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Most of the characters in Megatokyo speak English, Japanese (indicated with Angle Bracket s), and/or L33t (subtitled). Not every character speaks every language, so occasionally characters are unable to understand one another. The name 'Megatokyo' came from a domain name that Rodney Caston owned when he convinced Fred Gallagher to help him start a webcomic. Piro Piro is the Protagonist , and an Author Surrogate of Gallagher. He appears at first glance to be a fairly typical, dorky American , a Manga and Anime (especially Shōjo , spelled ''shoujo'' in ''Megatokyo'') fan who can speak fluent Japanese (and some L33t) and is frequently depressed or morose. He is a fairly talented artist who refuses to believe in his own skill - an exaggerated parallel of Gallagher himself. He and Largo originally fled to Japan to escape the consequences of Largo's vulgar behavior while intoxicated at the E3 trade convention. Since arriving in Japan, he has been homeless twice, spending several nights in a park in downtown Tokyo. He and Largo spent six weeks basically squatting at Tsubasa's flat, before Tsubasa (with the prompting of Ping) left Japan for America. Piro's fortunes started to look up after he managed to get employment in a game and manga shop, MegaGamers, where he works alongside Hayasaka Erika as a clerk/mascot. He and Largo currently live in MegaGamers' third-floor storage room. Piro seems to have no ability to read women, possibly due to his feelings of insecurity and his impression of girls garnered from playing dating simulations (either that, or he has a long history of destructive dating attempts and thus avoids trying), and as such does not realize the feelings Kimiko has for him. He usually reads his old "instruction manual to life," shōjo manga, to try to work out the "correct" way to deal with women. However, this philosophy is starting to change, as he is spending more time with Kimiko and other women, and listening more to the advice of Seraphim. The name "Piro" comes from Sawatari Makoto's cat in the Japanese Ren'ai Game '' Kanon '', a favorite of ''Megatokyo'''s artist, Fred Gallagher . Largo Largo is the series' other protagonist, and the comic version of co-creator (and former co-writer) Rodney Caston . He is an American Computer Game fan who usually acts before (or instead of) thinking. He is technically gifted (even if he uses beer as a CPU coolant); and cannot pass up the opportunity to tamper with anything even remotely technological in nature, usually working on computer hardware in the nude (as an extreme measure to avoid static discharge). He refers to this as making the system "l33t". He is often delusional, confusing reality with computer games. As a result, he occasionally causes chaos and destruction as he battles against zombies and other (occasionally imagined) "threats." However... Because of the nature of the Megatokyo world, some of what Largo gets himself involved into really is happening. A good example is the war against the undead he describes while drinking at the Beer Garden in comic 283 (and following) which he fought off with the help of Dom. This actually occured, as the Cataclysm division of the Tokyo Police even throw him in jail for being involved in the battle. He is proficient with all weaponry, but has shown a very marked preference for Crossbows - when choosing a weapon to tackle Miho from Junpei's armory, he rejects several swords and other weapons to finally settle on a crossbow, and during the Undead battle described above, he complained that "it would have been sw33t to have crossbows, but he (Dom) only had weapons with explosive projectiles". Crossbows are apparently his favorite weapon, judging from this, though Largo is also good with guns. He speaks fluent ''). He is extremely well-liked by the school, and though Junpei has had to drag him to his job at various times, Largo is still a very well-liked teacher, presumably due to his half-crazy style of teaching, which involves a great deal of shouting. His teaching style is based heavily in video games and computer knowledge; he once told the class, as homework, to make their "l4me" computers "l33t". He is popular enough that, when he was replaced with a sub for a short time (due to being late for class), the students rioted and spelled "Great Teacher Largo" with the cafeteria tables. He was also employed by the Tokyo Police Cataclysm Division, but was removed from his position after the fanboy riot in chapter 5. He is also obsessed with beer ("b33r," as he calls it), and, fortunately for him, seems to have a superhuman tolerance for alcohol. He also possesses a surprising ability to comment on the tastes of various beers (in Beer Garden, he describes one beer as "watered-down, but a fine vintage". He also drained the drink in one gulp- despite the beer being in the, as he puts it, "large mug".) He also seems to have a remarkable healing ability (or be subject to a form of Cartoon Physics ), as he has suffered at least two broken arms since arriving in Tokyo, with neither causing much ill effect. There is some confusion on this matter in that some fans believed that it only took a few days for them to heal, missing a box in one of the strips stating that it took six weeks; there is a comment on this at the bottom of the page in the first printed edition. Largo's healing factor may be a result of the fact that he seems to obey the rules of video games in real life; his gun skill, weapon knowledge, and constant comments on "magic" and "3vil" all lead one to believe that Largo may be operating on a different set of rules from everyone else. At the very least, while Largo can be harmed, it seems impossible to do any sort of truly lasting damage to him. He once broke his leg, smashed his head into a computer monitor, and caught his hair on fire- all within the same comic strip- and suffered no permanent damage from what the "l33t d00d" referred to as "a suicidal finishing move". Largo's opinion on women is divided. At times, he sees women as fair game, while at other times as evil beings (which he thinks Piro has a weakness to). In spite of this, he has developed a sort of relationship with Hayasaka Erika. This is presumably because Largo, despite making comments on her bust size several times in their early meetings (including one in which he literally interrupts a conversation they'd been having to comment, as if just noticing, " Wow! You're r4cked!"), is as far from a "loser" otaku as it can get; unlike Piro, who questions himself constantly, and other otaku displayed throughout the series, Largo is constantly doing things rather than (as he would put it) "w33ping" about life. Largo is energetic and lively; he's a fire to Erika's water. Most importantly, he cares about Erika as a person; despite noticing her physical attributes, he is also simply a friendly man. This may lead him to being the only person in Tokyo who can connect with Erika below her hard shell. The name "Largo" comes from Caston's online nickname, just as Gallagher is Piro. The character of Largo (still managing to get in trouble with the law over his delusions of zombie armies) also features in Rodney Caston's own webcomic, ''Überclocked''. Hayasaka Erika Hayasaka Erika (早坂 えりか) is Kimiko's roommate. She is a powerfully popular former Japanese Idol ( Singer ) and Seiyū ( Voice Actress ). Though she's been out of the direct spotlight for three years, she still has a considerable fanbase; a mere sighting of her caused riots from fans. Erika is very strong-willed, confident, cynical, and hates being protected by others. She was once engaged to a man named Hitoshi {Link without Title} , who, at the height of her career, claimed to believe that he was holding her back, and broke off their engagement. Erika was deeply hurt, and that event, combined with exposure to swarms of Fanboys and possibly her periodic work as a "booth-babe" at Cons , has caused her to adopt a rather negative outlook on men, herself, and people in general. She works as a clerk/mascot at MegaGamers alongside Piro. She also speaks Japanese and fluent English (and seems to understand L33t). Recently, she has developed a relationship of sorts with Largo. Nanasawa Kimiko Nanasawa Kimiko (七澤 希美子) is Erika's roommate, a Japanese girl who works as a waitress at an Anna Miller's restaurant. She is an aspiring Seiyū who often finds herself too shy or insecure to take on roles. Kimiko is a kind, soft-spoken person in general, though she has a slightly impulsive nature. Her personality is somewhat similar to Piro's in that she has very little self-confidence and becomes extremely upset and flustered when she injures others, be it physically or emotionally. At the same time, she is prone to mood-swings, quite often causing herself embarrassment by saying things she doesn't mean. She has developed strong feelings for Piro, although she is too shy to admit them. She speaks only Japanese, and doesn't seem to understand that Largo only speaks English. Kimiko lands the role of Kotone in the game "Sight", and is earning herself an army of followers to rival even Erika's due to her rant on "Mumu-chan's" radio show, where she came to the defense of fanboys after being angered by Mumu's deriding comments about them. She has mixed feelings about being an idol. Ping Ping is a Robot ic PS2 accessory, a non-H (non- Hentai ; Platonic Love only) test model of the new Sony-EDS (Emotional Doll System) that fell into Tsubasa's hands somehow. Ping is designed to be used with Dating Sim s, and, after playing them, develops her own personality based on the player's choices in the games. To date, she has never actually been used with a dating sim by her various owners, and as such seems to be developing her personality from real-world experiences instead. Although she is learning quickly, there are still times when she acts unrealistically. Her programming has primed her to care for socially inept Otaku who have the money to buy an EDS to practice their fumbling dating techniques on. Although she has revealed to Piro that she has feelings for him, the nature of their relationship is still not entirely clear. She speaks only Japanese, although she has the ability to have other language "modules" installed. Due to problems with her prototype software, Ping does not handle rejection well and can be sent into a berserk rage when "rejected" by her human companions. Largo has triggered her rejection subroutine on two occasions so far, once intentionally. When enraged, she has been known to use her incredible strength pull telephone poles out of the ground to use as weapons, and at one point manages to hurl a gigantic turtle monster through the top of a skyscraper. Miho has befriended Ping and regularly spends time with her. She seems to be able to influence Ping's programming and personality by playing with her, although Miho's exact intentions with Ping are unknown. Tohya Miho Tohya Miho is an enigmatic and manipulative young Goth girl, who first appeared after Largo descended into the "Cave of Evil" with Boo- she appeared behind him and said "Thank you." This has led to her running involvement with Largo as the principal character she is seen with (besides Ping). She is highly intelligent, and adept at both Arcade and Role-playing Game s. Miho speaks English and Japanese fluently, and has little problem understanding L33t. She is drawn to resemble a Gosurori (a Japanese synthesis of Goth and Subculture ), and is often described as "darkly cute"; Gallagher has described her as a Perkygoth in the past, though most would hardly describe Miho as being in any way "perky." She has been known to make dry or simply funny comments from time to time, however, and is possessed of a rare sense of humor; when Largo is being dragged away from the scene of his latest assault on Japan by the police, he and her have a running argument in English about her "undead hordes" and how Largo should "stay away". When asked what Largo was saying by the police, Miho replied "Several very disparaging things about your mother." This, of course, could have been simply to make the police drag Largo away faster. Not much is known about Miho's past. It has been hinted that there is a problem with her health and that she was once in severe danger, but no details have been revealed yet. A nurse at Miho's school claimed that she was never able to contact Miho's parents. It is also known she has had some kind of background story involving Erika's fans, though little has been revealed of this other than that it was grounds for Inspector Sonoda to attempt to keep Yuki away from her. She had some history with Piro and Largo before meeting them in Japan, in the form of a Massively Multi-player Online Role-playing Game called ''Endgames''. In the game, she was a tall, handsome man (dubbed ''Niho'' by ''Megatokyo'' forumgoers) with the same ribboned hairstyle she has in the real world. It is also implied in a print volume-exclusive story that she either had a second, female character or could control NPCs as easily as PCs. Piro defeated her while she was abusing a secret "personality" statistic, in order to manipulate large amounts of player characters, by turning the system against her. This event seems to be Miho's motivation for becoming closer to Piro and Largo, but her ultimate intentions are unknown. Miho is a frequent subject of speculation and debate, both in the comic itself and on ''Megatokyo'''s forums. The two most common competing perspectives on Miho's nature is between readers who believe her to be a Supernatural evil, and readers who take the view that she is a mundane evil (or just misunderstood.) The latter position is in the majority among forum regulars, but the former also has vocal proponents—its most vocal being in-comic character Largo, who believes that Miho is undead, and in command of an army of Zombie s. If she is truly evil, much of her character would be lost. It's more likely to bet that Miho has some kind of anger at the world; fitting in with a theme of discontent and disagreement with life in general throughout the comic, it's not entirely unreasonable that Miho may simply want to "get back" at the universe and in so doing is assailing Largo, Piro, and co. This could actually be true; Miho has some kind of strange illness that could potentially give her a "dark" outlook on life. Her most common rival is Largo, and her relationship with him- which is (but is not limited to) a protagonist/antagonist, student/teacher, and friend/rival relationship, all at once- is one of the deepest and best-developed in the comic, also leading to what some consider the best punchlines. Largo was the first person Miho met in the comic (after he opened the Cave of Evil, suggesting she was either trapped in it or was helped by its opening), he is constantly following/challenging her, and she indirectly set him up with his job as "Great Teacher Largo", because he was attempting to follow her in "disguise" when the principal found him, assuming from the English conversation he was having that he was the new English teacher. Their relationship has also not always been one of war and hate; Largo has displayed a surprising honorable streak when Miho passed out in the bathroom of the school. He went after her when he noticed her missing in class, and when he found her, he said that he would "not accept an ending... without honor". He had Junpei take her to the hospital, and so he may be indirectly responsible for saving her life (though he didn't stay with her in the hospital- Ping did.) Despite all this, Miho's "greatest" rival may well be Piro; Piro bested her in the online game they all used to play, when she was cheating the system somehow. Piro overcame her even with the cheats, defeating her and (presumably) expelling her from the game. Miho described Largo and Piro in real life as "one too much like I imagined (Largo, who is much the same in real life as in the MMORPG they used to play), the other completely different (Piro, who plays a female character who is more confident than he himself actually is)..." It is assumed her major rivalry is with Piro, though Largo may have played a role in her defeat (recent comics suggest they were all in the same party, with Miho "betraying" the others- presumably with the cheating.) Another common Miho-related debate is centered around the nature of her relationship with the robot Ping. She is a friend of Ping, but there are large hints that she may be using Ping to influence Piro somehow or to further her own ends. When she was hospitalized she revealed she was merely using Ping, and she broke down into tears over it. This is her first example of "real" emotion, and it happens rather early in the comic. Because of this, Ping may no longer be considered just a tool by Miho, and her "use" of Ping may have stopped. Debates over Miho and Ping's relationship abound. Such debates can become very heated, as many Fan s are keen on defending both characters from any negative statements. Of course, that is a factor of what is normally called "otaku"; it is ironic that a webcomic so devoted to talking of the problems and tribulations others endure because of otaku, would in itself spawn otaku. Seraphim Seraphim is a miniature Angel who takes the role of Piro's Conscience , struggling to keep Piro on the straight and narrow, particularly when it comes to to romantic attachments and other personal relationships. Seraphim is very concerned about Piro's attitude, and goes to great lengths to keep him motivated towards going back to the States. Seraphim is very pragmatic and quick to criticize, and her opinion of Piro's abilities is not high, probably reflecting Piro's own self-deprecating nature. Seraphim speaks English, but, like Piro, understands Japanese. She often requests more funding and resources from the Conscience Agency, but never receives any. She is revealed to have a twin sister several chapters into ''Megatokyo'', who impersonates Seraphim and influences Piro in negative ways, mocking his life rather than trying to help. Seraphim is modeled after Sarah Wooden, Gallagher's wife (girlfriend, then fiancée when ''Megatokyo'' began, and has now married), who has a penchant for fine clothes and loves Cat s. Boo Boo is a Hamster with strap-on Wing s, initially assigned to the role of Largo's Conscience , a task made only harder by the fact that Boo cannot speak, but only squeak (occasionally in L33t , e.g. "squ34k"). Largo tends to think that Boo is always agreeing with him. As his character has developed under the influence of Largo, he has been known to communicate in writing. After rescuing Seraphim from Belphegor, he has been promoted to a special agent in the Conscience task force. Boo is actually a reference of Minsc 's "Miniature Giant Space Hamster ," from the computer role-playing game ( CRPG ) series '' Baldur's Gate '', who occupies a space in Minsc's Quick Item slots. Boo is also known for the phrase stated by Largo, "Go for the beer, Boo!", a reference of one of Minsc's war cries, "Go for the eyes, Boo!". Asmodeus Asmodeus is Piro's anti-conscience, sent by an organization referred to only as the "other agency." He tries to undo everything Seraphim does, going so far as to tempt Piro to fall in love with Underaged girls. Despite this opposition to Seraphim, he coquets her almost every time they meet (he has also hinted that he and Seraphim had a relationship in the past), which usually results in her verbally and/or physically attacking him. Asmodeus speaks English. His partner is a vicious winged cat named Belphegor; appropriate as Asmodeus and Belphegor are both demons. He is a comic version of Ken Hashimoto, one of the ''Megatokyo'' forum's administrators and, at one point, a co-translator of the Japanese version of ''Megatokyo''. Junpei Junpei is Largo's Apprentice , a L33t Ninja . He seems to have near-superhuman abilities typical of a "Hollywood ninja", such as being able to travel great distances over rooftops at high speed without being detected, and bending guns and various other weapons out of shape. Certainly, whatever role he fills seems to leave him with a fair amount of free time, and allows him to cultivate his artistic side—much like a traditional Samurai . He is introduced when Piro and Largo arrive in Japan, and Largo has no Passport . A customs official tells Largo that, in order to get into Japan, he must defeat Junpei in mortal combat. Largo, being unsurpassable in all matters electronic, easily wins the contest by defeating Junpei in a match on the '' Mortal Kombat '' Arcade Game . Junpei is deeply impressed by this, and the next time he meets Largo, Junpei apprentices himself to him in order to learn "the way of l33t" from Largo (whom Junpei calls "L33t Master"). However, this apprenticeship seems to consist largely of Junpei bailing Largo out of trouble, such as getting him out of jail and fetching Largo when he forgets about the classes he teaches at Shiritsu Daitou. He works for some kind of ninja organization that provides feed services. This includes Shiritsu Daitou hiring Junpei to take Largo to school. He can apparently call upon the services of "Rent-a-zillas" (extremely large, rentable, lizard-like creatures bearing resemblance to Godzilla). In the aftermath of the fanboy riot, Junpei manages the stream of Otaku coming to see Hayasaka Erika - reducing it to one per hour. Junpei speaks Japanese, and also speaks poor but understandable English, omitting some words and always referring to himself in the third person. He also speaks L33t reasonably well. Sonoda Yuki Sonoda Yuki (園田由紀) is a 15-year-old student at Shiritsu Daitou Attached Middle School. She is apparently a diligent student, and has earned the rather undesirable label of "Little Miss Perfect" from her friends. Tohya and Ping are ''not'' in the same class as Yuki (a common misconception). Yuki speaks Japanese, and can manage some basic English. She comes from a stable home; her father, Inspector Sonoda, an officer of the Tokyo Police Cataclysm Division. Her mother, Meimi, is now a housewife but was a Magical Girl during her youth. Yuki has a relatively normal relationship with her brother Yuuji—there is a lot of mutual antagonism between the two. Yuki is taking art lessons from Piro, although it is a rare occurrence when something does not manage get in the way. She seems to have some feelings for Piro, but often denies or misunderstands them. Like her mother, she appears to be capable of stealing things without being aware of it [http://www.megatokyo.com/index.php?strip_id=815 . This, and other unusual abilities she is suggested to have ( strip 817 ), may imply that she too is a magical girl of some kind. Dom Dom is an employee of Sega 's Black Ops, and Ed's best friend and rival. He possesses a seemingly endless supply of weaponry, as well as an unscrupulous personality. Early in the series, he is on a mission to appropriate Ping for Sega, before Ed is capable of carrying out his orders to recover or destroy her. However, after Sega leaves the console business, he seeks to acquire Hayasaka Erika (due to her power to influence the masses) as an asset for his company. As with Ed, he often resorts to violence as a first course of action. However, unlike Ed, he is also quite capable of complex scheming, verbal persuasion and Blackmail . He speaks English and Japanese. Dom is the comic version of Dominic Nguyen, Fred Gallagher's associate and the creator of the infamous Shirt Guy Dom filler-strips. Ed Ed is an employee of Sony 's Enforcement Division, as well as Dom's best friend and rival. Like Dom, he seems to have an unlimited supply of guns, and a trigger-happy personality to match. He is sent to capture or destroy Ping (a missing prototype belonging to Sony) before rival companies capture her, although his strange insistence on using extreme measures to do so often leads to his own injuries rather than hers. After one encounter with Ping, he undergoes plastic surgery which turns him into a Bishōnen . Later, he is regrown (bearing a new face as a consequence) in a growth tank from residual dust left behind after he was vaporized by an orbital laser strike. Ed seems to suffer from at least partial insanity, and is exceptionally sadistic. He derives pleasure from explosions, in particular. He speaks English and L33t. His real life equivalent is Edmund Balan, Fred Gallagher's associate. |
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