It’s Friday! You know what that means! Yeah a whole bunch of really fun stuff but ALSO a Friday Five!
I kicked things off last week with a pretty silly list of androgynous girls that have captured my..let’s say heart.. That proved to be popular. Pretty girls are popular, who would’ve thunk it? So popular in fact that it caught the attention of CarnivorousL who casually mentioned that an androgynous boy version would be amusing and I immediately pounced on the chance to force a collab out of the unsuspecting dear. Ha – who’s carnivorous now? Not me, don’t remember last time I ate meat. I’m more like a locust…
Well this is about as logical and organized as my posts usually go…. You want to try to save this intro L?
Hey strangers, I’m CarnivorousL, and I was “dragged” into this by Irina after I commented on her androgynous girls list about making an androgynous boys list too. Well, dragged is in parentheses because I really was gonna make my own list at some point, but Irina was nice enough to offer a collab and I wanted to give it a good old-fashioned try.
So, androgynous boys have been a staple of modern anime for a long time, be it as a gag, or as a serious character story. In this list, we will pick our own personal choices for the androgynous guys that make us go “Wai-wha?! “
And now the actual reason we’re all here – the Boys!
5
Irina: Yasaburō Shimogamo – The Eccentric Family
Not so much androgynous as impressively fluid, gender is a mere suggestion to Yasaburo and he feels no need to stick to one for any length. After all, variety is the spice of life. But whether adorable school girl, blushing belle or dashing lad, Yasaburo remains fun-loving, kind and caring, which is the truly attractive thing in the end.
I would be so lucky to have someone like Yasaburo in my life, no matter what he may choose to wear that day. It’s a rather nice bonus that he doesn’t seem to associate any particular stigma or preconceived notions to either feminine or masculine appearance. I guess when you are truly comfortable with yourself, these things don’t seem quite as daunting.
L: Hideaki Hakamichi:
The younger brother of resident Katawa Shoujo deaf girl, and my waifu. , Shizune Hakamichi. What I like best about his character is how he dresses up the way he does not because he likes being a girl , or he’s being forced to by some other people, which is usually the reason for most of the people on this list, but because he wants to be more like his responsible and intelligent older sister, and he does that by mimicking her well, fashion sense. He legit just thinks girls clothing is cool, and that’s pretty cool! The only reason he isn’t higher on this list is because KS doesn’t have an anime adaptation, and his character wasn’t explored any further after the acts he appears in.
4
L: Haku – Naruto
I’d say he is one of THE OG androgynous guys in modern anime. Haku was introduced to the series very early on, in the first serious mission of Team 7 ever as a matter of fact. He was introduced as a beautiful and gentle maiden picking flowers in a forest, which makes it all the more surprising when it’s revealed he was a “villain.”
He has a tragic backstory and a badass set of skills and powers involving ice that mirrors not only his demeanor but also his cold heart. Being Zabuza’s own personal combat butler makes them badass duo and one of the best antagonists that Naruto ever had. Other than a few throwaway jokes though, his gender androgyny is not explored further, which is a damn shame as it would have added a bit more depth to his already complex character, as it might have been an avenue of abuse to him.
Irina: Kurapika (Hunter x Hunter)
Did you guys know I’m an HxH fan? I am! There is somewhat of a lack of prominent female characters in the series, however the ones we do see tend to be quite impressive. This draught of ladies was especially true in the early episodes where Kurapika’s more delicate design served as a stark contrast to the rest, and earned him the occasional remark.
Kurapika is really an androgynous character as opposed to an effeminate one. Rather than being continuously portrayed as feminine, he simply comes from a race of people with finer features and smaller stature and that’s all there is to it. The fact that people often overlook him all together when thinking of androgynous men is part of the reason he makes it on my list. You don’t need to be a caricature to be unique.
3
Irina: Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu – Danganronpa 2
Man I had a huge crush on Fuyuhiko. And by had, I mean have, call me Kuzuryu! I honestly stopped caring if he was a boy or a girl 5 minutes in, what’s more, it seems no one else did at all. Throughout the game, Fuyuhiko is repeatedly called young-looking rather than androgynous which leads me to believe I may not have quite the grasp on anime feature I think I do.
In any case, for a little while I thought he might be a girl. It would be a Danganronpa sort of thing to do. I also thought he might be a super incredibly hot girl. In fact, had he been a girl, he would have made my other list…
L: Saika Totsuka – Oregairu
Saika Totsuka is the ever-adorable and confusingly feminine side character in Oregairu. His demeanor, looks, and overall aura just generates femininity which funnily enough upsets him because he would like to be seen as more manly like Hachiman of all people. His meekness and lack of confidence, however, cement his reputation as boy waifu instead of husbando, and makes him someone you want to protecc, even though he would want to attac.
What does differentiate his characterization from most otokonokos is that he does go out of his way to tell people he’s a boy when they are mistaken, and acts appropriately offended, and even becomes sort of a character arc for him. However, the affection and admiration he shows for Hachiman does put the question of his orientation in question, plus he’s even got a route in the PSP game, so………..
and, the rest is going up on CarnivorousL’s blog! Please go read it here: wp.me/p9FGCN-7B

I want to play the PSP game to see how that Oregairu route plays out haha.
ooohhh – let us know
I’m not familair with any of these, but … Yasaburō Shimogamo in The Eccentric Family intrigues me. I didn’t know that there was a positive sounding portrayal of gender-fluid in anime! I would ahve loved to have seen a character like that when I was teen!
I loved the show in general so I definetly encourage you to give it a try although it’s admittedly…quirky. An acquired taste. This said gender fluidity (not only in Yasaburo) and non gendernormative representations are nicely done without being preachy or militant. Just integrated into the narative in a very organic way.
Quirky is good. Is it similar to anything else to give me an idea of how quirky?
That’s what I always wanted with diverse fictional characters; they jsut are who they are and that’s it. It’s why I write them the way I do in my novels. That being said, any non-steretyped representation at all twenty years ago would have saved me a lot of confusion, I think. I love that the world is moving on in that regard.
In my not yet published review I compare it mostly to a Wes Anderson film. Like Tenenbaums or Rushmore…
Alas, the only thing I know Wes Anderson from was a cameo in Sing.
Then maybe a bit of silver spoons…a more absurdist Natsume. Or Tsuritama but a little more bitter
It’s perhaps important to say at this point, that Yasaburo is a tanuki, so when he’s in human form – male or female – he’s already crossing the species barrier, so gender isn’t that big a deal. You’ll also see him as inanimate objects. That said, he’s pretty much everything-fluid – intensly curious and trying out anything as long as it’s interesting.
It’s a little known fact that The Eccentric Family has been made for me personally. It’s a fact so little known, even the creaters are oblivious. It might be my most favouritest anime ever, and Yasaburo is the closest I have to an ideal (though my personality and behaviour is closer to a certain frog in a well). And this spring I’ll finally be able to buy volume 1 of a local release. (YAY!)
See I’m an overly rigid and panicky older brother myself but I wish I was a prince
Tanuki horoscope
Woah, I never thought of Fuyuhiko that way, as he felt just like a snobby gangsta boy to me. Either way, I’m happy to see him on the list—such an underrated character (same goes to the rest of the D2 cast)! Happy Friday!
yeah – it may just be me…I really though he was a girl…I got some twisted variation of Yuri goggles going on…
Sees Haku
FEELS
cute
Do watch that very arc in Naruto. Never have I thought that a battle shounen riddled with recaps and 5 min waits before fights actually takes place could be so…FEELS
Agree about Totsuka. He’s a baffling character, especially for Hachiman. Another for the list is the maid character in Haganai, who states he’s a boy who wants to be more masculine so gets tricked into wearing girls clothes so his masculinity will show through like the hero he admires. Haganai and its sequel reveal the second half of the joke which I won’t spoil here.
Yukimura was his name. If you do an image search for Haganai Yukikura you’ll see who I mean.
That show is actually pretty close on my cue – I’m looking forward to it
I should hope so. I recommend it for adults because its very funny. Just too adult for teens. And BL is a major topic in the show.
Thanks for having me!
Entirely my pleasure
I’m going to see Apocrypha’s Astolfo appear aren’t I.
Only one way to find out….cough…
Wow, the amount of familiar faces…Why am I not surprised by the picks?
cause I’m predictable AF?
More like cause I know what you like at this point 😉
Would you say there’s a difference between Androgynous Boys and boys that dress in women’s clothing in anime? Or boys that are by all outward appearances cute anime girls? I suppose there is in that latter category. (I’m deliberately avoiding the T-word because I don’t know if it’s offensive or not)
Well I’m no expert on the subject – For my list I simply took it at face value and chose men who had features that weren’t strongly gendred, regardless of clothing preference. But there’s a whole history and culture around Otokonoko that’s fascinating and tricky. I sidestepped it…