|
Community Links |
Members List |
Search Forums |
Advanced Search |
Go to Page... |
|
Thread Tools |
10-05-2019, 05:36 PM | #211 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
KAMEN RIDER BUILD MISCELLANY: FINAL STAGE
A super-meta Build stage show is maybe the most perfect thing to watch after the violent, moody Rogue specials. It's not difficult viewing, it's easy to let it just wash over you. It's the dessert after a heavy meal. I don't know why, after 49 episodes of television, two movies, two HBVs, six additional specials, and four toy commercials, but I'm still surprised when Build goes the extra mile to tie some bit of fluff into its continuity, and makes use of whatever dumb format they have to work in. There's no reason for this stage show to work canonically with the end of Build, but it does. There's no reason to make the audience an actual character in the stage show, but they do. There's no reason to make it so goddamn good, but they did. It's almost frustrating how fun and joyful this stage show is. What could possibly live up to this in the future? I mean, okay, I don't want to oversell it. This is still a stage show, and it's aimed very young. It isn't really trying to do much more than have a bunch of fights between suit actors. But, even within that framework, there's nearly everything I loved about Build. All the suits look great. The fights are pretty fun. The use of projection screens and lasers is well done. Character relationships are vibrant and clear. And it's just stupidly funny. Here's some highlights: For what's a 40-something minute thing to distract children, Final Stage was a lot of fun. The cast translates to the stage so well, and the producers seemed to have so much fun with the format. I'm glad I didn't end up missing this one.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! Last edited by Kamen Rider Die; 10-13-2023 at 10:24 PM.. |
10-06-2019, 12:48 PM | #212 |
Veteran Member
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Oregon
Posts: 1,097
|
Quote:
I wonder sometimes if I'm more forgiving because I blew through this series, or less forgiving. I think it's maybe both? In the micro, I'm willing to say "those were fun scenes, there's a lot of good here, even if it's not all working", while in the macro I found myself saying "this plot, this storyline, I don't think it's working, despite some fun scenes".
The pacing, that change up from small Touto stories to bigger Japan stories to epic universe stories, felt problematic to me in retrospect. So much of the core starting narrative feels resolved in episode 22, and the "Banjou is a fugitive" arc into the Hokuto War arc felt really fluid and like a natural consequence of the characters' actions. After 22, the Seito War arc into the Evol(t) arc, it frequently felt both repetitive, with the Seito War, and like it was losing the characters in the spectacle and shocking reveals. Nothing that ruined the show for me, but the back half felt way more top-down plotted (things happening to the characters) and way less bottom-up plotted (things happening because of the characters). The scene where Misora is trying to remember Sento is one of the most Build things to happen in that finale. It moves from: -Sadness, as Misora doesn't really know Sento, one of her dearest friends -Hope, as Misora feels that connection, somehow -Joy, that look on Sento's face that maybe there's still a place for him in this new world -Humor, because HA HA it's just that he looks like the frontman for Lynks -Respect, because goddamn, did they really just cap off a hugely dramatic moment with a joke callback to an episode from almost a year ago? It's cool that this series is one of your favorites! There's a bunch of franchise high-points in it, and judging from the recent poll, you're not alone in your enjoyment of it. If you don't mind my asking, which other series have you watched? the first episode of the original series, the first 17 episodes of Faiz, The First/The Next movies, the first episode of Wizard, the first 24 episodes of Zi-O, and all of Zero-One so far. I really need to finish Faiz someday. Got burned out by what a bastard Kusaka was, and from what I hear, I've barely scratched the surface of his horribleness. Ryuki is my second favorite series, after Build. I'll be very excited to see what you think of it when you get to it. I also love Eiji from what I've seen of him in some of the crossovers, so I imagine OOO will be a favorite when I get to it. Kabuto's next on my list to watch though, after I eventually finish Faiz |
10-06-2019, 01:08 PM | #213 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
I've watched Build, Showa Amazon, Amazons, Ryuki, Double,
the first episode of the original series, the first 17 episodes of Faiz, The First/The Next movies, the first episode of Wizard, the first 24 episodes of Zi-O, and all of Zero-One so far. I really need to finish Faiz someday. Got burned out by what a bastard Kusaka was, and from what I hear, I've barely scratched the surface of his horribleness. Ryuki is my second favorite series, after Build. I'll be very excited to see what you think of it when you get to it. I also love Eiji from what I've seen of him in some of the crossovers, so I imagine OOO will be a favorite when I get to it. Kabuto's next on my list to watch though, after I eventually finish Faiz Yeah, I'm also looking forward to Ryuki. At my current pace (subject to change with no notice!), I might hit it in January?
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
10-07-2019, 01:04 AM | #214 |
Veteran Member
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Oregon
Posts: 1,097
|
Have you done Den-O yet? It's suddenly rocketed up in my list of what to watch, thanks to getting some figures from it from a friend who visited Japan and wasn't sure what Rider stuff I was specifically into. I know it's crazy popular in Japan, and that Kobayashi is an incredible writer, so I'm excited. I'll probably slot it between Kabuto and OOO
|
10-07-2019, 11:30 AM | #215 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
Have you done Den-O yet? It's suddenly rocketed up in my list of what to watch, thanks to getting some figures from it from a friend who visited Japan and wasn't sure what Rider stuff I was specifically into. I know it's crazy popular in Japan, and that Kobayashi is an incredible writer, so I'm excited. I'll probably slot it between Kabuto and OOO
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
10-07-2019, 11:10 PM | #216 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
KAMEN RIDER BUILD NEW WORLD: CROSS-Z
God, I thought this came out great. They managed to 100% get me on board with this story, despite it undoing a big chunk of the ending of Build, as well as relitigating yet again how ambivalent the citizenry was of the Kamen Riders. I still loved it! Right up front, though, I know I shouldn't love this story. It takes the ending of Build and unspools a bunch of the consequences, setting up more fights for characters that already achieved their victory. It's sort-of what I complained about back when I rewatched Ex-Aid True Ending, that it's to the shows' credit that they end. The constant exploitation of a series to feed a ravenous fanbase, it's not what I like about Kamen Rider as a franchise. But! I thought this worked, and I'm not totally certain why. Some if it is that I felt like Build's ending went too far, destroying a family dynamic that I'd come to love. In just a couple of scenes, everyone's back together, cracking wise and fighting for each other. It's so welcome that I don't really mind that it takes away from the TV finale, because this makes me feel better. Similarly, I don't care so much that Evol(t) is back, because Evol(t) is great. Killbas is awesome, and I'll talk about him in a bit, but Evol(t) is outstanding. It's a bit dodgy that he just up and leaves at the end (although I guess nearly getting eliminated from existence might make you give Team Build a wide berth), but obviously there's more of these specials coming, there's a chance his story isn't over. I can't be too mad at this series of specials because of shit like that, how they know that what makes this series work is all of these characters bouncing off of each other, and they're all so good at it that they could probably do these forever. Maybe it's just my fondness for the TV series clouding my judgment, but I just responded so emotionally to these characters having more adventures that I couldn't bring myself to scold them for coming back. It helps that the story is so good. This is the "Kamen Riders are hated by the public" story that the show kept feinting at but never delivered, at least with a specificity that I thought it required. This isn't some mind-control plot by some lunatic, or a stray news report we're just supposed to accept. This is someone's life that was destroyed because of Kamen Riders. Yui's story is relatable, and probably all too common. The Kamen Riders were doing battle constantly, and it's reasonable that one of them, especially Banjou, might not notice a group of civilians in danger. It's horrifying that Yui was experimented on, tortured, immolated. It makes sense that she'd harbor a grudge, that she'd have no faith in Banjou or the others to save people. It's not her being mean to characters who tried and failed, it's someone who got ignored and suffered fatally for it. Worse, not only does she bear the scars of the old world, but all of the kids she tried to protect are comatose. She's right to be mad at Kamen Riders! They pretty much dropped the ball on this one! It's the best idea to have this story land on Banjou's shoulders, since it doesn't seem as likely to wreck him as a similar storyline did to Sento in Be The One. Banjou's growth, his many But Why Heroism speeches, were a central part of his character. Yui's story isn't some shock, it's the natural consequence of his life. He was a fighter, he fought for his friends, he didn't understand why you'd fight for anyone you didn't know. It's now, in the aftermath of the TV series, that he's able to see his failures, to try and atone. It's maybe the perfect story to do in an epilogue movie. It's not a new road he's on, it's the culmination of all he's experienced. He's learned his lessons, he's paid for his mistakes, he's ready for his reward. Amongst other things, that reward is a slick new suit. Cross-Z Evol is gorgeous, a great melding of the Cross-Z dragon motif and the stark black-and-white Evol coloring and circles, with some killer blue and pink pops of color. I've always liked the Wizard-style coat/skirt on suits, and Cross-Z Evol wears it so well. It's definitely in my top three Cross-Z suits. Kamen Rider Killbas, didn't love the suit that much (too many spider legs restricting movement, the red needed to be broken up more along the torso) but he's an awesome movie villain. Style for miles, and great physicality. (The fact that Killbas moved like Shinsuke Nakamura for the whole movie? Killed me. I am dead.) This was a dude where, when Evol(t) goes "He's my brother," I was like, "I can see that." It's a bit of a narrative shortcut, villain-wise, to just do What If Evol(t) But More, but it's also incredibly effective. It not only immediately establishes stakes, in that this dude is worse than the dude we just spent 49 episodes watching Team Build fight, but it allows Evol(t) to join the heroes in a classic The Enemy Of My Enemy Killed My Parents And Is Just A Total Asshole And He's Definitely Going To Try To Kill Us Again Soon But FINE Let's Team Up. Evol(t) joining Team Build is something you can't really do more than once (they sort-of did it in Be The One, but not nearly to this extent), and I think they got everything out of it here. He's funny, casually cruel, and he still hates everybody, but his weirdly effective torturing/mentoring is key to victory. It's a great use of the character. The rest of the cast was fairly backgrounded here, but I'm sure they'll all get a turn in the spotlight. Everyone was great, though. Everyone got a little moment. It's great hanging out with these weirdos and their weird family again. I like this new world. It feels like home. I think that's for now for me and Build? I don't have anything else to watch for this series, at least until the Grease movie drops in December or whatever. Huh. Feels weird. Weird to be done with Build. You guys! Thanks for reading all this. Feel free to respond to this thread if you've got stuff to say, I'll keep an eye on it. I'll probably watch the Ex-Aid stage show (that I just found recently) some time later this week, and that'll land in the "Kamen Rider Die rewatches Kamen Rider Ex-Aid movies" thread for lack of a better place. Then, I don't know, like a week or so off from watching Kamen Rider? I like to take at least some time between series, or they blur together too much. I've got a couple non-series specific discussion questions I might drop on the boards, to keep active, plus I'm legit curious about how other fans feel about a couple things. After that, it's time for Masked Rider Kuuga. I'll see you around!
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! Last edited by Kamen Rider Die; 10-13-2023 at 10:24 PM.. |
10-08-2019, 12:29 AM | #217 |
Member
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 320
|
Ok, I'll just throw in my opinion on Build as a series here.
It's a good and well-written story, for the most part, just one that didn't manage to engage me. Sento is a fine character, I just never felt all that connected to him and that's the reason, even though I really like Banjo, a lot of their scenes left me only with, that is nice. Through I have an idea of what people felt in thei relationship because I probably felt the same thing in the relationship between Sougo and Geiz in ZI-O. Evolt was a blast, even if he stretched things out in the end. Grease and Rough, on the other hand, are harder to judge, there is nothing particularly wrong with them, but oh boy are there problems for me. It feels like most of their story was wasted when they were just "the bad guy" and nothing interesting was done with them after the fact, doesn't help that I found grease one of the most boring characters in Kamen Rider for me. I mean, Rough's goal of wanting to make the land a better place through his father was interesting and I wondered how that would affect him after the death of him, but that didn't really happen, which is just sad. And I'm not a fan of the supporting cast, Sawa is just so there that I often forget about her and Misora is, in my opinion, one of the worst Rider-Girls out there. She is the opposite of emotional support and most often just makes everything worse. I really grew to hate her. Build was a series with a really strong start, but everything after just lost my interest really damn fast until I just didn't care anymore. It still ended up on rank 12 of my Kamen Rider list, but still, there could have been so much more. But I enjoyed this thread a lot, maybe I'll try to be more active in the next one. |
10-08-2019, 12:44 AM | #218 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
Ok, I'll just throw in my opinion on Build as a series here.
It's a good and well-written story, for the most part, just one that didn't manage to engage me. Sento is a fine character, I just never felt all that connected to him and that's the reason, even though I really like Banjo, a lot of their scenes left me only with, that is nice. Through I have an idea of what people felt in thei relationship because I probably felt the same thing in the relationship between Sougo and Geiz in ZI-O. Evolt was a blast, even if he stretched things out in the end. Grease and Rough, on the other hand, are harder to judge, there is nothing particularly wrong with them, but oh boy are there problems for me. It feels like most of their story was wasted when they were just "the bad guy" and nothing interesting was done with them after the fact, doesn't help that I found grease one of the most boring characters in Kamen Rider for me. I mean, Rough's goal of wanting to make the land a better place through his father was interesting and I wondered how that would affect him after the death of him, but that didn't really happen, which is just sad. And I'm not a fan of the supporting cast, Sawa is just so there that I often forget about her and Misora is, in my opinion, one of the worst Rider-Girls out there. She is the opposite of emotional support and most often just makes everything worse. I really grew to hate her. Build was a series with a really strong start, but everything after just lost my interest really damn fast until I just didn't care anymore. It still ended up on rank 12 of my Kamen Rider list, but still, there could have been so much more. But I enjoyed this thread a lot, maybe I'll try to be more active in the next one. Like a lot of art, the relationships on Build either work for you or they don't. If you had a negative reaction (Misora, which, not my experience, she's the MVP of the show to me) or no reaction (Banjou and Sento's friendship), I'm not sure anyone in the world can or should try to change your mind. I could list all of the reasons I feel differently, in fact I'm pretty sure I spent a few weeks doing just that, but that's just my feelings, and nothing you should have to take into account. I guess the problem for Build more than other Rider shows is how much you need to care about the cast, specifically Sento and Banjou, for it to work. Fourze had the same thing, I think. If you don't care about the heroes, the main cast, nothing that happens in the series is going to matter. The relevance to anything happening is how it makes the characters change. If you don't care about them, and you don't care how they change, it's just a lot of brightly-colored suits punching each other until one of them explodes. But, yeah, sincerely, thanks! It's cool to see what other people got out of this series.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
10-08-2019, 12:51 AM | #219 |
Member
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 320
|
Quote:
Thanks for your thoughts! We, uh, we maybe saw this show differently?
Like a lot of art, the relationships on Build either work for you or they don't. If you had a negative reaction (Misora, which, not my experience, she's the MVP of the show to me) or no reaction (Banjou and Sento's friendship), I'm not sure anyone in the world can or should try to change your mind. I could list all of the reasons I feel differently, in fact I'm pretty sure I spent a few weeks doing just that, but that's just my feelings, and nothing you should have to take into account. I guess the problem for Build more than other Rider shows is how much you need to care about the cast, specifically Sento and Banjou, for it to work. Fourze had the same thing, I think. If you don't care about the heroes, the main cast, nothing that happens in the series is going to matter. The relevance to anything happening is how it makes the characters change. If you don't care about them, and you don't care how they change, it's just a lot of brightly-colored suits punching each other until one of them explodes. But, yeah, sincerely, thanks! It's cool to see what other people got out of this series. |
10-08-2019, 01:02 AM | #220 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
One of the things I always find interesting in this fandom is the fact that opinions vary widely. Kamen Rider is just such a diverse show that any series can be a favorite to some and that's awesome. Hell, my dislike for Ryuki, Gaim, my apathy for Kuuga, my split relationship to Den-O and my love for ZI-O and Wizard are all things I wouldn't call the norm in the fandom and it's still just another opinion out there. I always love to hear the opinion of others and this definitely gave me an idea of what others saw in this show, even if it didn't really get me.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
|
TokuNation News & Rumors |
Kakuranger: 30 Years After |
ToyRise RyuKenDo |
Alternative Cut of "Day Of The Dumpster" Released |
Shodo SUPER Kyoryuger Teaser |
Figuarts/Seihou GRIDMAN |
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 10:54 AM.
|