History Main / GeekPhysiques

* ''ComicBook/RobinSeries'': While Ives did eventually fill in a bit he was a twig in his freshman year of high school, he also towered over all his friends by at least a foot so a growth spurt was likely a cause of his physique.

** The Comic Book Guy. In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS8E3TheHomerTheyFall The Homer They Fall]]", Comic Book Guy attempts to return a Franchise/StarTrek belt he won as a prize because it was sized medium, and "the average Trekker has no use for a ''medium-sized'' belt" (thus referencing both varieties of GeekPhysique).

* ''Series/{{Chuck}}'', although it takes Adam Baldwin on the male side, and Yvonne [[FanNickname Strathotski]] on the female side to really count as this.
* Murray 'Boz' Bozinsky from the ''Series/{{Riptide|1984}}'' series.

* Murray 'Boz' Bozinsky from the ''Series/{{Riptide}}'' series.

[[quoteright:300:[[WebVideo/YourFavoriteMartian https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rsz_1nerdrage_zpsf594d9d3_4689.png]]]]

[[quoteright:300:[[WebVideo/EqualsThree https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rsz_1nerdrage_zpsf594d9d3_4689.png]]]]

-->-- '''Luz''', ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse''

* ''Franchise/YuGiOh'' is fundamentally a series about gaming nerds, and the style gives basically everyone elongated proportions. Dark Yugi, Kaiba, and Bakura (both versions) are all particularly skinny and nerdy, although Kaiba subverts this by only ''looking'' the part and actually being genuinely athletic. Averted with Joey, who basically grew up on the streets and can solve a problem with his fists as easily as with his cards.
* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': During the early stages of his fight with [[BadassBookworm Uryuu]] and [[HotBlooded Renji]], [[MadScientist Szayelaporro's]] clothing is so badly damaged by Uryuu's Sprenger explosion that his entire torso is exposed revealing how thin his body is. However, unlike other thin characters, such as [[TheLancer Uryuu]], [[AxCrazy Nnoitra]] or even [[TheHero Ichigo]], there is no muscle definition to his form and every clear shot of his body heavily emphasises the shape and position of his ribs. While other thin characters are muscled or well-toned, Szayel simply looks emaciated. Unlike most other Espada, he doesn't fight physically. He takes the time to research his potential opponents [[SinisterSurveillance in advance]] so that, by the time he's confronting them, he's [[AwesomenessByAnalysis figured out]] how to negate their abilities; for him, battle is a [[CrazyPrepared scientific puzzle]] to be solved through the [[EvilGenius power of intellect]]. When physical fighting is required, he can create [[PowerCopying copycat]] [[VoodooDoll dolls]] of his opponents, forcing his opponents to fight the dolls instead of him.

* Actually a plot point in ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia''. Izuku is a scrawny nerd at the start of the story, which means that if he tried to accept One For All immediately, his limbs would explode and go flying off his body. All Might puts him through TrainingFromHell over ten months to give him the [[HeroicBuild lean, muscular physique]] he needs to take the Quirk without dying. Even then, [[HeroicRROD he seriously damages himself whenever he uses too much of it.]]

* In ''Fanfic/NeitherABirdNorAPlaneItsDeku'', Izuku starts out as a scrawny nerd as he does in canon. But the fact that he manifested his Kryptonian SuperStrength at an early age means that nothing he encountered as a civilian could really make him exert himself, which only enforces this trope along with MusclesAreMeaningless. He subverts this after ten months of training, becoming as leanly muscular as most of his classmates thanks to making far more liberal use of his strength on Korusan Island.

Compare HollywoodNerd. Occasionally coupled with a NerdyInhaler and/or a [[NerdyNasalness nasally voice]] to try and [[JustifiedTrope justify]] it. {{Badass Bookworm}}s often, but not always, avert this. May overlap with FatAndSkinny if both are in the same scene together.

* Harold Lauder of ''Literature/TheStand'' was overweight (in the novel, anyway; the miniseries turned him into a skinny geek or arguably a HollywoodGeek).

[[caption-width-right:300:When they're not {{Hollywood Nerd}}s, they must be one of these.]]

-->-- ''Luz'', ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse''

->''"When will you Australians learn? In America, we stopped using corporal punishment and things have never been better. The streets are safe, old people strut confidently through dark alleys, and the weak and nerdy are admired for their computer programming abilities. So like us, for as the old saying goes, "Let your children run wild and free."''
-->-- '''Homer Simpson''', ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E16BartVsAustralia "Bart vs. Australia"]]

-->-- '''[[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Homer Simpson]]''', ''[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E16BartVsAustralia "Bart vs. Australia"]]''

* Ultimate Fanfic Creator Hifumi Yamada (called Super High School Level {{Doujinshi}} Author in the original Japanese version) from Franchise/{{Danganronpa}} is so fat that [[spoiler:his weight becomes a key point in solving his murder case]].

* Wendell from ''Series/KeyAndPeele'', a morbidly obese geek with absolutely no social life.

* On ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama,'' both [[{{Meganekko}} Beth]], [[HomeschooledKids Ezekiel]] and [[IKnowMortalKombat Sam]] are {{Downplayed}} examples--she's plump and the boys are at least flabby, in contrast to the other characters who are mostly skinny girls, athletic guys or skinny geeks listed above.

While both versions of geek have been around for some time, the "geeks are skinny" image is slowly being displaced by "geeks are fat" as the world obesity rate rises. The hours of inactivity and unhealthy eating habits are sufficient justification, and can cause this to be TruthInTelevision. The older form also has justification in the "ForgetsToEat" aspect of things, or possibly because CrackIsCheaper and therefore the geeks only spend the bare minimum amount of money on food that they need to in order to stay alive while pouring the rest of their income into their hobbies (which explains why the BasementDweller is almost always a fat geek; he doesn't buy his own food so he has more of it to eat). The reverse is also true as those entering such industries age and realize they're losing their youthful metabolisms and as such professions become more of a career and less a stepping stone to bigger and better things.

** Lelouch, the genius who plays chess on a country-sized game board, is regularly teased for being out of shape compared with Suzaku, Sayoko and even Milly.

* ''Manga/DeathNote'': L is a pale, skinny man who, in spite of being a BigEater, uses so much energy to think that he's rail thin. He also turns out to be an adept martial artist.

* ''ComicBook/WonderWomanWarbringer'': Theo is a gamer, programmer and hacker who is skinny as a pole and the least muscular person in the cast, which is mostly made up of teenage girls.

* Owen in ''Film/LetMeIn'' is rather stereotypically nerdy. He gets horribly bullied alot, he wears unfashionable clothes and his room has an outer space theme. He is extremely skinny, to the point he looks emaciated in his two shirtless scenes, with almost every bone in his upper body visible.

* Creator/EddieDeezen, famous for playing (among other roles) stereotypical nerd Eugene in ''Film/{{Grease}}'', Malvin in ''Film/WarGames'' and Eddie Lipschultz in [[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092210/ The Whoopee Boys]].

** ''Film/WarGames'' actually paired-up Deezen as the skinny geek, with Maury Chaykin playing an overweight geek.
* ''WesternAnimation/AtlantisTheLostEmpire'' has one.
--> '''Kida:''' ''(to Milo)'' "You are a scholar, are you not? Judging from your diminished physique and [[ForeheadOfDoom large forehead]], you are suited for nothing else!

* ''Literature/TheCanterburyTales'' has the clerk, making this trope OlderThanPrint. The clerk is described as a student of philosophy or theology at Oxford, who is wire-thin because he forgets to eat and would rather spend what little money he scrounges together on Aristotle works than food or clothing.

* Creator/MercedesLackey's ''Literature/HeraldsOfValdemar'': In ''Literature/VowsAndHonor'', Kethry says that magic takes so much energy that you'll almost never see a fat mage, and if you do it is an indication that she or he has a serious eating disorder.

* ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'': Holmes is thin as a rail, because he simply ForgetsToEat half the time. This doesn't concern him, because he considers the only important part of himself to be his brain, of which everything else is merely an appendage. Otherwise inverted, though, as he is trained in several forms of fighting and can easily defend himself if need be. He's also likely ripped: in "The Speckled Band" he straightens a steel fireplace poker after a client's stepfather tries to threaten him by bending it. Straightening it would actually require more strength than just bending it.
* ''Literature/SkippyDies'': Skippy, a studious and quiet nerd who love video games as well as science, is slight and skinny.

** Howard is described as looking "like a human chicken wing" in his bathing suit. He also has only 3% bodyfat, and is ''very'' proud of this. Of course, he also appears to have only 3% muscle.

--> "How very skinny. That is proper skinny! I've never seen it from the outside, it's like a special effect! Oi, ha, matchstick-man!"

* ''Series/{{Community}}'' Abed is rail thin in spite of constantly eating buttered noodles.

* ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'': Dr William Birkin (while he's still human) is quite skinny and scruffy, and always wearing a labcoat.
* In ''Videogame/{{Bully}}'', there's an entire clique of nerds. Three of them (Algie, Fatty and Melvin) are fat, and the others (Earnest, Bucky, Cornelius, Donald and Thad) are scrawny with hunched postures.

* [[{{Keet}} Hanna]] from the eponymous ''Webcomic/HannaIsNotABoysName''. Tiny (around 5'3,) and skinny as a rail, but with wide shoulders and big hands that make him super awkward.
* [[{{Goth}} Jessica]] from ''WebComic/{{Freakwatch}}'' is quite nerdy, with an obvious fascination with puzzles, horror movies and electronics, and is somewhat on the chunky side. [[BlackAndNerdy Warren,]] a fellow horror fan and RPG enthusiast, is rail-thin by contrast.
* Gary in ''Webcomic/MenageA3'' initially looks to fit the skinny pattern, exacerbated by his frequently poor posture. Really, though, he's just slim, and he seems to be in pretty good shape for someone who's never seen to take any exercise, to the point of averting the trope; the comic's female cast have no trouble finding him cute, even or especially when he's stripped. His friend Jung fits the overweight pattern (and lives in his mother’s basement), but is plump rather than morbidly obese. Other geeks seen in the comic mostly tend to the skinny, if only because they seem mostly to be gawky teens.

* Karl Hadrika's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcchrgJgryo&t=655s Becky Prim]]" proof-of-concept {{pilot}} has Norville, who's described in Hardika's Website/{{Tumblr}} [[http://karlhadrika.tumblr.com/ blog]] as a "horny sock puppet", which is not to far off of a description as he's pretty skinny chump with a [[LongNeck pencil neck]] that takes up a majority of his body.

* Timmy from ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'' is rather scrawny compared to the uniformly-sculpted other male characters. This changes latter on when he's no less muscular than the rest of them.

* Zodon of ''ComicBook/PS238''. Or at least his hologram. His true appearance appears to be rather normal, at least for a person with a oversized cranium whose lower body is never shown due to his hover chair.

* ''Literature/SkippyDies'': Ruprecht, a string-theory obsessed TeenGenius with NoSocialSkills, is very fat and is constantly eating.

* In ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'' Kevyn, resident MadScientist, has a bit of [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2007-03-21 a potbelly]]. Warrant Officer Thurl used to be obese, before he got his head ripped off and the regeneration bot insisted on [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2001-11-07 fixing the problem]].

* Website/SomethingAwful once featured a ''WebComic/{{XKCD}}'' parody with a shop that only sold T-shirt in sizes small and XXXXX-large.

** Steve is unusually strong when he's angry, but always comes across as weedy whenever Stan tries to encourage him to do anything that involves strength. This is largely a case of DependingOnTheWriter.

* At first glance, [[{{Otaku}} Hajime]] from ''Manga/ICantUnderstandWhatMyHusbandIsSaying'' appears to be a skinny example. [[ShirtlessScene Then he took off his shirt in episode 7]]. It's explicitly noted in the manga that he does exercises to keep himself fit, particularly the abdominal region.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarVsTheForcesOfEvil'' has an episode in which Marco is arrives at a video store to purchase a rare tape in the hopes of getting his red belt. The store is run by what seems to be a guy that fits all of the stereotypes associated with nerdom. He tells Marco that he has the tape that he's been searching for. The price is two thousand dollars. Marco becomes discouraged but cheers up when the man offers him the tape for free on the condition that they fight for it. Marco agrees at which point the man stands up, revealing [[TestosteronePoisoning his perfectly fit and extremely muscular body.]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* ''Fanfic/Brainbent'': Resident computer nerd Sollux Captor is described as "painfully skinny".

* Downplayed in ''Webcomic/{{Megatokyo}}''--main protagonist Piro is a nerdy gamer and while it's not usually super obvious, one comic reveals that he's slightly chubby.

* ''Manga/SlamDunk'': Yoshinori is a LethalJokeCharacter who looks every bit the stereotypical nerd.