| Jelly Jiggler | |
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| Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo character | |
Jelly Jiggler by Yoshio Sawai |
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| First appearance | Manga: Chapter 2 Anime: Episode 1 |
| Created by | Yoshio Sawai |
| Voiced by | Keiichi Sonobe Takashi Nagasako (PS2 game) (Japanese) Jamieson Price (English) |
| Profile | |
| Nicknames | Purururun (by Pokomi) |
| Aliases | Teniro |
Jelly Jiggler, known in the Japanese versions as Tokoro Tennosuke (ところ天の助) is a character from Yoshio Sawai's manga/anime Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo.
His Japanese name is a pun on "tokoroten", a type of jelly made from agar,[1] thus his ability to shape himself into any form. The captain of the A Block division of Hair Hunters (or "Hair Hunter Troop A") also uses the fighting style "Shivering True Fist" (Purupuru Shinken). In the English dub, it is known as the "Fist of the Wobble-Wobble", and in the English manga, it is called "Shakey-Shake Fist". By the time he officially joins Bo-BoBo's team, he possesses a handkerchief with the Japanese hiragana for "Nu" (ぬ) written all over it (ぬのハンカチ Nu no hankachi, the "handkerchief of 'nu'", known in English dub as "the Lucky Hanky" ) which he uses to wipe away tears at first, but eventually leads to an all-out "nu" obsession (By contrast he utterly despises the hiragana character "ne" [ね]!) He's used as a shield by Bo-Bobo constantly, but always bounces back (due to his ability to regenerate himself).
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He is a 4 ft 7 in sized blue gelatin being with orange eyes. He has a strange resemblance to Gumby. He appears to be very serious for the creature he is. Bobobo-bobobobo will occasionally use Jelly Jiggler's structure to his own benefit (Bobobo-bobobobo punches holes out of Jelly Jiggler's body for an attack).
Jelly Jiggler's early life seems very much a mystery. He appears to have probably been born in a tokoroten factory and is therefore without any real known childhood. There are two possible moments in which a childhood was suggested for Jelly, but neither have really been proven. The first was a memory of Bo-bobo, which he promised a boy nicknamed "Jelly Roll" (Tenirō) that they would be friends together in the future. But this is disputed by a later chapter which we see a fully grown Jiggler chasing after a child Bo-bobo. Another possible childhood suggestion is brought out by the "Children's Area" of Hallelujah Land, where Jelly transforms into a smaller child-like form with a more narcissitic personality. But again, this may actually be a combination of the power of this area combined with the Wiggin (Hajike) skills possessed by his character than any true suggestion of him being a child. For all that we know, Jelly Jiggler was probably born as the form in which we see him now: a tall, blue jelly creature. (though another story suggests he may actually be the amalgamation of several tokoroten packages fused together and brought to life, but this was merely another suggestion)
Jelly Jiggler spent most of the early part of his existence living in a supermarket. Like many edible products, he believed that his ultimate goal in life was to be sold to a customer...and eaten. Unfortunately, he was having a hard time in having his ultimate goal accomplished. The people who came and went in the market just couldn't find any use for a giant, sentient tokoroten man. His price went down quickly until he was merely 10 yen and still no one wanted him. Over time, the salesmen didn't know what to do with him; they tried hiding him between shelf space and even tried to throw him away. This just added to his lost purpose and his inability to find it. Furthermore, Jelly became more and more resentful of other things sold at the supermarket that easily found buyers. His resentment particularly grew towards the just as squishy but more sellable tofu, which he quickly grew to hate compared to his own gelatinous form.
One day, the bottom finally fell out. After scaring away one too many customers and remaining unsold for a long time, the manager finally fired Jelly. Too many people were complaining and not enough were buying the tokoroten, particularly him. Dejected, he returned to his apartment wondering what to do next. But his next, and most infamous, employment was just around the corner.
After following some leads following his firing from the supermarket, Jelly Jiggler found himself working for one of the most prestigious (and infamous) employers in the world: the Hair Hunters of the Maruhage Empire. While his mission seemed simple enough (attack and shave as many people as possible), Jelly was not really one of the best soldiers when he first joined. Initially assigned to D-Block, he was consistently picked on by his supervisors in regards to doing his mission. But it was his consistent resilience (not to mention the ease he can be attacked and regenerate) that made him survive these early years. One of his first assignments was twenty years before the start of the series when Tsuru Tsurulina the 4th instructed for the invasion of the Hair Kingdom. Joining with the rest of his block, Jelly took part in a snowboard race against several warriors of the Hair Kingdom: Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo and Bebebe-be Be-bebe of the Hair children and in-training "Kagi Shinken" (Fist of the Key) user Hatenko. Also in this race was Don Patch, the unpredictable leader of the Wiggin Gang. Although this was his first encounter with Bo-bobo and Don Patch, the nature of his work had him consistently taking the attacks from both future allies. However, it was the thrill and excitement of the Hair Hunt that allowed him to become more at ease with himself as opposed to the day-to-day depression of the market. This freedom would slowly make him become not only a dangerous enemy, but a dangerous wigginist as well.
Over the next twenty years, Jelly Jiggler's star would slowly rise within the Hair Hunt troops. Although he would still have his strange moments, his growing confidence would give him further power and prestige within the Maruhage Empire. Within ten years of joining the Hair Hunters, Jelly had already made his way into becoming the leader of A-Block, one of the most powerful blocks in the empire. No longer being the cowardly, gelatinous warrior, he had become much cooler, allowing usually for a more menacing appearance towards his enemies. However, while appearing much more "normal" in public, he was a bit weirder towards his co-workers in A-Block, consistently joking around with them and showing off a more emotional side, as well as occasionally taking a hot wok bath in the middle of a menacing threat.
However, just when Jelly Jiggler had it all and was one of the most powerful and respected warriors of the empire, Bo-bobo came back into his life. The little boy who tormented him back in the Hair Kingdom had become a powerful, nosehair-wielding revolutionary in the empire and Jelly's greatest enemy. Taking advantage of Bo-bobo's caring nature, Jelly's forces kidnap Spiky, one of Bo-bobo's friends, and hold him hostage at his amusement park base, forcing him to eat spaghetti against his will instead of curry. It was this insidious nature that lead Bo-bobo into the park to save his friend and find Jelly. After he and his allies (who also included now-former Wiggin Gang leader Don Patch) destroy all of the other forces in the park, Jelly remained missing and Bo-bobo continued to search for him. The tokoroten man decided to help Bo-bobo in the search...before Gasser reveals the obvious: Jelly was the A-Block leader. Bo-bobo and Jiggler then have a formidable battle, where the jelly man tries to lure Bo-bobo into fighting him, only to consistently get eaten by his opponent! Making matters weirder was that the enemy was consistently joining in on Bo-bobo and Don Patch's wiggin nonsense, singing along about his own lychee-flavoring or running around like a fool alongside his enemies. Ultimately, the only way for Bo-bobo and Don Patch to defeat Jelly was by fusing together, forming the extremely powerful and extremely serious BoboPatch. Jelly's attacks were easily swatted away and even his wiggin abilities were ignored by the fused warriors. Ultimately, the fused power of "Hanage Shinken" (Fist of the Nosehair) was too much for Jelly, making him fly upwards and smash into a Ferris wheel, completely knocking him out. He had been defeated and utterly humiliated.
After the fall of A-Block, Jelly Jiggler's life had returned to misery. He was forced to return to the supermarket, still on sale for 10 yen and angry at losing to Bo-bobo. But just as he was preparing to plot his revenge, something surprising happened: Bo-Bobo came to the supermarket and bought Jelly Jiggler. He did this because he needed a fifth warrior (besides himself, Don Patch, Gasser and Softon) to take on the forces of his rival Captain Battleship (Gunkan). Jelly was extremely gracious that he was finally sold and decided to do the best he could to fight this enemy with his new allies. Like before, the tokoroten man was able to use the extent of his abilities, both with his "Purupuru Shinken" (Fist of the Wobble-Wobble) and Wiggin' skills to fight against this threat. Unfortunately, he went through quite a few failures during this period. The soldiers of Captain Battleship kept trying to eat him, he and Don Patch were discovered easily as spies and, in his most embarrassing match ever, fought against an inanimate stick of gum and lost. Furthermore, by the time Captain Battleship's Pomade Ring crashed down to the ground, he found himself stuck under rubble, ignored and forgotten for the rest of the fight.
With his attempts towards being a hero not going as expected, Jelly once again returned to the supermarket, hoping for someone once again to purchase him for some use. He was finally purchased once again, but it was not what he expected. Captain Ishida, an interstellar cop, bought Jelly, but only to hold him for his former invasion of Mars. While he couldn't stand being held by a cop, he did end up moving in to a "Wiggin' Pet Shop" in the legendary Wiggin' Block, which he really didn't mind and actually liked. It is also around this time that Jelly discovers a strange handkerchief with the Japanese character of "ぬ" (Nu) on it. Although he doesn't explain how or why he became attached to it, it does seem to dry up his tears while directing his mind towards obsession. By the time Bo-bobo's team reaches Hajike Block, Gasser discovers Jelly living here. After a bit of "reforming" Captain Ishida, Bo-bobo finally lets Jelly join his team...not just to help, but for good. With tears of joy (and his "Nu" hanky), Jelly accepts and becomes a member of the team.
From here on, Jelly Jiggler becomes a key member of the Bo-bobo team. Using his more subdued, but still wacky form of Wiggin', he joins up with Bo-bobo and Don Patch, forming together into the infamous Wiggin' Trio, who work together to further confuse and stop the increasingly powerful warriors of the Cromedome Empire. Starting from the King of Wiggin' Specialists Rice, Jelly and his team continue to face further and greater challenges. Unfortunately, while his attack abilities appeared to be crucial, he was more used as a sacrifice by Bo-bobo and Don Patch towards all of their enemies while he continued to try and find ways to fight. But when things seemed dire, he kept his cool from his various "Nu" items, as well as his consistent drive to show the world the greatness of tokoroten while facing off against other edible villains (such as shaved ice, fishcake and a living tofu cube). By the time the world had been saved, Jelly Jiggler tried to move on with his life and "go back to school", but once again, got smashed by something as he left his allies behind.
Over the next year, Jelly lived a peaceful life in the frozen north, undisturbed outside living with fellow former block leader Dengaku Man and the occasional visit by Former Maruhage villain turned ally General Lee Fishcake. But as he lived peacefully, the world around him changed. Baldy-Bald the Third regrouped the Maruhage Empire into the Neo-Maruhage Empire and had continued to shave people's heads off indiscriminately. Bo-bobo began a new rebellion with Don Patch, Beauty and several new allies by his side. Yet as the new rebellion began, someone appeared to be totally forgotten by Bo-bobo and the author! As he continued to hear about the new rebellion, Jelly became more and more insane, wondering why he had not been asked to return to the story to retake his position as the third member of the Wiggin Trio.
However, fate (and the author's whims) would finally be kind to Jelly in a cruel manner. On a routine trip to Nagoya in order to pick up some tokoroten and other culinary delicacies, he was discovered by local Hair-men Hunters led by the Nagoya Brothers. (the Neo-F Block leaders and guardians of the area) Captured at first, Jelly attempted to show off his own improved powers and abilities to the block leaders, but found himself easily defeated and left to a group of Nagoya culinary experts to be their latest meal. However, Bo-bobo and his team finally arrived to the rescue (while heading to Nagoya to save someone else) and allow the jelly man to rejoin their side. With the main Wiggin Trio reunited, they take down the Nagoya Brothers together and all join together once again to fight in the rebellion against Baldy-Bald the Third.
As a reunited member of the Hair Hunt rebellion squad, Jelly assists in any way possible to fight against the Neo-Maruhage forces. Although just as wobbly and trouble as ever, he was a crucial member of the team against several opponents. From powerful assassins to insane Wiggins, Jelly did his part to fight against the new threat. In the end, even though Bo-bobo's team was finally successful, Jelly didn't have as peaceful an end. Believing in the trust and forgiveness of his former Maruhage allies and enemies, Jelly decides to hold a reunion bringing all of them together once again. But considering how many of them have really bad memories and relations with the wobbly warrior (particularly OVER and Giga), he's forced to fight for his survival even to the end...
Jelly Jiggler appears, at first glance, as the most serious of the main Wiggin' trio of the series. Not as necessarily happy-go-lucky as either Bo-bobo or Don Patch, Jelly tries to remain calm while merely performing his strange actions. However, his serious nature hides the extremely emotional and over-the-top emotions that the wobbly warrior exhibits. His moments of calm are contrasted to periods where he could be angry, upset, even silly like his comrades. The contrast between his serious and his emotional sides are reflections of his period at the supermarket, being forced to try and get himself sold and the usually emotional followup from the disappointment of remaining unused for his primary objective of consumption.
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