Boy Meets Girl, Act 4 - Heart Ignition (ボーイ ミーツ ガール ハートのＩｇｎｉｔｉｏｎ, Boi mitsu garu; Act.4 Haato no Ignition?), also known as "Boy Meets Girl; Act.4 Ignition of the Heart" in the Project ILM Scanlation, is the 359th chapter of the Urusei Yatsura manga.
Summary[]
Ataru gathers Lum's friends and prepares to rescue his supposedly unwanted fiancée from the clutches of Rupa!
Plot Overview[]
On Oniboshi, Lum's parents receive a mocking videocall from Upa to gloat about how he has kidnapped Lum and will soon marry her to Rupa, although Lum certainly isn't taking her captivity sitting down. Lum's father marshals his soldiers to retrieve Lum, but they are crushed by a sudden rain of crates filled with mushrooms, Upa's "dowry" for Lum. These mushrooms start growing and multiplying massively, swamping the planet in fungus and making it impossible to launch the fleet. On Earth, Ataru suddenly storms into Class 2-4, carrying a large bundle slung on his shoulders and sporting a rare serious expression. He marches over to Mendō and proposes a trade; Ataru's entire collection of info on Tokyo's most beautiful girls in exchange for the right to use Mendō's private spaceship. Mendō retorts that he doesn't have a spaceship. Suddenly, Oyuki and Benten arrive on the latter's hoverbike, and Ataru takes them (and Mendo) to a sweetshop to explain the situation. Oyuki identifies Rupa as the Prince of the World of Darkness, and realizing that this is what Sakura's crystal ball foretold, Ataru instinctively takes off, desperate to find Lum. Oyuki and Benten catch up to him, encourage him to cool down, and then, with Mendō hot on their heels, they head for Ran's ship. The quarter burst in on Ran and Rei, seize the cockpit, and blast off to find a way to the World of Darkness.
Characters in Order of Appearance[]
- Lum's Father
- Lum's Mother
- Upa
- Lum
- Shūtarō Mendō
- Onsen-Mark
- Ataru Moroboshi
- Oyuki
- Benten
- Rupa (flashback)
- Sakura (flashback)
- Cherry (flashback)
- Ran
- Rei
- Ten
Trivia[]
- When Ataru, Mendō, Oyuki and Ran go to the sweet shop to discuss Lum's abductor, Ataru is mentioned to be eating mochi (もち). This cake-like sweet treat is made of mochigome (もち米), a short-grain japonica glutinous rice that is soaked and steamed overnight before being pounded until it achieves a gooey texture that enables it to be cut and molded into distinct shapes. Mochi is one of Japan's most ancient sweets, with the earliest confirmed records dating to the late Kofun era (the 6th century), and though it is eaten year-round, mochi is associated with many Japanese festivals, with New Years, spring, Children's Day and Girl's Day all having distinct mochi variants that are eaten in celebration. In the modern era, mochi is often mixed with all kinds of additives, such as sugar for increased sweetness and cornstarch and/or water to better control thickness and elasticity.
- On the final panel, one of Rupa's defeated guards is just visible making the famous "Takahashi warding gesture" with his visible arm.