By: Amy Liu

In the olden days, perfect men were described as muscular figures with a sharp jaw and short hair. They wore dark clothes that made them look cool. For example, many people in the past fell in love with the looks of Brad Pitt or Justin Bieber. However, times are changing, and so are the stereotypes. So, what is the exact definition of the perfect man?

This definition is actually different in different places. In the east, mainly South Korea and Japan, the perfect man embraces feminine aspects. This also called “a softer version of male beauty.”. They are usually K-pop stars who sing and dance.

Familiar with Gen Z, many eastern-Asian pop stars or models also dye their hair blond to look attractive, wear tons of makeup, and wear soft aesthetic clothes. Now, if we look at men in the west, the main standard for beauty includes people with dark hair and blue eyes. They are called “Tall, dark, and handsome.”

These types are increasing in popularity, especially in the Mediterranean and Italy. However, not all men who are “good-looking” are models. Some “ugly” men are also popular models. Older male models, called silver foxes, are starting to rise in demand. A few examples include Wang Deshun (China’s most handsome grandpa), Ron Jack Foley (who appears on lots of social media platforms), and Lono Brazil. One male model, Orlando Hobeichi once said “Age isn’t the turn-off it used to be. Over the last 30 years, we’ve seen cool young people age – you can be older now and still cool and relevant…

People want to see people who look like themselves represented.” If you look at standards now and compare them to standards before, they are a lot less strict and help men become who they truly want to be.