Character Files: Bonnie O'Hare part 1/3 (Re-uploaded)

    Bonnie has always been a character where her design has been the most displeasing to me. For context, when I first began designing the prototype characters, Bonnie wasn't even a thing. There wasn't a mean girl character to start out with, the prototype characters were always setting up the story with a drastically different conflict from the end product. So at its conception, Bonnie never existed.

    It may have been Hamilton fever that led me down to the path of mean girl characters or The Owl House. Probably more on the side of Mean Girls and Heathers. Bonnie was a character that was originally inspired by those 1980s-2000s mean girl characters from my childhood, design wise. On paper, Bonnie doesn't act like those '90s mean girls and that was never my original idea with this character. What makes Cobalt, Midge, and Tora mean, isn't what makes Bonnie mean. So designing this character was a long and difficult process, considering my 1980s-2000s inspiration. Then again, I don't particularly care for the mean girl trope, I never have. I find that it makes the more effeminate characters be these snobby people that makes people who are effeminate feel bad for liking things like cheer leading, makeup, or fashion. I've never seen this trope handled with respect, especially since they always give these characters some form of mental health issues and it is either portrayed as glamorous or a way to be beautiful. I don't hate mean girl characters, I just find that the media treats high school girls in a disgusting manner and doesn't spread any positive awareness of real life issues.

    Furthermore, Bonnie is mostly just me reliving the 2000s or at least remembering shows like Hannah Montana, Kim Possible, or movies like Mean Girls. Quite literally, Bonnie is a parody of the mean girl trope, as are a lot of Forest City characters. Bonnie is that classic girl in pink who uses social media and has the attention of the school. She is rich and pretty, but has a dark side to her. Parody was always what Bonnie was intended for, but that doesn't mean being rich and pretty or having family issues should be treated as glamorous. I never intended for this, Bonnie is very clearly the villain of this story, or should I say antagonist, I do see her having a redemption arc, but it has to be done in a very specific way for it to work. At the time I am writing this, I am working on Book 5, so we'll have to see, the future is uncertain, but Bonnie has two paths in life to take. Let's get into the character designs...

Incarnation 1: This one dates back to September 18, 2020. A simple bust shot of Bonnie, I definitely was trying to get her eyes right in this image. The problem child was and always will be Bonnie's muzzle/snout. In this sketch she looks more like Spuds Mackenzie than an actual rabbit. I also don't like the idea of Bonnie having one eye visible, I mean it is plot relevant, and they need to be seen at all times. I do understand that in real life rabbits have eyes on the side of their heads, but in Forest City, I completely threw out any realism and made the characters anthro. Bonnie's hair hasn't changed that much, but I have debated giving her an undercut. I actually prefer the cotton fluff tail, despite this being inaccurate to real life rabbits, but you can't stop me!

Incarnation 2: The first full body drawing of Bonnie, and oh boy. This one was done on October 7, 2020, a trend that you'll see is that Bonnie was drawn a lot during October 2020, probably because I was stuck at home. There is a lot that transferred from the last design to this one, like the general eye shape, the Bull Terrier nose, and the dress. I like the sleeves of this dress and the little t-shirt sleeves are also cute. Some problem children from this design include: polka dots, the dress, and that weird scrunchie thing that ties her ears back like a ponytail. I genuinely cannot tell you how I feel about this design.

Incarnation 3: This design takes a lot from the last design, not much has changed actually. This one was made on October 12, 2020, a few days after the second one. The purse is new, the bracelet is new, overall this one is just me recreating the last piece to suit the new style (at the time that is). The problems seem to be the same as the predecessors, but some new ones have appeared. Those being: the purse, which only appears here, I believe, the silhouette isn't great either, kind of just boring and flat, the dress...the body language isn't anything special either (I always imagine her with a hand on her hip, looking at her fingernails?). I don't think that her pose is threatening enough either, I want her to tower over people, even when she is standing near Cobalt who is taller than her. Love it or hate it, Bonnie's tail is strange enough as it is.