Markup View

Author: nlpnt

Nov 1st 2013 at 7:45:01 AM

I'm leaning toward BoyInShortTrousers as a title since it is an existing phrase and the trope seems to encompass personal preference as well as school uniforms and general cultural expectation.

Neatened-up examples below, better trope description pending.

[[AC:AnimeAndManga]]
 * ''FutureBoyConan''. The title character wears shorts all the time, which is a good thing because he's constantly getting involved in high-action adventures against tough opponents.

[[AC: Film]]
 * ''AllMonstersAttack'' focuses less on the monsters and more on an 8 year old who wears extremely short shorts.

[[AC:Literature]]
 * Derek "Derrington" in ''TheClique'' books wears shorts year-round on a bet which irks his fashion-forward Alpha Bitch girlfriend (the series' narrator) far more than it should.

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* ''LeaveItToBeaver'' had an episode where Beaver's elderly, old-fashioned and very posh aunt bought him a suit with "short pants".
* Milton in ''KickinIt'' is a classic example of the teenage-nerd variant. Sometimes they play this up by having him wear his shorts with a cardigan while the other guys are also wearing shorts but in a more dressed-down/[[ItIsAlwaysSpring warm weather]] style.
* ''SummerHeightsHigh'' boys have free choice of pants or shorts with their uniform; Sebastian consistently wears shorts, perhaps to play up how much younger he is than Ja'mie.

[[AC:Newspaper Comics]]
 * In ''{{Peanuts}}'' all the boys (and Peppermint Patty) normally wear shorts. It's hard to tell because their legs are very short anyway, but if they crouch you can see they're shorts, or if the characters have to bundle up for winter or dress in a suit with long pants you can tell the difference.
*''CalvinAndHobbes'' - Calvin wears short parts, but annoyingly short pants touch his feet.

[[AC:Role-Playing Games]]
    * Rolf, Ewan, Asvel, Nils and Lugh of the ''FireEmblem'' series
    * The boys in ''{{Earthbound}}''
    * The Youngster class of the ''{{Pokemon}}'' franchise. Oddly, this is averted by all the male protagonists except Nate and the original Gold.
** Another Youngster exclaims "Hey! You're not wearing shorts!", which apparently is reason enough to battle you. 
 * Hope from ''FinalFantasyXIII'' is the youngest male party member and wears shorts.
    * Ken Amada from ''{{Persona}}'' 3 is still an elementary school student while others are high-schoolers, and he always wear shorts.

[[AC:Theater]]
    * In the play ''AuntieMame'' for the first act Patrick Dennis always wears knickerbockers. He's given long pants as a rite-of-passage on his 13th(?) birthday by Mame. "Long pants at last! Thank you, Auntie Mame!" A call-back late in the play has Mame returning from a trip to Germany and giving Patrick a pair of Lederhosen (traditional German leather short pants). "Short pants at last! Thank you, Auntie Mame!"