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italicwatches · 6 years

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Comic Girls - Episode 04

Anime time is now. It’s Comic Girls, episode 04! Here we GO!

-It is night, it is raining. Koyume is out like a light with particularly few fucks to give, when Kaos…Well I’m assuming she has to go take a piss, but the important thing is she finds Ruki still working and pulling an all-nighter. The next morning, every…one’s…up? Well, three of our four are sparky and spunky. Ruki, despite Kaos’s thirst, is looking more like she just ran a marathon with a hangover. Also Kaos said the quiet things loud again.

-Opening!

-To school! Where Ruki is…Oh, dear, she is not looking good. Apparently she pulled two all nighters, in a row. I’m assuming she had to get some sleep in there somewhere, because I’ve seen people on their third day and that’s usually when the hallucinations start…But I’m also assuming it was nowhere near enough sleep. And then she gets summoned to translate the line on the board, ‘Can I come over to your house tonight’. Which, sleepy Ruki says in a way that literally all of the girls in class suddenly have lilies blooming. Literally. All of them.

-Kaos is right. That is terrifying power.

-Gym class. Sleepy Ruki is tying up her hair and her sleepy eyes are looking like bedroom eyes and Ruki please stop turning your classmates gay. It’s causing a ruckus.

-…God dammit Ruki. Just…God dammit, Ruki. She refused to go home, went on the run for gym class, collapsed onto another girl, it looks really lewd, everyone’s staring and blushing, what did I just say about a ruckus. Even the teacher is calling her out for this, and Kaos can’t stop staring. Even Tsubasa is starting to think she needs to go fucking sleep. And I’m starting to think my assumption that she couldn’t possibly be on her third day without any sleep was…incorrect.

-But Ruki has all of this fucking pride wrapped up in refusing to Give In and oh my god go to bed. I’m not even going to touch her deeply erroneous belief that she’s not suited to lewd manga because I mean come on.

-Okay, lunch time. Eat a little food, then lay your head in Koyume’s lap and sleeeeeep. Even a little cat nap. One problem: Ruki can’t sleep without her favorite plushy. That is ADORABLE. But okay, how do they get he—

-Here hold this Kaos. It’s basically the same thing. …And holy shit it works as Ruki just falls right asleep.

-Back to the dorm! Ruki has enough sleep to at least pretend to be a human being and not some malfunctioning lesbianism-field-generator, and is grinding away at her manuscript…When Koyume and Kaos come to offer to help! Oh god no. No you can’t see. Don’t look at her porn drawings! Woman your work is sold in bookstores all across the country. …OH GOD YOU’RE RIGHT SHE HAS TO GO BUY THEM AND HIDE THEM AWAY

-So eventually they drag her back to her desk, and…Well, okay, real talk, if you’re that ashamed of anyone seeing your work, why are you here in this dorm? Because if her parents saw this they’d disown her. Her grandmother would die from shock! Sure there’s a certain thrill in getting away with something secret and terrible right under her family’s nose, but…Ruki now you’re saying the quiet parts loud.

-But, finally, they convince her to let them help because the other option is she literally dies from overwork at like 15. Okay. Okay here’s a page to work o—

-Koyume and Kaos can’t take it. It’s too sexy. The dialogue is so intense! Then work on these pages that are only sound effects. They are only sound effects because they are sex scenes. Please stop with the comedy reactions!

-And fine. FINE. Tsubasa gets…MEDIUM SERIOUS. She’s got on her core cosplay clothes but not the cape or eyepatch. Give her that manuscript, she’ll screen tone that dude’s dick right the fuck now! Please be at least a little embarrassed. (NO. WHICH TONE DO YOU USE ON DICKS? THE POLKA DOTS OR THE STRIPES)

-But as they work, that’s when Tsubasa notices that the protagonist looks a little like Koyume. Well, Ruki uses her as a reference model so often, some of her traits just kind of leak in…And then Koyume realizes what Tsubasa is looking at and has a panic. So that’s how she ends up having to work on the pages so her manga counterpart isn’t exposed to Tsubasa-sama…When she realizes there’s a really touching, sexy love story inside this perverse sex manga! Yes, you get it! You understand!

-Meanwhile Kaos can barely work because she’s…

-Ohhhh dear. Kaos is peering at the pages through her fingers and breathing hard. What has Ruki done to this innocent concept of a future child her parents might have one day?! I’m running out of ways to infantilize Kaos in Ruki’s mind, guys, and it’s only episode four. KAOS JUST COLOR THIS BUNNY DON’T LOOK AT THE NAUGHTY. And Tsubasa finally goes past silly SERIOUS and into full legit frustration.

-Ruki! Back to your fucking desk! Kaos! Tighten up and work you can jill off to it when it’s done! And Kaos fainted at a sex page. Great. Just…Just great.

-Eventually everyone is playing ball. Well, three of them. Kaos is going down into Despair territory, because not only is she struggling with The Sex, she is struggling with the analog tools. If she just could do this on her tab…let…That’s a computer box in the corner. Yeah, Ruki bought a computer for color work…

-Except…She’s genuinely terrible with anything more complicated than a phone and hasn’t been able to set it up because she’s never used a computer outside of class. …Please step aside and let Kaos set it up, thank you. And Ruki looks to her for advice, and…Kaos please stop lewding when there’s work to be done. But if they’re going to use this computer to speed up their work, they need more software and a scanner.

-And…Ruki’s…Woooo boy she is bad at this. Guys. Guys. Just let Kaos use the computer tonight and you can learn when you’re not on a deadline and half asleep. And indeed, Kaos just slams out a rapid-fire coloring on a scan of the splash page, complete with full color sparkle effects and god damn smug Kaos. …SO how goes the actual manuscript, ladies? DESPAIR

-New day! Ruki is with her editor, seeing the publishing of the actual tankoban of her first volume, and it’s going wonderfully! Also, they’re doing a big promo push for everything in their magazine, so could you come do an autograph signing?

-Ruki just starts screaming and can’t stop.

-And when she explains her fears back at the dorm, it’s just a lot of fear and panic and guilt…Stop. Stopppp. Your readers are almost entirely horny 20-something women, it’s gonna be fine. Yeah, you’re right, she has nothing to fear EXCEPT EVERYTHING YOU BLUE IDIOT. Those 20-something women will realize she’s a tiny teenage fraud! A bust-size-lying fraud! But that’s just a pen name…right…? Not right. Look at the self portrait she ended up submitting! …Oh.

-Oh dear. So she’s panicking and ends up clinging to Kaos as a soothing charm. Wait, what if they used Kaos as your adorable child in your arms while you signed? Yeah neither of them are down for that. New plan! Koyume, you be Big Boob <3 Himeko! Koyume couldn’t possibly SHE’S IN. Yeah she’s too eager. Much, much too eager.

-But, a stand-in…Who do they know that’s older, mature but still sexy, and knows about Ruki’s work…Landlady? Landlady. Ruki’s got to go to her and beg for help but can’t even get the words out. She’s too damn earnest and kind and wants to make a big celebration dinner with all of Ruki’s favorites.

-So as we montage through the next day, I want to point out a delightful bit of character contrast. Both Tsubasa and Ruki are tired from grinding away at manga. Ruki tries to stay awake in class but nearly fails. Tsubasa just puts on an open-eyes sleeping mask and drops right down onto her notebook with no fucks given.

-And thus they work, and grind, and enjoy the warm days of spring and summer, as everyone’s work slowly improves…And the big autograph day is coming real close. Until finally it’s the night before, and Ruki is fully hooked in at this point, and is out of ideas…As Ruki despairs, Tsubasa’s just silently working, not even responding…And that’s when Ruki remembers something important. Tsubasa’s going by a genderless pseudonym. She’s hiding herself from the world to be able to draw the manga she loves without judgment. And here Ruki was…

-…Tsubasa’s been thinking up new names for the exposed Big Boob <3 Himeko.

-You fucking ridiculous nerd. But she also admits, it’s kind of crazy, you know? Just a couple years ago, they were the ones lining up to get books signed, and now…Well, just remember how it felt back then. And you’ll be fine. Go get some rest for tomorrow.

-Big day. Ruki carefully gets ready, even as she tries to figure out what to do with her hair and how to look for this…When the landlady pulls her aside. And with another pair of hands, and a light touch of some makeup in just the right places, she transforms Ruki, bringing that touch of maturity that she needs. When it’s all done, she goes from looking 15 to looking 25, and can make this work…!

-Okay, to the actual signing! It is indeed pretty much all girls and women there, and all of them are incredibly nervous but excited, to meet the woman who draws this manga they love so much…! And it’s just an amazing, blazingly bright moment for Ruki, as she even has a young mother there who had to bring her baby to be able to make it. That’s how important Himeko-sensei…No, Himeko-onee-sama’s work is to her! And oh you just said the magic words, because Ruki immediately pops into full onee-sama mode and dammit Ruki what did I say about a ruckus.

-Indeed, what started as just a mere meet-and-greet and manga signing is soon full of tons of advice and kindness and when it’s all said and done, and when it all finally finishes up, Ruki is left with a stack of fan letters and gifts and is just…Moved to raw, genuine tears by the amount of emotion and love felt here today. It’s been a struggle. She’s had to work on healthy days and sick days, when she was grieving and when she was losing out on a normal adolescence. She’s questioned her path countless times, especially after being shunted into erotic manga instead of the cutesy animals she wanted to do…

-But…She made a difference. A real, genuine difference. She changed people’s lives for the better. She didn’t just stumble into a place she didn’t want to be in…She landed exactly where she needed to be! …Oh god the afternoon guests are coming panic

-Credits!

Good for you, Big Boob <3 Himeko! Ruki’s found herself, and found the real core answer to why she keeps pushing forward…Which suggests we’ll be asking that question of our other girls soon. Who might come up next? Probably not Kaos, since I imagine her arc will fill the show, so it’s got to be one of the others…Perhaps Koyume? Well, we’ll find out next time, in episode FIVE of Comic Girls! Wait for it!

#where I watch #recap #anime #comic girls

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