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:
Kamen Rider Die watches Kamen Rider Ghost
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08-26-2019, 10:17 PM
#
95
Kamen Rider Die
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
KAMEN RIDER GHOST MISCELLANY PART 1 - THE LEGEND OF HERO ALAIN
Weird!
Super weird
! I'd sort-of seen that this web series (or, I don't know, box set extra, whatever) was what Alain was up to between scenes, but it is s
o strange
catching stuff set in the first (worse) dozen episodes. Just, like,
Saionji
! He was
such
a huge deal, and then he's dead, but in a way where I'm like, "Oh, we're
going
to see him again later in the series." But we never do! He's forever dead! They even retcon his involvement in Takeru's dad's death, to give Adel more of a role. It's
super weird
to see those creepy teeth back on screen!
And, I don't know, this isn't the most integral bit of storytelling I've seen for a Kamen Rider ancillary project. It seems like they realized what a talent they had in Hayato Isomura, so here's more with him. And he can do pretty much anything well: there's fun gags, serious drama, heartache... I really don't have a problem with a show just being about whatever Alain gets up to. It's not wasted time!
But, god, it's
insane
how off-model everything looks and feels for the first first act. Alain wearing his weird grey sweater outfit, when eventually the show would decide that Ganma royalty only ever wear uniforms. The way Specter's all "we lived in
HELL
", when eventually they'd be all "oh, actually, Alia took really good care of us." How ill-informed Alain is, and how much Saionji has control of the action, since he's not going to stick around
at all
. It's a fun episode, since, y'know,
Alain
, but looking back to when this show really, really didn't work is...
not super pleasant
.
The second episode, I don't know. It's really not trying to do a lot. Feels like
a lot
of clips from the second first act. It's pretty neat to see them try and do more with the Specter/Necrom friendship, though. You see flashes of Alain's fondness for Makoto in the second first act, the way he feels guilty about controlling Specter, how he wants everything to be how it used to. This gives those feelings a bit more room to breathe, but in unexpected ways. Like, Alain is
inappropriately handsy
with the controlled Makoto? And he's going to take him on a date with himself and Kanon? Like, I'm not sure how much of this is the producers trying to goof on a somewhat-standard "very, very close male friendship between Riders" that can easily be read as queer (ChaseXGo forever), or if they're just like, "Nope, Alain is in love with Makoto and doesn't really know how to express it." I can't tell if it's a joke to them or serious. I don't ever really expect much out of any romantic plotline on a Rider show, not since the shockingly juvenile stuff with Accel and Akiko back in W, but the emphasis on the romantic qualities of a friendship in this episode was like, what are you trying to
say
, program?
Third episode of four, and we are very much in the heart of the Alain Arc. Everything interesting about Alain's character can be found in this era, and I presume most folks would call it the show at its best.
I mean, I get it. Alain's always going to be a more compelling character for people who don't like Takeru. He's, I don't know, more
traditional
. He's brooding, he's got an edge, he's tragic, he's got an awesome look, he's very Peak Japanese Dreamboat Hero. Takeru is, like,
a sweet boy
. He cares,
a lot
. He's very open with his feelings. He's smiling, like, constantly. He doesn't change as drastically as a character like Alain; his growth is more internal and spiritual. Alain's a flashier, easier to read character. You don't have to work as hard to enjoy his story.
And, yeah, this part of the series is so, so good. There's a lot in this episode about dealing with death, since Alain is mourning both his (
double-murdered
) father, and Grandma Fumi. It's not a lot we didn't see before, but, like the previous episode, it's more about Alain's viewpoint than we necessarily got in the series. It's funny and sweet and cathartic. Just a really solid short.
What a sweet little epilogue, the final episode was. I really like the idea of the end of Alain's journey being about (sorry to put it like this) the friends he made along the way. It's a little corny, maybe, but it's refreshing to see Alain's character through the words of the main cast. He was an asshole, and a villain, but eventually he won these three over. It's a really nice ending.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on
KamenRiderDie.com
!
Last edited by Kamen Rider Die; 10-13-2023 at
05:01 PM
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