WerePups and Fantasy Reborns

Somewhat recently there was a bit of a hilarious Twitter outburst around this tweet in which someone witness a subway rider pulling a tiny "goblin" out of a bag and realized it was dressed exactly like its owner. This, in and of itself, is a perfectly weird and wonderful thing to happen that requires no further information to enjoy.

However, if you did want to dig further you would discover a large subculture of these creatures. The primary source of this style of doll is called WerePups - the "original Real Werewolf Baby." Artist Charity Eriksen makes these bizarre creations by hand. You can read more about her process here but that's not the end of the story...

To fully comprehend all this, we need to start with Reborn Dolls - hyperrealistic dolls representing regular human babies. They are often at rest or peaceful staring ahead. These have been around since the late 30's and can often be used as a therapeutic device to deal with a lost child. It is both creepy and incredibly sad, depending on how you look at it. Out of that practice came Fantasy Reborn Dolls - hyperrealistic babies depicting infant versions of all kinds of characters. WerePups may be focusing on Werewolves but you can easily find a Na'vi Avatar Baby, an upset Vampire baby or a House Elf baby.

So, from that one tweet encounter you can slide deep into a subculture of the Internet that mixes fantasy obsession with a flair of arrested development in motherhood. The Internet is truly a strange place.