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ickaimpOkay, so one of the things that has been bothering me with a lot of the Keroro Gunsou art I'm seeing is how young people draw the Keron characters as humans. I deal with the military (mostly Air Force) on a daily basis at work and the ranks/ages/apperances weren't matching up.
So. Data dump. And it doubled as homework to better understand the ranks I'm dealing with everyday.
Used US Army and USAF because Keroro Gunsou says they're Army, but I needed the USAF equvialant to comprehend, and Space usually falls under USAF anyway. (hello, Stargate...)
And there is jack-all on the interwebs for understanding non-english military structure. :p
Army: Minimum Requirements Time in Service for Promotion
Private (E-2) - 6 months
Private First Class (E-3) - 1 year
Specialist/Corporal (E-4) - 2 years
Sergeant (E-5) - 3 years
Staff Sergeant (E-6) - 7 years (4 years, second grade/fast tracked)
Sergeant First Class (E-7) - 6 years
Master Sergeant/First Sergeant (E-8) - 8 years
Sergeant Major (E-9) - 9 years
Average Time in Service for Promotion
Private (E-2) - 6 months
Private First Class (E-3) - 1 year
Specialist/Corporal (E-4) - 18 months
Sergeant (E-5) - 4.2 years
Staff Sergeant (E-6) - 8.5 years
Sergeant First Class (E-7) - 13.6 years
Master Sergeant/First Sergeant (E-8) - 17 years
Sergeant Major (E-9) - 20.8 years
USAF: Minimum Requirements Time in Service for Promotion
Airman (E-2) - 6 months
Airman First Class (E-3) - 16 months
Senior Airman (E-4) - 3 Years
Staff Sergeant (E-5) - 3 years, plus level 5 occupantional skill
Technical Sergeant (E-6) - 5 years, plus level 7 occupational skill
Master Sergeant (E-7) - 8 years, plus level 7 occupational skill
Average Time in Service for Promotion
Airman (E-2) - 6 months
Airman First Class (E-3) - 16 months
Senior Airman (E-4) - 3 years
Staff Sergeant (E-5) - 4.4 years
Technical Sergeant (E-6) - 12.9 years
Master Sergeant (E-7) - 16.9 years
Senior Master Sergeant (E-8) - 19.7 years
Chief Master Sergeant (E-9) - 22.1 years
So most Asian countries have a compulsory army, starting between ages 18-21. For the sake of argument, I'm going with 18, since it seems to be the most common world wide for entering the military.
First thing to understand is that Keroro's entire platoon is Enlisted. This means they're not command track, they're grunts. The lowest ranking officer still out-ranks the highest ranking enlisted personal. (although if they're smart, they'll listen to the experienced ones). This also means they have to test into the next level and be promoted. You can be demoted if FUBAR, or fail say like your fitness tests.
The thing to keep in mind is that being promoted at the bare minimum is EXTREMELY rare. It's much more common to have a promotion delayed for years as they wait for everyone in front of them in queue to be promoted first.
Kururu is E7, which means a minimum of 6 (army) to 8 (usaf) years in the military. Average time to become an E7 is 13-16 years. So anywhere from 24 to 36 years old.
It was pointed out that in some of the non-manga publications that there are flashbacks to Kururu as a tadpole while the Trio are adults, so chances are he's younger than Keroro, Giroro and Dororo, but older than Tamama.
Keroro is an E6, so minimum of 4 years if he was fast tracked in the Army (likely, due to his famous father and how kick-ass he supposedly is), or 5 years in the Air Force. Average time is 8-12 years. So minimum, he's around 22, but more likely to be approaching 30.
Giroro is E5, 3 years minimum, on average around 4. Average time to move up to the next rank is 8-12 years, So 22-30 years old.
Dororo is E4, around 2-3 years service. So 20-21 years old. Kind of wondering if he enlisted after the others, he's not applying for promotion, or if he's failing his tests, which seems unlikely due to how studious he is.
And Tamama is an E1, which puts him right at 18/19 years old. We refer to them as 'Baby Airmen', because they're so bright-eyed and clueless. It's been our observation at work that with the exception of medical and intelligence personnel, the clueless stage is generally outgrown by the time they're E4 or O4s.
The confusing this is that Keroro, Giroro and Dororo are supposedly all about the same age, which could be anything from 21-30 years of age. Keroro stated in volume 7 (released 2003) that he was a child when Nintendo started selling the Game & Watch systems, which came out in 1980, placing him in his late 20s.
They've also experienced at least one war, and with the exception of Tamama, are at least somewhat seasoned warriors. So I'd place them at 26-28 years of age.
Garuru, Giroro's older brother, is a Chūi First Lieutenant (中尉 Chūi). Which is an Officer grade 3 (O3), or Captain in either the Army or the Air Force. Officers, unlike Enlisted, don't have to test into next level, it's based on how many years you've spent in the service. It's a minimum of 4 years to get to O3, but to get to O4, it's a minimum 10 years.
Officers have to go to school before they get their butter bars, so most are around 20-22 when they officially join.
So Garuru is probably between 24-32 years of age. Given that he's Giroro's older brother, leaning closer to 32. Prolly due for promotion soon.
Further reading: Ages/Demographics in Air Force Inteligence Agency
So. Data dump. And it doubled as homework to better understand the ranks I'm dealing with everyday.
Used US Army and USAF because Keroro Gunsou says they're Army, but I needed the USAF equvialant to comprehend, and Space usually falls under USAF anyway. (hello, Stargate...)
And there is jack-all on the interwebs for understanding non-english military structure. :p
| Grade | E-1 | E-2 | E-3 | E-4 | E-5 | E-6 | E-7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WWII Japanese Military Rank US Army Rank US Air Force Rank |
Nitōhei Private (二等兵) Private Airman Basic |
Ittōhei Private 1st Class (一等兵) Private E-2 (PV2) Airman (Amn) |
Jōtōhei Senior Private (上等兵) Private First Class (PFC) Airman First Class (A1C) |
Heichō Lance-Corporal (兵長) Corporal (CPL) Senior Airman (SrA) |
Gochō Corporal (伍長) Sergeant (SGT) Staff Sergeant (SSgt) |
Sergeant Gunsō (軍曹) Staff Sergeant (SSG) Technical Sergeant (TSgt) |
Sergeant Major Sōchō (曹長) Sergeant First Class (SFC) Master Sergeant (MSgt) |
Army: Minimum Requirements Time in Service for Promotion
Private (E-2) - 6 months
Private First Class (E-3) - 1 year
Specialist/Corporal (E-4) - 2 years
Sergeant (E-5) - 3 years
Staff Sergeant (E-6) - 7 years (4 years, second grade/fast tracked)
Sergeant First Class (E-7) - 6 years
Master Sergeant/First Sergeant (E-8) - 8 years
Sergeant Major (E-9) - 9 years
Average Time in Service for Promotion
Private (E-2) - 6 months
Private First Class (E-3) - 1 year
Specialist/Corporal (E-4) - 18 months
Sergeant (E-5) - 4.2 years
Staff Sergeant (E-6) - 8.5 years
Sergeant First Class (E-7) - 13.6 years
Master Sergeant/First Sergeant (E-8) - 17 years
Sergeant Major (E-9) - 20.8 years
USAF: Minimum Requirements Time in Service for Promotion
Airman (E-2) - 6 months
Airman First Class (E-3) - 16 months
Senior Airman (E-4) - 3 Years
Staff Sergeant (E-5) - 3 years, plus level 5 occupantional skill
Technical Sergeant (E-6) - 5 years, plus level 7 occupational skill
Master Sergeant (E-7) - 8 years, plus level 7 occupational skill
Average Time in Service for Promotion
Airman (E-2) - 6 months
Airman First Class (E-3) - 16 months
Senior Airman (E-4) - 3 years
Staff Sergeant (E-5) - 4.4 years
Technical Sergeant (E-6) - 12.9 years
Master Sergeant (E-7) - 16.9 years
Senior Master Sergeant (E-8) - 19.7 years
Chief Master Sergeant (E-9) - 22.1 years
So most Asian countries have a compulsory army, starting between ages 18-21. For the sake of argument, I'm going with 18, since it seems to be the most common world wide for entering the military.
First thing to understand is that Keroro's entire platoon is Enlisted. This means they're not command track, they're grunts. The lowest ranking officer still out-ranks the highest ranking enlisted personal. (although if they're smart, they'll listen to the experienced ones). This also means they have to test into the next level and be promoted. You can be demoted if FUBAR, or fail say like your fitness tests.
The thing to keep in mind is that being promoted at the bare minimum is EXTREMELY rare. It's much more common to have a promotion delayed for years as they wait for everyone in front of them in queue to be promoted first.
Kururu is E7, which means a minimum of 6 (army) to 8 (usaf) years in the military. Average time to become an E7 is 13-16 years. So anywhere from 24 to 36 years old.
It was pointed out that in some of the non-manga publications that there are flashbacks to Kururu as a tadpole while the Trio are adults, so chances are he's younger than Keroro, Giroro and Dororo, but older than Tamama.
Keroro is an E6, so minimum of 4 years if he was fast tracked in the Army (likely, due to his famous father and how kick-ass he supposedly is), or 5 years in the Air Force. Average time is 8-12 years. So minimum, he's around 22, but more likely to be approaching 30.
Giroro is E5, 3 years minimum, on average around 4. Average time to move up to the next rank is 8-12 years, So 22-30 years old.
Dororo is E4, around 2-3 years service. So 20-21 years old. Kind of wondering if he enlisted after the others, he's not applying for promotion, or if he's failing his tests, which seems unlikely due to how studious he is.
And Tamama is an E1, which puts him right at 18/19 years old. We refer to them as 'Baby Airmen', because they're so bright-eyed and clueless. It's been our observation at work that with the exception of medical and intelligence personnel, the clueless stage is generally outgrown by the time they're E4 or O4s.
The confusing this is that Keroro, Giroro and Dororo are supposedly all about the same age, which could be anything from 21-30 years of age. Keroro stated in volume 7 (released 2003) that he was a child when Nintendo started selling the Game & Watch systems, which came out in 1980, placing him in his late 20s.
They've also experienced at least one war, and with the exception of Tamama, are at least somewhat seasoned warriors. So I'd place them at 26-28 years of age.
Garuru, Giroro's older brother, is a Chūi First Lieutenant (中尉 Chūi). Which is an Officer grade 3 (O3), or Captain in either the Army or the Air Force. Officers, unlike Enlisted, don't have to test into next level, it's based on how many years you've spent in the service. It's a minimum of 4 years to get to O3, but to get to O4, it's a minimum 10 years.
Officers have to go to school before they get their butter bars, so most are around 20-22 when they officially join.
So Garuru is probably between 24-32 years of age. Given that he's Giroro's older brother, leaning closer to 32. Prolly due for promotion soon.
Further reading: Ages/Demographics in Air Force Inteligence Agency
