#queer coded characters

Introduction

HAPPY PRIDE MONTH!!

To celebrate, I'd like to discuss some characters in TWST that fans often read through queer lenses.

The characters I’ll mention are as follows:

Cater Diamond

Vil Schoenheit

Epel Felmier

Lilia Vanrouge

Cater Diamond

Cater is often headcanoned as bisexual in the fandom due to the way his flirtation moves across gender lines. In the original Japanese version of Vil’s School Uniform vignette, he jokingly tells Vil he considered dating him.

Dialogue: For a second, I think I kind of wanted to date you.

However, the English localization was less explicitly romantic with the quote: “is this real? Am I dreaming?”

In Book 7, he jokingly remarks that a prince awakened him from his dream when speaking to Leona, another example of his flirtation crossing gender lines.

Combined with other vignettes where he clearly expresses attraction toward women, these moments make his attraction feel intentionally broad or at least playfully ambiguous. The bisexual headcanon fits his playful and teasing personality.

Vil Schoenheit

Vil explores gender expression diversely with his fashion and attitude. He adorns both masculine and feminine fashion, such as his dream outfit and dorm uniform. Elegance and femininity is central to his character without undermining his authority. Vil is admired, feared, competent, and emotionally complex.

With this, fans may interpret Vil as being queer or transfeminine.

Vil’s femininity is expressed not only visually but linguistically. In the Japanese script, he frequently uses オネエ言葉 (onee kotoba), including the first-person pronoun “アタシ (atashi)” and sentence endings like “だわ (da wa)” and “のよ (no yo).” These speech patterns are culturally associated with femininity and sometimes feminine male characters. Because this linguistic femininity is paired with confidence rather than embarrassment, Vil stands out as a character who openly embraces femininity as part of his identity.

Vil’s queerness can also be read through how he responds to others’ gender expression. When Epel resists certain dance moves for being “girly” in Book 5 Chapter 27, Vil pushes back, essentially asking why movement should be gendered at all. He treats Epel’s discomfort not as a natural truth, but as a learned social assumption—something outdated. His comment that this mindset feels “so last century” suggests that he sees rigid gender expectations as old-fashioned rather than necessary.

Epel Felmier

Epel looks timid and feminine at first glance. However, his ambitions and attitude reveal his true nature. In Book 5 Chapter 41, he shouts to the sea that he wants to be a tough and strong man.

People constantly perceive him as cute, pretty, and doll-like, while he wants to be seen as strong, masculine, and tough. He is frustrated with being feminized against his will. Meanwhile, masculinity is something he actively negotiates rather than automatically occupies.

Some fans have compared Epel's struggle to transmasculine experiences, particularly his frustration with being perceived in ways that don’t align with how he wants to be seen. As a result, Epel may be headcanoned to be transmasculine.

Vil and Epel

Vil and Epel’s relationship is particularly interesting through a queer lens because both characters struggle with gendered expectations, but in very different ways. Vil encourages Epel to lean into his softness and beauty, believing those traits are part of his charm and should not be hidden out of shame. At the same time, Epel’s resistance feels understandable—because he is often pushed toward femininity by others rather than choosing it for himself. For him, being seen as “cute” or being asked to perform femininity can feel less like empowerment and more like something imposed on him.

Lilia Vanrouge

Lilia is usually a gender nonconforming character with his diverse and iconic outfits. He is also a single father of Silver and has also hatched Malleus. In this way, he doesn’t follow traditional parenting patterns.

Lilia’s relationships are another reason he is frequently read through queer lenses. In Book 7 Chapter 77, Maleanor jokes that he once proposed to her when they were young, and also says that he loved Raverne.

While “love” in these moments is left intentionally broad—it can be read as familial, platonic, or romantic—the ambiguity itself creates room for interpretation. If read romantically, it lends itself naturally to bisexual or pansexual readings of Lilia.

Final thoughts

TWST may not explicitly name queer identities, but it consistently creates characters whose presentation, relationships, and self-expression resist rigid categorization. Whether through Cater's playful ambiguity, Vil's confidence in femininity, Epel's struggle with perception, or Lilia's nonconformity, the game leaves space for a wide range of queer readings—and that’s one reason so many queer players connect with its characters.

very short and sweet, but hope you enjoy! no angst to speak of. set ambiguously during threshold, no spoilers apart from how john and arthur's relationship has progressed. first fic on this acc!

Finally got around to listing the KPop Demon Hunters buttons I made for Pride a few months ago. Because Rumi's arc is very queer-coded and I will die on that hill.

(Full spoilers ahead!)

I read the manga up until most of season one back when I was a teen, and I remembered a fair bit. I’d always been curious to see how the story wrapped up. I’ve preferred the anime’s art over the manga’s (totally subjective), so I went for the anime this time around. And honestly, I’m really glad I did. So here are some of my scattered thoughts.

Yuki had the best character arc by far. He starts off as that “perfect” prince-type character I found really annoying back then—and still found annoying rewatching season one! But as the story unfolds and we get more of his backstory, everything clicks into place. The pressure, the loneliness, the feeling of playing a role that didn’t fit him, the emotional distance from his mother… all of it hit harder now. I especially loved the scenes with his brother. The student counseling episode was probably my favorite moment in the whole series. His arc was subtle and strong, and I really liked his romance with Machi too. It’s a shame we didn’t get more of her in the anime.

Kyo and Tohru were adorable, beginning to end. They were my ship when I was a kid, and I was still rooting for them. I actually found it okay that Kyo told her he was disappointed in her at one point—it felt real. In relationships, people do hurt each other sometimes. What matters is coming back from that and growing. That said, I do feel like Tohru wasn’t the most compelling character as I watched with adult eyes. I would’ve loved to see her written with more depth.

I really liked Rin and Hatsuharu too. Honestly, both of them felt so mature, like they could’ve been in college. Their dynamic—trauma, trust, pain, healing—was emotionally rich and really moving. Two emo kids that I will defend with my whole heart.

I was also glad that Momiji didn’t end up with Tohru. Their dynamic was sweet, but there was a maternal, nurturing quality in the way she treated him, and turning that into romance would’ve been weird. I know he gets more closure with his sister in the sequel, which I haven’t read. But it would’ve been nice to get a little of that in the main story. That said, Momiji is definitely one of the most touching side characters, and it’s easy to see why he’s a fandom favorite.

I didn’t buy into the Kureno x Arisa insta-love at all, but Kureno as a character was interesting, and I found his dynamic with Akito compelling.

Akito's part of the story left me with mixed feelings, especially around her gender reveal. It’s a twist that worked narratively, and it’s very typical of early 2000s manga, where gender play was a common trope in shojo manga. But watching it now, it feels… off. There’s something about it that brushes up against the “crazy crossdresser” trope, or like a reversed forced transition. It’s complex, and I’m not sure how it sits today, especially for queer viewers. I’d honestly be curious to hear what LGBTQ+ fans think, because part of me sees some uncomfortable implications.

As for Shigure and Akito… I loved how twisted the relationship was. But they should not have ended up together. Their story felt like it needed to be a tragic almost-love. Something full of pain and longing, but ultimately about two people who did too much damage to ever truly be together. I would’ve loved to see Akito choose a life outside the Soma clan altogether, far from the old power structures. A real breakaway without Shigure in the picture.

I really appreciated how the show explored Kagura and Kyo’s bond. It was messy, and honest. Guilt, pity, affection, and ultimately, friendship. I wasn’t expecting to like their scenes as much as I did.

Tohru’s parents, though… I still find their romance creepy. The whole teacher-student thing just doesn’t sit right with me. But I did love the way they supported each other as two people rejected by their families, and I really appreciated how the movie gave us more of Kyoko’s grief and inner world. That part worked well for me.

Hatori’s romance, on the other hand? No thank you. It felt off. Falling for your friend’s fiancé and then dating him after she loses her memory just… no. That whole storyline had this weird heteronormative energy of trying to pair off everyone, no matter how awkward the circumstances. It was one of the few parts of the series I just didn’t enjoy.

I also really wish we got more of Tohru’s best friends. Not necessarily in romantic arcs, just more scenes of them. Their backstories were so well done, and the way Kyoko (and later Tohru) helped them find themselves was really powerful. They were such strong characters and deserved more focus.

Kisa’s arc was another highlight. The bullying, the selective mutism, the trauma—it was beautifully handled. Her slow healing felt real and gentle. Hiro’s guilt, and his complicated relationship with Akito, added layers to his character too.

I also found Ritsu really fun, and honestly wish we’d seen more of him. His relationship to gender presentation and anxiety had so much potential. It’s a shame he didn’t get more space in the story, especially since Fruits Basket already flirts with queer-coded narratives.

Despite most of the cast being in high school, a lot of the emotional themes are really intense and sometimes the adults seem even less functional than the teens. Watching it now, in my 30s, it’s still incredibly enjoyable and deeply relatable in places. I think if I’d finished the series as a teen, it would’ve hit me even harder. But even now, I’m so glad I went back to it.