#chances are they are either a troll or twelve years old and it's not worth arguing with them either way

[deadmandairyland]

Guess who’s back with another tier list!

So I found another Black Lagoon tier list, this one including both Fabiola and Ginji, and this time I decided to go a different route with the list. Maybe some time I will use it to make a new, actual tier list, but today I decided to talk about probably one of the most confusing things about Black Lagoon (especially in the anime): the language barrier!

...So basically this list is just what languages the characters are speaking based on what I picked up on over the past decade of being a fan of this series.

This list was inspired by the fact that people watching the anime tend to be very confused on what languages the characters are actually speaking because unfortunately there is no perfect dub of Black Lagoon that actually shows what characters are actually speaking at any given time. Don’t get me wrong, still one of the best English anime dubs of all time, I’m in full agreement of that, but both the Japanese and English dubs of this anime fall apart when the language barrier becomes a key component in the series. And honestly it’s not their fault. I imagine translating this over to anime must have been hell for both dubs.

One important thing to mention: I do not claim that this is 100% accurate. This is what I’ve picked up on as I read the manga and watched the show, but obviously there may be other languages these characters speak that either I missed or was just never really addressed in the series. Also in several places I filled in the blanks myself because, well, obviously English isn’t going to be the first language for, for example, Ibraha.

I also remember reading in a few places that it was confirmed that English is a common language in Roanapur, but I cannot find the official source that said this. This is one of the reasons why I’m not claiming that this is 100% accurate, because while I do think this is probably what was intended for the story, no proof means no proof at the end of the day. But it’s also worth noting that--spoilers btw--the United States basically runs the city behind the scenes, so that’s something to keep in mind.

Another reason why I’m not claiming that this is 100% accurate is because human beings are fallible and as shown in some of my corrections below I know I’ve made a few mistakes here and there in the list, and there could be more that I’m missing or that I’ve got wrong. At the end of the day, this list is not to be seen as a definitive answer to the question of “What languages do these characters speak?” but rather something to look at to get a better understanding of some of the more confusing parts of Black Lagoon wherever language is a key component in the story.

One final note: at one point I refer to the main mob bosses of Roanapur as the Big Four. This is just a name I came up with to describe the balance of power among the four mob bosses, so it’s not an official name as far as I’m personally aware. I figured I should point that out to clear up any confusion.

So with that being said, here’s the breakdown. Expect lots of spoilers.

Revy speaks English, and a small handful of words or phrases in Cantonese (as mentioned in The Wired Red Wild Card), and that seems to be it. She is the most likely person to tell some to speak English when they speak another language to her, or to just say that she doesn’t speak whatever language they’re speaking. In the Japan arc especially, if you’re reading the manga or watching the Japanese dub, it’s clear that she doesn’t understand what most of the Japanese characters are saying. Canonically the vendor she has a shouting match with is actually shouting at her to speak Japanese and she thinks he’s insulting her (and her being unable to talk to the vendor is why Rock goes back and forth between them in the first place to talk about the fixed game), she never actually communicates with Ginji or the kids verbally (she talks to them, but they don’t understand each other’s words), when Rock asks her if she and Ginji can work together in the anime’s English dub when they enter the bowling alley he’s actually asking if they can communicate (Revy basically says when the action starts, they’ll be in sync without needing to talk to each other), and the dude who’s like “I GIVE UP, SERIOUSLY, I GIVE UP” is actually desperately trying to say he gives up in English. Also if you’re only familiar with the English dub, this video is a great example of why this arc is so confusing for everybody, and why the English dub was like “Fuck it, we’re not bothering with the language barrier subplot.”

Benny speaks English. He’s also Jewish, so it’s possible he may know Hebrew or another Semitic language.

Eda speaks English. She’s a CIA agent who claims to be from Alabama and is shown to be very patriotic when in CIA mode. Not that I’m saying this automatically means she doesn’t know any other language, but I haven’t seen any proof that she does.

Lotton... is mostly speculation based on everyone else, particularly Sawyer and Shenhua. I don’t even think he has an official nationality, he just... exists.

Sawyer speaks English. She is British and her name is of English origin. It is possible she speaks a Chinese dialect as well since she seems to do jobs for the Triad and befriends Shenhua, but she seems to be more freelance than a member of the Triad so this isn’t very clear.

Rowan is also mostly speculation. His name is of Irish origin, his last name is likely Pigeon, and Revy can understand him.

Chief Watsup is the chief of police in Roanapur and is the only recurring character in the show who is actually Thai. He can communicate with both Revy and Balalaika, so whether or not he speaks English depends heavily on whether or not Revy and Balalaika speak Thai (and given that Revy says in The Wired Red Wild Card that she only speaks English and a tiny bit of Cantonese, it’s more likely that he knows English).

Yukio and Ginji speak Japanese and do not appear to speak English. It is ignored in the English dub of the anime, but everywhere else it is often brought up that Revy can’t understand what they’re saying and they can’t understand what Revy is saying. To add on to what I mentioned above in Revy’s section, also consider that Yukio curiously asks Rock if Revy is Japanese when they first meet, with the thought in mind that the first thing Yukio and Ginji see when they first meet Rock and Revy is Revy shouting in English at a Japanese vendor who is yelling at her to speak Japanese.

Mr. Kageyama obviously speaks Japanese, and I assume he speaks English as well as he seems to be able to speak to both Dutch and Balalaika, the latter of whom is confirmed to not know Japanese.

Chaka canonically speaks both Japanese and English. Not only can he and Revy understand each other, but being able to speak English is one of the things he brags about to Revy when they first meet, saying something along the lines of “Can’t run a place like this without being able to speak English.”

Takenaka obviously speaks Japanese, more than likely speaks English as he’s able to communicate with Revy, and likely speaks Arabic as he has allied himself with Ibraha.

Ibraha obviously would have Arabic as his first language and he presumably speaks English as well (and possibly French as he’s from Lebanon, but this isn’t relevant). The important thing is that he does NOT know Japanese, because it is implied that THIS is the reason why he gets angry out of nowhere during the interrogation. Takenaka and Rock are speaking in Japanese during the interrogation (signified by a change in font in the manga, which would only be important if the language barrier is important to the scene) and Ibraha interrupts by saying something along the lines of “Even I know this is no longer an interrogation!”

All of the canonically English-speaking cast can understand Roberta, Garcia, and Fabiola, whose first language is obviously Spanish. Rock and Fabiola both act as interpreters in different points of the series. It’s also worth noting that Lovelace is obviously of English origin, which suggests to me that the Lovelace family in particular has a very ethnically diverse background.

Rico communicates with Revy and Eda, but judging by his name he probably can also speak Spanish (or possibly Portuguese, but Spanish is more likely as there are many Spanish speakers in town).

Balalaika and Boris obviously speak Russian, but they can communicate with the English-speaking Lagoon Company as well as Roberta.

Hansel and Gretel are Romanian, can communicate with several English-speaking characters including Revy and Eda, and are working for the Italians.

Verrocchio obviously speaks Italian, and presumably English as well as he’s part of the Big Four of Roanapur (this again ties into the idea that English is a common language in Roanapur). Also where IS Ronnie the Jaws? Or Abrego for that matter? This list said “All Characters.” False advertising smh

Bao is Vietnamese, but often speaks to characters that don’t speak Vietnamese (e.g. Revy).

Mr. Chang would likely speak Cantonese as a leading figure of the Hong Kong Triad and would likely know Mandarin as well. He can communicate with Revy, who according to The Wired Red Wild Card only knows bits and pieces of Cantonese and likely not enough to hold a whole conversation. He is also the CIA’s lapdog, so unless Eda speaks Cantonese they are probably talking to each other in English.

Shenhua is from Taiwan and as such would most likely speak Taiwanese Mandarin. She speaks with Revy who makes fun of her for her thick accent and way of speaking when she speaks English. She also might speak Cantonese as well since she works for the Hong Kong Triad.

Ahbe from the WWII flashback obviously speaks German.

Sir Alfred the old Nazi fuck would also speak German, but he’s able to talk to Dutch over the phone and he has American Neo-Nazis doing his bidding so he likely speaks English as well. He is also apparently living in Spain so it’s possible he might also speak Spanish.

Caxton and Yolanda speak English as they are constantly speaking with known English speakers throughout their appearances. Caxton in particular is about as ‘Murican as it gets without being a negative stereotype. It is unknown if they know any other language.

Jane is almost always speaking with English speakers. She is from India, so she likely also speaks Hindi. She is also part of an international team of counterfeiters, so it’s likely she knows other languages as well. After I made this tier list I remembered she also speaks German at one point and I think Theo was also from Germany, so she probably speaks German fluently as well, but I’m not redoing this list.

Leigharch speaks drugs... and presumably English and Irish as well.

Rock pretty much knows every language that ever existed in the history of mankind. He is basically the go to guy to translate anything. That being said, Japanese and English are the languages he’s most fluent in.

Dutch knows English, and--spoilers for L’homme Sombre btw--probably French as well, and also probably one of the many languages spoken in Burkina Faso, especially if he was born there (which I sadly didn’t think about until after I made the list). This arc is still ongoing in the manga, and more than anything I’m just excited to see Dutch's backstory being explored. It was long overdue. (Now we just gotta hope that the same happens for Benny.)

As I mentioned in that caveat, Roanapur is in Thailand, and it’s possible the people living in Roanapur may know Thai, but actual local Thai citizens are a rarity in Black Lagoon (with Chief Watsup being the only recurring Thai character), and American influence is so strong in the city that it’s probably the reason why people drive on the right side of the road with steering wheels on the left side, in a country where people drive on the left, and why US currency is accepted along with Thai currency, so that’s worth pointing out.

[sharnngan]

5 Ways to Flirt in 1921 that Are Still Sexy in 2021

Can we please bring back petting parties?

La Villa d’Este: France XXe siècle (1923) | Public Domain

No other decade has more monikers to describe its exuberance — The Roaring 20s, The Jazz Age, the Harlem Renaissance, and the Age of Wonderful Nonsense.

In the wake of the 1918 pandemic, a much younger America threw off sexual mores, swigged bathtub gin, and danced the Charleston in speakeasies. Women could finally vote, and their hemlines raised with hopes for an emancipated future. E. E. Cummings coined the word “partied” as a verb in 1922, and Dorothy Parker penned enough sexy double entendres to last a century.

Oh, and we also got the term “dating” from the young singles who were finally allowed to meet unchaperoned. Thanks, 1920's.

Now, sociologists are predicting an equally hedonistic dating trend to follow the COVID pandemic. But oddly, the name they have given this one is not as cute — “The Whoring 20s.”

Yep. That’s right. Everyone will be getting laid in the next few months. Or so the predictions go.

Similar to the 1920s, America had its share of growing pains in the last year. And we faced some of those growth spurts with all the aplomb of a zitty teenager with raging hormones. Will history repeat in one glittering bacchanalia?

Only time (and STD rates) will tell. Until then, here are a few old-timey pastimes from the 1920s that I wish we could bring back.

“Tell him I was too f*cking busy — or vice versa.”

— Dorothy Parker

Petting parties

The 1922 headline said it all — “Mothers Complain That Modern Girls ‘Vamp’ Their Sons at Petting Parties.” The article warned parents, “The boys of today must be protected from the girl vamp.” These jezebels were doing the unthinkable — touching boys at parties.

“Petting” included kissing, hugging, and well…petting. It did not include sex. In the very unliberated 1920s, premarital sex could still destroy any woman’s reputation. So petting parties became a safe (and only) way for young women to explore their sexuality without risking their future marriage prospects.

Well, thank god that slut-shaming is over.

But the petting part…let’s bring that back. Today, intimate kissing and long caresses have been replaced with dating app hookups — the fast food of romance.

But true intimacy does not move at the speed of a thumb swipe. And this is why I grow nostalgic for petting parties — delayed gratification. It’s the marshmallow test with a sexual twist. And if you pet your lover like a kitten…I promise you will drive that bearcat crazy with lust.

(Actually, I make no such promises. I never get to use 1920s gangster slang and couldn’t resist.)

“If I had to live my life again, I’d make the same mistakes, only sooner.”--Tallulah Bankhead

Baker in her banana costume in 1927 | Public DomainDancing

In 1926, audiences packed into the hottest Paris nightclub, Folies Bergère. The curtain raised to reveal a painted backdrop of a tropical paradise, hanging with vines over clear, blue water. The drums thumped out a slow, steady beat as Josephine Baker crept behind a fallen tree prop like a graceful tiger about to pounce. Suddenly, she sprang forward, gyrating her hips in whip-cracking speed…with a girdle of bananas around her waist.

Now that is hot and funny. Every woman in that audience wanted to move like Josephine Baker.

Young people learned Josephine’s sultry moves and crowded into smoke-filled speakeasies and cabarets to dance the Charleston, Black Bottom, waltz, and tango. The horns blared, and the bootlegged whiskey flowed as couples rocked their pelvises against each other. Dancing was freedom.

Aren’t we tired of not touching each other? Dancing is one of the best forms of exercise and has been shown to reduce Alzheimer's. And if you are going to grow old with someone, you might as well keep their memory sharp.

Ice Cream Socials

When Anheuser-Busch could no longer sell alcohol during Prohibition, they turned to a different pastime — ice cream. Other companies followed suit. The result was the invention of the Good Humor Bar, Dixie Ice Cream Cup, and the popsicle.

While alcohol might be the quintessential social lubricant, research shows sugar makes for sweet romance too. In one study, couples reported they like each other more after eating something sweet. And an ice cream headache beats a wood alcohol hangover any day.

William Ruppert breaking the pole-sitting record of 23 days, in 1929 | Public DomainFlagpole sitting

Before TikTok stars and influencers found fame by doing pretty much nothing, wannabe celebrities had flagpole sitting. Flagpole sitting is just like it sounds — people sat on top of a flagpole for as many hours as boredom and your spine could endure.

It’s a dating activity that probably wouldn’t take off today. Modern couples are so distracted with dinging cellphones and dopamine firing social media that we have lost the art of silence. But any man who can sit on a flagpole with me for twelve hours without distractions is a keeper.

“Ah, good conversation — there’s nothing like it, is there? The air of ideas is the only air worth breathing.”

― Edith Wharton

The telephone

In the 1920s, a hesitant man could ask a woman out by ringing her at her parent’s home. This prevented him from experiencing in-your-face rejection.

Today, most people ask for a date in a text message. It’s a low level of risk.

But while we have reduced the risk, texting has also created a world of two-dimensional relationships that never lead anywhere. And why would they? Since 90% of communication between most humans is nonverbal, it’s no wonder why we struggle with intimacy. Sorry, but your emoji laugh doesn’t get my heart thumping like your real laugh.

This is why your phone is one of your sharpest screening devices. The reason is simple — people who text for weeks and weeks without asking for a date are either bored, dating someone else, not that into you, or lack confidence.

There I said it. Set the trolls loose on me. But before you attack me for expecting the man to do all the work, I have asked out plenty of men who won’t make a move (or hinted ridiculously). If you think that is sexy, you don’t understand women.

Usually, I ghost my pen pals after about a week. By then, my inkpot has run dry, and I get as mercenary with my delete button as a husband-hungry Jane Austen character. And many women will agree with me. It’s one of the most common complaints I see on dating apps —“not looking for a pen pal.”

When someone writes that, you should believe them. Or better yet, pick up that newfangled device known as a telephone, and quit the lollygagging, cake eater. (That’s my last 20s slang…maybe)

You will get one of two answers — a yes or a no. But if you hide behind your screen, you will get gray hair and a first date story that only happened in your head.

“A woman should be able to kiss a man beautifully and romantically without any desire to be either his wife or his mistress.”― F. Scott Fitzgerald

Dating without expectations

Daters today seem to fall into one of two camps — seeking serious courtship or casual sex. I saw one female writer advise single ladies to swipe left on any guy who fills out the “not sure” box for whether he is looking for a relationship.

Please stop swiping left on Mr. Unsure. There’s nothing wrong with approaching dating without expectations. Not everyone has a binary goal of either saying no or yes to a relationship. There’s a lot of adventures to be found in that unpredictable space of “it depends.”

It depends if you have chemistry and compatibility. It depends on the delicate timing that makes you prioritize relationships. And it depends on a host of socioeconomic factors — geography, desire to have children, sense of humor, and matched ambitions.

But with one in three couples meeting online now, the mystery is uncloaked. Want to know if a guy is looking for a serious commitment? It is listed in his profile. Want to know if a girl is open to a hookup. Also listed in her profile. Her favorite music. It’s on her Spotify list. His passions? That dead fish is speaking to you.

Dating was not as transactional in the 1920s. Both men and women went on dates to potentially meet a husband or wife but, more importantly, to socialize.

Socialize. Remember that little verb? It meant if you wanted a meaningful connection with someone, you had to peel back the layers. (And by layers, I don’t mean clothing, kids.)

But flirting today has become a stultifying game of putting people in neat boxes. Hot or not. Rich or poor. How about giving people a chance without any expectations of how we can retrofit them into our lives?

Desires blooms in odd places. It might even happen over soda pop and some necking in your flivver. (Now that was my last 1920s slang.)

More dating tips from Carlyn Beccia:

Old-Fashioned Flirting Tips that Still Work

5 Ways to Flirt in 1921 that Are Still Sexy in 2021 was originally published in P.S. I Love You on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

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