[1480] Bumpy Ride

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Mamma Peach » Tue Jun 13, 2017 11:18 am

I think Kimiko is showing Piro how much she appreciates him. He really is a pretty amazing guy to go through all this. His words showed a lot of self doubt though. She's probably scared, but wants to show him that he's really appreciated and she cares for him. It's a rather "safe" kind of kiss, not hotly romantic, and not able to be rejected.

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by darrin » Tue Jun 13, 2017 12:09 pm

I said of 1479 that Kimiko looks worried rather than "smexy", and thought that might be due to her not knowing what Piro's current attitude to Miho is. (An obvious choice given the past few dozen strips have been pretty Miho-focused :).)

But yesterday I realized (before seeing 1480 and only going by Invisigoth's description of it) that from Kimiko's perspective, the most important recent event is Kimiko's confession, and the Miho issue is a distant second to that. Kimiko still can't be completely sure Piro "got" that she was speaking for herself at that point and not for Miho; and even if he did she doesn't know yet what his response will be.

That finally explains to me why she looks so worried at the end of 1479 but goes straight for a kiss in 1480; she is non-verbally telling him "I meant what I said back there; how about you?"

EDIT:
Zandra wrote:dangerous waters
It's hard to be completely sure given the layout (not meant as a criticism, very dynamic work Fred!), but as near as I can tell she is pretty far north of that, somewhere around the upper sternum. That seemed a bit odd to me at first, but I think what is going on is that she doesn't want to scootch up along him (to get closer to his face) while he is lying on broken glass.

Of course she is being excessively overcautious given that Megumi is at the wheel, and I doubt they will stay on that backseat through more than a couple of two-wheeled turns. :D

EDIT2:
Ray Kremer wrote:I'm not sure there's just one answer to that, either.
Fair enough. It is what makes most sense to me currently based on 1) her frenetic, not-very-Miho-like response to his "Do you mean you or do you mean--" in 1461; and 2) what I would otherwise find confusing about 1479-1480, that she is clearly upset and worried about something yet opts to try kissing him first instead of talking about it.
Last edited by darrin on Tue Jun 13, 2017 3:17 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Zandra » Tue Jun 13, 2017 12:44 pm

Ahh Kimiko is heading to dangerous waters there. Usually when i kissed someone in that area the next spot my mouth was going was.... :twisted:
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Invisigoth » Tue Jun 13, 2017 1:29 pm

Zandra wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 12:44 pm
Ahh Kimiko is heading to dangerous waters there. Usually when i kissed someone in that area the next spot my mouth was going was.... :twisted:
well I see that someone gets it 8-)

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Ray Kremer » Tue Jun 13, 2017 2:40 pm

arimareiji wrote:
Mon Jun 12, 2017 7:39 pm
The only one with a claim to "know" what they would do is Fred, and sometimes they startle even him.
And Fred seems to be at war with himself lately over comic current events, so who knows.
darrin wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 12:09 pm
Kimiko still can't be completely sure Piro "got" that she was speaking for herself at that point and not for Miho; and even if he did she doesn't know yet what his response will be.
Oho. Was she?

I'm not sure there's just one answer to that, either.
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by darrin » Tue Jun 13, 2017 3:04 pm

Invisigoth wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 1:29 pm
well I see that someone gets it 8-)
I still don't see where folks are getting that from, though.
Invisigoth wrote:I told you people, that was her "I can feel your boner" face in the last strip and now she's going for it
Ok, worth one last try I guess.

First of all, There Is No Boner Here. Look at his eyes throughout 1479 and 1480, he is in a state of complete confusion and panic, "WTF is even going on?" as Ray put it. The one exception is panel 2 of 1480, where he expresses palpable relief at finally being handed a task his current brain state can just about handle, "pull a blanket over your head." In panel 5 he is right back to "Oh shit the universe didn't go away when I did that, MOMMY!"

Second, Kimiko in the last panel of 1479 is not thinking about that either. This is what Kimiko looks like when she's thinking about a love hotel, note the half-lidded eyes and the teeny little sly smile. A useful comparison is Erika in panel six of this one; you have to turn your head sideways to see it but it's the same idea, half-lidded eyes and that sly little grin.

Kimiko in panel 9 of 1479 is very different. Her eyes are wide open; sure it looks at first like the irises are covered by the upper lids, but that's because her head is angled down and she is looking up at Piro. The whites of the eyes under the irises show how wide open they are. She's not smiling at all, you can barely see her mouth because it's completely scrunched up in something ranging from extreme worry to on the verge of tears.

To sum up: half-lidded eyes plus sly grin = sultry, sexy; wide-open eyes and scrunchy little mouth = worried, not sexy.

Now when they roll off the car seat and fall on the floor due to Megumi's antics, we'll see what that does to Piro's brain state. :D

EDIT:
Invisigoth wrote:kissing her way down Piro's stomach
She's not near his stomach, her forehead is right up by his chin (panel 2). She's not moving down, Fred has just "split" the panels with their faces so he can put the Megumi panels in between; putting the Megumi panels off to the left or right would ruin the visual effect / sense of motion and action we get in the current layout.

EDIT2:
Invisigoth wrote:a perfect way to deal with anxiety right?
Hmm, that is a valid counter however, sorry to have sidestepped it above.

The idea of Kimiko getting physical right away did seem weird to me back on 1479 when I was still guessing Kimiko was worried about Piro's reaction to her helping Miho (given she doesn't know his current attitude toward Miho), so I was expecting some kind of dialogue first. When you said in the 1479 thread that no, Kimiko just starts going at it, it made me sit and think what Kimiko could possibly be worried about but that she would feel comfortable "skipping to the kissing". Ray's right that it's still speculation at this point, but to the extent that it's at least plausible she was confessing on her own behalf (and not Miho's), then that would certainly be looming large in her mind right now, along with a strong desire to find out Piro's response. For that specific source of anxiety I can certainly see Kimiko demonstrating non-verbally that she meant what she said, while probing non-verbally for a response on his part. It certainly wouldn't be the first time she opted for a physical action when she had trouble getting the words out right the first time.

Sorry but I just don't see any signs of "arousal" in either of their faces. Kimiko is tender but clearly worried about something, and Piro is totally freaked the heck out. :D
Last edited by darrin on Tue Jun 13, 2017 6:12 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Invisigoth » Tue Jun 13, 2017 3:33 pm

Because kissing her way down Piro's stomach is a perfect way to deal with anxiety right?

No, there's no angst here. These are two adults with fully functional hormones who are experiencing the equivalent of post combat arousal.

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by McTrooper » Tue Jun 13, 2017 5:35 pm

I'm kinda lost as far as the discussion goes.
I don't see a chu sound effect in this or the previous comics.

I'm also confused with the comic since Piro is under the blanket why is Megumi aware of them kissing. She shouldn't know so she shouldn't be jealous that Piro is getting some love and she isn't.

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Yl33 D4 N00b » Tue Jun 13, 2017 5:41 pm

Invisigoth wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 3:33 pm
Because kissing her way down Piro's stomach is a perfect way to deal with anxiety right?

No, there's no angst here. These are two adults with fully functional hormones who are experiencing the equivalent of post combat arousal.
Only the combat hasn't ended yet; At this point, the variables are too fluid to get a fix on exactly where this is going. As Ray said, Fred himself doesn't know where he is taking the story. History with these two has been when we all think things are starting to heat up, Fred throws a bucket of ice water on the whole thing. Me, I don't think this will even get close to "teh awkward" stage......

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Yl33 D4 N00b » Tue Jun 13, 2017 5:46 pm

McTrooper wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 5:35 pm
I'm kinda lost as far as the discussion goes.
I don't see a chu sound effect in this or the previous comics.

I'm also confused with the comic since Piro is under the blanket why is Megumi aware of them kissing. She shouldn't know so she shouldn't be jealous that Piro is getting some love and she isn't.
Lower left hand panel, right below Kimi's lips. Kinda blends in........

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by darrin » Tue Jun 13, 2017 6:18 pm

McTrooper wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 5:35 pm
I'm also confused with the comic since Piro is under the blanket why is Megumi aware of them kissing. She shouldn't know so she shouldn't be jealous that Piro is getting some love and she isn't.
I don't think she is aware of it. My interpretation was that by "hot ninja action" she literally meant his abilities to save her from TPCD mayhem, but that she deliberately chose a phrasing that would sound like a euphemism for something naughtier. Basically joking aloud (even though no one else in the car is paying attention :D) as stress relief.

On the subject of Megumi though, I am a bit confused by panel 12. Megumi is clearly looking (and thus most likely moving) to the left, but she seems to be spinning the wheel hard to the right. Is she drifting? :shock:

EDIT:
HakuRyoku wrote:U-turn
Well, my first thought was to say that I would expect a Japanese person to make a U-turn by instinctively turning to the right (since they drive on the left). But that's a minor quibble, because even if she were making a weird left-handed U-turn, I have the same question. Whether she's turning 90 degrees to the left or 180, she seems to be spinning the wheel hard to the right. I briefly toyed with the idea that she was backing up to the right (prior to heading off to the left) but that seems ridiculous. (Why would she stop to do that when the TCPD are right in front of her? Whatever she is doing she needs to do it fast.)

If Megumi is drifting, I think I am in love. :oops: If Fred goes and draws a full-blown chase sequence I will be even more in love. :lol:
Last edited by darrin on Tue Jun 13, 2017 7:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by HakuRyoku » Tue Jun 13, 2017 6:58 pm

Actually Darrin, I think she is flipping a U-turn, whether or not she is drifting in process of making said U-turn I can't say.
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Sheharazade » Tue Jun 13, 2017 8:07 pm

/unlurk
Wattiz displaceman? Lookin a lot like old MegaTokyo, lotsa old names, but so strange. man!
meanwhiles,
CHU!!!!!!
me approving...
Zadie da trallop
/relurk

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Dragonix » Tue Jun 13, 2017 9:24 pm

New forum, eh? It's going to take a while to get used to the new look, but hey, if it helps with the whole "constantly crashing" problem, I'm game. :)

Great new page. I was waiting to see how Kimi was going to respond to the situation once in private. I only have one question. Where exactly is she kissing? I'm having a hard time telling with how the panels overlap on the page.

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Rapierman » Tue Jun 13, 2017 10:29 pm

Holy freakin' hell. I don't think Megumi's insurance is going to cover this situation. :o
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Zandra » Tue Jun 13, 2017 10:42 pm

Ray Kremer wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 2:40 pm
arimareiji wrote:
Mon Jun 12, 2017 7:39 pm
The only one with a claim to "know" what they would do is Fred, and sometimes they startle even him.
And Fred seems to be at war with himself lately over comic current events, so who knows.
darrin wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 12:09 pm
Kimiko still can't be completely sure Piro "got" that she was speaking for herself at that point and not for Miho; and even if he did she doesn't know yet what his response will be.
Oho. Was she?

I'm not sure there's just one answer to that, either.
Maybe.... miho and kimiko might merge into one being since they both love Piro and this would allow the mega happy ending? but i remember that fred said we will hate piro eventually. SO maybe... piro will go with kimiko and set miho free.
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by marsonkhan » Wed Jun 14, 2017 12:42 am

To the question of where she is kissing Piro, it depends on whether the distance between her head and his ignores the panel between or is increased by the intervening panel. From the layout, the distance between heads is as shown, since the edge of the original drawing is still visible. That places the kiss at mid-chest or navel as I see it. Maybe lower.

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Dragonix » Wed Jun 14, 2017 1:37 am

I was thinking his chest, but was unsure.

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by mistersaxon » Wed Jun 14, 2017 3:18 am

darrin wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 6:18 pm

Well, my first thought was to say that I would expect a Japanese person to make a U-turn by instinctively turning to the right (since they drive on the left). But that's a minor quibble, because even if she were making a weird left-handed U-turn, I have the same question. Whether she's turning 90 degrees to the left or 180, she seems to be spinning the wheel hard to the right. I briefly toyed with the idea that she was backing up to the right (prior to heading off to the left) but that seems ridiculous. (Why would she stop to do that when the TCPD are right in front of her? Whatever she is doing she needs to do it fast.)

If Megumi is drifting, I think I am in love. :oops: If Fred goes and draws a full-blown chase sequence I will be even more in love. :lol:
If she's even on a particular side of the road right now we can infer she's rapidly moving to the opposite side as part of what would logically be a U-turn (but maybe she's seen an alleyway and is heading down that). Basically open up some distance, become a variable target and get some cover. She has put Piro and Kimi nearer the action if she's heading away but they'll stop bullets quite effectively :)
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by iffy » Wed Jun 14, 2017 12:30 pm

It still remains to be answered if what Kimiko is mostly up to is - right now for some reason - wanting to clarify again and more efficiently and directly that she herself was the one telling him she loved him in the hospital, using that opportunity of prepping to create some emotion for the viewers to tell him she has strong feelings for him for reals. Maybe not, and it is the role that forces her to do whatever it is she's doing now at this very odd public and busy time. That she has not broken character in the slightest now any more than she did while being carried.

Whilst some may be indulging in a little wish-fulfillment projection activity, the truth of it still could be that way, it depends on what ends up actually happening that determines it. Be this a battle between Fred and the will of the characters, or the progression of what started out as and might still be an ending by dying story. Either way, touchyfeeelysqueezy isn't much a normal expected reaction by most anyone in some tense ongoing escape situation. Hugging for dear life, perhaps. Crawling all over somebody like a frantic succubus? Given what we've seen from the real actual Kimiko while being herself, it's abnormal. Will Piro go along with it if it escalates? Seems so, so far, but is that from surprise, bewilderment and lack of options. Might he feel this is the correct time for such things. What does Megumi see if anything, she seems kind of busy. Yet Megumi is there though, which also seems a bit abnormal for these two.

Given how still in the mix such as the TPCD +, Otaku, and Junpei are, this situation clearly is not over. And with it then the stories aren't over either. That there is more to whatever Kimiko is playing Miho in, the death either isn't final yet, or the death isn't the end, or what's happening is part of something else, like the second half of not winning not losing. Which none is really about Miho herself, but what she represents, what she embodies. In whose guise Kimiko has taken; herself, Kotone, new set of characters - Kimiko isn't exactly herself right now. Will Piro pick up his part? Which is? He's not really acting as anyone, he still appears largely immune to be being immersed. The Sight-aligned story is supposed to be Piro's art and Kimiko's voice, but what's happening right now involves something different Well, if Piro has stopped being Piro at least it might be. ;)

Isn't that what Piro first was interested in about Moh and the person behind the character in Endgames times, the projected personalities and mystery of it all? Then the image he had that he drew that brought her out into the real world in a way not like her usual. (from what we know of Meimi, Junko, Ed) Maybe Piro isn't so different from others, about being drawn into the feelings rather than the reality. As the interrogator said, he's not usually a fan of this Analogue's representations. Something must be different, and indeed many things are.

A question is if Kimiko herself would do this (take the opportunity to test taking the relationship farther by sealing the deal under trying circumstances we might say) or if Piro would consider what she's doing "right". Or if he's changed his mind what being right is. With these events, it seems Kimiko is channeling far more character than it first appeared. Embodying the essence and making it live still, but even more than when she first started auditioning and working on Sight. Or?

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Teddy-Werebear » Wed Jun 14, 2017 1:49 pm

And Iffy is here...
New forum, same old wall of text...

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Roborat » Wed Jun 14, 2017 2:59 pm

Well, a nice shiny new forum, I am liking what I am seeing so far. I see Fred hasn't enabled the "disable Iffy wall of text" feature yet. :D

As for the story, I really hope that Mr. Ninja is doing, well, something, otherwise those approaching soldiers, mechs and, apparently museum escapee tank, could do some serious hurt on that poor little SUV and the occupants. Sure hope they have protagonist immunity. Not sure what Kimiko is up to, I will wait and see what develops rather than speculate.

And finally, lets see if my avatar has returned.

Edit: Yay, it's back. And I just noticed everyone joined the forum at the same time. Going to miss seeing how old some of the forum members sign-ups were.

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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Ray Kremer » Wed Jun 14, 2017 4:58 pm

darrin wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 6:18 pm
My interpretation was that by "hot ninja action" she literally meant his abilities to save her from TPCD mayhem, but that she deliberately chose a phrasing that would sound like a euphemism for something naughtier. Basically joking aloud (even though no one else in the car is paying attention :D) as stress relief.
One facet of Megumi's character that was mentioned in the volume 5/omnibus 2 character guide and I think nowhere else is her fetish for ninja. So yes, definitely a euphemism there.
Dragonix wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 9:24 pm
I only have one question. Where exactly is she kissing? I'm having a hard time telling with how the panels overlap on the page.
Yeah, I've been trying to interpret that too. I think she just kissed whatever was in front of her, more a gesture than a sign of affection. So, somewhere in his sternum area, I guess? Not really sure about the purpose other than for Fred to make us go "Oooooooo a kiss!".
Zandra wrote:
Tue Jun 13, 2017 10:42 pm
but i remember that fred said we will hate piro eventually.
That was from a very early interview and I'm entirely certain it was less a declaration of plot direction and more a sign of Fred's general insecurities and projection between himself and the character that is "based" on him. I think the Piro character has always been hard for him for that reason.

But then Fred hasn't forgotten about it either, and he does keep bringing it up a lot lately. He forced me to update my internal character analysis of Piro a few days ago. In a lot of ways Fred has good storytelling instincts but sometimes he fights against them tooth and nail. I don't want to go into it publicly right now, but I probably should someday.
Roborat wrote:
Wed Jun 14, 2017 2:59 pm
And I just noticed everyone joined the forum at the same time. Going to miss seeing how old some of the forum members sign-ups were.
They grabbed the account info for everybody who had logged in to the old forum in the past year and ported it over. Yeah, except for the signatures and join dates I guess, but that just means Jun 04 2017 is the new badge of the MT old farts.
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Yana » Wed Jun 14, 2017 5:38 pm

Crap, so does this mean that I'm a filthy newcomer for being 10 days removed from that migration?
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Re: [1480] Bumpy Ride

Post by Ubu » Wed Jun 14, 2017 6:11 pm

Teddy-Werebear wrote:
Wed Jun 14, 2017 1:49 pm
And Iffy is here...
New forum, same old wall of text...
LOL!

And now that I've actually seen the comic... Oh my! Nothing to add to the discussion that hasn't already been discussificated already. :ninja:

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