What do foreign people think of Japanese "gals"?

"You and I Are Polar Opposites"

I wondered after watching this anime.

How do people from abroad perceive girls who are called Japanese "gals"?

Are there people of the same type overseas?

Or is the nuance a little different?

I want to know the difference there. And if there is a difference, I want to know how you feel about Japanese "gals".

Please let me know if you don't mind.

※I don't know how to convey "gal". Please guess.

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Commentaires

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Derallerechtere2026-01-13 13:45

Japanese gals would be just nornal people in USA

blanc_megami2026-01-13 13:45

Gyaru love! It's unfortunate characters like this are so rare.

TheChickenIsFkinRaw2026-01-13 13:47

I will the gyaru

YAKlSOBAPAN2026-01-13 13:54

Rare? There's been a gyaru boom going on for at least a few years now.

Edit: Just to clarify, I approve of this boom very much :3

blanc_megami2026-01-13 13:59

Well, if we count like characters like Marin or Ayase Momo then i guess. And it's probable just my personal bias that they don't really "feel" like more stereotypical gyaru characters.

And honestly i'm still sad that we lost Galko.

Sibula972026-01-13 14:10

Marin and Momo are 100% gyarus.

Xx420EdgeLord69xX2026-01-13 14:05

Not as rare as it used to be thankfully, though there's always room for more.

trash4da_trashgod2026-01-13 13:45

Do you mean **gyarus** with the wild makeup?

gelatinousTurtle2026-01-13 13:46

Most people that hangs out on this sub will get it if you say gyaru. Yes, just use the romaji directly. The Japanese gyaru had branched off from the English gal quite a bit and is a totally different character type now, like how in Japanese ヤンキー means something completely different from the English Yankee.

Guilty-Tell2026-01-13 13:48

I mean they would be just normal girls.

Zodiamaster2026-01-13 13:49

I like them

Narrow-Cicada-26952026-01-13 13:53

I think they’re hilarious. They look like if Jersey Shore was set in Candyland

qnixsynapse2026-01-13 13:55

"Gals" or 「ギャル」 appear to me as overly flamboyant.

Previous-Fix-62692026-01-13 13:56

cute and dumb

blamordeganis2026-01-13 13:56

Is Suzuki a gyaru? She’s got pink hair and takes care of her make-up, but is that sufficient?

VMK_19912026-01-13 14:21

As gyaru becomes more and more prominent in mainstream culture, their more prominent features get sanded off. Gyaru were slutty and rebelious, with reputation for going on "compensated dates". Then they turned into sexy trendy girls who wear revealing things and are positive. Then it became so that any character who is positive and takes care of her appearance can be considered gyaru.

It's like with, say, Punk.

Smoothesuede2026-01-13 13:58

Gyaru are well known to anime fans in america. Outside of that though, i think the most common mental image someone would have if you reminded them of what gyaru are would be the ganguro thing from the 00s. That subculture has been featured on American TV and has gone viral online because of how shocking it is. Almost no one likes ganguro, but I don't think that's even a thing anymore, so it doesn't matter much.

Most average americans would look at gyaru as a pretty normal style for a young girl to have. A lot of socially maludjusted anime fans might load negative baggage onto it about modesty or sluttiness, but normal people don't think that way.

The closest American equivalent to a gyaru would be the "valley girl", known for a certain kind of rebellious, maximally fashionable femininity, and stereotypically as being liked by kinda dumb people.

They aren't the same thing. But they're close enough to compare.

Miyuki222026-01-13 13:58

Are you referring to Gyaru?

If so, it is unique to Japan... Most foreigners don't know the difference between them and simple normal young girls here

Scorpio9892026-01-13 13:59

If your perception of the style is only from anime, you won't get the full picture. Anime usually only uses 1 or 2 of the variants when their are dozens. A Kogyaru isn't really that different from a typical high school girl in the West that cares about makeup and fashion.

Less_Party2026-01-13 14:09

I think if you look at how they're depicted the equivalent here (Europe) would be a more extreme and openly rebellious subculture like goths or punks. Because the actual style tropes (other than the really wild full facepaint/panda eyes thing) of having a tan, dyeing your hair and caring about makeup are so common that no one would even notice.

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VMK_19912026-01-13 14:17

You can use either "gyaru" or "gal", we'll understand.

As for your questions:

I personally like gyaru archetype. I like the whole "positive, fashionable and flirtatious" vibe they have. Though I certainly wish for greater number of gyarus who are older than teenagers in media. Can't speak for other people, because I don't know many other manganime nerds.

As for subcultures like this in other countries, I don't think they exist (at least equivalent ones). Gyaru, to my knowledge, are basically a counter-culture to Japan's mainstream and accepted "prim and proper" yamato nadeshiko. I don't think there are counter cultures that are specifically female in nature in other places. Though let's see what will happen with what is currently known as Iran in a year or ten.

Striking_Luck52012026-01-13 14:18

"Are there people of the same type overseas?": No. The closest thing would be drag queens, and they are extremely different.

"I want to know the difference there. And if there is a difference, I want to know how you feel about Japanese "gals"." : It all depends. Some of it appears to be very mild and done for fun. Other times it looks crazy and off putting.

In extreme cases, it starts to look like black face.