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
