[alt text: a 4-panel comic by Safely Endangered. The first panel depicts Kirby in the doctor's office, telling a doctor, "I don't feel well". The doctor resembles Dr. Mario. In the second panel, the doctor is placing his stethoscope on Kirby's "chest" and saying, " Ok, breathe in." The third panel depicts Kirby inhaling and sucking the doctor's entire body into his mouth. The fourth and final panel shows Kirby wearing the doctor's head mirror, and he is standing in the doorway of the doctor's office, looking at the receptionist, and saying, "Sharon, send in my next patient".]
Every time I see this, I can't help but feel like it works better without the third panel. Showing it happening dulls the comedic impact of the final panel. Anyone who doesn't know what Kirby is about isn't going to understand the comic anyway, and anyone who does doesn't need the third panel to understand what happened.
I completely agree. In my memory the third panel doesn't exist.