Gal niPA-chan wa Semararetai - Vol. 4 Ch. 27 - I Am Just Me

[Virtualplayer]

I felt the same as @outinthegardener. Akira's almost taunting non-response ("Nope.") struck me as strange and fucked up, though it may have been an effective PUA power move on his part. After taking a huge emotional risk and opening her heart to Akira, Rio clearly wanted some kind of real, human-friend-like response from him. Yet Akira shut her down cold.

Note that this scene follows a set-up (see page 6) where Akira wanted to say something to Rio, but was unable to overcome his own cowardly indecision. Rio then bailed him out by saying what Akira could not.

It's a standard trope -- almost a rule -- in romantic shounen/seinen manga: the male MC never has to make a choice or take an emotional risk, and everything just comes to him on a silver platter. Annoying as fuck.

Eh, the RAWs later on don't support your conjecture.

Spoiler: He literally is...

...bouncing around between all three in physical and emotional round-robins. If this was a musical instrumental, the tempo is almost uncontrolled. He's struggling to figure out not only WHO he likes, and for WHAT reasons - but also walking a tight rope of escalating sexual activity with each one. The obvious question is who does he lose his Physical V-Card to, but more importantly, who does he really love and why? The only trope in action is that the most unsuspecting and unlikely IRL male has the eyes and hearts of three beauties in their own rights - the Gyaru, the actress, the girl next door. The rest of it is highly ecchi coming of age. It kills me the TLs are so far behind.

 

[beep_repair]

Eh, the RAWs later on don't support your conjecture.

Spoiler: He literally is...

...bouncing around between all three in physical and emotional round-robins. If this was a musical instrumental, the tempo is almost uncontrolled. He's struggling to figure out not only WHO he likes, and for WHAT reasons - but also walking a tight rope of escalating sexual activity with each one. The obvious question is who does he lose his Physical V-Card to, but more importantly, who does he really love and why? The only trope in action is that the most unsuspecting and unlikely IRL male has the eyes and hearts of three beauties in their own rights - the Gyaru, the actress, the girl next door. The rest of it is highly ecchi coming of age. It kills me the TLs are so far behind.

Haven't read the raws, but that still sounds like exactly what I'm talking about? Male MC making no consequential decisions, taking no wild risks of the heart, and instead just accepting whatever he's offered by the all-too-eager girls around him. Unless I'm misunderstanding your spoiler?

Not that I really want to know, tbh. I'd prefer to find out as the story progresses.

 

[outinthegardener]

Eh, the RAWs later on don't support your conjecture.

Spoiler: He literally is...

...bouncing around between all three in physical and emotional round-robins. If this was a musical instrumental, the tempo is almost uncontrolled. He's struggling to figure out not only WHO he likes, and for WHAT reasons - but also walking a tight rope of escalating sexual activity with each one. The obvious question is who does he lose his Physical V-Card to, but more importantly, who does he really love and why? The only trope in action is that the most unsuspecting and unlikely IRL male has the eyes and hearts of three beauties in their own rights - the Gyaru, the actress, the girl next door. The rest of it is highly ecchi coming of age. It kills me the TLs are so far behind.

@beep_repair is right that Akira is passively getting into these situations, and it is a trope for cardboard box MCs to fall into ecchi situations. I agree with you that his hesitancy is like a buffet of indecision.

But if I were Rio just then, I would be pretty confused and hurt that her close friend couldn't even say "I need time to think about it." Just sitting there like a robot is rude and dismissive. She must be pretty forgiving and into him to not reel back from this moment, because his lack of response is a negative response.

The amount of action he's getting is not equal to his effort. I think the story needs him to get dumped by one or two of the girls. There ought to be consequences for his indecision.

 

[Virtualplayer]

Haven't read the raws, but that still sounds like exactly what I'm talking about? Male MC making no consequential decisions, taking no wild risks of the heart, and instead just accepting whatever he's offered by the all-too-eager girls around him. Unless I'm misunderstanding your spoiler?

Not that I really want to know, tbh. I'd prefer to find out as the story progresses.

I guess you'll have to wait then. No, there are big consequences already, and he's piling them up.

 

[Virtualplayer]

@beep_repair is right that Akira is passively getting into these situations, and it is a trope for cardboard box MCs to fall into ecchi situations. I agree with you that his hesitancy is like a buffet of indecision.

But if I were Rio just then, I would be pretty confused and hurt that her close friend couldn't even say "I need time to think about it." Just sitting there like a robot is rude and dismissive. She must be pretty forgiving and into him to not reel back from this moment, because his lack of response is a negative response.

The amount of action he's getting is not equal to his effort. I think the story needs him to get dumped by one or two of the girls. There ought to be consequences for his indecision.

He doesn't even understand that she wanted him to show her how to masturbate. Literally you are taking an introspective nerd and throwing him into the deep end of the sexuality and emotionality pool. To say he's a robot is contradicted by everything that's happened so far. Certainly his churn around realizing he might actually have a chance with Asahino is proof of that. But she hated him before, so that's the underlying motivation behind that subarc development and how he reacts.

Rio is the trope childhood friend who he's not supposed to see as the opposite sex and vice-versa. Some of that might be the translation, but really, she's shot him down and treated him as the Good Little Virgin (sic) up until now. Exactly how is he supposed to take a confession like that seriously? Trust me when I say later he will definitely be honoring the threat as we say in air combat, but the chaps need to catch up.

 

[TrapStation4]

How is this even a harem competition? Bro ate Nipa out, right? 🤨

 

[wallsg]

Why does Page 19 make me see this?

 

[R2_Vanitas]

as much i am rooting for rio, it feels that she wasted her opportunities, i hate this for all childhood friend trope, either its a male or a female, they always loose because they dont take their initiative, end up hurting the MC and loosing the battle