Line #24 Main/BigEyesLittleEyes


1	A well-known technique in filmmaking and animation when designing a creature is to vary the size of the creature's eyes. If you want your creature to appear [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter cute]], give it eyes that are excessively large for its body. If you want your creature to appear [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever huge]], give it relatively tiny eyes. If you want it to be [[CuteGiant both huge and cute]], [[Franchise/HowToTrainYourDragon pay close attention.]]
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3	This trope could be a result of one of the many shortcuts the human brain makes when calculating its surroundings: Because most small, (relatively) harmless animals (possibly including human babies) have large eyes compared to their heads, we are programmed to find that trait cute, while most things that are liable to eat us have small eyes, so we are programmed to run when we see them.
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5	Alternately, it could just be that big eyes are much more expressive than little eyes, which leads to GoodEyesEvilEyes when used for people in animation. PuppyDogEyes are a subtrope. Compare with OpenTheIris.
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7	----
8	!!Examples of cute critters with big eyes:
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10	[[foldercontrol]]
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12	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
13	* Kirara from ''Manga/InuYasha'', both in her [[http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/2961/51619503.jpg small]] and [[http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/9007/normalkirara536.jpg large]] [[{{Sizeshifter}} form]].
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16	[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
17	* Toothless from ''Franchise/HowToTrainYourDragon'' [[CuteGiant manages to pull off both]]. His pupils contract and dilate based on his mood. It makes him [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter ridiculously adorable]].
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20	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
21	* The Muppets in ''Series/SesameStreet'' generally have big googly eyes, to appeal to children.
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24	[[folder:Literature]]
25	* Creator/LewisCarroll, known for inventing many ideas used in cartoons and modern fiction, may have been the TropeMaker in ''Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland'' in which Alice shrinks and literally encounters a puppy with large eyes.
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28	[[folder:Video Games]]
29	* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'': Often when Pokemon evolve into their next forms, their eyes usually become smaller or less pronounced as an indication of maturity. Examples: Bulbasaur to Ivysaur to Venasaur, Vulpix to Ninetales, Sunkern to Sunflora, etc. However, there are exceptions where Pokemon have larger eyes than their pre-evolved forms (Torchic and Blaziken come to mind). And Zubat has no eyes at all.
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32	[[folder:Webcomics]]
33	* The Jinxlets from ''Webcomic/StarslipCrisis''.
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36	[[folder:Western Animation]]
37	* The Parasprites from ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' have eyes half the size of their bodies and are utterly ''adorable''... until they start eating and reproducing like crazy.
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40	[[folder:Real Life]]
41	* TruthInTelevision: kittens, puppies, [[http://www.cracked.com/article_19469_7-animals-that-are-one-flaw-away-from-taking-over-world.html tarsiers]], babies.
42	** Pandas are quite large, and do in fact have small eyes. However, one of the reasons they are considered cute is probably that they have black circles around their eyes, making them look like they have bigger eyes than they do.
43	*** Same with orcas, whose defining white eyespots make them appear to have really big eyes.
44	** [[http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tk0IPWIX4SQ/UNfIWBtP1iI/AAAAAAAAAiM/5VLmCO9TEbY/s1600/murder.jpg Witness what happens when you photoshop the spots out]].
45	* Subversion: The largest eyes in the world belong to the [[GiantSquid giant squid]], which is probably among the more frightening animals in the world. This owes partly the fact that the sharp eyes of Cephalopods evolved in a complete different way to tetrapod's, just like the wings of birds and insects.
46	** Double subversion: Some people consider the giant squid to be cute [[UglyCute in its own way]]. It helps that in real life it comes off as a GentleGiant.
47	** The actual proportionally largest eyes in the animal kingdom belong to the ''Vampyroteuthis infernalis'' (which means "vampire squid from Hell"), their diameter is about 2.5 cm (1 inch), the ''Vampyroteusthis'' only reaches a maximum lenght of 30cm (1 ft) including the tentacles (the body only reaches 15 cm) and [[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Vampyroteuthis_infernalis.jpg/640px-Vampyroteuthis_infernalis.jpg looks like this]].
48	* Jumping spiders have a significant following as the cutest of spiders (which you may or may not consider DamnedByFaintPraise) thanks to their large eyes and small, stumpy proportions.
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51	!!Examples of huge critters with little eyes:
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53	[[foldercontrol]]
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55	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
56	* The [[http://www.starwars.com/databank/creature/sandoaquamonster/?id=bts Sando Aqua Monster]] from ''Franchise/StarWars Episode I: Film/ThePhantomMenace''.
57	* Used with a twist in the first ''Film/JurassicPark'', where the dinosaurs have little eyes, like they did in nature. Then the ''T. rex'' gets right up next to the jeep and peers in, and that eye that looked so small from a distance turns out to the size of the kids' heads, which re-emphasizes the sense of scale.
58	* The original ''Film/{{Gamera}}''. Subsequent movies in the series reworked the [[PeopleInRubberSuits rubber suit]] to give him bigger eyes, and the sense of scale is lost.
59	* As the TropeCodifier for [[{{kaiju}} giant Japanese monster films]], it makes sense that Franchise/{{Godzilla}} would have these.
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62	[[folder:Western Animation]]
63	* Big Dog from ''WesternAnimation/TwoStupidDogs'' has beady little eyes under his bangs.
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66	[[folder:Real Life]]
67	* Truth in Television again: elephants, whales, big dinosaurs
68	* Subversion: Moles, naked mole rats, or any other subterranean animal.
69	[[/folder]]

Context Main / BigEyesLittleEyes