A cousin of the Stiff Upper Lip and Awesome Aussie, the Dashing Hispanic is a Stock Character that rose to popularity with the success of codifying franchises like Zorro. Almost always an Anti-Hero (with the occasional Anti-Villain), this character is a rogue, skilled with their weapon of choice be it sword, gun, bow or even their own fists, and either Hispanic in origin or that setting's equivalent.
They are charmers, always elegant, witty and quick-thinking, and popular with the ladies. Their fighting styles are more about being athletic and striking with finesse than clumsy swings or wild shots, and their actions are governed by a strict code of honor they adhere to. They usually have a habit of swearing vengeance on someone who's wronged them, and God help anyone who gets in the way of their revenge. Expect this trait to be played up in parodies.
Bonus points if he shares a name with a conquistador or an iconic Spanish author, if his Leitmotif sounds like Carmen (1875) on steroids, or if other characters literally call him "the Spaniard." May also be a Latin Lover. Will probably make use of Gratuitous Spanish. If male, his love interest is almost inevitably a Spicy Latina.
Truth in Television, in the sense that this character was not only acknowledged, but actively cultivated in Spanish history. Society of the aptly called Spanish Golden Age held that any respectable man had to be elegant, cultured, honourable, a heartbreaker and a master fencer (swords were literally part of men's basic clothing), so even those who weren't put an ungodly effort in at least looking it, and all of this spread to America when Mestizos learned the customs of their Spanish ascendants.note The standard eventually died off, but remained ingrained enough in foreign pop culture to morph into a character type of its own.
If the work itself is created by a Hispanic creator for a Hispanic audience, this trope becomes incidental. While the character may read as such to an Anglophone audience, in its intended context he was merely a hot person. See also Macho Latino.
¡Por favor, no añadan ejemplos de la vida real!
