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Dandadanhas some pretty interesting characters, some of whom can be called straight-out weird. But at the same time, these characters are closer to normal highschoolers than what most Shonen anime choose to depict. From bubbly guys to foul mouthed women, Yukinobu Tatsu has included them all.
But so far, fans have been mistaken about one character’s ethnicity. And no it’s not because of any wrongful depiction or offensive stereotypes, becauseDandadansteers far away from them. Instead, Yukinobu Tatsu decided to bring back a dying aesthetic to the series with Muko.
Dandadan‘s Muko is not black, she is just a gyaru
Yes, the character with a mistaken ethnicity is actually Muko, a side character ofDandadan. Muko is the classmate of Momo Ayase, the series’ female protagonist. She isn’t involved in the supernatural events of the story and is more of a minor character.
Muko is depicted with brown skin with blonde hair. This led many fans to think that she is actually a mixed-race girl, which she isn’t. Instead, she is actually a gyaru. Gyaru is a Japanese subculture that was born as a rebellious effort against traditional Asian beauty standards.
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The traditional standards prefer women to have a pale complexion and show as little skin as possible. Thus, women began to have tanned or dyed brown skin with bold makeup choices that stood out in a crowd, establishing an unapologetic identity. At the height of its popularity, even Japanese celebrities sported the style, and it also led women with naturally brownish or tanned skin to accept themselves.
Muko is a Manba style gyaru
Gyaru has several sub-styles, among which Muko chooses to follow the Manba style. It stems from the original Ganguro gyaru and reached a height of popularity around 2003-2004. Muko has tanned skin, which she pairs with bright makeup. Manba gyaru often wear white eye makeup both above and below their eyes. Muko also sports bleached blonde hair, which is typical in Manba gyaru style. Additionally, she has long nails with heavy accessorizing on her cell phone.
Over the years, the Manba gyaru style has died down a lot, but some people still choose to follow the specific aesthetic.Yukinobu Tatsudecided to give Muko this style while also going against the stereotypes associated with them.
The gyaru subculture is often stereotyped as women who follow it are associated with performing sexual services. Gyarus are also misrepresented as mean girls or bullies in popular media, but Muko is actually just a normal, cute girl who is extremely supportive of her friend, Momo.
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Dandadanmanga is available to read on Viz Media, and the anime is currently streaming on Hulu.
Aaheli Pradhan
Anime Content Writer
Articles Published :1557
Aaheli is an Anime Content Writer at FandomWire with 1300+ published articles. With five years of experience under her belt, she is a living, breathing encyclopedia for anime and manga. From Shonen and Shojo to the most niche anime, nothing escapes her radar. Her poisons of choice are Assassination Classroom, Gintama, Ouran High School Host Club and every Ghibli movie ever. She believes in living a slow life, surrounded by incomplete art projects and her beloved cats.
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