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05-08-2021, 03:59 PM | #61 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
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KAMEN RIDER KIVA EPISODE 03 - "HEROIC: THE PERFECT HUNTER”
This is an episode full of action (Nago!) and drama (that moment when you figure out your parents are human), but, like, Otoya. He's so exquisitely awful that I honestly can't hate him. I should, probably. Okay, definitely. He's grotesque, with his debauchery and dismissiveness. He's horrible for virtually every single second of this episode. There's not a single redeeming thing he does in this part of the story. But, like, I was dying. He is so ridiculous that I can't begrudge him his absence of morality. Everything he gets up to in this episode is so over-the-top, so cartoonish, that it's hard to find fault. Getting mad at Otoya for fleecing rubes or stealing hearts is like getting mad at the weather. It is doing the thing it was created to do, and any lives that get wrecked in the process... well, we live in an imperfect world. Much like Jean-Ralphio's predictably deplorable life choices on "Parks and Recreation", Otoya wins me over by being so jaw-droppingly, enthusiastically terrible, that I end up applauding him for it. He is a bad person, and I am a bad person for enjoying it this much. Of course, that's just me, and I ain't his kid. Getting Wataru involved in a story where he has to accept the reality of his dad's past (the scene where Wataru, beaming, describes his dad as some pillar among men, was so adorably wrong that it made me root for that kid) is a nicely relatable story. No matter how great your upbringing was, there's a point in growing up where you have to see your parents as real people with real flaws, and that's tough. It's disillusioning, having to accept that someone can be both a good parent and a not-great person. In this one, Wataru isn't just confronted with the idea of his dad maybe tipping poorly at a restaurant, or cheating at a board game. Wataru is presented with massive binders of his dad's malfeasance, and gets to hear first-hand accounts of the lives his dad ruined. It is more than disillusioning; it's completely demoralizing. I've said before that Kiva has echoes of Ghost for me, with Wataru trying to follow in his father's footsteps and feeling inadequate to the task. The way Wataru completely falls apart here brought that similarity back to my mind. Takeru, for better or worse, could completely lose his cool in the early-going of Ghost, becoming bratty and selfish in the face of adversity. It was always a learning experience, something he'd have to fix in himself in order to meet the challenge, but we'd end up with a few scenes of him being pretty worthless to the assignment. Wataru gets at that here, where he can't even finish a fight against the Moth Fangire because he's so haunted by his father's actions. (Also, just going to assume that the Moth Fangire is the lawyer who brought all of this information to Wataru.) It's deserved, for sure. Wataru's flaw is that he ties too much of himself up in his father's memory; he's chained to that past. So finding out that his father has binders full of destroyed lives to answer for, it's going to wreck him. But, like, I don't know how much of it I believe? We know that Otoya is awful, sure, but this awful? It's probably/absolutely irredeemable, to the point where he's an ill-fit for a tokusatsu show. There's enough cover in these stories about him to not judge him too harshly, maybe (most of what we hear are that people threw their lives away on stupid things he said; he didn't rob anybody or anything), and that's if we even believe all of what the lawyer is saying. Like, the idea that all of these people who lost everything because of Otoya would forgive him two decades later if he could be proved to have done one selfless act... that is one of the least believable things on a show that includes a Dinosaur Cathedral. It's a completely ludicrous story, which both works in its favor (hard to not find Otoya hilarious) and renders it a little toothless (I don't buy what the lawyer is selling). It's a tricky story, and one I'm curious how it'll resolve. Most of the rest of this one is given over to Megumi's lack of satisfaction with her job, and that was a blast to watch. Her getting surly at Mal d'Amour (thank you, subtitles, because I could not figure out why Maid'Amour didn't have a single maid) (also, naming the cafe in the gothic tokusatsu show "Heartbreak”... INOUE FOREVER!) at Wataru and Shizuka was nicely unnecessary, her just taking her frustration out on these two awkward children. I really like how adversarial Megumi and Shizuka are? It's one of my favorite beats, Megumi feeling pleased with herself for dunking on a child and then immediately feeling like a jerk for dunking on a child. Any time so far that this show has put Megumi in the same room as Wataru and/or Shizuka, it's magic to me. I love that energy! I like how perfect that trinity of Wataru/Megumi/Shizuka is so far. Most of the scene is to set up Otoya's history with W.A.K.E.U.P.*, the organization that employs Yuri and is trying to stop the Fangires (did not check the wiki), but there's still enough cuteness and warmth to make the exposition and shifty-eyed This Is A Mystery stuff go down smooth. Speaking of smooth! Nago! As comically heroic as Otoya is comically awful, and I love it just as much. He's a one-man wrecking crew who believes in redemption and donates his half-million dollar bounty to underprivileged youths! I get why Wataru calls him Dad! I want him to be my dad, too! Seeing him take trophies and deliver uplifting threats... I love it. I love this dude being exactly the type of square-jawed hero Inoue would never write in a million years, so I can't wait to see what the hell is actually going on with him. He's either going to be horribly murdered, revealed as a monster, or slowly dissolved into a complete joke of a person. I am good with any of those! This one worked pretty well for me. The Moth Fangire is sort of nowhere in the story (just randomly appears and leaves), so that part is maybe not great, but all of the Otoya awfulness, the Wataru despair, the Megumi antagonism, and the Nago virtuousness... yes. Oh god, yes. *Weapons/Actions/Knowledge Enforcing Unilateral Protection Or *We Are Kiva's Expendable, Underdeveloped Persons
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05-08-2021, 04:23 PM | #62 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
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Today's track is what plays as Nago is lecturing a criminal about the Infinite Potential™ of humanity for redemption, just in case you think Die is exaggerating how much the show is exaggerating his heroism.
Nago is a character that definitely makes an immediate impression, to say the least. I remember Wataru's instant admiration for him being a plot thread that actively excited me to a level I don't think the rest of the show was that early on. That being said, I think Die and I are in the same boat for Otoya that we were for Kusaka? Otoya is indeed comically awful, and I love at least that much about the guy.
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05-08-2021, 04:31 PM | #63 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
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Location: Chicago, IL
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Nago is a character that definitely makes an immediate impression, to say the least. I remember Wataru's instant admiration for him being a plot thread that actively excited me to a level I don't think the rest of the show was that early on. That being said, I think Die and I are in the same boat for Otoya that we were for Kusaka? Otoya is indeed comically awful, and I love at least that much about the guy.
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05-08-2021, 04:48 PM | #64 |
Standing By
Join Date: Feb 2020
Location: USA
Posts: 2,101
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KAMEN RIDER KIVA EPISODE 02 - “SUITE - A FATHER AND SON’S VIOLIN”
Anyone who’s ever tried to create something will tell you how unpredictable the process of creation is. Making art is, frequently, something that only makes sense in retrospect. You can dissect and judge your work in the aftermath, but the act of it is this mix of autonomic function and straight-up sorcery. It’s hard work, and yet it’s also sort of inevitable. Treating artistry as something to be coveted and consumed… real clever motivation for a monster. Inoue hit on it once before, with the epic Black Knife story from Kabuto, and it’s clearly something he wants to talk about. Quote:
The other big idea, and one that seems equally likely to form a spine for this series, is trying to use art to connect with people. Specifically, Wataru is trying to find a part of himself by recreating the art his father made, and… like, I get why this would be Inoue’s last Kamen Rider series. The son of a tokusatsu writer, doing a series about fathers and sons, connected by art? Come on. What else could that dude have to talk about after this show?
Doesn't Kabuto have enough narcissists already? Castle Doran is actually a dragon, not a dinosaur.
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05-08-2021, 05:02 PM | #65 |
I have a problematic type
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 10,422
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Now, I do have a theory about why the Fangires may have kept relatively quiet in between the two periods, but it involves stuff that happens much later in the series so I'm going to shelve it for now and forget to come back to it near the end of the show. Quote:
Two major points I need to make about episode 3: 1. Yuri's 80s hair and fashion game is fucking ON. POINT. As a child of the 80s, this brings me so much joy. It's also why I keep forgetting that Yu Takahashi (Yuri) and Kouhei Takeda (Japanese Jean Ralphio) aren't 20+ years older than the rest of the cast (in fact, Takahashi had just turned 17 when the show started airing, which makes her younger than everyone but Shizuka and the dog). 2. The bit where Wataru, Shizuka, and the crossing guard are struggling to stand up in the wind and two little kids just casually stroll past them was comedic gold. So yeah, I think I'm pretty much in total agreement about the Otoya parts of this episode. They are absolutely delightful in how just completely awful Otoya is. I'd remembered some of this, but really forgot the extent to which he was just completely the worst. The show is generally aware of it, too, which I think helps justify finding it more amusing than obnoxious. If Otoya was being presented as anything like a role model or someone whose behavior was at least partially acceptable I think this would all play a lot worse. The show is totally in on the premise that he sucks, though, and I can work with this. This episode also solved a mystery that's been bugging me for a long time now. Inoue mostly disappeared from Kamen Rider during the 2010s, but one of the few things he wrote was the OOO section of Movie War Core. You know, the part that only barely resembled the show and felt like it was written off of the series bible with no idea of what the show actually looked like. There's a bit in there where Eiji makes some money and is immediately swindled out of it by jerks taking advantage of his naive kindness, at least until Hina steps in. I knew that Inoue had done that scene before, but couldn't remember where. It was this episode with Wataru and the newspaper salesman. Nice to have that partial memory fully filled in. Finally, I want to point out that I had forgotten how delightful Megumi was. She's a character that I kind of ignored the first time through the series, but man are her interactions with other characters delightful. |
05-08-2021, 05:04 PM | #66 |
Showa Girl
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 9,064
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Nago is definitely a difficult character to forget any time soon. Like, he's one of the many many characters in this season I dislike; but his whole button thing is... insane. Of all things I don't like about the guy, the premise of "modern-day bounty hunter that collects buttons" is a really funny one that I like.
Anyway, uh. Otoya! This guy is the main reason I hate this season. Without him, Kiva... well, it wouldn't work, because he's so deeply baked into the themes and story of the show. But looking beyond him there's not too much in this show I'd say I hate; it's not one that ever works for me and not one I think is very good at storytelling (there'll be some later episodes where I think it's very unclear when the switch between time periods happens, and not in a way that's good artistically), but it's not... like... tuning in every episode to see Otoya being lecherous and creepy and misogynistic and demeaning in a way that would have Urataros and Drake being "hey, mate, bit too much". I can see why people would like him, but to me he crosses the line by a mile into being the most unpleasant character in the world to watch
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05-08-2021, 05:22 PM | #67 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
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Yeah, you can spend so much time thinking of cool ideas but that image never truly materializes in to something original until you bring it in to the world. When you bring it in to the world, it gains new dimensions, so suddenly you need to envision it from those other angles that didn't previously exist and you need to do it in a way that compliments the whole, which means tweaking several elements until it eventually becomes very different from the original 2D image. You can only determine those things that need to be changed when you try and make it real. That's what makes it unique but also difficult to complete. You need to be persistent and flexible and accept the uncertainty of your creation.
Ha ha, whoops! Fixed! Quote:
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So yeah, I think I'm pretty much in total agreement about the Otoya parts of this episode. They are absolutely delightful in how just completely awful Otoya is. I'd remembered some of this, but really forgot the extent to which he was just completely the worst. The show is generally aware of it, too, which I think helps justify finding it more amusing than obnoxious. If Otoya was being presented as anything like a role model or someone whose behavior was at least partially acceptable I think this would all play a lot worse. The show is totally in on the premise that he sucks, though, and I can work with this.
She's honestly my favorite character so far. Her disappointment when Nago shows up is such a unique beat, the feeling that she would rather not have this do-gooder swiping her case. That, and her response to Shizuka's whole Wataru Is Trying To Be Better, where she's like Okay How. She's, like, goal-oriented in a way that's refreshing. These franchises are usually more inclined towards invisible personal growth (this show is real Ghost-y to me), so having Megumi be more concerned with achieving results is kind of a new take? I like it, and I like her.
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05-08-2021, 05:27 PM | #68 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
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Anyway, uh. Otoya! This guy is the main reason I hate this season. Without him, Kiva... well, it wouldn't work, because he's so deeply baked into the themes and story of the show. But looking beyond him there's not too much in this show I'd say I hate; it's not one that ever works for me and not one I think is very good at storytelling (there'll be some later episodes where I think it's very unclear when the switch between time periods happens, and not in a way that's good artistically), but it's not... like... tuning in every episode to see Otoya being lecherous and creepy and misogynistic and demeaning in a way that would have Urataros and Drake being "hey, mate, bit too much". I can see why people would like him, but to me he crosses the line by a mile into being the most unpleasant character in the world to watch
But, yeah, he's a massive part of the show, and if you find him unfunny and tasteless (if not completely abhorrent), that's going to make the whole thing fatally flawed.
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05-08-2021, 05:52 PM | #69 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
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But then the director's like, But What If There's A Wind Storm, so we get this insane visual of actors delivering basic dialogue and not acknowledging the hurricane they're standing in front of... and then these two tiny children walk right through it like it's not even there. It's a purely visual gag that is totally additional to the plot, and it's really great to watch.
Episodes 3/4 are directed by Hidenori Ishida. Okay, you probably guessed it, but it's always a fun occasion when I get to say some version of that for the first time in a thread. The POV flashbacks here are also a very distinctly Ishida touch. He's always looking for ways to spice up those straightforward scenes.
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05-08-2021, 05:59 PM | #70 |
Some guy. I'm alright.
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The key to Otoya is that the show never portrays alot of what he does as a good thing. I like to think of him as the Kusaka of Kiva, personally. When the show itself acknowledges that what a character is saying or doing isn't 100% okay(unlike akira date), then I tend to give it a pass.
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