I believe the term balloon for freshwater species refers to the short bodied variety of any species. So you will get balloon mollies which have shorter bodies than the normal mollies, and balloon platies and balloon rams... while I find balloon mollies and platies somewhat unnatural, I find balloon rams to be somewhat cute. This is my personal preference though and I do not see why some people have to lash out at others who actually prefer the short-bodied varieties... to each his own...