Anime Influences Reality (2) How the depiction of kogals in anime causes people to sexualise them in reality

March 08, 2024

Gyaru/ Gal is a subculture in Japan that focuses on fashion, having fun and self expression. It emerged out of a desire to rebel against the traditional beauty standards for women. (Pale skin, back hair) There are many sub categories of gyaru however Kogal is a popular fashion for school aged girls and it has been promoted in anime and manga.

We will look at how anime and manga has painted an innacurrate view of kogal gyaru to be oversexualized, seductive, flirty Fillie Fatales. The fashion movement was never for the male gaze it was about liberation.

Due to (male) aurthors perceiving kogal gyaru through a sensual lens with the feitshization of the school uniform in the medium, you see design chooses for gyaru coded characters sexualizes a uniform and does not follow the outfit rules of a kogal in reality.

These aurthors use this archetype to sexualize minors which further re-enforces the stereotype that kogals and gyaru whom are middle school age are sexual when they are not. One of the few aurthors who protrayed kogal gyaru realistically is Super Gals! by Mihona Fuji. (pictured in the above image)

This trope of the oversexualized kogal has been prevalent in 2000s anime and surprisingly has persisted into the 2020s which shows the willful ignorance of the fashion genre as well as relying on old tropes that influences people in reality to mis categorize the fashion movement as being linked to sexuality. This is even seen in Western world and in turn due to these innacurate protrayals in the media hurts the overall perception about kogal gyaru.

Here are images of kogal gyarus in Japan:

Here is a comparrision of the fashion to a kogal gyaru character design in anime.

Most of the character design shown below involve, a very short skirt, tight sweaters, sailor fuku blouses that are low cut and expose the chest or a beared midriff. These design choices persist even in 2023! With the widespread knowledge of kogal gyaru you would think that Anime and Manga will stop using the archetype as an excuse to sexualise minors but it STILL happens. This is strange and creepy how sexualised some pannels or shots of certain characters who are "gyaru". School uniforms should not be used as a fetish nor depicted as such but due to the oversexualisation of a uniform for LEARNING AT SCHOOL.

I discussed the impact of the sailor fuku in a previous Anime Influences Reality article however the same applies to school uniforms in general due to the sexualised depiction in anime and mamga, it has lead people to believe that school uniforms are a fetish. The school uniform is also depicted in porn as a fetish costume due to the prevelence of anime sexualising school uniforms on minor female characters as well as in the West sexualising Catholic School girl uniforms.

These design choices below were made to be sexy, oversexualises underaged characters that cater to the male gaze. This character design archetype falls under uniform fetishization which was discussed in a previous article.