From Master Roshi to Sanji, nosebleeds when aroused are a familiar trope to anime fans. But are they possible in real life too?
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| Anime character with nosebleed |
From Master Roshi to Sanji, nosebleeds when aroused are a familiar trope to anime fans. But are they possible in real life?
A staple of many comedy anime, a character getting a nosebleed when they see an attractive person, is almost as old as the genre itself in. Those who grew up watching anime in the ’90s and early ’00s have probably seen it happen at least once, specially when watching shows with a lot of fan service and all. But why do the anime characters’ noses start bleeding sometimes? And can it happen in real life too?
The trope comes from an old wives’ tale that when a teenager filled to the brim with hormones sees something arousing, their blood pressure rises to the point that causes the nosebleed. Mangaka Yasuji Tanioka’s humorous comics from the ’60s are thought to be the trope’s earliest of inclusion in manga. Usually, its usage is accompanied by a panty shot or when a character looks more attractive than normal one.
The Anime Nosebleed Trope Often Ties to Lecherous Old Men:
Yuru Yuri’s Chitose is notorious for getting them whenever she fantasizes about her friends getting it together, mainly Kyouko and Ayano. Master Roshi is also associated with nosebleeds, being the old lecherous man that he is before. Ever since Dragon Ball was first released, he has been used as a prime example of the nosebleed trope in anime. His first bloody nose was caused by Bulma flashing with him. Since then, he’s usually one of the character that comes to mind when someone thinks about anime and nosebleeds. One Piece’s Sanji is another one example of a lecherous man getting them frequently.
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| Anime character |
Another example of the anime nosebleed, albeit an extreme case, is you should know Karin Maaka from Chibi Vampire. While not necessarily stemming from arousal, she has some of the heaviest nosebleeds in anime shows history. Her waterfalls stem from the fact that she is a “reverse vampire,” a vampire that produces an excess amount of blood rather than craving it on. She targets unhappy people, and when she bites them, she gives them an injection of her blood, which brightens their moods gradually.
All though they are usually depicted as a normal red color, sometimes instead white steam is shown. Usually, these are shown in animes for smaller kids. It is used to express a general excitement rather than any arousal. Pokemon’s Brock is a perfect example of this alternate version. Many times, the blood is censored for international audiences, and steam is used instead of that.
Hence, how possible is it to get a nosebleed from sexual arousal? To find out about this, let’s look at the two most common causes. The first is nose picking, and the second is being exposed to dry air for an extended periods of time. The second reason is why they are more common during the winter months of a year. High blood pressure is another cause of nosebleeds too. There is also anecdotal evidence of people who have gotten them from having overly zealous sex though.