Talk:3153: Hot Water Balloon

2025-10-11T00:39:34Z

2603:800C:1200:596A:67A8:C96F:56F6:2AE6: ?

First time making the first draft, so hopefully I did a decent job. [[User:KelOfTheStars!|KelOfTheStars!]] ([[User talk:KelOfTheStars!|talk]]) 21:01, 10 October 2025 (UTC)

I know they're friends and sometimes spend time chatting in fields or hiking together, but has it ever been implied that Cueball and Megan are a romantic couple before? [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 21:38, 10 October 2025 (UTC)
: Cueball and Megan have been stand-ins for Randall and his wife before, specifically during the [[:Category:Cancer|cancer comics]]. Does that count? [[Special:Contributions/199.247.247.123|199.247.247.123]] 22:18, 10 October 2025 (UTC)

How hot is the water? [[Special:Contributions/2603:800C:1200:596A:67A8:C96F:56F6:2AE6|2603:800C:1200:596A:67A8:C96F:56F6:2AE6]] 00:39, 11 October 2025 (UTC)

3153: Hot Water Balloon

2025-10-11T00:38:27Z

2603:800C:1200:596A:67A8:C96F:56F6:2AE6: /* Explanation */ water balloons are sealed, hot air balloons are not

{{comic
| number = 3153
| date = October 10, 2025
| title = Hot Water Balloon
| image = hot_water_balloon_2x.png
| imagesize = 484x232px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Despite a reputation for safety, the temperatures and surprisingly high pressures make them even more dangerous than the air kind, but the NTSB refuses to investigate accidents because they insist there is no 'transportation' involved.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|This page was created during a romantic water balloon ride. Don't remove this notice too soon.}}

Hot air balloons are an [[2940|inconvenient and dangerous]] form of novelty transport in which riders float into the sky in a basket suspended from a large balloon filled with hot air. Considering that the majority of passenger-carrying balloons use hot air, the specificity of the term “air balloon” implies that there is another variant that uses something other than air, as with helium-filled balloons (which float) and water balloons (which don't). Water balloons are typically relatively small, sealed (unlike hot air balloons, which are open at the base), full of cold water, and intended to be thrown in a water balloon fight, a common way to have fun and cool down during hot weather. This comic combines the hot air balloon and the water balloon to create a “vehicle” consisting of a basket attached to a large balloon of heated water. Since hot water, unlike hot air, produces no lift, the vehicle is entirely useless.

The title text clarifies that the hot water balloon is not just useless, but actually dangerous, as it has a large container full of hot, pressurized water, naturally leading to accidents. However, the {{w|National Transportation Safety Board}} (NTSB) doesn’t consider the stationary hot water balloon to be a form of transportation since it doesn't move, and thus any hot water balloon accidents should not fall under their purview.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Don't remove this notice too soon.}}
[A large water balloon is sitting on the ground, with cords connected to a basket nearby with Cueball and Megan inside. The water balloon's color patterns are like a hot air balloon's. Ponytail pokes the balloon with a finger, and a squirrel is on the ground looking at the basket.]

[There are squiggly heat lines ({{w|The_Lexicon_of_Comicana#Examples|indotherms}}) emanating from the balloon, as well as movement lines ({{w|The_Lexicon_of_Comicana#Examples|agitrons}}) above the balloon. Above them it says:]

bloop bloop

[Text below panel]
Hot water balloon rides turn out to be significantly less romantic than the air kind.
{{comic discussion}}<noinclude>

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Talk:3153: Hot Water Balloon

3153: Hot Water Balloon