Question about Manhwa and/or Manga technique

[joezabel]

I'm a westerner who has been enjoying Manga and Manhwa for years, but I am far from being an expert, and I don't know the vocabulary of these styles.

I have a question about vocabulary. I've noticed recently in webcomics Extraordinary Attorney Woo and 21st Century Knights that the comics are illustrated in an adult style, but in certain scenes, the characters are suddenly portrayed in a children's style. This is particularly effective in Extraordinary Attorney Woo, because it suggests the volatility of her autistic personality.

Anyways, I was wondering if there is a term for this shift in style from adult to children? Thanks!!

[Nugtown]

what is a "children's style"? Are you talking about Chibi?

[darthmongoose]

That does sound similar to what in Manga we'd call "chibi" or "SD" (Super Deformed, not such a common term these days).

[joezabel]

Nugtown-- Thanks! Chibi is a term that applies to Manga. I don't know if it is correct to apply it to Manhwa. But in manga or anime terms, what I'm talking about is where the art style shifts from Seinen style to Chibi style in the middle of a scene.

[DokiDokiTsuna]

I don't know if there's a name for the technique; it's really just a form of visual language to highlight certain scenes as funny/lighthearted. The characters are drawn less seriously, and the audience in turn takes what they're doing less seriously, if only for a moment.

Maybe some artist somewhere has coined a nickname for it ('chibification'?) but as long as you know why it's used and how it works, is it really that important to know what it might be called...?

[NickRowler]

Chibi is used when a scene needs to be silly or is treated as a parody.

Like with Attack on Titan Junior High or Naruto SD: Rock Lee

[Nugtown]

We borrow the loan word and use it the same way it's loaned and used in english.

[system]

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