(All citations are from here! Click the link to find out how to find other Nyotalia strips and information.)

People often mistake Nyotalia as rule 63, which is basically just a sex and gender swap (like making a character who is a cis man into a cis woman). It isn’t completely like that. Nyotalia is also not just all of the female characters of Hetalia. In Nyotalia, all of the characters of Hetalia are reimagined as different genders from the start, also giving them slightly to greatly different personalities. Of course, not all characters will be completely different from their counterparts, i.e. Nyo!Germany is said to be like APH Germany with a large chest, but I’m going to focus on the ones that are canonically different.

1. 

   
   Veneziano is the most notable example. “Estonia commented that she “looks badass” as opposed to the rather weak appearance of her male counterpart. Himaruya’ described her as being strong, not hetare like her counterpart,^[1] and a rather emotional, strong-willed, and cheerful big sister-type who “lives for love”.^[2] Contrary to the male Italy, it appears that she can display an unusual bout of physical strength when angered as seen in the right. In a later note it is mentioned how her personality is different from her male counterpart. In an illustration of her arguing and switching punches with Nyo!England, it is shown that she is the braver one and more willing to fight. She seems to be rougher around the edges or accident-prone, if the bandage on her knee is any indication.“ Nyo!Veneziano is so unlike APH Veneziano that even Himaruya canonically noted it.

2. 

   
   Japan is next. People often mistake a Yamato Nadeshiko for being "an Extreme Doormat, especially to modern Westerners, but don’t be fooled; the nadeshiko is a wildflower at heart. A properly done yamato nadeshiko will show a subtle, but definitely present, touch of iron, in that she is unwilling to let circumstances hurt the ones she cares about or distract her from her goals or missions. This is often accomplished so subtly that the target isn’t certain how things got redirected — a kind of influence judo, if you will.” APH Japan? He clearly isn’t a cis dude version of a Yamato Nadeshiko. See where I’m going with this?

3. 

   America. Oh, America. People tend to portray Nyo!America as basically the same as Alfred, save swapping “hero” for “heroine” and “hamburger” for “hot dog” (sometimes not even this), as well as making her wear much more revealing clothing while still occasionally showing concern over whether or not she’s fat like Alfred. Not much is said about her, but you can infer a lot from her few appearances. “It’s shown in Volume 4 that she seems to be the type to solve problems through violence, as England had to tell her not to strike Estonia with her bat for falling asleep during the meeting.” Come on guys,  pacifists don’t carry around a baseball bat and attempt to whack it on the head of someone who’s sleeping during a meeting. The other thing would have to be… her clothes. GASP, I said it. Her clothes. Wearing revealing clothing does not mean someone is sexually promiscuous. And even if she was, there’s nothing wrong about it. Something you can infer from her clothes, however, is that she’s likely confident enough in her body to show it. See that babe? Yeah, she knows she’s sexy, and she’s not hiding it. Or maybe she feels compelled to do it to fall into her confidence. Who knows? There are many ways you could interpret her.

4. 

   “Himaruya describes her as trying to behave elegantly, but being quite punk.[2] In an old post, Himaruya commented that being kuudere and that being the type to say embarrassing things smoothly might be nice for a female England.^[1] She is often depicted in a British schoolgirl uniform or the uniform of the female nurses of the NHS.” Yep… kuudere. Not tsundere, like male England. According to TV Tropes, a kuudere, “while perhaps appearing apathetic and awfully pragmatic, it is but a frosty mask that protects tender, delicate feelings deep underneath the facade, waiting for someone to melt the snow and allow them to blossom.” Go to the trope page for more info. Not gonna say anything about the pigtails, which many tsundere characters are given.

5. 

   “Himaruya stated that he doesn’t know what she’s thinking well.^[2] It is said that she is a type of girl whose emotions cannot be read easily, but is most often depicted with a very similar personality as her male counterpart. In her appearance in Volume 4, she attempted to sell Estonia a medicine, saying that if he bought it they would both be happy, after seeming to climb atop the back of his chair. In her first appearance, her dress had short sleeves, but it was changed to a long-sleeved uniform by the time she appeared in another illustration. Rather than the wok and ladle her male counterpart uses, China is often shown holding a large square kitchen knife or meat buns.” APH China could maybe be interpreted similarly to her in some cases, but “the type of girl whose emotions cannot be read easily”? Please, APH China very clearly cannot pull this off.
6.  

   

    She’s “an elegantly-dressed woman with her hair tied back into a french knot, usually held back by a crown or something similar.” Yep, her hair is brown, not blonde like male France’s, and her eyes are more violet, so her physical appearance is different from the usual blonde haired, blue eyed depiction she’s usually incorrectly given. APH France, sure, he could be described as elegant, but everyone can tell it’s in a much more comically sleazy way. According to Himaruya, she is a"snobby woman;^[2] she is said to be more protective of Canada or his female version, as he/she used to be her former charge. And she is also much more argumentative than her male counterpart.“ (Yep, Himaruya hasn’t revealed as of yet whether or not she’s as flirty as APH France.)

7. 

    Not much is said about her, but "Himaruya has described her personality as akin to a wearied mother figure who is emotionally unstable rather than childishly cruel”. In Nyotalia’s “appearance in Volume 4, Italy referred to her as the origin of all suffering, and demanded that she be nicer to Estonia, which prompted her to say that she’d spread honey on and rolled him around outside a little bit.” APH Russia is said to be childishly cruel, so her being emotionally-not mentally- unstable instead says something, I suppose.

8. 

    Nyo!Prussia “sports a scar on her left cheek, under her eye”, whereas Prussia lacks this. It makes her character quite mysterious, as, from what I’ve heard, Prussian history was quite misogynous. Who knows how her life played out for her then? Anyway, “Himaruya’s stated that she found her sister to be even cuter after meeting her again when they had been separated, further support towards the theory of Prussia being East Germany. She has a wild and strong personality, which covers up her more serious, book-smart, and hard-working personality; she never misses a day of training.”^[3]  Granted, APH Prussia, is similar to this. All in all though, with Prussian history, she has a lot more potential then just Gilbert as a cis woman.

9. 

   Monaco isn’t talked about much, but what has been noted of him is that he "is a rather short young man with slightly feathered blonde hair and a “tourist-welcoming’ smile. He wears a black vest, a blue striped button-down shirt, and light pants, and is depicted drinking wine. He’s said to be strong, a gourmet, and enjoy driving, but he’s rather bad at gambling despite the prevalence of casinos in Monaco. He owns a Japanese-style garden and has a weird relationship with France, but it’s good, despite the one fight that they had (two days after the fight he said "It’s no good without big brother France” and they seem to have made up.) Oddly enough, the France he was depicted with and as having an odd relationship with was APH France instead of Nyo!France, which suggests that the Nyotalia and Hetalia universes are actually one. He was originally under Spain’s protection, eventually wound up with France, Italy, and then finally gained his independence with France’s help, though he leans toward France nowadays.“ APH Monaco isn’t exactly a Debbie Downer, but Nyo!Monaco seems to be more smiley and welcoming than APH Monaco. Let’s also not forget how amazing APH Monaco is at gambling, whereas, as noted above, male Monaco is not. It suggests that him and APH Monaco are quite dissimilar.

In conclusion, Nyotalia is not rule 63. Even if a few characters are similar to their APH counterparts, it does not make them the same. Please keep this in mind when characterizing them. Or don’t! It’s all in good fun, but no fanwork is exempt from criticism!

Thank you~!