TV-Series
Description
Pisuke Soramame, sometimes romanized as Peasuke Soramame, is a recurring character in Dr. Slump and one of the main supporting figures among the children of Penguin Village. He is the younger brother of Taro Soramame and the second son of the Soramame family, which runs a barbershop in the village. He is a classmate and close friend of both Arale Norimaki and Akane Kimidori. From his first appearance he is a middle school student, yet he stands only about 102 centimeters tall and looks more like an elementary school child, a trait that defines much of his comedy. His visual signature is a hat with animal-like ears, which he wears constantly; in the original version the hat is white with ear-like extensions, while some later adaptations give it a grey color. He also wears green clothing with a yellow bib-like panel and carries an elementary school backpack, or randoseru, even after entering high school.
Personality-wise, Pisuke is timid, cowardly, and prone to crying. He frequently runs to his older brother Taro for help and is extremely sensitive about his small stature, since his childish appearance invites teasing. Despite this shyness, he has a remarkably bold streak: his hobby is collecting autographs, and he will approach almost anyone and ask them to sign for him with his characteristic request. He also tries to copy the tough, delinquent manner of his brother and of Akane, tagging along with them and attempting to act cool, but because he looks like a little boy the effort usually gets him laughed at. He holds a genuine admiration for Taro and hopes to become like him when he grows up.
His motivations are simple and consistent with his age: he wants to be taken seriously, to appear cooler and taller than he is, and to enjoy the approval of the people around him. Much of his time in the story involves ordinary school life, being dragged into the absurd situations created by Arale, or trying and failing to imitate the older kids. He functions as one of the more ordinary residents of Penguin Village, and his unchanging appearance and behavior make him a running gag about the way time seems to pass strangely for the village's children.
One of his more significant story moments involves his relationship with a girl named Hiyoko, who is younger than him but much taller. After Pisuke develops a crush on her, Arale, in a misguided attempt to help, uses an invention called the Big-Small Gun to shrink Hiyoko to insect size. Pisuke then saves Hiyoko from a beetle, and the incident becomes the start of their connection. In glimpses of the future shown during the series, Pisuke eventually marries Hiyoko and has a son named Poosuke, though even as an adult he remains exactly as short as he was as a child.
His relationships anchor his role in the story. His brother Taro is both a role model and a source of constant criticism, complaining that Pisuke's animal hat cramps his style, and the two are frequently shown together as a contrasting pair. With Akane and especially Arale, he is a loyal friend who gets caught up in their mischief and in Arale's superhuman chaos. The anime also shows him in small everyday scenes, such as sitting at the village coffee shop and telling Akane that he plans to do homework over a school vacation. Outside Dr. Slump, he makes brief cameo appearances in the Dragon Ball series, including Dragon Ball Super, where he is older but still recognizably small and unchanged.
In terms of abilities, Pisuke has no superhuman powers and stands out in Penguin Village precisely because he is an ordinary child. His most notable qualities are his persistent autograph collecting, which he pursues with a confidence that contradicts his shy nature, and his brief moment of courage when he rescues Hiyoko. His development over the series is mostly comedic: he advances from middle school to high school and eventually to adulthood, but in every stage he keeps the same backpack, the same hat, and the same short height, making him an eternally childlike figure whose main role is to highlight the strangeness of the world around him.
Personality-wise, Pisuke is timid, cowardly, and prone to crying. He frequently runs to his older brother Taro for help and is extremely sensitive about his small stature, since his childish appearance invites teasing. Despite this shyness, he has a remarkably bold streak: his hobby is collecting autographs, and he will approach almost anyone and ask them to sign for him with his characteristic request. He also tries to copy the tough, delinquent manner of his brother and of Akane, tagging along with them and attempting to act cool, but because he looks like a little boy the effort usually gets him laughed at. He holds a genuine admiration for Taro and hopes to become like him when he grows up.
His motivations are simple and consistent with his age: he wants to be taken seriously, to appear cooler and taller than he is, and to enjoy the approval of the people around him. Much of his time in the story involves ordinary school life, being dragged into the absurd situations created by Arale, or trying and failing to imitate the older kids. He functions as one of the more ordinary residents of Penguin Village, and his unchanging appearance and behavior make him a running gag about the way time seems to pass strangely for the village's children.
One of his more significant story moments involves his relationship with a girl named Hiyoko, who is younger than him but much taller. After Pisuke develops a crush on her, Arale, in a misguided attempt to help, uses an invention called the Big-Small Gun to shrink Hiyoko to insect size. Pisuke then saves Hiyoko from a beetle, and the incident becomes the start of their connection. In glimpses of the future shown during the series, Pisuke eventually marries Hiyoko and has a son named Poosuke, though even as an adult he remains exactly as short as he was as a child.
His relationships anchor his role in the story. His brother Taro is both a role model and a source of constant criticism, complaining that Pisuke's animal hat cramps his style, and the two are frequently shown together as a contrasting pair. With Akane and especially Arale, he is a loyal friend who gets caught up in their mischief and in Arale's superhuman chaos. The anime also shows him in small everyday scenes, such as sitting at the village coffee shop and telling Akane that he plans to do homework over a school vacation. Outside Dr. Slump, he makes brief cameo appearances in the Dragon Ball series, including Dragon Ball Super, where he is older but still recognizably small and unchanged.
In terms of abilities, Pisuke has no superhuman powers and stands out in Penguin Village precisely because he is an ordinary child. His most notable qualities are his persistent autograph collecting, which he pursues with a confidence that contradicts his shy nature, and his brief moment of courage when he rescues Hiyoko. His development over the series is mostly comedic: he advances from middle school to high school and eventually to adulthood, but in every stage he keeps the same backpack, the same hat, and the same short height, making him an eternally childlike figure whose main role is to highlight the strangeness of the world around him.