On 5/18/97 10:20 PM, Gary Kleppe at KLEPPE@execpc.com wrote:

Henry Cobb wrote:

If it was all in his head, then he was going around and saying some VERY
strange things all that time.

What's the reaction of everybody else to this, from the start?

While the story leaves this ultimately up to the readers' imaginations,
my answer would be that the process took place in stages:

This is pretty much how I pictured this, yes. Though it would certainly 
make an interesting twist on the Lum doll in "Since You Went Away"...

Stage 1: Ataru starts daydreaming frequently about a bikini-clad alien
princess and her weird friends.

Reaction: "Hey, don't you think Ataru's acting a little weird lately?"
"Compared to what?" "Whattaya mean, 'lately'?"

Heh. :)

Stage 2: Ataru starts confusing daydream life with real life; talks
about Lum and friends as if they were real.

Reaction: Send him to doctor (Cherry, who is a doctor rather than a monk
in this alternate existence).

I dunno... Cherry's awfully ugly. :) Then again, symbolically he 
certainly plays the right role.

Stage 3: Ataru believes daydream is real, only interacts with real
people in a limited way.

Reaction: Try to talk him back to real life (as Shinobu did in the
story).

Hmmm. Would anyone bother? Unless Mendo really *is* his friend... ;>

Stage 4: Ataru totally immersed in dreamworld, loses contact with
reality.

Reaction: As seen in story.

Ah, yes. Anyone for a nice room decoration? Well, not so nice, really.

In another post, Travis Butler wrote:

Um, Henry, it's really simple: The whole UY series is all in Ataru's head 
-- none of it is real. It's all a dream created by an alien race to suck 
Ataru's life energy... as was OMG for Keiichi (for which I shall kill you 
later, Gary)

BWAHAHA!! Come and get me if you dare... :-P

Who, me? By myself? What did you think I revived my review team for, back 
when the Sig Wars raged...

Lyra: <at whiteboard> All right, I'll be coming down from the roof, 
*here*. Windir, you numb the guards at the doorway while Frito slips past 
and goes for the target room, *here*... Frito, <whap!> stop snickering!



Travis Butler
(The Professor, formerly of Myth and Magick!, Lawrence, KS;
 tbutler@tfs.net, now from the Wandering Powerbook;
 <http://www.tfs.net/personal/tbutler/>;
 Mac page <http://www.tfs.net/business/tbutler/>)

...Cats are the proof of a higher purpose to the universe.