|
Community Links |
Members List |
Search Forums |
Advanced Search |
Go to Page... |
|
Thread Tools |
12-10-2020, 05:14 PM | #141 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
And you saying that it's OOC for Hiyori to try believing in Tendou... this is something that sometimes I find confusing within community discussions (sometimes to an irrational level); that is a character's change an OOC moment, or them starting to change and develop.
Sometimes character growth is slow and incremental; here, it's this snap decision Hiyori makes. I really liked how the show (and the actor) approached it. Quote:
(I mean, that's usually how it works on shows. The scripts for the first few episodes are written before anything's filmed, and the producers don't know how an actor will approach things. It's written toward the character. Once footage starts to come in, they start writing toward the performer, and that's when things can really get good.) Quote:
What do you think can be Misaki's plan for extracting usable info? I think her concern is mainly about someone outside of ZECT using Kabuto Zecter, and the only one to ensure safety is to know how's Tendou as a person herself. Tendou's superiority complex does make him unflappable towards anything, so much that Misaki seems like a tryhard for her screaming at his face.
And, like, I could see her being this bad at her job if she were being forced to do it, but Truegami specifically recruited her because she wanted to find out who Kabuto was and what he was up to. Now she's got him where she wants him and she's got zero plan of attack. And she's supposed to be the smart and capable one! Even Kagami figured out how to use a wind-up baby chick to distract a Zectrooper! Misaki didn't even have that level of cunning!
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
12-10-2020, 07:57 PM | #142 |
Master Procrastinator
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 367
|
Quote:
Yep, this is the debut of the misleadingly named TheBee (you’ll see why when he transforms onscreen). So I won’t go into the reference explanation until then. I’ll just say he has the unique distinction of SHARING the title of tertiary rider (an idea that would save us a lot of debates concerning other Rider shows and one Rider-esque Sentai show [and no, before anyone assumes anything, it is not Go-Busters. It’s Kyuranger]) with someone who shows up in a few episodes.
I'm not sure I buy TheBee for tertiary status though, shared or otherwise, for reasons I will not go into right now because it would involve me talking spoilers. Speaking of which, isn't it a spoiler that you basically just confirmed there will be at least four riders? I was very carefully not making comments that hinted at any more than two, because the number of riders does vary and I think it's not fair to spoil anything more than two, but oh well. Spoilers got to spoil, I guess. |
12-10-2020, 08:08 PM | #143 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
Posts: 3,833
|
You know, I think in a weird way, pretending to be a bad guy and pointing a gun at Kagami is one of the biggest signs yet that Tendou legitimately loves having a best friend. I mean, he's trolling everybody in this episode with the exception of Hiyori and Juka, of course, but something about this particular moment stands out to me a lot more than anything during the interrogation scenes. When he's being obstinate with ZECT, I mean, that's just a Kamen Rider rejecting systems of authority, and I love Tendou for that, but to come up with this elaborate skit while escaping like this, I can only conclude there's this "oh man, I can't wait to see the look on his face...!" sort of joy he must find in it that I don't think he'd get from any random person out there. He's probably more excited to have Kagami in his life than Kagami is to have him... not that I can really blame Kagami when Tendou has such an unusual idea of how... well, how most things work. I don't have a complaint about this one. Yeah, yeah, the premise is faulty at its core, but whatever; we're having fun here, and I like fun. Tendou is a regular barrel of laughs throughout, and I'm a sucker for any plot in anything that involves the heroes stealing uniforms from bad guy grunts to pull off some kinda daring infiltration/escape. And in this case it's both at once! Love that Tendou and Kagami both come up with the idea completely independently, too, showing just that tiny bit of similarity between the two, despite the vastly different levels of tension they're each feeling. Kagami is a bundle of nerves while Tendou spends the entire runtime in control of everything except when Hiyori hangs up the phone. Which is really saying something about Hiyori when Tendou is the guy so in control of everything he lets his enemies walk into his Rider Kicks for him. The word I'd use to describe this episode has gotta be "romp". It's pretty much the opposite of profound and deep, but it's having such a great time with itself the attitude is infectious. The uneven aspects of it get drowned out handily by what works, and on top of all that fun you even get the odd bit of genuine emotion or a good thrill. I loved the sort of in-episode next-episode-previews new Riders got in Ryuki, and it's no less hype in Kabuto. The scene here doesn't even make sense literally and I adore that about it. Just standing around transformed overlooking the city for no reason other than to show off to the audience; a time-honored tradition that would be carried into many a Movie War in future years. I mean, if you had a super suit that cool, wouldn't you want to dramatically stand on rooftops? The genuine emotion part maybe didn't hit that great with me at the very end with the Tokyo Tower bit, but since Die said I could, I will take the time out to mention more stuff about Hiyori – the way she habitually avoids eye contact is so aggressively real, and it's fantastic. There really is a depth to the performance. It's not as simple as her not looking at people, which would get the point across, it's all these little half-movements and glances that paint such a clear picture of who she is as a person and how she feels at any particular moment. She'll talk to people without ever turning to face them, or look juuust enough away to avoid properly meeting their gaze outside a few rare moments, sometimes done with great effort, and sometimes more accidentally than anything, with her darting her eyes right back. It's easy to take for granted, but conversations in TV shows and the like are generally staged so that people in a conversation look like they're conversing, so avoiding that so often with Hiyori takes a much appreciated conscious effort on the part of the people making Kabuto. And hey, to top all this off, I've actually got a good answer to one of Die's questions for once! Back when Gaim was on the air, and everyone including me was all hyped up about it, I genuinely started eating a ton more fruit for a while, including a few I typically avoided. Mind you, it was never some grand experiment to try everything that got made into a Lock Seed or anything, and it didn't result in any serious long-term dietary changes, but it did turn out I enjoy oranges way more than I thought I did, and that's stuck with me to this day. Oh, and despite being a huge Wizard fan, I didn't go through any similar phase with donuts – probably for the best! If anything, I think the lesson I took away from Haruto was how to aggressively avoid trying new things at all costs. Some people just know what they like already!
__________________
|
12-10-2020, 09:21 PM | #144 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
Speaking of which, isn't it a spoiler that you basically just confirmed there will be at least four riders? I was very carefully not making comments that hinted at any more than two, because the number of riders does vary and I think it's not fair to spoil anything more than two, but oh well. Spoilers got to spoil, I guess.
Either way, I appreciate you looking out for me and keeping things safe in your posts! Quote:
When he's being obstinate with ZECT, I mean, that's just a Kamen Rider rejecting systems of authority, and I love Tendou for that, but to come up with this elaborate skit while escaping like this, I can only conclude there's this "oh man, I can't wait to see the look on his face...!" sort of joy he must find in it that I don't think he'd get from any random person out there.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
12-11-2020, 12:08 AM | #145 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
KAMEN RIDER KABUTO - EPISODES 07 & 08
Did not think I'd hit a wall so fast in this thread, but boy I sure just did. Spent the last twenty minutes picking away at these two episodes, and then just deleted it all. Wasn't... there wasn't any flow to it. Honestly, I'm not sure what I'm trying to say about these episodes? I dug watching them, absolutely. Yaguruma is a great new antagonist, and the way these episodes executed their action sequences were pretty fun. There are some great gags (all of the rivalry shit in 07, that bowl measuring joke most of all) and a few scenes building out the Hiyori/Tendou dynamic that are, at a minimum, delightful. But the core of these episodes, the way Yaguruma comments on and distorts Tendou's character... that's the biggest thing in these episodes, and yet I don't really have as much to say about it as I thought? Like, the whole gimmick in these two (beyond Yaguruma Is Hiding Something) is that Yaguruma is the opposite of all of Tendou's deficiencies. He values teamwork and compromise. He abhors grandstanding. He views any victory as illegitimate unless his whole team participates. As a character, he exists to critique Tendou. But what keeps me from being able to analyze that is the show is already doing that, often times in the text. It is so purposeful in the way it's currently contrasting the two characters that it feels like all I can do is just, like, gesture at the episodes. Me breaking down how Yaguruma contrasts Tendou would just be me transcribing the dialogue. It's not a real deep couple episodes, I thought? It's a lot of setup for what's to come, and that makes it hard to do more than deliver the foundation that's about to be upended. I mean, the story isn't Yaguruma Is Great Forever, because who would want to watch that? The story is in what Yaguruma's hiding, in what Kagami will do as things get worse, in how Tendou will deal with Kagami's Very Strong Feelings. (Tendou is already starting to regret being friends with Kagami and his Very Strong Feelings, so buckle the eff up.) There's a lot of fun to be had in these episodes, for sure. The way Yaguruma nad Tendou immediately get on each other's nerves to the degree that they need to have an Iron Chef cookoff is... I mean, it's one of those story ideas that's almost too perfect to believe it actually happened. (Hiyori confessing to Sally that the only reason she picked Yaguruma's dish is because she prefers hot food is such a beautiful touch. Perfection is a subjective quality! That's kind of what the theme of these episodes is! Never change, Hiyori! You're the only objectively perfect one on this show!) Seeing Kagami throw the difficult Tendou aside for the new golden boy (literally?) of Yaguruma is, y'know, of course. Of course! And that's sort of the problem, once we get past the tofu battle: everything goes pretty much how you'd expect? Kagami puts himself deeper in Yaguruma's shadow, by, uh, joining Yaguruma's Shadow. Tendou shakes his head at Kagami's fickleness. Yaguruma's cool facade begins to crumble, Kusaka-style, as Tendou's successes mount. It just keeps ticking away, getting us closer to things falling apart. That last scene, though! Worth it? Maybe worth an episode and a half of by-the-numbers storytelling. (I mean, that scene of Tendou dressing up like a priest and reciting his own scripture is no slouch, either!) It's a magnificently shot fight, with Kabuto and TheBee (a wasp, not a bee) cast in silhouette against a blazing sunset. Feels appropriately mythic, you know? I just wish what preceded it was more... something. I don't even know what I'd say was specifically wrong with these episodes for me. They were fun to watch, with some great gags, bold new characters, and exciting action. But the pacing. I think that's it? The second half of 07 and all of 08 just, like, hit their marks and that's it. Once you see Yaguruma start to lose it, everything else feels perfunctory. It's a show biding its time, and while it does it stylishly (Tendou as a priest!), it still feels like a stall. Maybe I'm being unfair? Maybe! I can certainly see this being a set of episodes that other people are going to rave about, and I don't blame them a bit. (That tofu battle is highlight-reel material.) For me, they felt a little hollow, a little predictable. Not bad, not at all, but very much the prelude to what looks to be a more interesting and unpredictable story. A QUESTION Kabuto and TheBee (not a bee) have their highly-anticipated duel at the end of 08, but I'm sure we can all agree that the tofu battle in 07 is more iconic. Indisputable! It makes sense that Tendou would feel so strongly in his ability to prepare tofu that he'd risk disappointing Juka to prove his superiority. If you challenged someone to an honor duel, what skill of yours are you confident enough in to make that the terms of the duel? Like, what skill do you think you're strong enough in to best a stranger at? And do you think you'd perform better or worse if you competed against a blazing sunset?
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! Last edited by Kamen Rider Die; 08-26-2023 at 06:20 PM.. |
12-11-2020, 02:20 AM | #146 |
I have a problematic type
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 10,409
|
It's weird. I first watched Kabuto back when I initially got into Kamen Rider in '09 and did my own marathon of the Heisei era. All these years later, though, and I still have the same reaction to the ending of episode 7: "Ugh, not this shit again."
I'm not a huge fan of the Rider vs. Rider dynamic that was really popular in the early '00s. It can lead to some cool fight scenes, but I don't like how often the shows would pit the Riders against each other. One of the big reasons why I like Hibiki is that all of the characters get along and work together. Seeing Yaguruma ready to throw down with Tendou feels like a regression to me. That said, I do like the character and I love TheBee. I generally like all of the Kabuto suits, but TheBee stands out as easily my favorite. It's a really good design with all the gold, silver, and black. The Masked Form is probably my favorite example of those, too. It's a really great suit all around. Let's see, what else was in these episodes... The reveal of Tendou as the priest never fails to amuse me, especially when he starts working his own catchphrase into the sermon. Never change, Tendou. I am very deeply amused by the tofu vendor. The actor's performance is just so aggressively quirky that I can help but enjoy it while also hating it. He really commits to being so bizarre and annoying and I can respect that. |
12-11-2020, 02:39 AM | #147 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
It's weird. I first watched Kabuto back when I initially got into Kamen Rider in '09 and did my own marathon of the Heisei era. All these years later, though, and I still have the same reaction to the ending of episode 7: "Ugh, not this shit again."
I'm not a huge fan of the Rider vs. Rider dynamic that was really popular in the early '00s. It can lead to some cool fight scenes, but I don't like how often the shows would pit the Riders against each other. One of the big reasons why I like Hibiki is that all of the characters get along and work together. Seeing Yaguruma ready to throw down with Tendou feels like a regression to me. It's completely supported in both the series (ZECT needs Kabuto to join the team or get eliminated) and Yaguruma (Kabuto is a show-off who endangers ZECT by his independence), so having that conflict take place is exactly where the story should go. ...which, yeah, is so obvious and predictable that it's a problem? Like, the predictability of these episodes is so my problem with them. Nothing that happens is wrong, but everything that happens you can see coming a mile away. Quote:
That said, I do like the character and I love TheBee. I generally like all of the Kabuto suits, but TheBee stands out as easily my favorite. It's a really good design with all the gold, silver, and black. The Masked Form is probably my favorite example of those, too. It's a really great suit all around.
My headcanon is that the tofu vendor purposefully limits the amount of tofu he offers specifically to cause strangers to duel over it. I'd say he witnesses three to four duels a day.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
12-11-2020, 03:18 AM | #148 |
Veteran Member
Join Date: May 2019
Posts: 2,546
|
I’m surprised you went a whole post without mentioning “Kanzen Chowa”, especially since any over discussion of Kabuto (admittedly, not many) can’t go one comment without mentioning the Japanese words fro “perfect* harmony”
Anyway, time for something I’ve not done since the first episode: another Kabuto Rider vs Legend Rider comparison. TheBee/Super-1 (Wasps) * Both utilise technology provided by a major organisation (ZECT/NASA) * Both UVA’s some form of attack involving their hands (TheBee’s Zecter is arm-mounted, while Super-1’s gimmick is that he swaps out his hands for different abilities) Both focus on a certain form of fighting (TheBee on punching, Super-1 on Chinese martial arts) * Not “ultimate”, as some people translate it. Last edited by Androzani84; 12-11-2020 at 06:00 AM.. |
12-11-2020, 03:48 PM | #149 |
Standing By
Join Date: Feb 2020
Location: USA
Posts: 2,085
|
I think Yaguruma is interesting as a concept but poorly executed. Where Tendo represents individual perfection, Yaguruma represents perfection in teamwork, referencing how every bee has a role in the hive. However, he's just a poser, which means everything he says is actually pretentious and he doesn't have the will to keep his principles. A wasp in bee's clothing. Except that wasp's buzz is worse than its sting.
I'll have a lot more to complain about this guy later. He's portrayed by Tokuyama Hidenori who would later portray a much more likable and heroic character as Hiroto/Go-On Gold in my favorite Super Sentai, Go-Onger. Quote:
A QUESTION
Kabuto and TheBee (not a bee) have their highly-anticipated duel at the end of 08, but I’m sure we can all agree that the tofu battle in 07 is more iconic. Indisputable! It makes sense that Tendou would feel so strongly in his ability to prepare tofu that he’d risk disappointing Juka to prove his superiority. If you challenged someone to an honor duel, what skill of yours are you confident enough in to make that the terms of the duel? Like, what skill do you think you’re strong enough in to best a stranger at? And do you think you’d perform better or worse if you competed against a blazing sunset?
__________________
心 と 刃 |
12-11-2020, 03:50 PM | #150 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
|
Quote:
I think Yaguruma is interesting as a concept but poorly executed. Where Tendo represents individual perfection, Yaguruma represents perfection in teamwork, referencing how every bee has a role in the hive. However, he's just a poser, which means everything he says is actually pretentious and he doesn't have the will to keep his principles. A wasp in bee's clothing. Except that wasp's buzz is worse than its sting.
__________________
Currently working on: Go-Busters is next! Archive of previous shows on KamenRiderDie.com! |
|
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:42 AM.
|