- Super deformed
[
205px|thumb|Ryu drawn in a super deformed style, from the arcade game Pocket Fighter , known as "Super Gem Fighter: Mini Mix" in the United States.] Super deformed or SD is a specific style of Japanesecaricature where characters are drawn in an exaggerated way, typically small and chubby, with stubby limbs and oversized heads, to make them resemble small children.The style is called
chibi by some fans, though chibi is a different concept that refers more to a person's stature rather than the art style. Many amateur anime artists enjoy drawing super deformed characters because the style is considered cute and is relatively easy to draw.Japanese media
The super deformed style is part of
Japanese culture and is seen everywhere from advertising and subway signs toanime andmanga .It is often also used on anime and manga in brief interjections to show an extreme or exaggerated
emotion , such as anger or surprise, that would be difficult to portray or would seem out of character if expressed on a more realistic face. They are meant to be cute and are often used inhumor ous diversions from thestoryline .Recent trends in anime have shifted away from super-deformed character designs, yet the traditional anime character designs remain.Fact|date=July 2008
Proportions
In life, heads are usually one eighth of a person's height.
The head of a super deformed character is normally anywhere between one third [ [http://www.bakaneko.com/howto/figure/chibi/index.html "A Super Deformed Tutorial" on Bakaneko.com] ] and one half the character's height, [ [http://www.polykarbon.com/tutorials/chibi/chibiart.htm "Chibi Drawing! (aka Super Deformed)" on Polykarbon.com] ] often a
golden ratio (38 percent), with the eyes taking up much of the space on the headFact|date=July 2008. Some artists may use alternate proportions. There are other exaggerated proportions (such as the 1/5th proportion, as used byTales of Eternia , etc) that are popular in anime, but are not considered SD.Examples
ee also
*List of super deformed fighting games
References
External links
* [http://chibiland.windy-goddess.net Chibi Land] Sailor Moon site devoted to Chibis and Super deformed
* [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/lexicon.php?id=44 Super deformed] defined at Anime News Network.
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