Jean Paul Gaultier has just launched Le Mâle Terrible, a flanker to Le Mâle (released 15 years ago). Le Mâle Terrible’s ads still feature a “sailor” but the bottle now comes with a razor blade around its neck (the “terrible” aspect). Apart from the razor blade, there’s talk of “attack” and “overdose” in the PR materials, but given Le Mâle Terrible’s cocky, super-clean, costumed model (hairier than his bald Le Mâle predecessor), one knows all this terrible stuff is tongue-in-cheek, not blade-in-neck (or nose).
Le Mâle Terrible goes on like a “tonic”…reviving, cooling; I smell grapefruit and peppery lavender, a touch of geranium leaf. Then, Le Mâle Terrible turns all smooth and creamy with coumarin, ghostly orange blossom (or a “white” floral), and rich vanilla/tonka and vetiver notes. In the extreme dry down, residual grapefruit, vetiver and cedar meld and create a slightly “sweat-y” accord — one has to get close to skin to detect it.
Anyone who’s worn classic Le Mâle will recognize Le Mâle Terrible immediately as a close relative; I’m not sure what makes this new version “terrible” — to me, it smells almost the same as Le Mâle, but better: less harsh, more “lush,” smoother, streamlined. Le Mâle Terrible is sweet, verging on gourmand (all that vanilla); it’s strong, but not obnoxious or overwhelming like original Le Mâle can be.
Le Mâle Terrible, like Le Mâle, makes me think of a well-groomed (freshly scrubbed, shampooed and moisturized) man, who is a lover of salons (we’re not talking literary salons). Anyone who’s been thinking of getting their first bottle of Le Mâle, or restocking their perfume cabinet with Le Mâle, should smell Le Mâle Terrible first; it deserves some attention.
Jean Paul Gaultier Le Mâle Terrible was developed by perfumer Aurelien Guichard, and includes notes of grapefruit, pink pepper, lavender, vetiver, vanilla and amber. Le Mâle Terrible Eau de Toilette Extrême is available in 75 and 125 ml ($65/85) .
Note: razor blade images via Wikimedia Commons.
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Whenever I’ve worn the original, its never failed to garner compliments. Unfortunately for me I’ve come to the conclusion that lavender and I will never be friends. Lavender wears out its welcome to my nose and becomes the smell of dust.
Does lavender smell of dust to anyone else?
i think to be exact it smells more like ash.. no wonder lutens upped the ash accord in gris clair..
ash and asphalt.. so somewhere in there lies the dust
Bear/Lilyboy: What sort of lavender are you sniffing?! What you describe sounds like stale lavender potpourri, or a dried lavender wreath. Certainly the oil of the plant does not smell “dusty.” Have you ever tried wearing a simple, high-quality lavender Eau de Cologne to see if it has the same effect? If so, it must be “chemistry.”
actually i dont really smell them as ‘dusty’.. i categorize the medicinal sharpness of lavender as more of the burnt asphalt-y tingling sort.. and i do mean it in a good way.. but this accord for me is more evident in those like caron pour un homme & gris clair.. not so much in le male (even the original)
Caron pour un Homme – dusty
Le Male -dusty
Lavender essential oil – medicinal, dusty
Not just on my skin, but on a paper strip and straight out the bottle.
Not a “chemistry” situation.
It doesn’t smell of dust to me ever, but I think of those dusty old sachets of lavender that sometimes appear in a drawer – I never remember how they got there. But yes – those smell of dust and I sympathize with you – if that was the smell i got from lavender scents I’d be turned off too.
hi kevin
spot on review..
tested this recently too.. to me it smells like a summer edition for le male.. sort of l’eau de le male so am wondering where the terrible went.. too bad, i was excited at first.. i agree it’s a good intro to gaultier perfume but i still have 2 bottles of the original so..
anyways, i prefer the more tenacious original
Lilyboy: I think the “Le Male” francise needs some weeding out! I like this new one better than original but I doubt the original will ever get the “axe”…or razor.
the original Le Male was too brazen for me – I feel like I got compliments but it wore me out wearing it.
I am glad Terrible has something going for it – even if it does seem smoother (ie. LESS terrible) that may actually be perfect.
Jeremy: the name is weird…just an excuse for the razor I bet.
Where in the U.S can I find this version? I really want to try it!
Apassionatejourney: I’ve not seen it in the store in the U.S. yet…Amazon.com! of all places has it in stock…but that doesn’t do you any good if you want to sniff it.
Ah, K, your review makes my heart go a-flutter. Can’t wait to try a Le Måle that’s not very heavy on lavender or harsh synthetic notes!
Take a dEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEp breath Dusan…don’t want you fainting on me (or Meda). I like this version of Le Male so much better than original.
The original Le Male offers hardly anything more to my nose than an extremely powdery tone – what is the ingredient I’m sensing this from? I can’t wear it at all – it’s like suffocating in a slightly-scented enormous bottle of baby powder.
Olfacto: there’s a LOT of sweet things in the original … Vanillasaurus that it is
The guy from the Village People looked more like a tough, “terrible” sailor. This guy looks, (with his perfect little curl) looks more like a guy who “sails” his yacht, (or actually hires someone else to crew when he “borrows” his grandfather’s yacht ).
Dilana: perhaps he has an AWFUL personality?
Actually, given that I describe a brat joyriding on his family’s yacht, I did mean to describe him as “terrible”, just not in a sexy way.
Would be better if he was wearing real sailor pants instead of Sans-a-Belt slacks.
Sometimes I stick my nose into the boy stuff – this one sounds fun to wear. Fun review, at any rate!
Tama; so true about the “slacks”! Several people thought this was a feminine scent when I wore it, so give it a shot.
Actually, you know, if my old art history days serve me right, his body reminds me a lot of Michelangelo’s “David” but with pants. Except for the arms, almost an identical pose. Nice bod. I’m sorry – were we talking about a fragrance?
Wealthy, pretty and pampered. Who could resist -
Merlin: certainly not JPG…he’s held true to his “type” for decades!
To me this one is a Le Male that has grown up. He’s not anymore a teenage or and young man, he’s more mature, still keep his young provocative attitude, but he has more coeherence and consistence in the way that he conduct his things. A great interpretation of Le Male, it seems richer and more complex.
R: guess it DOES smell more :”adult” than original…but in a GOOD way.
I don’t mind crossing over to the men’s aisle either, and this sounds like something I might like — it’s just too bad I hate the Gaultier torso bottle SO MUCH.
Thalia: HA! I’ve always appreciated the male and female torso bottles from JPG…such a change from another glass rectangle in the cabinet!
what a terrible name.
I really like Le Male. Definitely not a boyie boy fume. This sounds really good too! I will give this a smell.
However…the name…terrible terrible.. and so the opposite of the guy in the photo…it just makes my brain a little nuts.
If you want to try a sample of Le Male Terrible they have it on scentmonkey.com. They’ll send you a 1ml sample for $2.99 including shipping. Make sure you specify you want USPS in the shipping choices or you’ll be charged $2.50 for shipping. The site: http://www.scentmonkey.com/try-before-buy.
I told you it was nice
well I mentioned it when it was “new perfume” before it launched. much nicer than the original, I didn’t think it to be that sweet :/ then again I go for sweet/gourmand so yeah it’s a bit less sweet by my expectations 
.
and by “before it launched” I meant “available in the US and reviewed on here”
oh oh and the shirt it lower cut at the neck, not that it matters.
BUT, terrible’s crotch is massive compared with le male’s.
and I don’t understand the razor :S .
Owen…perhaps, now that I look at the bottle, the razor was used to slash the stripes in the shirt? HA! It all seems an excuse to have fun with the bottles with Le Male…the scent does not change drastically.
Ooohh who’s the model?