characters who don't look their age

[monkeebiz]

Okay, what is it with anime characters who don't look their age? I'm talking about guys who pass for teenagers but are actually well into their twenties or thirties. I've seen it enough times now that I'm thinking it's a legitimate anime cliche. I mean, there's Kenshin, there's Endo from Gakuen Heaven, and now I've just started watching Tactics and there's Kantarou. And I'm sure there's a few others I've seen and forgotten.

Where did it start? Why is it so commonplace? What other characters fall into the same category?

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monkeebiz said:
Okay, what is it with anime characters who don't look their age? I'm talking about guys who pass for teenagers but are actually well into their twenties or thirties. I've seen it enough times now that I'm thinking it's a legitimate anime cliche. I mean, there's Kenshin, there's Endo from Gakuen Heaven, and now I've just started watching Tactics and there's Kantarou. And I'm sure there's a few others I've seen and forgotten.

Where did it start? Why is it so commonplace? What other characters fall into the same category?

[/ QUOTE ]

Funny? I thought it was the reverse. I've seen anime that have characters that sort of look and acts like they were in their early to mid twenties, only to look at their profiles, they're 15 and 16 years old.

For example: When I first became exposed to The Original Dirty Pair back in the late 1980s, I thought that these girls were around between 22 to 24 years of age, only to discover that they were actually 17 years old.


Danny

[seca]

I'm still trying to figure out how Thor from Jyu Oh Sei can look like he's in his twenties when he's only supposed to be 15 and look to be in his teens when he was 11. /images/graemlins/stunned0.gif

[Mr. Nail Bat]

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monkeebiz said:
Okay, what is it with anime characters who don't look their age? I'm talking about guys who pass for teenagers but are actually well into their twenties or thirties. I've seen it enough times now that I'm thinking it's a legitimate anime cliche.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think it's an Asian thing. I've known a number of women of Asian ancestry in their thirties who could easily pass for teenagers or even preteens.

[Kevinroc]

As others have said, it's usually the other way around with younger characters looking much older. It's rare that a character will actually look like the age they are supposed to be.

Why is it? Artistic license, perhaps? People want to follow series where the character designs are appealing and that usually means upping how sexy a character is and/ or making a character cuter.

[Johnny]

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Kevinroc said:
As others have said, it's usually the other way around with younger characters looking much older. It's rare that a character will actually look like the age they are supposed to be.

Why is it? Artistic license, perhaps?

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So that guys can lust after girls they know are jailbait without feeling (too) guilty. <span style='color:#dddddd;background:#dddddd'>Or is that just me?</span> /images/graemlins/noseblef.gif /images/graemlins/shy00000.gif /images/graemlins/devil.gif

[Texhnolyze]

The Prince of Tennis characters are supposed to be in middle school..

The only one who looks middle school is Echizen.

[monika]

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johnny said:

So that guys can lust after girls they know are jailbait without feeling (too) guilty.

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All I know is I can't watch Ouran without feeling like a pedo.

[Ty]

Ichigo Morino from Please Teacher/Twins is a great and classic example.

[quenelf]

Hagu (from Honey and Clover). She is awesome. That is all. /images/graemlins/happy.gif

--quen

[Suwako Moriya]

A lot of characters don't look their age. Then again in real life not everyone looks their age. Plus once you may get used to your average anime 17 year old, a new 17 year old comes into the equasion and throws you for a loop. Just as an example.

Oh yes in Fairy Musketeers, I would have guessed that Souta and crew are around 10 years old. However they're actually 14 years old. So take that as a possible example of characters that don't look their age. Or an example, I'm a bad judge of 14 year olds..

[Lego]

Hagu from Honey &amp; Clover and someone like Washu fit the bill perfectly. I do agree with your point that not everyone looks their age, even in real life. It's something where you can't have all characters look the same I guess, so one has to be kinda small and kid like heh. Plus it opens up the subplot of "zomg I'm not a child" that every anime with this type of character seems to go through.

[Nozmo]

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Geoduck said:
I think it's an Asian thing. I've known a number of women of Asian ancestry in their thirties who could easily pass for teenagers or even preteens.

[/ QUOTE ]

It's also an animation thing. It's a lot easier to render faces for cels and digital images if you don't try to include all the little folds and wrinkles that tell you more about age (and character) in a real human face. The artists will suggest that more in the shape of the face or the shading, but generally it's all kept simple to cut down on work time.

There's possibly also at work some aspects of "youth culture". The audiences for most series are under 18; also, at least some of the artists prefer to render younger characters.

[Captain Impulse]

Mika Suzuki, the teacher from Doki Doki School Hours (Sensei no Ojikan). She's 27, but stands about 4'10", and looks to be about 11 years old (if that). Of course, that's one of the main gags in the show; that her students (high school) look older than her.

[touma]

I recently finished the second volume of Kamichu!
Since Yurie and Matsuri are in the same grade I would say that at least one of them must not look her age. I think that Yurie looks younger than she should. She actually seems to be about the same age as Matsuri's little sister. Of course it could also be that Matsuri is exceptionally well developed for her age.

[Lego]

Yeh, especially Mitsue heh. I mean during the <span style='color:#dddddd;background:#dddddd'> beach episode, you end up going "wow, she is pretty well developed for her age compared to Yurie and even Matsuri(to a point).</span>

[touma]

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Lego said:
Yeh, especially Mitsue heh. I mean during the <span style='color:#dddddd;background:#dddddd'> beach episode, you end up going "wow, she is pretty well developed for her age compared to Yurie and even Matsuri(to a point).</span>

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Yes.
Actually Mitsue is the one that I meant to compare Yurie to. I just got the names mixed up. But any way, those three definitely do not look to me to all be the same age.

[Tomcat]

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Xcalibur said:
Ichigo Morino from Please Teacher/Twins is a great and classic example.

[/ QUOTE ]
Well, while she is rather petite for her grade, I think this is not unusual enough that the other characters think it is strange. Her real age does not seem to be her biological age. <span style='color:#dddddd;background:#dddddd'>Think if the condition that her and Kei go through as a sort of suspended animation. They don't actually age.</span>

Sort of like Fay Valentine. I mean, she's what? Over 100, right?

-TC

[TnAdct1]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Momiji from Fruits Basket yet. He looks and acts like a 12-year old, yet <span style='color:#dddddd;background:#dddddd'>he's actually one year younger than Yuki and Kyo.</span>

[bctaris]

It seems to me one of the central jokes in Desert Punk is that while Kosuna stays on with Kanta because she convinced him she'll grow up to be a sexy, buxom, over-developed woman (like her supposed mother), at the age of 14 she's somewhat...underdeveloped, and not hinting too well that she'll fulfill her promise. Or just a late bloomer. /images/graemlins/wink.gif

She does have the appearance of no more than a 12 year old, or even 10. Only belying detail is her being slightly taller than any of the verified children in the story.