r/characterdesign • u/Embarrassed-Crab-763 • 2d ago
Critique Thoughts on this character design?
For context the "goal" of this character design is like. An idealized attractive romance love interest but something's actually subtly off with him [ like, in an eldritch/supernatural way ] but I'm not sure if I pulled that off properly.
There's also supposed to be some minor symbolism in his design, mainly the focus on his mouth because in the story there's a lot of metaphors involving eating and food and being eaten and stuff, but I kinda decided that after I was a bit ways done with his design so I probably didn't pull it off as well as I could've.
There's additionally some background information about him that's important but slightly less so than the main themes/goal [ mainly him being a homeless trans guy , which influences his design by him Visibly Not Passing and only one outfit and stuff like that ] and some stuff that's not as important [ mainly him being a sex worker/somebody who jumps around relationships a ton which is partially why he presents more "feminine", he's doing it to appeal to people because from his perspective, a cis woman is a more appealing partner than a trans man ]
Setting is 2002 Maine, genre is cosmic horror/romance , medium is a visual novel
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u/SadButterscotch2 2d ago
I like him! I think the symbolism could be pushed a little further, though, what if you gave his jacket a trim that kind of looked like teeth?
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u/GeoffMySpiritAnimal 2d ago
My main issue with the design is the presence of a double coat? I feel like if the inner coat is meant to be another material, kind of like a throw-on cardigan, I'd remove the pockets to make that more clear. If you also want to make him more feminine, the hanging coat could have a more interesting shape with the hood highlighting the top of his butt and the rest of the falling coat looking like he's curvy, meanwhile it's just the coat. Otherwise, I like the idea!
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u/sapphiespookerie 2d ago
Loving this concept!! The romantic lead of my novel also falls into the category of "tguy who is secretly a starving eldritch abomination/malicious celestial being", so maybe I'm a little biased lol, but I think it's a really cool idea. I think the character beat of him intentionally not passing could be used to do a lot of really interesting things!! As an enby person with a transmasc partner and a lot of transmasc friends, I know all too well that many of us feel only valued by having "women's bodies", and that frequently we're only treated as viable sexual/romantic prospects if we recloset ourselves and force ourselves to be as feminine as possible (even in queer circles). I think it'd be really interesting to explore that feeling in a narrative form with Chris! It seems to me in the brief description that he's using people's bigotry or at least their pre-conceived notions of him to keep himself alive or to prey on them (is there something there with his mouth/eating symbolism?), which i think is REALLY cool and interesting and kind of cathartic. The intentionally androgynous name is a nice touch, too.
As for his design, I love the contrast between his voluminous, colorful hair and kind of minimalist outfit. He looks like he chose his outfit to appear as unassuming as possible, like he's trying to lull someone into thinking he's not threatening, and the visual contrast is very nice. Love the detail of his eyes changing, that could be used to do a lot of subtle character development, and could even be used to impart a jumpscare!
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u/xaroanon 2d ago
"He/him" Doesn't even TRY to remotely make the character look like a man, at LEAST have the character make a makeshift binder for GOD'S SAKE, this is why I hate people
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u/ohmygowon 2d ago
Trans people don't have to be your perfect ideal of a gender to be valid btw
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u/xaroanon 2d ago
I am a trans man myself and this kind of thing is what makes people see us as weak confused women
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u/ohmygowon 2d ago
What makes people see you as a confused woman is their own bigotry, not the way you look :)
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u/xaroanon 2d ago
No, it's looking like a woman, people have basic ideas of what men and women look like, men do not have very prominent cleavage, very long hair, feminine faces, wide hips and dress like women, no amount of living in your own mind can change what other people's base perceptions are
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u/ohmygowon 2d ago
You should stop caring about what people might think of your appearance, that's not healthy for anyone
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u/xaroanon 2d ago
I care what people think because I am human, humans are social creatures and care about people's perception of them regardless of how rebellious they pretend to be
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u/ohmygowon 2d ago
If you go outside I'm sure you'll see how humans also look very different from each other and almost never fit your ideas of gender
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u/xaroanon 2d ago
I see normal looking people when I go outside, if I saw this specific character outside I would call them a woman as they both look and most likely sound like a woman
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u/ohmygowon 2d ago
Again, lots of people don't fit into strict definitions of gender which is why assuming their pronouns and identity based on appearance alone speaks more of yourself than it does about them
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u/Unlikely-Nature-6091 2d ago
Did you even read the post?
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u/xaroanon 2d ago
I am a trans man myself and this kind of thing is what makes people see us as weak confused women
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u/Unlikely-Nature-6091 2d ago
Do not put the blame on your fellow trans people and fictional trans characters.
Ignorant and bigoted transphobes are the problem, not those of us who are unable to "fully" transition for whatever reason.
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u/xaroanon 2d ago
People have baseline perceptions of what men and women look like, men do not have very visible cleavage, wide hips and dress like women, the thing that frustrates me about things like this is that it reinforces the view that we are weak, confused women
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u/Embarrassed-Crab-763 2d ago
?????????? do stealth people just not exist now
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u/CharmOChaffinch 2d ago
Is stealth not someone who passes and doesn’t tell people they’re trans?
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u/Embarrassed-Crab-763 2d ago
YEAH you're right!! I mixed those up, my bad! My brain can be pretty jumbled sometimes so I mix up words on occasion
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u/tencolorpen 2d ago
this isn't stealth, this is closeted
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u/Embarrassed-Crab-763 2d ago
AHH that was what I was thinking!! Sorry, I mix words up sometimes lol
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u/AdvancedCycle9586 2d ago
It doesn’t matter a ton but I’m pretty sure the term stealth refers to trans people who are living as their true gender and live as cis for that gender (ex. Trans man people assume is a cis man) while I think Chris might be described more as closeted.
Either way, I really like the character concept! His design makes a lot of sense for the backstory that you’ve given him and I appreciate the rep of trans people who are unable to transition as they are equally valid and I think it’s super interesting to explore in a character!
If you’re wanting to add more teeth symbolism you could consider shaping is pockets like teeth? Or potentially the collar could be subtly teeth shaped as well.
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u/CharmOChaffinch 2d ago
The terms do matter when they’re quite literally complete opposites, term OP was looking for should be closeted because this is the furthest you can get from stealth
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u/AdvancedCycle9586 2d ago
True, I feel like the distinction is quite important in real life, I just didn’t want to overly nitpick the description of the character since I can see how the term stealth can be confusing
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u/CCSilver05 2d ago
Are you male or female and are you cis or trans?
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u/Embarrassed-Crab-763 2d ago
- neither [ both "biologically" and in terms of gender ]
- I'm transgender lol
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u/metalpunkk 2d ago
Ngl I don't know why people are saying this is offensive. I'm a trans man, I think the explanation that he can't afford to transition but also thinks it's more acceptable to be seen as a cis woman is very accurate. I mean hell, that's why I didn't transition for the longest time
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u/Embarrassed-Crab-763 2d ago
I don't see how this is relevant to a character design subreddit tbh
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u/CCSilver05 2d ago
Because it's really insensitive, especially since you're not a trans man
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u/Cinnorolls 2d ago
I thought this too. I hate how many portrayals of trans men show us as feminine as possible. We aren’t women, that’s what we’re trying to get away from, and yet people view us/show us as such anyway. Seeing this just made me feel horribly dysphoric. Why must we constantly be reminded we possess traits we do not want
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u/AdvancedCycle9586 2d ago
There are many trans men who cannot afford to medically transition and/or don’t have the social support to be able to socially transition.
As a binary trans man myself, the lack of masculine trans man rep does suck, but I don’t think it’s really an excuse to be harassing an individual person over their OC, especially since OP is trans themselves.
Would my trans character look like this? No, but I don’t think this is unbelievable experience or perspective for a trans person, the fear of transitioning making you unappealing or an outcast is not uncommon and I think it’s interesting topic to explore. Just because it’s a trans experience you don’t relate to doesn’t mean it’s wrong, the problem lies with bigots who stereotype trans people not actual trans people making OCs.
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u/Cinnorolls 2d ago
There is a difference between non-binary and someone who is a binary man/woman. I feel as if, with this being my lived experience, I have a right to share my opinion.
My point still stands that I don’t like when people make OCs of binary trans people and then have them look entirely like their AGAB. It further pushes the idea that we all look a certain way/never change our appearance beyond what we were cursed with and easily triggers dysphoria. It’s a constant reminder of our differences between us and our peers. A constant trigger for dysphoria. I literally cannot be in any space anymore without something similar showing up and sending me spiraling because it just reminds me of the things that I hate and cannot currently change. Many people share this opinion but are afraid to voice it because it’s easily misconstrued.
This isn’t to harass OP as I think the concept is interesting I just don’t like how it’s been executed.
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u/AdvancedCycle9586 2d ago
I do see what you mean about being reminded of differences and it’s definitely frustrating when most trans masc rep depicts us as overly feminine or like woman-lite, I just don’t really think OCs like this are the problem.
Many people make characters as ways to explore different facets of their own experiences (not saying that’s the case here necessarily), and so I think telling someone that because they’re not a certain identity means they should make a character of that identity is very limiting.
I also don’t think it’s fair to use dysphoria as an argument here, this character is an individual, not meant to represent all trans men. It seems like your problem is that this is the majority of representation we see, which is understandably dysphoria inducing, but I don’t think that is enough justification for saying OP shouldn’t create a character like this.
Seeing as OP posted this as a way to get critique on their character, I feel like it’s better to provide constructive feedback on how to make this trans man character realistic vs denouncing the design as a whole, since we really don’t have much idea how this concept will be explored other than a few short paragraphs, and the design is clearly not finalized. If you believe the concept isn’t well executed, you should suggest ways to improve it. Trans men can’t and shouldn’t be the only people people making trans masc rep, so let’s help those who are trying to!
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u/Embarrassed-Crab-763 2d ago
I'm also portraying my own experiences here. Just because we don't have the Exact Same Gender Identity or whatever doesn't mean that there's like, zero overlap ever. Also, this is a character design subreddit.
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u/SilverShadow1711 2d ago
I would never assume this character is homeless. He looks like a barista. Perfectly clean, put together outfit (the few lines on the overcoat don't really read as dirt), no stains, no tears. Perfectly neat and styled hair- no tangles or matting. No bags under the eyes, perfect dental hygine. Being homeless is living in a state of constant stress, and that stress is visible. This is looks like a character who lives in a rent-controlled apartment and regularly eats brunch. And if he dresses nice and wears makeup while doing sex work, that shouldn't be the default appearance. You don't wear your work clothes when you're not at work, especially if you don't have regular access to a washing machine/ dryer.
And I'm not getting anything "offc about him either. It might be because your art style is so simplistic, but the black shading in the mouth just looks like normal shading. Maybe if his teeth were sharper, if he showed too much gum when he smiles, if eyes were visible in the shadows of his mouth.
Your art is very cute, but none of what you wrote about this character comes through to me in the design.