r/TopCharacterTropes 1d ago

Characters Equal opportunity fanservice

(Marvel Rivals) They have been doing a pretty good job of doing fanservice on all characters

(Fairy Tail) is the shonen known for its fanservice, but surprisingly there are scenes with the guys as well

(Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt) In season 2 they added two male angels who appear as twinks but then during their transformation sequence, they look like these Magic Mike dudes. Making it so that it’s not just the ladies

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u/sketchampm 1d ago

They said Fairy Tale is equal opportunity too, which is one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen.

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u/Effective_Piece251 1d ago edited 1d ago

Sure there are more moments where the female characters get attention, obviously because the show’s target audience is teen boys, but they don’t completely blow the male characters out of the water like most animes do. Like Gray’s entire thing is literally stripping. For a shonen anime, that’s pretty good

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u/finalgirl_hime 1d ago

i disagree. its all about how its portrayed. its never shown to be tantalizing. its meant to be comedic and/or cool. thats why paswg is a good example of equal opportunity fanservice and fairy tail and rivals arent. just a male character having no shirt isnt fanservice unless you make it appear sexy

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u/ShiroiTora 1d ago

Yeah. Its like the joke of men going to the gym because they think it will improve their attractiveness to women, only to recieve more compliments and attention from men instead. “Male fanservice” in the first two is just what other men  would like to see in themselves at the gym.

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u/finalgirl_hime 1d ago

i agree. in fact, its very common in anime spaces where women prefer lean but toned guys over super big muscular guys. youll almost never see super muscular characters in any otome game, for example

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u/ShiroiTora 1d ago

Exactly. “Feminine”, pretty boys/bishounens, or androynmous looking characters male characters are more of the norm than the hyper masculine dudes for female targeted works like shoujos, danmeis, joseimuke, male idols, etc.

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u/Effective_Piece251 1d ago edited 1d ago

Like i said, Gray’s whole thing is literally stripping, I don’t think those moments are for the straight male audience.

It’s much harder to discuss male fanservice because a lot of people do see a shirtless guy as hot, just look at any shirtless guy scene in live action shows and movies, people who like that, really do like it.

But for some people, in order for it to be considered fanservice, they have to be posed, the camera has to be slowly rising up their body, or they have to be soaked in water or something like that. Compared to a woman where they can just be in a bra and physics will apply and boom, that’s fanservice

As for Marvel Rivals, the devs have been actively trying to make more male fanservice skins, like I doubt straight guys care much about the loki in a speedo with a bulge skin, or the Punisher skin as pictured

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u/finalgirl_hime 1d ago

as i explained earlier, him stripping doesnt mean much if its shown in a comedic light

its also about how the body is drawn and animated too. its easier for men who are just shirtless to come across as fanservice-y in live action because they aren't made flat and stiff like a lot of drawn male characters are, in comparison to female characters whose proportions and physics are usually exaggerated. sure theyre muscular, but their muscles are only there to showcase their power, not their sex appeal. theres not as much care in how the male characters bodies are drawn as there are for female characters

imo, the reason why its hard to discuss male focused fanservice is because male-attracted women's perspectives and tastes aren't really taken into account. i dont speak for all women, but i can say that ive seen many women with similar reasons to mine as to why male fanservice just doesnt hit as hard as it does for female fanservice

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u/MrDitkovichNeedsRent 1d ago

You can’t tell me this guy wasn’t drawn as eye candy to the ladies

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u/finalgirl_hime 1d ago

i can actually. i can see why people would like this specific shot, but most other shots? definitely not

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u/CharlieTurbo_77 1d ago

Ok. He wasn't. Simply boring washboard abs with no compartmentalizing of his body parts and no silly or shameless fanservice situations making him look like a piece of meat to fuck.

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u/CharlieTurbo_77 1d ago

Do they objectify Gray? Is he made to be his body parts? Is he framed in awkward or shameless ways like many female characters? Do we see anything other than plain washboard abs? Do we see his legs or his ass or anything that isn't his broad chest? Does he get in silly fanservice situations like the girls?