Oh, Gundam Wing. :'D Those were special times, *cough*.

Yes, that! And one of the reasons a lot of girls are a bit scared of Western masculinity is that, to a degree, it's meant to be threatening. Dominance! Alpha male! I Won't Take No Crap, And What the Hell Are You Looking At, Wanna Make Something Of It? Not that every Western guy is like that, obviously, but it's definitely a stereotype that played up and even desired. Guys need to be Men.

Seeing males past puberty who don't show those mannerisms could pretty strange/new/amazing/weird to a Western girl who doesn't have much experience in the world. And yes, definitely less threatening. And easier. Trouble is, a bunch of fans don't realize that they're tripping over all sorts of cultural fail in the process. :/