Yes, protogen is based on merging of checkpoints. The checkpoints it's merged from are also mostly based on merging. Tracing the degree of ancestry back to fine

Yes, protogen is based on merging of checkpoints. The checkpoints it's merged from are also mostly based on merging. Tracing the degree of ancestry back to fine tuned models is hard, but there's a ton of booru-tagged anime and porn in there. If there's one style I dislike more than the bland Midjourney style, it's the super-smooth "realistic" child faces on adult bodies that protogen (and its own many descendants) spit out.