> Well, other than women (before Bell-chan, that is - now he's some kind of
> babe magnet), calling K1 an average japanese loser is kinda stretching it.
> He certainly was headed toward a brighter future before Bell-chan than Ataru
> was before Lum.  Besides, I really like K1 while Ataru makes my skin crawl!
> 
> Still, as you point out, the similarities are remarkable.

A notable difference is the K1 grew in the relationship with Bell
whereas Ataru was much slower in getting over his "loser" traits.

This may also reflect the plot difference that AMS is more "romance"
and UY is more "comedy", though they might both be called
"romantic comedy" and/or "magical girlfriend" shows. Plus
UY is so episodic it's hard for the characters to develop and 
Takahashi hardly ever drops a running joke. (I'm told things
change somewhat late in the anime and manga.)

The AMS world keeps developing. Though I have to admit that 
"meeting the family" could be a prelude to the end of the series,
as much as a whole new chapter.

One of the logical next steps would be a marriage and/or children,
but it seems like the rest of the plot and setting isn't quite there
yet: maybe an _official_ engagement instead of just living together?

--
    Albert Lunde          Albert-Lunde@northwestern.edu (new address)
                          Albert-Lunde@nwu.edu (old address)