WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Love of Kill Episode 2, "Target," now streaming on Crunchyroll.
The new shojo romance anime of the Winter 2022 anime season, Love of Kill, blurs the line between shojo and seinen anime in exciting ways, combining traditional shojo storytelling beats with the action, intrigue and suspense of a seinen crime thriller. The explosive action of Episode 1 continues in Episode 2, and it's more personal this time.
Chateau is a professional bounty hunter who, in theory, should capture the rogue assassin Song Ryang-ha, but instead, she must put up with Ryang-ha's bewildering romantic advances. At first, Chateau saw Ryang-ha as a pest, but now, with a common enemy in the picture, Chateau and Ryang-ha may become allies -- if only barely.
Already, Chateau and Song Ryang-ha went on a date on Christmas eve in exchange for Ryang-ha aiding Chateau with her work, but despite the holiday spirit surrounding her, Chateau wasn't really in the mood. Now in Episode 2, she still pushes Ryang-ha away, trying to focus on her own work. Chateau isn't the type to depend on other people or have others depend on her, but her solitary lifestyle may become more trouble than it's worth, especially when Ryang-ha's bitter enemies target her to get to Ryang-ha. Now, Ryang-ha's problems are Chateau's problems too, and she can't just leave those problems at voicemail. Especially when those problems shoot at her.
While driving on a cliffside highway, Chateau runs afoul of one of Ryang-ha's enemies, a fellow with distinct blond hair and a spiderweb tattoo on his left cheek. The assassin sends Chateau's car tumbling down the cliffside and into the forest, and he follows her despite his injuries. The assassin overpowers Chateau and gives her a cryptic message to deliver to Ryang-ha -- a message that implies Ryang-ha betrayed the blond man and his associates at some point in the past. Ryang-ha arrives on the scene and chases off his enemy, then turns his attention to Chateau. He has few clues except Chateau's description of the blond assassin, the message and the bullet that the assassin had put into Chateau's phone to destroy it.
Up until this point, Love of Kill portrayed Ryang-ha and Chateau as opponents in a battle of wits, with Ryang-ha trying his hardest to win over Chateau's heart despite all the barriers she puts up. This time, they have a common enemy, and Chateau realizes that Ryang-ha's persistent nature is the least of her problems. She has no objections to Ryang-ha taking her to a safe house to tend to her wounds, although she still cannot stand Ryang-ha's obnoxious flirting and makes that fact clear. Chateau knows that she owes Ryang-ha for the help, but she won't just throw herself at him in gratitude. Chateau is more cautious and reserved than that, which the playful Ryang-ha may simply view as another challenge to overcome.
It's not yet entirely clear who Ryang-ha's enemy is or how Ryang-ha betrayed him, but in the short term at least, this common enemy should unite Ryang-ha and Chateau as uneasy allies, and Ryang-ha may take this chance to win Chateau's trust, persuading her to rely on him and open up. Chateau, in turn, may probe deeper into Ryang-ha's backstory and learn not just why he has an enemy, but why he is so interested in her. Ryang-ha is still shrouded in mystery, and by getting involved in Ryang-ha's problems, Chateau may learn more about the man himself -- even if she's exasperated by his romantic overtures -- and determine whether or not he's a trustworthy partner. For now, it's too soon to say.
