Ren has a thing for ankles eh? What a traditional man!

Minnie: Even though Skip Beat Episode 4 updated very slow, I am happy to say that Skip Beat Episode 5 updated very fast. I am in love with Kyoko’s character and I am glad to watch more of her especially this episode where she is taking her first step toward the show biz world. This is shoujo at its greatest without the stereotypical, annoying shoujo heroine. Let’s see what is her first job as a Love Me member and that shiny, pink uniform too! Because this episode is so good, I watch the whole thing before I write a review.

At the beginning of the episode, Lory confirms Kyoko’s status as part of the Love Me section so that she can learn to love and be loved. An honest person, Kyoko doesn’t think she can do that but she’s willing to try to regain this important human trait she lost thanks to Shou. Lory is worried at the reason why Kyoko has lost this in the first place. Kyoko is overjoyed at this opportunity to get on television but she’s not as delighted at the sight of her new uniform- the Love Me Uniform that has the brand on the left side and on her back. It really is humiliating but I must say, I like the color. Shiny pink owns!

Her first job is to scrap the gum off from the floor. Although she hates this type of work, she does it anyway in hopes of getting more points. Her grudges help her wash the entire floor spotless too! Unfortunately, this backfire because people who walk on her floor slips and falls all over! She’s not thinking of other people when she’s cleaning the floor and only makes it clean to satisfy herself. Sawara knows this and only gives her ten points. Her three grudges are unhappy at this cruel penalty while her single angel says that the ten points he gave her was generous. In any case, the last lady reducted ten points from her so now she’s back at zero. It’s okay Kyoko. Pick yourself up next time! This is when she meets Ruriko though. She’s the “last Japanese idol” for this company. Endangered animal much? Although I dislike her a lot already, she requests Kyoko’s help for her next job.

Meanwhile, we get to meet Mister Bastard aka Shou and see how he’s doing. While he sits there, a couple of girls gush over his good looks and yeah, he’s acting cool in front of them and such. However, a lot more cries come from everybody and Shou finally notices the center of all their attention- Ren Tsuruga! Shou wants to usurp Ren’s number one position remember? This is his first time meeting Ren in person and this is his chance to challenge and humiliate Ren by kicking a trash bin (?) in front of him. However, this plan sort of backfires on him because Ren politely tells him that ordinary people make careless mistakes all the time. He doesn’t want to fight Shou back I see. Now, Shou is mad but in his head, he is ashamed to admit that Ren is cool. Still, +1 for Ren and +0 for Shou. Go Ren! But what is this? He used to be a rough person before his career? Interesting…

Even though Ruriko is being a ***** and is obviously faking everything, Kyoko is kindhearted enough to fall for it. She always fantasizes about princesses and in her eyes, Ruriko is a princess. Kyoko is determined to protect Ruriko no matter, even risking herself in the process.This is seen very well in the following minutes when the car broke down and Kyoko helps Ruriko up the hill with a handmade umbrella especially for Ruriko. Even though Ruriko doesn’t want to go, at the mention of Ren’s name, she changes her mind. Someone has a crush on Ren? Anyways, in the middle of the hike, Ruriko is tired (after five minutes) so Kyoko carries her in which she shows no compassion at all! Grrr.

Eventually, Ruriko makes it to the location of the movie shoot. However, Kyoko is not with her. In a flashback, we see that Kyoko twists her ankle and Ruriko has to make the rest of the way by herself, promising to call for help for Kyoko. This is not the case however. Ruriko simply wants Kyoko to disappear because she hates girls like that. Under the sun on the road, Kyoko is still stuck in the same place. She tries to move toward the shade but it’s hopeless. She can’t move at all! She remembers how both Shou and her mother leaves her. A symbolic image of her younger self is seen running toward a shadow of a young boy. In reality, that young boy changes to Ren who is on a walk and meets her coincidentally. After he determines that she probably has a fractured bone and teases her a bit, he picks her up. Kyoko is not liking this one bit! And bam, episode ends. T_T

I absolutely love both Ren and Kyoko in this episode. Ruriko is awful though. I hate her so far. But that’s not the point. The point is that because of Kyoko carrying Ruriko for her safety, she realizes that some part of her old self is coming back. She cares about Ruriko more than herself. This is character development at its best. I love it to bits. This is a worthy episode and it helps that they leave it on a cliffhanger too! Bravo! More please?

Minnie’s Overall Rating for Episode: 9/10

Minnie’s Anticipation for Next Episode: 10/10