History Main / StylizedForTheViewer

* Subverted with ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls''. Multiple jokes and references make it clear they really ''don't'' have fingers or noses, and have freakishly large, bug-like eyes. In fact, they're ostracized by their classmates for this very reason.

* Shinigami eyes in ''Franchise/DeathNote'' are [[RedEyesTakeWarning red eyes]] characters receive when they take a DeadlyUpgrade. WordOfGod is that it's stylistic and InUniverse their eyes don't change color.

* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'': Although Koichi Hirose is canonically 157cm (roughly 5'2"), he is always presented to the audience as being comically small, sometimes barely taller than the protagonist's knees. This same effect also happens to villains who have been beaten and are no longer a threat, they start out as normal sized and after defeat shrink to be even slightly shorter than Koichi.

* The characters of ''Manga/FreeCollarsKingdom'' are regular stray cats and they're viewed and treated as such by the humans they interact with, but the cats see each other as [[CatGirl catboys/catgirls]].
* ''Manga/SkullFaceBooksellerHondaSan'' is a semi-autobiographical manga about employees at a bookstore. To protect their anonymity, the author not only [[RomanAClef changes all names]], but draws herself as ''a [[DemBones living skeleton]]'' and the others as always wearing bizarre masks. No one ever reacts to either, and the series is otherwise entirely mundane.
* ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'': One of Kaguya's "personalities" is Kaguya-chan, a version of her that acts very cutely and childish thanks to feeling a strong sense of happiness and escapism plus sleep deprivation. She's drawn in a SuperDeformed art style, making her look much smaller and child-like; the narrator however [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] that this trope is in effect and to everyone else she just looks like an absent-minded Kaguya. Taken to a hilarious degree when Shirogane copies her in an attempt to communicate with her -- at first the audience sees two adorable SuperDeformed characters repeating each other's names, but then CuttingBackToReality shows Iino bewildered by two young adults waving their arms around like goons.
* The Nakano sisters of ''Manga/TheQuintessentialQuintuplets'' have their whole gimmick based on the fact that no one can tell them apart, [[AllegedLookalikes even though they have different hair colors, hairstyles and voices]]. As such, their having different hair colors is only for the reader's convenience; in-universe their hair is meant to all be the same shade.
* Chibi-Neko from ''Manga/TheStarOfCottonland'' is a regular kitten and the human characters treat her as one, but she's only ever depicted to the audience as a CatGirl due to her strong desire to [[BecomeARealBoy become human]].
* ''Manga/ThighHighReiwaHanamaruAcademy'': The manga is a typical gag moe series, but all the cute girls the show would focus on are now boys, ranging from {{Hunk}}s to {{Bishonen}}, though they still wear things like bras, panties, and skirts. It's unclear whether the characters are actually women being drawn as men for the benefit of the audience, or if the story is set in a world with very different gender roles (despite the characters' feminine clothing and mannerisms, they still have traditionally masculine given names).

* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'': Hobbes appears as a FunnyAnimal to Calvin, but a stuffed toy to everyone else. Whether Hobbes only comes to life when he's alone with Calvin or is InvisibleToNormals is [[RiddleForTheAges left for the reader to decide]], and is one of the reasons given by Bill Watterson for not allowing merchandising or adaptations.
* Played with in the "Flatter-matic" camera plotline in ''ComicStrip/AngusOg'' where the camera prints out pictures that look more realistic than the usual caricature art-style. The characters get confused, and the reader is supposed to think it is [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall because of the style]] switch, [[BaitAndSwitch but then]], it turns out that these pictures are just incredibly flattering.

* ''Literature/RebornAsAVendingMachineINowWanderTheDungeon'': Despite being a vending machine, Boxxo is depicted in illustrations as having large eyes. However, his eyes are only there to humanize him, as otherwise his face just looks like transparent glass to everyone else InUniverse.
* ''Literature/SoImASpiderSoWhat'': The protagonist is reborn in the body of a spider monster, but she is presented in illustrations and in the manga and anime adaptations as a relatively cute animal: big anime eyes, human mouth, humanoid movements using her frontal legs as arms. The viewers are led to believe this is her true appearance or at least to never think about it. However, whenever the story is shown from someone else's perspective, it's revealed that she is actually as monstrous as the other spiders, and her cute traits are just there for the viewer to have an easier time empathizing with her.

* Some dialogue in ''VideoGame/AnimalCrossing'' implies a female villager is wearing a skirt despite the fact she is [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal bottomless]] and only has a long shirt on. On the other hand, dialogue also has villagers noticing their lack of pants.
* All blood in ''Franchise/{{Danganronpa}}'' is [[BlackBlood colored hot pink,]] but it's still described as red in dialogue. It's also fair to assume that the adult citizens of Towa City in ''VideoGame/DanganronpaAnotherEpisodeUltraDespairGirls'' aren't actually [[FacelessMasses blue and pink silhouettes]] and minor characters in ''Anime/Danganronpa3: Despair Arc'' don't have translucent blue heads.
** In the SpiritualSuccessor game ''VideoGame/MasterDetectiveArchivesRainCode'', this trope is used as a massively important plot point. [[spoiler: The pink blood is not just an artistic choice like fans of the series would believe, but is just as weird in universe as in real life.]]

* Subverted in ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'' when it comes to Rika's voice. Despite being under thirteen, she can sound like an adult when she becomes serious or solemn. It turns out the voice changes happen in-series but her friends ignore it.
* In the ''VideoGame/SplinterCell'' series, Sam Fisher is usually depicted with his signature glowing NightVisionGoggles, sometime combined with other green lights. Clearly this is purely for the benefit of the player, as constantly emitting bright lights would be a terrible hindrance in Sam's line of work.
* The ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' series contains a minor example of this. The comic book-inspired Greek Saga has its protagonist, Kratos, as a 7'6'' behemoth with a cinderblock for a jawline, ghostly white skin, and blades as long and thick as his arms. The Norse Saga, however, shifted to a much more realistic art style. Kratos' height is now 6'4'', his features are less exaggerated, his skin is a ''little'' closer to a natural shade, and his blades are now smaller with a more grounded design.

* Creator/AndrewHussie has stated that the images in ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' are merely stylistic representations of the characters that don't accurately portray their actual size, shape, or race. This makes sense regarding the sprites, which are obviously stylised videogame-style images, but this trope apparently holds true even for the 'hero mode' images where the characters are drawn with cartoony, but semi-realistic proportions. As a result, it's very easy to find wildly differing character designs for the characters, sharing only the most basic identifying details.

* InUniverse for ''Webcomic/ScandinaviaAndTheWorld''. We see the Nordic countries as themselves, but America sees four Swedens. This is, of course, a reference to how Americans tend to see these countries as interchangeable.
* It's implied in ''Webcomic/{{Drowtales}}'' that the glow of [[RedEyesTakeWarning of tainted eyes]] and the white spirals seen in the eyes of certain characters who are [[OurDemonsAreDifferent tainted in a specific way]] aren't visible to the other characters are and purely for the reader's benefit. This is most obvious when shapeshifter Ariel [[http://www.drowtales.com/mainarchive.php?sid=10319 pretends to be]] [[http://www.drowtales.com/mainarchive.php?sid=10334 her crazy half-sister Kalki]] and changes her eye color to red but lacks the glow and spirals but no one except Kiel (who not only has them but [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou has fourth-wall knowledge]]) seems to notice this. For comparison, the red glow seen in the pupils of all drow was originally thought to be this until [[http://www.drowtales.com/mainarchive.php?sid=5332 another character specifically pointed it out]] in the eyes of Liriel, who looks like a dark elf but has the glow like a drow, meaning it's likely [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapetum_lucidum eyeshine]].
* In ''Webcomic/AvasDemon'', the Hosts don't have strangely-shaped irises in-universe and are only there to indicate to the viewer of their true nature.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'' has a brief gag that implies that the show's various FrogMen bear a far greater resemblance to the real animals than the show's artstyle suggests.
* Subverted with ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls''. Multiple jokes and references make it clear they really ''don't'' have fingers or noses, and have abnormally large eyes. In fact, they're ostracized by their classmates for this very reason.
* Also subverted in ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy'', which frequently jokes and implies that the characters aren't stylized and really are supposed to look exactly the way they're drawn. The most obvious example comes in "O-Ed Eleven", when Ed picks up the SmartBall to figure out that Eddy's head in profile forms the basis for a treasure map, with the three black dots behind Eddy's temple filling in for a neighborhood landmark and the little indented "x" in his ear denoting the spot where the treasure is buried.
* Original Toys/{{LEGO}} animated shows such as ''WesternAnimation/{{Ninjago}}'' and ''Toys/NexoKnights'' typically retain their stylised minifigure appearance as part of the brand. However, due to the fact that the art style doesn't impact the aforementioned shows in any way, it's implied that the characters are actually human in-universe. This doesn't apply to ''WesternAnimation/TheLEGOMovie'', in which the characters are treated as LEGO minifigures in-universe as well.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' often jokes that the choppy, cutout animation is ''only'' perceived by the audience, and the characters see ''themselves'' as real people. The ninth season's ''Free Willzyx'' pulls off a FourthWallPortrait [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/southpark/images/c/cd/The_Group.jpg of the main characters]] and the eighteenth season's ''Grounded Vindaloop'' ends in a MediumShiftGag where the live-action boys suggest the ''South Park'' animation style is just crummy graphics in a virtual reality setting. There are exceptions, like the freshly-shaved boys being unable to distinguish one another in ''Super Best Friends'', which are done for RuleOfFunny.
* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': Squidward goes anywhere [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal typically pantsless]] (except on occasion where he may have a different clothing). And his... [[AnimalsLackAttributes genitals are never seen]] [[note]]As a cephalopod, he probably doesn't even have external genitalia.[[/note]]. A few episodes play with this, such as in "Bossyboots", where Squidward, in anger of being a mascot, tears off his costume, only for the police to immediately come to him and put a fine note on his crotch.
* Gems in ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' cannot [[VoluntaryShapeshifting shapeshift]] their gemstones like the rest of the bodies. However, when they fuse together to make much larger individuals, the gemstones appear to grow along with them (for instance, Jasper's gem seems to grow from a few inches to bigger than a watermelon when she forms Malachite). The show's staff have specified they're not literally changing size, it's purely for the sake of visibility.

* ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'': One of Kaguya's "personalities" is Kaguya-chan, a version of her that acts very cutely and childish thanks to feeling a strong sense of happiness and escapism plus sleep deprivation. She's drawn in a SuperDeformed art style, making her look much smaller and child-like; the narrator however [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] that this trope is in effect and to everyone else she just looks like an absent-minded Kaguya. Taken to a hilarious degree when Shirogane copies her in an attempt to communicate with her -- at first the audience sees two adorable SuperDeformed characters repeating each other's names, but then CuttingBackToReality shows Iino bewildered by two young adults behaving in a really creepy manner.

* ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'': One of Kaguya's "personalities" is Kaguya-chan, a version of her that acts very cutely and childish thanks to feeling a strong sense of happiness and escapism plus sleep deprivation. She's drawn in a SuperDeformed art style, making her look much smaller and child-like; the narrator however [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] that this trope is in effect and to everyone else she just looks like an absent-minded Kaguya. Taken to a hilarious degree when Shirogane copies her in an attempt to communicate with her -- the readers see two adorable SuperDeformed characters repeating each other's names, but then CuttingBackToReality shows Iino bewildered by two young adults behaving in a really creepy manner.

* ''Literature/SoImASpiderSoWhat'': The protagonist is reborn in the body of a spider monster, but she is presented in illustrations and in the manga and anime adaptations as a relatively cute animal: big anime eyes, human mouth, humanoid movements using her frontal legs as arms. The viewers are led to believe this is her true appearance; however, whenever the story is shown from someone else's perspective, it's revealed that she is actually as monstrous as the other spiders, and her cute traits are just there for the viewer to have an easier time empathizing with her.

* ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'': One of Kaguya's "personalities" is Kaguya-chan, a version of her that acts very cutely and childish thanks to feeling a strong sense of happiness and escapism plus sleep deprivation. She's drawn in a SuperDeformed art style, making her look much smaller and child-like; the narrator however [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] that this trope is in effect and to everyone else she just looks like an absent-minded Kaguya. Taken to a hilarious degree when Shirogane copies her in an attempt to communicate with her -- while the readers see two adorable SuperDeformed characters repeating each other's names, Iino sees two young adults behaving in a really creepy manner.

* Often on ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'' Older Ted confesses that things look different in his flashbacks because that's how it seemed to him at the time.

* The ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' series contains a minor example of this. The comic book-inspired Greek Saga has it protagonist, Kratos, as a 7’6’’ behemoth with a cinderblock for a jawline, ghostly white skin, and blades as long and thick as his arms. The Norse Saga, however, shifted to a much more realistic art style. Kratos’ height is now reduced to 6’4’’, his proportions are less exaggerated, his skin is a ''little'' closer to a natural shade, and his blades are now much smaller with more grounded designs.

* The ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' series contains a minor example of this. The comic book-inspired Greek Saga has it protagonist, Kratos, as a 7’6’’ behemoth with a cinderblock for a jawline, ghostly white skin, and blades as long and thick as his arms. In the Norse Saga, however, shifted to a much more realistic art style. Kratos’ height is now reduced to 6’4’’, his proportions are less exaggerated, his skin is a ''little'' closer to a natural shade, and his blades are now much smaller with more grounded designs.