Sugar and Ice Personality: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

The cold side can have a few different variants, though the [[Ice Queen|Ice Queen or Ice King]] is probably the most common, mixing aloofness and distance with a certain harshness and lack of sympathy. Another manifestation of this side is as [[The Stoic]], being simply unemotional and unresponsive rather than harsh. Occasionally this cold part of their personality may resemble a full-on [[Emotionless Girl]], or include the sharp tongued aspects of [[The Snark Knight]].

 

 

 

More rarely, the frosty side is the seldom seen aspect and is only evoked when they are confronted by something they find annoying or tedious. Often this is a bumbling [[Love Interest]] who doesn't know what he's done wrong. While there are occasions where the [[Beneath the Mask|cold side is a mask]], this by no means describes all examples. In such cases both sides are genuine aspects of their personality, the character is simply compartmentalized to a much greater degree than most people are.

 

{{examples}}

== Anime and Manga ==

* Shinku from ''[[Rozen Maiden]]'' acts this way towards Jun. She treats him coldly and like a servant. Her behavior overlaps with [[Tsundere]], as she also constantly abuses him verbally and physically. However, she shows that she does care deeply about him.

* In ''[[Karakuri Circus]]'', Shirogane initially comes off as somewhat haughty and cold, but later her inherent sweetness shows through.

* In ''[[Bleach]]'', Kuchiki Byakuya is this towards Rukia, along with [[Aloof Big Brother]]. One can also make the case he's this way towards Ichigo and Renji and by all of Squad Six.

* Rei Ayanami from ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'' is a mix of this and [[Defrosting Ice Queen]]. In the beginning, she could be mistaken for an [[Emotionless Girl]]. She later warms up to Shinji, especially in the manga, and dear God can she be gooey-sweet over him. Heck, her affection for him grows to the point that even when {{spoiler|she becomes ''[[The End of the World as We Know It]]'' (this after having ''died'' and ''forgotten her experiences with him'')}}, she ''still'' cares for him, given that it was his {{spoiler|anguish over Asuka's gruesome death that prompted her to finally betray Gendo and put Instrumentality in Shinji's hands}}...''[[Rebuild of Evangelion]]'' only takes this trope further.

** Even at the start, when she is cold to Shinji, she is very warm towards Gendo. She lights up when he speaks to her, and smiles sweetly when she looks at his glasses.

* Yue Ayase from ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]''. While usually the voice of reason, being part of a [[Love Triangle]] with her best friend causes her to break down and reveal a very warm side.

** Chisame is another great example: she's a cynical [[Meta Guy|Meta Girl]], frustrated with all the weirdness around her, but when it gets right down to it, she cares for everyone around her a lot. It's most evident {{spoiler|in the immediate aftermath of Rakan's death, which is the only time in the entire manga that she [http://www.mangafox.com/manga/mahou_sensei_negima/v31/c279/14.html completely loses it], and [[Cry Cute|breaks down in tears]].}} Interestingly enough, her [[All in The Manual|character notes]] state that [[Ken Akamatsu]] had the ''[[Tsundere]]'' archetype in mind when he created her.

* Riza Hawkeye from ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist]]'' [[Break the Cutie|wasn't]] [[Backstory|always]] as [[The Stoic|stoic]] as she is today. [[Bodyguard Crush|Roy Mustang]] can [[Incredibly Lame Pun|spark off]] [[Luminescent Blush|quite]] [[Berserker Tears|spectacular]] [[Not So Stoic|reactions]] from her, and she has a [[Morality Pet|cute puppy]] that she adores. She's also shown demonstrating kindness to the Elric brothers and Winry Rockbell, and there are indications that, Mustang aside, she really cares about the members of her [[True Companions|military team]].

** Sloth from the first anime qualifies as well, being apathetic and at times patronizing on the outside...but inside is a whole other story.

** Sweden, who is pretty much a [[Huge Schoolgirl]] in the body of [[The Big Guy]]. Scares everyone with his [[Face of a Thug]], but he's quite the playful guy on the inside, as his profile mentions.

** In [[Fanon]], [[Deadpan Snarker|Norway]] is either this or [[Tsundere]] towards Denmark.

* Shizuku of ''[[Kämpfer]]'' is a fairly aggressive example - {{spoiler|kissing her love interest as early as episode 5, and taking him on a date in episode 8.}}

* In ''[[Bakemonogatari]]'', Senjougahara Hitagi is...really too complicated to be neatly categorized by terms like [[Tsundere]]/[[Yandere]]/Sugar and Ice Personality, but there is a conversation early in the show where they bring up the question of whether she's a tsundere and Araragi puns that she's really more of a tundra (a term for characters with a Sugar and Ice Personality) instead.

* Karl-Heinz Schneider from ''[[Captain Tsubasa]]'' looks cool, professional and proud, but, ''holy shit'', he's loving towards his parents and his little sister.

* Mirielle of ''[[Noir]]'' is, for most of the series, a [[Badass]] [[Action Girl]] assassin who only occasionally lets her soft side show, but late in the show when {{spoiler|she finds Kirika's heartfelt note}} she starts crying.

* Fiore from ''[[Chrono Crusade]]'' comes across this way because of her outward [[Emotionless Girl]] personality. She believes herself to be completely without emotions and can often be blunt (in a very polite sort of way), but when Joshua gets into a fight she later admits with tears in her eyes that she was "so worried", and she goes out of her way to make sure all of the Sinners [[Team Mom|eat their veggies]].

* Loco from ''[[MAR]]'' acts this way constantly due to her excessive loneliness because she's [[Older Than They Look|older than she looks]].

** In the final episode {{spoiler|she drops the cold facade entirely now that almost the entire cast has moved on. She spends the episode [[When She Smiles|smiling,]] humming and singing about tofu, and pretty much being the [[Moe|most adorable thing ever]].}}

* Trip/Shooti from ''[[Pokémon (anime)|Pokémon]] Best Wishes'' seems to be a [[Jerkass]] until you realize that he does have a heart, as revealed in the episodes where he helps Ash move the Venipede to a safer location. The minute Ash tries to congratulate him, Trip instantly avoids eye contact. Later appearances tone down his [[Jerkass]] attitude until it's completely a [[Jerkass Facade]] stemming from annoyance at Ash more than anything else.

** [[Fanon]] commonly has it that she is very sweet, but her coldness was developed to perfection so that she could make business transactions (and consequentially money for her family).

** On the other hand, the author herself supposedly said that Nabiki is the only character who's truly evil out of the cast.

* Felli Loss of ''[[Chrome Shelled Regios]]'' is one of these, though she can also be seen as an [[Emotionless Girl]] or [[Ice Queen]], and probably best counts as a variant of the Type 3 [[Kuudere]] that switches between Types 1 and 2. It's explained that all Neni Operators suffer an information overload due to their psionic powers, which impairs their ability to express emotions (not just figuratively, but literally; it's all but physically impossible for Felli to smile).

* [[Defrosting Ice King|Barnaby]] from ''[[Tiger and Bunny]]'' has a [[Kuudere]] (occasionally alternating with [[Tsundere]]) personality and eventually comes to reveal his 'sugar' side to [[Heterosexual Life Partner|Kotetsu]]; but still keeps 'ice' as his default mode.

* ''[[Gundam Wing]]'''s protagonist Heero Yuy is more often credited as [[The Stoic]], but this trope is a better match for him. He never actually denied his emotions; he just tries to keep them in check because being overly emotional on the battlefield can get you killed. At the start of the show he mostly seems to be shouldering the burden of Operation Meteor ([[The Atoner|and the lives it'll cost]]) all by himself, but interaction with people like [[The Ojou|Relena]], [[The Lancer|Duo]], and [[The Heart|Quatre]] causes him to accept the idea that [[You Are Not Alone|he isn't alone]].

* Much like Rei from ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'', Casca from ''[[Berserk]]'' is a mix of this and the [[Defrosting Ice Queen]]. She starts off distant, cool - even cold - collected but temperamental toward her comrades, but after awhile, she starts showing a sensitive side that no one would ever have expected from [[The Squadette|a woman of her profession]] once Guts defrosts her (which would make her behavior and personality a lot more understandable other than the whole [[Love Triangle]] thing, since Casca is the sole female member in a group of mercenaries AND she's second in command, so she must always put on [[The Woman Wearing the Queenly Mask|a facade of seriousness so that her male cohorts would not falter under her command]]).

* Himura "Maria" Maruko of ''[[Eyeshield 21]]'' was like this in the past, being a [[Tall, Dark and Bishoujo]] [[The Stoic|Stoic]] on the outside and [[The Chick]]/[[The Heart]] on the inside. Then [[Manipulative Bastard|Reiji "Marco" Maruko]] took over the team, instituted a [[Second Place Is for Losers]]-driven reign of terror, and started crippling opposing players, all in the name of his [[Villainous Crush|crush]] [[Love Makes You Evil|on her]]; this drives her straight into [[Emotionless Girl]] territory.

* Rika Furude from ''[[Higurashi no Naku Koro ni]]'' shows hints of this in the earlier arcs, but her true Sugar and Ice Personality is featured much more in the later arcs of the series. Due to her normally happy and almost careless demeanour, she rarely shows her true self to anyone, unless she wishes to make herself seem serious, or to intimidate others.

* {{spoiler|Zeref}} from ''[[Fairy Tail]]'' has a personality like this. Though he hasn't been shown acting particualarly warm he has a side to him that's calm and worries about the well being, which is how he behaves half the time. The other half of the time he's downright murderous.

 

== Comic Books ==

* Unintentional [[Ice Queen]] Machiko Noguchi from ''[[Alien vs. Predator]]'' didn't realize that she should have integrated herself into the colonists when she arrived at her new executive job, instead of spending three months hardly communicating with them at all. She's actually rather caring and considerate, but that's not how she presented herself.

* Miho from ''[[Sin City]]'' seems almost completely unemotional, but there have been moments in which she showed genuine affection for a select few people. The prime example is in ''Family Values'', where she lays on Dwight's lap and takes a nap.

 

== Film ==

 

== Literature ==

* Peggy from ''[[The Tales of Alvin Maker]]'' is like this when she first appears in the second book. When Taleswaper asks her mother about Peggy, she tells him she's gone too cold for anyone to tolerate her. He carefully refrains from telling her that ice can only be thawed with warmth, and then proceeds to get smiles and laughs from Peggy in private.

* Silas from ''[[The Graveyard Book]]'' is one - he's [[The Stoic]] most of the time, but Bod triggers his occasional moments of warmness.

{{quote|'' "It was worth a wound; it was worth many wounds; to know the depth of loyalty and love which lay behind that cold mask. The clear, hard eyes were dimmed for a moment, and the firm lips were shaking. For the one and only time I caught a glimpse of a great heart as well as of a great brain. All my years of humble but single-minded service culminated in that moment of revelation." '' }}

* Sidonie of ''[[Kushiel's Legacy]]'': the realm at large thinks that Sidonie has [[Ice Queen|ice water]] running in her veins. And yet, once you get her behind closed doors...

* Eddard Stark from ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'', who is sugar to his family and ice to the rest of the world.

* [[Honor Harrington]] combines this trope with [[Woman In The Queenly Mask]]. She is perfectly willing to face down her enemies with nothing but an icy glare on her face, even with her life and the life of those around her in the balance, but the several books in the series make it clear that she's a completely different person around the ones she loves. {{spoiler|Which makes her love's death in the fifth book that much more tragic, and her vengeance that much colder.}}

 

* T'Pol from ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise]]'': using her cold exterior and her repressed but detectable emotions, she typically insults and berates people, but occasionally shows a compassionate side. She usually justifies both sorts of actions as logical, though it is often apparent to the viewer (and recipient) that this is mostly just a rationalization.

* Bree fron ''[[Desperate Housewives]]'', especially in the early seasons: formal and coldly polite towards most of the people, but warm and loving (or at least the best she could show) towards her best friends and her family.

* Cameron from ''[[The Sarah Connor Chronicles]]'': although she's generally [[Emotionless Girl|unemotional]] and [[The Spock|dangerously pragmatic]], there are a few times when she does seem to show genuine affection. Also, [[Word of God]] has it that she truly ''does'' love John (albeit for a given definition of love), and she is certainly willing to die for him.

** The following year's Sentai, ''[[Tensou Sentai Goseiger]]'', has Hyde/GoseiBlue. In episode 2, team [[Secret Keeper]] Nozomu initially dislikes Hyde for his frosty, dismissive attitude, but warms up to him on seeing Hyde's determination to remain on earth and protect humanity.

** And then ''[[Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger]]'' brings us Joe Gibken/GokaiBlue. Stoic, cool-headed, and prone to glowering, he nevertheless shows true affection for his crewmates and even bakes them a "thank you" cake in Episode 4.

* [[Defrosting Ice Queen|Dr. K]] from ''[[Power Rangers RPM]]'' fits like a glove. She has a rather sour personality and can come across as blunt and occasionally downright mean towards her Series Operators, especially Ziggy. However, her cutesy Zord Attack Vehicle and suit designs, along with her [[Genius' Sweet Tooth|diabetic sweet tooth]], show off her sweeter side.

* Max on ''[[Dark Angel]]'': [[Classy Cat Burglar|part-time thief]], [[Genetic Engineering Is the New Nuke|genetically-engineered]] [[Child Soldier]] [[Phlebotinum Rebel]] in a [[Crapsack World]], with a heart of gold protected by shields the ''[[Star Trek|U.S.S. Enterprise]]'' would envy.

* Prince Arthur from ''[[Merlin (TV series)|Merlin]]'' has to maintain a professional, calm demeanour in front of the court and his knights, but relaxes considerably when he's with Merlin, and even more so with Guinevere.

* Like his [[A Song of Ice and Fire|book]] counterpart, Ned Stark has this in ''[[Game of Thrones]]''. His son, Robb, seems to have inherited it.

 

== Music ==

* The girl who's the subject of Savage Garden's "To the moon and back" mixes [[Broken Bird]] with a Sugar and Ice Personality.

So would you be my baby?" }}

* [[Phineas and Ferb|Love Handel]]'s "You Snuck Your Way Right Into My Heart" seems to describe this trope rather accurately:

Rappelling down from above

You snuck your way right into my heart }}

 

== Video Games ==

** Lute, too. Well, sort of. She is very similar to Erk in her bookishness; she doesn't quite seem to know how to love properly, but her support with Artur shows an attempt at a softer side. (She is a bit [[Strange Girl|odd about it]], though.)

*** Also from ''Sacred Stones'', we have [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]] Colm, whose "heart of gold" really only shows in his supports with [[Victorious Childhood Friend]] Neimi.

** Yet another mage that exhibits these traits is Arthur from the 4th game. When he expresses concern for his friend (and possible love intrest) [[Genki Girl|Phee]], she mentions how odd it is that he's thinking of someone other than himself, and he says that she's an "exception". The only other person who he shows his soft side to is his [[Big Brother Instinct|beloved little sister]], [[The Woobie|Tinny]].

** In the fourth and fifth games, the Lance Knight [[Older and Wiser|Fin]] is explicitely regarded as having a Sugar and Ice Personality. His old friend [[Horse Archer|Selphina]] lectures him on being cold to women and how this apparently ruined his relationship with {{spoiler|Lachesis}}, but later [[Hero of Another Story|Leaf]] comments on how Fin simply "forgot" how to cry or laugh ever since {{spoiler|the fall of Lester}}. And then we have his behavior when he talks to {{spoiler|Altenna}} in ''Seisen'', where Fin can finally show open emotion and even ''cries''.

* Ai Ebihara from ''[[Persona 4]]'': although often classified as a [[Tsundere]], she's a lot closer to this. She starts off indifferent, but subtly [[Defrosting Ice Queen|thaws out as the social link progresses.]] {{spoiler|You even have to ''[[Guide Dang It|reject]]'' her once if you want her to stay with you.}}

** Naoto is another example.

* Roswell from ''[[Yggdra Union]]'' leans heavily towards the cold side of the equation, but every now and again he shows moments of incredibly heartfelt gentleness. Interestingly, many of these moments seem provoked by [[Ship Tease|Yggdra, our lovely protagonist]].

* Leona from ''[[The King of Fighters]]'' fears she'll be dominated by her [[Enemy Within]] (Orochi Leona) if she shows emotions openly... {{spoiler|When the domination happened the first time, she killed her parents and everyone else in her [[Doomed Hometown]]. The second time, she beat her teammates Ralf and Clark to almost death.}}

* Saki Tsuzura in ''[[Arcana Heart]]'' is pretty aloof most of the time, but this mostly stems from her [[My Greatest Failure|failure to save her friend Fiona]] and her resolve to [[Failure Knight|not repeat the same mistake again]]. She considerably opens up when she's around her...uh...[[Les Yay|best friend]] Heart. Especially after the fight with [[Big Bad|Mildred]] is over.

** Lieselotte Achenbach is, for the most part, cold and unemotional, only really showing emotion after she realizes Mildred's plan.

* In the ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'' prequel ''[[Crisis Core]]'', pre-insanity Sephiroth is shown to be aloof, cool, and professional...but also capable of displaying concern (about his friends Genesis and Angeal) and empathy (allowing Zack to return to Midgar to check on Aerith).

* ''[[Final Fantasy XIII]]''

** [[Hidden Heart of Gold|Lightning]]: an [[Establishing Character Moment]] in [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GujB6SX8CLM#t=2m21s the introduction] has her staring at a dandelion-like piece of fluff with her regular stoic expression. However, when she catches it her touch is gentle enough to keep it perfectly intact [[What Do You Mean Its Not Symbolic|until a gust of wind blows to pieces out of her hands]].

** In ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]'', Squall Leonhart is cold with everyone besides Rinoa, to whom he is a [[Defrosting Ice King]].

* ''[[Dragon Age]]''

** Fenris in ''[[Dragon Age II]]'' is also this. Even though he hates mages and is always brooding about his past, it doesn't hinder him becoming open to his [[True Companions|fellow companions]] after his long stay at Kirkwall and their helping him against his Tevinter captors.

* Xyl of ''[[Lusternia]]'' was [[The Stoic]] and [[The Spock]] of the Elder Gods, generally more interested in the pursuit of cosmic knowledge than friendship. However, when with [[The Cutie|Trillilial]], he shows a [[When She Smiles|very different, much warmer side]] to his personality.

* Miranda, from ''[[Mass Effect]]'', is called an [[Ice Queen]] by [[Guest Star Party Member|Wilson]] at the beginning of the game (...before she kills him), but she warms up to Shepard considerably during the course of the game. And of course there's the relationship she has with {{spoiler|her sister, Oriana.}}

* Toona/Raven in ''[[Rune Factory 3]]'': cool and seemingly emotionless, she gradually opens up if you pursue a relationship with her. {{spoiler|Her reason for being cold is actually a fear of losing those who get close to her, due to a childhood friend disappearing in her presence, and the fact that she can turn into a Phoenix-like monster.}}

* In ''[[Pokémon Gold and Silver|Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver]]'', Gym Leader Jasmine (who uses Steel-type Pokémon) is described by one character as trying to hide her tenderness behind her steely coldness.

* Aqua from ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'' is directly stated to be one of these (not by the trope name, of course) in [[Word of God|an interview with Tetsuya Nomura]]. She's the type where we see mostly the Sugar side and is also an honor student type. Isa establishes himself as one in a single cutscene.

 

* Misaki in ''[[Canvas 2]]'' is probably the gentlest person in the cast, but her normal demeanor is rather distant and cool.

* Sora from ''Yosuga no Sora''. If you're not her brother, consider yourself the luckiest person on earth if you're able to see her smile. To be more precise, she is [[Tsundere]] to her brother, [[Yandere]] to ''every'' other girl around her brother, and cold to ''every'' other boy beside her brother. And you may have noticed already but, yeah, ''[[Twincest|she has a sexual desire for her twin brother.]]''

** Saber is an obvious example herself.

* ''[[Katawa Shoujo]]'': Hanako is ''painfully'' [[Shrinking Violet|shy]], due to an anxiety disorder causing her to be very uncomfortable around people she doesn't know very well. However, as she and Hisao get to know each other better, she reveals what a kind, intelligent, warm girl she truly is.

** Shizune most frequently comes across as analytical and bossy. However she also posses a very childlike and playful side and her biggest motivation is a desire make people happy. {{spoiler|Though even her playfulness at times can be a sheild for her strongest emotions, which only Misha, and if take her route, Hisao ever really get to see.}}

 

== Web Comics ==

* The "[http://www.tsunamichannel.com/index.php?date=2005-11-27&comic=LovSit Su-cool]" arc in the "Love Situations" category of ''[[Tsunami Channel]]'' has a prime example of an honest and cool girl who is blunt and unembarassed by her feelings of affection, while being incredibly [[Emotionless Girl|understated and calm]].

* [[No Name Given|The zombie]] from ''[[Hanna Is Not a Boy's Name]]'' is very subtle in his displays of emotion, [[Berserk Button|except when Hanna is harmed]]. He also is seen [[Friend to All Living Things|with a bird perched on his finger]], is visibly upset when he punches a teenage boy with [[More Teeth Than the Osmond Family]] pretty damn hard in the mistaken belief he was dealing with a more serious threat, cooks breakfast for Hanna, and is generally a very nice person. However, Hanna actually takes to counting how often he smiles, because he so rarely does so. He's not particularly cold and unapproachable towards new people, but he's reserved and hard to read.

* ''[[Homestuck]]''

** [[Black Magician Girl|Rose Lalonde]] goes the [[Little Miss Snarker]] route and often hides behind [[Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness]] and sarcasm. Beneath it all, she's perfectly nice and helpful, serving as John's [[Mission Control]] as they first try to figure out the nonsensical costructs of Sburb.

** Genius technician [[Noble Bigot|Equius Zahhak]] would like to have you believe he has nothing but contempt for the lower castes. But put him beside [[Morality Pet|Nepeta]] and he melts like butter.

 

== Web Original ==

* Himei in ''[[Sailor Nothing]]'': At first, she is almost entirely cold towards everyone, but as the story goes on her warmer side starts showing more often.

 

== Western Animation ==

* Daria Morgendorffer from ''[[Daria]]'' only shows affection for certain people, normally just a [[When She Smiles|smile]] and/or [[Luminescent Blush|blush]]. Towards everyone else, she is cold.

* Agent Six from ''[[Generator Rex]]'' fits the part of a [[The Men in Black|Man in Black]], often acting in a curt, very tactical manner. However, he cares greatly about his charge Rex (whom he rescued in the first place) and {{spoiler|Holiday, with whom he'd have a closer relationship if he weren't so mindful of keeping it professional. He does ask her out by "A Family Holiday," but does so while keeping a completely straight face...and holding her hand.}}

* X9 from ''[[Samurai Jack]]'' is a kind and loving companion to his dog, and deep inside he feels guilty about the innocents he has killed. But to anyone he has to kill, he is nothing but a [[Professional Killer]] as cold as the steel he is made of.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:More Than Meets the Eye]]

[[Category:Love Interests]]

[[Category:Character Flaw Index]]

[[Category:Index With a Heart of Gold]]

[[Category:Emotion Tropes]]