Rent-a-Girlfriend 2nd Season Episode 2

Rent-a-Girlfriend 2nd Season Episode 2

Permission to Cheat

I was pleasantly surprised by Rent-a-Girlfriend 2nd Season Episode 2. Yes, Kazuya is as annoying as he always is. And there were plenty of other things I didn’t like that the series always does. But, for a Kanokari episode, it was actually pretty good.

Now, of course, the reason it was good was because of the Chizuru content. She’s the best part of the series. You like Ruka? Mami? Sumi? I don’t care. Chizuru is the best girl and there’s nothing you can say that will change my mind.

But, speaking of Ruka she did make an appearance at the start of this week’s episode (not in a recap). Remember, she and Kazuya are technically dating. But, as we know, Kazuya has been going on dates with Chizuru. So, what’s the deal? Is Kazuya cheating on his beloved girlfriend? Yes — with her permission.

Ruka Sarashina annoyed with Kazuya from the anime series Rent-a-Girlfriend 2nd Season Episode 2
Ruka Sarashina annoyed with Kazuya

Ruka isn’t the brightest girl. And, what’s a bit sad is that she’s not bright enough to stand up for herself. She gets mad when Kazuya says he wants to continue renting out Chizuru. But, she doesn’t stop him. She needs to have more self-respect. Tell Kazuya “no.”

You might be thinking that this is exactly what Kazuya wants her to do. After all, if Kazuya has an excuse to end their relationship, he can pursue Chizuru, right? Wrong. There’s nothing stopping Kazuya from ending their relationship right now. If he wanted to, he could leave Ruka.

Kazuya’s an idiot too. He doesn’t want to leave Ruka because that would hurt her. But he also doesn’t realize that he’s hurting her by stringing her along. If Ruka was smart, she’d put her foot down and get Kazuya in line. What happened to her dominant behavior from when she was first introduced?

After-Hours Date

My favorite part of the episode was the after-hours “date” Kazuya and Chizuru had. I don’t want to self-insert as Kazuya. But, it was nice to see Chizuru taking some initiative and asking him to go places with her. I would have been happy, too, if I was him.

This is also where most of my complaints about the episode come from, though. For example, we kept getting the same shot of Chizuru’s skirt while she was in the batting cage. I get that Kazuya is staring there because he’s hoping to score a peek at her panties. But, using that shot once is enough.

If the goal is to give us a bit of Chizuru fan service, then use different angles. It stops being fan service after the first time we’ve seen it. At that point, it’s a waste of time. It’s obvious we weren’t going to see anything.

Chizuru Ichinose in a batting cage from the anime series Rent-a-Girlfriend 2nd Season Episode 2
Chizuru Ichinose in a batting cage

The other big problem with this part of the episode is something that happens in every episode. Have you noticed that random people always comment on Chizuru’s and Kazuya’s looks? Every single time the two of them are out in public together, someone says something.

It’s always something like, “Wow! She’s so hot. Is she with that guy? She’s way out of his league!” What’s the point of this dialogue? We as the viewers already know Chizuru is way out of Kazuya’s league. And it’s not something that people would actually say that frequently.

Imagine being Kazuya for a moment (I know, I don’t want to either). Every day he has random people commenting on how the girl he’s with is hotter than him. But, I guess it’s all worth it in the end because he got a high-five from Chizuru for free.

Granny Sayuri’s Request

The final part of the episode with Chizuru’s grandmother was nice too. But, I thought it was going to play out in a completely different way. When Granny Sayuri said she had a request for Kazuya, I thought it was going to be some sort of gag.

I thought that she might say something about giving her grandchildren. You know, something that would make Kazuya flustered while she laughs it off. If this was Kazuya’s grandmother instead, I have a feeling that’s how it would have gone down.

But, no, Chizuru’s grandmother had a real request for Kazuya. She wanted Kazuya to promise to keep Chizuru from being lonely. She didn’t say that she wanted the two of them to get married or anything. And I wouldn’t even say that was the implication. She just wants Chizuru to have someone she can go to when she’s feeling alone.

Chizuru's grandmother from the anime series Rent-a-Girlfriend 2nd Season Episode 2
Chizuru’s grandmother

When the flashback to Chizuru’s childhood began, I admit I was a bit concerned. This could have been some tragic backstory for her character that’s completely unnecessary. But, fortunately, it didn’t go that far. It only went far enough to add some context for why Chizuru acts the way she does now.

We now know that Chizuru is actually lonely a lot of the time even now. And, this is likely a large part of why she enjoys spending time with Kazuya. Kazuya’s the one person she doesn’t have to put on an act in front of.

Sure, she’s not admitting to him that she’s lonely. But, she doesn’t need to tell him everything. What we’re seeing from Chizuru right now feels real. I’m sure you can think of someone you enjoy spending time with because you don’t have to tell them everything.

Conclusion

What do you think of Rent-a-Girlfriend 2nd Season Episode 2? Do you think Ruka should let Kazuya rent out Chizuru? How do you feel about the comments Kazuya and Chizuru always get from strangers? And, what did you think Chizuru’s grandmother was going to ask Kazuya? Let me know in the comments.

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My review of Episode 3 is available now.

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