Tenchi Muyo! Tenchi Universe Episode 2: No Need for Princesses!

Welcome back to Tenchi, a show about a young, put-upon everyman who lives with his idiot dad and surprisingly badass grandfather, whose life is forever changed when he meets the notorious space pirate, Ryoko. After a misunderstanding that lead to fight, Ryoko, as well Mihoshi, the space cop who was pursuing her both found themselves stranded on Earth and are both taking up residence at the Masaki house, where I’m sure they’ll both continue to annoy poor Tenchi.

We join our heroes as Tenchi is working on his chores, which would be a lot easier without Ryoko constantly trying to get in his pants, while Mihoshi tries to send a distress signal. As Ryoko points out, since Earth is out in the space boonies, she’s highly unlikely to get a signal, but it’s better than doing nothing, so Mihoshi tries anyway. Poor Tenchi, the last thing he needs right now is another alien girl to drive him even more nuts, but he’s about to get it whether he likes it or not when Mihoshi’s distress signal is answered by Ayeka, princess of the royal family of the planet Jurai along with her two cylindrical wooden robots. However, things quickly get heated when Ayeka recognizes Ryoko and we learn that the two hate each other’s guts. As the two trade insults, Mihoshi desperately tries to hitch a ride home while Tenchi tries desperately to keep Ayeka and Ryoko from tearing one another apart with their bare hands. Once everything calms down, Ryoko tells Mihoshi and Tenchi about her past with Ayeka, recounting a story from when they were kids and Ayeka rudely kicked her out of a beautiful meadow for the crime of picking flowers, claiming royal privilege as her reason.

Hey wait a minute, is that a can of coke? Well, I can’t say I was expecting that when I started this little Tenchi experiment. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that the Japanese don’t drink Coca-Cola, it’s just that out of all the anime I’ve seen, including the one’s that take place in modern times, this is the first time I have ever seen name-brand American product placement like this, and with English lettering at that. It’s not a bad thing, just something I wasn’t expecting. Meanwhile, Yosho is talking to Ayeka and seems particularly interested in her homeworld of Jurai. We don’t hear all of their conversations, but we do learn that Ayeka is deeply devoted to the royal family. Yosho, seeming sympathetic to her situation, suggests that she take a day off from the duties of a princess and asks Tenchi to show her around. What follows is a rather nice scene in which Tenchi shows Ayeka around the hills near the Masaki house and Ayeka comments on how beautiful they are. What I especially like here is how Tenchi sees things from Ayeka’s alien perspective. Yes, the hills are beautiful, but to him and virtually everyone else on Earth, they’re just hills, but to Ayeka, who is seeing Earth for the first time, is in turn experiencing its hills for the first time as well. As time goes by, it becomes clear that Tenchi and Ayeka are starting to fall for one another, but neither one is willing to admit it to themselves just yet.

However, since poor Tenchi isn’t that lucky, this momentary reprieve from the ever growing insanity that has become his day-to-day life was doomed not to last, as a jealous Ryoko comes out of nowhere and starts groping Tenchi like a horny octopus. And thus begins round two of Ayeka and Ryoko’s verbal sparring match and we hear Ayeka’s version of Ryoko’s flower story, only in this version, Ryoko was mean to Ayeka and stole the crown of flowers she made for herself. What I do appreciate is how Tenchi is more inclined to believe Ayeka, given that he knows that Ryoko is a known criminal and a liar. Anywho, such hatred between two women would ordinarily erupt into a cat-fight, but Ryoko and Ayeka are not ordinary women and in their case, the more appropriate term would be dog-fight as both call forth their spaceships and prepare to fight to the death, with Tenchi and Mihoshi likely to be blown up as well. For the record, this is years before Anchorman would popularize the phrase, “That escalated quickly.” If Tenchi didn’t need therapy after being chased by a super-powered psychopath who desperately wants to sleep with him and watching his grandfather take down an ED-209 with a stick, he’s sure as hell going to need it now. Despite the desperate pleas of Tenchi and Mihoshi, the girls don’t let up and both of their ships are destroyed, meaning that in addition to the other two girls, Ayeka is also stranded on earth and freeloading with the Masakis. And so, another chapter in the Tenchi saga ends with Ayeka declaring her stay on earth to be an extended vacation.

The main point of episode two is to introduce Ayeka, who serves as the sole stabilizing element of our group of characters, that is when she’s not trying to strangle Ryoko, though to be fair, Ryoko’s the one who instigates those conflicts. Otherwise, Ayeka seems sweet, friendly, perhaps a bit shy, but otherwise a very likable character.

Speaking of likeable characters, don’t you just feel bad for poor Tenchi. I mean, he’s a good-hearted, albeit wish-washy guy and a dutiful grandson, and through no fault of his own, he finds himself in the middle of a love triangle that involves life or death space battles. You just want to give the poor kid a hug and take him out for a burger so he can escape for a couple hours.

Overall, I liked episode two. The comedy was sharp and the characters are still very engaging and likeable. The feud between Ayeka and Ryoko is especially entertaining, as they’re willing to go to ridiculous lengths just to keep the other away from Tenchi. Once again, I’m glad I started this little Tenchi experiment and look forward to another chapter in the continuing saga of the increasingly frustrating life of Tenchi Masaki.