Line #87 Main/RubberHoseLimbs


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10	[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/{{Popeye}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brotherly_loveOliveSpaghetti-7254821_1221.jpg]]]]
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12	This is when a cartoon character moves without any visible elbows or knees, so their limbs aren't stiff, but rather bendy, like rubber hoses. Just watch pretty much any black-and-white cartoon, to give a broad example. In cartoons made before [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfAnimation the mid to late 1930s]] or so, this was done for practical reasons rather than artistic ones. It all started with ''WesternAnimation/FelixTheCat'' animators Creator/OttoMessmer and Creator/BillNolan, and it was meant to prevent the motion of the limbs in question from looking like they were drawn through a strobe light and flickering -- the basic idea was that if you didn't draw joints, you could make absolutely sure that the limbs in one frame overlapped with where the limbs were in the last frame. Higher frame rates, the development of [[TheTwelvePrinciplesOfAnimation Squash and Stretch]], and an awareness of camera blur sharply reduced the need for this kind of animation as time went on, and cartoon characters all of a sudden had ''joints''. These days, this is a deliberate artistic decision on the part of the animator -- either to creep you out; to create a fun, zany, or cute character; or as a deliberate nod to UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfAnimation. In the early days, however, it was just how things were done.
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14	In {{anime}}, it's often used in conjunction with SuperDeformed, possibly to accentuate the childish nature of the ArtShift. In WesternAnimation, it was revived with the ThinLineAnimation style of TheNewTens.
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16	Related to NoKnees, though that's mostly a side effect of a LazyArtist. Not to be confused with NoodlePeople, which is about having skinny arms, though the tropes aren't mutually exclusive. A RubberMan may be a justified version of this.
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18	----
19	!!Examples:
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21	[[foldercontrol]]
22
23	[[folder:Advertising]]
24	* The [[WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm-Flailing Tubemen]] car salesmen use on occasion probably qualify, as their entire bodies act like this.
25	[[/folder]]
26
27	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
28	* ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh'': Sakaki turns all noodly when she goes to pet the cat.
29	* Excel in ''Anime/ExcelSaga'' does this whenever she gets excited, which is to say, [[GenkiGirl all the time]].
30	* Guu in ''[[Anime/HareGuu Haré+Guu]]'' usually has no elbows or hands. This is a deliberate choice to emphasize Guu's other-world-ness.
31	* Kuro from ''Kodomo no Jikan'' displays an extreme version of this during one of the show's endings.
32	* Luffy in ''Manga/OnePiece'' to a degree, since he actually ''is'' [[RubberMan made of rubber]]. This eventually gets taken to its logical extent when [[spoiler:he awakens his Devil Fruit and achieves Gear 5, which effectively grants him ToonPhysics powers. Notably, Luffy indeed has visible elbows and knees when he isn't stretching, but this trope is played straight as he gains noodle-like limbs in his Gear 5 form]].
33	* Jyuushimatsu seems to have these by default in ''Anime/OsomatsuSan'' to go along with his CloudCuckoolander tendencies.
34	* Poemi does this in the {{spiritual successor}} to Excel Saga, ''Anime/PuniPuniPoemi''.
35	* ''Manga/DontToyWithMeMissNagatoro'': The titular protagonist often gets drawn with her arms getting noodly and waving around without visible hands or fingers when she gets particularly mischievous/playful with her senpai.
36	* Fuu from ''Anime/{{Tamayura}}'' undergoes this when she becomes scared or excited.
37	* Leeron from ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'' occasionally has these, particularly in the more comical scenes. He even has rubber hose ''fingers''.
38	* Happens to quite a few characters in ''{{Manga/Uzumaki}}'', although the effects are significantly more serious than in most other works.
39	* Happens quite a bit in ''Manga/{{Yotsuba}}''
40	[[/folder]]
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42	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
43	* ''ComicStrip/TheOptimist'': [[http://the-opt.com/?p=19 This guy]] either has no arm joints, or too many. [[http://the-opt.com/?p=1155 This man]]'s knuckles would probably drag on the ground if he straightened his bendy appendage. [[http://the-opt.com/?p=733 Elbowless.]]
44	[[/folder]]
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46	[[folder:Films — Animation]]
47	* Used in ''WesternAnimation/CaptainUnderpantsTheFirstEpicMovie'' to simulate Dav Pilkey's art style from the books.
48	* Some characters (mostly the clowns) in ''WesternAnimation/{{Dumbo}}'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v8vUNF5LL4 have flexible limbs.]]
49	* Done intentionally in ''WesternAnimation/HortonHearsAWho2008'', where all the citizens of Whoville have gangly, slippery arms -- the mayor can bend his arm into a perfect spiral.
50	* The main character of ''WesternAnimation/RubyGillmanTeenageKraken'' has these.
51	* The AnthropomorphicFood characters in ''WesternAnimation/SausageParty'' all have rubber limbs. Granted, as most of the foods are drawn with plain black stick figure limbs.
52	* In ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverseTheMovie'', Spinel takes this trope to an extreme, [[NonstandardCharacterDesign unlike other characters in the series]], with her limbs bending, stretching and twisting in like a 1930s cartoon character, except she ''weaponizes'' them and her general InkblotCartoonStyle for [[DerangedAnimation disturbing effect]].
53	* The opening of ''WesternAnimation/TheTripletsOfBelleville'', which is homaging pre-1935 animation style.
54	[[/folder]]
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56	[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
57	* In ''Film/TheMask'', The Mask gets rubber hose limbs during the "El Pachuco" dance number.
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60	[[folder:Literature]]
61	* Being an alien with tentacles for arms, Paul in ''Literature/AlienInASmallTown'' counts.
62	* Kevin Grothers has this as a superpower in ''Literature/TheRedAndTheRest''.
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65	[[folder:Video Games]]
66	* ''VideoGame/BendyAndTheInkMachine'': the titular Bendy and his SitcomArchNemesis Boris the Wolf are drawn like this as an homage to these kinds of cartoons, particularly black-and-white Creator/{{Disney}} shorts.
67	* The titular character from ''VideoGame/{{Dropsy}}'' has rubber hose arms, which is ''just'' one of the things that sets him apart from any other characters in the game who all have normal arms.
68	* Being a very deliberate homage to the 1920s and 1930s era of cartoons, the animation of ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'' is full of this. Characters have very fluid animations but not much in the way of distinct joints. There's often the ''implications'' of knees or elbows, but very little that follows the laws of anatomy.
69	* ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic'':
70	** Clown Man from ''VideoGame/MegaMan8'' has stretchy, bendy arms, which he can use to channel his [[ShockAndAwe Thunder Claw]] attacks and swing from a trapeze (one of his pasttimes).
71	** Pump Man from ''VideoGame/MegaMan10'' is a literal example.
72	* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog''. His original design is based on Mickey Mouse.
73	* In ''Franchise/{{Splatoon}}'', the humanoid Jellyfish that wander Inkopolis have wildly flexible limbs, those being their tentacles, that they can even extend. As for the most of the rest of the species around, it is actually inverted; despite the fact that almost all of the known species are humanoid invertebrates, the squid- and octopus-based Inkling and Octoling protagonists included, they all have clearly defined limbs.
74	* ''VideoGame/SuperDarylDeluxe'' -- Daryl's arms, legs, and spine are all extremely bendy, to the point where his normal walking and running animations don't look like anything a human could do. Everyone else is animated as if they have bones, setting Daryl apart.
75	* Mettaton of ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' is a robot whose arms are basically long, flexible pipes with WhiteGloves for hands. He does not have distinct elbows or wrists so much as just places that bend.
76	[[/folder]]
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78	[[folder:Web Animation]]
79	* [[http://i.imgur.com/tygabeH.gifv This is the art style used by Thought Cafe when illustrating humans and animals,]] an animation studio best known for its extensive work with the educational Website/YouTube series ''WebVideo/CrashCourse''.
80	* Used all over WebAnimation/{{the Flash Tub}}, such as with the titular "Gaming Guyz", and is the basis for a lot of [[DerangedAnimation disturbing]] gags.
81	* ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner''
82	** Bubs originally had jointed limbs, but they eventually became rubber hose limbs.
83	** Strong Bad also has them from time to time.
84	* Everyone in the ''WebAnimation/RoosterTeethAnimatedAdventures'' is drawn with these.
85	[[/folder]]
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87	[[folder:Webcomics]]
88	* The [[http://whynne.deviantart.com/art/Comic-Trolls-98357844 trollface]] comic would forever associate "schwoopy-loopy limbs" with the meme.
89	* Creator/KateBeaton's [[Webcomic/HarkAVagrant comics]].
90	* Webcomic/TheHandbookOfHeroes: Characters usually lack elbows and often knees.
91	* [[http://www.kiwisbybeat.com/minus107.html Some]] [[http://www.kiwisbybeat.com/minus108.html strips]] of ''Webcomic/{{Minus}}'' gives these to the eponymous character. In this case, it's wholly intentional, to show how ''wrong'' her movements have become.
92	* Webcomic/{{Tove}}: Dag's arms are extremely bendy and can even curl, which stands out when compared to Tove, whose arms move fairly realistically. Femhamu's arms are a bit bendy as well, although it's justified as he's part of an alien race.
93	[[/folder]]
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95	[[folder:Web Original]]
96	* Characters in the animated "Thought Bubble" segments of the ''WebVideo/CrashCourse'' series are animated this way.
97	[[/folder]]
98
99	[[folder:Western Animation]]
100	* The entire cast of ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime''.
101	** Oddly enough, when Jake gets his shape-shifting powers taken away, his body suddenly has properly jointed limbs, though this is never an issue with powerless characters like Finn.
102	** Although in the episode "The Creeps", Princess Bubblegum's arms are randomly more realistic than in other episodes.
103	** One might say this show brought about a renaissance for this art style, as it has been imitated since as part of ThinLineAnimation.
104	* Zig-zagged in ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'': most of the 2D characters have hose-like arms, but [[DependingOnTheArtist depending on the scene]] they may gently curve, bend at angles with distinguishable elbows, or some combination thereof. In general, anyone who wears clothes over at least part of their arm (the Wattersons minus Darwin) tends usually bent arms, while those who don't (Principal Brown, Tobias, Penny) tend toward curved arms. Some of the 3D characters (including Anton and Banana Joe) also use a version of this trope where their arms are just rubber ''lines'' that bend at curves only.
105	* A major exception is WesternAnimation/BettyBoop, notable for being the first character with anything resembling proper anatomy. (She couldn't have been the original MsFanservice otherwise.) She had these in her earliest appearances, but got proper elbows as part of her [[AnthropomorphicShift general humanization]].
106	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheCrumpets'', Pfff Crumpet and his StalkerWithACrush neighbor Cassandra [=McBrisk=] have arms that are normally like this.
107	* ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'' episode "The Good Ol' Days!", where Timmy and his grandpa become '30s cartoon characters.
108	* Joe Swanson from ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' has legs which seem to follow no real joints due to being a paraplegic. [[RuleOfFunny It makes sense.]]
109	* This is seen on ''WesternAnimation/FanboyAndChumChum'' quite regularly, even within a few seconds of the show's opening.
110	* Characters in ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'' who have thin limbs often make use of this. [[LampshadedTrope Lampshaded]] in the episode "Fight Fighters":
111	--> '''Dipper''': What was I thinking? I can't fight! I've never been in a fight before! Look at these noodle arms! ''[his arms make a wavy motion]''
112	* ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' episode "Hill Billy"; when Billy cheers up the chicken juggler Uncle Chokey, he uses some sort of magical record player to turn the world around them into an old-timey cartoon (complete with Grim doing an homage to ''The Skeleton Dance''), and Billy quips "Hey Mandy, [[BreakingTheFourthWall I'm from the rubberhose school of animation!]]"
113	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Gumby}}'''s legs, and those of his horse, Pokey. Justified here though as they're made of clay.
114	* ''WesternAnimation/TheMarvelousMisadventuresOfFlapjack'' has several human characters, mostly the title character of Flapjack, [[http://media.photobucket.com/image/misadventures%20of%20flapjack/skoolrocks_/flapjack8.jpg?o=87 with this.]]
115	* WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse, his predecessor, WesternAnimation/OswaldTheLuckyRabbit, WesternAnimation/FelixTheCat, WesternAnimation/FlipTheFrog -- basically any cartoon character created before 1935 will have these, as it was the standard style at the time. The 1929 Walt Disney Silly Symphonies ''WesternAnimation/TheSkeletonDance'' does this -- even on the ''skeletons'', which looks pretty odd!
116	* The ''Literature/MrMen'', especially Mr. Tickle.
117	* Olive Oyl from ''WesternAnimation/{{Popeye}}'' is like a walking rubberband.
118	%%* ''Franchise/ThePowerpuffGirls'' %%ZCE
119	* ''WesternAnimation/RazzberryJazzberryJam'': Characters’ arms and legs consist of simple black lines which gently curve rather than bend at joints. Buddy even manages to loop his arms around each other multiple times for a gag in “Tempo Trouble”.
120	* This happens from time to time on ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow''.
121	* Referenced in [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS13E9JawsWiredShut an episode]] of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', where Homer is mimicking Popeye while Marge calls for help and randomly starts flailing her wobbly arms like Olive Oyl.
122	* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' has these from time to time, as he is an invertebrate. The same thing applies to Squidward's tentacles, ''especially'' during his dance in "Culture Shock".
123	* The Warden in ''WesternAnimation/{{Superjail}}'' has these, which makes him stand out as looney even more amongst the normal-jointed inhabitants of the rest of the world.
124	* Used on occasion in ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'', especially the Creator/KennedyCartoons animated episodes.
125	* Everyone in ''WesternAnimation/WordGirl''.
126	[[/folder]]
127
128	[[folder:Real Life]]
129	* Popper Phillip Chbeeb can create this illusion with his arms.
130	[[/folder]]
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Context Main / RubberHoseLimbs