|
Community Links |
Members List |
Search Forums |
Advanced Search |
Go to Page... |
|
Thread Tools |
05-24-2020, 05:15 PM | #311 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
KAMEN RIDER 555 EPISODE 17
--1-- I really love that, after a few episodes of Kusaka being a complete tool, including giving Faiz a thorough beating in the first scene of this one, the crux of this episode's like, Hey Does Kaixa Actually Have A Point? Bold choice! Basically, with Takumi icing out his friends (who are literally begging him to let them in) and refusing to fight Orphnochs, Kusaka considers him irrelevant. He's beaten Takumi in every way that matters, which means he can actually communicate with him. That gives us a really neat scene where a Horrible But In A Regular Way version of Kusaka tells Takumi that he shouldn't worry about fighting Orphnochs, because Kusaka will handle it from here. I think that's a neat choice, to not only frame Kusaka's antagonism towards Takumi as something that can be resolved (mostly by Kusaka being better than him at everything, a totally normal way for people to define their interpersonal relationships), but by giving Kusaka a valid point-of-view. There are murderous Orphnochs out there, and Takumi's reluctance as Faiz is incredibly dangerous. If he can't fight Orphnochs, he should just quit already. Let Kusaka do it, because he'd never let sympathy get in the way of him finishing off an adversary (he says, staring right at Takumi, again a totally normal thing to do). I almost can't believe how easily the show swung back from Kusaka's Going To Kill Takumi to just These Two Don't Like Each Other. It kind-of shouldn't work? Takumi treats being nearly murdered the way someone else would treat an impolite text. I think it works for this story, largely due to how Takumi prefers being punished to being pitied, but it's still a pretty big swing, tension-wise. --2-- Also, holy shit does Takumi not like being pitied. The second-most important arc in this episode is how Takumi will mend things with Mari and Keitaro, who don't get why Takumi's protecting Orphnochs and fighting Kaixa. These are reasonable concerns! It's just, I think Mari and Keitaro have 100% the wrong approach here. They beg and plead with Takumi to explain himself, to talk about his feelings, to share. And, man, no. The more you try and drag it out of him, the more he's going to shut down. He basically goes fetal after his friends beg him for an explanation. After he runs away to brood, yet again, I was wondering how the show would draw Takumi out of his shell, put him back on the road to redemption. I wondered what character would be the one to reach out. It's Yuuji, and it's amazing. Of all the various Team Faiz/Team Orphnoch combos, I think I find Yuuji and Takumi the most entertaining. Usually, it's because I find a monster asking a Kamen Rider to consider being a better person hilarious, but here it's due to how Yuuji's kindness overcomes Takumi's gruff exterior in a super interesting way. He gets Takumi to open up a bit by not trying to draw it out of him. Yuuji clearly sees that Takumi has a problem, but he instantly realizes that Takumi doesn't want to talk about it. So Yuuji starts to share his own problem, and how he can't even really talk about it with Takumi. That sympathetic approach, it seems to work wonders on Takumi. When his friends want answers and explanations, it's about their feelings, and the way Takumi is negatively affecting them, and that pressure is something Takumi can't deal with. But Yuuji's just telling Takumi that what he's feeling is normal, isn't something to be scared of. By making Takumi feel less like a failure, less like a burden, it gives Takumi permission to process what he's feeling and try to live with it. Just, man, super smart writing for these two characters. It's a little disappointing that Takumi didn't whiff on every single pitch in the batting cage, but that's the only real misstep the Yuuji/Takumi stuff had for me. --3-- And, dang, not a great episode for Yuuji! It's more with Morishita, who ends up being a perfect compliment to Takumi's dilemma. Takumi's main problem is that he can't stop seeing the possibility of goodness in Orphnochs. Yuuji's problem with Morishita is that he's taken a wronged man and made him a murderous Orphnoch. Takumi can't kill an Orphnoch if it might have a soul, while Yuuji has to watch another soul be lost to being an Orphnoch. But the show smartly uses Yuuji's dilemma to unlock Takumi's. Yuuji can't take action against Morishita, because this all started with Yuuji's murder of Chie. That ended up warping Morishita, putting him on a path of vengeance that ended in unrelenting murder. There's nothing left of a grieving brother in Morishita. Now he's Armakillo the Orphnoch, and he's killing because he wants to. Which is almost exactly what Takumi needed to see. Yuka was someone Takumi could relate to, someone he could care about. Merderman was the unknown, the possibility of a soul. But Armakillo is unrepentant, irredeemable evil. There's nothing to save. It's here that Takumi stops looking at Faiz as something that he can feel good about, and starts to view it as the burden it is. His inaction has cost lives, and his indecision hasn't helped anyone. Maybe he's a terrible person for killing Orphnochs. Maybe they have souls. But if they're going to kill humans, he's going to fight them. It's an assertion that could ring a little hollow, what with it being Takumi making a Heroic Declaration, but I really feel like the show earns it. Half of it is from how long it takes Takumi to come to grips with his responsibility, and half of it is about how Takumi frames his choice. Takumi's way of relating to people is mostly about living down to their expectations, about absorbing their low opinion of him. His version of a Rider's burden, then, is that it's only his soul being damned, which isn't something that has any value. There's a self-flagellation to his choice here that feels perfectly grounded in his psychology. --4-- It all leads to a terrific double Faiz Fight, a fight so good it gets fight music AND the opening theme played over it. The visuals are so fun here, with Faiz and Armakillo fighting on top of cars, Faiz rushing Merderman (who returns just in time get immolated), Faiz getting two finishers, and Faiz getting his sword finisher through an exploding car. It's all insanely high quality, and it feels like a reward for watching Faiz completely fall apart for the last two episodes. It's such an awesome fight that Mari and Keitaro consider it to be a sign that Takumi's back on the side of justice, and ready to defend humanity against Orphnochs. Once again, I sort-of like how the show keeps these characters in each other's orbits without Takumi necessarily becoming, like, better as a person. He's withholding to them in the beginning, and in the end it mostly just looks like he's better and they're okay with that. It could be a drawback, but I think it's a very unique kind of friendship. Some friends... it's like you're friends, and it's down to the core, but you don't really talk about it. You know? There are friends that would never use that word. I feel like that's Team Faiz and Takumi. --5-- The show wrote itself into a crazy tight box last episode, but I think it pretty nicely wrote itself out of one this time. There's a thing they did that I really appreciate, and it's how Takumi's feelings aren't made to be wrong and he deserves to be punished for them. You know? He's a broken person, and things are difficult for him, but the show isn't just saying Git Gud or whatever. There's a care given to his troubles, and I think that's neat. Being a better person is hard, and it takes time, and there's value in being patient with people who are struggling. I like a story that keeps that in mind.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! Last edited by Kamen Rider Die; 08-03-2023 at 12:31 PM.. |
05-24-2020, 05:26 PM | #312 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
Quote:
You fool, you've mentioned Doctor Who, so now it is my time to chat!
The Doctor Who related thing this is reminding me of more than anything is probably Series 9 of New Who (The last Clara one). The overarching theme losely woven through is about the Doctor and Clara's relationship, whether or not it's good for them, how much it's changing them, etc, and it culminates in the final episode, Hell Bent, which is one of the most divisive episodes I know purely because of the reasons we've been talking about. It's effectively a whole episode where the plot is a device for these two characters to analyse their bond. If you vibe with the pairing, it's one of the mose heartfelt and personal episodes ever made. If you don't, it's an hour of pointless navel gazing that meanders between wasted settings. It's not a 100% similarity, but it kept coming to mind. (Hilariously, I came back for Chibnall's run and quit halfway through the last series because everything felt too inconsequential to me.) To your example, though, it's tough trying to craft a story about difficult people that doesn't end up feeling like too much work to get through. It's like, you have to hope that these people end up being worth all of this work. For Faiz, it's really only Takumi who's the difficult one, I feel. Everyone else has their failings and neuroses, by Takumi is the Hard Work character. I think he's been worth it for me?
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
05-24-2020, 05:57 PM | #313 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
Posts: 3,833
|
Yeah, I lied a little when I said episode 8 was my favorite. I mean, it's right under this one, but under it nonetheless. This episode has a lot more going on with its narrative, and the arc it concludes is the one where Faiz truly sets itself apart in my opinion. It took some some guts to do a plot that asks if the monsters of the week deserve to live, but it took some talent to resolve that in a way where things go back to "normal" without it feeling like the entire thing served no purpose.
What was especially helpful on that front is how that central question never really does get an answer, which is a perfect fit for the kind of themes and tone Faiz has. People having to make difficult choices about what they value and how they want to live their lives in a world that refuses to provide easy solutions is just about the raw essence of this show, and as much as I like episode 8, I think this one gets that across in a more nuanced and interesting way, while still somehow managing to land back at an awesome fight scene where you can root for Takumi fighting Orphenochs again. I feel genuinely sorry for anyone who doesn't get at least a little excited when Justifaiz starts playing. Quote:
__________________
|
05-24-2020, 06:15 PM | #314 |
Veteran Member
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 2,481
|
Man skimming this thread, I can't really see why people think Faiz is bad. I can understand frustrating, but so far it seems to do a good job at what it sets out to do.
__________________
|
05-24-2020, 06:50 PM | #315 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
Yeah, I lied a little when I said episode 8 was my favorite. I mean, it's right under this one, but under it nonetheless. This episode has a lot more going on with its narrative, and the arc it concludes is the one where Faiz truly sets itself apart in my opinion. It took some some guts to do a plot that asks if the monsters of the week deserve to live, but it took some talent to resolve that in a way where things go back to "normal" without it feeling like the entire thing served no purpose.
What was especially helpful on that front is how that central question never really does get an answer, which is a perfect fit for the kind of themes and tone Faiz has. People having to make difficult choices about what they value and how they want to live their lives in a world that refuses to provide easy solutions is just about the raw essence of this show, and as much as I like episode 8, I think this one gets that across in a more nuanced and interesting way, while still somehow managing to land back at an awesome fight scene where you can root for Takumi fighting Orphenochs again. I feel genuinely sorry for anyone who doesn't get at least a little excited when Justifaiz starts playing. There's an idea Kamen Rider floats occasionally, that it's okay to question yourself, but don't be paralyzed while you wait for an answer. Takumi's problems here are that he wants that clear, unambiguous answer. He feels like doing anything means doing the wrong thing, when the only wrong thing is doing nothing. It's a fun story to tell! Quote:
Also, credit where credit is due, TV-Nihon deliberately played loose with 俺が背負ってやる here by making it "Then let me be damned!", which keeps the punchy dramatic emphasis a lot more than would be easy to do with a more direct translation (Although "Then I'll bear that burden!" would sound fine enough). I guess something about this scene really inspired them, because this kind of thing is highly unusual for a group that prides themselves on not straying too far from the original dialogue.
Quote:
The other thing is, I think the people who are likely to post in a thread for a series this old are those who liked it, and have positive things to say about it, which can make a series maybe seem better than the non-thread consensus would have you believe. The people who think Faiz is bad probably don't care enough about it anymore to criticize it in a thread.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
05-24-2020, 11:29 PM | #316 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
KAMEN RIDER 555 EPISODE 18
--1-- It's a lighter episode of Faiz, which I appreciate. The last few have been heavy, deep episodes, and it's nice to maybe just relax for a little bit? I am not opposed to something that's having some fun with this whole Kamen Rider thing. Also, man, I love it when a show remembers that the non-Rider characters have goals and plans. Gaim was a show that spent a ton of time in the early going on dance crews... until the show had zero bandwidth for dance crews. It left me with a feeling that I wasted my energy getting invested in some of those characters, since they'd never get much of a chance to be relevant again. All of that is to say that I really dig an episode that's built around Keitaro's easily-manipulated altruism and Mari's dreams of being a hairstylist. --2-- It's pretty much all Keitaro this episode, so I hope you like seeing Keitaro being taken advantage of by a little girl! And I do! Seeing him and Keiko bumming around town, him forced to cater to her whims thanks to his need to make people happy, it's pretty fun. It's honestly not much more than a collection of gags, but I laughed a bunch. The very long process of him buying an ice shaver, buying ice, shaving ice, pouring some syrup on it, serving her the shaved ice, and then she eats once scoop before moving on from it? Great. Great gag. --3-- Keiko's a cute enough character, for sure. She's a total brat, which makes her fit perfectly into the Team Faiz Classic dynamic. (Kusaka is on the road this week, or else he'd've probably murdered her and hid the body.) She's manipulating Keitaro and insulting the other two as soon as she meets them, because this kid wastes no time. She loves pushing buttons! But, you know, there's a tragedy in her background, two parents that died in a "gas explosion" (probably not even a little nefarious or suspicious) and an unsettled rage. I'm sure we'll get to the bottom of her trauma next episode. As it is, she's a fun, low-impact plot device. --4-- Same thing with Mari's plot, which is her making a friend at the salon. That friend is Hikaru, who conveniently happens to be the daughter of the barely-remembered Detective Soeno. (I actually really like how the show feinted towards the cops' investigation of the Orphnochs being a thing, and then immediately were like Nah. It'd be hard to fit in amongst everything else this show is trying to do, and I can't imagine it'd be that useful to the plot.) Honestly, hey, can we talk about "convenience"? Because I think I'm finding that more prevalent in the storytelling than "misunderstanding" or "melodrama". There's a ton of people running into each other in this series, like the city is only two square blocks. I don't really hate it, since it makes for fun scenes and a quick pace (like, I love that the one time we see Takumi go to the batting cage, Yuuji just happens to walk in), but there's a point where it's a narrative crutch. This episode had some unbelievably convenient head-scratchers, like Soeno loudly and repeatedly saying Keiko's name just after Mari arrived to hear it, and Yuuji driving up just as Faiz is fighting Fungus The Clown, this episode's horrifying Orphnoch. It's not that either of those things are impossible, but both of them happening in the same episode is a little lazy. --5-- But, god, it feels like everyone involved in this show wanted to take it down a notch after all of the Kusaka and Takumi stuff of the last few episodes, so I don't mind a little bit of lazy. What's here wasn't super deep, but it's a pleasant enough episode. That goddamn clown, though! Not pleasant! Does not need to turn into a mushroom monster to be scary!
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! Last edited by Kamen Rider Die; 08-03-2023 at 12:35 PM.. |
05-25-2020, 12:27 AM | #317 |
take me to space
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 1,406
|
Episode 17 is probably the most memorable episode for me. The drama of Takumi's conflict and his great, big fight at the end to the tune of the theme song, it's just epic. It also has two of the most memorable translated lines courtesy of TV-Nihon. That "If fighting is a sin, then let me be damned" is indeed metal... Less metal is "who carries magazines while intentional going".
Poor Keitaro getting dragged around by a little girl, but also I can't imagine any other fate for him. |
05-25-2020, 12:37 AM | #318 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
Episode 17 is probably the most memorable episode for me. The drama of Takumi's conflict and his great, big fight at the end to the tune of the theme song, it's just epic. It also has two of the most memorable translated lines courtesy of TV-Nihon. That "If fighting is a sin, then let me be damned" is indeed metal... Less metal is "who carries magazines while intentional going".
I'm sort-of struggling, not with the line, but with what Mari's even doing at the college. The show lampshades it with Takumi's whole Why Are You Just Carrying Around A Magazine complaint (which is how I interpret that "intentional going" line), but... why was she on the campus in the first place? Was she consulting a college professor on an article about getting someone to enjoy hot foods? It can't be that she was meeting Takumi, since she'd have no idea he went there, and if she called to meet him he'd've definitely told her to stay away. Like my complaint (well, "complaint") from Episode 18, it's a shortcut that the show's going to a little often lately. It's true! I love this plot because it's completely how he acted in his first appearance. I like that he's still the same eager-to-please dreamer he was back then. And, just like in his second episode, he can't get Takumi or Mari to want to help him fight crime. (Mari: busy at work. Takumi: no excuse, just doesn't care.) He's still got his dumb dream that no one else appreciates! Everything here had a charm that was maybe not as apparent the last five or so episodes.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
05-25-2020, 01:14 AM | #319 |
I have a problematic type
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 10,424
|
Quote:
Also, man, I love it when a show remembers that the non-Rider characters have goals and plans. Gaim was a show that spent a ton of time in the early going on dance crews... until the show had zero bandwidth for dance crews. It left me with a feeling that I wasted my energy getting invested in some of those characters, since they’d never get much of a chance to be relevant again.
Quote:
--3--
Keiko’s a cute enough character, for sure. She’s a total brat, which makes her fit perfectly into the Team Faiz Classic dynamic. (Kusaka is on the road this week, or else he’d’ve probably murdered her and hid the body.) She’s manipulating Keitaro and insulting the other two as soon as she meets them, because this kid wastes no time. She loves pushing buttons! I liked the Keiko plot in this episode, mainly because it gave Takumi and Mari the chance to be the wet blankets to Keitaro's enthusiasm again. With all the Kusaka stuff in the last few episodes it's been awhile since we got some time with the original trio and I never get tired of Keitaro getting consecutive rejections. |
05-25-2020, 05:01 AM | #320 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
Posts: 3,833
|
Quote:
Quote:
Mari knows Takumi is at there because Keitarou called Kusaka right before, but really, what this all boils down to is that thing you've locked onto about Faiz's writing that I'd actually agree is its most frequent "problem". It's a very small world after all! It's absurd Mari would want to go there at that time (like, she would know there's a monster running around?!), which to an extent, is exactly what Takumi is saying there. It's about reaffirming how much of a bond there is between these characters that she saw that magazine and was like I Gotta Give This To Takumi Right Now. You could have that line as something like "You came all the way here just to give me this stupid thing?", and it'd be a lot closer to the real intent. Emphasis on closer, though, because, to be fair to TV-N again, it's not even the most fun line to work with in the first place. Faiz absolutely pushes how much you can get away with everybody meeting each at exactly the right times, though. I don't mind it much either, since I see it as all being part of that soap opera style. It kills the drama if everyone has to wait around for each other and/or make phone calls constantly, which is why we never see Keitarou providing any details when informing people Orphenochs are attacking. Like a lot about this show, it's something you can either live with, or not.
__________________
|
|
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 10:28 AM.
|