You're not going to see your typical yaoi/shonen-ai series on this list, as that genre almost as a rule tends towards very unrealistic representation (FreeNightFalls recently wrote about the appeal of the genre here). The characters in this list provide some of the more positive examples of LGBT anime characters. Ryouma and Izumi from the BL anime Love Stage may not be on this list, but they are still a lovely LGBT anime couple! You can find lots of LGBT anime characters, including those in shows aimed at kids, but many of these portrayals are highly stereotypical. LGBT rights are not included as part of Japan's civil rights law and same-sex marriage is illegal, though as of 2015 Shibuya and Setagaya have begun to recognize certain rights for same-sex couples.
Westernization led to the importation of both the homophobia of late 19th to early 20th century psychology and the gay pride movement of the late 20th to 21st century. Before the Meiji restoration, socially accepted outlets for same-sex relationships existed among the samurai and the culture of kabuki, but it was still expected that everyone enter a heterosexual marriage. It has, however, been very concerned with social conformity, which is the form homophobia tends to take there. Japan, in contrast, hasn't historically considered homosexuality sinful. " I am an LGBT anime character and I am proud of it!" - Nathan from Tiger and Bunny
Notable characters in the current movement include the pairing of Korra and Asami in The Legend of Korra, the pansexual genderfluid robot BMO in Adventure Time, and the "gay space rocks" who make up much of the cast of Steven Universe. As same-sex marriage has become legalized nationwide and transgender issues are also beginning to be better understood by the public today in America, there's been a slow but steady increase in LGBT cartoon characters including those marketed towards younger audiences.
By the 1990s, there was more gay representation of varying quality in American movies and TV aimed at adult audiences, including gay characters in adult-oriented cartoons such as Smithers in The Simpsons and Big Gay Al in South Park, but the issue was still considered too controversial for media aimed at children, which restricted most American cartoons. In the West, homosexuality has historically been considered sinful, and for much of the 20th century, mainstream film and TV avoided directly addressing the existence of non-heterosexual identities. The state of LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transsexual) representation in anime differs from that in American cartoons due to different cultural attitudes regarding sexuality and gender identity. Continued abuse of our services will cause your IP address to be blocked indefinitely.How have LGBT anime characters evolved throughout history? Please fill out the CAPTCHA below and then click the button to indicate that you agree to these terms. If you wish to be unblocked, you must agree that you will take immediate steps to rectify this issue. If you do not understand what is causing this behavior, please contact us here. If you promise to stop (by clicking the Agree button below), we'll unblock your connection for now, but we will immediately re-block it if we detect additional bad behavior.
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