TV-Series
Description
Barnaby Bernstein, almost exclusively referred to by his nickname Bear, is a recurring character and a friend and classmate of Nate, Eddie, and Katie at Springdale Elementary School. His Japanese name is Kumashima Gorōta, with his nickname Kuma translating to bear.
Bear has a distinctive and somewhat intimidating physical appearance that contrasts sharply with his true nature. He has a robust build, dark rings around his eyes, and a sharp, black hairstyle that points upwards. A white bandage or plaster is a permanent fixture on his left cheek. His typical outfit consists of a blue varsity jacket with white sleeves over a white shirt featuring a triangular design, paired with brown shorts and white sneakers. This overall look gives him the aura of a rebellious biker or class punk.
Despite his thuggish exterior, Bear is a gentle and sensitive individual. He is described as a bit of a bumbler and a glutton, and he is not shown to be particularly athletic, even though he shares a love of soccer with his friends in the anime. He is unusually sensitive and can burst into tears easily. His tough-guy persona is also undercut by one of his most defining traits: he is absolutely terrified of his mother, who frequently scolds him for his misadventures. In one episode, it is revealed he has a crush on a girl named Lulu. In the manga, his character traits lean more towards those of a bully.
Bear's role in the story is primarily as a supporting character and a source of comic relief, often finding himself in peculiar situations that require the player or Nate to resolve. In the first Yo-kai Watch game, he tasks the player with finding his parents' lost engagement ring in a pond and also gets trapped inside an anatomical model by the Yo-kai Rattelle after unknowingly stealing one of her rib bones. In another request, he seeks help because his mother has forgotten to make dinner, which is eventually revealed to be the work of the Yo-kai Wazzat.
His most prominent role unfolds across a series of requests in Yo-kai Watch 2, where he repeatedly tries to become a superhero named Bear Boy. In Bear Boy Origins, he uses a belt and a dull sword to fashion a costume, and Whisper suggests using the Yo-kai Mochismo to power him up. This backfires, making him too strong and causing him to fall into a river. In The Bear Boy Returns, he attempts to train with his friend Eddie but is instead inspirited by Nekidspeed, causing him to run uncontrollably and crash into his mother. In Ultimate Bear Boy, he recruits Eddie to be his rival, but after Whisper uses Supoor Hero on Eddie, the two clash and jump off the roof of Bear's house. Every one of these superhero attempts ends with Bear back at home, being loudly and terrifyingly chewed out by his mother.
Bear has several key relationships. He is a loyal friend to Nate, Eddie, and Katie, and they are frequently seen together at school and on adventures. He shares a particularly strong bond with Eddie, with the two often getting into trouble together. His most significant relationship, however, is with his unnamed mother, whose fierce scolding is a running gag throughout the series. He also has a younger sister named Bearmie who lives in America. In an alternate universe, he has a Yo-kai form named Mukade-otoko, which is caused by the effects of the Kuroi Yo-kai Watch.
Throughout the series, Bear shows little to no character development in terms of his core personality; he remains the gentle, bumbling, and sensitive glutton who is terrified of his mother from his first appearance. His narrative development is more cyclical, as seen in the Bear Boy quests, where his sincere but misguided attempts to become a hero or improve himself inevitably fail in humorous ways, leading to the same predictable consequence of his mother's wrath. This consistency is a key part of his comedic function in the series.
Bear does not possess any supernatural abilities himself. As a human, he cannot see Yo-kai unless he is in possession of a Yo-kai Watch, which he sometimes does in various media. His notable abilities are entirely mundane and comedic: his physical strength, which is considerable for his age, and his remarkable capacity for food. His primary talent is inadvertently creating chaos through his well-meaning but poorly planned schemes, which consistently result in him getting yelled at by his mother.
Bear has a distinctive and somewhat intimidating physical appearance that contrasts sharply with his true nature. He has a robust build, dark rings around his eyes, and a sharp, black hairstyle that points upwards. A white bandage or plaster is a permanent fixture on his left cheek. His typical outfit consists of a blue varsity jacket with white sleeves over a white shirt featuring a triangular design, paired with brown shorts and white sneakers. This overall look gives him the aura of a rebellious biker or class punk.
Despite his thuggish exterior, Bear is a gentle and sensitive individual. He is described as a bit of a bumbler and a glutton, and he is not shown to be particularly athletic, even though he shares a love of soccer with his friends in the anime. He is unusually sensitive and can burst into tears easily. His tough-guy persona is also undercut by one of his most defining traits: he is absolutely terrified of his mother, who frequently scolds him for his misadventures. In one episode, it is revealed he has a crush on a girl named Lulu. In the manga, his character traits lean more towards those of a bully.
Bear's role in the story is primarily as a supporting character and a source of comic relief, often finding himself in peculiar situations that require the player or Nate to resolve. In the first Yo-kai Watch game, he tasks the player with finding his parents' lost engagement ring in a pond and also gets trapped inside an anatomical model by the Yo-kai Rattelle after unknowingly stealing one of her rib bones. In another request, he seeks help because his mother has forgotten to make dinner, which is eventually revealed to be the work of the Yo-kai Wazzat.
His most prominent role unfolds across a series of requests in Yo-kai Watch 2, where he repeatedly tries to become a superhero named Bear Boy. In Bear Boy Origins, he uses a belt and a dull sword to fashion a costume, and Whisper suggests using the Yo-kai Mochismo to power him up. This backfires, making him too strong and causing him to fall into a river. In The Bear Boy Returns, he attempts to train with his friend Eddie but is instead inspirited by Nekidspeed, causing him to run uncontrollably and crash into his mother. In Ultimate Bear Boy, he recruits Eddie to be his rival, but after Whisper uses Supoor Hero on Eddie, the two clash and jump off the roof of Bear's house. Every one of these superhero attempts ends with Bear back at home, being loudly and terrifyingly chewed out by his mother.
Bear has several key relationships. He is a loyal friend to Nate, Eddie, and Katie, and they are frequently seen together at school and on adventures. He shares a particularly strong bond with Eddie, with the two often getting into trouble together. His most significant relationship, however, is with his unnamed mother, whose fierce scolding is a running gag throughout the series. He also has a younger sister named Bearmie who lives in America. In an alternate universe, he has a Yo-kai form named Mukade-otoko, which is caused by the effects of the Kuroi Yo-kai Watch.
Throughout the series, Bear shows little to no character development in terms of his core personality; he remains the gentle, bumbling, and sensitive glutton who is terrified of his mother from his first appearance. His narrative development is more cyclical, as seen in the Bear Boy quests, where his sincere but misguided attempts to become a hero or improve himself inevitably fail in humorous ways, leading to the same predictable consequence of his mother's wrath. This consistency is a key part of his comedic function in the series.
Bear does not possess any supernatural abilities himself. As a human, he cannot see Yo-kai unless he is in possession of a Yo-kai Watch, which he sometimes does in various media. His notable abilities are entirely mundane and comedic: his physical strength, which is considerable for his age, and his remarkable capacity for food. His primary talent is inadvertently creating chaos through his well-meaning but poorly planned schemes, which consistently result in him getting yelled at by his mother.