If you think Jiraiya from Naruto or Sanji from One Piece are the biggest pervs in anime, then you couldn’t be more wrong! While those two are definitely guilty of ogling the ladies, they at least know how to keep it together (most of the time, anyway). But there’s one character who always takes the cake – or rather, tries to take a peek under the cake, without any consent whatsoever!
It’s time to greet Master Roshi from the Dragon Ball series, the OG lecherous old man! This guy’s been around for ages, and his love for the ladies (sarcasm intended) knows no bounds. He’s always on the prowl, always trying to catch a glimpse, and always up to no good. So, if you thought Jiraiya and Sanji were bad, how would you justify the things Master Roshi has done?
The biggest pervert in the anime would be none other than Master Roshi!
Master Roshi is the OG when it comes to the lecherous old men trope in Shonen anime. He pretty much created this character type, and by far, he’s still the king. In fact, Roshi’s antics are a bit too much in the modern day and age, they’re definitely not something to be emulated or encouraged. It’s that weird!
People have a complicated love-hate relationship with Roshi’s character. On the one hand, we can think of him as a total legend and a hilarious addition to the Dragon Ball universe. But on the other hand, his pervy behavior is just not okay. He basically does sexual assault, and it’s not something that should be taken lightly or used as a joke. How could this even be a show that was aimed at kids?
In most cases, Roshi’s behavior is played for laughs only, and people tend to focus on how ridiculous he looks rather than how inappropriate his actions are. And it’s true that he usually ends up getting shut down or embarrassed, but that doesn’t really excuse the fact that he’s one hell of a creep.
What’s so concerning about Roshi’s character?
There’s another thing that makes Master Roshi even more troublesome in the Dragon Ball universe. It is a fact that the other male characters in the show seem totally fine with him hitting on their wives and girlfriends! Like, Goku doesn’t bat an eye when Roshi starts harassing Chi-Chi, and Kuririn’s all cool with Roshi lusting after Android 18! It’s weird how they just allow him to do all that stuff.
Even other characters like Yamcha and Tenshinhan never took a step against Roshi’s actions. It’s possible that Akira Toriyama or the writers at Toei just didn’t think Roshi’s actions were that big of a deal, but that’s not really an excuse.
Also, the cultural differences and the time when Dragon Ball was written do play a role in all this. But even so, it’s pretty clear that Roshi’s behavior is definitely beyond saving. While it’s not necessarily fair to judge an old show by modern standards, it’s still important to acknowledge that some things just aren’t cool. However, all this makes Master Roshi a certified pervert of all anime!
The Dragon Ball series is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
