Big-eyed, frail-looking, steel-willed (cheerful or serious) bishounen ('pretty boy')
Well, many series have among their characters a boy around 14 - 16 years of age, with big eyes and a dreamy expression, for little boys to identify themselves with and girls with a strong maternal instinct to sigh for. They are the bishounen or 'pretty boys' in Japanese (many people seem to use the term for any young, pretty male character, but it actually only applies to young boys that "do not shave" yet. For older pretty boys the adequate term seems to be biseinei).
There are two basic kind of bishounen: the genki ('bouncing' / 'cheerful') one and the serious/tortured one. Although both kinds are usually mild and well-behaved, they sometimes display a slight tendency to histrionics (such as Son Goku and Hisoka) in some situations.
It is easy to notice that they are very similar in their looks: all are short and have a frail appearance, round eyes and face, smooth features and an abandoned-puppy-look that makes them very kawaii ("cute"). As for their role in the series, they usually embody a sensitive and more fragile character that hesitates to use force or violence, unless as a last resource.
However, bishounen are not at all defenseless and they usually pursue their ideals with a tenacity that surprise all those that are fooled by their looks. They are there to show that there are other ways to get to one's ends besides physical force, and thus they lend to male characters something of the strength typical for Japanese heroines, such as non-violence and self-sacrifice, that is, something along Ghandi's guidelines.
From top to bottom and from the left to the right:
Omi (Weiß Kreuz) , Nagi (Weiß Kreuz), Quatre (Gundan Wing), Hisoka (Yami no Matsuei), Shun (Saint Seiya), Son Goku (Gensoumaden Saiyuki), Subaru (Tokyo Babylon) Byakko Gai (Saint Beast), Toboe (Wolf's Rain),Yuki (Fruits Basket), Katsushiro (Samurai Seven), Enki, Taiki and Kouya (Juuni Kokki), Camus (Meine Liebe),
Yuuri and Wolfram (Kyou kara Maou) . (Some images can be seen bigger by clicking on them).
I know Nagi is not one of the "good guys" and that Kouya wasn't exactly "on the right side", but since I will have no section for "bad bishounen ", they will have to stay here!
Proceed to the next category: Androgynous
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No money is being made through this page. All mentioned series and characters belong to their respective legal owners. Pictures from the sites: Meghan’s Gundan Wing Image Archive (Quatre); Stayka Homepage (Shun); Ken Hidaka's Shrine (Omi), Schüldiger als Sünde (Nagi), Paperthin Pleasures: Yami no Matsuei (Hisoka), Usenet Images: Gensomaden Saiyuki (Son Goku)., Project: Sakurazukamori (Subaru), Stray - Wolf's Rain (Toboe) , Fallen Saints (Byakko Gai), The Luna Regina (Yuki). Pictures of Katsushiro, Enki, Taiki, Kouya, Camus, Wolfram and Yuuri are screen captures from the animes by yours truly. Since I have been surfing the Net a lot to find the pictures, it is possible that I have mixed some credits... If this should happen, please contact me so that I can correct my mistake. Doumo arigatou!
