#the dissimulation

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 019 pg 14 This… wow. We carry over that agony from the previous page, but unlike there you can tell things are slowing down. The panels are larger, less motion is happening, all you see is heavy breathing. We’re losing him. There is something so impossibly miserable about this entire page. I think I can speak for a lot of people when I say that Kamoda was probably the deciding factor in you turning the pages of the Prologue chapter. It wasn’t until he subverted your expectations and drew from Eishi the loveable characteristic we know him for, that you decided to give Birdmen a chance. So there is something so poignant about his suffering that speaks to the series as a whole. Just look at how he reaches toward his best friend, tears and snot leaking sideways as he is convinced of his death. And then motionless is Eishi who is shrouded in a darkness that distances himself from everyone, Kamoda… the audience. He is isolated in the helpless sight of his friend dying right in front of him. He can’t do anything. Kamoda reaches and he can’t stop his pain. 

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 018 pg 31-32 Okay, let’s dive back in. So we are once again exposed to Eishi astute deduction abilities he knows the blackout is skipping the cycle cause of an outlier. But I like to highlight how chilling this must be for him. You can read it in his face that the idea isn’t comfortable at all. That’s why I totally appreciate the shot in that last panel. Alongside being a good aerial shot, Eishi feels vulnerable seeing how he is looking around and is kinda small in the frame. We are witnessing the first ‘hostile’ encounter with Eden as well as the first hostile encounter with a non-ally Birdman. By this time, Eishi understands the basic abilities of a birdman and how they work in units. A new birdman to the scene is therefore an uninvited guest. They are already in the door by presence because of how they work. It’s dawning (or has already dawned) on Eishi that conflict with their own kind is big trouble. We know that the nature of the species really discourages conflict but Eishi hasn’t figured that into the equation. This moment and it’s accompanying threat knocked on a birdmen v. birdmen scenario that would be absolute carnage.

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 019 pg 7 I wish I had the color version of this page… Our boy has been shot and in an almost perfectly Kamoda way, he doesn’t exactly notice it at first. Delayed response. But when he feels it, it hits like a truck. Something I really really like here is how instantly, Kamoda’s wings go haywire. They liquefy, curl, spike-- all at once! And in an artistic flourish they curl around the sound effect which my discord has informed me is probably ‘guwa’ which is indicative of a type of scream perhaps (my database corroborates this as well). Perhaps since the moment is happening so suddenly and silently, it’s like swell in the music of sorts. The scream of the moment growing from his dawning realization that he’s just been shot. It’s just… really dramatic and makes Kamoda’s fall so intense.

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 018 Pg 35 And that’s where Eishi is just helpless. See, he knows there’s an enemy birdman, but he doesn’t expect there to be an enemy human in the plot until it’s too late. You can really sense this moment from Eishi. Something is off and it’s a major mayday, but one he can’t put into words. He know he can’t face Eden. But he doesn’t have much of choice now does he?

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 019 pg 12 This goes down as “weird things only Kit appreciates” but as a writer who likes to embark in dramatic, challenging scenes, that have a million things to consider and a multitude of concerns-- the small acknowledgement of logistics is really… really nice. I think about it all the time and I think a lesser story wouldn’t address it because it isn’t that important and you’d think the bird club wouldn’t even consider something as minor on the list as finding cover while their friend is screaming bloody murder… but A) there is a good number in the group to allow delegation and B) Karasuma is cool (ish) under pressure and can still consider a very important aspect of crisis response. Consider that he’s specifically mentioning being seen from above because there being another Seraph on the scene. (not that visual sight would do anything). Anyway, Tanabe takes the time to show us every little moment of the landing, the moving, the sorting logistics of the scene before we dig into evaluating what’s happened to Kamoda. It’s just a care that I think about when I’m doing a scene like this and it really encourages me when I fear I’m bogging down the story. Pardon the pun here but it really grounds the moment.

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 019 pg 9 Takayama doesn’t hesitate. In a blink he is diving after Kamoda and aren’t we glad he does. That’s of course when the screams start coming and Kamoda is positively freaking the fuck out. Like, a bullet just plowed through him. Various muscles, organs, and veins just got ripped into. This hurts and often leads to bleeding out. Scream and freak out child. That wing mass in particular is spazzing out around the site. That being said I appreciate how the intensity of the scene is heightened by his thrashing. You can see how Takayama has to grapple him and I can’t imagine it’s easy keeping him afloat.

His yelling and screams...

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 019 pg 7 And finally Eishi realizes what’s going on. What I appreciate is, naturally, the birdmen can feel each other’s physical pain. It’s what first brings Eishi’s attention to something being off. That bullet was properly silenced. This is a very baffling moment for all of them, Kamoda especially. And Kamoda is just falling like a stone. It’s such a sad and terrifying thing to see. 

[kitreadsbirdmen]

Flight 018 Pg 36-37

WHAM!

Bullseye. They fucking shot Mikisada Kamoda. Literal sunshine boy. And ohhh Fox’s little victory cheer just shot him to my hit list.The blackout juice hadn’t even dissipated yet! Kamoda is literally in the middle of cheering his golden hearted victory when he gets nailed right in the abdomen. Fairy looks completely shocked because she did not sign up for this and it has not registered for Eishi… What a way to end the chapter… wow. I remember my jaw dropping. This is such an action packed chapter and a great focus on dear Fairy. It’s called Scramble for a reason and I felt my blood pumping! Bring on the fallout! [end]