As Majima runs more Lycoris agents over with his car, the DA declares martial law and mandates that all remaining Lycoris must be with a partner at all times. This of course includes our duo over at LycoReco, with Takina crashing at Chisato’s place. Conveniently, the house has a hidden underground bunker, thereby allowing the girls to hide comfortably and ambush any intruders.
Seeing as the two are roommates, the discussion of who does what in the house gets brought up. Takina has the reasonable plan of splitting the chores evenly but Chisato doesn’t accept it and she convinces Takina to instead decide via rock paper scissors. To say this is bait would be an understatement. I would be shocked that Chisato beats Takina in every single round but this is Chisato we’re talking about her. The girl can dodge bullets. If anything, Takina shouldn’t need Mika and Mizuki to explain that Chisato can predict her hand so long as the game starts the normal way. This subplot is absolutely worth it for the ending, where Takina finally manages to beat Chisato at her own game. Considering how reserved Takina it is, it’s adorable to see her act so giddy for a change.
While Takina is forced to be Chisato’s housewife, we see Majima running out of patience with Robota. I guess these two teamed up offscreen? Majima just wants to know where the DA is headquartered but Robota has orders from someone to get him interested in Chisato. I’m assuming that the mastermind behind all of this is the same one who was puppeteering Matsushita. What I want to know what is the real goal here? It could simply be to have Chisasto killed but I could also see the plan being to have Chisato face someone so bad and dangerous that she has no choice but to kill them.
The funny thing is that even if Robota wants to give Majima what he wants, he ultimately can’t because finding the DA’s HQ would require him to hack into Radiata. The only hacker who has managed to do that is Walnut/Kurumi. Putting aside the fact that Robota thinks Walnut is dead, the two aren’t on good terms anyway.
Speaking of Kurumi, this episode is where she finally confesses to everyone else at LycoReco that she is the one who hacked into Radiata back in Episode 1, thereby playing a role in Takina’s dismissal. Everyone is rightfully mad about this but they ultimately decide to keep Kurumi under their protection. I will admit that everyone’s acceptance falls a bit flat. Like, Kurumi has helped them a number of times now (she certainly redeems her during this episode) but it’s not like this show established a strong rapport between her and everyone else. If anything, this development is more fulfilling for Takina. I think if Takina found out earlier, she would’ve agreed to throw Kurumi out into the gutters. The fact that she doesn’t shows how much Takina has grown so far and how much Chisato has rubbed off of her.
Just as Majima runs out of patience, Robota manages to record footage of Chisato fighting and he successfully gets Majima interested in the girl. Majima and his men then chase after Chisato and they eventually manage to corner her. This fight does a good job establishing Majima as a legitimate opponent. He is mostly banking on numbers and firepower but he is shown to be clever when he obscures Chisato’s vision, making it a lot harder for her to read his movements and use her superhuman reflexes. This is also a smart way to establish a weakness for Chisato; it even ties into the rock paper scissors subplot as both reveal that Chisato relies on her eyes in order to win.
I imagine if Chisato could wash her face and drink a bottle of water, she could probably still solo Majima and his men. Still, it’s satisfying to see Takina and the others rescue her. After all, LycoReco is a team. It wouldn’t be right if Chisato always wins on her own. It’s especially nice for Takina. The problem with Chisato being so good at fighting is that you kind of risk of overshadowing Takina. Her big moment before this was punching Fuki and that was about it. The girl absolutely needs a couple more accomplishments under her belt. Plus, having Takina save Chisato ties back to them needing to stick together, per the mandate given by the DA.
Props to Lycoris Recoil for actually acknowledging that the Lycoris’ uniforms are a dead giveaway to their identities. They may be great for fans to cosplay but it doesn’t good for anonymity. I chuckled when Chisato’s solution is simply putting a coat over herself. That’s cute. Too bad Majima knows her face anyway. That kind of brings me to a question I have. What is Chisato and Takina going to do now? Majima knows the former’s identity and he shows no sign of stopping his pursuit. Are the two going to stay at LycoReco? That doesn’t sound like a good idea to me. I mean, if Robota could locate Chisato’s home, he can definitely discover the cafe. I’m honestly not sure. Lycoris Recoil seems serious enough to give a logical path for the girls to take but it’s also lighthearted enough that it might go for something dumb.
Watch Lycoris Recoil on Crunchyroll
Xenodude Scribbles 