Never Let It Be Said We’re Not All About Expanding Your Mind Culturally As Well

Firefly’s 15 Best Chinese Curses (and How to Say Them)

For example:

1) Holy Testicle Tuesday
Shun-SHENG duh gao-WAHN
This is one of the shortest phrases on the list, but makes up for word count with sheer outrageousness. Remember, these phrases are originally composed in English (though the idea that they pick random Mandarin phrases with no notion of what they mean is quite amusing, and not difficult to believe). Therefore, Ben Edlund and Jose Molina, the writers of this episode, had to go to the show’s translator, Jenny Lynn, and ask her how to say: “Holy Testicle Tuesday!” in Mandarin Chinese. Damn, we’d kill for a job like that!

As for context — once again, Saffron brings out the most bizarre vulgarities imaginable in the Serenity crew: Mal and Saffron break into the palatial estate of Durran Haymer, an Alliance officer with an incredible collection of priceless antiques from “Earth That Was”. These three words (or four in Pinyin) are how Mal chooses to express the impressiveness of Haymer’s knick-knacks.

There ya go. Get back to us when you’ve got a couple down pat. Should be fun.

11 Responses to “Never Let It Be Said We’re Not All About Expanding Your Mind Culturally As Well”

1. JeffS says:

   February 9, 2012 at 9:24 am

   How many of these have you used on Major Dad?

2. tree hugging sister says:

   February 9, 2012 at 9:35 am

   They don’t trip off the tongue yet, Jeff. I won’t use them ’til I can really let fly, if you get my drift.

3. ricki says:

   February 9, 2012 at 9:37 am

   Holy Testicle Tuesday? I think one of the bars here offers that as their special.

4. Rob says:

   February 9, 2012 at 10:06 am

   Shiny. 🙂

5. JeffS says:

   February 9, 2012 at 10:35 am

   I bet Ebola is practicing these with his team buddies.

6. Syd B. says:

   February 9, 2012 at 10:48 am

   “Filthy fornicators of livestock”

   Haven’t the Greeks been through enough without now calling them filthy?

7. nightfly says:

   February 9, 2012 at 1:26 pm

   I’ll take “Things Burt Ward tried to sneak past the censors for $400,” Alex.

8. Gunslinger says:

   February 9, 2012 at 5:39 pm

   7) Have a Shit-Throwing Contest with a Monkey
   ?????? ? Gun HOE-tze bee DIO-se

   Man, I could get a load of mileage out of that one at work.

9. Dr Alice says:

   February 9, 2012 at 10:32 pm

   ROTFL. I think you just made me want to rent this here show, THS. This detail alone convinces me that a fair amount of imagination mut have gone into it.

10. John says:

    February 13, 2012 at 11:35 am

    Unfortunately not all the translations come out well in Mandarin. #1 is literally just “Amazing testicles”. #7, however, is pretty accurate.

11. Mr. Bingley says:

    February 13, 2012 at 12:25 pm

    I bet you hear that a lot, John 🙂