. He generally wears baggy,
Chinese-style white pants, and a blue scaled vest. He wears bracers
of the same material, and uses a pair of pantyhose as a sash. In
his cursed form, he is a huge, minotaur-like creature with wings and
an eel for a tail. Later, of course, he also got eight tentacles,
which sprout from his back.
9) What's with the pantyhose sash?
Probably a village custom; since all Chinese people seem to have
names after objects (Shampoo, Mousse, Cologne, Plum, Pantyhose,
Rouge, etc...), perhaps Tarou's village had the custom of wearing
some thing pertaining to your name, and Tarou did pantyhose up as a
sash so he wouldn't have to wear it. Alternately, he may wear it
sort of like a badge of honour; so he never forgets his main goal in
life. Or perhaps both.
10) Is there a difference between the anime and manga Tarou?
Not so much in story; the basic plot is the same, though it was heavily
compressed to fit in two episodes. However, Tarou looks different in
the anime: his hair is styled slightly differently and is dark brown
instead of bluish-black, and his vest and pants are both green,
while the bracers are plain black. Neither the bracers nor the vest
are scaled in the anime either. Also, since he only appeared in his
first story before the anime ended, he never got the tentacles in
the anime.
11) Who is Tarou's voice actor in the anime?
Tarou's voice is done by Furumoto Shinnosuke. This seiyuu's first
appearance was as Tomatsu in "F". Other anime roles he has done:
Carrot Glasse - Bakuretsu Hunter
Akihiro - Fantasia
Kunimi Hiro - H2
Leo - Jungle Emperor {'89}
Puuta - Kuma no Puuta
Dordor - Licca
Omae - Shiawase no katachi
Rio - Urusei Yatsura
(Author's note: Mucho thanks to the oodles of people who have written in
and informed me that "Rio" is the Tofu vendor from one of the UY movies.
^_^)
Some non-anime roles he has done:
Carrot Glasse - Bakuretsu Hunter [CD]
(Author's note, part deux: Carrot has a single! I've
even managed to get an mp3 of it, so I'll put that
up somewhere soon. ^_^ Sounds pretty cool�)
Fujiwara Motohikaru - Heian Mato Karakuri Kidan [radio]
man who came from afar - Lips the Agent [CD]
(Many thanks to Hitoshi Doi for this info; this is by no means a
necessarily complete list on the roles he's played, however;
anybody who finds more, please tell me!)
12) What is Tarou like, personality-wise?
Well, he's got his good points and bad points. He's abrasive,
abrupt and definitely condescending to most people. He tends to
give derogatory names to those he doesn't like (frequently calls
Ranma "fem-boy"), and is rather standoffish and suspicious of
others. Unlike most males is Ranma 1/2, he has no qualms about
fighting women, if they give him cause (defeated Akane when she
attacked him; tried to attack Rouge when she was in human form).
He's committed to his goals, and people who get in his way are
quickly disposed of. Most of this can probably be explained by his
childhood; he was ostracized by his people, and has never had any
friends or relationships because of his name. On the plus side, he
is extremely intelligent (especially by Ranma 1/2 standards), as well
as being a master of strategy and tactics (he outwitted Ranma,
Ryouga, Mousse, Shampoo, Rouge, etc. several times). He is brave
(tried to fight Godzilla-Happousai alone, for example), and does
help people in danger (saved several women-of course, his name
prevented any sort of romance developing). He desperately wants a
new name, both for his own self-respect and so he can find love. He
is generally quite good at keeping his cool, but is very sensitive
about his name. Finally, he evilly chuckles a -lot-...does it every
third line or so. Must be latent megalomaniac tendencies... ^_^
13) How powerful is Tarou?
Well, in his first cursed form he was extremely powerful, able to
take on Ranma, Ryouga, Shampoo and Mousse at the same time and win.
However, he couldn't really stand up to Happousai. After gaining the
tentacles, he became one of the most powerful characters in all of Ranma
1/2. In either version, Ranma never had a prayer against him one on
one. With all of this power, one would think Tarou wouldn't need to
have much power in his human form; despite this, he is an extremely
competent martial artist. His style, which is identical to the real
life Mien Ch'uan (Cotton Fist) Kung Fu style (see below), is oriented
towards avoiding attacks, and striking when there is perfect
opportunities. It is a flowing style, whose practitioners have the
balance and grace of a dancer, doing many circular parries and dodges.
However, it can also be quite vicious, as it has a "do anything to win"
philosophy; hence Tarou's various dirty tricks. He doesn't appear to
use any ki attacks (probably doesn't bother; why have ki attacks that
can blow holes in walls when you have a cursed form than can knock over
buildings?), so relies heavily on the technical aspects of his art. He
has also shown the capability to use the pantyhose/sash he wears as a
weapon.
14) What is the Mien Ch'uan style?
(Thanks to Aaron Peori for this detailed information)
The style originated in China, and is a knock off of Kolin Ch'uan,
which roughly translated means "hapless hand" or, more obviously,
Empty Fist Kung Fu. The style is similar to its forebearer, which is
a primarily defense oriented style, focusing on rapid evasions and
guards. However, there are differences: Kolin Ch'uan works with
rapid counterattacks meant to annoy and anger an opponent, whereas Mien
Ch'uan practitioners rely on waiting until their opponent has tired
themselves out, and -then- beginning their counter-strikes.
Also, the attitudes of the styles differ: both are circular
"anything goes" styles (ie, no move is forbidden in combat, rather
like Ranma's Jujitsu-like style); however, Mien Ch'uan takes it to
extremes. Kolin says any martial arts move is valid, but Mien says
-anything- is valid, from psychological warfare to hidden weapons
(though relying on weapons is frowned upon even among the most
honourless users). Mien Ch'uan practitioners also tend to study
opponents before combat in order to gain an advantage.
The style is very rare, and today there are probably less than fifty
masters world-wide. These masters will only teach students with the
right attitude...which is essentially someone with no morals
whatsoever, who is willing to do anything to win.
The moves are mostly resolved around punches, and several devestating
strikes are used; like the fore-knuckle fist, which hits with the
knuckles formed from your fingers instead of the natural ones where they
connect with the hand. Another is the duo-knuckle fist, which is the
same as a foreknuckle except that the user extends two
knuckles forward and hits with them. Both are very hard-hitting, but
both also have more risk to the user as they may break their fists if
not careful. Kicks are rare since Mien Ch'uan relies on being in
close (so they expend the minimum amount of effort dodging), but they
are not unheard of, especially when on the defensive. Flying kicks and
aerial manouvres are practically non-existant. They just don't go in for
drop kicks and such, not even to get into range, preferring to use speed
to close on the ground.
(Note: yes, this means opponents would likely have the advantage in
mid-air combat, but the point is essentially moot as Tarou won't get
into the air unless it is absolutely necessary; it is a big weakness
against flying enemies (like Kiima), however.)
15) How good is Tarou-human in relation to Ranma?
He's -better- than Ranma, actually. How? Well, let's compare them
in a few different categories.
Speed: Tarou clearly outclasses Ranma here. He blocks Ranma's
fastest punches with ease, he can bounce around the mountain far more
quickly than him, and once he dodges so fast that Ranma slams into the
mountain while Tarou looks on, folding his arms and smirking.
Given this, it's likely Tarou probably knows the Tenshin Amaguriken
or something similar.
Strength: Tarou and Ranma have similar slim, agile builds (as
opposed to the heavier builds of Ryouga or Ryuu Kumon, for example), but
Ranma's more strength-oriented training probably gives him a slight
advantage here. On the other hand, Tarou's foreknuckle fists are more
damaging than regular punches, which helps even it up.
Agility: Another clear win for Tarou; he contorted his body awfully
impressively in order to splash Ranma while tied up, his moves are
more speed and agility-driven, and he's both fast and agile enough
to block Ranma's strikes with ease. Onna-Ranma, OTOH, appears
to have agility comparable to or even superior to his.
Endurance: Tarou wins on pure toughness...he took a point blank
Happoudaikarin blast and was still (barely) conscious, and when
Rouge fried both of them with a bolt, Tarou was still up while Ranma
collapses. OTOH, Ranma's recovery time is better, so he revives
from injury faster.
Skill-in pure technical skill, they are in different areas...Ranma
goes for breadth, knowing many different styles as well as his
native "Anything-goes" (mostly Jujitsu) style. Tarou opts for
depth, refining and perfecting his one style. Neither has a big
advantage; although Tarou has been training longer and more often,
Ranma fights more opponents. For a metaphor, you could say Tarou is
like a professional soldier, Ranma is like a mercenary, and Ryouga
is like a berserker. ^_^
Adaptability: Ranma does win in this category; Tarou -is- pretty
adaptable, but Ranma is the master of it.
Tactics: Tarou evens the score here; his mastery of tactics is
unparalleled in the series, and the more he knows about an opponent, the
more effectively he can put it to use. Because he has a wide variety of
backup plans, he seems to be ready for almost anything. In normal
situations this gives him a big advantage, though it's less effective
when he doesn't have time to prepare and observe his opponents.
Intelligence: Do we even have to say this? Tarou vs. Ranma,
brainswise, is like Tarou swatting a fly with a Buick.
Other: Ranma's ki blasts aren't of much use against Tarou; Tarou is
too cool in fights for the Hiryuu Shoten Ha to have an effect, and
he enrages Ranma so much that the Moko Takabisha would likely be
less than effective. The cursed forms go all Tarou's way; he can
use the threat of his to manipulate Ranma, and he carefully studied
Ranma's forms in order to take advantage of the strengths and
weaknesses of each. Both are adept at dirty tricks, but Tarou does
it better.
Overall: Not a complete wipeout for Ranma, but Tarou would likely
win at least four out of every five matches. His mental and
tactical abilities are what give him his main advantages; Ranma's
only chance is to take him off-guard with something and defeat him
before he can compensate...which, as shown by Ranma's miserable
win/loss record against either Tarou, is not that easy.
16) How old is Tarou?
Tarou's age is never explicitly given, which creates a bit of a
problem. He appears to be a bit older than the other teens, both in
his looks and actions. The problem is that Happousai had to be
around to baptise infant Tarou, which would obviously have been
before he was sealed in his cave. This makes Tarou at least 19 or
20, probably. On the other hand, from the circumstances, it appears
that Happousai wasn't training Genma or Soun at the time either.
This is probably a continuity error on Takahashi's part, but there
are a few possible explanations. One is that Happousai only trained
Genma and Soun part of the time, or they simply weren't there, which
would make Tarou 19 or 20, as said before. Another theory is that
Tarou only ages when in his human form, which would probably make
him anywhere between 25 and 35. Compounding the problem is that the
guide seems to be the same age in the flashback to Tarou's birth,
indicating that he's older than he looks-possibly around 60. Which
creates the additional problem of his daughter, Plum...Yeah, it's a
mess. For fanfic purposes, I recommend to just put Tarou as being
older than Ranma and the crew, though not mentioning how much.
Simpler that way. ^_^
17) Where does Tarou live?
Well, he was born as part of a remote Chinese tribe, and is thus
Chinese himself. However, his demeanour and bitterness indicate he
probably doesn't live with them, either having been kicked out or
(more likely) left on his own, unable to take the ridicule of his
peers. Therefore, he lives a nomadic life in China, carrying his
few personal possessions with him; this is indicated by flashbacks
to how he saved the girls (second appearance) and how he was
training in the middle of nowhere before meeting Rouge (third
appearance).
18) Was Tarou part of the Amazon tribe?
(Thanks to Kuno Christoffel for this answer) No, he was obviously
part of some other tribe; the reason being that his mother was out
working -alone- in the fields when in late pregnancy, something a
matriarchal society would most definitely not have permitted.
Seeing as how she was so close to Jyusenkyou, though, Tarou's tribe
is undoubtedly near the Joketsuzoku amazons. It is possible that he
came from the same tribe as Pink and Link (two identical twins who
appeared in the manga; somewhat similar to the anime Linlin and Ranran,
but these ones hated Shampoo), or he might be from a different tribe
altogether.
19) Where is his mother?
Unknown, but the most likely answer is that she's dead. She seems
too caring a person to abandon him or dump him because of his name, and
Tarou is too bitter to have that much of a positive influence in his
life. It's notable that she looks almost exactly like Akane, which
might be part of the subconscious reason Tarou opened up a bit to Akane.
20) If he's a nomad, how does he eat?
He hunts, as shown in Volume 23, where he is carrying a freshly
killed duck or goose. He might also hunt with his cursed form
(carrying away livestock and such).
21) How did he train?
Good question. Judging from his skill, he obviously trained with
someone, but that person's identity is unknown. Most likely, Tarou
knew one or several martial arts masters whom he periodically
visited.
22) Which Ranma characters know him?
In his appearances, he met most of the "regulars" at least once:
Ranma, Ryouga, Akane, Mousse, Shampoo, Cologne, Genma, Soun, Nabiki,
Kasumi and of course Happousai. One major character he did -not- meet
was Ukyou, though Ranma probably told her about him. He does not know
any of the Kunou's, Ms. Hinako, Gosunkugi or anyone else not mentioned
either. One fanfic he was in (Split Personalities, by Roy Rim)
indicated that he knew Prince Herb of the Musk Dynasty, but there's no
proof there one way or the other. Since Tarou can fly at great speeds,
it is conceivably possible he's met just about anybody. Also, anyone
who had a Jyusenkyou curse prior to Volume 18 met him, and was probably
beaten up by him.
23) Why do he and Ranma hate each other so much?
They just do. Both Ranma and Tarou extremely dislike and are
contemptuous of the other, and they usually argue or fight whenever
they're together. Tarou calls Ranma "fem-boy" or "crossdresser",
while Ranma makes a point of always using Tarou's full name.
24) What is the exact structure of Tarou's name?
(Thanks to Bridget Ellen Engman for help on this one) Tricky one. In
the manga, he is called "Pansuto Tarou"; which would indicate, in
English, that his name would be "Tarou Pantyhose". This doesn't
really make sense, since "Pantyhose" is obviously not his family
name, and neither is Tarou, since that is a Japanese first name if
anything. This creates its own problems, since Tarou is Chinese:
obviously Happousai then gave him his full name, but then does he
have a family name at all? The explanation: Chinese names are usually
divided into two parts: Shan-puu, Muu-su, and so on. Thus,
Pansuto-tarou would be his first name; a Japanese name grafted into a
Chinese system. What about Tarou's family name? If he had one, he
probably dropped it after leaving his village. So, in fanfics, the
correct way to refer to him (no matter which way you do your names)
is "Pantyhose Tarou". If he were to reside in Japan permanently, he
would probably put "Tarou" as his first name. BTW, "Tarou" IS a
valid first name...perhaps not a common one, but it does exist: a
former Japanese foreign minister was named Nakayama Tarou,
for example.
25) What fanfics has he been in?
Since my writing of this FAQ, the amount of Tarou-related
fanfiction has exploded! There's way too many to list
here; I'm considering doing a separate page with reviews
of fanfics including Tarou.
26) What other things are known about him?
Known? Not much. But speculative, though�there's a few tantalizing
hints about his relationship with Akane. Note that this IS speculative;
not gospel, just extrapolation off scraps in the manga.
Tarou respects Akane, that much is for certain. She's the only person
in the whole cast he doesn't seem to hate; in fact, he opened up to her
in Volume 18 when he wouldn't to anyone else. She's interfered in his
plans many times, even hit him, but he's never taken revenge for these
things that he would punish anyone else for. But how much does he like
Akane, the one person in the cast who tried to help him, the one person
who was kind to him and forgave him everything he did?
Tarou is scared of what people think of his name. He's positive nobody
could ever love or care for a man named "Pantyhose". Does he love
Akane? Does he merely respect her for being kind to him? Is he,
himself, not really sure? It's hard to tell. Tarou is close-mouthed
about his feelings, and his actions make it hard to interpret one way or
the other. And if he does love her, why won't he tell her? Is it
because he thinks Ranma has her (and if so, could this be why he hates
Ranma with such irrational passion)? Is it because he thinks he's
unworthy of her when his name is unchanged?
Or could it be something else entirely? Looking at the few pictures we
have of Tarou's mother, it can be seen that she bears an almost
frightening resemblence to Akane. It's probably part of why Tarou
opened up a bit to Akane in the first place�but is it just a
coincidence? Or could it be, years ago, a member of the Tendo family was
in China, and from that trip came something unexpected? Could Tarou
have gone home the first time, full of plans to win Akane's hand, only
to find out she was his cousin?
Or am I reading way too much into this? ;p There's no real proof either
way; Does he love her or not, are they related or not�who knows? But it
-could- be. And isn't that intruiging? ^_^
26) So what's so great about him anyway?
He's COOL! Far and away the most intruiging villain in Ranma. He's
intelligent, cunning, powerful...he's great at making sarcastic
comments, and he hates Ranma! What more could you want? Anyone who
calls Ranma "fem-boy" and gets away with it is great, ne? Also, since
his problems weren't resolved or anything, he's easy to bring back.
He's totally unique among the Ranma crew in his personality, complexity,
and intelligence. I find him fascinating to work with, and I'm sure
other fanfic authors would too. OTOH, some people hate his guts. It
all depends on your taste in characters, I suppose.
If you _do_ want to use him, and there's a question you have that
isn't answered here, e-mail me at kumonryuu@hotmail.com and I'll answer
it; I'll also put it in a later version of the FAQ and give you
credit.
Now, we'll finish off with a few Tarou-related quotes...
"That pantyhose bastard...is a demon "-Ryouga, warning Ranma about
Tarou.
"You fool...you don't understand."-Tarou, to Ranma just before the
rain started.
"(evil chuckle)"-Tarou, many, -many- times.
"Sucking up to me is useless. I won't let you escape."-Tarou, to
Akane.
"But before I get to the old man...I'm going to beat that
unforgivable cross-dresser to a pulp!"-Tarou
"Oh, I think turning into a girl must be -much- worse... <splash>
FEM-BOY."-Tarou
"One down."-Tarou, after disposing of Ryouga with a water trap.
"Two down."-After he does the same to Mousse.
"Now fem-boy is the only one left..."-after taking out Shampoo
"(evil chuckle) I'm impressed. You made it all the way up the cliff
without getting wet. In consideration of your effort, I'll refrain
from splashing you with cold water, fem-boy."-Tarou
"Don't call me that!"-Tarou, many times.
"Forget it, you cowardly little crossdresser."-Tarou, after Ranma
offered to help him get Happousai with the Good Samaritan water.
"H-how did you get in here!?"-Soun, after Tarou walked into the
bathhouse
"<evil chuckle> I paid 330 yen at the door."-Tarou's reply
"<evil chuckle> Haven't you figured it out? The one who beat
Happousai...was me."-Tarou
"You're dead, fem-boy!"-Tarou
"<evil chuckle> Have you forgotten? You cannot win. Even Happousai has
lost to me."-Tarou
"<evil chuckle> But first..I'm going to turn myself into twins and
kick all your asses!"-Tarou
"With these, even world domination isn't a dream."-Tarou
"<evil chuckle> Act more like a waitress."-Tarou (to Shampoo, from the
original "Hard Battle" video game)
Revision History
Version 1.0: The first one; not given wide release in anticipation
of revising.
Version 1.1: Spelling and grammar errors corrected, rewrote some of
the story of his first appearance and completely redid the "name"
section. Actually, this'll probably be the last revision, simply
because everything I can imagine anybody wanting to know about Tarou
that can be gleaned in one way or another by the manga is here. But if
anybody else thinks of anything, be sure to write me about it...oh yeah,
and added the "Revision History" section, and a new question discussing
the significance of the pantyhose he wears as a belt.
Version 2.0: So what do I know? Added complete descriptions of his
other two appearances, added a discussion of his and Ranma's
comparative strengths, added a section on Mien Ch'uan and Furumoto
Shinnosuke, added the section on his mother, added some new quotes and a
couple of fanfics that have come out with him playing a role, and
touched up a bunch of other things.
Version 2.1: Rewrote and reformatted the descriptions of Tarou's
appearences for accuracy and readability; added note about Rio and
Furumoto Shinnosuke's single as Carrot Glasse; removed fanfic section
due to length, added the section on his relationship with Akane, and
edited a few more things for accuracy.
Hope you enjoyed this little piece of obsessive fanboyishness. ^_^
Blade, 07/12/98
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