White-Haired Pretty Boy: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

{{quote|''"Adonis is one of the main characters this thing circles around, but he does have one distressing feature. SILVER HAIR. This means nothing good can come of him. YOU KNOW THE RULE ABOUT SILVER HAIR."''|'''Zarla''', ''[[Let's Play]]: [http://zarla.dreamwidth.org/266534.html#cutid1 Silver Chaos]'' (Somewhat [[NSFW]])}}

If he's lucky, he's an [[Anti-Hero]]. He's much more likely to be the [[Lovable Traitor]], a [[Trickster]], or [[The Rival]]. But usually, he'll just turn out to be a villain, sooner or later. He will be aloof, often speaking cryptically and ending every sentence with a flip of his hair and a smirk. If he wears [[Four Eyes, Zero Soul|glasses]], [[Scary Shiny Glasses|they'll glow often]]. Or he'll be quiet and shy, barely cracking a smile, yet he'll still be able to thoroughly kick your ass. Sometimes, in more recent cases, he'll show bisexual tendencies, [[Depraved Bisexual|more likely if he's the bad guy]]. He'll have special powers, since white hair on a young person who isn't albino is rare, [[Fridge Logic|which makes you wonder about the red eyes]]... If he's a good guy, he'll still [[Sugar and Ice Personality|seem aloof most of the time]].

 

 

Within anime, this may have a cultural explanation. White ''skin'' is considered attractive in nobility and women, but glaring white is otherwise commonly associated with death.

For some reason, this trope applies much more strongly in shows with predominantly male audiences than in something like [[Shojo]], where the character will still tend to be aloof, shy, or outright eerie.

 

 

Commonly prone to [[Minor Injury Overreaction]]. Compare with [[Blond Guys Are Evil]] and [[Evil Albino]], which are more western alternatives of this trope. Compare and contrast with the [[Distaff Counterpart]], the [[White-Haired Pretty Girl]], who is less likely to be evil and more likely to be magical.

 

 

* Siegfried from ''[[Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple]]'' has long white hair.

* Ayanami in ''[[07-Ghost]]''.

* Kilik in ''[[Air Gear]]''.

* Touma from ''[[Aquarion]]''. Bonus evil points for being an angel.

* It could be argued that the titular character of ''[[Akagi]]'' fits this trope. He's quite the unconventional hero, goes by his own morals, and (depending on who you ask, of course, since this is a Fukumoto series) is relatively attractive. And then there's his body double/[[Unknown Rival|rival for a moment]], Hirayama Yukio. (Ichikawa and Washizu, while they have the hair and the antagonist angle down, do not count because they're old and (again, depending on who you ask) ugly.)

* Griffith, the mercenary Captain from ''[[Berserk]]'', fits the physical description to a T, a nice contrast to the Conan-like main character, Guts. While officially a "hero", he starts out as a manipulative [[Magnificent Bastard]] out for his own purposes, very much like the historical 30 Years War mercenary Wallenstein, who was rumored to have made a Faustian bargain. In this case, though, {{spoiler|instead of selling his soul, he sells those of his men.}}

* Creed Diskenth from ''[[Black Cat (manga)|Black Cat]]''. Creed is not only white-haired, but insane, bloodthirsty, and wants to conquer the world; dude even compares himself to Lucifer. He also has a [[Stalker with a Crush|really creepy crush on Train.]]

* Mao from ''[[Code Geass]]'' is white-haired and <s>drop-dead gorgeous</s> pretty decent-looking. He's also a frighteningly sadistic, dangerously insane, creepy stalker type.

** According to some early character designs, Lelouch was going to have white hair as well, but in the end, they went with black.

* Kaitani Riku from ''[[Eyeshield 21]]'' is pretty much a nice boy, who [[The Mentor|taught Sena how to run in the first places.]] [[The Rival|He aims to defeat him, though.]]

** Taka Honjou, Monta's catching rival, on the Teikoku Alexanders is one too.

** Ironic, as well, that two "Testarossa"s would be white-haired, as "testa rossa" literally means "red head".

* Makubex from ''[[GetBackers]]''. Silver hair, creepy reality-bending powers, {{spoiler|actually a created being. His presumable creator, Makube-hakase, is a [[White-Haired Pretty Girl]] with actual white hair.}}

* ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]'' has the Future Arc's [[Final Boss]], Byakuran, who ''is'' pretty much the evil, scheming, [[Stepford Smiler|perpetually smiling]] White Haired Pretty Boy.

* Subverted by Gunter from ''[[Kyou Kara Maou]]''; his hair and behavior suggests this trope, but he sides with Good.

* The silver-haired [[Warrior Prince|Hegemon Klaus Ingvalt]], who was introduced in ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha ViVid]]''. He served as [[The Rival]], [[Dating Catwoman|and likely something more]], to [[Crystal Dragon Jesus|Sankt Kaiser Olivie]] during the warring era of Ancient Belka.

** Also, Negi, when using [[Super-Powered Evil Side|Magia Erebea]].

* ''[[Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro]]'' has {{spoiler|Sai, who arguably fits the trope, despite the fact that he can change shape. His real form seems to be that of a white haired ''[[Bishounen]]'' and there is no doubts that he can be very cruel.}}

* Vaith from ''Magical X Miracle'' was one, until he dyed it black for some reason. In addition, Ardi is an archetypal example; he has red eyes to go along with his white hair (unlike Vaith, who has gray eyes), and, also unlike Vaith, is a villain.

** I don't know if this counts, but while we are on the subject: Grey from ''[[Mega Man ZX]]'' and Protoman.EXE (Chaud's netnavi), also from ''[[Mega Man Battle Network]]'', have white hair.

* Aizawa Kouichi in ''[[Nabari no Ou]]''. While he's not an antagonist (so far) and is usually a laid-back, helpful guy, he's also a ruthless killer, can be very assertive, and knows suspiciously much about what's going on. Oh, and {{spoiler|he's an immortal hybrid of snowy owl and human, which would explain the hair.}}

** And now also Hidan, and Suigetsu deserves a mention because, despite the shark teeth, he is ''pretty''.

* Kaworu Nagisa from ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'' embodies most of shounen's "creepy guy" traits: an existentialist, {{spoiler|angelic}} [[Evil Albino|albino]] who [[Wicked Cultured|whistles classical music]] and [[Ambiguously Gay|is probably gay]]. Typically, he is a "victim" of [[Draco in Leather Pants]] fandom reaction. The fact that he's an exceptionally nice guy and even [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxFmbeDzcyU dies to save or at least buy some time for Shinji] makes it not surprising that he gets Leather Pants. Though this only applies to a few versions of said character. Some are more monstrous and twisted, and others are just [[Ambiguously Gay]].

* Tsukishiro in ''[[Nightmare Inspector]]'', a Baku who makes people's nightmares worse in order to make them tastier.

* In ''[[Origin: Spirits of the Past]]'', Shunack, the main villain, fits this trope. Strangely, the main hero also has stark white hair, [[Locked Into Strangeness|both from the same source]].

* Darkrai. At the very least, it has bishie-hair. In ''[[Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai|Pokémon the Rise of Darkrai]]'', it was something of an [[Anti-Hero]], or was just simply misunderstood when it was trying to protect the town from the battle between Dialga and Palkia.

* Sasame in ''[[Prétear]]''. In the manga, he's blond and a supportive (if flirty) older-brother type. In the anime, he's silver-haired and {{spoiler|betrays his friends for the Princess of Disaster, gets an [[Evil Costume Switch]], and tries to kill Hayate.}}

* Masaharu Niou, the Rikkaidai [[Master of Disguise|trickster and illusionist]] from ''[[The Prince of Tennis]]''.

* Soul from ''[[Soul Eater]]'' subverts this trope somewhat (not being ''quite'' Bishonen at all), but his female fanbase is quite formidable. However, [[All Girls Want Bad Boys]] is really the main contributor, it seems, and he's a musical genius at the piano.

** Dr. Stein, anyone?

* ''[[Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann]]'' has the silver-haired and evil Cytomander.

** As shown in Parallel Works 8, Lord Genome was one of these as a child, much akin to his daughter, Nia.

* Adam Blade in ''[[NEEDLESS]]'' is another aversion, a [[Hot-Blooded]] [[Idiot Hero]]. [[Big Bad]] Adam Arclight, though another native in a [[World of Ham]], is a straighter example.

* ''[[Trinity Blood]]'' averts it with Abel Nightroad, the main protagonist. {{spoiler|His brother, Cain}}, on the other hand, is also a WHPB and thoroughly twisted and evil.

* [[Big Bad|Dii]] from ''[[Utawarerumono]]''.

* Canute from ''[[Vinland Saga]]'' starts out as a subversion: he's meek, timid, and his favourite hobbies are cooking and reading the bible. {{spoiler|After going through some pretty screwed up shit, his meek persona starts to crumble, until he transforms into a bit of a [[Badass]].}}

* Argent from ''[[Apothecarius Argentum]]'' is a heroic yet tragic case, as his white hair is a result of his [[Acquired Poison Immunity]]. Though he is an apothecary and healer, he was fed poisons from birth to make him into an assassin. As a result, he himself is highly toxic.

* ''[[Angel Sanctuary]]'' has a few:

** [[Evil Chancellor|Sevothtarte]] is a cruel dictator with [[Rapunzel Hair|reeeeeeaaaaallly long]] white hair who rules Heaven ([[Regent for Life|even though the throne actually belongs to]] Metatron). He doesn't accept insubordination and inflicts [[Cold-Blooded Torture]] on any dissenters. {{spoiler|Later, it turns out that [[Villainous Crossdresser|"he" isn't]] [[Samus Is a Girl|really a he]].}}

* Ichiru Kiryu from ''[[Vampire Knight]]'', as well as his brother Zero.

* Luca of ''[[Saint Beast]]'' combines the [[Long-Haired Pretty Boy|long]], white [[Short Hair with Tail|anime]] hair with red eyes and possesses [[Elemental Powers]] of [[Dark Is Not Evil|darkness]], but is a pretty good guy (outside of ''Seijuu Kourin Hen''), following the [[Stoic]] [[Lancer]] version of this trope. He does mention being afraid of his own capacity for darkness at least once, though, and if you count ''Seijuu Kourin Hen'', he does eventually [[Face Heel Turn|become]] an evil sidekick to Judas.

* Noir/{{spoiler|Gauche Suede}} of ''[[Tegami Bachi]]''. [[Jekyll and Hyde|His other half]] averts the evil part, though.

 

* A [[Very Special Episode|Very Special]] issue of ''[[Spider-Man]]'' featured Skip, a white-haired pretty boy who baby-sat a young Peter Parker. And molested him.

** Also, Lyta's husband, Hector. Though he's arguably got it even worse than she does, since the artists can't even keep his ''age'' straight.

* Hua Yingxiong, the titular character of the Epic Martial Arts ''Manhua'' (Hong Kong equivalent of ''Manga'') [[Chinese Hero]].

* Tommy Shepherd, aka Speed of the [[Young Avengers]], mostly as a callback to the fact that he's the reincarnation of one of Scarlet Witch's kids-who-were-part-of-Mephisto/never-existed-except-for-her-wishing-them-to. In an existential screwup that could only happen in comics, he and "twin" Billy Kaplan are mirrors of their former mother and uncle, with him having Quicksilver's powers and looks.

* Snowflame from New Guardians; although the "pretty" part is arguable, he appears to be too young to have his hair white due to old age.

 

 

* Cade in ''[[Sky Blue]]'' strenuously resists Shua's attempt to bring down Ecoban to help the Diggers, and tries to keep Jay away from him. It's later revealed that he was originally responsible for Shua's exile. {{spoiler|[[Redemption Equals Death|He does get redeemed eventually.]]}}

* Lord Shen, the [[Big Bad]] of ''[[Kung Fu Panda 2]]'', is an extremely pretty [[Evil Albino|albino]] peacock with a extremely pretty white plumage.

* Silas in ''[[The Da Vinci Code]]'', played by Paul Bettany (who seems to be making this trope a big part of his repertoire, and doing it well).

* In ''Harry Potter'' movies, Lucius and Draco Malfoy both fit this trope to a T.

* Angel Face in ''Fight Club'', whose hair is bleached platinum blonde.

* Captain Love in ''[[The Mask of Zorro]]''. He's actually very light blond, but it's as close as you can get to white hair, given the scenario.

* Caius of the Volturi, from ''[[Twilight]]''. Definitely fits this trope.

 

* Though Silas in ''[[The Da Vinci Code]]'' is in no way pretty, he otherwise fills this trope (and [[Evil Albino]]) to a T.

* While not pretty, Raistlin Majere of the ''[[Dragonlance]]'' books fits the other characteristics, including becoming a villain.

* White Mike, the drug-dealing antihero in the book ''Twelve''.

* Ariel from the ''[[Obernewtyn Chronicles]]'' book series by Isobelle Carmody is a classic example, being described as angelic in looks and satanic in temperament.

* Joren in ''[[Tortall Universe|Protector of the Small]]'' has white-blond hair, rather effeminate looks, and is Keladry's main enemy in the first book. She hates him but acknowledges that he's the most beautiful man she's ever seen, which unfortunately leads to [[Draco in Leather Pants]] in parts of the fandom.

** Also, Lucius Malfoy is quite handsome to look at in the movies. Not any worse than his son. And Lucius has even more fitting, long, white hair.

* ''[[The Name of the Wind]]'': Cinder of the Chandrian.

* [[Isaac Newton]] is described as this in [[Neal Stephenson]]'s ''[[The Baroque Cycle]]''. The trope description fits his personality pretty well: he's an aloof, arrogant, [[Ambiguously Gay]] [[Anti-Hero]] who has a vested interest in alchemy and fancies himself a sorceror.

* Bones in the ''[[Night Huntress]]'' books has brown hair naturally, but likes to go around with it dyed platinum blonde. And he is one of the heroes.

* The Ghost of Christmas Past in ''[[A Christmas Carol]]'', although it is of [[Ambiguous Gender]] in the book. In certain film and theatre adaptations, it is portrayed as a girl/woman.

* Martel in ''[[The Elenium]]'' posesses natural white hair, and is described as having a surprisingly youthful face. He's also a [[Fallen Hero|fallen knight]].

 

* Amir Aboulela as Gar on ''[[The Pretender]]''. He's (perhaps unintentionally) kind of effeminate, and in his short time on the show, he even has a sort of [[Minor Injury Overreaction]].

* The live-action ''[[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon]]'' series gave ''Zoisite'' white hair. Though, while he is still one of the four generals of the Dark Kingdom, he is also {{spoiler|the one to remember his past life and his loyality to Endymion, and the past tragedy; he even goes so far as to briefly team up with Minako to try and keep Usagi and Mamoru separated}}.

 

 

* Former AWA commentator and WCW on- and off-screen authority figure Eric Bishoff. Averted in [[Kayfabe]] where his hair is dyed black, but in reality, Eric's natural hair color has been white for almost his entire adult life.

* 16-time world champion Ric Flair.

 

 

* [[Jerkass Woobie|Seltyiel]], the iconic [[Magic Knight|magus]] from ''[[Pathfinder]]'', who seems to be [[Anti-Hero|something of]] a [[Captain Ersatz]] of [[Elric of Melnibone|Elric of Melniboné]]. It should be noted that he's the ''[[Token Evil Teammate|only]]'' [[Lawful Evil|canonically evil]] iconic.

 

 

* Commander Khashoggi, the head of the [[Mega Corp|Globalsoft]] [[Secret Police]] in the musical ''We Will Rock You''. An [[Officer and a Gentleman]] with peroxide white hair.

 

* Yuuri from ''[[Silver Chaos 2 Artificial Mermaid]]'', subverted in that he is the hero.

* Arthas from the ''[[Warcraft]] III'' and ''[[World of Warcraft]]''. In ''Warcraft III'', he was initially blond, at which point he was morally clueless, and also pretty clueless in general, but largely seemed to mean well. His hair immediately and abruptly went white shortly after he took up Frostmourne and became a Death Knight, which is also the exact moment at which he progressed from "well-meaning extremist" status to being clearly and unambiguously capital-E Evil.

*** If he's not grinning like an absolute loonball (as in the WotLK opening cinema's final scene), attractive he very much is. If he IS grinning like an absolute loonball (as on the TFT expansion pack's box cover, oh god), [[Nightmare Face|HE'S REALLY NOT.]]

** It's actively said in Warcraft III that Arthas doesn't have a soul. Maybe because Frostmourne ate it, so the white hair may have something to do with that.

'''Arthas:''' '' Then I'll make do without one. What is the Lich King's will?'' }}

* Reivier from ''[[Quintessence]] -- The Blighted Venom''.

* Setzer, of ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'' is a rebellious, elitist, whitehaired gambler who kidnaps Celes, but inevitably joins the party.

** And his lookalike from [[Final Fantasy Tactics]], Marquis Elmdore

** Yazoo, Loz, and most notably Kadaj from the sequel film ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]: [[Advent Children]]'', who are brothers from the same "mother" as Sephiroth. Official materials even name them collectively as "The Silver-Haired Men".

* {{spoiler|The original Tohno SHIKI}} in ''[[Tsukihime]]'' has white, shoulder-length hair. He is also possessed by the [[Big Bad]], inverted (meaning, given up completely to a [[Super-Powered Evil Side]]), and completely insane.

* Hyo Imawano from ''[[Rival Schools]]'', who goes from main villain, to willing ally, to possessed villain, {{spoiler|to dead}}, all in the span of two games.

* ''[[Lunar Silver Star Story Complete|Lunar: The Silver Star]]'' has {{spoiler|Ghaleon}}, who is a walking example of a lot of villain tropes.

** You heard right, my friend. In fact, Skye/Steiner is pretty much the straightest example of this trope I've ever seen, with particular emphasis on the "effeminate pretty-boy" bit.

** Let's not forget Vaughn from ''Island of Happiness''.

* Joshua from ''[[The World Ends With You]]'' is not only pretty and has white hair, but he's also the one who almost UNDOES Neku's Character-development from week one with his prissy and mysterious behaviour, and finally turns out to be {{spoiler|Neku's killer (twice), [[Physical God|the Composer]], and the one who wanted to destory Shibuya in the first place.}} However, he endes up showing "mercy". All this while spouting cryptic "deep" sayings, and being mysterious and ostensibly metrosexual (he can wear girls' clothes).

** I guess he tries to make Neku stand his ground or admit non-worthiness of all his development. If it's so easy to undo as one not particularly getting in your way boy walking you around streets, when you're trying to prove that all people must have some worth, then why bother about it?

** Also, the protagonist himself has silver hair, and is very, very pretty.

* Nascour, [[The Dragon]], from ''[[Pokémon Colosseum]]''.

* Specter from ''[[Ape Escape]]''. All right, he has white ''fur'', but still.

* Lloyd from ''[[Legend of Dragoon]]''. He spends most of the game being a huge thorn in the party's side, from beating the pants off of the protagonist in an arena fight to plotting to destroy the world, {{spoiler|only to do a [[Heel Face Turn]] at the last second, making way for the REAL [[Big Bad]].}}

* ''[[Sengoku Basara]]'' has ''three'' of these. First, there's [[Ax Crazy]] Akechi Mitsuhide, then, [[The Strategist]] Takenaka Hanbei, and now, Ishida Mitsunari.

** There's also [[Pirate|Motochika Chosokabe]], who subverts the trope by being a generally [[Nice Guy]] and being portrayed quite positively.

* Derby Harrington, leader of the Preps in ''[[Bully (video game)|Bully]]''. While short-haired, he is decidedly handsome, evil, and a [[Screw the Rules, I Have Money|rich bastard]].

* Godot from ''[[Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney]]'' has white hair, though {{spoiler|it was originally black, but it changed when he was poisoned.}}

* The fiend Alexei from ''[[Ninja Gaiden]] 2''.

* Naoya from ''[[Devil Survivor]]'' is an example of this trope, combined with [[Red Eyes, Take Warning]]. He's also one of the few characters in the game who does ''not'' invoke [[Curtains Match the Window]].

** His [[Expy]] from the second game has this look, but his [[Jerkass]] personality prevents many in universe from appreciating it. The Anguished One looks like this as well, to the point fans consider him an [[Expy]] of [[Neon Genesis Evangelion|Kaworu.]]

* Reve from ''[[Phantasy Star|Phantasy Star 0]]''. He doesn't have red eyes, but has a red visor over them {{spoiler|until his [[Heel Face Turn]]}}. He's pretty much a jerk and a real pain.

* Schezo Wedgey form the [[Puyo Puyo]] series.

* Warwick in the ''[[Age of Empires III]]'' campaign. Also note that {{spoiler|the secret society of which he was a member, The Circle of Ossus, prized animals with white fur}}.

* From ''[[Tekken]]'', Lee Chaolan, poster guy of this trope.

** Partially lampshaded in ''[[Mortal Kombat 9]]'' where, upon learning they are fighting for the safety of Earth, Johnny Cage asks Raiden, "What should we do, besides standing around looking pretty?"

* {{spoiler|Aizel}} from ''[[Opoona]].'' In his case, he has a bad case of the possessed by the spirit of evil. {{spoiler|His brother, Shalga, has it as well, but he's only a [[Hero with Bad Publicity]].}}

 

* Archer, from ''[[Fate/stay night]]'', who may not be considered a pretty boy, though he is nevertheless handsome in a more rugged manner, but his white hair and cynical anti-hero nature qualify him for this trope...as does his penchant for a [[Bring My Red Jacket|red]] [[Badass Longcoat]]. Further, {{spoiler|his actions and intent, in the Unlimited Blade Works arc, of killing the hero -- his past self -- to end the eternity of fighting and slaughter he lives out}} arguably grant him [[Anti-Villain]] status.

** He counts as this trope, as the term "[[Memetic Mutation|Gar]]" was literally made for him (at 4chan, of course). And accounting for his cumulative actions/motives, he probably fits under the greater majority of the hero ''and'' villain tropes here.

* ''[[Yo-Jin-Bo]]'' has Mon-Mon, though he [[Insistent Terminology|insists it's ''silver'']] and isn't nearly as "pretty" in [[Bishounen|the usual way]]. The enemy ninja Kasumimaru's pale [[You Gotta Have Blue Hair|blue]] could also count, and he ''is'' more of the [[Bishounen|traditional variety of pretty]].

 

* Loratio from ''[http://www.eecomics.net Emergency Exit]''. He's not really ''evil'' (he did save the world from a demon), just extremely disagreeable with violent tendencies.

* ''[[Chess Piece]]'', ''[[Chess Piece]]'', oh my God, ''[[Chess Piece]]''. We've got Danny the [[Anti-Hero]]/[[Villain Protagonist]], who, despite being evil, does have quite a large fanbase ([[All Girls Want Bad Boys]]); Vlad, who was a wild man back in the day {{spoiler|and has killed at least once (Phantom)}}; and Phantom, the [[Ax Crazy]] psychopath who has {{spoiler|gone on many a murderous rampages}} and is one of the main villains of the story.

* Razin from ''[[Overlord of Ravenfell]]'' has white hair and is a wannabe [[Evil Overlord]].

 

* Whiteout, a hit man from the ''[[Global Guardians PBEM Universe]]'', is a frankly beautiful man with long, flowing white hair. He's also a psychotpathic murderer with [[Super Strength]].

* In ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series|Yu-Gi-Oh the Abridged Series]]'', Bakura's first appearance is punctuated by the [[Ominous Latin Chanting]] theme from ''[[The Omen]]''. There's an especially nice flourish when he's asked what his favourite card is, and he accidentally holds up a [[Final Fantasy VII|Sephiroth]] card.

 

* Word Paynn and his son, Moordryd, in ''[[Dragon Booster]]''.

* It's probably a matter of opinion, but ''[[Ben 10]]'''s [[Evil Twin|Albedo]] isn't particularly bishonen, though he is morally dubious enough to build a second Omnitrix against his master's wishes and beat up hordes of [[Knight Templar|Forever Knights]] looking for Ben, complain directly to a cook how much he loathes the Earth food he finds himself compelled to eat, make a laughably dumb attempt to convince Gwen that he is Ben (complete with several instances of "I, Ben Tennyson..."), and try to take Ben's Omnitrix by force. Then again, he doesn't get the white hair until the end of the episode (probably just to look like Ben's opposite), which may indicate an intended reappearance.

 

 

* Rakuto from ''[[Wild Ones]]'' is white-haired, but also handsome, charming, and one of the most popular students in school, if not a bit of a [[Stepford Smiler]].

* Toki from ''[[Fist of the North Star]]''. White-haired, yes, but due to a spot of aging and radiation sickness that is slowly killing him, he dosen't exactly look pretty. Furthermore, he is the most morally pure of the entire cast, vowing to use Hokuto Shinken only to heal people of their diseases. In battle, he is more of a [[Technical Pacifist]]. When he fights and has to eliminate his foe, he uses special versions of established Hokuto Shinken techniques to ensure that his enemies die feeling immense pleasure. But this IS ''[[Fist of the North Star]]'', where [[Anyone Can Die]] (at least, anyone not named Kenshiro). Take a wild guess what fate awaits poor Toki.

** It was radiation sickness that gave him his white hair anyway. Originally, it was brown (or black, since ''FOTNS'' has... issues with its cast's hair colour).

** Rei from ''[[Fist of the North Star]]''. He was actually mistaken for a woman in his introduction, but he doesn't get the requisite white hair until {{spoiler|he's dying from Raoh's attack.}}

* Tsukasa in ''[[.hack//Sign]]''. Not only is he a good guy (arguably), he's a main character.

** Also, he's {{spoiler|not really a ''boy'', so there's that too.}}

* ''[[Bleach]]'' has several:

** Toshiro Hitsugaya, who is clever and capable. Little doubt that the trope is probably one of the main reasons behind his popularity (essentially swapping places with Ichigo, who consistently held the #1 spot in Shonen Jump polls).

* Yue in ''[[Cardcaptor Sakura]]''; though not technically a villain or even evil, his bitterness, pride, and stoicism highlight his cold and resentful demeanor. In his first appearance, he is an antagonist, and, [[Defeat Means Friendship|following his defeat, becomes a reluctant ally]] of the main character and, eventually, a friend.

* Shirogane from ''Monochrome Factor''.

* ''[[Black Jack]]'' manages to subvert this with Dr. Kiriko: he has white hair, his skin's fairly pale, but his gaunt face and sickly, hunched-over frame keep him from being too "pretty".

* Ren from ''[[Karin]]'', in something of an inversion.

** He was also originally a brunette, but [[Locked Into Strangeness|his hair turned white]] during a particularly traumatic event in his childhood.

** It's a really light platinum blonde, but it can be easily confused with white. This tone is a bit rare to occur on Kirins, but not as rare as black, red, or pink (yes, pink unicorns).

* Kantarou from ''[[Tactics]]'' is as much a pretty white-haired boy as it gets, but he is the hero. Although his lazy and materialistic nature occasionally make him the object of censure, Kantarou never comes close to being a villain and is more of a [[Genius Ditz]] (as far as his exorcizing/bonding with spirits power is concerned) than anything else.

* Gintoki from ''[[Gintama]]'' occasionally does questionable things, but he has a [[Hidden Heart of Gold|heart of gold]] and is the hero of the series.

** Jirochou had white hair even when he was a young man. He's another [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]].

* Sasagawa Ryohei of ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]'' has white hair (once colored light brown in an early color spread, interestingly enough), but is firmly entrenched in the realm of heroes. He's the [[Hot-Blooded]] one. '''EXTREMELY''' hot-blooded.

** On that note, Gokudera Hayato, when he originally came in, seemed to be a villain but quickly turned into the most fiercely loyal subordinate Tsuna could ever want. ("JUUDAIME!!!")

** Also, the morally ambiguous Migeira in the anime, who has short white hair, heterochromic eyes, and a Kakashi-like facemask. Subverted by preteen ninja Sasuke, who also has white hair.

* Chouji Suitengu from ''[[Speed Grapher]]''. [[Yandere|Ginza Hibari]] is a morally ambigous White Haired Pretty ''Girl''.

* Silver-haired Shi Seiran in ''[[Saiunkoku Monogatari]]'' is a principled and heroic young man.

* Superintendent Kengo Akechi from ''[[The Kindaichi Case Files]]''. While not technically "evil", he ''is'' a bit of a [[Jerkass|douchebag]] [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold|sometimes]].

* Rotton the Wizard of ''[[Black Lagoon]]'' places more emphasis on the "pretty boy" part of the equation, being a chivalrous guy who really wants to be badass but isn't very good at it. Where he not [[The Fool]], you'd expect that his code of honor and mannerisms would have gotten him killed a long time ago in the kind of series he's in.

* In ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!]]'', Bakura and his [[Super-Powered Evil Side]] both fit the physical description, but normal Bakura is harmless and an [[Adorkable]] [[The Woobie|woobie]].

* Gauche Suede from ''[[Tegami Bachi]]'' is a noble, kindhearted [[Nice Guy]]. However, his {{spoiler|[[Jekyll and Hyde]] alter ego Noir}} plays the evil part of this trope straight after a [[Break the Cutie]] moment.

** White-haired twelve-year-old [[The Hero|main protagonist]] Lag Seeing has the subversion of this trope down pat, but hasn't quite reached the pretty part yet. Give him a few more years, though...

* Albert Heinrich (Cyborg 004) has silver hair in some adaptations of ''[[Cyborg 009]]''. In all adaptations, he's one of the heroes of the series. In the "Legend of the Supergalaxy" movie, he had a bit of a death wish and was unflinching in battle, but still one of the heroes.

 

* Apollo of ''[[The Authority]]'' is a gorgeous Superman expy with long, white-blonde hair and the sweetest disposition of anyone on the team. It's nigh-on impossible to even make him angry.

* Daniel Hall of ''[[The Sandman]]'', after {{spoiler|his transformation into the second Dream}}. Definitely a good guy; he's noticeably more forgiving than {{spoiler|his predecessor}}, although that, admittedly, isn't hard to achieve. Also a [[Man in White]].

 

* Though not exactly effeminate (he's played by Rutger Hauer), Roy Batty from ''[[Blade Runner]]'' is an [[Anti-Villain]] example.

 

* While far from pretty, the Wraith of ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'' is, with the exception of some Queens, an entire ''species'' that has long, white hair. Though they are very intelligent on the whole, most Wraith are brutal and openly violent, rather than calm and sophisticated.

 

* Ian Stott from Cherie Priest's ''Bloodshot'' is a dapper, handsome vampire with long white/silver hair. He's got the moral ambiguity of being a vampire, but he seems like a decent, pleasant person.

* Alcuin from ''Kushiel's Legacy'' is a sort of rival to Phedre, but also definitely a good guy.

* Eric Northman from Charlaine Harris' ''Southern Vampire'' mysteries. (Much more obvious on the TV adaptation ''Trueblood''.) Semi subversion, as he's not exactly the most pure intentioned vampire on the planet, but is loyal and generous to his people.

** Eric Northman may not embody this trope. He's blond, not white- or silver-haired. He's a big old viking dude, not a prettyboy (yes, many women find him attractive, but he's not a bishonen).

* In ''[[Codex Alera]]'', all [[Our Elves Are Different|Marat]] have white hair, male or female. However, there is only one major Marat villain (and he's just a [[Starter Villain]] and [[Unwitting Pawn]]), while most of the Marat are solid good guys. On top of that, the other main male Marat, Doroga, is not only a good guy, but described as being physically ugly despite his white hair.

* Bracken from the ''[[Fablehaven]]'' series. Justified because {{spoiler|he's a unicorn.}} Also, Warren, when he was stuck as an [[Heroic Albino|albino]].

* [[Agent Pendergast]].

 

* ''[[Final Fantasy]]'':

*** He looks almost pale blond in the DS version (in-game sprite only, it's white in the FMV and menu portrait).

*** [[Ninja|Edge]] is also a subversion in more than one way. Despite having white hair and being very, very pretty (though not quite as pretty as [[Bishonen|Cecil]]), he's a [[Hot-Blooded]] hero who likes to [[Small Name, Big Ego|hit]] [[Dogged Nice Guy|on]] [[Cute Witch|Rydia.]]

* The [[Anti-Hero]] Dante from ''[[Devil May Cry]]'' is a slightly more realistic take on the [[Bishonen]]; he has white hair and is a hunky and hot-blooded [[Badass Longcoat]]. So are his twin brother Vergil (though, being a villain with an icy personality, he definitely fits the trope), the human form of their father Sparda, and Nero {{spoiler|(who is also a descendant of Sparda)}}.

** Juste Belmont in ''Harmony of Dissonance'', the only known white-haired member of his clan. Let me rephrase: he's a ''white-haired Belmont''.

** [[Kid Dracula]], Dracula's non-canonical offspring, is a White-Haired Little Boy.

** As an interesting note, Peter Stillman also shows up in ''Metal Gear Solid 2''. He's a black guy, though.

** Gray Fox/Frank Jaeger from the same series (at least when he isn't covered in metal), although he's more of a biseinen than a bishonen. He does wind up fighting the protagonist on more than one occasion, but calling him an ''enemy'' would be inaccurate.

* Gig from ''[[Soul Nomad and The World Eaters]]''. He ''is'' evil and silver-haired, but he's neither particularly effeminate nor particularly eerie, and gets his jollies from [[Omnicidal Maniac|causing senseless carnage and suffering on a massive scale]], while maintaining all the flair and panache of a pro-wrestling [[Heel]]. He's also [[Heroic Sociopath|on the good side]], if highly reluctantly.

* Geralt from ''The Witcher'' game and series of novels: while not exactly a bishonen, he is lacking in hair pigmentation, due to the mutation which renders his hair white. He is, at worst, an Anti-hero, and most probably as real a hero as possible in his grim, harsh world.

* Cyrus from ''[[Advance Wars]]: Days of Ruin''. White-haired (albino, in fact), extremely [[Bishonen|bishy]], and willing to risk his life to help the heroes.

** It may be notable that he gets his white hair by {{spoiler|being a clone of [[Big Bad]], Caulder. Caulder himself is too old to be a white haired pretty boy.}}

* Akihiko Sanada from ''[[Persona 3]]'', who is a [[Determinator]] hero with streaks of [[The Atoner]].

* The Protagonist from [[Persona 4]], who has [[Curtains Match the Window|grey eyes to match]].

** There's also Super Macho Man, though the "pretty" part is debatable, due to the fact that he looks like a muscular, tanned George Washington.

* We're not sure what the hell's going on with Joshua from ''[[The World Ends With You]]'', but he's certainly got the "effeminate white-haired kid" style down pat. {{spoiler|He's the "Composer" of Shibuya, who has gotten sick of his "divine" role and wants to destroy everything. With [[Fan Nickname|Jesus Beams]].}}

** Until Neku unintentionally changes Joshua's mind with the power of his magnificent ass.

** Not to mention, he's a completely insufferable smarmy jerkass most of the time.

* Silver from the 2006 ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' game.

* Sanger Zonvolt of ''[[Super Robot Wars]]'' is white haired, but he exudes ''manly'' qualities and is not a [[Bishonen]]. And is pretty heroic at that.

** Also, Harken Browning, protagonist of the spinoff ''Mugen no Frontier''.

** As for Villains, [[Super Robot Wars Destiny|Perfectio]], {{spoiler|Joshua's father de-aged.}}

* Altos Stratos of ''[[Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard]]'' is a parody of the trope.

* Also parodied by Helter Skelter from ''[[No More Heroes]]'', although he's not really in the game.

* ''[[Xenogears]]'' has a few subversions/inversions. [[Badass Preacher|Billy]], Sigurd, and [[The Gunslinger|Jessie]] all have silver hair and are undeniably loyal to the heroes. Krelian has many of the other traits of a WHPB, but [[Blond Guys Are Evil|his hair is closer to golden-brown than silver]].

** Ramsus is the biggest subversion of all. When he appears, he seems to be all but guaranteed to be the [[Big Bad]]. Later on, it is revealed that {{spoiler|his girlfriend, Miang}}, is the real [[Big Bad]], and Ramsus is shown to be not important at all.

* Lee Chaolan in the ''[[Tekken]]'' series.

* Purge from ''[[Space Channel 5]]'' Part 2. He also has purple eyes.

** However, in the sequel, it's completely played straight by Reicher.

* Zero of ''[[Mega Man X]]'', when he's wearing his [[Infinity+1 Sword|Black Armor]], had ''silver'' hair. He [[Jerkass Facade|acts like a]] [[Jerk with a Heart of Gold]], but he's a [[Badass]] hero.

* Loue the vampire in [[A Witch's Tale]] serves as Liddell's aide for most of the game.

* Joss from ''Dawn's Light'' starts out as the trope played straight, but eventually joins the hero's party and performs a {{spoiler|[[Heroic Sacrifice]]}}.

* A few of the young male characters in ''[[Infinite Space]]'' has white or silver hair, including the main character, Yuri. However, no matter which side they're on, all of them are actually decent, if not genuinely good, people. Yes, even the seemingly [[Ax Crazy]] Teodoro.

* Angelo from ''[[Dragon Quest VIII]]''.

* [[McNinja|Chipp Zanuff]] from ''[[Guilty Gear]]''.

* The protagonist of ''[[Suikoden V]]''.

* The protagonist, Serph, from ''[[Digital Devil Saga]]''.

** {{spoiler|The man who he's effectively a reincarnation of, however, is a ''very'' straight example.}}

* Another [[Square Enix]] character: Escher, from the iPod/Phone App ''Chaos Rings'', is a white haired black guy, and is just about the most cruel hearted person in the entire tournament, and, in a different storyline, is an antagonist (mostly). He's selfish, an assassin, borderline evil for the majority of the game, even going so far as to threaten the two youngest competitors that even if they were kids, he'd still kill them - {{spoiler|which he does, to his regret}}.

** The funny thing is, Escher is almost like a cross between Axel and Cloud, because he's a hired blade (Cloud), has a sarcastic, sinister attitude (Axel), has a very wierd stance (Axel), wields a very long sword with one hand (Cloud, though not original), and has only one person he cares for (both, although Cloud ends up getting more friends, and Axel does likewise).

*** And here's his [http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2010/04/500x_chaosrings.jpg picture] (on the right)

**** Another interesting version of this is Zhamo, arguable the nicest guy in the game. And he's black. There are no white people with white hair in a Sqaure Enix game. This world is coming to an end.

* {{spoiler|Zareh}} in ''[[Frozen Essence]]'', who, in spite of {{spoiler|being one of the leaders of the [[Light Is Not Good|White Order]] and hiding his face underneath a [[Black Cloak|black]] [[In the Hood|hood]] for most of the game}}, is one of the kindest characters in the game who helps Mina as best as he can and [[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy|values her happiness above everything else]] (except in his Dark End, where he becomes [[Yandere|creepily possessive]] of Mina).

 

* Kayndar/Silvah from the webcomic ''[[Inverloch]]''. Also, all the male severed elves are this, although none of the others appear long in the comic.

* Lawrence Spectrum and Nick Claus from ''[[Monsterful]]''.

* Lampshaded in [http://adventurers.comicgenesis.com/d/0255.html this ADVENTURERS! strip].

* Eikre from ''[[RPG World]]'' is initially implied to be the [[Big Bad]] in disguise, but he turns out to be a good guy. It's later revealed that he went to a school for evil [[Bishonen]] before doing a [[Heel Face Turn]].

* Lord Sykos from ''[[The Wotch]]''. Let's just say that the name fits perfectly.

* Luka from ''[[My Life in Blue]]''. He fits the stereotype perfectly, being white-haired (he says it's due to "[http://mylifeinblue.comicgenesis.com/d/20060728.html psychic trauma"]), [[Camp Gay|effeminate]], [[Bi the Way|bisexual]], and attractive, but he's a nice guy.

* Artie from ''Concession'' is an albino rat with long hair (up until recently, and even now, it's long again). Whether or not he's [[Furry Fandom|pretty]], however, is [[Your Mileage May Vary|up to you.]]

* Jurinjo from ''[[Emergency Exit]]''. OK, OK, it's actually grey, and he's a "[[Minion with an F In Evil|villain" who's not really evil.]]

* Vlad from ''Chess Piece'' used to have white hair {{spoiler|before he became all demonic-looking}} and was a bit of a [[Jerkass]]. In the comic timeline, however, he's a good king, a(n) (over)protective father, and an overall nice guy. And the Hero of the story. And the author's main tool for [[Fan Service]].

 

* Despite typical regard for standard hair colors shown by ''[[Broken Saints]]'', there's still one: Oran's childhood friend Hassan.

 

* Ren, from ''[[The Pirates of Dark Water]]'': he's actually a [[Dark-Skinned Blond|dark-skinned platinum blond]], and is a bit too short and stocky to be a [[Bishonen|bishie]], but he's got the pale hair and pretty face, so he counts. And he's definitely a [[Neutral Good|heroic example]].

* ''[[Danny Phantom]]''. Not really bishonen, but that hasn't stopped the fangirls from drawing him as such.

* Chris Moralès of ''[[Code Lyoko]]'' is certainly white-haired and pretty, but an entirely sympathetic character.

* Although a little ambiguous at first, the Magus from ''[[Gargoyles]]'' is an ultimately heroic example.

 

== Real Life ==

* [[Eminem]] had his hair dyed almost platinum blond at one point.

* Bill Rieflin, the former drummer of [[Ministry]].

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Always Male]]

[[Category:Useful Notes/Hair Color in Japan]]

[[Category:Anime Hair]]

[[Category:Villains]]

[[Category:A Pretty Boy Index]]