Eagle Land: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

When viewed from the outside, or sometimes even from the ''inside,'' the United States of America comes in different flavors.

'''Flavor 1: America, Fuck Yeah!'''

 

 

 

 

'''Mixed Flavor'''

 

 

This [[Trope]] is about outsiders looking at the US, so some information here might be heavily stereotyped and culturally offensive to actual Americans. If you happen to see a work that portrays the United States or Americans ''as a whole'' as Flavor #2, but it's an ''American'' production, that's a case of [[Cultural Cringe]]; likewise, an American indulging in Flavor #1 is merely a case of [[Creator Provincialism]]. If the work in question doesn't delve into judgment but refers to the US culture and history by both structuralist and functionalist examples then you're probably reading an in-depth history book.

* [[Lovecraft Country]]

* [[Motor City]]

* [[Oppressive States of America]]: Left-leaning works with Oppressive may have an Eagleland type 2.

* [[Sweet Home Alabama]]

* ''[[G Gundam]]'''s Chibodee Crockett. Take Roy Fokker, Muhammad Ali, Stephen Colbert, and Toby Keith. Mix well, surround with hot young women, and stick in a robot football player/boxer/cowboy/surfer [[Wearing a Flag on Your Head|wearing star-spangled shorts]]. Truly [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40SMfuAfhr8 a real American].

* Aries of ''[[Mai-Otome]]'' and ''[[Mai-Otome Zwei]]'' has some definite parallels to the US, from a suspiciously Pentagon-like structure to the attitude of Brigadier General Haruka Armitage, a [[Determinator]] to the extreme who often charges in with little to no plan. Aries itself is mainly type 1 being one of the good nations with Yukino being a calm assertive leader who balances out Haruka.

* Subversion: In ''[[Beck (manga)|Beck]]: Mongolian Chop Squad'', the eponymous band was, according to the opening song, "made to hit in America," and the band trying to make it over there was the subject of much of the series. However, their idea of fitting in is wearing t-shirts that say "Jesus is Coming", and America is shown rather realistically (despite some pretty bad [[Engrish]] signage).

* ''[[Kimagure Orange Road]]'' both subverts it (manga) and plays it straight (OVA). In the manga story, Kyosuke, Madoka, and a new girl Sayuri (not Hikaru) find themselves on vacation in Hawaii. One day, Sayuri disappears after going to her room to change. After unsuccessfully searching for her, they believe her to have been kidnapped. Later, they get a phone call in their hotel room, telling them to go to certain locations, ending in a yacht in the harbor. The owner of the yacht tells them to spend the night, and that he'll be back in the morning with their breakfast. Since neither of them know what "breakfast" means, they assume it is something rather sinister. After a night of drinking, the owner returns, brings them their food, and produces a gun...which happens to be a lighter for his pipe. Turns out they were mistaken for a newlywed couple who had ordered a honeymoon package of sorts, and told to go to their locations. And Sayuri had gone off to a bar to hunt guys, completely forgetting about her friends. The OVA, however, had Hikaru actually being kidnapped by crazy [[Mooks]] with guns, and ended with a final shootout, with the police (or any sensible Americans) nowhere to be seen.

* The ''Yoroiden Samurai Troopers/[[Ronin Warriors]]'' OAV "Gaiden" takes place mostly in [[Big Applesauce|New York City]], although they manage to feature some action in [[Hollywood California|Los Angeles]] towards the end for good measure. Apparently, the OAV's [[Big Bad]] carries out his attacks in Manhattan even though his base of operations is located in L.A. The 3000-mile distance between the two cities doesn't mean anything to him...or to the writers.

* ''[[Pluto]]'s'' America expy "Thracia" is fairly benign, although its leader is quick to give power to the [[Man Behind the Man|Machine Behind The Man]].

 

=== Comic Books ===

 

=== Film ===

* Orvil Newton from ''[[Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines]]'' (or How I Flew From London To Paris in 25 Hours and 11 Minutes) is a classic Type 1: loud and rough around the edges, but the most honest, fair and likable guy you'll care to meet. He even throws the race (and the astronomical prize he needs to get home again) to save another pilot in distress.

* ''[[Black Hawk Down]]'': [[The Dragon]] sarcastically claims that Americans are Type 1, who don't drink, don't smoke, and live long, healthy, uninteresting lives.

 

=== Literature ===

 

=== Live-Action TV ===

* An episode of ''[[Samurai Sentai Shinkenger]]'' features an American who's more eager than intelligent when it comes to learning the ways of the samurai.

* ''[[A Bit of Fry and Laurie]]'' used this trope more than once, most memorably in song form, when [[Hugh Laurie]], wearing a plaid flannel shirt and a headband (he was making fun of [[Bruce Springsteen]], obviously overlooking the fact that the song "Born in the USA" is actually condescending of America), sang a song that consisted only of the words "...America, America, America..." and "...the States, the States, the States..." and ended with [[Stephen Fry]] punching him in the stomach.

 

=== Music ===

* "American Woman," originally by The Guess Who, painted the U.S. as Flavor 2. Then Lenny Kravitz [[Covered Up|covered it up]] with a funk remix and a music video with American flags, hot girls on choppers and muscle cars, and [[Heather Graham]] dancing on top of a bus. Because of that, it's today regarded as more Flavor 1 in style regardless of its lyrics. Incidentally, The Guess Who claimed ''American Woman'' was never intended to be anti-American in the first place.

* [[Blur (band)|Blur]]'s song "Magic America", which is about a man who moves to America entirely because of this view of the country.

 

=== Radio ===

 

=== Video Games ===

* In ''[[Pokémon Red and Blue]]'', their sequels, and their remakes, the Gym Leader Lt. Surge is Type 1. He appears to have the usual good sportsmanship required to be a gym leader and he is even said to be a war hero (as noted below, though, many adaptations make him a Type 2).

** The setting of ''[[Pokémon Black and White]]'', called Unova (Isshu in the Japanese versions), is based on New York City, where the previous games were based on regions of Japan. There are football players, southern belles, talk about the greatness of diversity, etc. - it even includes a ''literal'' American Eagle in the Pokémon Braviary.

** Jennifer, in the Japanese version, routinely blurts out incredibly stereotypical American things: "Jesus!", "Oh my gaw!", and "OH!", for starters.

** Turn the [[Greek Chorus]] on in the DS port, and when Gordon tells Carter to have a parade ready for his triumphant return, and the Prinny says "This is a typical American victory speech. And let's not forget the 'smart American' joke, either."

* ''[[Street Fighter II]]'' introduced Guile. Guile is a tattooed, buff military man, but he's a decent guy and is considered one of the good guys, even becoming the main character in some Western adaptations.

* ''[[Persona 2]]'' has Mr. Tominaga, a chiropractor who is obsessed with American culture. He has patches such as NASA and FBI on his jacket, wears a red and white striped shirt and a blue with white stars tie, has an American flag in his office, and is convinced that his [[Goldfinger|Goldfingeeeeers]] can cure anything. Interestingly enough, he's Japanese but studied chiropractic in America. Amusingly, wearing a FBI patch, depending on context, could be a full on federal crime in the United States. Pretending to be a law enforcement officer is serious business.

* [[Sonic the Hedgehog|Sonic's]] personality is said to be derived from free roaming western heroes who go where the wind takes them, a type 1 style America. Imagine the typical "free spirit" cowboy (in contrast to the "law man" cowboy) and you have Sonic in a nut shell.

 

=== Web Comics ===

** May be a subversion, in that it's made by the U.S. Military for Japanese children...

 

=== Western Animation ===

* The Big Guy from ''[[Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot (animation)|Big Guy and Rusty The Boy Robot]]'' is a solid Type 1. Lines like "have to shoot carefully...each shot costs millions of taxpayer dollars" and "I pledge allegiance to only one flag!" are said with perfect sincerity. It's probably a deliberately-crafted image; Lieutenant Hunter is a soldier, and a loyal one at that, but he's not ''that'' cheesy.

 

=== Other ===

* The Dydo company brings you [http://www.examiner.com/caffeine-in-national/how-japan-sees-american-coffee American Coffee].

 

 

== Flavor 2 ==

* Carrie from ''[[Bamboo Blade]]'' is depicted as a somewhat stereotypical American type 2. She is obnoxious and in-your-face, extremely arrogant, and generally disregards the traditional rules of Kendo in favor of practices she thinks are more cool. However, by the end of the anime series, she and her rival Miya-Miya do seem to have a grudging respect for one another.

* An episode of ''[[Excel Saga (anime)|Excel Saga]]'' was set in Flavor 2 Eagleland, with a humongous New York that seemed to be nothing but Mafiosi and slums. Obviously [[Played for Laughs]], though; Excel immediately recognizes that she is in America by landing "...in the very definition of a slum."

* In ''[[Eyeshield 21]]'', Leonard Apollo, the coach of the Nasa Aliens, is definitely an example of the latter type. His players are pretty nice guys, but Apollo is an overbearing blowhard who's bitter about his own failed dream of becoming a pro football player. This is actually a step down from the manga, as there Apollo is actually ''blatantly racist''.

** Ironically enough, Hiruma actually exhibits the most type 2 qualities, despite being ethnically Japanese and having lived in Japan his entire life. He list of type 2 qualities include:

* Episodes 10 and 11 of ''[[Genshiken]]'' Season 2. Angela is shown as riding roughshod over all cultural sensitivities in Japan, in an almost painful caricature.

* ''[[Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex]]'' contains a particularly obnoxious example of type 2 in the infamous episode 10; a major plot point revolves around the "American Empire" sanctioning their forces to commit atrocious war crimes in South America, which might have been marginally forgivable given the series' alternate-future setting (in which [[All There in the Manual|supplemental materials]] reveal that America has undergone a second Civil War), but the depiction of the Japanese-American characters as ugly, condescending, manipulative cowards really has no excuse. Needless to say, some American fans like to [[Fanon Discontinuity|ignore that episode]].

* Early '90s show ''[[Mad Bull 34]]'' sends a Japanese policeman on exchange to New York's 34th precinct to be [[Buddy Cop Show|buddies]] with "Sleepy" John Estes, the most violent cop on the force, who cleans up the [[Big Applesauce|Big Apple]]'s crime problem with shotguns, grenades, and a wanton disregard for legal procedure.

* Donald Curtis from ''[[Porco Rosso]]'' is an exceptional #2 example. "Make way for the American!" He plans to be a Hollywood actor and later president. [[Ronald Reagan|Sound familiar?]]

* The American team in the baseball episode of ''[[Samurai Champloo]]'' is a definite type 2. They are portrayed as blatantly cheating, violent, murderous thugs who consider the Japanese team to be ignorant savages. They also keep going on and on about American superiority. When the game dissolves into a beaning match which ends with Mugen as the last man standing, he then yells "Go back to your own damn country!" The narrator then helpfully adds that the Americans went home in shame, with a profound fear of the Japanese people.

* ''Shin [[Getter Robo]] Armageddon'': After the apocalypse, the remaining nations struggle to survive against immortal aliens. A group of Americans come onto the Japanese base and start trying to kill everyone and destroy Shin Getter. Their reason? They think the Japanese ''caused'' the disaster that flooded the surface with Getter radiation, killing about 90% of the population, and drove them underground {{spoiler|in truth, the UN over-reacted and launched a nuke at the, at the time, highly volatile Shin Dragon}}. Gai calls them out on this, asking why the Japanese would drop the bomb on themselves.

*** Latter does so speaking absolutely horrid and, at the same time, absolutely ''[[Crowning Moment of Funny|hilarious]]'' Engrish.

* Let's not forget "Bandit" Keith [[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series|Steve]] Howard from ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!]]'', both an American and a ruthless dirty cheater, who has a [[Wearing a Flag on Your Head|Stars and Stripes bandanna]]. He even pulls a gun on Pegasus when he loses! Of course, Pegasus himself is American... and a flamboyant, childlike billionaire. Or Rebecca Hopkins/Hawkins, American champion, a cute little girl with a teddy bear... whose [[Catch Phrase]] is "God damn". Rebecca gets a little better later on, but still. Not to mention the [[It's All About Me|shallow, selfish]] movie star Jean-Claude Magnum. [[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series|In America]].

** In [[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series|the Abridged Series]], Yugi states it himself: "So let me get this straight. The only characters on this show who represent America are Jean Claude Magnum, Rebecca Hawkins, Maximilian Pegasus, and Bandit Keith. Is it just me, or is Yu-Gi-Oh the most xenophobic show ever?"

* The manga version of ''[[Bokurano]]'' portrays America this way, even though Americans themselves are very rarely shown. Characters usually speak with disgust about the United States, saying that the country is stuck thinking it's the world's sole superpower, and worrying that the U.S. may invade Japan, using the manga's events as a pretext. In fact, the U.S. never actually does anything antagonistic in the manga.

* While America doesn't make an appearance until one of the final episodes of ''[[Speed Grapher]]'', the portrayal is definitely this type. The American President (very clearly [[George W. Bush]] in the dub) is among the world leaders discussing dealing with the situation in Japan, and they launch missiles into the middle of Tokyo as a response, and their motives for doing this are completely corrupt. Admittedly, the series also presents all Japanese politicians (and arguably all politicians in general) as corrupt.

* ''[[Azumanga Daioh]]'': When Osaka learns Chiyo plans to study abroad, she seems to think Chiyo will get shot the minute she steps off the plane.

 

* Garth Ennis' ''[[Punisher]]'' run portrayed America as a glass half empty type 2, to the point where the military are launching terrorist attacks to justify war.

* Nuke, a [[Marvel Comics]] villain, is a deranged super soldier with an American flag tattooed on his face.

 

=== Film ===

* ''The Best of the Best'', where the American Tae Kwon Do team goes to Korea to take on their national team at the sport they invented, is a Flavor 2 film, even though it's certainly the opposite of what the filmmakers intended. Although supposed to have an "Americans triumph over any adversity" message, consider the following:

** The American team includes a prejudiced, ignorant [[Deep South|redneck stereotype]] who continually insults their hosts' culture. In addition, they have their star Korean-American member as a symbol of assimilation into the greater American culture.

** The Korean-American defeats his opponent, gets revenge for his slain brother, and doesn't deliver the deathblow. In return, his now-crippled Korean opponent shambles over to him, gives him his gold medal, apologizes for (accidentally) killing his brother while acknowledging them both as worthy competitors, and offers to be his new brother.

** And the filmmakers wanted me to [[Designated Hero|root for the Americans]]?

* The movie based on [[Terry Pratchett]]'s novel ''[[Discworld|The Colour of Magic]]'' has the character Twoflower as a completely oblivious American tourist complete with straw hat, Hawaiian print shirt, and camera. This is different from the book, however, as Twoflower is from the Agaetean empire and is the local equivalent of a [[Japanese Tourist]].

* A montage in ''Godzilla: Final Wars'' shows daily life in various world cities being interrupted by ''daikaiju'' attacks. Apparently, daily life in New York consists of pimps pulling guns on cops in the middle of the street. Also, the two American main characters are a quite possibly insane [[Badass Normal]] (emphasis on the "[[Badass]]") and a self-important [[Nietzsche Wannabe]], neither of whom, despite living in Tokyo, [[Gratuitous English|ever say one word in Japanese]]. Kazama only really spoke English in like two parts of the movie: during the Ebirah fight and the "Watch it, X Man!" line.

* Seen in ''[[In Bruges]]'' with the overweight American tourists, and then lampshaded when Ray picks a fight with one couple over [[The Vietnam War]] and the assassination of [[John Lennon]]. He feels no remorse until [[Mistaken Nationality|he learns]] that they're [[Canada, Eh?|Canadian]].

* In the German film ''Kein Bund F?rs Leben'' the Americans (especially the commander) are mostly type 2 but with a subversion: The German soldiers are worse!

 

=== Literature ===

* Ditto for Ian Fleming's [[James Bond]] novels involving Americans (''[[The Spy Who Loved Me]]'', ''[[Goldfinger]]'' and ''[[Diamonds Are Forever]]''): No sentence is complete without at least one "buster", "buddy" or "...see?"

* In ''Partners In Crime'' [[Agatha Christie]] depicts an abrasive American who calls Europe "Yurrop" (actually this pretty much is how Americans pronouce it). He's the bad guy.

* ''The Ugly American'' is about American foreign aid workers struggling to win hearts and minds for the USA while being sabotaged by a variety of flavor 2s.

 

=== Live-Action TV ===

** In the same episode there is an example that is closer to the first stereotype. A trio of Buffalo Bills supporting teens watch the President Elect getting zapped live on TV, as they don't speak they are portrayed in Letterman Jackets/a Cheerleader outfit, eating fried chicken ''and'' pizza. The fried chicken tub has a star spangled banner on it, this probably meant to simply show that they are American to UK viewers. What, no cowboy hats nor six-shooters?

** Notably, the episode is presenting the President as a big prat who we want to see shot... while he's ''right'' that PM Saxon is a boob who's mismanaging the situation and not following protocol, and the President puts UNIT, a ''United Nations group'', in charge of the operation. Which is a wee bit of a disconnect.

** The first new series had the first Dalek captured by an American laboratory, populated by rich bastard Van Statten, Simmons, whose job largely consisted of torturing the Dalek, and an idiot security guard who didn't listen to the Doctor's advice. But the American ''women'' in that environment seem particularly strong and non-stereotypical, such as Van Statten's right-hand woman who eventually {{spoiler|has him mind-wiped and put in some city beginning with "S"}} and the brave young female trooper who faces down the Dalek on the stairs long enough to buy Rose and Adam enough time to escape. As depictions of Americans in [[Doctor Who]] goes, it's actually one of the better ones.

*** [[Hypocrite|She then winds up ordering Torchwood to shoot down the retreating enemy ship]].

** Also pretty well subverted in the first two episodes of Series 6 "The Impossible Astronaut" and "The Day of the Moon", which are set in the US. The American characters are pretty sympathetic, if a bit trigger-happy (many of them are, after all, FBI agents). Even [[Richard Nixon]] gets a pretty kind portrayal.

* ''[[Lexx]]'' in its Season Four is very much Type Two in its portrayal of the United States. Stupid moralistic rednecks, the prison industrial complex, crazy survivalists, suburban misery behind a facade of perfection, teenage druggies, criminals, heartless porn stars, reality TV... And the [[Our Presidents Are Different|evil, crooked, and not-too-intelligent president]] is armed with nuclear weapons and is a puppet of [[Satan|a pure evil being]]. Of course, ''every'' country comes off badly on ''Lexx''.

** Jeremy Clarkson once flirted with an American audience member by saying "You can't be American. You're not nearly fat enough."

** Clarkson's comments about Americans are particularly ironic given that if he were American, [[Take That|he'd be the archetypal Type 2]].

* ''[[A Bit of Fry and Laurie]]'' does this occasionally, notably in "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6riY-103vbc Kicking Ass]" and "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUKOebCbINc From Here To Just Over There]".

* [[Kenny Everett]] had the bombastic [[General Ripper]] character of [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJYZrVc1kCY General Cheeseburger] (the post-[[Watershed]] version was called General Bombthebastards), whose solution to every problem involved rounding up those responsible in a field and [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|bombing the bastards]]. Also his shoulderpads served as launch pads for ICBMs.

US Government: Oh and you owe us half your annual budget for that coin. }}

* The "Waldorf Salad" episode of ''[[Fawlty Towers]]'' had an American guest staying at the hotel who wound up bullying Basil into submission. The portrayal isn't ridiculous, but you can get a kick out of hearing the expression "Hot dog!" used in total seriousness (oh, and [[Fake American|the actor was Canadian]]).

 

=== Music ===

* "Let's Play USA" by Peter Schilling (best known for "Major Tom")is a nasty Type 2 with a cheery pop beat.

* The Brazilian show ''Comédia MTV'' made a parody of type 2 named ""[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HB780oK6F9M I'm American]", with the singers singing in English (with Portuguese subtitles).

 

=== Theatre ===

* Freddie Trumper, the [[Jerkass]] American chess champion in ''[[Chess (theatre)|Chess]]''.

* When discussing the topic of English, Professor Henry Higgins had this to say.

** Granted, Higgins is also of the opinion that the English language is utterly butchered by most of the folks who speak it, including actual Englishmen.

* In ''Madama Butterfly'', the American sailor Pinkerton, before his wedding to Butterfly, drinks to the day he'll marry a real American wife. Ironically, the opera was based on an American play.

** Which was allegedly based on a true story.

* [[Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson]]: A tongue-in-cheek emo rock take on the life of [[Andrew Jackson]]. Everyone is obnoxious and jingoistic, and the events of the show are fairly accurate.

 

=== Video Games ===

** Both that, however...

* One of the teams in the video game ''[[Rival Schools|Rival Schools: United by Fate]]'' is three American exchange students; an arrogant bully (Roy), a ditzy cheerleader (Tiffany), and a preacher in training (Boman). Of these three, Roy and Tiffany (''especially'' Roy) exhibit Flavor #2. All three are cast as villains, though, due to {{spoiler|a case of [[Brainwashed and Crazy]] after getting kidnapped by the villains of the game}}. By the end, all three become better people by interacting with the more cultured and honorable Japanese students. Roy and Tiffany bring their newfound tolerance back home, while Boman stays in Japan to bridge the difference between the two nations. {{spoiler|Roy actually becomes the President of the United States some decades later, with Tiffany as his wife and First Lady.}}

* In ''[[World of Warcraft]] Cataclysm'', the new Goblin race are basically this, in spite of not even coming from America. A group of greedy industrialists with a 'money makes right' attitude, they exhibit shocking ignorance about the rest of the world, a mercantile ruthlessness that would be shocking if it weren't [[Played for Laughs]], the kind of taste in clothes that you'd expect from Paris Hilton, and an absolute belief that if you weren't born a goblin, you're not as good as they are. They're basically every negative stereotype of America, from trailer trash to Hollywood excess to robber barons, all rolled into one.

** Wow, who knew "robust" was a synonym for "algae"?

 

=== Web Comics ===

* ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'': [[The Government]] isn't that bad. Even [[The Men in Black]]. But ''[http://egscomics.com/?date=2008-05-26 tourists]''...

** Of course, the writer's [[Word of God|commentary on the strip]] seems to imply that it was more of a jab at tourists in general than just American ones.

 

=== Web Original ===

* ''[[Survival of the Fittest]]'': America as seen in ''The Program'' would like to see itself as Type 1, but is very much Type 2. It's basically modern culture [[Twenty Minutes in The Future]], however the main difference is that the country has turned militaristic and nationalistic, and the characters are raised to acknowledge and embrace it.

* [[Zero Punctuation|Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw]] has made his disdain and disgust for America known on more than one occasion in a few of his videos (especially in his reviews of ''[[Modern Warfare|Call of Duty: Modern Warfare]]'' and ''[[Medal of Honor|Medal of Honor: Airborne]]''. At one point, Croshaw considered "moving to that steaming shithole across the ocean" because he was sick of the Australian Media Board's aggressive censorship policies, which he then likened to traditional right-wing conservatism in the States.

* [[The Nostalgia Chick]] has made a [[Running Gag]] out of being hypocritical about this, yelling at directors like [[Michael Bay]] for glorification of the US army, but then being relieved that France was to blame for the destruction in ''[[Godzilla]]''.

 

=== Western Animation ===

* The German-language version of ''[[Cats Don't Dance]]'' subtly shifts a single line of evil child star Darla Dimple's dialogue to suggest a more cutthroat and purely-for-the-money version of Hollywood:

(German) '''Darla''': Let me tell you my philosophy: you don't have to be good, just better than them! }}

* ''[[Flushed Away]]'' features a stereotypical American tourist (a [[Everything Is Big in Texas|Texan]], to be exact) who teases the Royal Guards and complains how "these Brits don't know the first thing about football" while watching [[The World Cup]].

* A ''[[Pucca]]'' episode has an obnoxious rich American couple visiting Sooga to open a fast food restaurant. The food is addictive and highly fattening, causing everyone who eats it to become really fat and out of shape. The wife is also a materialistic shopaholic who goes on a rampage of branding things she wants to buy with a freaking branding iron! Including flammable things!

** They become recurring villains, and manage to be ''worse'' examples of Type 2 in their other appearance, polluting the village for no better reason than sheer disregard for its inhabitants and the environment.

** [[Hilarious in Hindsight|Ironically]] the show is voiced by ''Canadian'' VO so it's a kind of a [[Take That]] by a country frustrated with being mistaken for America.

 

=== Other ===

* John Oliver and Andy Zaltzman's podcast ''The Bugle'' has "the American" (played by Rory Albanese, whom Oliver works with on ''[[The Daily Show]]''), whose entire character is Flavor 2 of this trope. For instance, when told that the American dollar is neither the strongest currency in the world nor accepted in other countries: "I don't believe you."

* Type 2 is parodied in an article of ''The Onion'' [http://www.theonion.com/articles/report-china-to-overtake-us-as-worlds-biggest-assh,17277/ "China To Overtake US As World's Biggest Asshole by 2020"] suggesting that China's growing economic and military strength will make it the future equivalent to Type 2 America.

* [[Visual Novel]] ''Phantom of Inferno'' actually Lampshades this a bit during the Japanese chapter of the game, where a young girl finds out that the two American exchange students in her class are really gun-toting assassins on the run. Later on when she witnesses another pair pulling weapons on each other over a disagreement she wonders aloud if ALL Americans are like this. Somewhat subverted in that Zwei is a native Japanese who had only spent a few years in America at most and Ein is from somewhere in central Asia. The assassin Drei (One of the pair mentioned) is the best example of the trope, a blond, [[Foreign Fanservice|big-breasted]] [[Psycho for Hire]] who engages on several long, obnoxious rants about how corrupt and pathetic the Japanese are. She's contrasted with more sympathetic examples however, and given [[Freudian Excuse|reasons for her]] unpleasant personality.

* There is a hilarious chapter in David Sedaris's book ''Me Talk Pretty One Day'' where Sedaris describes something that happened to him on the subway in Paris. He was standing near an American couple who played Flavor 2 straight as an arrow. They mistook Sedaris, an American, as a Frenchman and, not realizing that he is fluent in English, kept on referring to him as a "frog" who would likely try to pickpocket them if he had the chance. They were not aware of metro etiquette and were taking up way too much space, guarding the support bar they were using (intended for use by many people at once) as if it was their personal property. Sedaris described their dress as something like denim shorts tee-shirts and remarked (paraphrasing from memory), "That's great -- show up in a foreign country dressed like you're ready to mow their lawn."

 

* [[Moe Anthropomorphism|America]] from ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'' is a more benign [[Boisterous Bruiser|blend of both flavors]]; his geography is terrible, he's loud, pushy, [[The Ditz|clueless]], addicted to cheeseburgers and various sweets, and he's an [[Attention Whore]] (he calls himself the "World's Hero") -- but he's also friendly and good natured, to the point of being a literal [[Friend to All Living Things]] and a serious [[Love Freak]]. Considering some of the other "America-tan" characters to come out of Japan (e.g. Meriken), ''Axis Powers Hetalia'''s take on America is actually pretty positive.

** This type of depiction is pretty much normal for this series. No country escapes being the butt of jokes, but most of the countries are also good at heart. (Except for Russia whose heart sometimes actually falls out of its place. But even he [[Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds|isn't completely and consciously evil]].)

* Besides the aforementioned Leonard Apollo, Americans were portrayed rather variously here in ''[[Eyeshield 21]]'', from nice people like [[The Messiah|Patrick]] [[Worthy Opponent|"Panther"]] [[Ascended Fanboy|Spencer]], [[Dumb Muscle|Homer]] [[Gentle Giant|Fitzgerald]], [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold|Leonard]] [[Grumpy Bear|Apollo]], to people like [[Jerk Jock|Donald]] [[Social Darwinist|Oberman]].

** It's also sort of subverted in Billy Horide, the coach of the Seibu Wild Gunmen, who, despite being Japanese as far as anyone can tell, is loud, rude, pushy, loves shooting guns and even runs his offense in a fast, high-powered manner. He's almost sort of a weird Japanese Texas-otaku.

* ''[[Death Note]]'' - especially the manga - has some combination of both types 1 and 2, but surprisingly a lot of the former. The FBI are among the first to pursue Kira in the first arc; in the second arc the SPK are established and funded by the US government, and in the manga president David Hoope {{spoiler|kills himself when he believes Mello is going to manipulate him into launching a nuclear weapon}}. On the other hand, Hoope's successor is a panicky coward who cuts off ties with the SPK and announces that the United States will no longer pursue Kira. The English dub (recorded in Canada) even gives him a [[Take That|Bush-like faux-Southern accent]].

** His mobile suit deserves mention, too. If Gundam Maxter's design is any indication, the Japanese believe that all Americans are surfing, football-playing boxer cowboys. And it'd be terrible to disappoint them. In canon, you get the impression Chibodee drew up the design himself and just combined a bunch of things he thinks are cool.

* Duo Maxwell from ''[[Gundam Wing]]'' isn't from America proper, but rather [http://www.gundamofficial.com/www_ac/gw/characters/char_duo.html a space colony that belongs to America]. Either way, he can be seen as a combination of both types, being boisterous, flirtatious, and a bit eager to [[Shinigami|reap first]] and ask questions later, but is also a genuinely nice and friendly guy who's dedicated to his friends and the cause of bringing peace. Being American doesn't really influence his character apart from being the [[Token White]] in the [[Five-Token Band]]; a lot of his more outgoing traits come simply because he's [[The Lancer]] to Heero, who is very much [[The Stoic]]. That said, Duo is [[Ensemble Darkhorse|insanely popular]], being '''the''' most popular character among Western viewers, and a close second in Japan (behind, of course, Heero).

* The anime series ''[[Konjiki no Gash Bell]]'' (''Zatch Bell'' in the dub) contains a team of superheroes called the Majestic Twelve, who are portrayed as amazingly incompetent. The only female member is named Big Boing (Lady Susan in the dub) and [[Gag Boobs|her superpowers consist of having huge breasts,]] smelling like lavender (in the English dub) and commenting every moment with the word "''Yeah!''" But Apollo and Jeed are the American characters that we see most, and both are definite type 1s.

* ''[[Lucky Star]]'' has Patricia Martin who is ostensibly an American [[Occidental Otaku|gaijin otaku]]. She may represent America a bit better than most, because she speaks fluent Japanese, having learned the entirety of the language from watching anime... However, she's also depicted as being a bit air headed and somewhat undereducated in true Japanese culture outside of [[Animeland]]. Patty's quite clearly modelled on the stereotypical [[Pretty Fly for a White Guy|Japanophile]], so this isn't that far from [[Truth in Television]]...

* Anthony from ''[[Doki Doki School Hours]]'' is like a male version of Patricia. At one point he shows everyone a photo of his 14 year old kid sister - an large-busted (perhaps implausibly so for her age) blonde cheerleader.

* In ''[[Mahoromatic]]'', American meddling with the remains of a [[Giant Enemy Crab|giant alien crab mech]] causes it to go wild and tear the bathing suits off of young teenage girls on the beach. Hmmm. Could be a mixed message in there.

* Jackie Gudelhian from ''[[Future GPX Cyber Formula]]''. He's a very cheerful guy, doesn't take things seriously, he often wears a cowboy hat when he's off the race track and his hobby is horse riding. Also, his car in the TV series has stars on them and he wears the [[Wearing a Flag on Your Head|Stars and Stripes trunks]] in EP 5 of ''Double-One''.

* ''[[Japan Inc]]'', which is about economics.

* In ''[[Freezing]]'', we are introduced to "the Immortal" Roxanne Elipton, ranked as the strongest 3rd year Pandora in America. She is shown to be supportive and respectful of others, yet still has an outgoing attitude. She also squishes Satellizer's massive boobs to see if they're real.

* [[Kinnikuman|Terryman]] started out briefly as a Type 2 example, being a Choujin who only did good deeds for money. As the focus shifted from superheroes to pro-wrestling, however, he quickly fell into Type 1. Most American Choujin, as well as America itself during Kinnikuman's American tour, do not fall into any specific flavor of Eagleland, however.

 

=== Comic Books ===

* A lot of the comic book writers from across the pond, even those that have written Marvel and DC books for years, tend to love turning our original superheroes on their ear, basically making them even more jingoistic, or just jerkasses, for shock value or to go [[Darker and Edgier]]. A handful of heroes still hold out as the fair-minded type one idealists, and ironically their scarcity makes ''them'' the more remarkable ones. [[Garth Ennis]] has a recurring interest in America, often playing off Type 1 (the national mythology of America and what the characters strive for) against Type 2 (what tends to be the reality in his strips) and the clashes thereof. Examples of this clash include Tommy Monaghan, Hitman, genuinely respecting and idolizing Superman; and the views of British/Irish immigrants and visitors to the States, all of them noticing and decrying the Type 2 parts of America while ''simultaneously'' loving the place.

** One of the famous Ultimate Captain America quotes is (upon being asked to surrender) [http://21.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kon66vqu3C1qzp5buo1_500.jpg "Surrender? Do you think this A on my forehead stands for France?"] For the record, that line was written by Mark Millar, a Scotsman. The fact that the [[Cheese-Eating Surrender Monkeys|French as cowardly]] is a [[Newer Than They Think|fairly recent]] stereotype that [[Human Popsicle]] Cap wouldn't be aware of isn't addressed. (Mainstream Cap, probably written in response to the above, fondly remembers working with the French ''resistance'', proving that French ''citizens'' are brave and strong, but the French '''government''' basically rolled over and spread its legs.)

 

=== Film ===

* Amusingly, ''Persia'' as depicted in the ''[[Prince of Persia]]'' movie comes across as this, seemingly being an Expy/allegory for modern America; a monotheistic empire that's praised for its just and fair system of governance, but also seen as arrogant bullies by less powerful civilizations, with obnoxious taxes and a utter failure to find the Weapons of Mass Destruction.

* In ''[[The Triplets of Belleville|Les triplettes de Belleville]]'', Belleville closely resembles [[Big Applesauce|New York City]]. All of its citizens seen in the background are grotesquely obese. Even the Statue of Liberty is a fat woman holding a cheeseburger. On the other hand, they are portrayed as polite, happy, hard-working, and if they have the time to, helpful to anyone in need. Possibly [[Subverted Trope|subverted]], as Belleville may just be another city in France.

 

=== Literature ===

* As shows ''An American'', [[Rudyard Kipling]] saw it as mixed, presenting flavours as best and worst sides of the same trait, which can be defined as "childishness". Specific American characters in his books may or may not exhibit it (e.g. Laughton O. Zigler in ''The Captive'' sees he had it coming and is quite calm about his misfortune).

** On the other hand, Kipling married an American woman and lived in the United States for a while. He probably saw both good and bad while he lived here.

* The Bronze Age characters in S.M. Stirling's [[Island in The Sea of Time|Nantucket]] series refer to the time-displaced Americans as "The Eagle People." Type 1 is represented by the Republic, Type 2 by Walker's slave-based empire.

* [[Ephraim Kishon]] wrote on America, among other things, that Americans believe:

** An American family without an American boy and an American girl at the respective age of nine and seven years isn't a real American family

** You can learn everything from [[For Dummies]] books, even "How to become president of the USA: In 10 easy steps".

 

=== Live-Action TV ===

** The majority of the Americans in "The Impossible Astronaut" and "Day of the Moon." Aside from being a little gun-happy (which is justified in the majority of them are Secret Service Agents) it's one of the better portrayals of America in recent ''Doctor Who'' seasons. According to the producers, America appears to be a place where everyone is a jovial, if slightly thick and dim-witted, patriot, and random spurts of [[What Do You Mean It's Not Awesome?|melodramatic processional music]] accompany the President everywhere.

** The US President in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' episode "Last of the Time Lords" is a subversion of Flavor 2; he acts like one and will say so himself, but at heart he was a Flavor 1, albeit misguided.

* [[Steven Moffat]] does seem to be trying to take a step back from Russel T. Davies' Flavor 2 stereotype into more of a hybrid Flavor 3 on ''Doctor Who,'' but on ''Sherlock,'' he didn't have quite so much luck. He decided to switch the New Jersey native Irene Adler to British, but since that gave us [http://deecrowseer.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/sherlocks2lp01.jpg Lara Pulver as a badass dominatrix,] there weren't many complaints about that. However, this had the unfortunate side effect of making the only American characters in the series were the operatives (CIA I believe). The only one who had any substantial characterization screamed Flavor 2, threatening to kill Watson to make Sherlock open a safe and beating up Mrs. Hudson (whose age isn't given, but her actress is in her mid-70s) to make her reveal the location of a piece of evidence. No one really cried when he "fell" out the window (multiple times.)

 

=== Tabletop Games ===

* ''[[New Horizon]]'' has Xanadu, a mostly Flavor 1 stereotype that happens to be quite racist. Of course, this is a a faction on an alien colony in the future instead of America proper but...

* Andoran from the ''Pathfinder'' RPG.

 

=== Video Games ===

* From developer [[SNK]] we have [[Fatal Fury|Terry]] [[The King of Fighters|Bogard]] who tends to be a bit of a mix. On one the one hand he's boisterous, proud and wears stereotypical American clothes. On the other hand, he's largely self-sufficient, at least partially self-taught, and is not only a good guy, but is considered one of the most important characters in the games. In the anime, he's the main character and basically shown to be the most powerful martial artist alive, who earns the admiration of his allies and the respect of his enemies. He also defeats Ares, the God of War, in a one-on-one fight.

* Paul Phoenix from ''[[Tekken]]'' is more of a mix. While he is goofy, loud, and arrogant he is generally a good guy, and is indeed and dangerous fighter, and one of the few non Mishima characters to beat both a Mishima and a Boss character (though he still lost the tournament somehow).

* ''[[Street Fighter]] IV'' runs the gamut of the flavor spectrum with its American characters:

** First there's Rufus, a fat, obnoxious and dim-witted American who spends the game as the [[Unknown Rival]] of Ken, wishing to prove himself as the greatest fighter of the US. As much of a Flavor 2 Eaglelander as he appears to be, he's also got himself an incredibly hot girlfriend, his speedy fighting style in spite of his weight is complimented by many characters, he's without a doubt one of the funniest, if not ''the'' funniest, character in the game, and judging by some of his winquotes, he's rich and lives a damn good life. Combined with all his quirks, he's actually become a [[Ensemble Darkhorse|fan favorite]].

** Ken arguably straddles the line between Types 1 and 2. While he is arrogant and something of a showboater, he's a fairly decent guy and Ryu's best friend.

** Guile is Type 1 all day long, being a strong and patriotic soldier, [[Memetic Mutation|a family man]], one of the strongest characters in canon, and the chief rival character to M. Bison, the series' [[Big Bad|main antagonist]]. He was even featured as one of the ''main characters'' in the animated movie. Not to mentioned he hands Ryu AND Ken their asses in Street Fighter II V. Oh, and he just happens to be among the top-ranked characters in Super Street Fighter IV, and was outright ''broken'' in early versions of Street Fighter II.

** And though the former president ultimately resorts to terrorist actions with Arsenal Gear, his goal was to restore American freedom by releasing the Patriots' grip on society, which happens anyway at the end of MGS4. Come to think of it, ''every'' hero or (human) Well-Intentioned Extremist villain through the series seems to have an unwavering love of American ideals.

* Jake Marshall from ''[[Ace Attorney]]''. When you first meet him, he seems like the stereotypical cowboy who has a southern drawl, and constantly talks about how he's a cowboy, which is [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]] by other characters. Then {{spoiler|you find out that he's been spending the last two years trying to find out the truth behind who killed his brother. He was demoted two years ago for helping with the investigation so that he wouldn't be in a position to properly investigate}}.

* From the same [[Suda 51|twisted mind]], the ''[[No More Heroes]]'' games - that is, games made by a Japanese man obsessed with American pop culture about an American man obsessed with Japanese pop culture - make for interesting examples, insofar as they are as explicitly concerned with America and its popular culture as any Japanese game since the ''[[MOTHER]]'' series.

* ''[[Vanquish]]'' uses both. The story opens up with the United States under sudden attack by the forces of the Order of the Russian Star using a captured American space colony, and sending the [[Semper Fi|Marines]] [[Space Marine|into space]] to recapture it. However, as the plot goes on, it becomes apparent that {{spoiler|the militant regime that is the Order of the Russian Star was installed by the current US President to give them a "bad guy" they could use to justify revitalizing the arms industry against}}, and that {{spoiler|the Russians were attacking first because they knew war was inevitable.}}

* ''[[Team Fortress 2]]'': the Engineer is Type 1, the Scout and Soldier are Type 2.

** Also, the aesthetic design of the game is, according to Valve, inspired by artists such as J. C. Leyendecker, Dean Cornwell and [[Norman Rockwell]], all designed to recall Type 1. The fact that everything (no seriously, [[Government Conspiracy|EVERYTHING]]) is either a desert, a [[Paper-Thin Disguise|badly-hidden spy base]], or both makes shift just a little towards Type 2.

 

=== Web Comics ===

* Brother/Sister America from ''[[Scandinavia and The World]]'' are mostly type 2 caricatures, but done in a good-natured enough way that it can be classified as a mix.

** Their type 1 tendencies are shown [http://satwcomic.com/a-trip-into-american-culture when the Scandanavians visit America,] although they're still kind of jerks.

 

=== Western Animation ===

* Both flavors of this get parodied in the Finnish satirical animation'' [[Pasila]]''. The conversation paraphrased:

'''Pöysti:''' Now, don't generalise, there are lots of smart people there too. (gets a flat stare from everybody) What?! }}

 

* [[Captain Obvious|America is made up of humans.]] '''[[Humans Are Flawed]].'''

* Most of the older generation in countries like Belgium and others where the Nazis conquered them and the Americans came in, kicked the Nazis out, and then LEFT without taking any land for themselves, get quite emotional about America, stating that for the first time, soldiers from another country came into theirs, fought for it as if it was their own, and asked for nothing in return. Hardcore Flavor 1...which is slowly being replaced by Flavor 2 as the generation that remembers those events is dying off, replaced by a generation more familiar with America of the Vietnam era and later.

** It's also common for South Koreans, except replace "Nazis" with "[[Imperial Japan]] / [[North Korea]] / [[Chinese With Chopper Support|China]] in rapid succession". [http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2008/03/05/2008030500047.html The United States is still viewed very favorably in South Korea.]

* In some countries where America is not very well respected, it's not uncommon for American tourists to claim to be from Canada instead (possibly even adopting a pathetic imitation of a Canadian accent); including actually doing research and creating a fictional home in Canada.

** Or more commonly [[Did Not Do the Research|not doing the research]].

* While we're on the subject of tourism. During the 2010 soccer in South Africa, Americans were the largest single group of tourists, and as a result their overall image has improved significantly (both as tourists, and just in general). Not only for being (unexpectedly) relatively good at soccer, but also for being generally mild-mannered and well-behaved. But hey, guys, I think you should know that since you left, people have been expecting way better tips! You realize, this means war.

* Though it has partially been explored previously, it is worth mentioning to non-American readers just how tipping is viewed in American culture. To the average American citizen, the idea of NOT tipping one's server is nearly inconceivable. (So much so that, now, many restaurants will actually work the gratuity into the bill itself, although in most cases that's more because the popularity of credit cards means that people carry a lot less cash with them.) Withholding a tip, or "stiffing", your waiter/waitress is reserved only for the worst of the worst cases, and even a lackluster performance by the staff will still garner a moderate gratuity. As a result of this, American's perceive leaving a low tip or no tip at all generally rude or disrespectful. This has had a negative side effect, however, in that American wait-staff typically dread serving European tourists (who may not know that without a tip, said waiter/waitress is not properly compensated for their time and effort, regardless of quality of service) who are perceived as stingy.

** Quite a few waitstaff actually hate European tourists because they believe that Europeans are hiding behind "cultural differences" to avoid tipping. Certainly, you'd think they'd hear about it often enough that it'd occur to them.

** Within America, tipping is a major bone of contention; the discussion that ensues in ''[[Reservoir Dogs]]'' when Mr. Pink reveals that he doesn't tip is pretty much spot on. ''Do not'' bring up tipping with your American friends unless you're prepared to go to the wire, because it is a discussion which has caused heroes to rise, empires to fall, and friendships to be tested.

 

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