History Main / YoungerThanTheyLook

* Dorothy Spinner in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'' looks like she's in her late teens and early twenties DependingOnTheArtist and is shown living by herself at one point (plus she especially looks mature for her age in her depiction on the cover to the ''Vertigo Jam'' one-shot), but is indicated to be a minor during Rachel Pollack's run, where Cliff Steele tells Dorothy she's "too young" to know about phone sex lines in the 68th issue and the recap page of the 70th issue explicitly states she is 14. She would not canonically reach adulthood until John Arcudi's run, where she was rendered comatose since the events of Pollack's run and was ultimately TakenOffLifeSupport at the series' conclusion, as it was stated that the incident that put her in a coma occurred four years prior to the events of Arcudi's run, meaning that she was at least 18 years old when Robotman begrudgingly allowed her to die.

* ''Webcomic/DemonKingGF'': Zenith, a [[HalfHumanHybrid half-human/half-demon child]] of Alvida, the titular [[SheIsTheKing demon king]], and the human Hero grows up to become an AmazonianBeauty [[SmallParentHugeChild who towers over her parents]] at just ''11 years old'', as shown in [[https://twitter.com/pcmaniac88/status/1707796906720850359 one comic]]. [[https://twitter.com/pcmaniac88/status/1732785246364713211 A later comic]], set when Zenith is still shown as a little girl, has Alvida and Hero discuss how unusually fast she's growing, implying that her actual age at the time is still younger than how she appears.

* ''Webcomic/DemonKingGF'': Zenith, a [[HalfHumanHybrid half-human/half-demon child]] of Alvida, the titular [[SheIsTheKing demon king]], and the human Hero grows up to become an AmazonianBeauty [[SmallParentHugeChild who towers over her parents]] at just ''11 years old'', as shown in [[https://twitter.com/pcmaniac88/status/1707796906720850359 one comic]]. [[https://twitter.com/pcmaniac88/status/1732785246364713211 A later comic]], set when Zenith is still shown as a little girl, has Alvida and Hero discuss how fast she's growing at her age, implying that her actual age at the time is still younger than how she appears.

* Dorothy Spinner in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'' looks like she's in her late teens and early twenties DependingOnTheArtist and is shown living by herself at one point (plus she especially looks mature for her age in her depiction on the cover to the ''Vertigo Jam'' one-shot), but is indicated to be a minor during Rachel Pollack's run, where Cliff Steele tells Dorothy she's "too young" to know about phone sex lines in the 68th issue and the recap page of the 70th issue explicitly states she is 14.

* Dorothy Spinner in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'' looks like she's in her late teens and early twenties DependingOnTheArtist and is shown living by herself at one point (plus she especially looks mature for her age in her depiction on the cover to the ''Vertigo Jam'' one-shot), but is indicated to be a minor during Rachel Pollack's run, where Cliff Steele objects to Dorothy being exposed to the sexually remaindered spirits at George and Marion's home because she's "too young" and the recap page of the 70th issue explicitly states she is 14.

* Dorothy Spinner in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'' looks like she's in her late teens and early twenties DependingOnTheArtist and is shown living by herself at one point (plus she especially looks mature for her age in her depiction on the cover to the ''Vertigo Jam'' one-shot''), but is indicated to be a minor during Rachel Pollack's run, where Cliff Steele objects to Dorothy being exposed to the sexually remaindered spirits at George and Marion's home because she's "too young" and the recap page of the 70th issue explicitly states she is 14.

* Dorothy Spinner in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'' looks like she's in her late teens and early twenties DependingOnTheArtist and is shown living by herself at one point, but is indicated to be a minor during Rachel Pollack's run, where Cliff Steele objects to Dorothy being exposed to the sexually remaindered spirits at George and Marion's home because she's "too young" and the recap page of the 70th issue explicitly states she is 14.

* Badrock from ''ComicBook/{{Youngblood}}'' is a 12 foot tall rock monster. At the start of the original series he's in his very early teens.

* ''Webcomic/{{Beloved}}'' begins when Wei Wei hooks up with a younger woman she met at a bar. The "woman" turns out to be a 16-year-old girl.

* The "old man" in "A Descent Into the Maelstrom" by Creator/EdgarAllanPoe is this as well as LockedIntoStrangeness.

[[folder:Web Original]]
* ''Literature/ChakonaSpace'': Shadowcrest is only 12 or 13 when she is critically wounded. After being "[[LongevityTreatment processed]]", she is once again intact but she looks like she's 20.
** Leanna and most other artificially-grown slaves wind up suffering this trope for a while.
* Eve of ''Literature/DragomirsDiary'' was born a baby, but within months grew to the size of a teenager. This may have something to do with the story being set in a video game -- or it could be something ''far more sinister.''
* The {{creepypasta}} Literature/JeffTheKiller? He's only '''thirteen'''! Then again, your bound to not look your age if you survived getting your face bleached and eyelids removed.

* The protagonists of ''Literature/StoneBurners'' discover that [[spoiler:Olivia]] is much younger than expected while dealing with [[spoiler:John Doe]].
* In ''Literature/SuperStories'', [[spoiler:Veldron's robot duplicates are always built to look older and less attractive than him. This is because, when given the opportunity to make a false image, most people would assume the opposite]].
* The ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'' does this:
** Many, many newly emergent Exemplars look much older than they really are, due to the wish-fulfillment aspect of the Exemplar power. Fey, along with most of the other Venus, Inc., models, are frequently described as having bodies that look very mature for a teen. Similarly, Crimson Comet!!! is thirteen when she first arrives, but is described as having the body of a 20-year-old and the face of a 17-year-old. Sadly, she doesn't seem to have the mental part of the Exemplar powerset, and in fact seems to have [[ParodySue the maturity of an exceptionally dim 11-year-old]].
** One of the school psychiatrists at the Whateley Academy is in his mid-thirties (or so, based on author descriptions) but looks like Dr. Bellows from "I Dream of Jeannie", so he appears to be 55 or 60. One protagonist has even researched the psychiatrist, and has {{lampshade|Hanging}}d this.
** 15-year-old Chou Lee (Bladedancer) apparently looks like Zhang Ziyi.
** [[spoiler: Belphoebe]] is a clone of [[spoiler: Jobe's ideal girlfriend]] with the memories of [[spoiler: Belphegor. Phoebe is then legally entered as Jobe and Belphegor's daughter, with Jobe the mother (as he accidentally used the Drow transformation serum on himself and is [[GenderBender turning into the aforementioned ideal girlfriend]]). Phoebe therefore ReallyWasBornYesterday.]]

SuperTrope to BornAsAnAdult, ReallyWasBornYesterday. Compare CompulsorySchoolAge, MistakenAge, AgeInappropriateDress. Contrast AnimationAnatomyAging. See also ReallySeventeenYearsOld (where someone is younger than they ''claim'' to be).

* Dorothy Spinner in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'' looks like she's in her late teens and early twenties DependingOnTheArtist and is shown living by herself at one point, but is indicated to be a minor during Rachel Pollack's run, where Cliff Steele objects to Dorothy being exposed to the sexually remaindered spirits at George and Marion's home because she's "too young" and the recap page of one issue explicitly states she is 14.

*** Obi-Wan Kenobi is 57 in ''Film/ANewHope'', but looks to be in his seventies. What makes this even more odd is that in the ''Series/ObiWanKenobi'' series, which takes place only nine years before ''A New Hope'', Obi-Wan barely looks any older than he was in ''Revenge of the Sith'' ten years prior, meaning he must have aged pretty rapidly in that nine year period. Many have chalked it up to the harsh living on the deserts of Tatooine. Ironically, Creator/AlecGuinness himself is an example, as he was only in his early sixties when ''A New Hope'' was filmed. Creator/EwanMcGregor was in his early fifties during the production on the television series, only a few years younger than Obi-Wan was in ''A New Hope''.
*** Owen and Beru Lars looked to be in their twenties or thirties in the prequels, placing them somewhere in their forties or fifties in ''A New Hope'' (According to the ''Legends'' continuity, Owen was 52 and Beru was 47 in ''A New Hope'', which is presumably still the case in Canon.), but they look to be in their sixties at least. Like Obi-Wan, they were likely prematurely aged by Tatooine's harsh conditions. They do look a little older in ''Obi-Wan Kenobi'', but like the title character, it's hard to believe they aged that much in nine years.

** Padmé in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' is a [[AChildShallLeadThem 14-year-old]] queen who wears a lot of ceremonial makeup and elaborate costumes, apparently to disguise the fact that she's so young. Even still, she's actually the elected leader, so the people must be well aware of her age. It doesn't help that Creator/NataliePortman was around 17 during the filming of ''The Phantom Menace.''

* [[ScaryBlackMan Robert "Bobby"]] [[AntiVillain Jacks]], [[AntiHero Adam Dodd]], and [[HotLibrarian Nicole Husher]] from ''Roleplay/SurvivalOfTheFittest'' are all teenagers, yet they look like young adults. Bobby is a large, muscular, professional boxer who has spent almost his entire life devoted to the sport, causing him to look much older; Dodd had always looked a bit older than he actually was, but the horrors of the first game added a great deal to that; Nicole, meanwhile, developed very quickly due to an early onset of puberty, causing her to appear to be a few years older than she actually is, with [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome predictable results]] when she reached middle school-age.

* In ''ComicBook/StarWarsRepublic'', there was a point in the Clone Wars where some Separatists were cloning Nikto, presumably to supplement the droids. The facility was discovered and went under siege, and the cloners decided to respond by bumping up the growth rate to get as many new adults as possible. This didn't work out too well in the end.

* The {{creepypasta}} WebOriginal/JeffTheKiller? He's only '''thirteen'''!

* From the same website, WebVideo/TheRapCritic was born in ''1992'' and is the youngest of the Website/ThatGuyWithTheGlasses crew, making him 26 as of 2018, despite appearing to be in his early 30s. He was only ''18-years-old'' in his earliest videos (the ones where he has no facial hair). See it and you won't believe it.

* PlayedForDrama with M.M.'s BrattyTeenageDaughter in ''ComicBook/TheBoys''. She has the looks and mentality of a young adult, but near the end of the series it's revealed that she's chronologically twelve but aged at an accelerated rate due to the [[SuperSerum Compound V]] in her system. By the end of the series she's quietly living on her own with no issues. [[spoiler: Regardless of her physical age it still [[WhamLine hits like a truck]] finding out a ''12-year-old'' did [[AbusiveParents mother]]-[[ParentalIncest daughter]] porn.]]

* Dorothy Spinner in ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'' looks like she's in her late teens and early twenties DependingOnTheArtist and is shown living by herself at one point, but is indicated to be a minor during Rachel Pollack's run, where Cliff Steele objects to Dorothy being exposed to the sexual spirits at George and Marion's home because she's "too young" and the recap page of one issue explicitly states she is 14.

Some characters are OlderThanTheyLook ([[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld much older, even]]). Some, meanwhile, are younger. Maybe they're [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots robots]], {{clon|ingBlues}}es, some other kind of [[ArtificialHuman artificial construct]], or just unhealthy. Maybe there's a [[PlotRelevantAgeUp supernatural reason, such as a curse]]. [[BeleagueredBureaucrat Or maybe they are under such constant stress and work that they are aged prematurely by it]]. Or they're just overdeveloped. One way or another, this character may look like an adult(/teenager/pre-teen), and even [[WiseBeyondTheirYears act and talk like one]], but chronologically speaking, they aren't.