Keroro Platoon

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Keroro Platoon is a group of characters from the comedy manga Sgt. Frog. While most platoons contain thirty or forty sodiers, the Keroro Platoon only has a meager five.

1 Data profile
2 Information
3 Members and allies
4 Enemies

[edit] Data profile

Name: Keroro Platoon
Status: Active
Mission: Conquer Earth
Mission Status: Ongoing
Rank: High (formerly low)

The Keroro Platoon saluting

[edit] Information

Despite their low rank, the Keroro Platoon (officially the Special Infiltration Operations Unit of the Gama Star Cloud's 58th planet's Space Invasion Army) was given the chance to conquer (or at least prepare for a massive invasion) Earth (which most of the aliens in space called Pekopon). After crash landing in Tokyo, the platoon split up, and was cut off from the main fleet due to Keroro's capture. After being reunited, they associate with humans and protect and attempt to conquer Earth, although so far all attempts to do so have failed in one way or another.

[edit] Members and allies

[edit] Members

Sergeant Keroro (ケロロ軍曹, Keroro Gunsō^?): The erstwhile leader and eternal antihero of the series, Keroro is usually pretty easygoing (to the point of laziness), but can be charismatic, resourceful, and even manipulative if he believes it will serve his interests. Although Keroro is clever and implied to have been a very good soldier in the past, he is typically ruled by his hobbies (especially Gundam models, aka Gunpla), easy to emotionally cow, and distracted by pretty much everything. He's typically the butt of the series' humor, usually after taking advantage of his Earthling hosts or his other squad members (though often enough through simple bad luck). If surrounded by enough humidity, Keroro's physical and mental strength increase drastically, and he becomes dangerously aggressive. Of the entire Keroro Platoon, he has the most Pokopen Suits, possessing ten total. He often ends his sentences with 'de arimasu', a formal term for 'it is' or 'let it be so' - and particularly associated with those in the armed forces. His birthday is on December 9th, which is a mere week after Natsumi's birthday (see below about more of their rivalry). The name "Keroro" comes from the Japanese word for the sound a frog makes. He is the only platoon member whose resonance is not a simple repeat of the first two words of his name (Keroro's resonance sound is "gerogerogero..." as opposed to Tamama's "tamatamatama..." or Giroro's "girogirogiro..."). His emblem is a star. He is the traditional green of a frog.

Corporal Giroro (ギロロ伍長, Giroro Gochō^?): The platoon's combat specialist, the series' straight man, and often Kururu's guinea pig. Giroro is a grizzled veteran, and is often at odds with Keroro and Kururu for their unmilitary demeanor and lack of dedication to the invasion. Giroro has a scar on his left eye that is rumored to have been inflicted by Keroro in a fight long ago. He has a fierce temper that sometimes drives him into "combat mode", where he aggressively attacks the enemy, speaking in only simple words and ignoring all other orders. However, he has a soft spot for Natsumi Hinata that eventually develops into a full-blown crush. His love for Natsumi sometimes gets in the way of invasion operations, almost as much as Keroro's lack of focus. Similarly, though, once the rest of the platoon becomes aware of his crush, they will often use it to manipulate Giroro to agreeing with their plans (usually by implying that, somehow, whatever they're planning will make Natsumi happy). Giroro also acquires a pet cat that seems rather fond of him. Giroro lives in a tent, concealed from busybodies by Keronian technology, in the backyard of the Hinata household. He and Kururu tie for the least amount of unique Pokopen Suits, having only two each. His name derives from the Japanese word girogiro, which is an adjective describing sharp-looking eyes. His emblem is a skull, which he only wears on his hat; in place of the emblem the other frogs have on their bellies, he has a belt that conceals a picture of Natsumi, which he considers a talisman. Giroro's speech trait is not as obvious as others (like Keroro's "de arimasu", Tamama's "desu~", Kururu's "daze~" or Dororo's "de gozaru"), but he often ends his sentences with "da", another form of the normal "desu" (it is) which is most often used by "manly" characters.

Private Second Class Tamama (タママ二等兵, Tamama Nitohei^?): Tamama is the youngest, least experienced member of the platoon, and the resident physical combatant (despite appearances). This is represented in two ways: his emblem is the mirror image of the wakaba, a Japanese emblem for "New Driver", and he has a tadpole-like tail. Like a tadpole, Tamama is black. He refers to himself as the "cute and lovely" member of the Keroro platoon. Tamama is also inordinately fond of sweets, and Giroro seems to think living with the fabulously wealthy Momoka has spoiled him. He loves to eat junk food and read manga. Tamama is prone to mood swings; due to his split personality (like Nishizawa Momoka), the slightest provocation can cause him to go from cute and happy to a violent lunatic who can fire an energy blast (known as "Tamama Impact", "Neo Tamama Impact", or "Hyper Tamama Impact", depending on the strength) from his mouth as well as multi-targeting eye beams, and a dark sphere formed by condensing ambient jealousy (called the "Jealousy Shot" which derives from the Japanese word "shiito", which means "jealousy"). This usually gets him in more trouble than he already is, though. Tamama seems to believe in returning any and all favors to him or to the Sergeant. His devotion to the Sergeant crosses the romantic line a little, and is well past fanatical; he will sometimes attempt to discredit or destroy others in order to get closer to the Sergeant, although no-one else seems to notice his jealousy. He is particularly hateful of Angol Moa, whose affection for Keroro is much more pure. He has four different Pokopen Suits, granting him the second highest number of suits after Keroro. He often ends his sentences with "desu~," which roughly translates as "it is" (a less formal version of Keroro's "De Arimasu" and perhaps the most common way modern Japanese says "it is" - but Tamama lengthens it in a way that would be considered "cute"). His name is derived from the Japanese word for tadpole, "otamajakushi". In addition, the Japanese word "tamatama" means "unexpected" or "unpredictable", which describes his personality rather accurately.

Sergeant Major Kururu (クルル曹長, Kururu Sōchō^?, a.k.a 9-6-6): The platoon's intelligence and strategic planning officer. He is yellow, with an orange cap and usually wearing headphones. Though technically superior in rank to Keroro, he defers to him on most issues (usually because Keroro is supplying the funding for his bizarre experiments). He is thoroughly unmilitary, and as such is on very poor terms with Giroro. Out of the five, he's considered the least popular because of his gloomy and inquisitive nature, which leads him to play elaborate pranks on those around him. He's also an inventor and unabashed pervert, as many of his devices are designed with what Keroro calls a 'kinky role-play effect' in mind (such as the age-changing rays from manga chapters 23 and 24, and the "oni-girl" gun from chapter 31). Despite his unmotivated attitude and resistance to advice, he has a weakness for Angol Moa, sometimes seeing her as a source of income, though uncomfortable at being stared at by her (according to the "Learn to Draw Kururu" song he sings during the end credits of Episodes 47 and 48, he is extremely discomforted by people with entirely pure hearts). As a referance to his being the "yellow" member of the Keroro Platoon, Kururu loves curry; in Episode 118 in the anime, he is even seen bathing in it. Many of the things that happen in the series revolve around the crazy invention he has come up with. Of the entire Keroro Platoon, Kururu has the fewest Pokopen Suits, tied with Giroro; both only have two. His name Kururu derives from the Japanese word "kurukuru", which means "spinning" or "twisted". Also, Kururu is a hunchback, which is "kuru" in Japanese. He also has a codename (the numbers 9-6-6), because 9-6-6 is "ku-ru-ru" when pronounced separately. His name is frequently romanized as "Kululu" in the manga and anime, but the Tokyopop translation of the manga used "Kururu" until Volume 11, when Kadokawa requested a change to "Kululu" in all future volumes and reprints of prior volumes. Most fansubs of the anime refer to him as Kururu. His emblem is a swirl (resembling his glasses). Kururu punctuates things with a stand-out laugh, "Ku~ ku ku." He does this when he gets the upper hand on someone, when the tables are turned on him, when he's being mysterious, or when he's just being a jerk - and frequently in place of actual dialogue. He does have a speech trait ("da yo" [it is] or "da ze") although he uses it to a much lesser extent than Tamama, Keroro, & Dororo. He also makes frequent use of the word "pochito" when (literally) pressing buttons in the anime, which translates to "I press" and when his glasses shatter or get lost, he'll say "megane, megane" ("my glasses, my glasses").

Lance Corporal Dororo (ドロロ兵長, Dororo Heichō^?): The quiet one. He is blue with light blue eyes. Originally named Zeroro, he is always calm, and never loses his temper. He was trained to be the top assassin in the Keronian Army. Since coming to Earth, however, he has begun following the way of the ninja (along with his "owner", the kunoichi Koyuki), and become an avid nature lover. Thus, he always objects to plans that would damage Earth's eco-system. He also never kills a living thing; he always uses the back of his sword to strike his opponents, so as not to harm them. He first met Koyuki when he got caught in a kappa trap she made. Dororo's name change may be linked to the fact that the forest Koyuki found him in has the same name. He's known Keroro and Giroro since they were little, and though they were "friends", Keroro took advantage of Dororo more often than not. Perhaps appropriate for a ninja, Dororo lacks presence - and is therefore often forgotten or ignored by the rest of the squad. He is often reminded of Keroro's abuses of their "friendship" when they were young, which usually results in him breaking down crying from his "Trauma Switch" turning on. Dororo has three Pokopen Suits, putting him barely ahead of Kururu and Giroro. He often ends his sentences with "de gozaru" (an archaic form of the normal "desu", used by samurais and ninjas in Japanese TV series and movies describing the Senkoku era.). His name derives from doron, which is a Japanese onomatopoeia for disappearing like a ninja. In addition, the Japanese word dorodoro means syrupy, which can refer to his sentimental tendencies and the image of him crying in trauma. (It should be noted that there is an anime about ninja called Dororo). His emblem is a shuriken. He does not wear the military hats of other Kerons; instead, he wears a skull cap with loose fabric hanging like a curtain around the back and sides of his head. Also, he wears a face mask that covers his mouth and where his nose would be - typical ninja garb - although he is seen wearing a gas mask in some scenes where he is still part of the Keronian Military.

[edit] Allies (Human)

Fuyuki Hinata (日向冬樹, Hinata Fuyuki^?, Codename Winter): Fuyuki is a 12-year old boy who captures Keroro and keeps him in his house. Fuyuki is a fan of the paranormal, including aliens and UFOs, so naturally he's delighted to have a real alien living in his home. He is average in academics and sports, somewhat naive and absent-minded, and doesn't know how to swim, but Fuyuki is considered a genius (the move he used in this batin the field of paranormal studies (and scary stories). He is also quite the detective and can be very cunning when he's trying to crack a case. Despite Sgt. Keroro's repeated attempts to conquer the Earth, Fuyuki develops something resembling a friendship with Keroro as the series progresses. If the sergeant goes too far in an invasion scheme, Fuyuki will get so mad that in the manga will not even show his face when he gets this way. This anger is more than enough to make Keroro change his mind on invasion, Natsumi mentions that even she can't stop him once he's like this. Although Momoka shows her love for him in obvious and various ways, he has absolutely no clue that Momoka likes him, although he might have some feelings for her. The name Fuyuki means "winter tree", and "winter" is written on his room's door in English.

Natsumi Hinata (日向夏美, Hinata Natsumi^?, a.k.a. 723 / Codename Summer/Devil Summer): Natsumi is Fuyuki Hinata's 14-year-old big sister. She is smart and athletic, but also emotional, and somewhat overprotective of her brother; in grade school, Natsumi's fierce temper earned her the nickname "Devil Summer", known to use her strength in purely protection of her brother, while it is actually questionable. Natsumi is frequently suspicious of the aliens, and pushes Keroro around whenever she can. She also has a huge one-sided crush on Mutsumi Saburo and she listens to his radio show any time she can. Her three measurements (in cm) are 80-56-80, her birthday is December 2nd, and she has a deep fear of slugs. Although she refers to Keroro as 'boke kaeru' (stupid frog), she generally gets along with the rest of the Keroro Platoon, and even develops feelings for Giroro as time passes. Although Natsumi is super-strong, there is one sport that she couldn't defeat Keroro in, and that is swimming (after all, he is a frog-type alien). She later on is given a neck brace made by Kururu that gives her the armor and abilities of a Gundam Robot and she helps the gang in battle when ever they most need her. The name Natsumi means "summer beauty", and "summer" is written on her bedroom door in English.

Aki Hinata (日向秋, Hinata Aki^?): Fuyuki and Natsumi's stunningly beautiful single mother. Aki is a manga editor who decided to base the main character of her latest manga on Keroro. She is also a black belt Aikido master, and the strongest member of the Hinata family. She's surprised (and a bit disappointed) by how "normal" Keroro's lifestyle on Earth is. Her three measurements (in cm) are 92-60-86, and she has a strange attraction to things that are sticky and moist. Her name, Aki, means "autumn" in Japanese.
Humorously, she was mentally pictured by Natsumi and Fuyuki as Eva Unit One going Beserk (a reference to what Eva Unit One actually is) when she was first mentioned in the manga.

Momoka Nishizawa (西澤桃華, Nishizawa Momoka^?, Codename Peach): A 12-year old multi-billionaire (she is the only child of the head of the Nishizawa zaibatsu) who has a huge crush on Fuyuki. She is the "owner" of Tamama, and like him she appears very cute and innocent, but has a manipulative and violent side. One time, she and her violent side's hearts were so unconnected that they split up into two Momokas, but were reunited into one body with the help of Keroro and some synchronized swimming. Sometimes, the calm Momoka can communicate with her violent side, but in mind, so when Momoka is talking to the other one, to other people, it looks like she's talking to herself (and she is). She puts much of her vast fortune into her romantic pursuit of Fuyuki, with only limited success. Even when she's trying to admit her love for Fuyuki personally, she always gets interrupted by an alien or another human. Her name derives from momo, the Japanese word for peach. The ka derives from a different reading of hana, the Japanese word for flower.

Paul Moriyama (ポール森山, Pōru Moriyama^?): Momoka's butler and sometime-bodyguard. He is fiercely protective of his mistress, and willing to do anything for Momoka, from helping with her efforts to win over Fuyuki to risking his life for hers. As a war veteran, he has a rather strong feeling of camraderie with the Keronian invaders (especially Giroro), whom he sees as fellow soldiers. Paul was defeated by Momoka's father, Nishizawa Baio, many years ago in a battle ("Pouru-Reppa" was a parody of Ken Masters' "Shouryu Reppa" from the Street Fighter (video game) arcade game), becoming one of the most favored Nishizawa butlers. He is sometimes accompanied by other soldiers, minor recurring characters who are seen protecting Momoka or tracking things in their headquarters.

Mutsumi Saburo (ムツミ・サブロー, Mutsumi Saburō^?, a.k.a. 6-2-3 3-2-6): Classmate of Natsumi. A poet/artist/philosopher who skips class a lot. He has his own radio show which Natsumi listens to. His partner is Sergeant Major Kururu (Kururu Sōchō), who gave him a pen that allows him to draw anything and make it appear. Saburo first met the Sergeant Major when the Keronian tried to strike off on his own and turn the students of Saburo's school into his servants. The reason that the two get along so well is because they share the same wave length. Saburo is a genius, who got a perfect score of 300 out of 300 on an I.Q. test, and is excellent at sports as well. He has a hard time fitting in with his classmates (especially the male ones) because of this. Although Mutsumi is extremely clever and observant, he seems unaware of Natsumi's crush on him. Every time he comes near Natsumi, he is pushed aside by a jealous Giroro. Mutsumi also makes a few appearances in the anime series Seven of Seven. His nickname comes from a form of Japanese number wordplay.

Koyuki Azumaya (東谷小雪, Azumaya Koyuki^?): A 14-year old kunoichi who is the partner of Dororo and the one who introduced him to the ways of the ninja. She has cheerful and peppy personality, and is never seen to be as angry as Natsumi would be to Keroro if he causes chaos. Koyuki is an incredibly talented fighter (she beat Momoka Nishizawa, who was wearing the latest in Nishizawa group battle suit technology in addition to her impressive berserker skills, in a fight over a ticket to a hot spring trip) who came from her hidden ninja village in the country with Dororo to help him find the rest of his squad. Since she lived away from the city for her whole childhood, she continues to go along with the ways of the ninja, even when a lot of people are looking (such as walking a mall wall form the outside), and is unfamiliar with Japanese culture(such as giving chocolate to the person a girl likes on Valentine's Day, the Japanese way of New Year's, and Hinamatsuri). She attends the same school as Fuyuki, Natsumi, and Momoka (although she continues to wear her old school uniform). Koyuki has a very large crush on Natsumi that she in no way attempts to hide, causing Giroro to be very jealous. The "Azumaya" part of Koyuki's name means "Eastern Valley" ("Azuma" means "East": "Ya" is another way to pronounce "Tani", which means "valley"), the "ko" of "Koyuki" means "small", and the "yuki" of "Koyuki" means "snow".

[edit] Allies (Alien)

Angol Mois (Codename More): Main article: Angol Mois
Sumomo: A pink Keronian-like alien, Sumomo was a character in a one-shot side story in the manga, but in the anime she's a highly popular idol singer who makes the occasional recurring appearance. Members of her species, the Axolotl (a play on the amphibian group that includes newts and salamanders), are able to change forms from a Keronian-sized one to a human-sized version via rapid thyroxine secretion.

[edit] Allies (other)

Neko: Giroro's beloved cat that lives with him and the Hinata family. She was first found as a stray who Giroro found in the rain during episode 12. Neko began to befriend Giroro and lives with him in his tent. Neko continuously appears throughout the series. In episode 32 Neko is jealous of Natsumi.