No, Dylan from “Beverly Hills” or Slash from Guns N’ Roses weren’t the first to awaken your libido if you were born in the last century. Before, long before, there were the animated mangas of Récré A2 then Club Dorothée. And their collection of handsome V-cut kids, sometimes silent, often toxic. Admit it, even today, it’s not unpleasant to think about it…
Shiryu in “Knights of the Zodiac”
THE FANTASY. A big guy with hair longer than Kylie Jenner, a tattooed dragon on his back and a fiery look. Supposed to be 14 years old, Shiryû looked ten more. And put all the other “Knights of the Zodiac” to the fine in this manga where psychopaths in armor torture themselves in Greek ruins (like what, “Game of Thrones” did not invent much).
THE HIC. Shiryu would gouge out his own eyes to escape an adversary’s spells, then fall in love with a frightened virgin, as dull as a bowl. Difficult then to see it appear without thinking how badly life is. Big potential, big waste.
Mark Landers in “Olive and Tom”
THE FANTASY. Protruding biceps and shoulders under his jersey with rolled up sleeves, surfer’s tan 365 days a year… In the middle of the boys populating the soccer fields of “Olive and Tom”, there was an alpha male clearly out of puberty: Mark Landers .
THE HIC. The epitome of cruel cool. Doubled as an old smoker in VF, Mark spent his time trampling schoolchildren and knocking out eagles in mid-flight with his balloon. As he had extenuating circumstances (a dependent family since the death of his father), that made him touching, therefore, even more toxic.
Harlock in “Harlock 78”, “Harlock 84”, etc.
THE FANTASY. The sexiest scar in pop culture with that of Gaspard Ulliel, who would have made a perfect Harlock. Gaulé like a crossbow, the privateer captain pulled it off in terms of his look with his wick, his gouged out eye (definitely!) and his satin cape, much more stylish than that of Benedict Cumberbatch in “Doctor Strange”.
THE HIC. We weren’t on a huge bullshit with Harlock, distant in addition to being silent. “Even if you look like ice, your heart is good, your heart is big for all children”, sang the credits composed by Eric Charden and Didier Barbelivien. Already the idea that a good guy is likely to be sinister. And vice versa.
Cobra dans… « Cobra »
THE FANTASY. Cigar in beak and feet on the table, red jumpsuit, white safari jacket and bracelets of strength, Cobra was Jean-Paul Belmondo manga version. A tribute claimed by the creator of the series Buichi Terasawa, a big fan of the actor since “Breathless” and of French cinema in general. Since the original Cobra, which we discover before he had his face redone, had the features of Alain Delon.
THE HIC. “I would like to be, like in a harem, surrounded by a swarm of pretty women who would argue to approach me”, announced our hero in the first episode. Often surrounded by scruffy creatures, he won’t change his shoulder delta radius. Phallic, cunning and fickle, the space pirate willingly jumps on anything that moves. By borrowing as much from Han Solo as from Bébel and Delon. The “male gaze” at recess time.
Nicky Larson dans… « Nicky Larson »
THE FANTASY. In France we have Jean Reno in “Léon”. In Japan, they have Nicky Larson. A quarterback build caught in a red t-shirt and a sky blue blazer, deltoids strapped in a holster, a Colt and an uppercut unsheathed at will… Nicky was 1.91m of animal magnetism, released in Tokyo of the 80s, which he criss-crossed at the wheel of his Mini Cooper.
THE HIC. His reputation is well established. The most alluring cleaner of the screens was also the most priapic, since he sickly tried to sleep with each client. Where Cobra contented himself with emphatic invitations and rinsing his eye, Larson systematically crossed the red line. And again, the watered down VF of this anime for adults, awkwardly exported for young audiences in France, spared us the worst. Yes, in Japan they were entitled to close-ups of his erections.
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