Review: Love es M

S&M and some of the darker aspects of that have been done many times before in the ero world, as such when a new anime comes along I am both excited but also with a bit of trepidation. Love es M The Animation is based on the game of the same name by. What does this offer to set itself apart from the pack?

Mizushiro Ayaka is a model student, always studying with great pressure on her shoulders to succeed. This pressure gets to her though and builds up enough that she needs a release. Her brothers SM fetish provides that escape as she begs him to become her master to release that stress and giver her pleasure. Yoshis girlfriend and childhood friend Tsurutani Ayaka also wants to please him even if it means bending to his fetishes but is this the only reason why?

The story here would be good providing a nice setup and does so to a degree but there is a problem and that lies in the way it is told. It is almost like a clip show in that you have scenes with each bondage play, you have some voiceover dialogue telling you a bit about the girls which is helpful to get more insight into what they are like but that is it bar a few panning still shots in-between. There is nothing connecting them together, no real way to segue into the next scene and it is frustrating.

This also leads to cutting out of content which results in a lot of questions. Why does Yoshi have this S&M fetish? Why does Mizushiro suddenly become fascinated and wanting of this? Where is the conflict between the girls when they find out? Why is so little shown on Yoshi? It basically reduces the episodes to a bunch of clips somewhat linked which is very disappointing.

In terms of the sex scenes it is a nice display of S&M and all consensual. Each scene is incredibly satisfying from beginning to end and the variety of acts helps to keep it fresh. We start with Mizushiro in a bondage outfit being teased by Yoshi, begging him as his slave to tease her more, to fuck her. She salivates, becomes increasingly wet at the prospect before submitting even further.

From there it only intensifies as it switches with Tsurutani. She is open minded and just wants to satisfy Yoshi. She is forced to have a vibrator in her during PE with a ‘punishment’ game for not being able to last. She is taken to mens public toilets and tied up from the ceiling whilst being filmed and fucked. You see her react differently; begin to change as the prospect of being found excites her and unearths the true masochist in her.

This is taken one step further with Mizushiro along for the ride for a couple of really enticing scenes that is better left for you to watch. Each of these is incredibly perverse and delves into the pleasure and submission of S&M. The girls reactions signal their growing attachment, the thrill increases as the humiliation ramps up. It all adds up to a satisfying S&M experience. For the most part at least as cutting and glancing over of content is still clear and the ending leaves it fairly open.

Visually the show is good. Nice bold colours fill the screen and the character designs are lovely. They take Kizoku Coffees art from the VN but it does lose some polish in the transition. This is to be expected as his art has a nice almost sheen to it that could not be replicated well without a large budget but it keeps the key style Coffee is known for. Both girls have nice bodies with Mizushiro boasting larger proportions and both have differing body and facial aspects to keep them distinct.

The animation is smooth as expected from Pink Pineapple, sex scenes flow well with little use of frame recycling. The camera picks just the right angle to accentuate the girls position of helplessness and submission further elevating the S&M experience. There was a fair usage of panning shots, mainly to cover scenes which aren’t featured, a bit like a teaser of what you’re missing and whilst they are fairly frequent they are short and effective.

The clip show like format does harm this episode but the actual clips themselves are top of the line. It is arousing and enjoyable whilst bringing a fair amount of bondage heavy scenarios. If you are interested in more then absolutely go and play the VN as this acts more as an advert for that.

Studio: Pink Pineapple

Release: 2014

Length: 1 episode

Availability: CD Japan, Mandarake

7/10