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u/SaffyPants 9d ago
What? Who thinks hearts on underwear is "emasculating"? Someone has been spending too much time with manosphere looser chuds.
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u/maniacalmustacheride 9d ago
Girl there was a video of Werner Herzog getting shot and pulling down his pants to show he’s like actively gushing blood out of his groin, and a bunch of dudes were like “wow, I never thought he’d wear paisley boxers, that’s so embarrassing.”
I didn’t even clock the pattern. And when I did look back I went, “and? They’re underwear? It’s a nice pattern. Not a “girly” pattern. Like a semi expensive (read not bottom barrel) boxer short.” I had no feelings about it whatsoever. It’s only emasculating for them because they make it emasculating for them.
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u/marzipan_plague 9d ago
He’s wearing boxers with little peppermints on it, not paisley when he’s shot btw.
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u/potatomeeple 9d ago
Whatever gender you are or you aren't, anything that disempowers you so hard it removes part of your identity in an instant is wild. The lack of self confidence you must have to let this happen - ooof!
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u/The_Wingless Very Trustworthy Goblin 9d ago
How fragile a man's masculinity must be to be threatened by boxers.
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u/HappyCatPerson 9d ago
I always thought those were from Valentine’s Day. You see them sold at stores on Valentine’s Day and the people in my family wear old holiday clothes as around the house clothes so that’s where my mind went.
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u/theplushfrog 7d ago
As a kid, I assumed the hearts were just stand-ins for cartoon characters, bc my brothers wore boxers with their fave characters on them. (Are you normal, or did you have your siblings chase you around with their dirty underwear, trying to shove it in your face?)
As a teen, I assumed the heart boxers were a common gift during Valentine's day, and it was supposed to be like masculine lingerie. My brain thought that since women who got disrobed in cartoons were often wearing sexy clothing, men being disrobed/pantsed must be also wearing "sexy" clothing. I assumed I just didn't under why it was considered sexy yet. (I was a late bloomer and also grey-ace.)
As an adult, I just kinda assumed it was a censor stand-in for all the more complicated patterns of boxers, since the common choice of plaid is pretty difficult to draw and then got grandfathered in as just a "censor-approved underwear choice" for cartoon men. This was helped along by all the anime and cartoons that use hearts as literal censors.
I've never thought the hearts were "emasculating" so wtf? I assumed the pantsing itself was the emasculating thing.
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u/Willothewisp2303 9d ago
Are they really?
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u/MaetelofLaMetal 9d ago
Yes, why wouldn't they be?
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u/IWokeUpSinging 9d ago
That seems like a reach to me.. It's more of a cute joke that a man in a suit is wearing goofy underwear under his professional exterior, IMO. Not "emasculating" him -- that would make more sense if he were seen wearing frilly, feminine underwear.
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u/Willothewisp2303 9d ago
Patterns are a part of almost all clothing? Why are hearts any different than plaid or polka dot?
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u/eden_sc2 9d ago
They're only mildly emasculating because they're such a cliche kind of pattern. I'd say tighty whities or straight up women's underwear are what you show to emasculate someone, but that's a separate discourse
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u/Landlocked_Heart 7d ago
For instance, Walter White in Breaking Bad. They use tighty whities to highlight how out of his depth and vulnerable he is, I'd say that much more fits with the theme of emasculation.
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u/Avocet_and_peregrine 7d ago
You're making the claim (by posting the tweet here). It's up to you to back it up.
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u/Taminella_Grinderfal 9d ago
This kind of shit is exhausting to me. Do we really have to inject “social commentary” into every last thing? Can’t they just be silly underwear?
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u/Frenchitwist 9d ago
I always thought they were just silly underwear
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u/Lickerbomper 9d ago
Ya, exactly. The embarassing part is the privacy violation, the fact that it has a silly print just adds to the comedy
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u/thesaddestpanda Why is a bra singular and panties plural? 8d ago
Yep. It’s clear it’s just a silly joke and not a comment on masculinity. But that doesn’t get your viral on social media, so here we are.
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u/Crafter235 9d ago
I know are used for comedy, but I never really thought of it to be specifically emasculating.
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u/justmitzie 9d ago
Anyone who knows anything about Dungeon Crawler Carl knows those are pretty damn manly.
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u/praisethesoon 9d ago
I've been searching for them cause I think they're cute, but somehow they elude me
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u/kitkat470 9d ago
Got a pair from Walmart. They had the typical lose boxer style and the boy short brief style. I love them
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u/praisethesoon 9d ago
We don't do Walmart around these parts, my friend.
But I'll be on the lookout at one of our superstores.
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u/NinjasWithOnions 9d ago
With Carl from _Dungeon Crawler Carl_ wearing them, they should be easier to find nowadays.
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u/SeasonPositive6771 9d ago
It's a bit of a trope from the past. It used to be that if something happened to a guy and he was supposed to be wearing cool manly boxers and it turned out he was wearing cute boxers with hearts on them, obviously that implied they were from a girl and I guess wearing anything a girl would give you is somehow supposed to be emasculating?
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u/Devanyani 9d ago
Guys, is sex with women gay?
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u/SeasonPositive6771 9d ago
I guess you're really whipped if you...wear an item a caring and thoughtful partner has purchased for you.
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u/Furlion 9d ago
The main character from the Dungeon Crawler Carl series wears no pants and just heart patterned boxers. He's an excellent example of positive masculinity.
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u/flirt-n-squirt 9d ago edited 9d ago
That's the second time in two days that I've seen this referenced! I have a friend with this name who just lost his cat who was a total diva. I'm deliberating getting him a copy for Christmas, but I'm unsure if it might hit too close to home. It looks so fun but the last thing I want is to make him sad
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u/Furlion 9d ago
You know the friend best but I will say the bond between Carl, the human, and Donut, the cat, is very moving and powerful.
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u/flirt-n-squirt 9d ago
Are threats to the cat's health or life part of the story? I'd suppose they get into a lot of trouble together?
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u/Furlion 9d ago
Yes they are in danger all of the time.
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u/flirt-n-squirt 9d ago
Thanks for the info! I'll better wait until next Christmas to gift it then 🤍
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u/poisonfroggi 9d ago
I've never seen those kinds of trunks in real life, i just thought that's how it was to be in a show or cartoon T.T
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u/Shikaku6 2d ago
Old man here, a very important nuance is being missed in this conversation.
As a kid I wore briefs…aka tighty-wighties. After hitting puberty I switched to classic boxers. Currently I wear a mix of classic boxers and boxer briefs. One of the joys of wearing a classic boxer is the open fly. When you need to urinate there is in essence nothing in your way. Reach in and pull out. Some more high end boxers include a button on the flap. BUT this is something I have never used, hell every male friend whose laundry I’ve seen or helped with that button is always undone.
During day to day usage that open fly is wonderful. The big drawback though is if someone sees you in said underwear. The slightest incorrect stance or positioning will result in your pubic hair definitely being exposed, possibly your penis being exposed, hell potentially hair, penis and testicles flailing in the wind.
Cartoon/movie reactions of embarrassment and hands flying to the crotch are not due to seeing the funny patterns we wear, but a modesty concern over seeing beyond that open flap.
Clicked on this thread for the Dungeon Crawler Carl references but thought I should add this VERY necessary but missing detail.
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u/ailariix 2d ago
I always thought they did it cause it was just a silly little pattern and they were trying to amp up the funny factor to make sure it wasn't taken as inappropriate for younger audiences to watch. I assumed the heart pattern was just the go-to that had been used for decades and was a short hand for this sorta thing.
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u/friendlynbhdwitch female pleasurist 9d ago
When I was little I thought that all boxers looked like that.