History Main / ShortTeensTallAdults

* Cartoons often reverse this for laughs. A good example is the Three Bears ''LooneyTunes'', where Junior is twice the size of his pint-sized father (and still in diapers, despite being 7½ years old!).

** Interestingly, Michelle Trachtenberg averts this trope, but by being tall proves the point of this trope aversion because unlike the adult Sarah Michelle and other cast members, she was a teen at the time.

** Interestingly, Michelle Trachtenberg being tall proves the point of this trope, as unlike the adult Sarah Michelle and other cast members, she was a teen at the time.

** Tommy Knight as Luke Smith is the only one of the teens to be played by an actual teenager and prove that real teens aren't short, which is the point of this trope.

** Tommy Knight as Luke Smith is the only one of the teens to be played by an actual teenager and prove that [[DiscreditedTrope real teens aren't short]].

** Half the women I know are somewhere around that height.

* Averted in ''ToyStory3'', 17 year old Andy is a couple inches taller than his mom. Given the prevalence of this trope, the aversion is kind of jarring.

* In Glee, the cast's height varies from those that play this trope straight and some that outright avert it. Finn is possibly the tallest member of the cast, even taller the teachers and parents.

** In Glee, the cast's height varies from those that play this trope straight and some that outright avert it. Finn is possibly the tallest member of the cast, even taller the teachers and parents.

[[caption-width-right:350:Two 'adults' and a 'teenager' (and a cat)]]

** Tommy Knight as Luke Smith is the only one of the teens to be played by an actual teenager and prove that [[Discreditedtrope real teens aren't short]].

* Averted in ''TheSarahJaneAdventures'', where the titular adult heroine's teenaged friends started out at 13 being the same height or only a bit shorter than her, and three years later are now all slightly taller than her. Size relations to the children's parents and other adults also vary, with some being the same height, some being shorter and some taller.

In RealLife, the exact opposite is true. Most people reach their full height at adolescence, which can exceed their parents' if genetics are kind, while diet and nutrition during the formative years are also important. Average teen boys usually reach their fathers' height at the age of 14 (and exceed their mothers' much sooner), while girls reach their mothers' height at around 12 or so. They might not be a whole head taller than their parents, but usually not a head shorter. Also, note that the issue here is that they are shorter than the adults around them, not that they are short in general.

* In ''StarWars'', Luke and Leia are 19, so it shouldn't apply to them, but compare them to Han. [[strike:MarkHamill]] Luke's actually of average height, but [[strike:Carrie Fisher]] Leia's a little shorter than the average woman, and [[strike:HarrisonFord]] Han's a lot taller than the average man.

* Averted in "ToyStory3", 17 year old Andy is a couple inches taller than his mom. Given the prevalence of this trope, the aversion is kind of jarring.

* Straddling the line between this and ArtistsAreNotArchitects, even 15- and 16-year-old boys in ''[=~Avatar: The Last Airbender~=]'' find themselves more than half a head shorter than almost all but the oldest and most bent over adults.

* Averted in ''GeneratorRex''; the main character is 15-years-old and at a realistic height for a teen his age.

* Although the age of most characters is questionable because of the timeframe, but this is most obvious in "AvatarTheLastAirbender" when Hakoda is onscreen. He's clearly shown to be about average when compared to the other Water Tribe men, and he's more than a head taller than his son (15 or above), daughter (14 or above), and Zuko (16 or above).

In RealLife, the exact opposite is true. Most people reach their full height at adolescence, which can exceed their parents' if genetics are kind. Average teen boys usually reach their fathers' height at the age of 14 (and exceed their mothers' much sooner), while girls reach their mothers' height at around 12 or so. They might not be a whole head taller than their parents, but usually not a head shorter. Also, note that the issue here is that they are shorter than the adults around them, not that they are short in general.

** That's also something of a TruthInTelevision, because Japanese teens tend to have their growth spurt later, by the end of high school or even in college. So it's really nothing special in fourteen years old Shinji being so short.

* In ''StarWars'', Luke and Leia are 19, so it shouldn't apply to them, but compare them to Han. Luke's actually of average height, but Leia's a little shorter than the average woman, and Han's a lot taller than the average man.