This article series is where we showcase some of the cool kanji that appear all throughout Dragon Ball. In today's lesson, we'll be looking at the fearsome weaponized fighters created by the genius mad scientist, Dr. Gero! What kind of kanji are used to refer to these harbingers of doom?

[Reading] Jin Zo Nin Gen
[Meaning in Dragon Ball] The Androids were created by a scientist named Dr. Gero, who was part of the Red Ribbon Army. While some models like Android 16 and Android 19 are purely cybernetic, there are also models like Android 17 and Android 18 who were originally humans and so are actually more like cyborgs. Back in his youth, Goku met and befriended No.8 (Hatchan) in the Muscle Tower, the Red Ribbon Army's northern stronghold. However, all subsequent Androids were created with the sole directive of defeating our hero.
Incidentally, the humans who served as the bases for Android 17 and Android 18 are a couple of former delinquents whom Dr. Gero encountered while searching for materials for his heinous experiments. He subsequently kidnapped the siblings and turned them into Androids.

Let's take a look at the readings, meanings, and stroke orders.
There are three different kanji used for the word Android.

● Readings, Meaning, and Stroke Orders　*Source: Imidas (SHUEISHA)

Readings: jin, nin, hito
Meanings: Person. Human.
<Cool Point!>
This kanji is used to refer to people. If you attach it like a suffix to the name of a place, the resulting word then refers to someone who lives in that area, or someone whose familial roots are from that region.

Readings: zou, tsuku-ru
Meanings: To create. To master.

Readings: kan, ken, aida, ma
Meanings: Between two objects. Distance. Gap. Relationship.

That marks the end of the seventh lesson in the "~Learn Cool Kanji with Dragon Ball!~" series! The "jin" kanji that was showcased in today's <Cool Point!> is easy enough to write, but finding just the right balance might be harder than you think. It looks symmetrical at a glance, but the second stroke should be written to look like it's holding up the first. After all, no one can get through life without a little support from others!

See you in the next lesson!