Do you use Chibis/SD characters in you comic?

[Legendofgenii]

Do you use cute chibis or SD characters in your comic? Sometimes? All the time? Not at all? Do you love/hate them?

I see them used in some of the comics I read and they are not only super adorable, but I guess they are a good story telling tool too - mostly for humour.

When I first started drawing I only ever drew chibis and kawaii characters. Genii was my experiment into drawing something a bit more realistic and darker - but I do miss the cuteness!

I'm wondering if it's too late to introduce them in Genii - maybe it would be weird to suddenly throw them in now? I have added one or two occasionally as an extra at the bottom of an episode - but not as panels within the actual story. Should I just keep them separate?

Anyway - if you have Chibis in your comic do add a pic below to show how you use them.

Genii Legend of the God Stones | Tapas

[VibrantFox]

I think my favorite implementation of chibis is for humor effect or as a panel breaker (like they're interrupting for narrative or as a gag). I don't think there's too much issue tossing in a few since they can be fun little palette cleansers and freshen or spice things up, so long as they're not used in excess of course

In my own comics I've used em for about the same reasons I've mentioned and it's actually pretty fun mashing things up between normal proportion characters and weird little chibis. I also use em for bonus illustrations but it has been a while

These are some of my faves

[Legendofgenii]

These are adorable! Love the little christmas jumpers.

I love how you can exaggerate the expressions on Chibis and you don't have to worry about the anatomy so much either.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

I don't really. Though several of my characters kind of look chibi all the time.

[Legendofgenii]

I've seen them used as little emojis on dialogue bubbles too, which I really like.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

That actually reminds me that I have emoji versions for my Discord channel emotes xD I guess those count...kinda.

[Kelheor]

I never use chibis in comics and don't intend to. When my characters are cute (or children... or cute children), they are cute enough by themselves and don't have to become super deformed for this
I actually don't really like seeing chibi as a comic relief in serious work, I much prefer them only as an additional content.

[nathanKmcwilliams]

I'm kinda the same way. In my own work they aren't really necessary.

[Legendofgenii]

That's why I didn't use them initially, as I wanted to try something more serious. I think I'll just keep them as little extras then.

[allenT]

I don't chibi-fied my characters as they're already cartoonish enough. However i simplify their outlines and exaggerate the face when there's a moment to do comedic poses. I use it sparsely and only in small panels.

For your questions, I personally think giving main characters chibi-tized version (in-comic, half-way down the story) is NOT a good idea, especially if your story is a serious one. Good on you holding that decision knowing it could be jarring. Do you have comic relief side/minor characters, maybe they can do it? (just my 2 cents)

If you know this, a serious story such as Berserk (manga) wants to lighten up by introducing Puck the fairy, who is always be chibi-tized for comedy however the brooding protagonist Gut never does. That would break his character and sorta cheapen the seriousness of the story.

Off-comic chibitization of your characters however is perfectly fine, don't worry!
I think you can pull this off eventually. It's really up to you.

[Kelheor]

Well, that's only one opinion of course ^^ There always could be exceptions, but I always remember Puck from Berserk, and even though his chibi form was cute, I was so not amused by it

@allenT unamused squad xD

[Legendofgenii]

Awe yeah your example is pretty darn adorable in all three styles.

And yes, I have a comic relief MC entering the story soon. I think I'll leave the chibis out of the main story, but add them as little extras at the bottom.

I'll see if I can read some Beserk. Thank you!

[GloamingCat]

ALL THE TIME
Sometimes for comic relief, others for when character are zoomed-out and too small for details, and other simply because I'm lazy hahah (chibi is easier!). Either way I love drawing them <3

Here are examples of each of these cases:

But appearently my default art is already kinda chibi, even when it's not really my intention This is what it looks like normally:

My story is serious, though. But the contrast between the seriousness and the cute artstyle is something I'm actually aiming for, so it makes sense to use chibis. I think the fact that the characters in question are cute also helps (I wouldn't use chibi for a more serious character).

[Legendofgenii]

@GloamingCat Ohhhh! They are cute! Yes, I think if your style is almost chibi anyway then why not.

And I've seen a few artists use them for zoomed out characters now that you mention it - which I think is much better than peg doll people (those figures with no eyes or faces ) those can be a bit creepy.

[WillowTree]

As someone who reads your comic, I think it'd be adorable to throw in some chibi's every now and then! But that's because I like when a serious work is broken up with some lighter moments and I like when the art kind of shifts to capture that as well.

This is all my opinion as a reader, not a creator. I don't know if it's generally frowned upon or what, I just know that I personally like it.

[Legendofgenii]

Thank you Willow.

I didn't know if it would work or not, especially all of a sudden, so I'll keep them at the bottom of an episode as extras for now.

[oshirockingham]

I think you've seen enough of my chibis,
they will appear randomly in an awkward situation.

[krissyhalo]

I use them a lot but mostly for comic strips I create. I wanna see if I could use them in a more serious comic setting, like the one in my character sheet. Chibis are simple to make.

[nostalgicroxas]

I think they're a great dramatic tool visually because you can focus on the expression more than "is this anatomically correct?"

[Legendofgenii]

I have And they work really well in Ravenlord.