Me when family comes over

Q & A

Do You think that it’s okay to think in China,
India and Turkey as Ancients Nations. I don’t know if to be an Ancient, the
nation has to be old and had passed a long time ago.

There’s no explicit rule on what makes an ancient an ancient. I use a
rule of thumb and go by chronological age.

Yes, to China given that he’s lived for 4000+
years (e.g., he’s alive the same time as Rome) [x].

India, we don’t know enough information about
to pinpoint if he’s a more recent personification/ if he has an ancient
counterpart.

Yes, to Turkey too. In one of the drama CDs, it’s
revealed that he was the one who killed the Byzantine Empire (previously Ancient
Greece) [x].

Why does Turkey wear a mask?

No real reason is given. The
closest we’ve come to an answer only leaves us with more ambiguity… (Source:
Christmas 2007 event).

On the other hand,
Himaruya does play with the idea of the mask. He’s created posts, where if you
click on Turkey’s image, a new image of him without a mask will appear [x].

What do you think of Germanys character song Steady Rhythmus?
A lot of people seem to be confused because it’s rock/“metal”. Idk
why tho, considering that a shitload of Germans (including me) love those genres.
I mean, we have rock/metal bands and festivals everywhere

Not a fan of it, but I do get why it’s of that genre. I
actually kind of like Prussia’s “My song that is written for me, by me”, save
for some parts lmao. The instrumentals are good.

Would Prussia still be considered a nation, or is he now
human? If we’re ignoring the East Germany theory, that is.

The simple answer is that he seems to be somewhere in
between. He takes longer to heal, yet Gilbird is still around him. Since
the personifications’ immortality rubs off on their pet, Prussia may have still
retained some of his immortality, although it could be waning. Hypothetically,
if Prussia was human, being constantly around Germany—whom he lives with—would drive him mad [x].

The main reasons I say this are:

1) He’s once referred to as being “in a pitiful state of an
enclave” [x].

2) When asked if Prussia would eventually fade away, Hima states
this: [x].

Do you think that Italy is underestimated by others nations,
sometimes?

Yes and no.

Germany often underestimates him, being biased from what he
witnessed of Italy during the World Wars.

Ex: Germany’s reaction at
the Galata Bridge scene where Turkey recalls how strong young Italy used to be (Source: Volume 4).

There are also moments where nations recognize that it’s
better not to underestimate Italy (Source: Christmas 2011 Event).

America mistaking England’s request for a rubber – eraser –
and instead handing him a condom [x].

“A guy like you?”

France referring to England as a golden caterpillar [x].

Greece’s reaction when Turkey gets his ass
handed to him by Chibitalia [x].

Germany and England’s temporary ‘truce’ one Christmas during
WW2. England hurls the soccer ball at Germany’s face, and he gets it right back.

Misconception: He
hates Greece

Reality: They don’t
truly hate each other, even though they say they do. Their actions prove otherwise.

Ex: They’re
compared to cats and dogs.

Ex: They bicker
and get into fights whenever they see each other, often creating disputes out
of nothing [x].

Nonetheless, they have made some advances in their
relationship.

Ex: Turkey’s form
of ‘bullying’ Greece is taking the latter to a bathhouse and massaging his “stiff
bones.”

Ex: It’s also important to remember that Greece lived with Turkey for a considerable part of his childhood, up until he gained independence in the 19th century.

Ex: During the
Christmas 2007 event, Greece offers that France strip him instead rather than
taking off Turkey’s mask [don’t ask], even though Turkey later appears with the
mask off anyway. What matters is that it’s hinted that Turkey possibly isn’t
comfortable with taking off the mask – Greece’s expression is indicative of
that.

…

Misconception: He’s
the bad guy.

Reality: He was a
world superpower just like other European empires at the time.

What likely made him
‘evil’ in fanon is that he came between Spain and Romano.

Ex: There’s
literally no difference between Austria conquering Veneziano and Turkey’s
attempt to conquer Romano, and yet Turkey’s selectively depicted as the villain
in fanon.

He’s not
particularly malicious either.

Ex: He promises not to kill Romano (the weapon he brandishes is all show) and later leaves to get porridge instead of resuming his battle over Romano with Spain [x].

Misconception: He’s
obnoxiously cocky and arrogant

Reality: He was
cocky and arrogant in his prime but has mellowed out and become more docile
with age. While his stubbornness has remained, he has a sensitive side too.

Ex: Romano thinks
of him as a scary old fart [x].

Ex: Depending on the
character note, he’s either referred to as an old man or an uncle-type figure. Point
is, he’s considerably older than most of the other nations.

Ex: Despite his
old age, he still exercises feats of strength when least expected. In this
case, his success in stopping a pick-pocketer was enough to impress Germany.

Ex: He attempts
to force himself into an EU meeting. In other depictions, it’s also shown that
not being granted a membership in the EU is upsetting to him [x] [x]

His mask:

Not much is known about why he covers his face with a mask. Regardless,
there are times where he’s spotted without one. For the most part, when his
face is revealed it’s either shaded or partially turned to the side.

There are some times, however, where his full face is shown.
Hima’s linked to a couple drawings on his blog, where if you click on them, the
mask comes off [x] [x].

Bonus Facts:

He’s a good salesman.

In a bizarre fan request, Hima depicts Turkey – as the origin
of Santa – visiting Iceland dressed as Santa. It turns out to be a dream. Mental indeed,
Iceland [x].

He has a good relationship with Japan.

He’s considerably
muscular + well-built [x].

Although, Hima also said that Turkey would be “just as fine”
with a bit of stomach sticking out and depicted him as such [x].

It’s completely normal for him not to be wearing that much
clothing.

He’s part of the Gourmet Food Club.

All in all, Turkey’s bad reputation stems in large from his
portrayal in fanon; it wasn’t the series itself that depicted him like this. There’s
literally nothing that differentiates him and his actions from other empires in
canon.

*Britney Spears’ ‘Toxic’ comes on*

Me and Friends: NO.

Also us:

Best thing about Turkey?

In the prime of his empire, he’s depicted as this malicious
villain when in reality he’s like:

“I could totally crush you LOL, but nah, I’d rather go eat
some porridge.”

Spain, probably: “Is this guy for real?”

While I don’t have a theory on Turkey, I wouldn’t mind clarifying some misinterpretations of his character. I’ve also grossly portrayed him in the past, falling into the trope of depicting him as the villain. ~~So cringey.~~

What I like about him most and find interesting is his age. Like China, he’s one of the few examples where the personification’s body itself has become old.

Characterization post on Turkey coming up tonight!

This is uh, totally random but what would happen if a nation is not independent and is ruled by another country. Does the ruling nation represent the conquered ones?

From what I
understand, yes.

Russia (the
personification) represented the USSR at world meetings.

Ex: The Baltics either stayed at Russia’s house or
acted as servants when Russia attended world meetings on their behalf. [x]

Ex: Bulgaria stopped attending the World Academy while he was under Turkish rule and didn’t come back until he was independent
again. [x]

The same
thing occurred with Romania too.

I think it goes unsaid that how the nations relate to one
another is not only based on their present political relations.

In other words, while they may not be on good terms with
each other, these relations don’t define their relationship in whole. There are
times where nations get along, and there are times where they will fight
frequently and ‘hate’ each other. Point is, the hate doesn’t typically last.

While current relations do cause tensions, their pasts have
the most impact on how they view one another. It would therefore be shallow to
say that if nation A and nation B grew up together, only to go to war centuries
later, that they would unequivocally hate each other and be unable to reconcile.
Relationships don’t work like that, and this is especially the case for
immortals who have lived several lifetimes.

I’ve stressed this in other posts before, but the nations
don’t represent their government. They represent their people – they’re cultural,
not political representations. The irony is that they’re forced to serve their government, which may or may
not represent their peoples’ best interest. [x] [x]

It is for this reason that even in times of war, nations on
opposing sides are shown to be getting along with each other when they’re not
on the battlefield.

Ex: America’s occupation of Rome. He doesn’t treat the Italy
brothers as enemies, but rather friends.

Ex: England, Russia, and Germany share their military
rations with each other.

While humans from other nations may bear present grudges
towards each other, this doesn’t always reflect itself in the personification.
It’s important to remember that they’re people themselves, and have had more experiences
that influence their outlook on life.

That said, what this post will set out to demonstrate is
that nations rumoured to canonically hate each other don’t actually. The hatred
isn’t deep-set or genuine. It’s more like a rivalry between someone who constantly
gets on your nerves…someone who you routinely get into arguments with and can
never see eye-to-eye. On the other hand, old war grudges have been shown to heal with time.
Although, some take far longer than
others.

With all that in mind, let’s go over some of the most common
characters that are mistakenly depicted to be in hate-hate relationships. And
yes, while this is intended to be ship neutral, all of these examples can be
used to counter bashes against your ship.

Russia and America:

While they may have been on thin ice with each other in the Cold
War, their history runs far deeper than that. Unfortunately, we get very
minimal insight into American-Imperial Russia relations. The strips only depict
Russia’s participation in the American Revolution.

Either way, the two countries don’t hate each other,
regardless of how tense their political relations were and still are. They even
acknowledge this tension as they spend time with each other in the present.
Russia in particular admits to how much America gets on his nerves.

China and Japan:

Japan’s betrayal in WW2 caused China to develop a strong
grudge towards him.

Nonetheless, in recent strips, we do see China attempting to
reconcile with Japan through diplomacy.

Hungary and Romania:

The two are noted to fight like cats and dogs. Each nation
depicts each other in a negative historical light. They may have resented each
other, and still do from time to time. However, it’s not true, long-lasting hatred.

Ex: Hungary’s somewhat smug reaction to Romania and Bulgaria fighting with
each other.

Regardless, they’re still capable of getting along.

Greece and Turkey:

The two bicker every time they see each other.

Comic gags
aside, the two still care for each other and are mentioned to be making some grounds
in their relationship.

Ex: Turkey’s form of bullying Greece is taking him to a
bathhouse and massaging him.

Switzerland and Japan:

Switzerland yells at Japan to be more assertive and voice
his opinion. It has nothing to do with hatred. If anything, it’s an aggressive form of encouragement.

Veneziano and Romano:

Romano suffers from an inferiority complex in comparison to
Veneziano, who received most of their grandfather’s attention. As such, he is
often very hostile to Veneziano, referring to him as “stupid little brother”,
or something similar to that depending on his mood.

However, this is only done to Veneziano’s face. When he’s
not around, Romano’s been shown on several occasions to look out for Veneziano.

America and England:

Short story short, the two have been able to reconcile their
rocky relations in the years following the Revolution. England’s bitter and
scathing nature towards America has softened considerably over the years.

It’s said that England once suffered from one hundred years
of heartbreak, presumably a hint to the American Revolution.[x]

Ex: England still goes to America’s centennial celebrations, despite
how sick it makes him.

He also offers to fix a crack in the first liberty bell he
gave to America, and gives him another one for his bicentennial.

Ex: The two are close enough to make fun of each other’s
politics.

America and Canada:

Canada doesn’t hate America. Instead, he hates America’s
egocentrism and often calls him out for this.

France and England:

While these two are notorious for fighting, having their own
designated preserve to quarrel in…

…they can get along with each other just as well too.

Ex: France used to be England’s cook.

Ex: England proudly calls on France’s cooking skills again
when he opens a butler café.

Ex: A summary of how their relationship’s progressed.

Prussia and Austria:

The two don’t get along with each other.

However, that doesn’t stop them from spending Christmas together as ‘family.’ Prussia, of course, initially [teasingly] refuses to accept Austria and Hungary as guests.

…

Real Hatred – Prussia and Russia:

Albeit the fact that it’s one sided, Prussia’s hatred of
Russia is deep. It’s probably one of the only case examples where it’s not a
matter of two nations simply not getting along.

Ex: Prussia will cough up blood if Russia touches him.
Either that, or he will lose four eyelashes.

With all that in mind, long-lasting hatred between nations
is rare in canon. Similarly, while current political relations may have an
influence on how nations interact with each other, the influence of the past –
on a personal level – is much greater.

Misconception:
Greece and Turkey genuinely hate each other.

Reality: They say
they hate each other, but their actions tell another story. It’s more like
they’ll break out into arguments whenever they see each other, despite being
too prideful to admit that they actually care for one another.

The whole Greece wishing death upon Turkey gimmick is used for
exaggerated comedic purposes.

To be as transparent as possible, they do get on each
other’s nerves. A lot.

Ex: They’re often compared to cats and dogs.

Regardless…

This doesn’t stop Turkey from checking in on Greece. He did
play a part in raising him, after all.

Ex: They’re noted to be making advances in their
relationship, but still break out into arguments easily.

Ex: Greece offers to be stripped naked during the Christmas
2007 event to prevent Turkey from having his mask ripped off by France [don’t
ask].

That’s not the face of hatred – it’s far from it.

When Turkey enters, with his mask taken off nonetheless,
only then does Greece get hostile.

How I see it was that he had no problem
looking out for Turkey as long as Turkey wasn’t there to witness this and later
have something to gloat about.

Ex: Turkey’s form
of “bullying” is taking Greece to a bathhouse to bathe him and remedy his stiff
bones.

Misconception:
His slow and languid form of speech must mean that he’s unintelligent.

Reality: Greece
is incredibly intelligent. His culture’s philosophies and sciences had and
still have profound influence in how humankind organizes itself today. His
laziness, aside from the Greek stereotype, also stems in part from that fact
that he’s a night person.

“The whole problem started as he joined the Euro zone.Thanks to Greece, Germany had to mobilize all his resources, and he is now fully dependent on him.

Despite this situation, he’s mostly eating good food, sleeping, thinking about philosophy, and is generally happy like usually.”

Misconception: Because he’s so absorbed in his mind, he’s a
recluse.

Reality: He’s one of the most sexually active aph characters
out there.

Ex: He’s very natural and forthcoming about the topic of
sex.