TFW2005
Hisstank
Thundercats
TokuNation
Toyark
Home
News
Garo
Godzilla
Kamen Rider
Metal Heroes
Power Rangers
Super Sentai
Ultraman
All News Categories
Forum
News & Rumors
Power Rangers
Kamen Rider
Super Sentai
Other Toku Series
Toys and Collectables
Marketplace
Creative
Galleries
Companies
Bandai Japan
Tamashii Nations
Saban Brands
Bandai America
Toei
Characters
Kamen Rider Ghost
Kamen Rider Specter
Kamen Rider Necrom
Mighty Morphin Green Ranger
Dino Charge Red Ranger
Toylines
S.H. Figuarts
S.H. MonsterArts
DX Mecha
Megazords
Legacy
Shows
Kamen Rider Ghost
Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger
Power Rangers Dino Supercharge
Power Rangers Movie 2017
TokuNation.com
>
TokuNation
Integration
User Name
Remember Me?
Password
Rules
Register
Community
Today's Posts
Search
Community Links
Members List
Search Forums
Show Threads
Show Posts
Advanced Search
Go to Page...
Thread
:
Avataro Sentai DonBrothers Episode 10- "The Oni Saw The Rainbow!" Discussion
View Single Post
05-08-2022, 02:38 PM
#
2
Fish Sandwich
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
Posts: 3,833
I feel like Haruka calling out Marina's backstory as corny in the same breath she admits there's nothing wrong with that really gets to the core of... well, of a couple things, maybe.
First of all, something tells me that exact phrase is one Inoue tells himself all the time when coming up with his oft-melodramatic scripts, and I kinda dig the sentiment? You can have these beats in your story that are really obvious, maybe even downright cliche, and sometimes, that can all be for the best. And that's maybe this episode in a nutshell. Sure, there's the other side to Inoue's writing, where everything is crazy and wild, and there's some of that here too, of course. I really enjoy moments that are almost winking at the viewer, like how Haruka needs so little convincing to make this monkey's paw wish that even the normally stoic Kaito is visibly taken aback. (Or Haruka mentioning how exciting the idea of romance in a Sentai is, a line that would be innocuous if it were anyone but the guy behind Jetman writing it.) But the meat and potatoes of this story, at the end of the day, are entirely predictable.
After all, even *I* knew how this one was going to go just from the preview, and I'm pretty easy to fool! For me to predict a story ahead of time that correctly, it'd have to be some insanely hackneyed narrative everyone's seen a million times before. This episode is trite,
and that's okay.
No, really. I had massively high expectations for this one based on what I was expecting to see, and I couldn't be happier to have gotten exactly what I wanted. Haruka is hands down the character in this show I'm most invested in, and this is exactly the kind of plot that demonstrates why. I think I mentioned a few times talking about those first couple episodes how much I liked the way the show was letting Haruka have these little moments to start defining her own sense of heroism, and this week is one BIG moment of that. A story that offers her a way out of being Oni Sister, and then asks why she would decide,
for herself
, to choose that life again anyway. And it's great!
Again, this is ultimately a very straightforward episode, so I probably don't need to bother trying to digest it for anyone, but seriously, I loved every second of it. The weird atmosphere of there being this "other" version of the Donbrothers; all the emotions Haruka was going through; how solid Marina was as a guest character; the visceral catharsis of Haruka taking back her place on the team and finally using that big club from the opening to smack around some bad guys with renewed vigor... Every second! (Especially the club! I've been waiting to see that thing, and it was honestly more of an event to me than any amount of Robotaro Gears could ever be.)
This is pretty much a perfect episode of Donbrothers for me, what can I say? Since day one, Haruka has been a deeply engaging protagonist with a lot of layers, and pretty much any episode specifically focused around her is probably always going to be a winner for me because of that alone. That's even the other thing I was talking about up in that very first sentence. I love that Haruka is enough of a jaded young person to internally snark at someone pouring out their heart to her, and I also love how that doesn't get in the way of her immediately recognizing how precious that backstory still is. The whole episode is essentially this clash between Haruka's egotistical self-centered side and the equally fundamental compassion she has for others, and that alone, I mean,
of course
that can carry 20+ minutes.
I think my absolute favorite thing in the entire episode was even just that final internal monologue right before Haruka decides to give up her life again. It's super telling that in this show where everyone -- Haruka most of all -- is constantly thinking in the form of very theatrical rants about their lives, in that scene we see her dealing with this mess of overlapping thoughts that are all arguing with each other. Like, she's
human
, you know? That what it all comes down to. That's usually the kind of scene where you *would* have a character cleanly and concisely explain their thought process for the viewer's benefit, but that just isn't good enough for Donbrothers, because people are rarely that simple.
Plus, according to
the usual behind the scenes blog thingy
, all those thoughts were things Haruka's actor Kohaku Shida came up with herself at director Ryuuta Tasaki's behest. And let me tell you, reading that really rubbed in for me both how much Shida is doing a darn good job with this role, and how glad I always am to have Tasaki directing something. I mean, having such a great script is one thing, but when you've got people this talented bringing that vision to life on top of that, it's like... like... I swear there's some Japanese idiom to describe exactly this sort of scenario, but it's escaping me at the moment.
...Ah well. Maybe I'll remember it later.
__________________
誰かの笑顔のためだろ?
Fish Sandwich
View Public Profile
Send a private message to Fish Sandwich
Find More Posts by Fish Sandwich
TokuNation News & Rumors
Alternative Cut of "Day Of The Dumpster" Released
Shodo SUPER Kyoryuger Teaser
Figuarts/Seihou GRIDMAN
SH Figuarts BoonBoomger Red
Hasbro Licenses Power Rangers Toys to Playmates Toys
More New Posts
Fixing Kamen Rider Revice story (maybe movies and spin-offs)
How is Everyone Today- New
Ultraman Discussion Thread
Thunderstrike's Wants
DreamSword Watches Unfamiliar Toku: Part 1 - GARO
What are you watching? (Kamen Rider Edition)
S.H. Figuarts (Toku Related) Thread
Kamen Rider Gotchard Episode 34- "Only One! All Roads Lead To Gorgeousness!"
Kamen Rider Gotchard Episode 33- "Legend Rider? 100 Years Too Early!" Discussion
Super Sentai minipla appreciation thread!
Current Poll
How Would You Rate This Episode?
Excellent!
Good
Average
OK
Poor...
»
View Poll Results
»
Comment On This Poll
»
This Poll Has 0 Replies
Search Forums
»
Advanced Search
All times are GMT -5. The time now is
06:31 AM
.
Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Powered by
vBadvanced
CMPS