Why Roy/Will Harper’s dad bod is such a big deal for me
So I gather I’ve spent the last several hours being incoherent about
And I’ve come across as rather... hysterical.
But you have no idea what this represents to me.
For years, nearly a decade, I’ve been writing stuff about chubby/fat dad Roy Harper with Lian, stuff about him still being a hero and still being able to kick ass despite having a belly and still being considered attractive and sexy.
(Art by Rick Mays)
And yes half of that was because of my belly kink and the other half was from wanting some goddamn variety when it comes to attractive males in comics.
(Art by Levy Rasputin)
But aside from a couple of friends I felt no one else cared about this idea or even liked it. Pretty much all the artwork I have are commissions, art requests, and birthday gifts. I’ve even approached professional comic artists who’ve worked on Roy in the past, like Paul Pelletier and Drew Johnson and Rick Mays and George FREAKING Perez. I’ve only ever gotten feedback on the idea when I’ve asked other people and I’ve barely, rarely found others who would do something with the concept.
Then this happened.
I’ve made no secret I want to write professionally for DC Comics someday, and I especially want to write about Roy AND Lian AND I would love to write him having a rounder, chubbier build. But I’ve felt that would never happen because it’s so... alien and unlikely. You know DC’s higher ups practically seethe at trying different shit like this, and when I say “Different” I mean stuff that doesn’t involve mutilation and drugs and dead cats.
And then this happened.
AND THIS THIS HAPPENED.
I HAVE A CANON CHUBBY ROY IN AT LEAST ONE FORMAT. WHO IS ALSO A DAD WITH A DAUGHTER WHO’S NOT DEAD. AND HE’S STILL ATTRACTIVE. AND A HERO EVEN IF HE’S RETIRED.
Even with how open I tend to be about my kink I still feel self conscious about it because it involves characters who are rarely used in such scenarios. But seeing this makes me feel like I’m less of a freak, and that maybe my ideas aren’t so stupid or gross after all and I might actually be able to DO SOMETHING with the concept in a professional situation.
So Will Harper having a dad bod has been a genuine improvement on my self esteem and makes me feel more comfortable about myself as a writer, an asexual, and a human being.
There’d better be a shirtless scene that reaffirms this.
