[1526] That kind of love

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by cidjen » Tue May 29, 2018 4:19 pm

Thinking about it further, Junpei could be very traditional about relationships i.e. the women role in them. Look how he says "I will" talk about "that" kind of love. Normally it would be "we talk", no?. Whereas Mugi would be anything but. Or it could be the reenactment of the taming of a cheeky one, if he succeeds subverting her... But then, Yaku would really hate his guts.... Haha.
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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Thu May 31, 2018 7:13 am

Random observations...

P1: Today's vocabulary word is 'discombobulated'. The little origami foxes appear to be attentively waiting for her response. That, or they're checking to make sure she's still breathing, considering how red she's turned.

P2: Foxies fall down and go boom! (BTW, I pulled a muscle in my back and am on painkillers..) Interesting that her reaction isn't to throw him out or back him down, just to tell him he's moving too fast. J won't recognize this as the excellent sign it is. *We* get to cheer. Excellent move Fred! Also, this is an interesting perspective shot of Junpei, and makes me wonder how much he works out, because holy crap he looks bulked up here. Arm definition is easy, but chest and back like this takes a lot of work. No wonder he can carry not-lightweight foxgirl on his shoulder and jump around the city.

P3-5: Neat progression on the expressions - I really like all the work Fred's been doing on making his faces more expressive and these are cool. Also, I think this is the first time we've ever seen J look upset, or surprised, or unhappy - or anything other than calm and composed, really. Even when facing off with Meimi - the only opponent he's ever called dangerous - he never lost the stone face, but he's freaked at the possibility he's upset K.

P6: Blankets pulled back, and the shirt appears to be partially buttoned. K seems either upset, or maybe distressed? not sure which, either at the fact he's not talking romantic love, or maybe that she's fallen for a guy who talks about following a 'Way of L33t'. Would love to know what she's thinking here.

P7: Junpei apologetic! Also talking way more than usual, probably because upset. I am suddenly struck by the thought - one of those that feels right, y'know? - that the first time we are going to see his lower face is when these two finally kiss. Fred plans ahead, and I hope that scene will happen before the new decade arrives.

P8: K is clearly considering how to respond. This is significant just because I don't think we've ever seen her consider her words before she speaks before. I could be wrong about that tho, not sure. (See above, re: painkillers.) Shirt now fully buttoned, and blanket tucked back in. Aww, origami foxes must be tired, as they're all lying down now.

P9: Given the sudden mass origami fox colonization, I suspect J does these because he's nervous. K goes for the neutral line rather than asking him about his feelings, and J steps right up and knocks it out of the park. This is actually pretty smart, because now that the concept is out there, she can't help thinking about it, and this way he both acknowledges it and puts it off until she's better able to have the conversation. As a Ninja J knows that any kind of major trauma leaves you exhausted and less able to focus; he clearly wants to have the conversation, but knows now is not the time. But he's putting that stake in the ground, right now. Next comic: She's going to open her mouth, realize he's exactly right about talking later, and not say anything. Probably with a glare. But she's cute when she glares, so that's all right.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Gerakis » Fri Jun 01, 2018 2:29 am

When/where did Junpei meet her again? Was it at that nightclub (Den of Evil or some such name I can't remember)?

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by HakuRyoku » Fri Jun 01, 2018 2:47 am

Shortly before the school collapsed, he was with largo and Erika as they started to substitute her class. initial confrontation in 1363, and continued in 1366, 1368, and with a wonderful confrontation in 1372 and so on since.
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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by NinjaDefenestrator » Fri Jun 01, 2018 6:13 am

Gerakis wrote:
Fri Jun 01, 2018 2:29 am
When/where did Junpei meet her again? Was it at that nightclub (Den of Evil or some such name I can't remember)?
Cave of Evil. And no, Junpei hasn’t been there yet (as far as we know).

Junpei met Komugiko when she got to her classroom and found Largo playing substitute. Junpei stepped in to keep Mugi from eating Largo alive, but restrained her in a weak hold because he didn’t want to touch her anywhere inappropriate. Mugi mocked him for being afraid of girls and gave him “permission” to touch her as much as he wanted.

Then the building collapsed, which ended all the squabbling. I don’t quite remember how Mugi wound up sitting on Junpei’s shoulder, but she stayed there and focused on taking care of her students until she passed out from her injuries at the hospital. She was impressed at Junpei’s mad ninja skills, Junpei was impressed by her dedication to her students, and we fans lost our shit at the idea of their hooking up.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by iffy » Fri Jun 01, 2018 11:04 am

It looked like the origami was just getting scattered as she moved, Junpei more talking thinking answering than doing any ninja-fast moves, and the shirt moving around as position shifted initially fairly quickly. Although maybe some of that is because panel 2 is kinda ill defined or at least doesn't seem clear enough to see which buttons are where to begin with. Not that foxpeople or her are necessarily prudishy or modesty-focused anyway, but especially when drugged-up and groggy, so sure it could easily be ninja honor something rather than just unconfirmed drawing stuffs making it look one way or the other.

Whatever way that is, the interplay and emotives are choice!

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by darrin » Fri Jun 01, 2018 12:14 pm

Wait,
Mugi wrote:Dun go confusin' a girl like that
Not "like dat"? Mugi really is flustered :lol:

EDIT:
I am reminded of the reaction generated in the forums when Megumi's normally standard dialect began to slip under duress (marking her as a Sawatari through and through regardless of number of visible tails ;)).

It would be hilarious if the evidence for Junpei's crush being a mutual one is when Mugi starts to talk like a Jane Austen character. :lol:

@Invisigoth: heh. Actually I was most amused by the retweet a few further down of some (I hope positive) reference to Kaguya; more evidence I hope that I am not the only one liking that one.

(I do have to politely disagree with whoever said in that tweet thread that Mugi + Junpei are the godparents. I stand by my own representation, Miho would be the most kickass awesome godmother ever. 8-) :lol:)
Last edited by darrin on Fri Jun 01, 2018 8:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Invisigoth » Fri Jun 01, 2018 1:04 pm

@darrin, you may like this https://twitter.com/fredrin/status/1002259246501777408

Your rescript really tickled Fred

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Sat Jun 02, 2018 2:52 am

iffy wrote:
Fri Jun 01, 2018 11:04 am
It looked like the origami was just getting scattered as she moved, Junpei more talking thinking answering than doing any ninja-fast moves, and the shirt moving around as position shifted initially fairly quickly. Although maybe some of that is because panel 2 is kinda ill defined or at least doesn't seem clear enough to see which buttons are where to begin with. Not that foxpeople or her are necessarily prudishy or modesty-focused anyway, but especially when drugged-up and groggy, so sure it could easily be ninja honor something rather than just unconfirmed drawing stuffs making it look one way or the other.

Whatever way that is, the interplay and emotives are choice!
-Well, sure they were - it's just fun to treat them as though they had volition. I'm not crazy, I just have a sense of whimsey.

-I'm basing the progress of the rebuttoning based on the amount of, um, curvature showing in each of the three panels.

-I don't think K's prudish, but Yakugashi made a point of telling her when she was having issues, so maybe it's a family thing.

-Awesome interplay. This looks like a really solid couple, and I'm looking forward to continued interplay between Junpei and Yakugashi as well.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by iffy » Sat Jun 02, 2018 10:24 am

Not surprising if the origami were purposely made to look sort of sentientish tho ;) but I agree they do look whimsical either way haha

It's mostly that imo panel 2 isn't focused enough to tell, and she just did sit up quick. Perhaps she's consciously or unconsciously flexing in the other panels, or mushing herself down something as she relaxes or whatever. Although indeed yes pretty clearly the last time he did button. We can't really be discounting the potential, or even the likelihood. It was just more so that it doesn't seem an example to hold out as having certainly happened, given what we can't or don't see.

Seems Yaku knows Mugi is not one to pay much attention in situations where Mugi is emotional. Mugi didn't seem to pay Yaku much attention last time about it. Anyway maybe not a family thing but a teenager thing.

Indeed

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Tue Jun 05, 2018 5:28 am

We could start a huge tangent about how much effort and time you have to invest into something in Megatokyo to give it some degree of sentience, if the rules allow for it, and to what degree. If the Kitsune here have the powers that they do in the old legends, I would imagine that they could do it more easily than most. Maybe not a poor one-tail - pretty much the Kitsune version of a cripple - but one with real power and experience. I am now picturing Grandma visiting, smiling vaguely at the origami foxes, and a sudden clamor of yapping erupting from the bed...

If you look at the width of the top of the shirt opening in both panels, it clearly seems wider in #2. There's several little clues in the perspective, plus the turned down blanket. Doesn't really make much difference, of course, but there are worse things than contemplating K's assets. We could still be obsessing over what Ping's date has planned, for example. Still glad we took a break from that scene.

It being a teenager thing is a real possibility. Yakuk's at the stage where everything her Mom does will be embarrassing for her. Also, K's a teacher, it's possible she's asked Y to warn her if something might damage her public image as such.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by iffy » Tue Jun 05, 2018 2:50 pm

1. Some are, from what we hear, magical. Although, given they're apparently part human part fox (humans with fox features, foxes with human features) and mythological beings etc, and in MT, a magic sort of thing is rather a given. The land of Idols, Analogues, human robots (bionic organic androids), the real thing, sources of stories, giant monsters, Magical Girls, foxpeople, sentient/conscious avatars.

2. Well now and so. Certainly looks larger area of skin in panel 2, yet is it because of top button. Seems likely, as it looks like this goes below center, but we can't tell for sure, so maybe not, as the image is not defined enough to see buttons to actually establish one is or isn't.

Panel 2 just getting up, and pushing into the folded sheet. Space/size of décolletage (actual or perceived) might be the sitting environment and movement, or one button unbuttoned (doesn't seem it could be two buttons).
Not clear if panels 3 4 5 have action or sufficient focus on it to button the top button if it's not. It's ninja though, so quite possible if not likely the multitasking potential is not really a question, but still not clear.
In both panels 6 and 8 we can see the buttons. The top (but not very top) button is buttoned. Panel 6 not pushing into sheet, moved up more, arms in same kind of position but maybe pushing forward more and laying back less. Panel 8 moves again back but not like getting up was in panel 2, resting/leveraging arms more. Slower, getting ready to lay back down.

All in all, it does seem pretty likely the top button was unbuttoned and Junpei just automatically made sure the convalescing lady wasn't falling out all over, but it still could just be the way the first panel is drawn that makes it seem so.

3. Not everyone was obsessing (depending on how we define it perhaps) but I agree it's good to get away from until there's more to learn. There was no certainty, just guesses, extrapolations, attribution, innuendo, projection. In other words, the status quo. lol We don't even know who he is. What he wants or doesn't. How he thinks about Junko/Ping. It all depends on who he is, what he wants, and what he knows, but that's a mystery. We did not however see him do anything overtly pervy. Perceptionally pervy, perhaps, but we don't know that. Unduly familiar, we don't know that either.

We do know about Ping though; she's an android of some sort, ostensibly a game console accessory, ostensibly absorbed some powers, and here she is the instigator, the manipulator, the aggressor. Not to blame her, we know what she's trying to activate. She's got a plan, a mission; we just don't know why exactly she has it. Made to, or just wanting to choose, and finding it just not there to use.

So as far as Ping and what she's trying to do, maybe she'll just be disappointed, if this guy is just wanting to have lunch with a Balmenach years version of his dearly departed daughter or something whatever (if he thinks it's Junko) or is trying to get Ping to do something related to her programming or what she might have absorbed but that isn't going to be downloadable (if he thinks she's Ping). So that whole creepy thing seems for the time being either a distraction or bogus anyway. (Given how he deals with a lot of it, seems he might have an above-board plan for Ping and her future; yet it wouldn't be the first time a villain out to rule/destroy the world did so while appearing very on the up and up.)

That's way longer than it should have been.

4. I'd guess that bluster and some skillz keeps Mugi from worrying about things too much in that manner, maybe not the sort of thing to hand off to somebody that's not around outside school or somebody that doesn't really get it. Maybe aside from embarrassing behaviors and argument styles and a pack sort of hierarchy thrown in, Yaku doesn't care and/or Mugi doesn't care, about certain things. We see how Yuki goes from shy looking downtrodden girl to coercing a ninja she's riding. Perhaps Yaku was all about the button discipline as a way to exert some authority and keep busy or focused.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Wed Jun 06, 2018 4:44 am

We should probably both post your comment at the start of most of our posts: "WARNING! This is Way Longer Than It Should Have Been!"

1. It makes me wonder how you select things like race in MT. Is it something you choose, or is it like your hidden stats, where your profile determines it for you. If part of the purpose of MT is self-realization, then being assigned a race with special abilities might be intended to point out tendancies in your character, or talents you can explore. Assuming of course that there aren't actual Kitsune out there in the 'real' world outside MT. Or the 'real 'real' world' here. Or the 'real 'real 'real world' ' ' outside OUR game.

[Note to forum mods: Character 'Roamer' in metagame is getting stale, please respec ASAP. Modern small-unit combat builds preferred].

2. Interesting point. The differences between panel 2 and panel 6 may well be due to her moving around in panel 2 - even though it's the same position, if she's moving or preparing to move in P2 it could increase the gap. We know K's pretty athletic, there's plenty of muscle there to move the fabric around. The increased coverage in P8, though, clearly looks like he's done some buttoning though. (At this point, I'm wondering how long it will be before Fred tells us what's going on, just to shut us up....)

3. Eeh. I just thought the trend of the discussion was pretty unhealthy. People were pretty unhappy with the possibilities and most of the speculation about what he might be up to was pretty grim. I just don't buy into that, though. This isn't that kind of comic, and Fred's not going to go there.

The interesting thing about Ping's mission is that it seems to be the opposite of what she was designed to do. The original design spec - the public one, at least - was for a device designed to ease rejection and improve one's social skills. Yet's here's Ping getting in the way of a relationship that is between Junko and someone she clearly likes, at least compared to most of her 'dates'. Is this some kind of attempted social engineering hidden in the design spec, or is this all Ping? Or is there something darker hidden in her code? At this point 'Pie' appears to be some kind of backdoor into Ping's social code, intended to allow Sony's field ops to manipulate or direct the EDS doll's actions. Given that the dolls are designed to move freely in public, the security implications of that make me very twitchy.

4. I like the pack mentality idea, or some version therof. Given their abilities and the potential for destruction they imply, they need some non-combative way to figure social rankings out.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by iffy » Wed Jun 06, 2018 1:41 pm

1. There's some sort of feeling here that there are the public imagination- and emotion-driven aspects of some roles. Distilled, compacted, exaggerated, enhanced from the real people or roles, who are either portraying or a source or both, everyone in story actual or referenced. Then there's how the fans perceive it all. Erika (who played a Moeko who apparently is nothing like the portrayal) that is herself part of the story and thus also stylized (especially when she lets the character loose). Yuki, who is fumbling along and making guesses that mostly seem wrongish but may work out none the less, looks like some girl in sweats or a practical outfit and not a real MG. Kimiko, moving in and out of something for the time being. Komugiko is just her, but fulfilling the mythos may be another thing entirely, her or her character in Endgames or even just being an adherent/helper/? of some aspect of Miho. It gets covered a lot, perhaps everything comprising the conversations and happenings from 1495 to 1500 are one of the best examples of the entirety, what Ririka says, how Yuki reacts, what Erika does. Even the authorities having that Otaku thing going at times as Erika as Moeko gets latched onto, Ririka is explaining it how it is, and they ignore everything in favor of their own perceptions. Behind the scenes isn't necessarily pretty, nobody cares about the actual story, just about how they feel, and so on.

So Komugiko is a normal citizen, who just happens to be what she is, school teacher and patron of the CoE and Kimiko's outfits, and any resemblance to mythical creatures is only embellishment. As far as we know.

2. To summarize! The gap looks bigger in 2 but maybe that's the way she's sitting, as we see variations in the much more detailed 6 and 8 as well. Based on the past though, that difference between 2 and 6/8 may be due to Junpei closing a button. Was 2 drawn that way to make it vague and perceptional, or is it just like some panels that aren't as detailed as others? : iiam : We may imagine some WoF to clear up the issue if it was the second, but should expect no help if it was the first. ; )

3. It was based on opinion and perception, which for certain subjects can be squicky to many participants. That's what Junko does, she clearly doesn't like it usually because jerks, she thought different about this guy, Ping didn't believe her (or wanted to justify her command to do what she's doing, or wanted to do it on her own, or something else). We just don't know, so can just guess at whatever disgusting thing we rage against or are projecting, just wonder without making determinations or passing judgment, or make it all bunnies and kitties. I suppose it boils down to thinking that if this guy is knowingly looking to meet a girl who is under twenty-one then regardless of his reasons, or her reasons or actual age, or even if it's a robot instead of a human, then he is a super perv scumbag because intent, and immoral to evil intent at that, regardless of any context, law, culture or other consideration. Doesn't matter, total horrible slime. To some, that might even include if he's only looking for companionship because he's despondent, and she happens to take pity on him, and they usually spend their time studying a cure for the common cold at the library. Of course, he could just be knowingly meeting up with Ping because he set it up, or Junko knows him because of questions about Ping, and then this isn't even about the other subjects, making discussing such immaterial. Unless we want to debate how to think about androids that are supposed to substitute for Analogues. That might be rather pointless, given that neither of those things apparently exactly exists those ways at this point in the reality we seem to be in.

4. Rather rusty on the cultural aspects of the foxhuman ethnic groups, but from what we've been given, they do seem rather mythically wild-like pack sorts.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Thu Jun 07, 2018 3:36 am

1. That sequence (1495-1500) exactly. Especially 1497, where the mob rejects Yuki as an MG because she doesn't look the part, and 1498/1499, where it's clear that talking about her past as a MG, and how she didn't fit the mold, is causing Ririka physical pain. It begs the question, if Yuki had been faced with this kind of open rejection of the idea before she showed her powers, would the potential have vanished? (If so, then Masamichi really should have been encouraging her to spend lots of time with Miho, as you don't see many Goth MG's) And Ririka almost appears to be being punished for talking about how she chose love over her power, maybe even thinking about it. The reasons why Meimi appear to be so off seem clearer now. She never had much actual power, but she kept it, because she was able to figure out how to work within these constraints. Ririka wasn't able to - she may simply have been too powerful - and it cost her all of it. And, yay for her, she regrets it not at all.

And 1500, talking about Moeko. That just screams of unresolved storylines and danger to come. Ririka doesn't realize it, but she's explaining to Erika why her job isn't finished yet. There's more here, the history of the comic is practically shouting it. It's the perfect hook for Dom to pull Erika back in. Question is, can Largo protect her while she finishes the job?

Swerving back on topic, I like the idea that Komugiko is normal, but was chosen because she had personality traits that the game decided made her perfect for this. To whatever degree that the game is an attempt at allowing you to explore areas of yourself, this lets K be a version of herself that's louder, brasher, and in some ways, more fun than the person she is otherwise. As far as we know.

2. Excellent summary. However, as scientists - I have so dubbed us - it falls upon us to fully explore all aspects of the comic. We should continue discussing these panels in every forum post for each comic going forward, until we arrive at a definitive answer.*

3. Ping thought she was helping Junko. That's the motivation given; it may not be the only motivation, or the real one. The forum reaction was massively negative to the date; I can't recall if it was anywhere near this negative to Junko's announcement that she practiced this kind of dating.But the reaction to this guy has been huge. I wish I knew more about the practice, because it seems like we're projecting outsider mores onto a purely Japanese piece of culture. This doesn't mean I trust the guy, but I don't think it's fair to assume he's a total scumbag because he's following the customs of the culture he grew up with.

4. Foxes are more solitary than wolves, so the pack mentality isn't as strong. But it should still be present in interactions, and it's really all we've got to go on. Well, that or maybe Yakugashi just doesn't like the idea of her mom hanging out that way.

*Just kidding.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by iffy » Thu Jun 07, 2018 3:37 pm

1. There are still 'non-perceptional unanswered questions' about when (something like) Erika's real life removed her ability to become the portrayal any longer, she insulted or informed the group of the reality etc, some took that personally in a negative way, and Miho stepped in to (absorb the power as some sort of failsafe?). We can imagine all sorts of things happened, including something approaching the intensity levels of The Horde at the school. All we know about the specifics is nothing, the sort of non-answer (general vague agreement with) given Masamichi at the store about the horrid experience and aftermath. Which if that was anything like the end of the "nine days" between Ed blowing up something (or not) and getting to the ASF maybe not so horrid. Or maybe better/the same/worse than the special going-away she tells Piro about. If that's any more than skipping between nothingnesses in the middle of bath house and school, it's about as clear as what the thoughts in 1121/1122 are exactly about. Then there's the aspect of a link to Meimi by Miho (which given Meimi's reactions, isn't just something Miho was making up to dig into Yuki with at the ASF circa 1248 arc) and there's Erika's link to the Sonoda family, plus all that Miho taking the fall for Yuki (and taking her up on the power lines, and insulting her before and after this and that and the other). Plus things that still are unresolved, such as the fairly different stories Miho tells to Piro (she always dies) and to Kimiko (everyone around her always dies) but that still both of fit into the idea that some audience catharsis is far more important than the drab truth. Plus we have the chances Ping absorbed some of that or controls something like it. In these senses, perhaps we can ignore "the real people". Unless we're the type that fixates on the actresses and actors (artists, producers, writers) who are not much like who they portray, but are often expected to be. And that's even if the real person already can yoink a zilla out of tracking range in fractions of a second, or is a giant turtle. If you don't look the part, then in a way you aren't. That's a big subject.

Anyway, something is up with Komugiko that's not fully ordinary to start with. She's a part of the CoE group, seemingly at least somewhat immune to hording-out, has upcoming Idols that made her clothing, family members working with then rescuing primary participants, a daughter wanting to rewrite the story in person, and another side of the family running such as love hotels that turn into nexuses of something.

2. Probably easier to just say if it was unbuttoned, Junpei would have been the one to have closed it, which explains the less space later. If it wasn't unbuttoned to begin with, it was her moving that made things look like they did. Not everything can or needs to be known, that denial and explanation and follow up by Junpei is more topical anyway. If we go into the razor thing, not every situation even has a simpler answer to pick from to begin with.

3. That guy Largo happened to have scared didn't seem to get this treatment, and he seemed visibly pervin, plus Junko wanted to hide it all, and it was actually Junko involved. Here, Junko seemed to think this guy was special (not a creep) anyway, he hasn't done anything much, and it's not even her. It's Ping, who also happens to be both willfully creating this scenario and directing it along. It doesn't even seem at all about EK, and this great ruckus ensues. To large extent it shows how powerful perception can be, and be greater the less anyone actually knows. We might guess no matter how it resolves, the initial opinions will at least somewhat remain, which I guess is also a lot like examples such as 799 and 1240 and 1497 too.

4. We can only image what some sort of fox-human fox DNA blend creates behaviorally. Before or after socialization, whatever that entails. Which if this is instead mostly all caused by some magical methods, then almost anything seems possible.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Sat Jun 09, 2018 1:58 am

1. Miho stepped in to absorb the power as that's how she's supposed to feed, or at least that's the scenario we had at the time. Erika, from what we saw, couldn't handle the fame - possibly because she was being manipulated or lied to (we know about the lying, which was coming from her ex) - and the negative consequences she was seeing as a result of it. Not that she needed to be manipulated for this to be true - fame can be corrosive - but with the power that voice actors have in MT, the potential is much nastier. It does seem that many of the MG's and voice actors are associated, not sure if that's unconscious or some kind of deliberate working, or possibly just accident of fate. The MG's in particular all seem to cluster together. For the VA's it makes sense, they all work in a pretty small industry and would practically trip over each other, but the MG's should be much more evenly distributed, and yet here you see them practically in each other's laps. You have to wonder if being Rirkia's kid is why Yukata was able to spot Yuki while she was up on the high wire...instinct driven by latent ability? Or some kind of danger sense? But...yeah. Power, or ability, appears to be highly concentrated in a small number of people. Someone can suddenly join the ranks of the powerful if they get lucky - heh - enough, such as Kimiko. But they're surrounded by people with much less power but who are skilled at control and manipulation. Note that this isn't always with evil intent - look at Sayuri. She's clearly manipulating not only Kimiko but the NPC's, but doing so for what appear to be positive ends. Does she have an ulterior motive? Hell, in this town, everybody seems to. At least she's cute in a bear mask.

Komugiko isn't fully part of any of the ordinary power structures of MT. The CoE appears to exist outside of them, probably deliberately, because that's how Miho wanted it. I expect that being a part of the senior CoE staff requires immunity to the horde, or might be granted by Miho in some way, possibly. The Kitsune also appear to be their own power structure, but as a one-tail, Komugiko has little authority in that, and probably is dismissed by the more powerful members. (Hard to take seriously someone you might be harvesting for an extra tail next year). Komugiko may have found the CoE and joined in search of a power structure/family where she could be accepted. Her only assosciation with her family appears to be through her daughter, who as a two-tail is taken more seriously.

2. Schrodinger's shirt? It sure looked unbuttoned, but it's a fine working explanation. And sure, Nabiki could have tagged along and done the buttoning, or something more improbable...as you say, not every question can be answered simply or easily.

3. Unless it turns out that this dude is Junko's real father and was stranded on a desert island for the last X years, we're not going to get people to change their minds. Ping certainly seems to be the driving force here, and we have not the slightest idea why. That, to me, is the big question here. Is she doing this of her own free will? Is this her programming? Are her creators manipulating her into acting this way? To what degree is the MT metastory looped in on this and interfering? I mean, "I'll love Pie until I die?" Somebody is jerking somebody's chain here, no idea who either is - yet.

4. I suspect that they were inserted into the story as a deliberate wildcard - a random factor, something to incite change in otherwise stable situations. Changes require catalysts, which are naturally unstable agents in the wild. A small group of magical foxes based on the myths of the kitsune, known tricksters and troublemakers? Sounds like an awesome catalyst to me.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Sat Jun 09, 2018 2:04 am

Just looked back at the post history. Has nobody else really had anything to say for the last week?

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Yl33 D4 N00b » Sat Jun 09, 2018 3:28 am

Roamer wrote:
Sat Jun 09, 2018 2:04 am
Just looked back at the post history. Has nobody else really had anything to say for the last week?
No. :ninja:

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by cidjen » Sat Jun 09, 2018 7:46 am

Roamer wrote:
Sat Jun 09, 2018 2:04 am
Just looked back at the post history. Has nobody else really had anything to say for the last week?
I went on vacation/holidays ;) somewhat AFK for a few days.

And also it looks like Fred concentrated on PTCO drawing recently (see the WIP thread, when the next comic officially started, having been assigned a number).

Yutaka/Chewtoy, hmm, being half-magical boy? Maybe. But he's much too soft physically yet. His powers are elsewhere (he may be as l33t as Largo on the Internet, remember the 'wall of misinformation' ?). And he just recently became 'cute' in the eyes of the girls (quoting Asako I think), still he's not even filling up his school uniform (athletically challenged).

I don't know if anybody commented on that, but inspector Sonoda is kinda magical too (not sure if due to having a magical daughter or wife) - but it's been said that his MGD is constantly going off so he's got it on 'silent'. Maybe, magic / sparklogen is contagious?
Last edited by cidjen on Sat Jun 09, 2018 6:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Invisigoth » Sat Jun 09, 2018 7:47 am

Everyone wants to see what happens next since the most recent twitch is focused back on the antics of Ninja Grrl/Yaku/Miho

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by iffy » Sat Jun 09, 2018 6:59 pm

Roamer wrote:
Sat Jun 09, 2018 1:58 am
1. Miho stepped in to absorb the power as that's how she's supposed to feed, or at least that's the scenario we had at the time.
It was guessed at, Masamichi said things, Miho didn't disagree. We have a number of times Miho has stepped in to stop (help, move) things (Yuki almost being caught for stealing, Ping being harassed, Ed about to maybe shoot Ping or hit Yuki with robot-shrapnel, Kimiko and Piro having issues after Anna Millers, Piro balking at being an artist, Dom trying to move Kimiko in another direction, issues with Sight and Kotone.) So there's little reason to believe she isn't going to or isn't supposed to do things like absorb crowd anger. Which rather than being a need towards the positive, as in eating, seems destructive and somewhat painful, or at least she's hinted at it; all we might be able to go on (that has happened live since this started) is the "nine days" she wasn't seen, and we know zero of what happened during when she was gone; from the instant the killballs exploded something after Ikebukuro to her being flown past at the ASF is a blank. Although with that explanation are questions of if she's trying to get away from it, or actually is harmed; how much is also illusion.
Erika, from what we saw, couldn't handle the fame
The person who was supposed to have loved her dissing her seems to have almost irreparably damaged her. Maybe the power was too much, but it seemed more she decided it wasn't worth it, but with responsibilities and who knows what else tagging along.
Note that this isn't always with evil intent - look at Sayuri. She's clearly manipulating not only Kimiko but the NPC's, but doing so for what appear to be positive ends. Does she have an ulterior motive? Hell, in this town, everybody seems to. At least she's cute in a bear mask.
Some have guessed she's another Analogue, but would either way seem to be some agent of stability, and or gets her role is important.
Komugiko isn't fully part of any of the ordinary power structures of MT.
Apparently, she seems outside things, although she does know quite a bit.
The CoE appears to exist outside of them, probably deliberately, because that's how Miho wanted it.
Or is at her disposal. However that works.
2. Schrodinger's shirt? It sure looked unbuttoned
except for not seeing the buttons lol
{the ninja female} could have tagged along and done the buttoning, or something more improbable...
Possible, but she's likely with the rest. (Given her behaviors seem more and more along the lines of a child's, if so then not off on her own missing the excitement, which anyway hospital seems too far to not be missed by the others)
Ping certainly seems to be the driving force here, and we have not the slightest idea why. That, to me, is the big question here. Is she doing this of her own free will? Is this her programming? Are her creators manipulating her into acting this way? To what degree is the MT metastory looped in on this and interfering?
It seems she's trying to become more real by learning, then found out some of what she thought was a shell. Could have been herself kicking it off. There weren't (m)any clues that something else kicked it off, but after the hanging around with Miho, then Junko, and Miho being gone, and The Horde thing, and getting torn off from the net... Yep, no real idea of why, well at least not anything concrete. For the time being, the razor might cut best at she decided to do so, then problems, now attempting to find solutions. But blaming anyone, this is her deal seemingly, . It'll be interesting to see what she learns of love or what happens if Junko shows up first.
I suspect that they were inserted into the story as a deliberate wildcard
Popular characters writing themselves in seems both mega and meta.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Sun Jun 10, 2018 1:19 am

cidjen wrote:
Sat Jun 09, 2018 7:46 am
Roamer wrote:
Sat Jun 09, 2018 2:04 am
Just looked back at the post history. Has nobody else really had anything to say for the last week?
I went on vacation/holidays ;) somewhat AFK for a few days.

And also it looks like Fred concentrated on PTCO drawing recently (see the WIP thread, when the next comic officially started, having been assigned a number).

Yutaka/Chewtoy, hmm, being half-magical boy? Maybe. But he's much too soft physically yet. His powers are elsewhere (he may be as l33t as Largo on the Internet, remember the 'wall of misinformation' ?). And he just recently became 'cute' in the eyes of the girls (quoting Asako I think), still he's not even filling up his school uniform (athletically challenged).

I don't know if anybody commented on that, but inspector Sonoda is kinda magical too (not sure if due to having a magical daughter or wife) - but it's been said that his MGD is constantly going off so he's got it on 'silent'. Maybe, magic / sparklogen is contagious?
Abandoning your post! Floggings all around! Seriously, good on you. Most of us need more vacation.

I don't think that men get any active abilities if they have the MG genes, but some passive abilities would be useful - enhanced sense and danger sense both seem likely here. Regeneration would clearly be really useful, not combat regen, but simply enhanced healing and the ability to heal beyond what most people can manage. Looking at the kid's midsection after a day of being drug around by Yuki at mach 2, liver and kidney damage seem pretty likely. And boosts to stats would be highly useful (Yuuji's ability to dodge a room-covering firefighting foam gun) as well as enhanced ability to focus, etc. Nothing directly combat related, but all useful. It's possible that there's something in the genes that makes everyone with MG genes more attractive in general once they hit puberty, that's a clear survival trait - and having kids early would be a really good idea for anyone who hangs around a MG.

About Sonada's MG detector - I always figured it was turned off because it went off every time his daughter came into range. Unlike Meimi, Yuki is much too powerful to be missed by a detector; Meimi may have been 'more skilled than sparkly' (Ririka) but Yuki is well into the red zone power wise - 7.3 on emergence, on probably a 10 point scale. Powerful enough that Masamichi was classing her as 'potentially catastrophic grade'. Eek.

If Masamichi has any powers, they should be focused around not being driven nuts when around the weirdness loci that is a house with two magical girls. Seriously, the way these girls bend probability and physics, there's got to be some strangeness going on more often than not. Consider - how many households, even in Megatokyo, actually have an area-affect firefighting foam gun?

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by Roamer » Sun Jun 10, 2018 2:27 am

iffy wrote:
Sat Jun 09, 2018 6:59 pm
It was guessed at, Masamichi said things, Miho didn't disagree. We have a number of times Miho has stepped in to stop (help, move) things (Yuki almost being caught for stealing, Ping being harassed, Ed about to maybe shoot Ping or hit Yuki with robot-shrapnel, Kimiko and Piro having issues after Anna Millers, Piro balking at being an artist, Dom trying to move Kimiko in another direction, issues with Sight and Kotone.) So there's little reason to believe she isn't going to or isn't supposed to do things like absorb crowd anger. Which rather than being a need towards the positive, as in eating, seems destructive and somewhat painful, or at least she's hinted at it; all we might be able to go on (that has happened live since this started) is the "nine days" she wasn't seen, and we know zero of what happened during when she was gone; from the instant the killballs exploded something after Ikebukuro to her being flown past at the ASF is a blank. Although with that explanation are questions of if she's trying to get away from it, or actually is harmed; how much is also illusion.
If we believe the revelations since she came clean to Kimiko just before having the heart attack, it's hard to trust most of what we heard from her about her powers before that point. It's too likely to have been what the narrative wanted her to say. The nine days is the hard clue, but even then, it's clear she could have left before that point, otherwise Yuki's yanking her out of there would have been immediately damaging, maybe even fatal.
The person who was supposed to have loved her dissing her seems to have almost irreparably damaged her. Maybe the power was too much, but it seemed more she decided it wasn't worth it, but with responsibilities and who knows what else tagging along.
It's hard to say how much of that was from the boyfriend. Erika seems sensitive to other's feelings and emotions - the Anti-Dom! - and to the amount of damage she can do with her power as a VA, and it's reasonable that she simply refused to accept having that kind of influence over others. I think that we again have to admit we simply don't know enough to say in this case.
Some have guessed she's another Analogue, but would either way seem to be some agent of stability, and or gets her role is important.
Or she's trying to groom Kimiko to handle the power that Erika couldn't, and use it responsibly once she acknowledges it. Or heck, maybe she just wants this game to work to keep together a team she likes.
Apparently, she seems outside things, although she does know quite a bit.
Kitsune are tricksters and a good trickster always knows more than their target. Being information brokers or seekers makes sense.
Or is at her disposal. However that works.
At it's simplest, it appears to have two levels. The first is simply being a popular goth club, the second is being a base of support and aid for Miho outside of the hospitals provided by the establishment. If I were 200 years old and had a fanbase devoted to watching me die beautifully, I just might want my own powerbase as well.
except for not seeing the buttons lol
Schrodinger's shirt of velcro holding!
Possible, but she's likely with the rest. (Given her behaviors seem more and more along the lines of a child's, if so then not off on her own missing the excitement, which anyway hospital seems too far to not be missed by the others)
That was mostly intended to give one example of what you were talking about, how we couldn't know all the answers. Possible but deliberately unlikely.
It seems she's trying to become more real by learning, then found out some of what she thought was a shell. Could have been herself kicking it off. There weren't (m)any clues that something else kicked it off, but after the hanging around with Miho, then Junko, and Miho being gone, and The Horde thing, and getting torn off from the net... Yep, no real idea of why, well at least not anything concrete. For the time being, the razor might cut best at she decided to do so, then problems, now attempting to find solutions. But blaming anyone, this is her deal seemingly, . It'll be interesting to see what she learns of love or what happens if Junko shows up first.
Oh, it'll be interesting for sure. Survivable, that's another question. Probably, but it's possible that what she's sought to learn will be quite different from what she actually finds out. And likely she won't like much of it. Growing up hurts, and forcing it in this way magnifies that.
Popular characters writing themselves in seems both mega and meta.
Not necessarily writing themselves in, really, more being created the way they are and placed as the are to deliberately add chaos factors and uncertainty. Even without a tail, members of the family seem to be very competent, even startlingly so. Either they're all affected by the genes even without tails, or Megumi picked up combat reflexes and combat driving while working at Anna Millers.

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Re: [1526] That kind of love

Post by iffy » Sun Jun 10, 2018 4:07 pm

Did the seemingly unkillable potentially indestructible somewhat omniscient unknown something (that many call Tohya Miho) simply allow one story aspect (Ed) to think his was over (for the time being, until the CoE "happened" as it worked out, planned or not), or was that just the capstone to the two pairs of couples at Ikebukuro into the gaps, maybe a chance to start new stories, or just a wait for {Yuki, Piro, others} to arrive at some point for some reason. Was Ping off about it having already been nine days since seeing Miho. Really we don't know if Miho was supposed to return, although in another way certainly not all the stories involving her were over. Yet visibly, many at the CoE seemed to know she was returning, Kimiko was sure she'd be there, Miho seemed to force Yuki to take her there. There was that DPD on Dance of the Evils that said poster is actually on the wall in a story comic (I never can remember which one). Inside joke, or planned event, or both?

Yes, in a lot of ways, a great deal of all this appears to revolve around growing, uncomfortably as it so often is, be that up, in enlightenment and towards understanding, in moving from not seeing or ignoring what is seen to seeing. Many are those who often appear to be doing their best to not have it happen. How much is the 'magical story powers' is another of the unanswered things to imagine about. The journey.

For that character aspect, in a more meta sense, moving themselves into a role that needs to be filled, or just one that was there all along but was not seen, hiding in plain site or moving through the gaps.

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