Ménage à 3 IV: It's All Coming to a Head

[Cikomyr]

Surely French can be used to say it even if it is not a French idiom?

Actually... no

The idea of a Western Language without simile is sort of messing with my head here.

We do have similes, they are just not the same as the ones you use in english. Most of the times. Most of the things in the field of colloquial are hardly translatable.

[Traab]

Actually... no



We do have similes, they are just not the same as the ones you use in english. Most of the times. Most of the things in the field of colloquial are hardly translatable.

Yeah, I have read a few interesting Cracked.com articles about odd phrases from around the world. They dont usually make much sense translated into english, but everyone in the country would likely recognize them. Phrases like, "se taper le cul par terre," which in english means bang your butt on the ground I believe, is basically the french version of rofl. Or, "qi qiao sheng yan," expell smoke from seven orifices, basically, it means to be really really mad.

[JadedDM]

Teddy may be speaking French, but he's still thinking in English. This is due to Chloe messing with his stats screen.

[Cikomyr]

Teddy may be speaking French, but he's still thinking in English. This is due to Chloe messing with his stats screen.

I had this problem.. or actually, something like it.

Before I moved to the UK, when I spoke French I still used a french way of formulating my sentences and using idoms.

And since I moved here, when I speak to my native Quebec family, I accidently put in anglicisms (translated english idioms that mean nothing) when speaking french.

But the thing is; such level of confusion only happens when you are fully immerse and think/dream in the other language. If Teddy really spoke french like THAT, he'd understand english.

[Morph Bark]

Y'know, this Peggy chick looks a lot like one of those schoolgirls from EC (specifically the one that is in today's thumbnail for that comic).

[Domochevsky]

All his stuff is gone? Can't be that he moved out... (But I wouldn't put it past Fate to screw him like that. We knew that he wouldn't get DiDi and that DiDi wouldn't get action. The question was "how".)

[Cikomyr]

All his stuff is gone? Can't be that he moved out... (But I wouldn't put it past Fate to screw him like that. We knew that he wouldn't get DiDi and that DiDi wouldn't get action. The question was "how".)

Maybe he went back to his parents?

[Kato]

That's actually pretty weird... Sure looks a lot like he moved out but... why, at this point, anyway? Did he in fact have an epiphany his current life style would not get him anywhere? It seems very unlikely.

edit: Alternate theory: Wrong appartment but then why would the keys have worked.

[teratorn]

edit: Alternate theory: Wrong appartment but then why would the keys have worked.

The pillow nails it down: it's Gary's. My bet: he ends up in the same bed with Amber's sister.

[Frozen_Feet]

What if... what if Gary actually grew a pair and, fed up with his life, decided to covertly move away?

[Cikomyr]

What if... what if Gary actually grew a pair and, fed up with his life, decided to covertly move away?

What are the odds of THAT happening?

My bet is aliens

[Frozen_Feet]

I dunno, what were the odds of Gary ever getting laid?

[Morph Bark]

What if... what if Gary actually grew a pair and, fed up with his life, decided to covertly move away?

"Covertly" and "grew a pair" don't mix.

[Kato]

The pillow nails it down: it's Gary's. My bet: he ends up in the same bed with Amber's sister.

True, which raises the question: Why did he leave the pillow behind? What would make him take all his possessions (but the pillow) and move to Amber's/Dillon's? This is not making any sense... maybe his clothes just got really dirty... or he went on vacation. Or someone decided to give him a makeover and throw out all his old clothes?

[Radar]

True, which raises the question: Why did he leave the pillow behind? What would make him take all his possessions (but the pillow) and move to Amber's/Dillon's? This is not making any sense... maybe his clothes just got really dirty... or he went on vacation. Or someone decided to give him a makeover and throw out all his old clothes?

He also wouldn't be able to move his drawing table on his own and we don't know if it's still there or not. Laundry day would make the most sense if it wasn't fairly late at night (or so I can assume).

[mangosta71]

Lots of single people that live in apartments do their laundry late at night.

[Radar]

Lots of single people that live in apartments do their laundry late at night.

I wasn't aware of that; this makes it the most reasonable explenation. Knowing the unreasonable reality of the comics it might be something entirely different. Still I predict, that he is indeed doing laundry and will come back after the whole inabriated party goes out to search for him thus he won't even know he missed an opportunity.

[Olinser]

Lots of single people that live in apartments do their laundry late at night.

Yes... but they don't take every shred of clothing they possess - and don't generally hang dirty clothes up in closets. If his closet is totally empty then he's gone. Also... I seem to recall him giving that pillow to Yuki. Maybe he thought it was hers, so he shouldn't take it?

Honestly I'm kind of surprised that it didn't happen sooner. As somebody else mentioned, he really seems to be nothing more than a convenient tongue to everybody around him. Yuki was really the only one that actually wanted to be with Gary himself (even before she found out about the swirly tongue). Sure she wasn't the best girlfriend, but she at least was attempting to overcome her issues for him. Sonya only wanted him because it looked like everybody else wanted him - once she actually HAD him, she dumped him almost immediately. Didi just wants an orgasm, Amber likewise just wants his tongue, Zii (while I guess she was at least TRYING to help) threw a girl at him that used him for sex and dumped him, and his male 'friends' only seem concerned with trying to make him be gay with them.

A man can only take so much, and I'm kind of surprised he hadn't kicked them out or left much earlier.

[Kato]

As much as I look forward to the prospect of hot lesbian porn I have to ask... WHAT ARE YOU THINKING, ZII? Okay, I know what she is thinking but... urgh. So, will something save her, will Eric be just that forgiving or will she actually ruin her relationship?

[Wraith]

Quite frankly, a genuine emotional loss would be the next logical step in Zii's character growth.

In the beginning she was pretty much an outright hedonist, and was scared off by Yuki and/or Sonya's "clinginess". Then she met Eric and seems to have discovered the joys of monogamy... Although to my mind, I'm still wondering how much of that is genuine affection for Eric, and how much of it is just being awe-struck by his generosity, lifestyle and sexual prowess.

I don't think we've ever seen Zii admit - inwardly or outwardly - that she genuinely adores Eric, only that she knows that she is onto a good thing and it would be stupid to let it go easily. If this plan doesn't work out in her favour, and having said failure genuinely upset her, would be a distinct sign that Zii is no longer the shallow opportunist that she was originally and I think I would feel a little sorry for her.

Not much, admittedly - alcohol is never an excuse for ANY poor decision - but enough that some of the Zii-haters might start to change their mind about her too.

[Morph Bark]

Quite frankly, a genuine emotional loss would be the next logical step in Zii's character growth.

Depends on how she'll act on it. She could easily fall back on her old habits, because they're known and therefore more comfortable to her.

To be honest, I didn't like Zii pre-Eric, and I've started to like her due to how she handled her relationship with him so far, as well as other things because of that. This just puts things back to square one, or at least it will if she doesn't learn from this mistake and grow better out of it.

[BaronOfHell]

Eric believes they're in an open relationship: http://www.ma3comic.com/strips-ma3/d...n_relationship.

So I think he's already mentally prepared himself the best he can on the possibility that Zii isn't only sleeping with him, while he wouldn't sleep with anyone else but her.

If Zii goes through with it and remembers what happened, so there won't be any hilarious and sad misunderstandings, I imagine this leads to Zii realizing that Eric is sufficiently interested in her to accept she'd sleep with someone else. Since she's already so much into him that she's fighting her urges to sleep with someone else in the fear of losing him, and had to be severely drunk to, so far only momentarily, having lost grip on battling the way she's lived for so long, I guess this realization leads to an improved Zii, and not the Zii we had before she started dating Eric.

[Olinser]

Quite frankly, a genuine emotional loss would be the next logical step in Zii's character growth.

In the beginning she was pretty much an outright hedonist, and was scared off by Yuki and/or Sonya's "clinginess". Then she met Eric and seems to have discovered the joys of monogamy... Although to my mind, I'm still wondering how much of that is genuine affection for Eric, and how much of it is just being awe-struck by his generosity, lifestyle and sexual prowess.

I don't think we've ever seen Zii admit - inwardly or outwardly - that she genuinely adores Eric, only that she knows that she is onto a good thing and it would be stupid to let it go easily. If this plan doesn't work out in her favour, and having said failure genuinely upset her, would be a distinct sign that Zii is no longer the shallow opportunist that she was originally and I think I would feel a little sorry for her.

Not much, admittedly - alcohol is never an excuse for ANY poor decision - but enough that some of the Zii-haters might start to change their mind about her too.

My problem with Zii and Eric's relationship is that Zii has now just about cheated on Eric TWICE, and only stopped because of contrived coincidences, not her suddenly realizing it was wrong.

On the other hand, when they were barely into their 'official' relationship, Zii seeing him kiss another woman pissed her off and made her extremely jealous.

It's her double standard that annoys people (and me). If you don't want him kissing other women, why is it okay for you to be running around borderline sleeping with other people?

[Olinser]

My problem with Zii and Eric's relationship is that Zii has now just about cheated on Eric TWICE, and only stopped because of contrived coincidences, not her suddenly realizing it was wrong.

On the other hand, when they were barely into their 'official' relationship, Zii seeing him kiss another woman pissed her off and made her extremely jealous.

It's her double standard that annoys people (and me). If you don't want him kissing other women, why is it okay for you to be running around borderline sleeping with other people?

Yep, Zii has succeeded in actually making it worse. I mean I hate to use the word, but her 'plan' in the latest strip is simply pathetic.

[datalaughing]

Yep, Zii has succeeded in actually making it worse. I mean I hate to use the word, but her 'plan' in the latest strip is simply pathetic.

Bad ideas often seem really great when you're drunk. It's one of the great benefits of alcohol, really.

[Wraith]

My problem with Zii and Eric's relationship is that Zii has now just about cheated on Eric TWICE, and only stopped because of contrived coincidences, not her suddenly realizing it was wrong.

I think this is unfair - okay she's not been great, but she has been trying. She's spent a lot of time and willpower trying to resist her urges, even if she struggles towards the end.

That's a far, far cry from how she would indulge previously; I think that counts for something.

On the other hand, when they were barely into their 'official' relationship, Zii seeing him kiss another woman pissed her off and made her extremely jealous.

Again, there's another way to look at it - there is always a point before a relationship becomes 'official' where you have to stop and say to yourself, "Okay, we're not a bonafide couple yet, but have we reached the point where it is serious enough to say that sleeping with other people might be considered insulting, if not outright infidelity, to the other person?"

All we can say for sure is that Zii did reach this point and intended to take it seriously, and from her point of view Eric hadn't reached the same conclusion at the same time and was with another girl. We don't really know Eric's opinion of when that occurred for him regarding Zii - and Zii couldn't know that the girl in question was his sister anyway, and so "didn't count". And I don't think we can fault her for being angry that Eric, at a quick glance, might not be making as much as an effort as her (circumstances aside).

I concur, it could very definitely be double standards and they might come back to bite her in the ass. Having said that, I don't think we know enough about either side to say that it's deliberate, or that it's entirely accurate.

Although quite frankly, I'm more interested in Gary right now. All of the girls are drunk and are making poor decisions, so hilarity will inevitably ensure at some point. It's the mystery that's getting me! He's not turned up in another spin-off comic, has he?

[Coidzor]

Although quite frankly, I'm more interested in Gary right now. All of the girls are drunk and are making poor decisions, so hilarity will inevitably ensure at some point. It's the mystery that's getting me! He's not turned up in another spin-off comic, has he?

Hmm, jumping ship would be a rather unexpected move. Also, meta as all get out.

[Olinser]

I think this is unfair - okay she's not been great, but she has been trying. She's spent a lot of time and willpower trying to resist her urges, even if she struggles towards the end.

That's a far, far cry from how she would indulge previously; I think that counts for something.



Again, there's another way to look at it - there is always a point before a relationship becomes 'official' where you have to stop and say to yourself, "Okay, we're not a bonafide couple yet, but have we reached the point where it is serious enough to say that sleeping with other people might be considered insulting, if not outright infidelity, to the other person?"

All we can say for sure is that Zii did reach this point and intended to take it seriously, and from her point of view Eric hadn't reached the same conclusion at the same time and was with another girl. We don't really know Eric's opinion of when that occurred for him regarding Zii - and Zii couldn't know that the girl in question was his sister anyway, and so "didn't count". And I don't think we can fault her for being angry that Eric, at a quick glance, might not be making as much as an effort as her (circumstances aside).

I concur, it could very definitely be double standards and they might come back to bite her in the ass. Having said that, I don't think we know enough about either side to say that it's deliberate, or that it's entirely accurate.

Although quite frankly, I'm more interested in Gary right now. All of the girls are drunk and are making poor decisions, so hilarity will inevitably ensure at some point. It's the mystery that's getting me! He's not turned up in another spin-off comic, has he?

Well, it was almost perfectly set up for Zii to hear Sonya's suggestion, and realize that what she really wanted was to be in a relationship with Eric.

Instead she is now seizing on an incredibly flimsy excuse to have sex with somebody else.

I really think it's going to take Eric dumping her for her to have any character growth.

Me personally, I think Gary went to Japan. Remember, Yuki's dad DID offer to have him apprentice with him. Maybe all of the crap he's been through has made him finally just get fed up with it and leave.

[The Glyphstone]

Brainstorming time - what will Gary's spinoff comic be called?

[Traab]

Brainstorming time - what will Gary's spinoff comic be called?

The Oral Rapport. Gary shall assemble a harem of beautiful women through the magical powers of the swirly. Together they will fight crime. Similar to Charlie's Angels, except in this case "charlie" is sleeping with all the girls.