History Characters / Eyeshield21TeikokuAlexanders

--> '''Heracles''': The pride of fighting for the "top". The first string of the Teikoku Academy. That is our reward.

* MeaningfulName: "Hera Kureji" (in the Japanese order, where family names came before given names) sounded like "Heracles", a divine hero in classical mythology known for extraordinary strength. Naturally, this goes with his team's Roman motifs and highlighted Heracles' role as the centre.

* ImprobableAimingSkills: So, you want Karin to throw something to a certain place? Just ask her and she will do it. The pass will be impossible to intercept and it won't be even hard to catch due to how gentle it is. Side comics showed how she curbstomped the opposing team in a SnowballFight.

* ActionGirl: Played with. She was the only female football player in the series, but she lacked the headstrong personality typically associated with this trope.

* ActionGirl: The only one in the series.

* GotVolunteered: Or rather, scouted by Taka and convinced to join by Yamato. Really, she stood no chance. Side comics also showed that she sometimes got mistaken for a cheerleader and made do some cheerleading.

* DudeLooksLikeALady: Invoked by Hiruma. Karin's 100% girl, but Hiruma told his team otherwise so that they would [[WouldntHitAGirl go all out against her]] because she was just a [[BlatantLies really girly-looking guy named Karin'''ro''']]. [[DumbJock Most of the Devil Bats]] ended up thinking of her as this.

* CharacterBlog: After being recruited into the team, Karin started a blog about her training, something that the rest of the team found out rather soon, much to her dismay. The blog was the source of some funny anecdotes.

* DudeLooksLikeALady: Invoked by Hiruma. Karin's 100% girl, but [[TricksterArchetype Hiruma]] told the his team otherwise so that they would [[WouldntHitAGirl go all out against her]] because she is just a [[BlatantLies really girly looking guy called Koizumi]]. [[DumbJock Most of the Devil Bats]] ended up thinking of her as this.

* FragileSpeedster: She couldn't take a hit. Luckily, she didn't have to, because her agility meant no one other than Sena [[http://read.mangashare.com/Eyeshield-21/chapter-285/page017.html could even touch her anyway]].

* GotVolunteered: Or rather, scouted by Taka and convinced to join by Yamato. Really, she stood no chance.
** Side comic also shows that she sometimes gets mistaken as cheerleader and made do some cheerleading.
* GroupieBrigade: Karin had a large one, consisting of male fans and other football players (such as Yamabushi). "Miracle" Ito was even selling products with images of Karin on them.

* ImprobableAimingSkills: So, you want Karin to throw something to a certain place? Just ask her and she will do it. The pass will be impossible to intercept and it won't be even hard to catch due to how gentle it is. An omake has Teikoku players narrate as she has curbstomped the opposing team in a SnowballFight.

* NiceGirl: Karin just could not stop being polite and gentle. It's one of the reasons she went along when Yamato pressured her into joining.
* ObliviousToLove: Karin appeared to be totally unaware of [[DoggedNiceGuy Achilles]]' affection for her, despite the latter's constant attempts to signal her about it.
* RunningGag: Karin's attempts to [[NiceGirl avoid competition]] ended up creating the opposite effects when Yamato came around.
* SamusIsAGirl: Yes, she ''was'' a quarterback. Yes, she was the country's ''best'' quarterback.

* WeakButSkilled: Karin may not be as strong as a male quarterback, but her passes are nigh-impossible to intercept, and gentle enough to be caught by almost anybody she throws it to. And while she really doesn't need to dodge incoming defenders due to being protected by Teikoku's powerful line, she's agile enough to be able to avoid anyone slower than Sena when the defense does break through.

* DistaffCounterpart: Okay, let's see... Recruited against her will? Check. Seen as the best in her specialty? Check. Low self-esteem and ''highly'' apologetic? Check. The only ways to tell her apart from [[TheHero Sena]] seemed to be position and gender. Lampshaded during the Devil Bats vs Alexanders game, where Heracles suggested that she would need to watch out for Sena's blitz. She spinned on her heel. She and Sena faced each other off... before [[ApologisesALot bowing repeatedly at each other]] ''at the same time'', clearly not wanting any hard feelings between them.

* TheChick: '''Double Subverted'''. In her first appearance, Karin showed up together with Ibarada spectating the Devil Bats vs Dinosaurs game. When they left, some passersby ''appeared'' to refer to Ibarada as the Alexanders' quarterback (but they were in truth talking about Karin, of course). This would make readers think that Karin was the manager, and most likely TheChick... [[{{Subverted}} until]] it was shown that Karin, ''not'' Ibarada, was the quarterback of the team, and you'd think that Karin was going to have lots of actions... In the actual Devil Bats vs Alexanders games, however, it turned out even though Karin was very talented, she lacked the [[TheLeader authoritative personality]] to be a control tower like the other quarterbacks. So... she's TheChick, after all.

* CharacterBlog: After being picked into the team, Karin started a blog on the net about her trainings. Something that the rest of the Teikoku team found out rather soon to her dismay. The blog is source of some funny anecdotes.

* TheChick: '''Double Subverted'''. In her first appearance, Karin showed up with Ibarada spectating the Devil Bats vs Dinosaurs game. When they left, some passersby ''appeared'' to refer to Ibarada as the Alexanders' quarterback (but they were in truth talking about Karin, of course). This would make readers think that Karin was the manager, and most likely TheChick... until it was shown that Karin, ''not'' Ibarada, was the quarterback of the team, and you'd think that Karin was going to have lots of actions... In the actual Devil Bats vs Alexanders games, however, it turned out even though Karin was very talented, she lacked the [[TheLeader authoritative personality]] to be a control tower like the other quarterbacks. So... she's TheChick, after all.

* ThePrankster: One of the ways he kept the atmosphere lighthearted. He often played practical jokes on the other players of the team, such as swapping Taka's novel for a fanfic written by Karin.

* {{Flight}}: Invoked by his crazy jumps.

* GenderIsNoObject: He nonchalantly proposed to recruit [[ActionGirl Karin]] onto the team despite the latter's being a girl.

* Position: Running Back / Strong Safety

* Position: Running Back / Defensive Back

* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Yamato, like Sena, possessed the ability to find run routes. However, unlike Sena, who can find one or two routes, Yamato can find ''all possible run routes,'' making him just as difficult to tackle as it was to take him down. He could also predict opposing plays with frightening accuracy, being so confident in his predictions that the rest of the Alexanders never doubted him. [[spoiler:Finally, he was able to counter Sena's Devil Fourth Dimension immediately after seeing it.]]

* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: How could he shrug off tackles and steamroll ''any'' line in Japan? His training in the USA, where [[spoiler: being beaten outside the field for being a better running back made him used to being attacked by people stronger than he was. Yamato earned the "Eyeshield" title by puking blood]].
* ChasteHero: Not to the same degree as [[AmbiguousDisorder Shin]], but Yamato did not have a girlfriend, and seemed not to be interested in finding one.

* ComicallyMissingThePoint: He tended to do this when he interacted with Karin. RunningGag below provides the details.

* CurbStompBattle: ''Almost always'' inflicted this when someone challenged him. [[spoiler: He suffered this at the hands of Panther and Mr. Don, though]].

* {{Foil}}: He was apparently comparable to Shin and Agon in terms of sheer talents. Yamato was, like Shin, a genius who trained himself hard, but he's talkative and charismatic, whilst Shin was TheQuietOne. On the other hand, Yamato had aptitude outside speed and power, like Agon. But he's a NiceGuy while Agon was a full-on {{Jerkass}}.

* HonorBeforeReason: He promised to use only his left hand in the match against the Devil Bats when he saw that Hiruma hadn't recovered. That's saying something about this guy. He ends up using both hands not because of pragmatism but because Sena proved to be a real challenge and it would be an insult if he keeps doing it.

** Played straight whenever he played in defense, as his superior physical strength and speed as well as having a near perfect balance made it almost impossible for anyone to stop him in his tracks. Thus, he can either avoid blockers or simply shove them out of the way and get to the ball carrier. In fact, [[spoiler: all the Devil Bats tried to stop him from reaching Musashi during their final field goal play, yet Yamato '''still managed to touch the ball''']].

* MeaningfulName: "Yamato Takeru" was also the name of an [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamato_Takeru ancient Japanese prince]] who's... the King Arthur of Japan, in a nutshell.

* NiceGuy: What he was off the field. Even on field he was surprisingly nice, changing subject when he accidentally implied Sena was a weakling.

* RedOniBlueOni: He was the red to Taka's blue. It wasn't that Yamato was impulsive, but he was quite a charismatic and talkative guy when compared to TheStoic Taka.
* RunningGag: Karin [[NiceGirl tried to avoid being competitive]] (i.e., declining to join the team or saying that she's afraid of being tackled). The very competitive Yamato misinterpreted her words and thought that she considered herself not good enough, and ended up forcing her to train even harder.

* UnstoppableForceMeetsImmovableObject: The first thing he did upon meeting Shin was to test if Shin's [[OneHitKO Trident Tackle]] could stop his Caesar's Charge. [[spoiler: It turned out Shin ''could'' stop Yamato's run, but couldn't completely take him out, and Yamato was able to push Shin back for a yard]].

* DreamTeam: The Alexanders recruited ace players from all of Japan and grouped these players into six teams according to merits. The first string players were literally the best of the best.
* FinalBoss: [[spoiler: Before the World Cup, anyway]].

* MightMakesRight: The Alexanders ran on an extreme meritocracy. Ages, friendships and other such stuffs didn't matter. The only thing they cared was what you bring to the team.
* NameToRunAwayFromReallyFast: "Teikoku" literally means '''Black Emperor'''.
* OpposingSportsTeam: They were not a bunch of bad guys, but their status as '''the''' undefeated champions and the fact that the rivalry within the team was as great or greater than that with their opponents still made them a fairly classic case of this.

* WorthIt: As lampshaded by Heracles, the pride that came with being Teikoku's first string made it worthwhile to undergo all the TrainingFromHell.

* MeaningfulName: "Hera Kureji" (in the Japanese order, where family names came before given names) sounded like "Heracles", a divine hero in classical mythology known for his extraordinary strength. Naturally, this goes with his team's Roman motifs and highlighted Heracles' role as the centre.

* MeaningfulName: "Hera Kureji" (in the Japanese order, where family names came before given names) sounded like "Heracles", a divine hero in classical mythology known for extraordinary strength. Naturally, this goes with the Alexanders' Roman motifs and highlighted Heracles' role as the centre.

A [[BoisterousBruiser boisterous]] third-year, Kureji (nicknamed "Heracles") served as the centre and official captain of the Alexanders. Despite his "Osakan" persona and occasional apparent silliness, he's actually a [[TheLeader cool-headed leader]] who frequently gave sound tactical advice to the other members of the team. He took great pride in being a first-string player and did not tolerate players who didn't respect the rules of the team. [[spoiler: He was also on Japan's national team during the Youth World Cup]].

A [[BoisterousBruiser boisterous]] third-year, Kureji (nicknamed "Heracles") served as the centre and official captain of the Alexanders. Despite his "Osakan" persona and occasional apparent silliness, he's actually a [[TheLeader cool-headed leader]] who frequently gave sound tactical advice to the other members of the team. He took great pride in being a first-string player and did not tolerate players who didn't respect the rules of the team.

* 40-yard Dash: Unspecified, but below 5 seconds

* LargeAndInCharge: He's a stout, muscular who was the Alexanders' competent captain.

* {{Foil}}: He was apparently comparable to Shin and Agon in terms of sheer talents. Yamato was, like Shin, a genius who trained himself hard, but he's talkative and charismatic, whilst Shin was TheQuietOne. Of course, Yamato had aptitude outside speed and power, like Agon. But he's a NiceGuy while Agon was a full-on {{Jerkass}}.

* HardWorkHardlyWorks: Averted. Unlike Yamato and Taka who [[TheAce went up from sixth to first string in a day]], Heracles had been up and down the Teikoku lineups during his tenure. This was one of the reasons why he took pride in being a first string player; with all the luxuries it entailed (professional grade personal locker rooms, authority over lower tier players, popularity. etc), and encouraged everyone to feel the same, believing it to be the proof that hard work ''does'' pay off.

* LivingLegend: It's Eyeshield 21, the Japanese star runningback from Notre Dame who Sena impersonated as part of Hiruma's scare tactic, who Kakei worshipped, who Akaba imitated to reclaim Bando's glory and who Marco marked as prey. And he lived up to the name too, there is a reason why in America he was referred as "the miracle from the East" [[spoiler: before Mr.Don put a stop to this]].

A [[BoisterousBruiser boisterous]] third-year, Kureji (nicknamed "Heracles") served as the center and official captain of the Alexanders. Despite his "Osakan" persona and occasional apparent silliness, he's actually a [[TheLeader cool-headed leader]] who frequently gave sound tactical advice to the other members of the team. He took great pride in being a first-string player and did not tolerate players who didn't respect the rules of the team.

* Position: Center

* TheBigGuy: Heracles was the centre and was facing off against Kurita during much of the Devil Bats vs Alexanders game, although he also had a strong leadership presence.

* DumbMuscle: '''Subverted'''. With his boisterousness, Heracles could look like this at first, especially when the Devil Bats vs Alexanders match began showing him with an "idiot rating" of 20% (Yamato, Taka, and Karin are all 0%). However...
** GeniusBruiser: ... During the actual game, Heracles was capable of seeing through many of Hiruma's trick plays and came up with quite a few useful tactics. He's the team captain for a reason.
* {{Gonk}}: Not too noticeable. But Heracles could come off as this trope when standing alongside the likes of [[TallDarkAndHandsome Yamato]], [[LongHairedPrettyBoy Taka]], and [[TheCutie Karin]].
* HardWorkHardlyWorks: Averted. Unlike [[TheAce Yamato and Taka]] who went up from 6th to 1st string in a day, Heracles has been up and down the Teikoku lineups during his tenure. This is one of the reasons why he takes pride in being a first string player; with all the luxuries it entails (professional grade personal locker rooms, authority over lower tier players, popularity. etc) and encourages everyone to feel the same, as it is proof that hard work ''does'' pay off.
* HiddenDepths: Quite a bit. He first came off as a stereotypical "crude but funny" Osakan. But his character suddenly became far more serious when he showed his pride in being a first-string player and leadership competence.
* TheIdiotFromOsaka: His dream was to be a famous Osaka-style entertainer, so he did all he could to invoke this trope. In reality, he's actually a very capable leader who simply liked to keep the atmosphere lighthearted.

* LightningBruiser: Since he's a lineman who could wrestle with Kurita (though not without the help of lots of tactics and techniques), he's fairly powerful. Despite this, being a first-string player of Alexanders, he could also do 40-yard dash in less than 5.0 seconds.
* NiceGuy: He really kept the mood light for a meritocracy where everyone was competing against each other. He was also the only Alexanders player who had teamwork play (with Achilles), while the other were mostly just aces who did solo play.
* TheSmartGuy: Surprisingly, yes. If one of the Alexanders was seen giving tactical advice to the rest of the team, it was most likely Heracles.

* WorthIt: It's tough working to become a member of the first string in the Alexanders, but he considered this all worthwhile with the pride that came with it.

* DumbMuscle: '''Subverted'''. With his boisterousness, Heracles could come off this at first, especially when the Devil Bats vs Alexanders match began showing him with an "idiot rating" of 20% (Yamato, Taka, and Karin are all 0%). However...

* HiddenDepth: Quite a bit, actually. He first came off as a stereotypical "crude but funny" Osakan. But his character suddenly became far more serious when he showed his pride in being a first-string player and leadership competence.

A [[BoisterousBruiser boisterous]] third-year, Kureji (nicknamed "Heracles") serves as the center and official captain of the Alexanders. Despite his "Osakan" persona and occasional apparent silliness, he's actually a cool-headed leader who frequently gave sound tactical advice to the other members of the team. He took great pride in being a first-string player and did not tolerate players who didn't respect the rules of the team.

* TheBigGuy: Albeit in a primary leadereship role.
* BoisterousBruiser: Comes with being a very "Osaka-esque" person.
* CombinationAttack: The "Cross Stunts" he does with Achilles.
* DumbMuscle: Subverted. He appeared to be this at first, with an "idiot rating" of 20% (Yamato, Taka, and Karin are all 0%), but..
** GeniusBruiser: ..Heracles is capable of seeing through many of Hiruma's trick plays and came up with quite a few useful tactics. There's a reason he's the team captain.
* {{Gonk}}: Downplayed, but he can come off as this trope when standing alongside the likes of [[TallDarkAndHandsome Yamato]], [[LongHairedPrettyBoy Taka]], and [[TheCutie Karin]].

* TheIdiotFromOsaka: His dream is to be a famous Osakan-style entertainer so he does all he can to invoke this trope. In reality, he's actually a very capable leader who simply likes to keep the atmosphere lighthearted.
* TheLeader: Of the Alexanders. He seems a straight headstrong type, but he hides a ''very'' levelheaded side under his cheerful nature.
* LightningBruiser: Since he's a lineman who can wrestle with Kurita, he's fairly powerful, but supposedly he can do 40-yard dash in 5.0 seconds too.
* NiceGuy: He really keeps the mood light for a meritocracy where everyone is competing against each other and is the only one who has teamwork play with Achilles while other are just aces who do solo play.
* TheSmartGuy: Surprisingly, yes. If one of the Alexanders is seen giving tactical advice to the rest of the team, it is most likely Heracles.

* WorthIt: It's tough working to become a member of the top string in Teikoku, but he considers this all worthwhile with the pride that comes with it.

[[folder:Reisuke Aki ("Achilles")]]

[[folder:Kureji Hera ("Heracles")]]

A third-year and captain of the Alexanders. Although he enjoys playing up his "Osakan" persona, he's actually a very hardworking and responsible individual.

* Position: Centre

* Height: 177 cm
* Weight: 100 kg

* BerserkButton: Don't defy the string pecking order.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: If you actually succeed in pissing Hera off, watch out.

* BashBrothers: With Taka, similar to Sena and Monta.

* DudeLooksLikeALady: Invoked by Hiruma. Karin's 100% girl, but [[TricksterArchetype Hiruma]] told the team otherwise so that they would [[WouldntHitAGirl go all out against her]] because she is just a [[BlatantLies really girly looking guy called Koizumi]]. [[DumbJock Most of the Devil Bats]] ended up thinking of her as this.

* ImprobableAimingSkills: So, you want Karin to throw something to a certain place? Just ask her and she will do it. The pass will be impossible to intercept and it won't be even hard to catch due to how gentle it is.

* ChickMagnet