I'm bummed everyday🥀

Okie in all seriousness, this chapter being another one to add on to the already extensive list of chapters that highlight sumiko’s mastery of comic panel organization as a story telling tool. Matter of fact, sumiko is just a genius when it comes to visual storytelling in general which is where a lot of things get lost in translation with the audience.

Also, mitsuki being all irritated about aya being clingy cause it either 1) doesn’t fit her perception of what she believe aya is feeling towards her or wants from her or 2) her belief that aya is interested in shu being in the back of her mind pissing her off

BUT HER STILL CAVING IS PEAK CONFLICT AND DRAMA.

ALSO THE POSTER RIPPING NEXT TO “WHAT WILL BE LEFT FOR ME NOW THAT “MUSIC” IS GONE?”

LIKE WHATTTTTTFFFFFF!?!?? THATS SO GOOD.

Mitsuki is likely struggling to not only understand her self worth as an artist but also what her value even is to aya now that music is no longer something that they can connect with when in reality aya loves her for her (even the parts that come separate from her music geek nature). THATS WHERE USING SEX TO COPE COMES FROM SHE PROBABLY THINKS THATS THE ONLY THING SHE CAN GIVE TO AYA TO KEEP HER INTERESTED IN THEIR RELATIONSHIPS (also physical touch has been shown to be their go-to language of comfort throughout the series)

More details under the cut:

“Does it ever drive you crazy

that’s how rumors start, ya know!

can’t fool seiko

(bonus below the cut)

Aira and Okarun are friends! Not super close due to Aira's questionable views on romance but they're friends!

This is on Momo's.

This is unacceptable. They are friends! Besties arguably! Aira would never admit it of course, but they are friends!

I think there's a case to be made that Momo might have been the only one to want Aira in the group in the first place.

Jiji didn't really know her obviously. And frankly until the Tulpa fight, Okarun probably thought of her as an acquaintance at best. Like, he was visually uncomfortable with her obsession with him

Inviting Aira over to stay over at her place for the Evil Eye arc was not Okarun's idea, and no one made Momo reach out to Aira after the Water Fight. Momo's the one who's actively reached out to her and likes having her around.

This shit is the reason why I make all the character analysis posts about Aira. People completely fuck up these characters.

Because god forbid two characters who are in a well written romantic relationship also have platonic relationships that have good development, great moments and are just as important when it comes to character growth

friend: oh like romantically?

me: no. like cursed object passed between hands for centuries, they are cosmically linked, probably bonded by blood ritual, I think they’ve fought in a war together in at least three lifetimes, and their souls make direct eye contact every time they breathe in the same room

friend: so… romantically?

momo is so cool. Gotta draw her cool.

Because imagine.

Momo carefully plating ration curry for the boy she loves. She doesn’t know if he’s going to wake up. She doesn’t know if she’s going to survive the coming battle. But she knows that food is good and food heals and this could be her last message to him. So she makes a little space man in the rice. Because if he wakes up, it’ll make him smile.

I would love to see a take on the Space Globalists arc with a little more emphasis on the existential dread of it all. It’s treated very lightly most of the time, which is par for the course in dandadan (except for certain moments when it locks in but even then it moves on pretty quick). I think it would be very satisfying to keep everything mostly the same, but linger a bit on the dread.