also, for those of you who don't realize the BEAUTY (or even the point of) hetalia
let me start off by saying:
HETALIA IS NOT ABOUT HISTORY, NOR IS IT ABOUT COUNTRIES. HETALIA IS ABOUT PEOPLE.
hetalia is a superbly written series of webcomics that happens to draw inspiration from historical sources and national stereotypes. it reflects these things, but not perfectly. the characters are human and are prone to doing things that normal people do. they play video games. they sleep in late in the mornings. they have relationships that are just as awkward and unpredictable as those you see in real life. they even take their friend out to lunch to cheer him up after his favorite soccer team lost a game, along with many other things that have absolutely nothing to do with historical or current affairs.
a lot of fans seem to miss this. now, don't get me wrong, some of the fans that prefer to view it as a super-serious historical allegory are excellent writers who really, really know their history. i see absolutely nothing wrong with them wanting to present their take on the series, since it is an interesting one. however, i think this view (which is essentially fanon) is becoming "canon" to a majority of the fandom at an alarming rate. this makes me sad because, when one decides to look at the series from a perfectly historical viewpoint, they miss what makes it so beautiful: the character interactions and development.
the characterization in hetalia is truly beautifully executed. the characters, their actions, and their interactions come across as entirely believable. italy and germany obviously care about each other, but are on such different wavelengths and have such different personalities and mindsets that they'll probably never even figure out how to tell the other one how they really feel. on the other hand, japan and greece are the only people in the world who could even begin to understand each other. you've got england, who really misses having america around, even though america is so busy doing his own thing that he's completely oblivious to this. you've got austria and hungary, whose very special relationship, even though it's the only established heterosexual one in the series, goes to show that there really is no such thing as a normal couple. the completely terrifying and viking-like sweden is, at heart, a family man who wants nothing more than to be married to finland and have several kids (and a dog).
probably the most realistic thing about these characters is that none of them are normal. no, not even lithuania, really. they're all equally strange in their own unique ways and could never make it without each other. i think that himaruya has gone beyond just good characterization with this series and made a commentary on humanity that i completely agree with, and one that i've really only seen in hetalia: no one is a "bad guy". no one is a "good guy". the vast majority of society doesn't revolve around peoples' random hatreds of each other, it revolves around us trying our best to get along with each other, even if it is usually a pretty awkward experience full of misunderstandings.
that's the reason i like this series: it gives off a positive message. sure, there's sadness, there's angst, and there are people who just really don't like each other. but, overall, it does a great job of showing that "the world sucks, but it's okay! we're all just as weird as you are and we're all trying our best to get through it."
HETALIA IS NOT ABOUT HISTORY, NOR IS IT ABOUT COUNTRIES. HETALIA IS ABOUT PEOPLE.
hetalia is a superbly written series of webcomics that happens to draw inspiration from historical sources and national stereotypes. it reflects these things, but not perfectly. the characters are human and are prone to doing things that normal people do. they play video games. they sleep in late in the mornings. they have relationships that are just as awkward and unpredictable as those you see in real life. they even take their friend out to lunch to cheer him up after his favorite soccer team lost a game, along with many other things that have absolutely nothing to do with historical or current affairs.
a lot of fans seem to miss this. now, don't get me wrong, some of the fans that prefer to view it as a super-serious historical allegory are excellent writers who really, really know their history. i see absolutely nothing wrong with them wanting to present their take on the series, since it is an interesting one. however, i think this view (which is essentially fanon) is becoming "canon" to a majority of the fandom at an alarming rate. this makes me sad because, when one decides to look at the series from a perfectly historical viewpoint, they miss what makes it so beautiful: the character interactions and development.
the characterization in hetalia is truly beautifully executed. the characters, their actions, and their interactions come across as entirely believable. italy and germany obviously care about each other, but are on such different wavelengths and have such different personalities and mindsets that they'll probably never even figure out how to tell the other one how they really feel. on the other hand, japan and greece are the only people in the world who could even begin to understand each other. you've got england, who really misses having america around, even though america is so busy doing his own thing that he's completely oblivious to this. you've got austria and hungary, whose very special relationship, even though it's the only established heterosexual one in the series, goes to show that there really is no such thing as a normal couple. the completely terrifying and viking-like sweden is, at heart, a family man who wants nothing more than to be married to finland and have several kids (and a dog).
probably the most realistic thing about these characters is that none of them are normal. no, not even lithuania, really. they're all equally strange in their own unique ways and could never make it without each other. i think that himaruya has gone beyond just good characterization with this series and made a commentary on humanity that i completely agree with, and one that i've really only seen in hetalia: no one is a "bad guy". no one is a "good guy". the vast majority of society doesn't revolve around peoples' random hatreds of each other, it revolves around us trying our best to get along with each other, even if it is usually a pretty awkward experience full of misunderstandings.
that's the reason i like this series: it gives off a positive message. sure, there's sadness, there's angst, and there are people who just really don't like each other. but, overall, it does a great job of showing that "the world sucks, but it's okay! we're all just as weird as you are and we're all trying our best to get through it."