Picture it with me: It’s late at night, and I’m watching yet another TV show for the sole reason that someone said I was like one of the characters. It’s an anime, one I’m really enjoying. I’m already on the second season, and I start the fourth episode expecting more heartwarming anime content. And then, two worlds I considered distinctly separate collide:
Kōtarō Bokuto & Quicksilver
This is Kōtarō Bokuto from beloved anime/manga powerhouse Haikyuu!. He’s a high schooler who plays volleyball, like just about every other character in the franchise. He is not intended to be in any way related to Pietro Maximoff AKA Quicksilver of Avengers fame.
I’m pretty comfortable making this claim although there’s no way for me to verify it, because seriously, why would anyone do that. It’s an anime about volleyball, for fuck’s sake. Bokuto isn’t even a volleyball player who’s known for being particularly fast. There are ones who are, yes, but not him.
The idea was lodged in my head, though, and so I set on a quest to find more anime characters who happen to look like completely separate Marvel superheroes. I got four.
First up, because it’s obvious:
Yūgao Uzuki & Kwannon
Probably the easiest one to track down due to the prevalence of both women with purple hair and ninjas in Anime.
Now, full disclosure, I haven’t read or seen any Naruto. I prioritized visual accuracy over actually knowing any of these characters. This gal shows up in one episode of the anime and one chapter (a single installment, think an issue) of the manga. We barely know anything about her. The Naruto fandom.com wiki has the following to say about her personality:
“Of the little that has been seen of her, she seems to be a caring and loyal person. She has also been described as someone that puts herself all into whatever she does and enjoys watching the moon, which might be a pun on the meaning of her name. In the anime, it is shown that Hayate’s death left an emotional scar on her, leading her to avoid any form of combat until Sakura made her change her mind.”
Thanks, Naruto wiki contributors! Seems like a nice girl. The Naruto wiki also notes that she’s a Scorpio, which I can see for Psylocke, but other than that and the striking resemblance I don’t see much in common between these two! Moving on:
Ophiuchus Shaina & Polaris
Apparently Saint Seiya is a decently popular anime, and a few people’s first, but I’ve never seen it. According to the Saint Seiya fandom.com wiki (fandom.com wikis will be a recurring motif throughout this article), Ophiuchus Shaina is a love interest to the main character.
She’s supposed to wear a mask at all times because she’s a woman, which, ok, and has to either kill or fall in love with any man who sees her without her mask. To all the men reading this: good luck, I guess? She tries to kill the main character Seiya when he sees her face, but she can’t, which then contractually obligates her to fall in love with him. Or something.
According to the wiki:
“She pursues Seiya a few times, determined to kill him, but Shaina really falls in love. Contrary to what her attitude suggests, her face is beautiful and soft, with big green eyes that express sweetness.”
I’d call this “bizarre” and “having a weird relationship with consent”, but that can be said about quite a few superhero romances. Didn’t Lorna nearly kill Alex after he left her? I mean, he might’ve deserved it, but still.
Shin & Daredevil
God, have I not seen enough anime? Is this the moment where I’m revealed as a fake fan?
…Well, apparently this guy is a henchman in a group of three henchmen for a yakuza boss, but just look at him. He radiates Matt Murdock energy. He has a suit, red-ish hair, and red glasses. Give him a cane and some dead girlfriends and you’re set! And according to the Toriko fandom.com wiki, he’s an ORPHAN! Which I hear Matt Murdock is too, occasionally!
He has a Blood Type of A — Blood Types are apparently something like horoscopes in Japan — and while I have no idea what that means, we have no reason to doubt that Matt Murdock also has a Blood Type A. There’s no evidence to support it either, but we do what we can.
Also, this series has something called “Therapy Tulips,” according to the wiki.
And finally…
Bitch-Sensei & Emma Frost
I’m probably proudest of this one. They’re both blonde teachers in white! What more could one ask for? Irina’s even called Bitch-Sensei!
But as someone whos’ sworn to uphold journalistic integrity, I must report that the reason Irina’s called Bitch-Sensei is mostly because her students don’t respect her at all and think her last name sounds like Bitch. So less of a personality indicator and more children being cruel.
Still, according to the fandom.com wiki…
At first, Irina was shown to be a cruel, calculating, arrogant person with little regard for the students of Class E (earning her the nickname “Bitch-sensei”). Because of her high hit count and model-like appearance she is a confident woman, experienced, and has been described as giving off a mature, black widow vibe by her students because of such.
Ignoring the questionable grammar, this sounds not unlike Emma Frost! But then…
[…] In actuality once her cover has been completely shattered she is shown to be childish, and has a lack of social understanding. Underneath her confidence is insecurities she has carried with her since childhood and a surprisingly humble person who can be earnest. [..]
Hmm. Yeah, probably not.
So, what have I learned at the end of this journey? Well, I learned that fandom wikis are useful when you don’t want to sit through an entire anime or manga. I also learned that aspects of character designs are used in different characters and it doesn’t always mean anything. But most of all, I’ve now cursed you all reading this with the knowledge that these anime characters exist. You’ll never be able to watch or hear about Naruto without thinking about that one girl who looks exactly like Kwannon. Muhahaha.
