I just don't get the appeal of tsundere...

[Crescent Pulsar S]

I mean, is it just me, or is it just romanticizing the whole, "the girl isn't interested, but that just means that she really is," idea? Y'know, where it's assumed that a protesting girl "wants it," which takes "dost protest too much" into sinister territory. It makes me wonder if the guys over in Japan have such poor luck getting together with girls...

And that's not it. To me, the behavior itself seems like a mental illness, because it's self-contradictory and thus self-destructive in nature, and the one afflicted by it usually doesn't notice or understand what's wrong. The person they behave that way toward are usually mentally impaired as well, because they usually don't notice what their behavior means (even though it's not unusual for another character to get it, who might drop hints or say something outright). And no matter how you look at it, it's just unhealthy behavior all over.

I know it's often used for laughs, but it's become too trite for my jaded mind to not take seriously. It completely ruins whatever romantic element it may be a part of, because suspending my disbelief for it insults my intelligence. I just can't see the appeal of tsundere (not that I ever have), and I don't think I'll ever understand why anyone else would.

Basically, to me, if it just came down to evaluating its intended purpose, I think it fails as a comedic, dramatic and romantic device. It's partly because of overuse, but mostly because it makes no sense as long as it isn't perceived as some kind of mental problem. Which is why I'm not surprised it shows up in the harem sub-genre so often, because the setup for something like that often doesn't make any sense to me either. (I'm not saying that it couldn't, but I've yet to be convinced of it if the social environment is anything like our own.)

[PCHeintz72]

Meh... seen a few fics it has been funny in...

a couple NGE ones with Asuka as one, and a oddball one where Rei tried to be one...

there is a Index fan fiction where it is funny, as Touma recognizes Mikoto as being one, and she just keeps denying it...

For the most part, I think it fails in a lot of series and fan fiction stories due to being not just done, but overdone...

[Noy Telinú]

Nope I think they are mental as well.

My mom is like that somewhat. Violent, denaial of feelings, but quickly switches to being very nice out of nowhere.

And we are supposed to LIKE them?! O_o

Um... No. Especially the worst ones like Kirie from Girls Bravo.

It's over done, it's overly unstable, and the other characters like them and don't call them out for being jerks. And why do they get away with it? Cuz they're cute girls. That's why.

And yes it's probably like that in Japan. 60% of single guys don't even have female friends. Seriously. When the target audience can't even befriend a girl, saying that they really like them but hiding it is just a desperate attempt to boost birth rates and bring down suicides... And make money too, but that's obvious.

[Crescent Pulsar S]

I think switching between two different moods for no explicable reason is bipolar...?

I'm suddenly reminded of a manga I checked out recently where Japan's population is ninety percent female, and the guys are pretty much treated worse than second-class citizens. And I thought one tsundere in a harem was bad enough...

[Blackcat101]

Some times it can be fun if done right, but others its get annoying. Basically the idea in itself isn't bad, is the way is used. I think I didn't like how it was used in Akane because instead of her slowly warming up to Ranma she never stop blaming him for things and using the mallet, of course that's done for the sake of comedy, but after Ranma has helped her so many times it does make Akane look bad.

[Spica75]

And sometimes it can be done realistically, and then it tend to work pretty well.
I think Misaka Mikoto, Railgun for example, might just fit that category.

[Noy Telinú]

Lucy Van Pelt is an American version. And I hate her guts. Which is kinda why I sometimes like family guy. It gets back at these evil people.

[Cheb]

Maybe its an allergic reaction to too much moe floating around?

[Dumbledork]

Lucy Van Pelt is an American version. And I hate her guts. Which is kinda why I sometimes like family guy. It gets back at these evil people.

I don't think she is. I'm not 100% sure, but aren't tsundere girls generally that way towards guys they like? And Lucy is definitely romantically interested in Schroeder and not Charlie Brown.

Though, if you want an American equivalent I think that Helga Pataki from Hey Arnold! fits the description of a typical tsundere.

I agree with the others, though. I don't really see the appeal in tsundere girls. Honestly, I'd rather marry a kind girl like Kasumi rather than Akane.

Tsundere have been around for some time now and you really can't have a romantic comedy or harem story with at tleast one of them.

I'm more concerned by the recent popularity of netorare. That's definitely a lot more disturbing than tsundere.

[Crescent Pulsar S]

But not that much of a surprising development, considering how humans tend to trend toward one extreme to the next.

Anyway, yeah, I'd rather deal with tsundere than netorare/cuckolding. I'm glad that it hasn't infested anything that I've seen within the environs of my personal interests. And I hope it stays that way, since it tends to happen within a hentai context (sometimes ecchi, as well) and that's not where I roll.

[Noy Telinú]

Well, Lucy is a bully, so...

She does smash his piano every once in a while.

[Crescent Pulsar S]

Sounds like the making of a word game using an anime/manga context: "You know such and such likes you when..."

"...They smash your piano without any clear provocation." (You should be paying attention to me!)

[Noy Telinú]

Sure.

But helga fits better yes.