For ye that know not of any kazumas, there's only one on Toonami. or CN for that matter.
Kuwabara, alternately: Kaz, Kazu, Kuwie, Goofy[and, yes, I know Disney immortalized the lanky, big-hearted guy archetype in the form of a dog; let's not get into the Disney/Tezuka controversies today], and Hiei's personal favorite, Fool. [hiei, interesting dude, but has an annoying tendency to end his fights at the same rate of speed as Iron Mike Tyson back when he could box without resorting to ear-chewing.]
Anyhoo, back to Kuwie. One of the most interesting character designs to date, but it's his...personality that wins me over. No surprise here--as I believe characterization makes the bulk of my favorite shows, and YYH makes that in spades.
What is Kazu's role in Yu-Yu? Obviously not the bishounen, though he isn't ugly to me. [I've seen WORSE looking character designs.] Just not pretty. Can't be the hero, as that task has been placed on the Guy Who Likes Green*. And not Hiei, as our Eternally-Peeved-Twelve-Year-Old is Kuwabara's foil. [think Laurel and Hardy, Rita and Runt, Chip and Dale....]
* most fans call him Yusuke, and he's a great guy, too.
Brillo-head's(another nick for Kuwie) role is...the human element. Essentially, he is US. To be more precise, he is the 10-year old Japanese boy who chased his sister away from Sailormoon in 1992, who declared himself too old for Dragonball Z, and other inane bits of speculation where I presume that: despite our cultural differences, Japanese boys and American boys would probably play with a Terry Man action figure even if all that was left of Terry the Brat's(the Kid) pa was his torso. Or maybe a leg. [I base this on extensive empirical observation of nephews, male cousins, and an older brother over the course of two decades, though the fact they're all Afrimericans has not eluded me.]
For proof of this, just note how he reacts to some situations. [in other situations, he acts twice his age, and in other cases, he behaves like--gasp--an actual teenage boy.]
==
Now, my favorite character in animation from Japan still is Shutendouji, Oni Masho. [for neophytes to Ronin Warriors, this bishie redhead was called Anubis, Master of Cruelty stateside, despite the fact that the real Anubis--Yami Masho/Kail, Kale, Cale, Cail, Gale, Gail, Likeitmatters, :rolleyes:; might object.]
But it's hard for him to best Kaz; the latter was revealed in the beginning to be an overall nice kid with hidden psychic powers who just had a penchant for being in fights with half the local roughs in the district. Anubis the Red was, at the start of RW, well...the MOC. Throwing Innocent Bystanders[&TM&] into the maw of Mt. Fuji to get the hero to power down was smart--but underhanded. Indeed, I was a happy viewer when he joined the Team, because he was the smartest samurai there. [though Sage fans would beg to differ.]
In addition to Kuwie, Anubis faces Kusanagi, who's definitely the best "leading man" I've seen in action; and Ichijouji Ken, a compelling yet fairly simple to understand boy.[once you realize he's just 11, you can pin down much of his thankfully-defunct alter ego's rationale.]
Plus, Terry the Kid and Kinniku Mantaro sneak in; finally: Chiba and Kaiba Seto round out the gang.
[of course, these are the guys I like a great deal.]
But now, I must sleep. Good night. :)
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