The Love Triangle

A guy, Takashi goes to a karaoke booth with a bunch of friends and meets a lovely lady, Yui. He displays the usual karaoke behaviour, donning his Hanshin Tigers (Japanese baseball team) jersey and parading around the booth singing the "I love Tigers" theme song, replacing "Tigers" with "Yui". They hold hands. They talk about making "rub-u" after karaoke.

Sigh. True love is born.

Except Yui is wired, Takashi's real girlfriend, Mayumi and his mother are in a studio next door watching the whole proceedings and Yui is being "controlled" by the host of the show, the girlfriend, mother and a few of Takashi's male friends.

Things hot up in the karaoke booth, our unwitting philanderer whispers to Yui "I love only you" (roughly an hour after he says "Nice to meet you") and they arrange to get the f!@#k out of there - literally. Mayumi steps out of the studio and up to the karaoke counter with her back to the elevator as Yui and Loverboy approach to pay. She turns around and..... shock! (Yes, genuine shock! It was kinda neat) - Sprung Muthaf!@#$er!

Then come the pathetic excuses - "It was only talk!"; "I didn't mean any of it!" before Mayumi slaps him, kicks him a few times for good measure while he's begging on the floor and leaves him to his mother who rails him as only a mother can; "I did NOT bring up my child to be like this!"

Cut to the aftermath scene in a tatami room - Takashi is begging forgiveness; the mother is disgracing his mock-sorry arse with her cutting epithets; the girlfriend is indifferent. Matt and I are yelling "Ditch the philandering bastard!" but, no surprises, they make him sing the Hanshin Tigers song with Mayumi's name, and they get back together...

... Until the next time he steps into a karaoke booth...

"The Triangle" - Japan's very special brand of reality TV - Asahi TV, Tuesday nights from 9pm