#skinny representation

[burr-ell]

I'll preface this by saying that I don't by any means begrudge anyone their own personal headcanons or interpretations, but I kinda have to get it off my chest that I'm personally not very comfortable with significant deviations from canon character design on CR, and I really tend to side-eye people who have declared their fanart to be "better".

And sure, some of that is because i'm a cranky old bastard. But some of that is that I also have an animation degree and have studied character design. Creators generally give artists a fair amount of input as to how they want their designs to connote the characters' personalities—not just in terms of clothing or hairstyle, but in the overall shape of the silhouettes and body structures. And in the case of CR in particular, that's coming from a place of much closer familiarity with the characters because the creator is actually going to be embodying them for a fairly long period of time, so when the fan response is heavy deviation from that, I think it can feed into some unhealthy fanon perceptions and projections.

Like, for example, it's not so much that I think fanartists are "disrespecting the creators" or whatever when they keep giving Imogen a sweet little round face and big hips/breasts and cute circular glasses, but I've also studied shape language in art. You're communicating something when you design her this way; if a character's silhouette has a lot of circles, visually that connotes being friendly, sweet, and cute. The person who first suggested drawing her with glasses explicitly said they thought it would look cute—and no shade to them! They can like whatever they want!

But canonically, Imogen is a woman in her 20s who's been dealing with unanswered questions, abandonment, loneliness, and sheer exhaustion from trying to hold back and control powers that she never asked for—and who simultaneously uses those powers even when it isn't necessary if she thinks it'll help her achieve a goal or prove a point. She isn't unfriendly, and she wants to do the right thing, but she's also someone who's consciously chosen to keep to herself for most of her life, and yet simultaneously she's quite adept at persuading and deceiving people. I think we're meant to pick up that sense of world-weariness and cynicism from her angular facial features and thin frame. That's...kind of just how character design works.

I think the trend of disregarding the official art and giving her softer features has had an impact on the perception of Imogen as a character. I see a lot of views of her that really remove a lot of her agency, treating her like she's only ever been a victim of circumstance who's never put a foot wrong. Some fans got pushback for pointing out that it really wasn't cool for Imogen to openly contemplate whether or not the Ruby Vanguard might be right in front of three people who were killed by Otohan, insisting that imogen was just dealing with a lot right then. And yes, she was, but that doesn't mean that the way she was dealing with it doesn't say something about her as a character. I don't know if I'd call it coddling, necessarily (even though perhaps there are some very coddling takes I just haven't seen), but there seems to be some resistance, in some circles, to the idea that Imogen isn't a put-upon martyr. And in those same circles, round friendly-looking glasses-wearing Imogen abounds, to the point of editing the official art itself to "fix it".

Truth be told I'd be willing to bet that the rounder cuter Imogen actually came about because of the initial impression of her, given how much fanon at the start of c3 revolved around poor baby Imogen with her scary nightmares needing the wiser, worldlier Laudna to comfort her and kiss it better, but those visuals also proliferated rather quickly and well beyond past the point where that fanon was feasible anymore, and I think both aspects of that fanon ended up informing each other. It's not lost on me that the rounder and cuter-looking Imogen performs the literal function of sanding down her harder edges.

And like I said, I'm not here to be needlessly negative toward what other people want to do. If you want to draw the characters differently to their official art, I don't think either the cast or the artist are especially offended by it. But I personally dislike it, in part because I think some of these trends are a way for fans to claim a certain amount of ownership over the characters, whether they intend it or not. And the ultimate outcome of that is that when creators inevitably assert their ownership over a deeply personal story in a way that fans don't like, the backlash is much stronger than it reasonably should be, which is something I think the CR fandom has seen often enough not to continue doing as often as it does.

#cr meta #critical role #cr discourse #cr wank #i think chubby jester vs skinny jester also falls into this #and don't get me wrong i 100% support representation of body types and the cast does too #but there's a certain amount of overlap between chubby jester and weird fanwanky c2 stans #it's. usually the folks who cling to fanon art interpretations who get the most angry at the cast when things don't go their way #like i don't have StatsTM or whatever to prove it but i've noticed some trends #also it's always the female characters and particularly laura bailey's characters who get hit with this attitude the most #like! just say you don't like a call laura made! i promise you no one's gonna call 911!

[blueskittlesart]

i’m so used to how you draw zelda that whenever i see someone else draw her it’s literally like. skinny person jumpscare.

literally being a fat zelda truther is so hard bc why do people insist on drawing the girl like she's never had a meal in her life. put some meat on her bones please god she is starving

#yeah botw zelda fanart is always like. woe. skinny girl be upon ye #and people on instagram get SOOOO pissed about the way i draw her its so funny. the comments are always so formulaic #like its always 'uhmmm im skinny and ur taking away MY representation my body type is beautiful too!!' #or 'um i just dont think you should be promoting an unhealthy body type' SHUT THE FUCK UP. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD #OR if its a man theyll be like 'um you made her look fat :/' like its an insult. like yeah babe that was on purpose. lmfao #and its not like i dont notice that people ONLY EVER get pissed about how i stylize ZELDA'S body. because i change link's body type too. #but i make HIM noticably SKINNIER. like gee i wonder why we have a problem with one of these but not the other one guys. lmao #anyway. im glad tumblr has so many fat zelda appreciators because things are fucking bleak on instagram lmao #and i do also occasionally get jumpscared by skinny zelda. like i KNOW she looks like that but also She Would Not Fucking Look Like That #asks

[heartsofhounds]

i’m sure you see me going insane in the tags BUT i had to pop into the inbox to tell you that i am so in love with your angel and davey designs, they mean the absolute world to me. it’s like you plucked their little faces right out of my brain and it brings me so much joy to see them!! thank you for sharing your insane talent with the world <3<3<3 sending you all the best vibes <3<3<3

Hey, sweetpea! Thank u so so much, im also so in love with them :))

and yes! i have seen u in the tags and it makes me smile so much aaaaa.. in response to ur comments on that one sketch i did of these two a few weeks back, there is a lot of love i put into drawing “non-standard” body types, cause they simply don’t get enough love, or attention or representation. Especially as someone living in a fat body, it means a lot to see bodies similar to mine represented as beautiful and even desirable. So yknow (without getting too into body politics and whatever for now) in putting out that content, id hope to help other people develop healthier relationships with their own bodies 💙

#i have a lot to say about body type representation in media #ESPECIALLY with character designs + character art it is overwhelmingly skinny and/or straight size #I’ve got a big ramble about body representation I’ll have to post here some day #some day but not today! #anywhoo hope all y’all are having a lovely Sunday! 💙 #fen art #fen talks #fen redacted art #redacted angel #redacted David

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

i do find it curious that spop is known for having diverse body types, but it only applies to the female characters. for male characters we have either decently muscular (bow, seahawk, micah) or scrawny (kyle). where's the diversity when it comes to male characters?

#you have to keep in mind that we don't have much good representation for chubby or plus sized men either #all we get is the “funny fat friend” stereotype which is not good representation at all #speaking of which kyle being scrawny is also treated as a joke #because “haha skinny white boy is so weak and pathetic” #spop critical #spop salt #spop criticism #spop discourse #spop #she ra #anti spop

[gayestcowboy]

it’s so lame and boring and straight up embarrassing when artists don’t draw fat people,,, y’all are such cowards. draw fat people or perish at my hand

#yeehaws #and if you don’t know how (because we as a society value depictions of skinny people and discourage fat art) then go learn!!!!! #fat people are more fun to draw. sorry #if you draw people with like. ‘average’ amounts of body fat instead of your usual skinny twinks and call that fat representation then #im stealing somethign out of your house #draw fat people. coward

[torgawl]

LET'S FUCKING GO!!!!

#I KNEW WE WOULD SEE YUUJI FIGHTING SUKUNA IM SO EXCITED #higuruma looks so cool this is gonna be such an iconic fight yuuji and his duos are always top tier #I CAN'T WAIT #also yuuji's hand?!!!! #annihilate that motherfucker son you can do it i believe in you #i honestly love the themes that jjk has been focusing on #jjk is about love and curses and how love can be a curse but how it's worth it and yet sukuna is the perfect antagonist for that story #for sukuna love is worth nothing #and it's so so so fun that he's getting fought by the most loving boy ever who is stronger with others than alone #like!!!!! #yuuji and yuuta as jjk protagonists being the perfect representation of stronger together is so cool #and it's cool that one is 'just a boy' and the other is one of the strongest yet the conclusion is the same #watch yuuji save the day not because he is the strongest but because he has people to rely on #and by save the day i hope that means bringing megumi back #it would also be funny if sukuna got immediately nerfed into a skinny boys body again right after he transformed #and i'm here for the laughs i hope he gets humiliated and dragged across the floor #get raid sprayed!!!! #manifesting everything well for best boy yuuji if sukuna hurts him i'm taking matters into my own hands #jjk leaks

[onlyfangz]

if your thinkpiece on nonbinary stereotypes includes "theyre always afabs" youre now no longer allowed to talk about nonbinary stereotypes, sorry, i dont make the rules.

#charlie.txt #people think their third eye is soooo open when theyre talking about skinny white able bodied nbs #and then theyll throw afab in there. what the fuck are you even talking about. #skinny white able bodied people? sure. afab? WHY ARE YOU THINKING ABT THEIR ASSUMED SEX. #'dont assume someones gender' dont assume someones fucking sex you weirdo. #if youre losing sleep because the Wrong Flavour Of Nonbinary gets 'Too Much Representation' then youre not the fucking galaxy brain you #think you are.

[barksbog]

for real tho it definitely hurt and made me struggle a lot with decision to start hrt that most trans masc people you see posting about their experience with hrt are ripped and/or skinny

i needed to see other fat little trans guys like myself to understand i can be happy and comfortable in my body

#i was never skinny and struggled with disordered eating for years #and that shit definitely played into it #aswell as like. me starting T at 24 because for the longest time i felt like there was no point to try anyways #we need more diversity in trans representation it's so important

[densoro]

so the thing is, cockroach wife syndrome doesn't just affect your waifu. It can get in your head and convince you that you have to be the cockroach wife, yourself

I've been freaking out this year about my smile lines

I was terrified that they made my face look saggy, made my mouth look like a chimpanzee's muzzle, made me look like I'm 50 even though I'm just starting my 30s. I had this whole existential crisis like, 'the internet was right, white people really do age like milk and I've lost my youth and my chance to be beautiful and adored so what's even the point??? llama face, llama face!!'

but then I grabbed baldur's gate 3 for my birthday

and everybody has been so horny for these eligible bachelors with pores and folds and, yes, wrinkles! texture! it's like it snapped me out of somebody else's hentai-addicted stupor. None of this shit makes somebody categorically ugly, no matter how close I lean into the mirror and obsess over every line. These things aren't just 'permissible' here, they're idealized!

I see a weird echo of myself in the misogynist otaku who freak out about this stuff, crying about the sjw plot to overthrow video games by making hot women...look like hot women???

I was just internalizing what they waste their lives externalizing: a disconnect with what the fuck a human being actually looks like. so I figure if I needed a reminder, maybe someone else does, too. You're not ugly, just because your face is less smooth than an anime character's. You're a human being with actual flesh attached

#Den rambles #body image #this isn't even a profound representation thing #all these characters are skinny and most of them are white #this is just acknowledging that we've backslid even from 'a narrow slice of human beauty standards' #to 'you literally have to be a fuckable cartoon character' #and god it's not even just about attractiveness #because I've been obsessively measuring everybody's nasolabial folds this year #I noticed them on the goddamn 15 year old in the Barbie movie #aging is a beautiful thing I need to make peace with but this isn't even about that #this is just how human beings are shaped #we pop out of the birth canal looking like this #cockroach wife syndrome #will this make sense to anyone but me?

[mx-potato]

I am so tired of white queer people being the only representation that we get.

I’ll see movies and books and TV shows being praised for their “amazing queer representation” and then it’s a bunch of skinny cis white gay people.

Skinny cis white gay people are not the only queer people who exist

#give me fat nonbinary protagonists #give me gender nonconforming immigrant superheroes #give me trans euphoria #give me Black aromantic stories #give me trans stories told by trans people #for the love of all things good and holy give me representation that isn't just skinny cis white able bodied upper middle class gay people #i'm so sick of queer stories that were clearly written for people who aren't queer #crazy how in an attempt to “destroy stereotypes” we just built new ones #people will claim to want to “think outside of the box” and then pick the second closest thing to the box #queer poc #transgender #queer #nonbinary #aromantic #arospec #aspec #asexual #intersectionality

[moss-sprouted]

if a character is described as fat... draw them fat

just do it, dont complain

if you dont know how to theres multiple resources and references out there, and if you Really think you dont have that skill yet then dont post that character online where people can see it and have their representation ripped away from them because somehow our body types arent worth the effort to depict properly

and if it doesnt "fit your style" dont draw that character

id rather fat character be drawn ""badly"" then incorrectly

and yes, you can head cannon characters as different as theyre depicted but it is extremely fucked up and almost cruel to make a fat character skinny

i hate that i still have to make this post in 2023, because i was also making this kind of post in 2015 about specific popular characters who were drawn skinny in fanart when the media depicted them in a visual medium as fat... so

im just very tired of fat people being continuously disrespected and openly despised

#i do not know what to tag this #fat representation #also this is prompted by seeing a skinny martin blackwood And the reference is to rose quartz if you werent sure

[sull-shipping]

I know he’s not a human character but I think it’s rlly cool that Sulley is a plus size main character, especially a plus size main character in a 2000s comedy, and it just doesn’t matter? Like they could’ve made so many jokes at the expense of his weight and they just don’t. At worst Mike teases him about it once or twice but that’s it. Idk I just think it’s neat

#I just think he’s really good representation even if he’s not a human #also why I get so annoyed when people humanize him and make him skinny #like NO!! that man is not skinny!!! #monsters inc #🩵💜

[dyke-pollinator]

Where tf are my fat femboys on this glorious Friday???

#femboy friday #196 #r/196 #seriously I love all you beautiful skinny femboys #but I need my fat femboy representation #immediately

[hotline101]

Ok since I’ve seen no black representation in thinsp0 on tumblr I went got som

Enjoy

#black thinsp0 #i need to see more people that look like me on tumblr #black representation #Ana #⭐️vespo #I need to be skinny

[sharksinflowercrowns]

As we head into the new year, I wanna remind everyone Willow is canonically plus size

Stop drawing her skinny you cowards

#seriously though please stop drawing her skinny #I’ve noticed it with Huntlow artists sometimes make Willow and Hunter the same size but they’re not #give her the representation she deserves #the owl house #willow park #toh

[appledeers]

tim burton is the original vivziepop and i truly believe that

#both of them are only capable of drawing skinny white people who are generically 'creepy' or live in creepy settings #and they either do not draw people of color at all or if they are included botch the representation in a wild way #both of them also seem to get all the credit for the things they produce even if their actual involvement is not very noteworthy #theres SOMETHING there #please tell me im not the only one who sees it