A body language, specifically for face and hands. Often a sign of cuteness. It conveys many of the following things:
- Shock and Awe — open palms on both cheeks with mouth wide open.
- Embarrassment — covering the face with both their hands.
- Annoyance — when sitting down, pushing the fists or wrist on their cheeks to pout their lips.
- Pleasure — putting one open palm on their cheek when they just ate something good.
- Excitement — using both open palms to cover their cheeks.
- Affection — caressing another person's cheek(s) with either one or both hands to show affection. A more playful variant is to push their cheeks together and rub them to pout their lips. Usually done on kids.
Compare Face Palm, which deals with stupidity and humiliation (whether your own or other people's). See also Faux Paw, which is also often used for cuteness. See also "The Scream" Parody, the art world's most famous palm-on-cheek pose.
Examples:
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Anime & Manga
- Yuno Gasai from Future Diary does this in the first episode while "declaring her utmost desire to protect her beloved Yukki." This example is infamous not for being cute, but for being downright creepy. In fact, her interpretation of the trope achieved Memetic Mutation on various Image Boards as the "Ecstatic Yandere Pose" or "Yandere Trance".
- Shiro from K, often, especially when talking about the wonderful lunch his "wife" Kuroh made for him.
- Mio Akiyama of K-On! has been known to do this. One example
◊: when she's embarrassed when it's discovered that the idea of wearing high school outfits in the band were hers.
- In the climax of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A's, Hayate cups the Will of the Book of Darkness' face as she declares herself her master and gives her a new name—Reinforce.
- Non Non Biyori has Ichijo Hotaru, who tends to put her hand on her cheek when pleased. she also does the other poses apropos to the situation as a Character Tic.
- Kiniro Mosaic: Karen does the "embarrassed two handed" version when Tsundere Aya confessed that she looks up to her.
- In the Mayo Chiki! anime, Kanade does the "embarrassed two handed" version when someone praised her.
- Sena and Rika of Haganai notably do the "excited" variation of the pose... when it comes to indulging on their fetish. Notably, Rika is particularly interested in Not-EVAs engaging in Orgasmic Combat...
- In The iDOLM@STER, Makoto had her fangirls going gaga over her and doing variations of the "Excited" version of this trope during a live show in episode 15.
- In the Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan anime, Yura does the "shocked" variation after seeing someone No-Sell a fear based attack.
- The anime for Fortune Arterial has Iori getting various "excited" reactions from his fangirls upon going shirtless (and sparkling)
- Fairy Tail. Juvia often does the excited version, if it involves Gray Fullbuster, that is.
- Pinoko Hazama from Black Jack often does this when she is surprised that's it practically her signature gesture.
- In an obvious Shout-Out to Pinoko Hazama of Black Jack, Mako from Kill la Kill makes the exact same face and gesture as Pinoko whenever something shocking happens.
- JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Joseph Joestar frequently makes this pose when he does his Big "OMG!" (see the trope image on that page for an example). It's especially prevalent in Stardust Crusaders.
- Albedo also uses this pose to display her excitement at Momonga/Ains Ooal Gown touching her in the first episode of Overlord (2012).
- This is actually a plot point in chapter 81 of Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, where Kaguya conditions herself -Pavlov style- to calm down whenever she places her right hand on her left cheek. Any time she's seen doing so afterwards is a sign to the reader that she's trying to keep her feelings for Shirogane in check. A bonus yonkoma released with the fifth season 2 Blu-ray (which adapted said chapter) reveals that she chose this pose because it subconsciously reminds her of being cuddled by her late mother.
- In Yuri!!! on Ice, Minako and Victor both do the one-handed version in an amused manner. In JJ's panic attack-induced vision, Yuri does this while smirking like a vampy villainess. He also does the two-handed version in embarrassment.
- Fullmetal Alchemist, Mei Chang does the excited version when Alphonse says he's been looking for her. note
Art
- The famous painting The Scream by Norwegian painter Edvard Munch uses this pose for the screaming figure on the bridge. It's meant to convey overwhelming and encompassing anxiety.
Asian Animation
- Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf: In Flying Island: The Sky Adventure episode 21, Paddi places both his palms on his cheeks when he is shocked that Wolffy has finally found him.
Film
- Home Alone:
- Kevin's version of putting his hands on his cheeks◊ as his reaction to aftershave when he's acting grown up in the mirror. It's featured prominently in the film poster. It's so well known that this is often cited as a Stock Parody by way of Kevin doing this.
- The Statue of Liberty does the pose in the trailer and on the film poster for the sequel Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.
- Kevin's version of putting his hands on his cheeks
- Happy Heroes: The Stones: Doctor H. does the one-hand-on-cheek "this is delicious!" pose ubiquitous in anime when he eats meat. Said meat is made by Sweet S., who is usually a bad chef but learned to put her cooking skills back in order.
- My Little Pony: Equestria Girls – Friendship Games: When Rarity presents her various uniform ideas for the Friendship Games to her friends, both Rainbow Dash and Applejack tell her that she didn't have to put that much effort. As she says that she knows, she does this pose while being giddy about it.
- Turning Red: Some of the movie posters have Mei in this pose showing shock, embarrassment or excitement.
Literature
- In the Discworld novel Unseen Academicals, Pepe claps his hands to his cheeks in surprise and delight when he first sees Juliet modelling, as part of his Always Camp fashionista persona.
- In the first Dragonriders of Pern novel, Lessa puts both hands to her cheeks in astonishment when she sees her own reflection for the first time in at least a decade.
Live-Action TV
- The Brady Bunch: When Marcia gets a surprise visit from Desi Arnaz Jr., he kisses her on the cheek. After he leaves, she puts her hand over her cheek and says, "I'm never washing this cheek again." Later in the same episode parodied by her mother: When Mike kisses Carol on the cheek, she puts her hand to her cheek and says, "I'm never washing this cheek again!"
- The Owner from Kamen Rider Den-O does this whenever something upsetting happens.
- Loki: He Who Remains thoroughly enjoys the Big Damn Kiss between Loki and Sylvie, propping himself up in this pose while leaning over and Eating the Eye Candy. He's way more interested in their kiss (and his apple) than what they actually came there for, which was to...well, to kill him.
- Square One TV: In the Mathnet story "The Calpurnian Kugel Caper", Benny cups his face in mock shock when Pat shows him the new computerized "Wheel of Jeopardy!" board game. "Golly jeepers, what will those computer geniuses think of next?"
- Star Trek: Picard: In "Broken Pieces", Enoch performs this gesture after Raffi kisses him on the forehead. He's just so delighted and amazed that someone likes him enough to display affection towards him in this fashion.
Toys
- Tamagotchi: One piece of stock artwork depicts Himespetchi with both her wrists on her cheeks as she gives her signature "heart-shaped eyes" face. She strikes poses like this in the anime as well, such as in episode 120 when she notices her crush Mametchi is sleeping in the bed next to hers.
Video Games
- The Legend of Dragoon: Shana has done this at various points. One example.
- In Elsword, Elemental Master Aisha does this as a Victory Pose.
- Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies: Athena does this as her shocked expression.
- In Professor Layton and the Unwound Future, Flora does this when she gets a puzzle wrong.
- Seen on the box art for Luigi's Mansion and has become one of Luigi's signature poses ever since. He can be seen performing it in various Mario spinoffs and Super Smash Bros. titles.
Webcomics
- Illustrated neatly in this installment of El Goonish Shive NP.
- In Think Before You Think, Julia often uses this pose when embarrassed and frustrated by Brian's mind-reading.
Web Video
- Freddie Wong homages Kevin's famous expression in his parody Home, Alone when his last anti-robber trap sets off a shotgun.
- Many Screamer Pranks, but most especially "What's Wrong?", contain a closeup of a screaming woman doing this pose with her pinky fingers raised. It's actually edited from the poster of a 2001 film titled Maniacts.
Western Animation
- Ducktales 2017: Affection version — upon returning to Earth and seeing her sons for the first time after missing the first decade of their lives, Della Duck cups Dewey's face in her hands after he's the first of the triplets to run up and hug her; later in the same episode, and in the season finale, she does the same with Louie during some emotional moments.
- My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: In "Applebuck Season", Rainbow Dash puts her hooves on her cheeks as she gushes about how "awesome" the stunt she's going to perform with Applejack will be, smiling adorably all the while. It's an iconic enough pose that it's referenced a few times later in the series, including by her human counterpart in My Little Pony: Equestria Girls.
- On The Perils of Penelope Pitstop, Clyde assumes this pose, rather than a Face Palm, when Dum Dum does something especially stupid, such as having to figure out how to answer a ringing telephone.
- Punky Brewster: A publicity drawing of Punky has her doing this, looking at us smiling. A "now we return to" bumper of the show had this with Punky winking to us.
