hina-tan!

I love tans. No, not the operating system mascot characters, though they's ace too of course.

Be they natural, sun-induced (I keep typing 'sin-induced' xD) or out of a bottle or booth, I am a tan fan :)

In any given anime, if there's a female character with a tanned complexion, I'll invariably be drawn to them first. Take for example, oh, I don't know, one at random... Love Hina. Kaolla caught my eye, and I've had what some class as an unhealthy fixation on her ever since. Love at first sight, I believe :su: Powerful, clever though maybe outwardly loopy, bouncy, mysterious, great cook... All these things, but dark skin, emerald eyes and blonde hair just trigger something, I dunno...

Not to forget the impact made By the introduction of a dark Shinobu facsimile who can talk to turtles in Nyamo and Suu's own ravishing sister Amalla (keep it in the family, don'tcherknow? ;) ), and its no wonder I like the LH series :su:

Another of my favourites, El Hazard, had any number of bountiful, bouncy buxom babes in flowing Arabian drapery to choose from. I settled on my favourite as the fiery fire priestess Shayla Shayla. Feisty, fiery temperament to match her powers, explosive character, young and impetuous, gets drunk easily... Dark skin, emerald eyes, but this time a shock of flame red hair instead of blonde.

Shortly before discovering El Hazard, I wandered into the world of Tenchi Muyo! No sooner had I started watching than I was a fan of Ryoko... Then, around two more eps in, Mihoshi grabbed me and shook me down :) She's always lurking in the background to take my mind off whatever the story's dealing with.

Coming back a bit further to what really got me into anime and manga in the first place: Gunsmith Cats :D Central character, Chicago's own Irene 'Demolition Rally' Vincent. Hotshot bounty hunter and marksman with a love of fast muscle cars and a disturbing (to some) reaction to gun oil and gun powder, Rally's of Native American extraction :) Dark hair, piercing sapphire-blue eyes and a tan tone to die for, she sucked me in and has kept me there ever since.

A relative newcomer to my viewing pleasure has been the Negima series. So chock full of golden skinned lovelies, I don't know where to start. Yes, I watch/read Negima because its Akamatsu's next big play after Love Hina, and I love the challenge he's set himself keeping up with 30-plus character's stories (can't help but think he'll spread himself a little thin...), but my favourite character shouldn't really surprise anyone here... Ku Fei :D The fact that she's clearly based on Kaolla was an obvious starting point for me to get interested in her character, but she has enough different traits for them to stand as two separate girls. I also enjoy the delights of various others in the series, like Hakase, the Narutakis, Chachamaru, Evangeline, but the other tanned temptresses are right up there: Mana and Zazie are among my faves.

Then we move on to one of the newest shows that I've laid my eyes on: Renkin Sankyuu Magical Pokaan, or, shortly, Magipoka. Four exotic princesses (of which places was never really adequately explained :( ), including a young witch whose dress has a tendency to fly up around her... But guess my favourite? Wolfgirl Liru, that's who! In her second form in the series, she's an adorable little puppy, but her regular presence is that of fun-loving, bouncy, scantily-clad dark-skinned wolfgirl. I like her belt. Not difficult to see that I fell for her, but I can't put my finger on exactly why.

Okay, I'll level with you. They're all highly tasty and look fantastic. They could light my fire/handle my firearm/swing on my trapeze/cuff me/chew my bone/beat me up/peel my 'nana any day of the week. But as above, it goes beyond the schoolboy/sexually frustrated sniggers. Maybe what initially attracts me to these girls is their sultry looks, but I stick with them because I love them as characters.

I remember reading somewhere that loving tans only recently entered the public consciousness, somewhere early last century. I know sun worship has been around for donkey's years though. While I hold little affection for the sun and the summer season, much preferring cold winter months, I don't half like its effects on young females.

Perhaps its the way tanned characters are viewed as holding some sort of mystique about them, some calling of a far-off land filled with wondrous delights, but they appear to me mostly as foreigners and aliens, not quite as 'real' or substantive as the girl-next-door types the heroes always fall for in stories. They're almost always slightly batty, too. Kaolla is a very clever girl, surviving in a strange country and designing all the mecha that she does... But she's loopy and extroverted and seems to get distracted really easily. Shayla is one of the best at what she does - she's a high priestess who has access to ancient magic and special powers - but she is considered too young and instinctive to do herself justice. Also, as mentioned, she likes her drink.

They all have an indefinable quality to them, my girls. I set out writing this to try and see if there was some sort of rationale, some sort of pattern involved in my preferences, but it seems not. The only real constants seem to be the girls' bubbliness and skin tone. Each brings something different to my particular table (especially if they're wearing skimpy waitress uniform or just an apron that says "ravish the cook").

I may fap to them occasionally, but I love Kaolla, Amalla, Mihoshi, Nyamo, Rally, Shayla, Ed, Ku Fei, Mana, Zazie, Liru, Kagura, Chika, Urd, Nadia, Triela and the rest for more than just their looks.