#also notice how there aren't any 'early' moments....because i used to be indifferent towards him up until the shed fight opened my eyes

[the-nysh]

What are your favorite garou moments?

F-favorite?! 😳 This might be hard to narrow down & choose...but if I go chronologically, I think I can make a good list of most memorable moments!

1. Garou surrounded by the A/B heroes and enduring the worst of odds (injured, fevered, outnumbered, poisoned), with his biggest test of character yet (at this point in the story) to defend the shed and miraculously pull out on top. (Where thematically you can interpret as his version of ‘justice’ prevailing.)

Because this challenge was the first time, since Garou’s introduction, that really 👀 opened my eyes. He wasn’t all bark and no bite; he truly was the resourceful, combative fighting genius he claimed to be, and this fight deliberately showed that (the perfect ‘show don’t tell’ example) to make his character’s competency and tenacity truly shine as believable. (And to this day, it’s still my favorite choreographed fight in the whole story.) Then adding the decisive ‘do or die’ protect Tareo in the shed moment? Ugh ;o; truly the emotional icing on the cake, both for his convictions and proving what he’s willing to risk his life for. That this guy had the makings of something great 👀 to keep an eye on, and this addition to the story was probably one of the best unexpected improvements over what the webcomic did to flesh out his character for the better. Because at the time, many fans were bemoaning the manga’s deviation from the wc with the whole tournament arc, but this change with the whole shed set up and resolution, completely flipped the mood that we were speeding along, right on course with even better expansions to look forward to. A welcome surprise for all that keeps on giving getting better the more you go back and revisit/reread the fight. :’D

2. Garou’s whole downtime during the dine n dash section, where he was basically just fucking around on his own, lost in thought trying to assess/clarify his goals to ‘become a monster’....while ironically saving civilians, rescuing Tareo again (from bullies) and accidentally behaving just like a hero without even realizing it! :’D That was hilarious. Basically this was his slower ‘slice of life’ moment he got for himself, and I love that shit - it’s basically one of my favorite parts to come back and reread from time to time (and one I hope to see animated/voiced one day), because it’s just so funny, with that fond smiling reader awareness like ‘aha~ you’re stubbornly trying to be someone you’re not, aren’t you squidward~’

3. Garou’s Big Damn Heroes moment (literally, the precise trope) busting thru walls to Tareo’s cries for help at perfect timing to rescue him in grand, feral dramatic fashion from Royal Ripper. 8′D .....Only for this fucker, in awkward denial fashion, to have the gall and say ‘It’s not like I came here to save you or....anything, baka’ Classic peak tsundere moment.

No really! It’s probably the first time I’ve ever burst out laughing from seeing that classic line uttered, and I couldn’t believe ONE actually went there, but he did (and used it in a fresh, but most effective platonic context different from usual), so what a delight! X’D 

4. This page, because it encapsulates peak feral protective Garou. o///o

Which Murata totally milked for all it’s worth while inking it on stream, even showing off teases of the finished panel from his assistants while the entire stream chat screamed. 8′D (In retrospect, this era was probably my favorite ‘peak opm’ while Murata was most prolific and active on stream with fandom interaction. I miss this age dearly.) 

5. Jumping ahead, Murata swooping in to unexpectedly drop Garou vs Darkshine (esp part 2) on us, which we had been waiting for to see adapted, only for Murata to suddenly deliver with the delicacy of taking a bludgeon to the forehead. 8′D Holy shit!

Especially because Murata somehow reached peak h0rny in the interim to proudly show off all of Garou’s ahem, assets in full glory. Murata has no chill!! D8 Anyway, I think my brain was fried for a week; I was too buzzed to properly sleep straight. And yes, Murata made the grueling wait for more Garou content totally worth it. 8′D

6. Unadapted webcomic territory now, but his badass line/entry with ‘your case of emergency just happened.’ While ripping through BS, utterly destroying GS, and yes, saving Tareo once again in grand, feral dramatic fashion. :3

How hilarious that his grand ‘monster debut’ was him actually uhhhhhh....saving a kid from a hostage situation and dramatically violently defeating the other monsters who threatened him, whom the other heroes couldn’t even win against. (Only to go ‘ayy heroes~ come at me and I’ll demonstrate to you why your hero marks fail to pass my test.’) Like oh my god, does Garou still not realize what he’s actually doing?! D8 Saitama, halp knock some cathartic sense into him! And for the most part, I find his fight with Saitama more tragic and painful to witness than anything, as his desperation grows and meets a figurative brick wall, mentally speaking. (So you won’t see me ‘cheering’ like some other fans might during his ‘beatdown,’ because that ‘punishment’ only breaks his will to live. Not fun. :O) But rest assured I will be right there frothing at the mouth to witness how awesome and unforgettable Murata intends to deliver this too. Particularly for that ‘case of emergency’ moment above (if/when manga Tareo somehow gets captured again for the battle), awesome moments like that are sure to make me go feral to finally see them in Murata’s style. 8′D

7. But!! There’s hope, because his moment of realization and clarity, where it all finally and silently sinks in, seeing the light after Tareo saves him and helps him understand who his true self has been all along - whom he had been denying and rejecting all this time - now that, is just beautiful. :’3

One of the best long-awaited payoff moments to see adapted in full glory for sure. I am prepared to be emotionally destroyed for this whole ‘eye scene’! So ONE & Murata, do your worst!!

8. His return in the webcomic’s ch133. ;A; And ONE, just knew how to deliver the suspense (even Murata was hyped) and make Garou’s long-awaited face reveal brilliant, beaming, and perfect. Hhuhuuhu pretty sure I cried from the compounded joy, familiar relief seeing how -it’s him-, and...the later sense of devastation from seeing the cycle of injustice happen to him all over again. :’)) (Which he silently shoulders and walks away from like a champ~) Anyway, you can still read/relive my whole first blind ch reaction here~