Dr.STONE: Why Does Gen Asagiri Talk the Way He Does?
A character from the “old world,” Dr.STONE‘s Gen Asagiri is a very intriguing and important character. He was portrayed as a self-absorbed talkative expert who defines himself as a mentalist. He was revived by Tsukasa, who was looking for an ally who could follow Senku’s thoughts, but he ended up switching to the Kingdom of Science after witnessing Senku’s accomplishments. As a villain-turned-ally of Senku, he is a very intriguing character, and his personality keeps intriguing fans, which is why we have decided to dedicate this article to him. In this article, you are going to find out why Gen speaks like he does in a very peculiar way.
In the Japanese original, Gen tends to flip the halves of random words, while in the English translation, this has sometimes been replaced with Pig Latin, but not always. It is a verbal tic of his and a manifestation of his quirky nature. We know that he uses this way of speaking when he is shocked, but no official reason behind it has been provided.
The remainder of this article is going to focus on the character of Gen Asagiri and his manner of speaking, as well as his personality in general. We are going to tell you and explain how he talks, as well as why he talks like that, but also how that is a reflection of his personality in general. If you don’t know the whole plot of Dr.STONE, there might be some spoilers here.
Gen Asagiri flips words and speaks Pig Latin
Dr. STONE fans will know that Gen Asagiri is a strange and quirky character with many unique traits, but one of the most expressed ones is his way of speaking. Namely, fans of the manga and the anime will certainly have noticed that Gen often flips the halves of some random words in Japanese, with some examples being “yabe” (やべ), which becomes “beya” (べや) or “muri” (無理), that becomes “rimu” (理無).
In the English version of the same story, he also retains this quirk, but it is often replaced with Pig Latin, a language probably used because it is not spoken anymore and is a remnant of the “old world,” although not consistently, as he has been seen flipping words in the English version as well; a notable example is his labeling crazy plans as “azy-cray”.
Now, this is a notable character trait of his, but why does Gen speak like this? We have noticed that it is a very noticeable tic of his and that he often uses it when he is shocked or otherwise surprised, although this has not been used consistently throughout the manga. In fact, the manifestation of this tic seems more random than anything else, really.
Having said that, we can confirm that no official reason behind this verbal tic has been given to us and that we don’t actually know why Gen speaks like that. There doesn’t seem to be any one precise reason for this, and it seems that it is just a simple personality trait that makes Gen – Gen. In the upcoming section, we will discuss his personality, as we think it is important to understand that aspect of Gen to fully grasp why he speaks as he does.
His manner of speaking is a reflection of his personality
Gen is confident in himself and his skills, and he takes pride in his ability as a magician and mentalist and his understanding of how the human mind works. When Gen comes to Ishigami Village for the first time, he appears to be stoic and maintains his composure while being threatened with a spear. His surprise when Senku asks his name suggests that this façade is vulnerable. Regardless of this, he is depicted as being incredibly paranoid (albeit justified in doing so), concealing several bags with blood in his clothing in case he is assaulted.
In an effort to have a harem, he planned to stay close to Tsukasa and hit Kohaku and, subsequently, Amaryllis. Gen is somewhat odd and frequently heard speaking in Latin, which is one of his most prevalent speech tics when startled. Even while being honest about it, he exudes a gentlemanly air despite having a tendency to be self-centered and wicked. He also appears reluctant to help with the manual effort necessary for Senku’s experiments.
Additionally, as Kohaku noted during the first meeting, Gen is a brilliant liar who can lie without the slightest trace of stress or facial changes. He may not be as scientifically astute as Senku, but his capacity to read people and manipulate them makes him an equal to Senku and one of his most important allies. Contrary to Senku’s more truthful personality, through lies. He employs his skills to persuade allies, conduct talks, inspire cooperation, and inspire enthusiasm. When it’s convenient for him (like avoiding work or engaging in combat), he frequently switches between acting like an airhead and being a cunning manipulator.
Even when faced with death, he exudes confidence and steely nerves. He is a brazen manipulator who told Tsukasa the truth about Senku’s passing. Gen prefers to be allied with the “winners,” but he can also be persuaded by Senku’s promises of benefits to himself. But, regardless of this, he later concedes to the latter that Senku’s intelligence and capacity to advance humanity had probably already won him over.
He is shown to be devoted to her and employs his skills to forward Senku’s agenda, frequently by coercing others, as when he promised Minami a unique gift in exchange for giving up the rest of the depetrification potion that Minami had. Ryusui Nanami had to be duped into paying an outrageous amount to go on the air balloon while he revived Francois (although he was actually needed on the balloon because of his amazing piloting skills). Gen demonstrates an amazingly high degree of willpower and stamina by managing to withstand a devastating Magma strike with careful planning and still making it to the severely damaged Tsukasa Empire to announce Senku’s death.
His ability to follow Francois, who visits Ishigami Village twice in succession (which is a rather complex feat without any water or food and without shoes on), is also extremely limited. Gen is innately a nice guy who cannot really harm others, despite the fact that he frequently exudes an aura of self-centeredness, self-interest, trickery, and cunning. His grasp of psychology conceals his external appearance, but his deeds reveal loyalty, tenacity, kindness, and occasionally even sacrifice. He demonstrates sincere kindness by once making Senku a telescope as a surprise present for his birthday. Moreover, he appears to get along great with Suika, a youngster.
He doesn’t seem to harbor any resentment because he can work with Magma and handle him without getting scared, despite the fact that Magma once tried to kill him. On top of that, he is fairly serious in his adoration of others, telling the residents of Ishigami Village in reverent tones of Lillian Weinberg’s famed singing abilities. Their realization of their ancestors’ respect in the “old world” was likely to raise their morale and motivate them to support Senku’s mission of restoring civilization. He frequently claims that he can’t stand booze and that Cola is his favorite beverage.