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Do Girls Really Like Vegeta?
Yes, this is a man who oozes sexiness every time he walks into the room.
Like a fine wine that continues to age well, Dragon Ball is still continuing to be relevant in every anime/manga fan’s lives. Just recently, the ever-rageful Prince of the Saiyans, Vegeta, became a target both positively and negatively. Our anti-hero was voted #2 on a list of top 9 anime/manga boys that women wish were real. Gintama also made fun of his entire character in Episode 242 (Volume 42, Chapter 364 in the manga), where the girls of Gintama discuss Vegeta and question his appeal to women in front of a female Vegeta fan. As Gintama’s episode title proclaims, “Girls Like Vegeta”. Is the bad boy appeal of Vegeta extremely powerful for women to resist?
Here’s one girl’s thought about Vegeta:
“He’s always strong, but his loving tsundere-ness towards his family really gets me.” (A quote about Vegeta from the list conducted by Girl Sugoren)
After hearing that quote, it makes me wonder about Vegeta’s popularity after the Freeza arc. Most of us know that he cried during the arc and begged Goku to beat Freeza. Was that the moment made girls go “Awwww”? Vegeta’s character slowly changed afterwards, as he started to settle down a little with a family while still being the prideful Prince of Saiyans that he is. The guy was literally a complete a-hole who didn’t care about anything, except defeating Goku in battle. Vegeta did show some signs of love to his family, as he went berserk when his son, Trunks (whose future version was also VERY POPULAR among girls) was killed by Cell and risked his life to save everyone from Majin Buu. Of course, there’s that confident smirk, evil laugh, and arm fold he does that seems to draw a lot of attention.
With those characteristics that Vegeta has, why are girls drawn to them? Do we blame Hollywood? Do we blame the media? Or do we blame human nature? It could be girls’ inherent preference of “good genes”. “Good genes” in men tend to be a high level of masculinity and symmetry. Women at a younger age seem to enjoy seeing acts of bravery and risk-taking (which bad boys tend to do). There’s also the belief that girls secretly harbor the fantasy of turning the bad boy into a loving man who is committed to them.
Do Vegeta fangirls see hope that it’s possible for a bad boy to become a nice guy and still remain tough? Or do they appreciate the fact that Vegeta is a “bad boy” character that lives up to whatever perceived fantasies they have of him? It was interesting to see Bulma being attracted to Vegeta, but it somehow makes sense for her. Vegeta’s confidence in wanting to be stronger than Goku probably attracted her in the first place, since he was very determined to reach his goal at all costs. Also, as Trunks once stated, both his parents were lonely and that’s why they got together. A combination of strength and love can create interesting opportunities, don’t you think?
I do like to point out that the group of women who voted Vegeta on the Sugoren list were women in their 20s’. What happens when they get older? Will their opinions about “bad boys” change? Will they like Vegeta less? As women get older, their appreciation of certain types of men evolve.
Vegeta seems like the perfect guy to many girls. He is still a “bad boy” at heart, but he also fights with some sense of altruism. I think this is the secret to his popularity among women. The fact he’s an somewhat altruistic, tough guy. Both younger and older women can find him to be a character that satisfies their criteria for a great male character. Vegeta has been able to activate so many emotions in people’s (especially women’s) hearts, that you can’t help but react (and women tend to focus on emotions). Look at all the things he has said and done over his history in Dragon Ball.
Even though I’m not a girl, I love Vegeta. He’s played a big part in how my personality is shaped. I don’t know about this perceived notion that guys don’t like him, but like Piccolo (as Gintama hints). All I can say is that guys might feel a bit inspired to develop some sense of pride to keep themselves strong. To the female Vegeta fans out there, is his pride a strong factor in why you love the beloved Saiyan Prince and do you perhaps enjoy that quality in a man?
Power, brash confidence, and a good heart - when it comes to the ideal man, isn’t fiction just grand?
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Kim Jong-Un Is Secretly Android No.19
“Do not try to escape. Yes, it is useless. Until I have your energy, I will never let you go!” - Android No. 19
I hope the energy that Mr. Jong-Un wants isn’t carbohydrates. How much more does this man need to lead his somewhat-warped country to prosperity? Then again, judging from the U.S. deciding to resume food aid to North Korea, that might be the case.
Courtesy of Alafista, this lovely picture showcases the new North Korean leader, Kim Jong-Un, as the infamous Android No.19 from Dragon Ball Z. For what it’s worth, you gotta give props to Android No.19. I mean, he defeated Goku in Super Saiyan form (albeit Goku already being weakened by a heart defect).
What’s more interesting is that Kim Jong-Un is supposedly a huge manga fan. Maybe he will be looking for “energy” of the ecchi kind. If Jong-Un tries to go after Japan’s mangakas (his father, Kim Jong-Il, kidnapped a movie director once), will Japan pulverize him while making him look like a pansy in the process (a la Super Saiyan Vegeta)?
Though I obviously doubt our young hero has time to deal with manga. He has to deal with a country of citizens who were quite enamored with his tyrannical father.
Jong-Il was probably similar to Android No.20 (Dr. Gero). One wonders if Jong-Un will be similar to someone like Androids No.16, 17, or 18 instead, contrary to his No.19 appearance. What are your takes on this, fellow anime/manga and current event followers?
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Remembering Sailor Moon From My Childhood
MOON CRYSTAL POWER! MAKE-UP!
Everyone in the manga world knows that Naoko Takeuchi’s famous series, Sailor Moon, is making a triumphant return to the United States. Kodansha Comics will be releasing enhanced versions of the Sailor Moon manga and the prequel series CODENAME: SAILOR V this September.
This series actually brings a small tear to my eye, since I grew up with both Dragon Ball Z & Sailor Moon before they made it big in the States. Sailor Moon was first released in 1992 in Japan. Around the time, I was introduced to the first Sailor Moon series and also part of the Sailor Moon R series. A friend and his sister both were into anime since they rented Chinese-dubbed anime from Chinatown, so I frequently went to his place to watch. It’s funny because I got into DBZ while my younger sister was into Sailor Moon. We even made fanfiction stories in which both series collided.
When Sailor Moon finally made it to the States in 1997 on TV, I decided to give the English version a try one weekday morning. My first impression was “Wow, the voices sure sound funny!”. At the time, I was mostly used to watching Chinese-dubbed anime. Never would I have thought that Sailor Moon (and also DBZ) would engrave themselves into American pop culture.
Watching episodes of Sailor Moon also made me develop a crush on Makoto Kino, also known as Sailor Jupiter. Honestly, I don’t even know why I liked her in the first place. Was it because she was the first tomboy cartoon character I seen? Or maybe because she was a tall girl? Yeah, Rei Hino (Sailor Mars) was supposed to get the guys bothered. But, to me, it was Sailor Jupiter. She was the start of my love for “tough girls”, alongside Chun-Li of Street Fighter since SFII was insanely popular around the time Sailor Moon began airing in Japan. Seeing cute girls kick ass became quite the fascination for me.
Also, Tuxedo Mask. Oh man. A guy coming in like that to save the day. It was kind of badass to me. I didn’t care too much about the relationship between Mamoru Chiba & Usagi Tsukino, but I liked how he made his appearances to save the Sailor Senshi when they’re getting their butts kicked by monsters. That developed another fascination with roses. Roses are filled with thorns and you have to be cautious when dealing with such beauty.
Sailor Moon will definitely be on my to-watch manga list for this Fall. This was part of my early childhood and it is wonderful to see a new generation of female readers see the series that truly revolutionized the “magical girl” genre.
So, for the haters out there, under the name on the Moon, I WILL PUNISH YOU!
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Growing Up With Vegeta (Dragon Ball)
“I don’t care what my enemies do. I’ll just kill them all.”
Do you guys remember the first anime/manga character that truly got your attention? I sure did. I want to share my experiences growing up with my first favorite anime/manga character, Vegeta, of Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball series. Arguably one of the most popular characters in the whole series and a character that served as an inspiration to a very popular meme, Vegeta was someone who I patterned myself off of when I was younger before Dragon Ball (and anime in general) made it big in America. His pride & arrogance was something new to me at the time.
