Hetalia: Axis Powers

Characters

Axis powers

• North Italy, usually shortened to just Italy is the primary protagonist and the title character, portrayed as a bright, energetic, and mostly sweet young man. In the series, he is depicted at various points as the infant grandson of the Roman Empire and is recognized as one of the weakest characters in the series as well as a carefree and cowardly soldier who often surrenders without a fight, usually by waving a white flag. His artistry and love of pasta/pizza, and womanizing are references to stereotypical Italian culture. He is portrayed as a "loveable loser". Despite looking weak and helpless, Italy is viewed as being strong as a child, being able to defeat Turkey single-handedly during his golden days. According to Himaruya, Italy is strong, but does not show his strength because of his cowardice. In 2007, he received the name Feliciano Vargas. Italy Veneziano represents the northern half of the country, while his older brother Romano represents the southern half. Hence, their full character names are Italy Veneziano and Italy Romano respectively. In the anime series, both Veneziano and Romano are voiced by Daisuke Namikawa in Japanese. In English, Veneziano is voiced by Todd Haberkorn and Romano is voiced by Ian Sinclair. Young Italy, from a common segment on the show called Chibitalia, is voiced by Aki Kanada in Japanese and Brina Palencia in English.
• Germany is portrayed as hard-working, efficient, bureaucratic, and serious. In the series Germany is depicted as the leader of the Axis Powers, and takes responsibility for the training of Italy and Japan. He is tall, muscular, with blond hair and blue eyes and usually wears military fatigues, uniforms, formal wear, or a collared shirt. Although he has a tendency to act aggressively to other characters he encounters, he can sometimes show a kinder side to his personality. He is also an established baker. Another aspect of his character is his relative inexperience with relationships, leading him to be very by-the-book as a result of the belief that things will go wrong if he does not follow instructions to the letter. Despite this, as the series progresses, he establishes friendship with Italy and Japan. In the anime series, he is voiced by Hiroki Yasumoto in Japanese and Patrick Seitz in English. In 2007, he received the name Ludwig. It is notable that he is the only character with only a first name given out to him, although fans tend to give him the same surname as his brother Prussia.
• Japan is a reclusive and hard-working man. He seems to have a problem with others being in his personal space, for he gets uncomfortable if anyone touches him or gets too close, though he does seem to have gotten used to this to some extent. In the series, he is shown to be inexperienced with the Western world, and prone to culture shock; but he also finds fascination in the ways of other nations since he takes photographs of cultural oddities in other countries' lands. His character design features dark brown eyes and black hair, common physical traits among Japanese people; and has the attire of an officer of the Japanese Navy. He often tries to adopt the cultures of other countries he meets such as France, or when other countries meet him. He "senses the mood and refrains from speaking". Generally quiet, he is often depicted with the attitude of a businesslike old man. In the anime series, he is voiced by Hiroki Takahashi in Japanese and Christopher Bevins in English. Young Japan is voiced by Alexis Tipton in English. In 2007, he received the name Kiku Honda.

  Allied Forces

• United States is an energetic young man. In the series, he was found by France and England before France left him in England's care after America chose the latter over the former, then later grows distant from him which eventually leads to him fighting for his independence. America is very similar in appearance to his brother, Canada, who is often mistaken for America. America has blond hair, starry blue eyes, glasses representing Texas, and a noticeable cowlick representing Nantucket. In the World War II sections of the anime and manga, America wears an American Army Air Force Officer uniform, and a vintage leather flight jacket. He is the self-proclaimed leader of the Allied Forces, and his catchphrase is "I'm the hero!" Although his ideas for solving international problems are often absurd, and he is usually oblivious to the opinions of others, it has been stated that he acts this way purposely. America's ideas and inventions are grand, but rarely go anywhere. He is often portrayed as loud, obnoxious, egotistical, immature, childlike and interfering with other characters' businesses with little regard for whom his actions affect. Yet despite his misgivings, he is shown to be a kind-hearted person who cares deeply for his friends. He is also shown to be extremely intelligent in several fields. He is a brave adventurer and natural explorer, wanting to try things no one has ever done before, and he usually spends his free time either trying new foods, being around friends, or making movies and has a fascination with superheroes which he aspires to be himself. He has a prominent case of phasmophobia, which is ironic considering his friendly acquaintance with an alien named Tony, who lives in his house. America is frequently seen clutching a hamburger or eating while speaking, yet he is self-conscious of his unhealthy habits and tries several yet ineffective diets to stay healthy. He also has uncanny superhuman strength, being able to lift objects several times his size. In the anime series, his voice actor is Katsuyuki Konishi in Japanese and Eric Vale in English, both of whom also voice Canada. As a child, America's voice actress is Ai Iwamura in Japanese and Luci Christian in English. In 2007, he received the name Alfred F. Jones.
• United Kingdom More commonly known as England or Britain is the personification of England and acting representation of the United Kingdom. He is depicted as an irritable man with big, bushy eyebrows drawn with five lines. While before he was a zealous privateer, he is now a cynical and sharp-tongued gentleman whose notable character traits include terrible cooking skills, inability to hold liquor, foul mouth, ability to see supernatural creatures, and ability to perform magic curses. He is usually recognized for his rather large eyebrows, blond hair, green eyes, and his green Royal Artillery Officer's uniform. In the English release of the anime, when asked why they opted to choose the name "Britain" over "England", Funimation explained that it was a request from the Japanese studio. Tokyopop, the English publisher of the manga, refers to him as "England." Britain is most antagonistic towards France, with whom he shares a long rivalry, and has strong mixed feelings towards America, whom he raised from a small child. Any matter related to the American independence makes him sick and is shown to cough up blood. In one strip, he notes that he has an older brother named Scotland. Himaruya has confirmed that England represents both the United Kingdom and England, while Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales are his siblings. Among England's other 'relations' are Sealand, a micronation whom England considers to be an annoying little brother due to his continued attempts to get other countries to recognize him as an independent country. England's voice actor is Noriaki Sugiyama, and his English voice actor was Scott Freeman but due to sex offences, Funimation cut off all ties with him. He was replaced by Taliesin Jaffe in The World Twinkle. Taliesin did not reprise his role in the later season of "Hetalia World Stars" and the voice actor was changed to Steven Kelly. In 2007, he received the name Arthur Kirkland.
• France is an overly-romantic, carefree man. In the series, he is shown to have a long-held rivalry with England. He makes sexual passes at many characters. France explains away his long history of military defeats as a joke from God, but he believes he is gifted with his "charms" and his supreme cooking skills. He regards himself as the eldest brother among the European nations and is referred to as such by some of them, though he calls Spain his elder brother in turn. Most of the time, he does not bother remembering to speak English, instead using French, the "Language of Love". He has long blond hair, clear blue eyes, and usually wears a purple cathedral cloak. In the anime series, he is voiced by Masaya Onosaka in Japanese and J. Michael Tatum in English. In 2007, he received the name Francis Bonnefoy.
• Russia is the tallest of all the nations, and has a thick muscular body. He has wavy silver hair, purple eyes, a large nose, and wears a thick winter coat and a silk scarf. Russia has a seemingly kind demeanor, but has suffered mental trauma following the strain of his bloody history, and as a result he has the innocence and cruelty of a child; sometimes he casts an aura of pure evil around him whenever such malicious thoughts enter his mind. He often terrifies the other countries without even trying, especially when he was the Soviet Union. He would abuse the Baltics and still stalks them in the modern day, especially Lithuania. Occasionally, he stalks China, while in a panda costume; and he holds a subtle rivalry with the Western nations, especially America. His primary target of resentment is General Winter, because despite using the cold to his advantage in war, he is also attacked by him every year. Russia has also been known to want Lithuania and other countries to become one with him. Russia also has two sisters: his older sister, Ukraine and his younger sister, Belarus. He becomes gloomy and depressed when either of them are on his mind, because Ukraine left him to try to make friends in the EU, and Belarus is obsessed with the idea of forcing him to marry her. Belarus seems to be the only other country which Russia fears. Russia happily promises that eventually "all will become one with Russia". He dreams of living in a warm place surrounded by sunflowers, and vodka is his fuel. He says "kolkolkol" to threaten his subordinates when he is angered. Russia is often seen carrying a metal faucet pipe. In the anime series, he is voiced by Yasuhiro Takato in Japanese and Jerry Jewell in English. In 2007, he received the name Ivan Braginsky.
• China is the oldest nation in the Allies, being depicted as immortal as well as being over four or five thousand years old, and is regarded as the eldest sibling among the East Asian nations. He claims he is the big brother of Japan and often depicted as a panda. His boss was introduced as a green Chinese dragon with an intimidating appearance. During the fight between the Axis and Allies, he fights Germany and Japan with a wok and ladle, which became his weapon of choice which also serves as a stereotype that China serves good food. He is a big fan of Hello Kitty and tends to end his sentences with the suffix -aru, the Japanese pronunciation of "er", a phrase sometimes added to the end of words in Chinese. However, he replaces the customary -aru with the suffix -ahen, which means opium, when speaking to England, as a reference to the Opium Wars. He is a bit disturbed by and distrustful of Russia, reflecting Tsarist Russia invaded China and occupied Vladivostok before. In the anime series, he is voiced by Yuki Kaida in Japanese and Clarine Harp in English. In 2007, he received the name Wang Yao.
• Canada is a part of the Allies, and he is usually forgotten about within the show. When characters notice him, they tend to think that he is his brother, America, which mostly does not end up well due to the fact that many countries dislike him. To avoid getting confused, he tattooed a maple leaf to his head, but America put an American flag on his head instead. He has a polar bear, named Kumajiro '' who also forgets who he is. In return, Canada can never remember his bear's name, calling it other names such as Kumachika. On the Christmas special, his bear remembers his name and he states that he might have already received his gift. He is voiced by Katsuyuki Konishi in Japanese, and Eric Vale in English. In 2008, he received the name Matthew Williams.