Love and Lies Episode 5 Review: Risky Love

Love and Lies is back this week with a very promising episode. In the previous one, the four main characters set to go on a camping trip together. Yusuke, the most mysterious of the four, tags along unwillingly, and as we all know, is hiding several things for Yukari. So let’s see what happened to our little group lovebirds on their holiday.

Japanese Original Episode Title: 命がけの恋

Plot

Yukari, Takazaki, Ririna, and Yusuke meet in the train station to find their families that are already waiting for them at the camping site. As expected, Ririna is not impressed to see Yusuke, who she believes to be a pervert, joining them in their trip. While she’s arguing with Yukari for inviting him over, Takazaki takes the opportunity to have a little chat with Yusuke, discussing something in secret. Later at the camping site, Ririna and Takazaki are swimming carelessly, and Ririna falls and injures her ankle. Yukari carries her back (obviously, sexual tension occurs) and she, being Ririna, is not happy with anything. At night, Yukari tries to confront Yusuke and force him to expose his secrets, but Ririna interrupts them to have a little stroll separated in two groups, with Ririna pushing Takazaki and Yukari together as usual. Yusuke confronts her about messing up their lives while in the meantime Takazaki and Yukari fall off a small cliff and end up making out (and that’s exactly what happens when you fall off a cliff). The four of them eventually meet up again and find a clearing full of fireflies and Yukari experiences intense emotions, sharing this special moments with people he cares for. Back in the city, Yusuke keeps avoiding Yukari, and Ririna asks him to take her to a burial mound she’s interested in seeing.

Episode Highlights

Yusuke cannot cook to save his life: On the very moment Yukari imagined Yusuke effortlessly drizzling oil into pans and being a gifted chef, I could see this coming: Yusuke is useless at cooking. Trying to slice a steak as if he were a ninja, and attempting to wash the vegetables with soap… we’ve all been there Yusuke, you are not alone. I believe in you <3

Yukari’s aspirations: It’s great to see Yukari has other interests apart from his love life and that he is seriously considering to make something out of them. When he first mentioned his passion about Japanese burial mounds it came out as a fun fact; but voicing his ambition to study them gives his personality a more interesting dimension. Nice one.

Yukari confronting Yusuke: I do love some straight-on confrontation in anime, mostly because it rarely happens. Even though I somehow expected that they would be interrupted, I enjoying seeing Yukari asking Yusuke what the hell the deal is with him and Takazaki. I wonder if they’ve been assigned to each other or something. Or maybe they share the fact that they both fancy Yukari as a common secret.

Yusuke confronting Ririna: and making her realize the implications she might have on Yukari’s life. I felt a bit sorry for her, but at the same time it was pretty intense, and informative, since I was wondering how it would work if the match got rejected from either side.

Themes & Trivia

Camping in Japan: I was surprised to see that what they meant by ‘camping’ was staying in a lodge for the night. I was expecting tents and campfires and such… However, there is a camping scene in Japan, and you can find details about it here. Somehow I imagine they should be the cleanest, most organized camping sites I’ve ever seen.

Fireflies in Japan: Firefly watching is an extraordinary thing to experience in Japan. There are several places where you’re guaranteed to see them at specific times of the year. Luciola, also known as ‘Japanese fireflies’, are the most common ones.

Seriously, stop falling on each other: I’ve been complaining about this again and again, and since this is the third time I’ll be doing this while reviewing Love and Lies, let me explain why sexy-position-falling in anime in general needs to stop:

There is not even a little bit of realism in this. Obviously, this is not a necessity for something to appear in fiction, but it becoming a norm for human couple behavior is just ridiculous. PEOPLE DON’T FALL ON EACH OTHER THAT WAY. And if they do, it’s uncomfortable, painful, not sexy, and something people have zero empathy witnessing.
It is severely anticlimactic. Here’s why: let’s say you’re the writer/producer/whatever of a story and you need to get a couple of characters to make out. How would this normally happen? Well, humans are usually led to sexual behavior after a number of things: an intense conversation or an intense silence, a surprising meeting, ample consumption of alcohol… and someone usually makes the first step, or, they mutually do. Like Takazaki did in the first episode. So why use the stupid fall so much?! Because it requires no creative effort and no character development to happen. There is no fragility of character and vulnerable risks taking place: the characters are just thrown in an uncomfortable sexual setting in a ‘deus ex machina’ fashion. We don’t even get to see how they fell! In other words, it’s an easy solution. And it’s lame. So stop doing it!
It is SCIENTIFICALLY WRONG. Men are typically heavier than women, and most times this happens, they should end up falling first, thus being the ones underneath, their testicles under someone’s knee and in severe pain. Not very erotic, is it? Well, unless you’re into that sort of thing, I guess…

What on earth is the deal with Takazaki and Yusuke?

I need to know. It is the most intriguing part of the plot for me. This time we were so close to finding out but Ririna’s shenanigans messed everything up. And then there’s this mysterious letter that arrives in the end of the episode… Last but not least, I believe it is obvious to everyone how Ririna is starting to develop feelings of some sort for Yukari. Expected, you may say, but how is this going to affect her friendship with Takazaki? Let’s find out in the next episode of Love and Lies.

Did you like Episode 5 of Love and Lies? Let us know in the comments below by using either the forum or the Facebook tab! Join us in our new forum and let’s talk about our favorite series! Also, don’t forget the rest of our Summer 2017 reviews!

NEXT TIME: A Prison to Compel Love (恋を強いる檻)