Indelible Lipstick Magic (き・え・な・いルージュマジック！！, Kienai ruuji yumaji wa!!?), known as "The Magnetic Lipstick!!" in the Project ILM Scanlation, is the 172nd chapter of the Urusei Yatsura manga.
Summary[]
Lum attempts to create a magnetic lipstick so she can finally score a kiss from her reluctant boyfriend, Ataru.
Plot Overview[]
Lum busies herself in her personal science lab aboard her private UFO, creating a tube of homemade lipstick. Once she's done, she puts it on herself and flies down to Ataru's bedroom... where she tries to put it on Ataru as well. Weirded out by this, Ataru dodges her, protesting that human guys don't wear lipstick. In the struggle, Lum accidentally smears lipstick on Ten's face, then suddenly pounces on him and kisses him. Ataru immediately deduces that this is a kind of "magnetic lipstick" that can be used to force people to kiss. He scolds Lum for trying to play such a trick, asserting that it's wrong, and makes a show of throwing it out the window, sending Lum angrily looking for it. Of course, he secretly pockets it for himself, intent on using it to kiss other girls. The next day, Ataru decides the perfect target for the lipstick is Ryunosuke, who is more than happy to try something feminine. The lipstick works, but Ryunosuke physically fights Ataru off before the effects can take hold. Lum then arrives, and Ataru finds his lips magnetized towards hers, with Mendo and the boys holding them apart. Then it's Lum and Ryunosuke's turn to be magnetized together. The beans are finally spilled, and the girls take the lipstick from Ataru, hoping to use it on Mendo - who accepts being painted when he realizes that this is a chance to "accidentally" steal a kiss from Lum. Ataru tries again to kiss Ryunosuke whilst avoiding Lum, and karma comes around to bite him when Ryunosuke's retaliatory punch causes Ataru and Mendo to be magnetically drawn into a kiss. With the evidence now inarguable, the class breaks into a veritable riot; Ataru and the other boys trying to kiss the girls, who are trying to kiss Mendo, who wants to kiss Lum, who wants to kiss Ataru.
Characters in Order of Appearance[]
- Lum
- Ataru Moroboshi
- Kotatsu-neko
- Ten
- Shinobu Miyake
- Ryūnosuke Fujinami
- Kōsuke Shirai
- Hokuto
- Shūtarō Mendō
Trivia[]
- The title of this chapter is based on the 1982 song "I-ke-na-i Rouge Magic!!" (い・け・な・いルージュマジック！！) by Kyoshiro Imawano and Ryuichi Sakamoto, which is actually used as an insert song in the 18th Episode of the 2022 animated adaptation.
- Ironically, despite the plot of this chapter and the fact Ataru and Lum are increasingly seen to do "couple" activities as the manga progresses, Ataru and Lum never kiss in the entirety of the Urusei Yatsura manga, not even accidentally. Only the final episode of the 1981 animated adaptation features the two of them voluntarily kissing.