Love Tyrant

Episode 8

Love Tyrant rebounds quite effectively after front-loading all its setup last week. Episode 8 jumps right into our main cast storming Akane's family castle, with so many jokes and references mashed together that Yuzu actually calls Guri out on it. The opening minutes are the show's trademark rapid-fire assault on the senses, with sight gags aplenty (I particularly got a kick out of Guri opening infinite sliding doors) before the requisite confrontation really breaks out.

Despite the ostensibly serious nature of the battle that ensues, as everyone tries to convince Akane to come back to Seiji's harem, it's punctuated with enough asides and comic relief that it never falls flat. The fight manages to be entertaining without the use of humor sometimes as well, getting thrills out of the characters actually using their powers in a battle with each other (such as Yuzu's shield), as well as twists when Shikimi really gets into the fray. Her addition really drives the strong part of this episode, as more of Shikimi's sexual provocation lends Seiji and Akane the urgency they need to come clean with how much they care about each other. Seiji's phrasing, that getting stabbed by Akane is a lot stronger than getting stabbed by Shikimi fits so cleverly with the tone and context of the series that it actually kinda makes me forgive the more lackluster way Shikimi was first introduced.

Much like Guri's moment in the spotlight a couple episodes ago, Akane's return to honest affection for the target of her yandere love is one of the better dramatic moments of the show so far. With the lead-up in this episode, plus the details of the couple's backstory last episode, the reveal of her true feelings is nicely effective. Compared to the show's attempt at seriousness in earlier episodes, this one works better now that we've had time to establish the characters and their relationships. It feels more earned.

Also in line with the show's increased ambitions is its transition to the second half. It speaks to how interconnected this episode is that it really doesn't have two stories the way all the previous one have. This is really more of a three-parter, given that it started with the second half of last episode, with more cool-down and explanation in this final third after the climax in the second. The appearance of Yuzu's mother is a delightful surprise that leads to a shockingly thrilling battle sequence with Akane's mom. I should bring up just how nice Love Tyrant's animation looks in this episode. The production team has really brought their A-game, with lots of action and effects and some ridiculous animated chaos for this mom-on-mom battle, despite it really just being a gag. It's another factor that sells this as a 'big' episode.

Despite being a parody of the whole harem genre, Love Tyrant delivers a surprisingly straight take on the ridiculous battle action and backstory complications that its classic representatives like Love Hina and Tenchi Muyo! established. The killer delivery in the lead-up means we're more welcoming to the more banal info-dump that makes up the last portion of the episode, but it bears critiquing anyway, since it isn't the smoothest of ways to write the conclusion. The show does fall into some of its previous traps, explaining its rote elements for long enough that it forgets to make jokes, but if this is the cycle we get to balance out the more outlandishly outstanding segments, it's not a bad place to be.

The explanation of Akane and Yuzu's family that we finally get does feel a little under-explored, as they're revealed to be supernatural contractors for the criminal underworld. It's not too absurd for this series, especially given Seiji's amusingly nonchalant acceptance of the whole affair. The best part is at the beginning of the confrontation, where Guri points out that her angelic status isn't anything special anymore with all these superpowers flying around. The real subversion comes from the details of the mothers' classic love triangle, which our current moresome has circumvented through their own sheer absurd circumstance.

The show wraps up by adding more classic shonen battle tropes, as Akane declares that Guri is her rival. It's fun to see the characters engage with this so heartily, and for a series about complicated relationships, its willingness to engage a myriad of anime tropes is kind of its best asset. Akane's mom slightly breaking down the romance lines at the very end (and Yuzu's mom's priceless reaction) illustrates the absurd entertainment value of the whole thing. This episode still has some of the series' standard missteps, but it's done a very good job of crystallizing the parts that do work and using all of that to its advantage.

Rating: A-

Love Tyrant is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.