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Archive 1

Human names

If the nation's human names aren't official/on the website, where are people getting them from? Joanna Ingles (talk) 18:31, 2 January 2009 (UTC)

I believe they were mentioned on the author's old blog before it was deleted. I think that until they show up again on either the official site or the author's new blog, we should avoid including them in the article. MayumiTsuji (talk) 23:38, 2 January 2009 (UTC)MayumiTsuji
Gotcha. Joanna Ingles (talk) 18:40, 7 January 2009 (UTC)
The human names that are on the article are from the Japanese Wiki translated and were in the nations profiles on the authors blog trufx43 (talk) 14:24, 5 January 2009 (UTC)
They haven't been used in the anime but the creator has given them all human names and it's in their character profiles. 67.176.141.168 (talk) 10:18, 18 July 2009 (UTC)

I think he has stopped giving human names now. HetaTuna (talk) 04:13, 7 May 2016 (UTC)

Japanese names

Being a pest here, but if the Romanizations of the Japanese country names are going to be on this article, shouldn't the actual Japanese be there too? I'd do it but I don't know Japanese. Personally I just think it looks silly to have things like "Igirisu" just... floating around with no real explanation of what they are. Joanna Ingles (talk) 18:39, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

Okaaay I just did it myself using Google Translator. Once again, I don't know Japanese, so if anyone wants to fix any of the names, PLEASE GO AHEAD. Joanna Ingles (talk) 14:58, 8 January 2009 (UTC)
I don't think anybody will stop you, it's just that some of us have trouble writing kanji. Tyciol (talk) 05:31, 11 April 2009 (UTC)
I already did it back in January. As far as I know, they're correct, or have been corrected. Joanna Ingles (talk) 16:24, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

Controversies

There have been controversies in Korea about this anime. Reasons:

  1. 'Korea' often have a japanese flag around him. In fact, Most people are more than resenful to Japan.
  2. There is a scene when 'Korea' touches 'Japan's breast. This is very offensive to Koreans, I assure you.
  3. 'Korea' is brother with 'China'.
  4. 'Korea' always hang around 'U.S.A', implying that the ROK always tries to please the U.S.A.
  5. 'Korea' claims that some things, such as Buddishm, is of Korean origin. Being an Korean Elementary school student myself, Koreans DO NOT think that Buddishm originates from Korea.

(I know this doesn't matter, but in fact, Japan has a history of claiming kimchi is of Japanese origin)

In general, it's really offensive to some countries who experienced Japan's imperialism. I'm not insulting the Japanese people, but only this anime. So, with approval, I would like to add a controversy section. --119.149.135.35 (talk) 10:59, 13 January 2009 (UTC)

And the reliable sources for all of these claims are? --Farix (Talk) 12:32, 13 January 2009 (UTC)
So, if you want, you should make section like this. Mainly South Korean people requested the discontinuance of the anime. Although the 'South Korea' character will not exist in the broadcasting schedule.
  • As for the complaint 1st,everybody understands the usage of the flag which Korean character always has is to burn or to bite, and according to Official setting "Korean character dislike Japanese character" in the Manga.
  • As for 2nd, it means it's hard to understand what Koreans think for the author.
  • As for the 3rd, the relationship between Korea character and China's character looks like brothership in the Manga, by the way Japan's character is also regarded as younger brother of China.
  • As for the 4th, Korea character doesn't always hang around 'U.S.A', but it's ture that he uses honorific word.According to the Official setting, that's because Korea is the country of Politeness in author's stereotypical view.
  • As for the 5th, Buddhism? I've never read such episode.
Anyway, I understand Koreans always read Japanese Mangas even if it is unknown among usual Japanese, and watch Japanese Anime, I'm little proud as a Japanese.

And thank you for letting us know such a unique Manga, if Koreans didn't complain, most of us wouldn't know it.Haphapnap (talk) 21:25, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

「Shakyamuni of the Buddhism are the South Korea bloods.」 http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20081208-00000044-scn-cn 61.119.135.250 (talk) 12:47, 13 January 2009 (UTC)

Which does not verify any of the "controversy" claims about the work. In short, this is an exercise in original research in order to insert a non-neutral point of view. --Farix (Talk)

Oh, so a few radicals claim one point and others can say that represents a whole nation? Just like <blp violation removed> Ishihara Shintaro does not represent Japan as a whole, neither does that article represent Korea. Anyway, yes I did read about this controversy and that Korea was decided to be taken off the show from Yomiuri News... now if I can only find an online source to add...

I apologize for not logging in at this moment...can't find my password. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.172.24.51 (talk) 02:19, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

Again, do you have any reliable sources regarding the controversy of the subject. Without reliable sources, such information cannot be included in the article. --Farix (Talk) 03:01, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

I am not the same guy that started this controversy section... If you ask me, I really don't see a point of controversy as the author of this manga states that this has nothing to do with actual event, people or nation in the beginning of each book, and is clearly meant to be a comedy. Anyways here is link to a Korean news site covering Yomiuri's report on Kids Station's decision not to air Hetalia with Korea included due to controversial ideas of the author. I guess you can use a translation site to get an idea what it says. http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?artid=200901131709541&code=970203 Enjoy~ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.172.24.51 (talk) 03:17, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

Here is the Yomiuri article. http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/world/news/20090113-OYT1T00441.htm. This stuff can go under a Reception section, I think... _dk (talk) 07:09, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

South Korea people requested the discontinuance of the anime in which the broadcasting schedule did not exist in South Korea. ｢It did not know the criticism in South Korea. However, the South Korea character doesn't appear in the anime version.｣　South Korea character had already been disregarded before the complaint came to the staff of the anime version. It laughed.(61.119.135.250 (talk) 09:38, 14 January 2009 (UTC)).

I'm not going to trust the machine translation, besides it didn't make any sense, but this ANN article seems to be a fair summary of the Yomiuri Shimbun report. I'll agree with DK that it's worth mentioning in a reception section, but it doesn't deserve it's own section because of weight issues. In fact, it would be better to find other reviews to include before adding it information into the article. --Farix (Talk) 22:57, 14 January 2009 (UTC)
The broadcast has been canceled, though it will still be streamed over the internet. --Farix (Talk) 05:26, 16 January 2009 (UTC)
Well I think the article contains all that needs to be said about the controversy. Koreans found a character that offended them, Koreans protested, the anime was pulled from broadcast. No need to get into the particulars of why Koreans found the character offensive and doing so would be undue weight. --Farix (Talk) 12:53, 16 January 2009 (UTC)

Sources cited in the Korean WP article "헤타리아 Axis powers":

JSH-alive talk • cont • mail 15:18, 23 January 2009 (UTC)

Every country would be offended if they took this anime seriously. Every country gets made fun of in some way: America with hamburgers, France with always molesting everyone, Italy with cowardice, Russia with insanity, etc. So I vote no on the controversy article, because every controversy article always comes from China or Korea, they need to unpucker their incredibly tight assholes and learn the meaning of satire. User:67.60.149.14 12:47, 19 February 2009
Ok, I didn't want to put my personal opinion on wiki, but since we have an idiot commenting above, let me give you an idea here. Let's say Germany makes a satirical joke about Brazil...haha. Now consider they do that about Jews during the holocaust. Still funny? I don't support getting upset whenever the ultra right wing of a country says something ignorant (it happens a lot in Eastern Asia, it seems), but it is rather really stupid to call it having "incredibly tight assholes." User:76.172.24.51 01:17, 2 March 2009
Well, both China and Korea had bad relationships between Japan. (See also Anti-Japanese sentiments in China and Korea) -- JSH-alive talk • cont • mail 13:58, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

As a half-Chinese half-Norwegian I must say that we Chinese share our annoyance of the Koreans with the Japanese. About 30% of them are ornery, unlikeable and uncomfortably eccentric. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 219.79.123.45 (talk) 18:51, 29 June 2010 (UTC)

  • I am American and Jewish and I personally find the show offensive on a variety of levels as a human being. I have Japanese, Chinese, and Korean friends and they all think this show is a horrible use of anime and a failed attempt at satire (not that their opinions or mine speak for all members of any of our ethnic groups considering we're all really members of the same culture here in America). However, anything involving Japan or Germany is especially distressing because these countries were responsible for war atrocities during WWII. Every time Italy is depicted as just a silly coward, it excuses Italy of any responsibility for the Holocaust, and implies that Germany was "more of a man". I have seen some panels from the manga as well, and the Korea/Japan relationship is disgusting given Japan's imperialistic history and such events in China as the Rape of Nanking. If the show took place only in the modern day, I don't think anyone would be so offended since it could be called modern political satire, but the show is attempting to rewrite history and ignore the Holocaust and Japanese war crimes altogether. This page needs to have a controversy section because I have indeed seen this video--http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo_btds9-kM--and you can't deny that at least Koreans are upset about the show. This show does not promote friendly competition like the Olympics and the World Cup; it thoroughly advocates German and Japanese superiority. I'm fine if you portray America, England, France, and every other country as dumb, fine, but those who defend the show as "equally upsetting all countries" are just plain wrong, because they have put WWII in this context where Germany is the long-suffering manly man trying to whip wimpy Italy into shape, and Japan is an emo kid trying to prove his worth in the world. This point of view ignores the Axis Powers' war crimes and is most certainly on par with The Birth of a Nation's view of American reconstruction. Since the page for Birth of a Nation has a section devoted to both "Responses" AND "Ideology and accuracy", it's absolutely justified to give Axis Powers Hetalia at least one "Controversy" section since it, too, is a re-imagining of history that appears to have a distinct agenda. I have not seen Germany called out for the Holocaust once on the show, nor has Japan been called out for the Rape of Nanking (although I haven't seen all the episodes because I got too sickened after watching several of them and finally decided to see if anyone else is as sickened by the show as I am). The creators are ignoring history. One of the users who previously commented (it begins: "Ok, I didn't want to put my personal opinion on wiki") summed it up best that if Germany satirizes Brazil, no one is upset, but if Germany makes light of the Holocaust, everyone gets upset. There's a good reason for that, and Wikipedia should recognize it. Also, the animated show Clone High features a character who is a clone of Gandhi, and even though the show specifies in the first episode that the character couldn't live up to the legacy of the real Gandhi and instead decided to become a party animal, the show still provoked controversy in India. The controversy has a section devoted to it EVEN THOUGH IT'S ALL EXPLAINED IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SHOW and EVEN THOUGH THE CREATORS APOLOGIZED TO INDIA. Axis Powers Hetalia has not done any of that and has managed to piss off a good number of Koreans, so WHY IS THERE NO CONTROVERSY SECTION? When it started as just a webcomic in which the creator turned no profit, perhaps it was no harm, no foul. But now that it's been produced? Oh yeah. There's harm. There's foul. Anyway, I'm aware that the Wiki page mentions the Korea controversy in passing, but to me, there's more than just the Korea issue at stake because the series whitewashes history. The Wiki page seems to be horribly biased in favor of the show because at the top of the page it says, "This is to make light of Italy's apparent cowardice during World War II." Meaning what, exactly? It should read "alleged cowardice", not "apparent cowardice". Apparent cowardice? From whose perspective?! In my opinion, saying Italy had "apparent cowardice during World War II" is an absolute lie that excuses the country from having even been a participant in the war. What about the episode of the war where Italy says, "I'm a virgin. I won't be any fun to shoot!" to Germany? Hm? That sent shivers down my spine as it reminded me of Rashomon and the belief that it's okay to kill non-virgins. I definitely feel that entire scene is a reference to/parody of Rashomon, but it's totally depraved because instead of an intense study of differing viewpoints on rape and murder, it just justifies aggressors attacking weaker victims as the natural order of the world. I'm sure someone's going to say I'm being ridiculous or I can't take a joke or whatever, but personified Italy begging personified Germany not to shoot him DURING THE WORLD WARS cannot possibly be funny to me. I also know I've probably rambled on too long and I'm not an expert or anything, but that's why I put this in the discussion page and not the actual page; I just hope that someone will call out this show for being Birth of a Nation and Triumph of the Will all over again. What do I have to do to be a reliable source? If I post all this on a blog does that make me a "respectable critic", or do I have to petition a TV/Internet show reviewer for some newspaper to write about this issue? In conclusion, simply using the word "allegedly" would vastly improve this article (and most Wiki articles that inspire "alleged controversy") and be enough to at least have the semblance of neutrality. I still can't believe the article says "apparent cowardice", as if it's true. That's just sickeningly biased. Sorry for ranting for so long but you really can't say that Italy was a coward whereas Germany and Japan were brave, you can only say ALLEGEDLY, and that it's the series creator's viewpoint, not historical fact. Beeswax07 (talk) 22:03, 10 July 2010 (UTC)
  • On second thought, I think I'm giving the series undue weight. It's not popular enough to warrant what I was saying. If it takes off big (and who knows? the movie might draw controversy), then I'm sure there will be a controversy section, but it's such a small section of the anime market anyway, that really, other than the minor details about the Japan/Korea controversy, Wikipedia probably shouldn't address the rest of it since that would give the series itself undue weight. Sorry! :) Beeswax07 (talk) 05:55, 12 July 2010 (UTC)
  • True, it doesn't show the crimes commited by the countries but that is because that isn't the point of the show, If you want to learn more accurate history then clearly Hetalia is NOT the show to watch. What Hetalia focuses on is the realtionship between the countries. That is why the nations are depicted as human characters with emotion etc. I can understand if one gets upset and feel like Hetalia makes war crimes seem cute and funny but just take it for what it is; An animated show made only to entertain, NOT to teach. It's not like the audiance have forgotten what REALLY happened in WWII, 99% of those that watch this understand that the plot is severely exaggerated. And yes, Germany and Japan are depicted more like hardworking guys that want to get things done but Italy screws things up rather than villians but the same time, Germany is also depicted as a sadistic pervert that owns questionable porn DVDs (including dogs) but is in fact a sexually frustrated virgin and takes everything too seriously. Hetalia pokes fun of all nations and I doubt that the creator intended to "whitewash" history by useing these stickfigure men he made.

UllaBritta (talk) 02:25, 8 December 2010 (UTC)

Geeze..... You guys are reading too much into the show. Does it make me a horrible person because I watch the show and find nothing offensive? I'm Canadian, and I find the Canada character absolutely adorable. The reason Italy is depicted as a lazy coward is because the majority of the Axis's military sucess was thanks to Germany or Japan. The highlight of Italy's military fortunes was the conquest of Ethiopia, which was a country who actually used spears in combat. Besides I doubt a series created by a Japanese man is going to paint Japan in an unfavorable light. --74.198.151.1 (talk) 02:04, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

Too much butthurt? Are you sane enough to think that those who are going to watch the anime or read the scanlation and manga are stupid enough to actually believe every single thing that is shown in this? The one who made Hetalia didn't intend to insult any country. It's for entertainment. Well, this show made me more aware of World history and current events. Watching/Reading Hetalia doesn't mean that you're forgetting the World War. Geez, why are some people taking this show seriously? You're making my butt hurt. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 112.209.158.169 (talk) 17:24, 7 August 2014 (UTC)

Who here is trying to say that both La Blue Girl and Hetalia are affectionate parodies of humanity's most perverse desires? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.215.119.18 (talk) 15:48, 17 December 2015 (UTC)

Character section

The character section is in severe need of being cleaned up. From what I can tell of the work, there is no need to give descriptions for most of the characters since this is a gag manga. Perhaps all that is really needed is give a brief overview of what the characters are as a whole and leave out the specific character descriptions. --Farix (Talk) 23:09, 14 January 2009 (UTC)

I've removed all of the minor characters. It was nothing more then a laundry list of every character that has ever appeared in the strip with no indication that any of the characters have any particular importance. --Farix (Talk) 12:55, 16 January 2009 (UTC)
I oppose this. I think all charaters are important in the manga. There's no meaning of removing the list, leaving only the "big" nations. bladez (talk) 07:23, 17 January 2009 (UTC)
The list is nothing more then a fancruft mess. Ideally, the character section should be a single paragraph describing the concepts behind the anthropomorphized characters. The only characters that should be explicitly mentioned are the primary characters. This has nothing to do with "big nations" or "little nations". --Farix (Talk) 13:46, 17 January 2009 (UTC)
I think by "big", Bladez meant more important, not size or power. I also disagree with the removal of 75% of the nations represented in the manga. Why remove them? What if someone wants to know which nations are represented? Would they be better portrayed in the article in a different way, as long as they are all included, or in a separate article such as Nations represented in Axis Powers Hetalia? Not every nation on earth is represented in the series, and the relationships some of these "smaller" (as in less represented in the series) nations have with the main nations are important to the manga as a whole, such as the US and Canada, or Russia and Belarus. Just my two cents. Joanna Ingles (talk) 23:18, 17 January 2009 (UTC)
Not only is list every character fancruft, but that's the job of a fanpage. Wikipedia is also not a fanpage. It simply covers the important and verifiable aspects of a work. --Farix (Talk) 23:35, 17 January 2009 (UTC)

I agree, only the important recurring characters need to be mentioned. It's not appropriate to name every single character in the show. If people want that, they can go to a fan site or create a page on an anime/manga wikia site. Wikipedia articles are supposed to be written for a broad audience, not just for fans; and the average reader doesn't need to know about every character to understand the series. --Kraftlos (Talk | Contrib) 05:02, 18 January 2009 (UTC)

Agree too. Accessibility for reader is important & beside it's not the article on Word War II but on Hetalia Axis Powers.--KrebMarkt 06:01, 18 January 2009 (UTC)

I'm guessing the Japanese Wiki article is like a fansite, then... Kiseki-chi (talk) 12:40, 2 March 2009 (UTC)
There should be a section of the character and their seiyu for the Characters who doesn'thave a description. (Jonica) 18:40, 2 April 2009
As much as I would like the other reoccurring nations to have a section, I have to disagree with this. There is Estonia in episode 1, and he doesn't appear as much as the other reoccurring nations.Kiseki-chi (talk) 04:54, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Korea

If the Korean character (?) is responsible for broadcast cancellation or such, surely s/he is notable enough to be described in the characters section? --Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| talk 20:50, 3 February 2009 (UTC)

Well, actually Korea isn't a "main character." The reason for the controversey was that many Koreans found the stereotype to be offensive. Although every character in hetalia has an important part in their own the "main" characters are the axis and allie countries from WW2. 67.176.141.168 (talk) 10:28, 18 July 2009 (UTC)

Cruelty of a child?

"Despite having the cruelty of a child", Russia abuses various other countries? I'm not even sure what that first part is trying to say, but it doesn't sound like it makes any sense considering the rest of the paragraph. Not sure how to fix it though, so whoever does. User:68.102.60.212 15:35, 22 February 2009

Russia bullies Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia. 161.253.114.82 (talk) 01:11, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

I know that, but I'm not seeing how this connects. If you're saying his cruelty is at a childish level - though that seems to be an understatement, considering in one comic we see Lithuania's back is covered in scars, which are implied to be from Russia's abuse - then it should be made clearer somehow. Right now, the phrase implies he's not that cruel at all. I'm not exactly sure how to phrase it myself, but if someone has a better way to say it, clearing it up would be nice. 68.102.60.212 (talk) 22:12, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

A "cruelty of a child" is often described as being cruel without knowing better. Take middle school students. Anyone who thinks that he/she is better that the others at the school will immediately begin to think that it is okay to hit/tease other students. Russia, because he is, in fact, one of the largest countries in the world, probably thinks that it doesn't matter if he bullies Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia because if he does, what can they do about it? If a bully in middle school thinks, or actually is, stronger than the other students or the authorities at the school, then he will do as he pleases, including bulling others. Russia does exactly the same thing. Also, he is NOT nice. He is mentally cracked from his bloody history and only SEEMS nice, while in reality he is very cruel and loves to torment others (A side effect from his cracked mind?) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.189.53.7 (talk) 23:27, 24 May 2011 (UTC)

Hetare

"Hetalia (ヘタリア) is a made-up word combining hetare (へタレ) — Japanese for useless — and Italia (イタリア)." is wrong. My first language is Japanese and I live in Japan since I was born. Hetare does not mean "useless". It is a informal word for "chikin-hearted" or "lazy", often used among close friends. I think "chikin-hearted" is the best translation of this word, for now. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 118.108.37.140 (talk) 06:28, 12 March 2009 (UTC)

You mean "chicken-hearted", right? In any case, as a native English speaker, I can say that in this case, "useless" is probably acceptable (even if using a bit more artistic license than I care for). It should be viewed as a very loose translation, really. Based on your statement that hetare is typically used among close friends, I would think that the translation is almost a reference to an in-joke among the characters, but I haven't read the series myself, so I really couldn't say how appropriate it is. 「ダイノガイ千？！」(Dinoguy1000) 18:42, 12 March 2009 (UTC)
And as one whose first language is german I can assure you that useless is a very fitting description of Italia. :D 88.153.178.39 (talk) 00:01, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

I think that it is supposed to mean "cowardly" because of the many references to Italy being a coward. While yes, he is also useless, being "weak" or "chicken-hearted" does fit better to the way that he is shown. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.189.53.7 (talk) 23:30, 24 May 2011 (UTC)

According to Google Translate, "ヘタレ" means "unskilled". ISD (talk) 12:12, 27 May 2011 (UTC)

Please do not use Google Translate! It is ridiculous... — Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.20.176.9 (talk) 13:32, 30 October 2011 (UTC)

Names

America's full name is there, so should the other countries follow suit (i.e. for England, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland), or should they be simplified? Kiseki-chi (talk) 12:29, 24 March 2009 (UTC)

I'm not sure America's full name should have been inserted in the first place, but I haven't read the series, so I'm hoping someone who has will step in. 「ダイノガイ千？！」(Dinoguy1000) 19:02, 24 March 2009 (UTC)
I really don't think it should be. As for England, he's only part of the United Kingdom. He has Scotland for an older brother. (He was only shown off-screen throwing a bird at young England.) Kiseki-chi (talk) 03:23, 30 March 2009 (UTC)

Other countries

So far the Axis and Allies are detailed, however since Korea is mentioned (and there are probably others in there too) I think we should detail all the other countries too, even if they aren't part of any alliance, since they are relevant to the story and have their own unique Japanized names that we can redirect to this article. Also I am curious, does anyone know if the Jewish people are represented and if near the end of the manga Israel might be (re)born? Is Pakistan a character? I don't know how they would represent that but it would be very interesting. In fact, in regards to that, I think it could possibly overlap with the Afghanis-tan manga if you could somehow get the authors together or at least authorize each other's involvement. Although clearly Merikan and Amerika are different characters... maybe brother and sister to represent them at different points in time? Tyciol (talk) 05:31, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

The inclusion of other countries has been discussed above, and deemed fancruft, but you may want to continue that discussion.
As for the rest of your comment, Israel and Pakistan are not characters, no. It's hard to determine which countries will be personified next. The most recent one has been Australia, but even then, only as a sketch; he has not appeared in any strips yet. As for America and Merika, in Hetalia, the character of America was "born" when the continent began being colonized by Europe and has only grown older and still exists in present day. I really doubt the two authors would do any sort of crossover but it's an interesting idea, at least. Joanna Ingles (talk) 16:23, 13 April 2009 (UTC)
There are no characters for the Middle East, sort of like how there's only two characters (not counting those in the Gakuen Hetalia game) that are from Africa, and sadly, none from South America. There is a slight probability that he'll complete ASEAN 10, however, I believe he mentioned it on his blog somewhere. (There is a Thailand, a maybe-Vietnam, and a new Asian girl that is quite possibly the redesign of her.)
Egypt is in a few strips, and most people consider Egypt Middle Eastern. 161.253.114.82 (talk) 01:14, 8 May 2009 (UTC)
Ah... that's true. My bad. Only him, though. Kiseki-chi (talk) 12:12, 28 May 2009 (UTC)
Also, I thought young America was "found" in the wild by Finland while he, Sweden, and Spain were taking a vacation? Kiseki-chi (talk) 05:03, 15 April 2009 (UTC)
The prominent Chibi charachters should be mentioned as well, they get about 1/3rd the screen time of the main charachters but are prominent and the fact these are countries from 500 years ago means a lot of people probably wouldnt know who or what they are. Wikipedia isnt a fan site so you dont need to go into detail but it is a reference guide and as such should be allowed to be that. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.104.138.141 (talk) 21:30, 16 April 2009 (UTC)
Wikipedia is not a guidebook, reference book, etc.; Wikipedia is an encyclopedia. 「ダイノガイ千？！」(Dinoguy1000) 21:50, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Plot

What exactly is the plot of this manga? ~Itzjustdrama ? C 00:56, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

There kind of isn't one. It's just the history of the world told (albeit humorously and sometimes inaccurately) with characters representing the countries. The main focus is supposed to be on World War II, but it often derails into other historical events. Joanna Ingles (talk) 18:02, 13 May 2009 (UTC)
I asked because I thought it would be useful to include in the article. :) ~Itzjustdrama ? C 20:16, 13 May 2009 (UTC)
You'll notice a noticable lack of genocidical personality traits in Japan and Germany, so you can regard the historical inaccuracies as artistic freedom. 88.153.178.39 (talk) 00:04, 18 May 2009 (UTC)
What does that comment have to do with this topic? It sounds like someone's just venting frustration. 67.176.141.168 (talk) 10:36, 18 July 2009 (UTC)

That sounds like ad hominem, it's a legitimate strategy when you can't actually address the point that this show reveals a disturbing trend of historical revisionism.

It's because Hetalia is a comedic satire show. Not all of history is "comedy-worthy". Genocide isn't funny. War crimes aren't funny. racial prejudice isn't funny. The show is more about the relationships between the nations. Besides you probably shouldn't look too deep into it anyway. --74.198.151.1 (talk) 01:50, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

I haven't read the series, but I'd like to. In the first paragraph of the article it's called a "trivialisation". Why is that? Is that a good description? Thanks. And by the way I totally agree with what 74.198.151.1 just wrote. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.9.112.31 (talk) 19:40, 3 February 2012 (UTC)

England/Britain

Fixed England's entry which was based on what seems to be a common misconception in the fandom, probably due to translation issues. While England is only England, he represents the UK as well. イギリス/Igirisu actually means "Britain," in official material the character is always referred to as the UK, and save for the pre-18th century strips he always represents Great Britain/the UK. I thought about noting that translating Igirisu as "England" was only the fan translators' choice but I don't know how to go about it in a way acceptable by Wikipedia standards. By the way, does anybody know the address of the strip in which a young England makes a reference to his older brothers? I think it's the one where the Holy Roman Empire visits him. Mufurc (talk) 14:17, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

Well I just learned something new today. I never knew that.
I believe Himaruya incorrectly translates it "England" too. I played the Gakuen Hetalia demo a few days ago. He used "England" instead of "Britain" or "UK". The wallpapers of the Allied Forces he made also had "England" on it, so it could be justified? Kiseki-chi (talk) 12:18, 17 July 2009 (UTC)
And now also on the packaging for the Hetalia plush dolls too. I think it's safe to keep it as "England".
I don't think thats true, I'm pretty sure Scotland has his own character, meaning that England would be simply England. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.176.141.168 (talk) 10:38, 18 July 2009 (UTC)

Not true, Scotland is a fan-created character, not created by Himaruya.24.17.196.248 (talk) 05:03, 13 March 2012 (UTC) Scotland is referenced when America first calls England his 'Big brother'. He thinks of his own older brother. But Himaruya has confirmed the existence of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as England's brothers. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.40.82.116 (talk) 22:25, 30 March 2013 (UTC)

Other countries?

Austria, Holy Roman Empire, Lithuania, Sealand, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and a lot secondary characters who have prominent roles and has already appeared in the anime/manga, I do think they deserves to be in the characters list. I mean, without the other characters, Hetalia won't be as lively as it is. It's like keeping a lot of information to those who read this article other than those who do know Hetalia. What if we just make a separate article for the characters?--Jonica c (talk) 06:07, 16 August 2009 (UTC)

They all used to be listed, but were cut because it was excessive information. 「ダイノガイ千？！」? · Talk⇒Dinoguy1000 19:08, 17 August 2009 (UTC)
Then, should we put it back? I'm not assuming on anything, but it seems like the people who manages this article is either not updated with Hetalia or knows Hetalia a little.--Jonica c (talk) 11:46, 19 August 2009 (UTC)
Not at this time. Character lists on main series pages should generally only list those characters central to the series' overall plot. Secondary and minor characters, if they get mentioned at all, should only be listed on a separate character list (again, only if they are important enough to the plot), in other characters' descriptions, or in episode/volume summaries. 「ダイノガイ千？！」? · Talk⇒Dinoguy1000 18:50, 19 August 2009 (UTC)
So what if there is an excessive information? I don't think it is. I believe that Austria, Spain and Prussia are not just "minor" characters, but secondary characters. Did the maker of this article only base Hetalia on anime, but not the webcomic? Cause it seems like it.--Jonica c (talk) 06:31, 20 September 2009 (UTC)
Too many characters makes it messy, and in cases like these where there are multiple main characters it's best to just keep it at that. Usually, secondary characters are listed on separate character articles. However, in this article's case, making a character list probably wouldn't be a good idea. Finding reception from Japan is very difficult, and it hasn't been licensed in English, so chances of finding good concept/creation information and reception is near impossible. While Spain, Austria, Prussia, and a few others may be important to the series, it does not mean they are vital or warrant a section about them. WhiteArcticWolf (talk) 16:45, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

I'm fairly sure there should be links to the actual countries represented by each character in this article, but since I see such links have already been deleted I'll put up a note here in lieu of action. I agree that the character names shouldn't link to the countries, because the characters aren't the actual countries, but there should be a sentence at the start of each character descrip explaining something like England is the moe anthropomorphisation/representation of the United Kingdom. Suki Dakara 15:05, 27 August 2009 (UTC)

It's not necessary because it's already blatantly obvious. There is no doubt that e.g. the character "France" represents the country France - it's obvious just from the character's name. In addition, links to the countries don't add any value to the article; they're just excessive linking, like date links and the like. 「ダイノガイ千？！」? · Talk⇒Dinoguy1000 17:41, 27 August 2009 (UTC)
Thanks for the fast reply! That makes sense. I'll stick to more specific links, in that case.--Suki Dakara 21:22, 27 August 2009 (UTC)

"Toast with our boots"

I assume this is some kind of Japanese pun, but can someone explain it in the article or something? Also, would America be more of a ward of England rather than his charge? ForestAngel (talk) 02:15, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

I believe the "toast with our boots" is supposed to be a nod towards the fact that Italy (the country) is shaped like a boot, like the one the character holds out. Ward and charge can be used interchangeably, though ward seems to be more used within the law (a legal ward), while charge is someone under the care of someone in any situation. I'd keep it as charge for that reason, though either way the meaning is basically "America was under the care of England". WhiteArcticWolf (talk) 16:51, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

Language usage

OK, thanks for the wikilinkage so we can check what they mean, but colloquy and synechdoche are far to obscure words to be using. My re-wording may not have been perfect, but can we figure out something better than incomprehensible English please? --Arkelweis (talk) 00:57, 25 September 2009 (UTC)

Do you know who originally added them? It would help if we could ask that person what exactly they meant and to rewrite the statement without the obscure terms (I'm not familiar with them myself, and that's saying something). 「ダイノガイ千？！」? · Talk⇒Dinoguy1000 18:18, 25 September 2009 (UTC)
Just jumping in to say that since synecdoche is when you use a part of something to refer to all of it and foreign colloquy is just when foreigners refer to GB/UK, they probably just meant that in other countries, "England" is used to refer to the entire UK. (We should probably add that it's an incorrect usage.) --Suki Dakara 16:16, 27 September 2009 (UTC)
"England is identified by the flag of the United Kingdom, because in foreign languages, "England" is a synechdoche of often synonymous with Great Britain and the UK"
at least, I think that's what it means..? --Arkelweis (talk) 14:40, 28 September 2009 (UTC)

China's gender

Is China male or female? China resembles a male but is referred to in both the show and this article as "he". 70.191.254.65 (talk) 01:44, 21 November 2009 (UTC)

Uhh Male? LOL! -Pickbothmanlol- 21:43, 6 December 2009 (UTC)
I meant so say China looks like a woman but is referred to as he. Emperor001 (talk) 19:59, 11 December 2009 (UTC)
On a character flow chart Himaruya listed China's gender as and I quote, "not sure", but I think he was just joking around with that. China will remain listed as male until decisive evidence otherwise is given. LOL. 中国 (talk) 20:52, 9 January 2010 (UTC)
Considering China's distress during the recent Christmas strip at being forced into a dress (see here) I'd say he was male. Anonymous. 17:28, 18 February 2010

It is understandable to be somewhat confused about China's gender. After all, he didn't help himself any when he drew that extemely effeminate self-portrait in one episode. --74.198.151.1 (talk) 01:54, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

China is confirmed male. It's just his hair and the fact he has women for his VA's — Preceding unsigned comment added by 58.110.110.147 (talk) 11:04, 8 April 2012 (UTC)

Hetalia season3

Season3 is decided. http://www.animate.tv/news/details.php?id=1260493261 124.85.19.66 (talk) 04:18, 12 December 2009 (UTC)

Title

Isn't the title of the series Axis Powers Hetalia, instead of Hetalia: Axis Powers? The Japanese article is titled Axis powers ヘタリア. --JadziaLover (talk | contribs) 08:16, 14 December 2009 (UTC)

All reliable English language sources has called it Hetalia: Axis Powers. So per WP:ENGLISH and WP:COMMONNAME, that is the title we go with. —Farix (t | c) 12:48, 14 December 2009 (UTC)
What about Japanese sources like the website of the author? Here the title is written as Axis Powers Hetalia (AXISPOWERSヘタリア). At the very least, the Japanese title in the article should be corrected. --JadziaLover (talk | contribs) 12:59, 14 December 2009 (UTC)
And the manga's publisher has titled it ヘタリア Axis Powers. —Farix (t | c) 21:13, 14 December 2009 (UTC)
So, what has preference? The author or the publisher?
I would like to note that the logo of the series implies Axis Powers Hetalia. Also, most of the times that the title is written in the manga, it is written with Axis Powers before Hetalia. --JadziaLover (talk | contribs) 00:03, 15 December 2009 (UTC)

Run Time

Is the shows run time normally about 4 mins?? Im trying to watch it on the Internet but I only find 5 minute long videos —Preceding unsigned comment added by 189.221.24.16 (talk) 15:33, 23 January 2010 (UTC)

The shows normally run for 5 minutes and can be seen on www.veoh.com. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.161.36.242 (talk) 17:57, 7 February 2010 (UTC)

Episode List

Shouldn't there be an episode list section for their anime adaptaion, or is that not important enough? Bithop90 (talk) 23:47, 5 May 2010 (UTC)

I suppose it wouldn't hurt and would actually be helpful, but with the length, I'm inclined to say that is should be its own page. WhiteArcticWolf (talk) 01:36, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

FYI, List of Axis Powers Hetalia episodes has been nominated for deletion. 70.29.212.131 (talk) 04:10, 9 June 2010 (UTC)

Refs dump

WhiteArcticWolf (talk) 23:25, 1 December 2010 (UTC)

demographic

Shouldn't the demographic be mentioned since it was made into a tankobon? Is it shoujo or what? ForestAngel (talk) 18:37, 29 July 2010 (UTC)

Demographics are usually determined by magazine run. Seeing as Hetalia isn't run in a magazine, it'd be considered OR to list it as anything without an official source. Demographics can be difficult to pinpoint, so it's not easily labeled as anything (for example, Chi's Sweet Home and Yotsuba&! are both seinen). WhiteArcticWolf (talk) 21:26, 29 July 2010 (UTC)
I always though hetalia was shonen, but I agree that we need a better source then actully exist to demographic-i-fy (yes, I just made that word up) hetalia.92.21.137.38 (talk) 16:21, 18 December 2010 (UTC)
Hetalia is collected in volumes under the Birz Extra imprint, which is a general audience imprint. So it's neither shoujo or seinen; it's just manga, no specific demographic. Kazu-kun (talk) 15:48, 20 September 2013 (UTC)

America's Voice Actor

Hi, I just wanted to point something out. America's voice actor is wrong. He's voiced by Eric Vale, not Luci Christian. 67.161.224.25 (talk) 16:52, 28 November 2010 (UTC)

It's not wrong. It credits Eric Vale as adult America, while Luci Christian voices him as a child. WhiteArcticWolf (talk) 16:56, 28 November 2010 (UTC)

Bonus episode of World Series

It appears that there is a special episode of Hetalia: World Series featuring the Five Nordic States (Iceland, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark) which have not mentioned in the article. The episode is on YouTube. Does it count as a 49th episode or a 4th OVA? ISD (talk) 13:00, 28 May 2011 (UTC)

Reviews

"For example, while we think the French are white flag waving cowards". This makes no sense. Who is this "we"? As far as I know, only right-wing Americans use that stereotype, and they make up a minute percentage of the global population. That alone to me makes the review rather non-notable but even if it were to be kept in, the article should clarify by whom the stereotype is held, otherwise it's just confusing.--89.146.13.103 (talk) 15:47, 28 September 2011 (UTC)

Really? It's a goofy stereotype. No one actually believes it, but far more than one group uses it. I cannot honestly believe that you've never heard anyone else uses it. Considering it's a British magazine, I'd imagine the "we" refers to British people in general. Unless the reviewer is American and writing for a British magazine. Also, a review doesn't automatically become non-notable because they are used to a different stereotype. It is merely commentary; they got less laughs because the differences were jarring to them. WhiteArcticWolf (talk) 16:38, 28 September 2011 (UTC)

A PHD in History to understand the manga jokes? Please, the author himself should read a good book of history, and reshape his wonderful Japan. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.20.176.9 (talk) 13:43, 30 October 2011 (UTC)

Since when are random user reviews a legitimate review source? I think these need to be taken down. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.170.3.78 (talk) 10:09, 2 February 2013 (UTC)

Himaruya redirects here...?

Seemed a little odd. Whilst APH is his best known work, he does have other comics, such as Chibisan Date and Advance! Kitakou Broadcasting Club. Should we make a seperate article for the trollking himself? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.14.18.79 (talk) 07:20, 15 October 2011 (UTC)

Well, now there is one for him. HetaTuna (talk) 04:02, 7 May 2016 (UTC)

Any particular reason why the Hetalia wiki link was removed on this page? Other pages like Pokemon have wiki links as well so I don't see why this page can't have one. It's also one of the leading sources for information outside of the Hetalia LiveJournal community. Was this just a mistake? 64.229.86.151 (talk) 20:28, 4 February 2012 (UTC)

Genre confusion with Yaoi and Shonen-ai

Hetalia is not considered neither Yaoi or Shonen-ai, despite the homoerotic moments seen in the both the manga and anime. Yaoi or Shonen-ai isn't a main genre. --NerdetteFangirl (talk) 01:42, 25 April 2012 (UTC)

What Koreans think

I think the criticism from Koreans about manga's depiction of Korea deserves a separate section. It was a nationwide controversial issue in South Korea that Koreans angered about, and made netizens to protest over it, but now occupies a small part of a section about anime? Not a good treatment, I think. JSH-alive/talk/cont/mail 14:24, 28 September 2012 (UTC)

In the greater scheme of things, it was an extremely minor controversy that died out quickly and is mostly forgotten. Moving it into a section all its own would give it undue weight by making the controversy seem to have had more subsentence than it did. —Farix (t | c) 22:02, 28 September 2012 (UTC)
I agree. Unless you can provide some serious sourcing, I'd say it's already more than sufficient coverage. Look: we're talking here about a series which mocks all countries and portrays them in stereotypical ways (not to mention making light of World War 2 itself). It would be more appropriate to worry about things that matter, like the treatment of the memory of the Korean "comfort women" by Japan's apologists. --Orange Mike | Talk 12:45, 3 October 2012 (UTC)
The only change to the text that I see that is appropriate would be to move it into the reception section. It is, after all, a reaction to the anime series. That is something that generally goes into the reception section. —Farix (t | c) 14:03, 3 October 2012 (UTC)

One of the main reasons why Koreans were generally so offended was especially because of their long-term sour relationship with Japan. Of course, there are other issues like Korea being portrayed as a pervert without an apparent stereotype to back it up, his hanbok being wrong, and the way he calls Japan "aniki" when Korea has technically existed as one country for longer than Japan (not backed by completely reliable information). I can understand how the Koreans feel, and I hate it when people complain about Koreans just being "overdramatic" over what Japan has done to them or their relatives, but I agree with some that this anime was meant to be made with light rudeness because of the stereotypes . (I still love the Korea character.) HetaTuna (talk) 04:11, 7 May 2016 (UTC)

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Unofficial Information

Please kindly look at the main page for Hetalia: Axis Powers, Main Characters section. Specifically, Italy and Germany, under Axis Powers. (Lord Doitsu's Royal Wurst Sucker) and (Magical Gay Lord Doitsu). Is this a joke? A prank? All the other characters' character descriptions remain as usual, so I could safely say only the ones for Italy and Germany changed. Is this truly official? It seems very unusual, even for Hetalia: Axis Powers. More akin to a fan-made name. Please verify. OfficialBleach (talk) 07:14, 20 April 2014 (UTC)

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