I wouldn't so readily dismiss or deny Kiley's abilities.dmra wrote:MA3 is a comic strip so the chances are that Kiley's "therapy" was bound to be relatively successful regardless of the real world possibilities.
We are after all dealing with a world where Yuki can go on a rampage through the streets of Canadian city leaving a trail of assaulted men in her wake and not suffer a single negative consequence. In reality anybody with a history of violence like Yuki's would almost certainly either be in prison or in an institution.
Even within the confines of the comic strip Kiley's successes are hardly fantastic. Yuki is still reacting badly enough to "tentacles" that she beats up her partners during sex. Didi has indeed had an orgasm but is now fixated on her therapist who finds herself in an involuntary relationship with her which she is frantic to get out of.
Even if we accept that Kiley has succeeded isn't it possible that doing a more conventional (albeit a far less comic strip) approach would have produced better results. Referring Yuki to a fully qualified and experienced therapist for example. Or telling Didi , "look I'm not your girlfriend but I have shown you how to achieve orgasm. What you should do now is not become obsessed with me but see a proper expert who can help you in real relationships with people who return your feelings". Or at the very least say to her "look now you know what you need to be satisfied try telling your partners so that they know what you need".
Not desperately funny but much more likely to produce positive results than a part qualified therapist with no practical experience who is so arrogant that they think they can just ignore the practical and ethical rules drawn up to avoid clients being exploited and to protect therapists themselves. If nothing else Kiley should have learnt one of the first lessons taught to all therapists that self diagnosis and treatment should be avoided at all costs.
Quote removed. The DAMNed
We'll have to disagree about the extent of Kiley's successes, as I'd say what she's done has been dramatic. Consider how bad Yuki was: Rampaging through town in a fugue at the sight of a penis is miles away from "initiate and complete intercourse with a man".
Didi too was unable to get satisfaction from any of her many studly and seductive partners (Matt certainly knows how to lay on the romance), or from Peggy, an actual medical professional, wo is caring, open-minded, and who has no small amount of prowess herself.
Kiley got dramatic results for both of them, and quickly. It's also worth remembering that their therapy is ongoing, with further improvement being on the menu. I believe this is, at least partially, due to her unorthodox approach.
Conventional therapy would have taken years and years and, as you note, made for poor comic fodder. In Yuki's case there's also the issue would have gotten a penis for her to handle, in the event that they ever even got to exposure therapy at all. Many of Kiley's therapeutic solutions involve her getting (or being) a sexual partner for her patient, and while that is possible in a traditional setting, its availability is quite limited. Sexual surrogate therapy may not have been available at all. In practical terms "I will help you" is also more likely to result in action than "you should get help", the former being immediate availability of aid vs the latter being an idle suggestion.
In short, a more conventional approach would have definitely been safer and potentially had fewer side-effects, but timescale would be an issue. Kiley has done things that a conventional therapist couldn't, and she has done them to good effect. I wouldn't wish years-more of frustrating anorgasmia on Didi, and everyone else in the strip would have long-since moved on with their lives before any professional would deem Yuki ready to face the world. Kiley is, indeed, the therapeutic equivalent of a vigilante, and while I won't by any means make an unequivocal endorsement of vigilantism, no one looks forward to the exciting adventures of "call the police"-man.
This post ended up longer than I anticipated.