The List
7 Not-So-Ditzy Blondes
by Lynzee Loveridge,
Somewhere down the line, storytellers, comedians, and scriptwriters decided to make blondes the catch-all for giggly, dumb, airheaded characters. Everyone's favorite magical girl Usagi Tsukino, and her close friend Minako Aino embody the trope with poor grades, lack of basic knowledge (Usagi doesn't know how gravity works), and over-the-top silly personalities. But hey, that's not a fair representation of all towheaded characters and people, so let's put the stereotype to rest!
7. Misa Amane (Death Note) Misa Amane gets a lot of flack due to her obsessive interest in Kira and what's interpreted as a ditzy demeanor. She seems dumb by comparison to the likes of L and Light but the girl is a lot more conniving than her idol-like personality lets on. She successfully tricks Higuchi into taking the fall as Kira. She even takes up the mantle herself for awhile, one could argue more "successfully" than Light ever did.
6. Thompson Sisters (Soul Eater) Liz and Patti are Death the Kid's highly-skilled demon weapons. Patti has the appearance and demeanor of a child, typically blowing off tests and speaking in a juvenile tone. This translates in some ways to her abilities as a weapon, but she's extremely accurate when shooting downrange. Liz's personality is more akin to a superficial (see: typical) teenager but is even more accurate and consistent than her younger sister. Both make for reliable, surefire weapons in a fight.
5. Freesia Yagyu (Jubei-Chan 2: The Counter Attack of Siberia Yagyu) Freesia is much more clever than her young appearance would have you believe. After she awakens Encino Man-style and is raised by the wild animals of Hokkaido, Freesia sets out to reclaim what she believes is rightfully hers. She adopts a dumb blonde demeanor to pull one over on Jiyuu, but it's a complete farce for what is actually a very intelligent, very adept 300+-year-old magical ninja girl.
4. Alicia Florence (Aria) Alicia "Snow White" Florence managed an impressive number of accomplishments during her time as a gondolier on Aqua. She was the youngest ever to gain the title of "Prima" at the age of 15. Her natural talent earned her the status as the most popular gondolier on Aqua and eventually she becomes one of the Three Water Fairies of Neo-Venezia. In the meantime she mentors future gondoliers and tests their skill levels for promotions.
3. Eugénie de Danglars (Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo) The independent and smart Eugénie serves as a foil to the emotionally naive Albert. She is a classically trained pianist and dreams of playing on the world stage despite her parent's attempts to marry her off. In the anime adaptation of Dumas' novel, she finds love and comfort with Albert while in the original, her independent streak and penchant for menswear and female company is more pronounced.
2. Miyo Takano (Higurashi no Naku Koro ni ) Takano was dealt a bad hand from the beginning. It's easier to appreciate what she accomplished despite her horrible upbringing If we ignore that "bad end" in Albuquerque. Partly due to luck and tenacity, she escapes from an orphanage and is adopted by a doctor. Ever vigilant, Takano succeeds in pursuing medicine herself, effectively leading a "research group," and manipulating an entire town for her own ends.
1. Evangeline A.K. McDowell (Negima!?) Eternally 10 and a vampire, Evangeline knows more than her fair share about magic. She specializes specifically in ice and dark-type spells but is all-around a skilled fighter and a sort of mentor to Negi and his class. Enemies fear her many abilities, earning Evangeline tons of nicknames during her lifespan, including "Doll Master," both for her literal ability to control dolls and manipulative ability to control people.
The new poll: While we're on the topic of hair, let's see how ANN's readers compares to participants in a recent Akihabara poll. Who is your favorite blue-haired character?
The old poll: What is your favorite work by Rumiko Takahashi?
- Inuyasha 44.7%
- Ranma ½ 29.5%
- Maison Ikkoku 10.3%
- Urusei Yatsura 8.3%
- Mermaid's Forest 3.7%
- RIN-NE 1.4%
- Rumiko Takahashi Anthology 0.9%
- Rumic World OAVs 0.8%
- Moeyo Ken 0.4%
- One Pound Gospel 0.2%
When she isn't compiling lists of tropes, topics, and characters, Lynzee works as Associate Editor for Anime News Network, blogs about women and LBGT topics in anime and manga on her blog Engendered Dilemma, and posts pictures of her son on Twitter @ANN_Lynzee.
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