Old school translation

[the_s_guy]

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Nearly everyone of a certain age watched Inspector Gadget on TV after school when growing up.

Very few of us looked at the credits hard enough to figure out that, like Asterix the Gaul, the Inspector was originally French.

And I bet none of us realised that at least some of the musical themes we heard over and over again in the show had originally had lyrics.

Thus, for the sake of nothing more than whimsy, I suppose, here's an approximately singable translation of Penny's Theme (Look Out), originally Le Theme de Sophie (Sophie being the character's original name).

For Sophie, on the trail, is our stray Inspector's tail
Sophie finds, unentwines, little Sophie
When her dog finds mysteries, she will always have the key
Sophie finds, unentwines, little Sophie

And when all seems lost, undone, and that nothing can be won
It is Sophie who will always save the day
Then when all is solved, seen through, comes our little ingenue,
As if nothing was wrong, nothing was wrong, little Sophie

Digital, mechanical, she can figure out it all
Very skilled, very smart, little Sophie
She'll never, have an error, on her watch or computer
Very smart, very skilled, little Sophie

And when all seems lost, undone, and that nothing can be won
It is Sophie who will always save the day
Then when all is solved, seen through, comes our little ingenue,
As if nothing was wrong, nothing was wrong, little Sophie

La la la, la la la, little Sophie
Na na na, na na na, little Sophie

Na na na, na na na, little Sophie
Na na na, na na na, little Sophie

ORIGINAL FRENCH LYRICS
Car Sophie part chercher notre inspecteur égaré
Sophie trouve, toujours trouve, petite Sophie
Quand son chien a trouvé du mystère, où est la clé?
Sophie trouve, toujours trouve, petite Sophie

Et quand tout semble perdu, et que rien, rien ne va plus
C'est toujours Sophie qui sauvera la partie
Puis quand tout est résolu, elle arrive, belle ingénue
Comme si de rien n'était, de rien n'était, la petite Sophie

Mécanique, computer, rien ne lui fait vraiment peur
Très habile, très maligne, petite Sophie
Avec elle, pas d'erreur, sur sa montre ordinateur
Très maligne, super fine, petite Sophie

Et quand tout semble perdu, et que rien, rien ne va plus
C'est toujours Sophie qui sauvera la partie
Puis quand tout est résolu, elle arrive, belle ingénue
Comme si de rien n'était, de rien n'était, la petite Sophie

Lalala, lalala, petite Sophie
Nanana, nanana, petite Sophie

Nanana, nanana, petite Sophie
Nanana, nanana, petite Sophie

The original lyrics, even in translation, are highly evocative and inspiring, particularly (I imagine) for young girls who might have been watching. Not that Penny wasn't a strong, capable character herself, but Sophie's Theme places the original as pretty much the show's star, instead of just the Super Sidekick. I wonder, just a little, how much more Penny could have been with her own equivalent lyrics instead of just a musical theme.