25 Days Anime Male Challenge – Days 22/23

Now that the numbers are all out of whack, the titles of the posts will follow the original numbering if that applies.

Day 23 (Originally Day 22)  – Favourite Anime Swordsman

Here’s one category where I’m completely overloaded because of Touken Ranbu. Since I’ve had Kane-san in the past, it’s pretty obvious I’ve been saving someone else for this category.

That “someone” is the one who got me into Touken Ranbu – my starter, Kashuu Kiyomitsu. I picked Kashuu initially because he was voiced by Toshiki Masuda (he’s the voice actor I’ve been following the longest, since I’ve been following him since I discovered Samurai Flamenco), but after getting to know the character through the game and Hanamaru, I really grew attached to him.

As for what I like about him, Kashuu’s origins as an abandoned Shinsengumi sword and a creation of a burakumin means he has a deep-seated inferiority complex, which runs even deeper than Yamanbagiri’s status as a copy. This also really means I want to give him a hug, though. He seems a bit haughty and narcisstic, but I see those as side-effects of his inferiority complex. Hanamaru!Kashuu is pretty much how I’ve envisioned him since the beginning, so hopefully people who watch the show will see his reliability as well.

Of course, Touken Ranbu favoritism often happens through swords’ appearance, which is why I like swords like Juzumaru and Kousetsu. It’s the same with Kashuu – the combo of black, gold and red is particularly striking – much like Jyugo, the black makes him bland but the other colours make him stand out in his own way. Any man who can go into battle wearing high heeled boots gets instant respect from me, by the way!

Sidebar: Kashuu and Yams (fan name for Yasusada) were designed by the same person, although I didn’t really confirm this until I took a look at the wiki…that’s probably why Kashuu and Yasusada look so good as a pair.

Day 24 (Originally Day 23) – Favourite Gun-Wielding Anime Male

I thought my choices were limited to just Tachihara from Bungou Stray Dogs, but then I realised…the prompt doesn’t rule out airsoft guns! That’s just perfect, because Aoharu x Kikanjuu‘s Mattsun and Yukki are perfect for this challenge. The latter’s perverted by trade though, so let’s see what I can say about Masamune…

Masamune is surprisingly adept at navigating emotional matters, although you could attribute that to his job, and since he is a host, he puts women on a pedestal (for better or for worse). That also means he’s skilled in the ways of using his looks to get what he wants, although if the oneshot I read a while back is anything to go by, he’s mighty strong with his fists as well. Despite this, he’s extremely vulnerable when confronted by matters of his past, and…uh, considering how Midori is, I would probably be the same if I were in his situation.

He’s also a bit of a dork when it comes to survival games – he nicknamed his Desert Eagle gun “Tsubuan” (red bean paste), but that’s a dessert and not a desert (LOL). Add that to the fact that he’d play survival games in a host club – where there’s lots of glass (including a fancy chandelier!), natch – and you can really see his dedication to the game show through.

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I was pretty set on Kashuu from the beginning of the challenge, so that made this week really easy. So which Touken Ranbu guy is best? Plus, are there any anime guys who use real guns that you think are also hot?

Here’s Arthifis and Mel’s posts. Also, Lina came through with her post so here it is.