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I sometimes watch this anime called Crayon Shin-chan in Portuguese (in which it is simply called Shin-chan). Flirty as he is, Shinnosuke (its main character) is often inconveniently messing around with women. Sometimes he walks up to them and, as if to break the ice, asks them "Do you like peppers?". After this either the women get very embarrassed or his mother knocks him in the head (or both).
Also, in one opening theme he sings that "pepper tastes so bad".

Is this something specific to the Portuguese version of the anime?
Is its only significance related to his childishness (him being a five-year-old child)?
Or is it supposed to mean anything other than that (and makes more sense in Japanese)?

Hakase
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JNat
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1 Answers1

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The progression of the phrase goes like this:

ピーマン好き (Do you like [green] peppers)？ ニンジン食べれる (Do you like to eat carrots)？ 納豆にはネギ入れる方？ (The method of sticking negi [spring onion] into natto [fermented soybeans] "Are you the type who puts spring onions in their natto?")?

This phrase doesn't translate very well, but it's an equivalent to South Park "fish sticks" gag:

Do you like to put fish sticks in your mouth?

кяαzєя
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  • Ohh, I see. And what about the opening theme? When he sings that "pepper tastes so bad"? That is a little bit weird considering that interpretation. Or is it the Portuguese translation that is weird? – JNat Dec 14 '12 at 22:16
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    I think that is because kids hate green peppers. According to Shin-chan, green peppers taste like crotch. I seem to recall some dialogue that went something along the lines of: "I can't eat green peppers, they taste like crotch!" "Duh! Everyone knows that! It's like saying monkeys fling poop!" – кяαzєя Dec 15 '12 at 02:01
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    @Krazer: One would wonder how he knows how crotch tastes like... – SF. Dec 15 '12 at 12:17
  • @SF. He's Shinchan. Of course he's eaten crotch. Probably on a dare or because someone told him its great. – StarPilot Nov 23 '13 at 23:57
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    The last bit ("納豆にはネギ入れる方") is more like "Are you the type who puts spring onions in their natto?". – senshin Apr 27 '14 at 17:38