小姐姐们都喜欢哪种类型的男生?是蓄着胡子的阳刚型男?还是打扮更中性的高颜值少年?如果以最近一档人气选秀节目的结果作为标准,中国的小姐姐们似乎更喜欢后者。 The aim of Idol Producer, which wrapped up last Friday, is to find the final line-up for a new nine-member boy band. It quickly became a hot topic of discussion following its Jan 19 debut on iQiyi, with tens of millions of fans feverishly voting for their favorite idols, despite accusations that the show is a just copy of South Korean TV program Produce 101. Take a look at Idol Producer's top nine contestants and see if you can spot some common traits. They are all young, sporting flawless skin and big, bright eyes, with makeup carefully applied to enhance the beauty of their doll-like faces. But it's not just their appearance that's helped the boys win the hearts of fans, it's their personalities as well. Take 16-year-old Justin, the show's youngest contestant, for example. Thought of as hopelessly cute and mild-mannered, the baby-faced performer's puppy dog eyes and smooth cheeks have won him a host of self-proclaimed "mom" and "sister" fans. Check out the motherly love: @Wang xt: Your mom will always love you. I'm worried about you and don't want you to be confined by the entertainment industry. Just hope you're happy every day. @Estelle: Little child Justin, it's not good to post a Weibo this late, since your older sisters have already gone to sleep. But it's lucky that I'm a night owl. There's another kind of love, too — a girlfriend's affection for her puppy dog boyfriend, or xiao nai gou in Chinese. A xiao nai gou is loyal and considerate, making an ideal companion for his girlfriend, who is usually several years older. Take Cai Xukun, the most popular of the contestants, for example. He has been praised for his good manners, both toward the judges' panel and to his fans through his frequently shows of gratitude. Though still young, these boys have mastered various tricks to flirt with the fans who love them. Shows like Idol Producer seem to reflect an aesthetic shift in China's popular culture toward effeminate men, or "flower boys". This aesthetic, first celebrated in the leading men of South Korean pop music, does not prize traditionally masculine attributes. Instead, these men must get in touch with their feminine sides to win women's hearts, as noted by a guest speaker on the talk show Roundtable Party (Yuan Zhuo Pai). |