They look a little green and pretty.
In seriousness, I understand the need to shave a beard in modern combat, due to chemical warfare and the necessity of masks --- I had to shave down to 3mm beard in the Israeli military because I was a pilot and needed to secure my mask, but going completely beardless is a form of cross-dressing in Judaism and specifically forbidden to shave (as opposed to cutting very closely). (This is the background of the on-going joke exchange you posted in the middle of.)
I read somewhere that Western Gentiles shaving was fairly new -- and, while not unknown -- Roman Centurions shaved, for example -- beards were more the norm than not. WWI and chemical warfare was really the impetus for kicking off the clean-shaven look in the West.
