Of Ninjas And Kiwis
Well, for better or worse, I’m going to keep this theme of analysing some of my favourite individual web comic strips going this week. If you really don’t like it just tell me and I’ll almost certainly come close to considering packing it in.
So today we’re up against the formidable White Ninja. White Ninja has that weird kind of um… weirdness that balances on the fine line between sheer genius and utter stupidity. Rarely, does the ninja fall off the line on the side of stupidity, but there are times where he lands flat on his ass on the side of genius. This strip (for me) was exactly one of those times.
This comic has six panels. All six are comedic gold. Not a single line of filler. I’m going to talk you through each panel, and subsequently suck the funny out of them for you, so make sure you actually read the comic before reading the rest of this post.
Done? Good. Okay. So panel one. It’s the Kiwi vendor. Look at him there with his funny hat and his expression of extreme mistrust, as if to say “there is a sign that says Kiwis on it. Duh.” He is a hero. Panel Two is really a no brainer. It’s a kiwi claiming to be a werewolf. That’s pretty funny. What makes it really funny is that the kiwi still thinks he is rock hard, despite having no hands or feet! Panel three is once again all about the kiwi vendor there. Look at him! He doesn’t know what’s going on! Either that or he’s howling along with his kiwi brethren. It’s open to interpretation. That makes it smart.
New paragraph for panel four, in which the White ninja petitions the kiwi’s help. Look how bad ass that kiwi is looking right there. He has angry eyebrows like no other tropical fruit! Panel five begins the tragic denouement for our hairy hero. Look how evil Whitey looks. He knows. Oh, he knows. Panel six is just pure comedy. It’s all in the kiwi’s facial expression and the dead kiwi in the background. Clearly White Ninja already knew what kiwis are. It was all a rouse!
To some, White Ninja is just silly childishness, but ridiculous (yet, in my humble opinion, hilarious) “plots” aside, it is a strip that regularly contains some of the funniest visual comedy on the Internet. I have the last panel printed out and stuck up on my wall and, if I’m in the right mood, I can’t help but laugh when I walk past it.
This truly was one of the finer White Ninja strips. Look how devious he is in the 5th… sending the Kiwerewolf to his certain doom!
How simply wonderful.
By Alex on 06.22.06 12:47 am
Incorrect distinction between Kiwifruit, Kiw’s the people and Kiwi’s the endangered bird makes the Kea cry.
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http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=52968
http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=911694
http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=82847
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwifruit
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=kiwi
By The Kea on 06.22.06 2:32 am
In order that my lazy self doesn’t have to read all 6 of those links, could you summarize exactly what the error was and who made it?
By Andrew Nagy on 06.24.06 12:12 am
Why certainly.
Kiwi’s are a native ndangered flightless bird from New Zealand. They are just like the Aypteryx (sp?) from B.C. They are the national symbol. From this has come the trend of calling New Zealand citizens Kiwi’s also.
In the 50’s NZ was discovering the benfits of exporting Chinese Gooseberries they wanted a different naem because of the whole communist paranoia thing. They decided on Kiwifruit. Note the addition of ‘fruit.’
This means that when New Zealanders hear others talk about ‘eating kiwis’ or, as in the case of Ross on Friends, claiming to be allergic to kiwi in their food, it generally makes us choke. It’s like hearing someone talking casually about eating the last whales or something.
By The Kea on 06.24.06 8:03 pm
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