[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Blonto

I'm really not sure where you're getting that?

Perhaps "Romance as a core motivation" isn't the best way to convey it. So rather, romance tends to surround the typical anime male lead whether he wants it or not.

This lends itself to all sorts of "easy outs", writing-wise. You guys know what I'm talking about here. They're some of the oldest harem anime cliches in the book.

Only every Kyoani lead ever? Passive stoic with a hint of eccentricity is a trope they're very fond of.

Haruka isn't passive. He's very proactive when it comes to his swimming passion. It's not something he has to be dragged into, initially against his will and/or considerable reservations (as is the case with most KyoAni male leads).

Strong motivations used to be a guy thing (especially in shounen and sports anime), but now guys are relegated merely to passive, empty self-inserts.

Yes, but like you say, times have changed. And perhaps whoever is writing this is somewhat new, and never handled anybody like, say, DBZ's Goku or Bleach's Ichigo before.

Don't get me wrong. I think it's a sad commentary that a male writer would have a hard time writing a male character like Haruka, to the point he'd have to think about female characters to make Haruka work. I'm just trying to explain where the writer might be coming from, because he must be coming from somewhere. There's no reason for the writer to lie about this, after all. So him finding it easier to write Haruka with a heroine template in mind instead of a hero one must be rooted in something.