Part 31: No Longer Sad Boy Hours

And thank god that the sadboy hours are done. Yeesh. So, what's in the junkyard?



Ghosts. Ghosts are in the junkyard.

Fucking rekt.


: You're such an idiot to side with that human, Geo or whatever he's called. Never would've thought you'd be beaten this easily either. But then, you never stood a chance against us after we were given life again by the FM King! Mmmrrrrgh!!

See, this is what you get for not getting a frequency blocker. Now we have to deal with Mr. Porkchops again.

Nah man, the biggest hard counter to him is gonna be applesauce.


: ...bring the traitor, Lyra, with you. Will wonders never cease!
: But you're not the same Omega-Xis as before. You took hits for Lyra when she was injured.
: You've lost your fangs since coming to Earth. You didn't stand a chance against me and my fangs!

As usual, the bosses are reborn and are gloating about how cool they are now after they got their one-up.

And also as usual, we see the bad guys not finishing their opponents off.


: Omega-Xis, it looks like you have lost. We'll be taking our prize now, the Andromeda Key!
: C-Curse you...



You might be wondering, why did Mega bring this with him? After all, he had to have known he was going to fight the other FM-ians. Since that was their goal all along, why not hide it somewhere?


: Your Majesty! We got the Andromeda Key. Please take it!

My personal opinion is that Mega didn't want to hide it, because the FM-ians know he was bonded with Geo. If Mega didn't have it on him, then they'd go after Geo. It even ties into Mega's growth about caring about others, a little bit.

I think he just made a stupid move. If they get the Andromeda Key, everyone dies including Geo.





...Blinky, not right now. You do a great job, but this is supposed to be a dramatic scene.


: I was scared of losing what was precious to me, but I'm different now! I'm going to fight from now on to protect those I love so I won't lose them!

Thank you for telling us your motivation, Geo. Good thing the admins told you what it was.


: But you're too late. Our ultimate weapon, Andromeda, is awakening as we speak!
: Ha ha ha ha. Just the thought of it excites me and reminds me of the war we had with Planet AM where we crushed them!
: I'll never forget the terror on those AM-ians' faces as they were being eaten by Andromeda... Ah, those were the days... I'm so looking forward to seeing the terror on the humans' faces this time!

Hey, these are the bad guys, did you figure that out yet?


: You... can't win against them... by yourself...
: To think you actually care about a human. Now that we have the Andromeda Key, you are of no use to us, so I might as well finish you off. Consider this payment for what you did to me last time!!



: Gemini Thunder!!
: Is this it...?

RIP Mega.


: ...WHAT!?



Hey, Geo, good job. Though, that was probably a lot of volts going through your body all at once.

First reason why people think Geo descended from Lan: he took many, many volts of electricity just like Lan did.


: Y-You just said I can't beat them by myself, so let's fight together... the two of us...
: Hmph, stupid human. All you had to do was sit by and watch.
: Unn... Geo... You just had to follow your human heart, didn't you...? You fool... But it's your fight, so I guess you can't help it...




Well, Geo probably can't take a second one of those.

Hey, asshole admins. You wanna help? You helped last update and bailed Geo out. You're not gonna step in now that Planet AM's history is about to repeat itself? No? OK.


: Huh!?

Good news, now we have Mega back, so he doesn't have to eat a second one.



One flash of light later, and MegaMan is back.

I'm guessing that fusing together is a full heal? Shit, then Lyra and Sonia should just refuse and get all their stamina back.


: You guys have been dead wrong about us.
: Hmph, don't get too confident! We can beat you no matter how many times you are reborn...



: Yes, Your Majesty!

Spooky voice...


: It looks like Andromeda's awake...




Unfortunately, MegaMan can't stop them, for some reason.


: You've got me to deal with.



Oh. It's this guy again. Didn't we already beat his ass once?

Well, it's 1 for 1. Time for a tiebreaker.


: ...before Andromeda gobbles you up!
: Geo! It's been a while since we did any busting. You remember everything?
: I'll be fine.
: Then let's kick some Jammer butt!!
: Wave Battle! Ride On!!
: Ready or not, here I come!

And, Harp Note is just snoozing while this all goes down.



The JammerG has gotten a few upgrades since we fought them the last time, to the tune of a couple hundred HP. But, still just a Jammer2. Shoot it a bunch and step to the side.


: Eeeeeeeeek!! ...There's only one future... for you... Total annihilation!! Long live... Planet FM...!!

A while back, I thought that this guy might be Rey fused with a random virus instead of Gemini - there are reasons for that theory, including Pat suddenly standing right next to Geo. But, now that Pat and Rey are in hiding, this random Jammer is just... some weird guy.




Either way, the wave orb... thing falls on top of him and explodes too.


: I think it's because the wave ball that made the Wave World visible has been destroyed. That moron didn't stand a chance...

Damn straight.


: Hmph, I wasn't worried about you at all!
: ...Nnngh...


: ...Geo... I knew... you'd come...


: Not too bad. Mega tried hard to protect me...

Hooray, Sonia's okay! I'm glad. She's one of the good characters in this game.

: He did...?
: I was doing just fine on my own. Then these two had to butt in and cause me a headache and a half. Hmph.
: Why, I'm shocked! I could've sworn that if it wasn't for us, you wouldn't have lasted as long as you did.
: WHAT!?
: What yourself!

And everything is right with the world.

Fucking scrubs. Can't even win a 5-on-2.


: You too, Lyra...
: Hmph!


: I... Um... I was wrong. I realized how weak I was - how much of a coward I was by cutting my BrotherBands and letting Mega go...
: I'm sorry for cutting our BrotherBand. I know that even if I apologize you may not forgive me, but can we be Brothers again?

This would be a little bit more effective if, again, the admins hadn't JUST explained to Geo all of his character development.


: You really hurt me when you cut our BrotherBand.
: I... I'm sorry.
: ...Sure.
: Huh!?
: Sure, we can be Brothers again. But remember, being Brothers means our hearts are connected. Even if you cut your BrotherBands through your Transer, you can't cut the real bonds that tie people's hearts together.
: Sonia...

Sonia, I do love you, but this is cheesy. Just give me my abilities back please.




: ...Um, hi Geo.

I'm not going to hit all of her dialogue because she's just explaining her abilities again, but there's some interesting stuff after it:

: ...Hey! Better not cut Bros. with me! Well, bye for now!

Short and to the point. Good job, girl.

Yeah and everytime you cut her Brotherband she'll have similar dialogue. Yes, I did cut their Brotherbands to see them be upset; why do you ask?


: Sincerely apologize to her and become Brothers with her again!
: ...OK.
: It'll be OK. I'm sure Luna understands. I'm gonna rest here for a bit. Say hi to Luna for me!
: I will!

Whew. I'm glad that the game really doesn't make you do too much stuff without your Brothers; there's just this fight against the JammerG without anyone.



Now that we have Mega back, I took the chance to waste the rest of my money and pick up this vendor's final HPMem20. This will temporarily inconvenience me about 10 minutes of plot from now.

You're not a true Giver unless you take hours long breaks from the plot like this was Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition



Anyway, the Trio is hanging out right outside the Big Wave shop.


: U-Um...
: .........

Do you think she might be a little upset at Geo?


: Something pretty bad must've happened to her.

See what you did, Geo? Though, if there's any amount of silver linings, she might not use cutting a BrotherBand as a threat anymore now that it's been done to her.



Once we've talked to Bud and Luna, we jump into the cutscene itself.


: Bud, Zack, can you please give us some space?
: ...OK.



Surprisingly obedient of them. They didn't even protest once.


: A lot of things happened and I thought about it again... Um... So if it's OK with you... can we be Brothers again?
: You have a lot of nerve! Do you have any idea what you did!? It's not something I can forgive, just like that...

I mentioned it above, but this line is a bit hypocritical of her.

Par for the course with this character, honestly.


: An earthquake!? It can't be!!

A white fade later, and...



The Wave World is back!

You mean... a Dimensional Area?

: Wh-What is all this!?
: Looks like we've got another wave ball!
: Stooop!!






I wonder what happened? Were they startled by a Mr. Hertz?



Or, kidnapped by Jammers. Who had that on their bingo card? It's a pretty easy call, hoenstly.

: Argh! Let us go! Get your hands off of me!!
: I've gotta do something...
: Heh heh heh. Yummy snacks for Andromeda! That girl looks especially tasty!



Somebody wants a hug! (It's really just a brief animation that fades to black. They put in effort, but not THAT much effort.)

They're giving out hugs? Nice. I want hugs. HUG


: Geo!!
HUG
: Now, now. Wait your turn. We'll turn you into waves after these three.
HUG
: I'm not waiting for you!! I won't run away anymore! I'm gonna fight to protect those I care about! I'm gonna protect everyone I can!

Yet another Motive speech from Geo, which is a little much considering that we had one a cutscene ago.

HUG



Thanks to Bud, continuing to have some of the best lines in the game.

No hugs for Bud.


: ...gonna protect them? Hmm!?




I really wish the whole transforming into MegaMan wherever wasn't just in the third game. It has so much wasted potential.

Oh, shit! Geo has finally done something...he opened up. This is character actualization! Go Geo, go go!


: You're the one that defeated the FM warriors!
: MegaMan!? You... No way!!
: Tsk! This isn't good.





At this point the game has kinda given up on pretending that the EM beings need to do anything other than teleport.



Geo can do it too. He just instant transmissions over to protect Luna and the others.

This right here is a kick ass scene, I have to admit. It honestly is. No joke, I look back on this scene really fondly.

I'm giving it shit and will continue to roast it, but this scene is actually pretty cool.



: Curses!

Then they teleport away, because... why not, right?




Like I said, he just kinda dashes across. I really would have liked to be able to play this part, but I understand why they're not letting me.

Geo gets equipped with Badassery


: MegaMan......

Yeah, that guy's MegaMan. Whoops.

Get fucked, all of you.




It's incredibly hard to get a good screenshot of MegaMan doing his little dash, because he just kinda pops into existence.

Dude, this is a DBZ fight and you're the cameraman trying to get a good shot.

Goku must take so long to charge his attacks because he's waiting for the camera crew to get into position.

: Let's move!



Stay still!





: You're not getting away that easily!!
: Now!!



Oh yeah, there were three of them...

Nah man, Geo's the one baiting them. He's got this.

: Way to let down your guard, boy! Now eat roof!
: Ack!



This one is actually a little rough. There's 2400 HP on the field, so more than most bosses, and they all move very quickly to the point you're basically always being attacked. Just focus on dodging over attacking and take shots when they're available, and eventually you'll whittle them down.



When there's only one left, it's easier to deal with. Your cards should be pretty powerful by now, so really you only need to connect with four or five cards.

That, and any card with AOE properties essentially works two-three times harder.


: Gwaaaah!!



: We're not out of the fire yet. We still have to take care of the wave ball. ...Over there!



Ominous swirling ball of energy, check.



: ...*ba-dump*


: Mega!
: Got it!


: MegaBuster!!

Pew pew.



Hey, I just realized - without the wave ball, MegaMan can't leave the EM wave roads. So, how is he going to get the Trio down?



Game just glosses over it. No big deal.


: But wow... I never thought that you were MegaMan... Why didn't you tell us!?
: I-I-I'm sorry!
: You were the one that saved me when I went nuts, and it was you again at AMAKEN... and that time at school too... ...I'm sorry!! I'm sorry for treating you like dirt!

Thanks for the apology, Bud. It's honestly not expected.

Bullshit it's not. Worship me, peons.


: ...*gulp*
: Well, what are you waiting for? Hold out your Transer already!

Like before, we get to register Luna again.


: Hmph! I guess I can let you be my Brother again... But just this once, OK!?

Her dialogue is also a little different, then she shifts into explaining FloatShoes. After that...

: It'll protect even a BrotherBand cutter like you, Geo! But don't ever do that again! Anyway, here's to being Brothers again!

Bullshit. You'll do it because who wouldn't want to be Brothers with a damn hero.


: Consider it a thanks for saving us. Next time, I won't be so forgiving! Bud! Zack! Let's go!
: OK.



They stop as they're leaving, though.



: Please be my Brother!
: HUH!?
: I know it might seem strange because I've done nothing but pick on you until now, but I've always really looked up to MegaMan.

Alright, be honest, did you see this part coming?


: I'm really sorry for everything! So please be Brothers with me! ...Please?
: Um... sure. I'd be happy to be Brothers.
: Really!? I'm gonna learn how to be a good guy from you!



...I'm just now realizing I probably should have set Bud to be the top right spot so it's visible and not hidden behind the dialogue box.

I am disappointed in you.


: My Link Ability is Super Armor. It's tough under any attack! Cool, huh. Forget dodging, just go in hard and kick some alien butt! Go get 'em.

So yeah. We get to just go ham, constantly. Never stop going in.

From a more technical perspective, Super Armor lets you take hits in battle and not lose your Busting Level. So, going back to how these games calculated Busting Rank...

Battle Rewards System:

Time
0.00 ~ 5.00: +7 points
5.01 ~ 12.00: +6 points
12.01 ~ 36.00: +5 points
36.01 and up: +4 points

Movement
0 ~ 2 steps: +1 point
3 or more: +0 points

Countering: +1 for every successful Counter up to 3 (BN6 to Starforce)

Times You Took Damage
0: +1 point
1: 0 points
2: -1 points
3: -2 points
4 or more: -3 points

Multiple Deletion:
Double Delete: +2 points
Triple Delete: +4 points

Getting a Rank of S requires 11 points. Therefore, in a match with two viruses, we need to get a Double Delete(+2) without getting hit(+1) in 5 seconds or less (+7) whilst moving no more than twice (+1). This is the hardest and most frequent scenario of S-ranking.

Therefore, with Super Armor, we can eliminate worrying about taking hits. It's a bit too cheap for my tastes on viruses, but for bosses when you're going for a 10-second S-rank, that hit negation is super valuable.


: ...I don't think I can personally handle it now. But one day...

Fuck you Zack. You didn't even apologize for treating Geo like shit.

FUCK you Zack. Dude just saved everyone and he's going to have leagues of people wanting to be his friend. He's demonstrably less abusive than Luna. Holy shit!


: Well, see ya! Don't worry, your secret's safe with me! That's a promise from one man to another!

Bud continues to be the best bro.

It IS shonen.


: Hey, you don't have time to lollygag. You still have a few FM-ians left to mop up.


: I bet they're on your dad's space station. If only we could find some way to get there...
: Get there? But they're in outer space. How are we supposed to even get into space?
: Heh. I bet that Boreal guy would know how.
: Ah, good idea!

Sure is. That's the next update though.

Still a wonderful cutscene.