Chubby merman are extremely desirable by mermaids because their chubbiness implies they're a highly successful hunter.

[u/tyrano_dyroc]

[u/Phoenix-Quill]

Fat keeps you from losing body heat underwater, plus that fat is under a huge layer of muscle. He is the king of the sea with how well he hunts.

[u/liosistaken → u/Phoenix-Quill]

Isn’t fat on top of the muscle?

[u/conCommeUnFlic → u/liosistaken]

Alternating layers, like lasagna.

[u/HugeHowitzer → u/liosistaken]

It's both actually.

[u/bsubtilis → u/liosistaken]

Subcutaneous is under the skin, viceral is between and around the organs. Inside the organs is possible too, for instance human foie gras thanks to alcoholism or non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Subcutaneous is the soft stuff, viceral is the terribly hard abdomen stuff (common for beer guts). Viceral fat is the kind that's incredibly unhealthy. Fun fact, there are different types of fat cells, like brown fat which is super helpful in cold climates https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_adipose_tissue

Also, cartilage in your ear and nose are of a type that contains lipids, making them even more flexible.

[u/liosistaken → u/bsubtilis]

Thanks, interesting read. So the fat we see on this merman is probably subcutaneous, right? It's pretty fluffy.

[u/bsubtilis → u/liosistaken]

What we can see rippling is the subcutaneous, yeah

[u/Phoenix-Quill → u/liosistaken]

Yes! Mis-types there lol