History Main / OtakuSurrogate

* The whole point of ''Manga/FudanshiKoukouSeikatsu'' is to showcase the ''Fudanshi'' section of {{Yaoi Fan}}s, with each chapter showing how a guy like him deals with and reacts to Boys Love.

* ''LightNovel/{{Haganai}}''

* Haruka of ''LightNovel/NogizakaHarukaNoHimitsu''--beautiful, popular, and... an otaku (the eponymous secret).

* Tomoko Kuroki from ''[[Manga/NoMatterHowILookAtItItsYouGuysFaultImNotPopular Watamote]]'' is a downplayed example, since she likes anime and video games aimed at male otaku (though she has stated she detests {{Moe}}) but she also likes things aimed specifically at girls, like {{otome game}}s. However, at the same time she's also an example of this gone ''horribly wrong''; her knowledge of perverted media only makes her that much more unapproachable, and ''because'' she's so obsessed with that stuff she initially had no idea how to approach real life and real people. She's horribly antisocial and judgmental, and even her closet kin, her brother, is annoyed with her. Luckily over the course of the series she starts to get better, but she's still the universe's ChewToy.

* Sanae of ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' is eventually revealed to be a massive HumongousMecha fan in ''Hisoutensoku''. When she saw the eponymous giant figure, she immediately went after it, practically {{Squee}}ing at the opportunity to battle, or maybe even ''ride'', the HumongousMecha.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* ''LightNovel/HaiyoreNyarkoSan'' has two of them, the titular Nyarko being an {{Anime}} and {{Toku}} fangirl while Cuuko is a GamerGirl; distracting them is as easy as luring them through an anime shop and waiting for them to spot a limited edition figure to fight over.

** Konata is a complete over-the-top {{otaku}}, obsessed with anime and video games, mostly to allow for [[ShoutOut mentions]] of ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'', ''VideoGame/GalaxyAngel II'', ''VisualNovel/{{Shuffle}}'', [[ActorAllusion Haruhi Suzumiya]], ''VisualNovel/{{Kanon}}'', ''VisualNovel/ToHeart'', ''[[RuleOfThree Haruhi Suzumiya]]'', and so forth... but very little of what most [[{{Shoujo}} girls are expected to watch]], save for [[RuleOfFunny a notable brush with]] ''[[LightNovel/MariaSamaGaMiteru Mari Mite]]'' (and a brief reference to ''Manga/WeddingPeach'' while the other girls talk about wedding dresses). This is lampshaded when Konata explains them as habits picked up to be closer to her father, although her friends then have more questions about [[DirtyOldMan her father's choice of habits]]... She also plays eroges. Y'know, the sort of videogame for men that features naked young girls.

* ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'' is '''not''' one of these. The page image is from a [[FreezeFrameBonus momentary nod]] to this trope and the show's status as an AffectionateParody of anime/manga in general.

* ''LightNovel/BokuWaTomodachiGaSukunai''
** Sena Kashiwazaki. While she doesn't take it to the extreme other examples of this do, she does seem to enjoy gal games a lot, and is usually seen playing them in the club room.
** Rika is a more extreme case with her love for mecha porn doujin. And by "mecha porn," we literally mean porn involving mecha having sex.

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]

* Midori Komaki of Shin Megami Tensei: VideoGame/DevilSurvivor is an otaku who spends the entire game dressed in cosplay (she is stuck in the costume due to the lock down, but she states doesn't mind), and often acts as a MagicalGirl in a setting [[WrongGenreSavvy where society is breaking down and innocent people are being murdered by demons]].

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* Most of the cast of ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}''. [[PerkyGoth Nico]] likes books about monsters (a plot point at least twice), [[CuteBruiser Molly]] has immense knowledge about the X-Men (even before she found out she was a mutant herself), [[AscendedFanBoy Victor]] was programmed to worship and know almost everything about superheroes (except [[CListFodder The]] ComicBook/{{Slingers}}). Gertie has the philosophical dorkiness of a SoapboxSadie. Alex is a clear MMORPG fanatic. Other characters have their moments but they aren't as prominent.
[[/folder]]

* The WebOriginal/SanrioBoys of the [[web series of the same name are all about this trope, being handsome men who [[RealMenWearPink unapologetically love Sanrio products]] and regularly talk about them.

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

* ''Manga/LuckyStar''

* Hikaru Amano of ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico'': as big a Gekiganger fan as Akito.
** The English dub is even more specific. She writes SelfInsertFic-type SlashFic.

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]

* Kat from ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt''. She's very interested in robots, ''Series/TheXFiles'', videogames (particularly ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid''), dance music (especially Orbital and Prodigy), and comicbooks (Franchise/{{Batman}} and ComicBook/{{Hellboy}}). [[http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=180 Occasionally]], her interest approaches {{Fangirl}} levels:
--->'''Tom Siddell:''' [[http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=96 Kat probably only has action figures she thinks are hot.]]

* The Sanrio Boys of the [[WebOriginal/SanrioBoys web series of the same name]] are all about this trope, being handsome men who [[RealMenWearPink unapologetically love Sanrio products]] and regularly talk about them.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'': The episode, "The Boy Who Would Be Queen" revealed Trixie Tang was secretly a {{Tomboy}} who was both one of these and a GamerChick. This was a CompressedVice and never brought up again.

* In ''LightNovel/BokuWaTomodachiGaSukunai'', Sena Kashiwazaki is one. While she doesn't take it to the extreme other examples of this do, she does seem to enjoy gal games a lot, and is usually seen playing them in the club room.

* Konata in ''Manga/LuckyStar'' (the current page image for CosplayOtakuGirl) is a complete over-the-top {{otaku}}, obsessed with anime and video games, mostly to allow for [[ShoutOut mentions]] of ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'', ''VideoGame/GalaxyAngel II'', ''VisualNovel/{{Shuffle}}'', [[ActorAllusion Haruhi Suzumiya]], ''VisualNovel/{{Kanon}}'', ''VisualNovel/ToHeart'', ''[[RuleOfThree Haruhi Suzumiya]]'', and so forth... but very little of what most [[{{Shoujo}} girls are expected to watch]], save for [[RuleOfFunny a notable brush with]] ''[[LightNovel/MariaSamaGaMiteru Mari Mite]]'' (and a brief reference to ''Manga/WeddingPeach'' while the other girls talk about wedding dresses). This is lampshaded when Konata explains them as habits picked up to be closer to her father, although her friends then have more questions about [[DirtyOldMan her father's choice of habits]]...
** ''And'' she plays eroges. Y'know, the sort of videogame for men that features naked young girls. Is it a wonder that so many fans interpret her as a [[SchoolGirlLesbians lesbian]]?
*** Of course, a lot of women ''do'' play eroge with naked women. Later made stronger by the introduction of two friends, one of whom is more of an '[[YaoiFangirl Bukuro]] than Akiba' fangirl while another (relevant to the series) is a YuriFan.

* In ''Manga/StrawberryMarshmallow'', Nobue is jokingly described by fans as the OtakuSurrogate of manga author Barasui, due to her much mellower personality and tendency to hug little girls.

*** Of course, a lot of women ''do'' play eroge with naked women. Later made stronger by the introduction of two friends, one of whom is more of an '[[YaoiFangirl Bukuro]] than [[OtakuSurrogate Akiba]]' fangirl while another (relevant to the series) is a YuriFan.

* ''Manga/YuruYuri'''s Kyouko Hoshino is a doujin artist obsessed with the MagicalGirl anime ''Miraku-run''. She even has her own booth at Comiket.

* Kirino from ''LightNovel/{{Oreimo}}'' is a closet middle-schooler otaku and a popular fashion model. Kuroneko and Saori are these, too--little wonder they met in an online community called "Otaku Girls Unite". However, though Kirino is mainly into H-games that are obviously aimed at a male demographic, she's also a big fan of ShowWithingAShow ''Stardust Witch Meruru'', which is a MagicalGirl anime aimed at young girls.

* Kirino from ''LightNovel/{{Oreimo}}'' is a closet middle-schooler otaku and a popular fashion model. Kuroneko and Saori are these, too--little wonder they met in an online community called "Otaku Girls Unite"?

* Tomoko Kuroki from ''[[Manga/NoMatterHowILookAtItItsYouGuysFaultImNotPopular Watamote]]'' is a downplayed example, since she likes anime and video games aimed at male otaku but she also likes things aimed specifically at girls, like {{otome game}}s. However, at the same time she's also an example of this gone ''horribly wrong''; her knowledge of perverted media only makes her that much more unapproachable, and ''because'' she's so obsessed with that stuff she initially had no idea how to approach real life and real people. She's horribly antisocial and judgmental, and even her closet kin, her brother, is annoyed with her. Luckily over the course of the series she starts to get better, but she's still the universe's ChewToy.

* Josephine "Jo" [=McCormick=] is one of the [[{{Beetleborgs}} three typical average kids who love to read comic strips]].

One aspect of BishoujoSeries, and the cause of many tropes such as the UnwantedHarem and an ImprobablyFemaleCast, is that you really shouldn't have too many important male characters. But, y'know, girls like ''girly'' things.

So instead, why not have a girl who likes the things that guys do? You may not want to use a [[{{bifauxnen}} crossdressing girl]] or even a {{tomboy}} -- just give her a FanBoy personality. And if you're a male author, this is even better, because you can go for authenticity the reader immediately understands.

A lot of this depends on what the current stereotype of a fan is and finding a fandom that is noticeably gender-skewed ({{Moe}} and HumongousMecha are popular targets) but the cast will still have ''only'' one character who is a fan of something with an overwhelmingly male fandom, and especially for obscure ''older'' things the adult audience immediately recognizes.

[[folder:Real Life]]
* [[WebVideo/PressHeartToContinue Brooke 'Dodger' Leigh Lawson]], human definition of the trope with a manga, game and anime collection that would make most gamers drool as shown in some of her DexBonus vidos.
* A number of entertainers associated with the anime industry have "come out" as self-styled otaku. Probably the most famous example is [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoko_Nakagawa Shoko Nakagawa]]. It is not clear whether these individuals are actually interested in otaku-ish pursuits, or simply consider it a smart career move to cash in on a ready-made fanbase. It almost certainly differs from individual to individual, and could well be a bit of both in many cases.
* [[http://feliciaday.com/ Felicia Day]]. Star of Series/{{Buffy|the Vampire Slayer}} and [[WebVideo/DoctorHorriblesSingAlongBlog Dr. Horrible]], among others, and creator of "The Guild", a web series about a bunch of {{MMORPG}} gamers. She even based her character's addiction to MMO gaming to her own self-diagnosed addiction to WorldOfWarcraft.
* [[Film/KillBill Chiaki Kuriyama]], according to video interviews, has a house full of ''[[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion Evangelion]]'' stuff.
* Brittany Diamond of ''WebVideo/TheShipsCloset''
* In general, it often seems that, in certain parts of the west, there are more {{Occidental Otaku}} Surrogates than actual Occidental Otaku.
[[/folder]]

* In ''Manga/IchigoMashimaro'', Nobue is jokingly described by fans as the OtakuSurrogate of manga author Barasui, due to her much mellower personality and tendency to hug little girls.

* Konata in ''Manga/LuckyStar'' (the current page image for CosplayOtakuGirl) is a complete over-the-top {{otaku}}, obsessed with anime and video games, mostly to allow for [[ShoutOut mentions]] of ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya, [[VideoGame/GalaxyAngel Galaxy Angel II]], VisualNovel/{{Shuffle}}, [[ActorAllusion Haruhi Suzumiya]], VisualNovel/{{Kanon}}, VisualNovel/ToHeart,'' ''[[RuleOfThree Haruhi Suzumiya]]'', and so forth... but very little of what most [[{{Shoujo}} girls are expected to watch]], save for [[RuleOfFunny a notable brush with]] ''[[LightNovel/MariaSamaGaMiteru Mari Mite]]'' (and a brief reference to ''Manga/WeddingPeach'' while the other girls talk about wedding dresses). This is lampshaded when Konata explains them as habits picked up to be closer to her father, although her friends then have more questions about [[DirtyOldMan her father's choice of habits]]...

* Wendy Watson in ''TheMiddleman'' knows a great deal about sci-fi and comic books, especially years-old series with predominantly male fandoms.

* SeventhHeaven's Simon was going to get his first kiss from a pretty and experienced girl but when they were supposed to be kissing they started talking about comic books.

* Tomoko Kuroki from ''[[Manga/NoMatterHowILookAtItItsYouGuysFaultImNotPopular Watamote]]'' is a downplayed example, since she likes anime and video games aimed at male otaku but she also likes things aimed specifically at girls, like otome games. However, at the same time she's also an example of this gone ''horribly wrong''; her knowledge of perverted media only makes her that much more unapproachable, and ''because'' she's so obsessed with that stuff she initially had no idea how to approach real life and real people. She's horribly antisocial and judgmental, and even her closet kin, her brother, is annoyed with her. Luckily over the course of the series she starts to get better, but she's still the universe's ChewToy.

* Tomoko Kuroki from ''[[Manga/NoMatterHowILookAtItItsYouGuysFaultImNotPopular Watamote]]'' is an example of this gone ''horribly wrong''. Her knowledge of perverted media (though she does also like {{Otome Game}}s) only makes her that much more unapproachable, and ''because'' she's so obsessed with that stuff she initially had no idea how to approach real life and real people. She's horribly antisocial and judgmental, and even her closet kin, her brother, is annoyed with her. Luckily over the course of the series she starts to get better, but she's still the universe's ChewToy.