Exclusive to NWN, Iris Ophelia's ongoing showcase of all things stylish in SL
Last week, I posted the first five names on our Hottest Second Life Male Avatars list for 2009, and for the first time since we started this annual event in 2007, comments had to be closed -- the drama over the selections got a little bit too fierce. This series has never come without its share of controversy, but for some reason, this year has been off the charts.
Maybe that was inevitable. The notion of "Hot Male Avatars" means a lot of different things to different people -- some see it as pure eye candy, others as an opportunity to learn about interesting guys on the grid that they may not have met otherwise. Others are simply lobbying for friends and partners, others claim it reinforces norms and standards of male beauty without allowing for much deviation, others that it's yet another Second Life popularity contest, and so on.
But whatever your interpretation, remember that this list is as subjective as "hotness" itself-- and keep reading for the final five hottest males of 2009!
Picture from Rance Alva's Flickr stream
There's a bit of a running joke in Second Life that everyone is either a DJ, a model, or a CEO, and as such it can take a lot to make an impression in any of those fields. Rance Alva is definitely one of the most talented and dedicated DJs in Second Life. That's only half of Rance's charm, however. He's got a bit of a lanky-framed street geek in his personal style, and Rance was well accessorized before it was really expected of guys. He's laid-back, friendly, and a pretty solid epitome of coolness.
Selos Dae is probably one of the most unconventional looking guys we've had on these lists (then again, sometimes guys in underwear get a little bit dull, and I like to change these things up!) Selos is actually the creator behind one of my all-time favorite alternative skin-lines, Trap [SLURL]. It wouldn't be fair to say that Trap specializes in any one kind of skin, though if you're looking for a demonic, fully tattooed, goth, punk, neko, elf, geisha, or any combination thereof skin, it's a place you should really consider. Selos is easily one of the most creative and adventurous designers in SL, and his avatar is usually no exception. He's absolutely awesome and completely unique.
Daniel Luchador may just top Selos on the "alternative" and "unique" meters. Daniel was actually the source of a large portion of the controversy surrounding the list this year. Not by his own design, of course, but because many people were very interested in voting for him in to promote male avatars outside of the hotness norm. (And in other, far less noble cases, to attempt to game the list, 4chan-style.)
The point that both these groups missed is that I picked the initial list of finalists from the nominees given. If I didn't think that Daniel should be on the list, there were more than 60 other names I could have replaced him with. I don't believe in popularity contests, and ever since the beginning of these list, I've reserved some veto rights for everything except People's Choice.
So why Daniel? The fact is that creativity is hot. Period. You don't need to be a swarthy Lothario or a quirky-chic emo boy to be hot, especially not in Second Life. You don't need to, and shouldn't, confine yourself to any norms in SL if you don't want to. I've said it before: this contest is about being what you are and doing it well, and Daniel pulls off the octopus-covered clown-rabbit look better than anyone else in Second Life ever. Even if you aren't sold on his sense of style, you should check out his store, Root Beer [SLURL], which specializes in some very exquisitely sculpted and built items, in particular houses and furniture, with real personality, and which also happens to be situated in one of the earliest and best shopping sims, Tableau.
Picture from Donald Feld's Flickr stream
This might just be one of the hottest pictures on the list this year. Donald Feld is probably one of the hottest avatars of all three years, for that matter. I'll admit he fits more of a conventionally sexy mold than I normally include, but I really couldn't deny him a spot. Earlier when I mentioned that everyone in SL seems to be a model, a DJ or a CEO, Donald is yet another exception to those who take one of those roles frivolously. In a field of male models where the correlation between muscles and style is often inversely proportional, Donald really breaks the mold.
Picture from Kaz Nayar's Flickr stream
The hottest 10 male avatars list, year after year, is overwhelmingly filled with really talented and creative people, and Kaz Nayar is perfectly in line with that trend. Kaz is a very talented Second Life artist, manipulating SL snapshots into immaculately Photoshopped works of digital art, usually featuring beautiful female avatars with heavy shading and moody lighting. His Flickr stream, linked above, is a screenshot ogler's paradise. That's not all that Kaz does, though. He's also the creator of the store Nayar [SLURL] which, while still relatively small, offers chic casual womenswear, and is located on the same sim as semi-finalist CK Winx's store, Luck Inc.
Speaking of semi finalists, this year I want to give a few honorable mentions. It was harder than ever before to narrow the list down, and CK is one of many hot guys that I had to call out, even though they didn't make the final list. Gabe Bookmite's blog is one of my favorites and is a great source of fashion inspiration for anyone, Trace Osterham is the camera behind the moving NoH8SL project this past summer, and last but not least, our second most controversial semifinalist, Morrigan Denimore, who is the graceful gentleman designer behind the androgynous gothic clothing of The Black Canary [SLURL]. (I have to stop now, or I might just go on to list every original nominee!)
So who do you think is the hottest of the hot? Look out for the People's Choice poll next week and be heard!
Iris Ophelia has been featured in the New York Times and has spoken about SL-based design at the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan.
I find it very hard to believe people tried to WIN THE GAME!1!!!!!!11!! by voting for Mr. Luchador, YOU met the guy, he has the charisma!
And congratulations to Rance who is an awesome guy and great DJ and the rest of the boys in working so hard to construct your avatars in such a way that make SL a lovelier place.
Posted by: Gattina | Friday, February 05, 2010 at 06:53 AM
This is really what's considered "hot" by women of SL? Tattoos, the bad-boy look? When I designed my shape when I joined SL back in 2006, I went with what I would look like in RL if I had a personal trainer and a working thyroid - in essence, what i looked like when I got out of the Army (but with longer hair). My skin and hair purchases that followed (once I decided to buy into this world a bit), and my wardrobe (with the exception of costumes) also follow this principle. These guys... just don't look realistic, don't look like someone you'd see on the street. Meh. I've got a wife, same one in RL and SL, and she loves the way I look (in both), so I guess it doesn't matter, really.
Posted by: Buckaroo Mu | Friday, February 05, 2010 at 11:38 AM
@Buckaroo Mu: I'm curious, do you feel like the advent of photography has made painting obsolete? Or, to be more blunt, please explain to me why realism is the only acceptable rubric for attractiveness?
Actually, given your own words, it isn't - You establish in your last sentence that the thing that matters to you is that someone else (your wife) finds you attractive. You've exactly said that beauty is a subjective process, and you managed to say it moments after saying that this list is wrong because it doesn't meet your own standards.
It's worth keeping an open mind sometimes, Buckaroo. I'm sure that your own style has changed over the years - you've seen something you didn't own and thought "oh, that would make a nice collection to my wardrobe." I'm not saying that you should run out and buy tattooed, muscly demon wings with clown noses (okay, I lost that one) - I'm only suggesting that you allow your tastes to grow in SL just as they've likely grown outside.
Posted by: Austin Walker | Friday, February 05, 2010 at 07:16 PM
wait..did severine get eliminated? oh thats too bad (lol)
Posted by: lulz | Saturday, February 06, 2010 at 12:06 AM
"This is really what's considered "hot" by women of SL? Tattoos, the bad-boy look?"
I reckons so, Buck. I gots me a John Deere 1250 diesel (with front-loader) inked onto a rite private spot and I are for sure the baddest hillbilly boy in SL.
And what a first-rate disaster it done been since a bunch of gals put me up for Miss Ofeelya's fake man contest in 2009!
Now I gots to use 'lectric cyclone fences to keep them pretty fake gals off'n me since I was a semi-finalist!
Fellers: don't let them sexy fake gals put you up for no hottie-hot-hot avatar contest. You ain't gonna git no rest afterward.
Posted by: Pappy Enoch | Saturday, February 06, 2010 at 09:14 AM
rofl@severine eliminated. this contest was his lyf
Posted by: ha. | Monday, February 08, 2010 at 02:18 PM
Shame on all the stalkers backstabbing and making up gossips about the finalists in this contest.
Obsessed much?
Posted by: M.N | Thursday, February 11, 2010 at 02:08 PM
Visit my blog, to see what I have to say about this. *gags*
Posted by: Rumor Halostar | Sunday, February 21, 2010 at 01:54 PM
Yay! I'm so glad they used a picture I did of Rance as his sexy man pic! :-D
Posted by: Clark | Sunday, April 25, 2010 at 10:21 PM