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05-18-2020, 06:01 PM | #231 |
Showa Girl
Join Date: Jun 2018
Posts: 9,064
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So, right off the bat; we've come to the end of my Funny Kuuga Gun count. And we're actually ending on quite the banger; because I tried my damndest to get a screenshot of Kuuga Mighty grabbing the gun before changing into Pegasus at the end of 44, and when I finally managed it? It was blurry in the most perfect way possible. The first image at the bottom of this post is my final gift to you all.
So now we've got the superfluous superficial stuff out the way, let's talk about toys for a second. Kamen Rider from the very start of the Heisei Era has played a very delicate balancing act in telling a coherent story and having to sell a colourful product filled with goofy sounds. And I've always admired how well it's able to balance that -- I heavily admire how recent shows which have a billion upgrades are able to somehow work them all naturally into distinct moments of character development. But what I admire even more, though, is when the show introduces something that there's no explicit toy of. Agito Trinity, for instance -- at the time the form was introduced, there were no actual figures of this form. Sure, using the Souchaku Henshin's armour gimmick you could 100% just kitbash the form together which I'm sure is exactly what Toshiki Inoue did, and not long after Bandai added a little sticker to the box saying you could turn it into Trinity; but there wasn't any actual specific merch for it like there was for Flame or Storm. For the purposes of telling the story of Episode 29 as best they could, a story about regaining a certain sense of self and advancing beyond that; the staff of Agito just came up with a form all on their own with no explicit toy connection, and it didn't even show up again until 2014. All of which is to say, I'm sorry Dreamsword, but I adore this. Especially as Kuuga was one of the last five Heisei shows I watched, there was a real bluster and confidence to me in introducing a non-final form with very few episodes left. Heck, this combined with the last episode recap; it's almost like they were saying "alright, alright, we got the Rising BeatGouram out the way or whatever; now onto the REAL shit"! I joke about how this is all superficial of course... but it's stuff like this that shows me when a Rider show's storytelling really, really cares. When they introduce wholly unique sounds and forms that's in-line with the merchandise but isn't exactly merchandise itself; when it goes out of the way just for the sake of telling their story the best way they could; when it does things that just downright could not have been healthy for toy sales. I'm sure more than a few kids rushed out to their local Toys R Us, wanting the new Black Kuuga form; saw that there wasn't one there but there was this weird veiny spiky Kuuga and got upset and went straight back home. But what would have followed will have been so, so much more important for them. And besides, Amazing Kuuga got like a ton of SHFs and Model Kits and Statues and everything well after this. He straight up maximises Bandai's profit margins now by being an easy repaint! And I suck it up like the absolute fool I am. ... oh, right, and there's a whole emotion story in here too about Enokida which I just completely adore in so many ways! I got out a lot of what I liked about it a couple weeks back, where I was talking about how wonderful Enokida and Jean's chemistry is and how you can read into it very differently; but this seriously goes the extra mile. Once again, I love how Kuuga is a show that absolutely refuses to say "no, she's definitely in the wrong and needs to learn". I love that Enokida is a character who knows how awful it is that she's having to skip out on her son; I love that she feels so much guilt over it; I love how it's not about her making the wrong decision but how she feels about the decision she's made! And most of all... I think I love Jean's reaction to her. Once again, so many shows would have the scene where the other character stands up and give an impassioned speech be about how the person feeling guilt needs to get a grip, or how they need to just get over it. But Jean's not about that. What he is about is making sure Enokida understands just how much she's loved by the people around her, and letting her do what she wants with that information. Just like with Mika back in Episodes 7 & 8; just like with Hiraku back in Episode 25 & 26; the emphasis is not on telling the other character what to do. It's not about patronising them. It's not about laying out a path for them. It's about giving them the information and the support they need, and having enough trust in that character with what they'll do with that. And what's so, so wonderful about Kuuga is that the other character will always prove that the trust in them was never displaced, and never could be.
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05-18-2020, 06:27 PM | #232 |
Some guy. I'm alright.
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Michigan
Posts: 4,423
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*deep inhale* EVERYONE BUCKLE UP BECAUSE THIS MY SHOW NOW! I'M ABOUT TO TELL YOU WHY AMAZING MIGHTY IS NOT ONLY THE BEST KUUGA FORM, BUT THE BEST KAMEN RIDER FORM OF ALL TIME!!! First off, holy crap, what an awesome way to introduce a new form. Not just in the show itself, which is framed around some absolutely fantastic character arc conclusions and moments, but in a meta sense, which Fish already covered. ALSO. Many might take it for granted, but it's a twist on things that actually makes sense! There's a bunch of proper foreshadowing, proper building upon how Kuuga's' forms were already established to work, AND proper payoff in the form of THIS! Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die, probably
Ew explosions those are gross and--
And not even just the explosion shows just how much more powerful of a boost Amazing Mighty is. The way Gadoru ends up dying shows it too. The new symbol, the build up, how nothing else has worked up to this point, it's perfect. And it even makes a certain other plot point way more believable too given basic, simple math. Plus, the design of the suit itself is absolutely fantastic. I love black and gold as a color scheme, so Amazing Mighty already has that going for it, but you can tell there was alot of elements that went into it; Both subtle and not. For instance, how it does the job of giving a symmetrical finish to Rising Mighty, and the armored, popping bits to show power. But oh no, we're not done, there's one more element to this that makes me love it all the more. I dunno if you guys remember, but awhile back Die asked the board about what they felt alot of the overarching themes of Kamen Rider as a whole was. My answer was that I felt one big part of it was being a shining light in the darkness, in response to Die proposing that Showa wanted to establish "fighting darkness with darkness." Well guess what? Amazing Mighty pulls off both. The majority black suit, with the bits of gold and, more blatantly, the red eyes, show just those things. Yusuke might be becoming a creature of the darkness on the outside as his strength continues to grow, but on the inside, he's still Yusuke. His inner light continues to shine through despite everything. Amazing Mighty does alot, tells alot, and symbolizes alot via the perfect combination of its design, as well as its really well played introduction. And these things would only go on to their ultimate conclusion within the next few episodes. I LOVE this form alot, and hopefully you guys can see why within all this uncharacteristic rambling I've done. *deep exhale* Last edited by DreamSword; 10-09-2021 at 08:29 AM.. |
05-18-2020, 07:06 PM | #233 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die, probably
Ew explosions those are gross and--
As to these episodes, I remember them being pretty fun? There's an All-Hands On Deck feeling to the action in these, where I feel like they found fun uses for pretty much every character. (I might've even liked Jean in these, for the first and only time? I don't really remember. If there was ever a time, though...) It's a great use of the police, giving them one small win over the Grongi before the game ends for good. Just, everyone gets to contribute, and I think that's what I want from a penultimate Kamen Rider story. Because, y'know, eventually there's going to be something that only Kuuga can deal with.
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05-18-2020, 11:17 PM | #234 |
take me to space
Join Date: Sep 2017
Posts: 1,406
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I love that trivia about the staff putting together Amazing Mighty on their own. The added fact that the show's staff made the choice of holding off Kuuga's four-horned form until it was appropriate for the story is such a far cry from how Bandai's wishes might affect a show in present day.
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05-19-2020, 04:40 PM | #235 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
Posts: 3,833
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I love that trivia about the staff putting together Amazing Mighty on their own. The added fact that the show's staff made the choice of holding off Kuuga's four-horned form until it was appropriate for the story is such a far cry from how Bandai's wishes might affect a show in present day.
I think this entire process speaks to what a long leash Kuuga had earned for itself over its run. The show's staff spent a ton of time trying to figure out how all this stuff would feed into the drama in a natural and compelling way, and for the most part, they were allowed to. "Failing" to get a new toy properly introduced for like three months, that kind of stunt would almost certainly not be forgiven if Kuuga hadn't proven itself such a success time and again every time somebody told it to change and it refused to. I touched on this back when I talked about my meta reading of Kanzaki's speech in episode 12, but Kuuga was under a lot of pressure about stuff like this at points, from what I understand. Stuff like parents apparently complaining the realistic designs of the Grongi were too scary, the higher ups being upset with the staff filming behind schedule at first while they were getting used to the new cameras, Bandai having toys to sell of something that's only been seen in blurry glimpses in the series proper, leaving magazines to try capitalizing on the mystery accidentally being created to generate hype anyway. I'm not totally thoroughly informed about this, but the impression I've gotten is that there were plenty of voices demanding that Kuuga just Be More Normal Already, and it never backed down an inch.
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05-19-2020, 11:38 PM | #236 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
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The show was still refusing to shill that other new form during the Christmas season, when you most want little kids to be bugging their parents about the latest toy they saw on the show, and then to top that off, they introduce some completely different form they made up the week after.
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05-20-2020, 12:42 PM | #237 |
Veteran Member
Join Date: Jan 2020
Posts: 1,290
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Yuusuke isn't dead!
The show doesn't waste any time pretending this isn't the case, either. The very first shot of this episode is dedicated to showing you Yuusuke's very much beating heart after Tsubaki fixed him up, mostly offscreen. Even during the cliffhanger last time, it was treated like more of a moderate inconvenience than anything. In fact, Tsubaki even suggests that Yuusuke somehow forced his own heart to stop, just so Tsubaki would hit him with some more of that sweet, sweet electricity. Which seems like a weirdly chessmaster kind of move for Yuusuke, so I assume Tsubaki means this was some sort of subconscious thing. Or he just doesn't know what he's talking about. Take your pick, I guess, but I'm pretty sure it's the former. Tsubaki is generally really good at his job, after all. Quote:
Jean's really intent on getting Enokida to realize she isn't the problem. Her life may be hectic and hard to manage, but in his opinion, all Enokida needs to do is what she can. As long as she can stay smiling, and keep pushing herself to work hard for the benefit of all mankind the way she does, then that'll lead to Sayuru smiling too in the end. Jean's impassioned defense completely reinvigorates Enokida, who goes to grab a certain something before getting a ride home from Jean.
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Yuusuke is feeling pretty invigorated himself, after waking up in the hospital. Tsubaki's surprised when Yuusuke knows right away he had the defibrillator busted out on him again (Tsubaki not expecting that confirming he didn't mean Yuusuke literally willed himself to death on purpose, I guess), but Yuusuke's just so full of energy he knows it couldn't have been anything else. He's pretty confident that with all the energy he's loaded with now, he should be able to sustain the golden power for a lot longer, which will be a big help, since Yuusuke wants to work hard for the sake of everyone else who's working hard. The scene at Pole Pole this time kind of blends this drama with the Enokida drama by having Minori talk about how their father, when he was alive, was also never around, a natural result of being a war photographer. There aren't any deep revelations here, but I like how the show caught how Yuusuke's existing backstory could kind of fit in here thematically, with Minori pointing out how they'd always get letters from him that would always end with him wishing for the day when everyone can smile. It's obvious, especially from Minori's tone, that both of them really looked up to their dad, despite barely seeing him, and that reinforces what Jean is saying, as well as how deeply baked into Yuusuke the idea of protecting other people's happiness is.
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She can't keep them, and the solution isn't to stop working to go be a "real" mother. It's just to be straight with Sayuru. To tell him that with the Unidentified Lifeforms around, she has to work harder than ever, and while there's no getting around that, she's every bit as dedicated to being his mother.
Last edited by DreadBringer; 05-20-2020 at 02:04 PM.. |
05-20-2020, 05:53 PM | #238 |
Some guy. I'm alright.
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Michigan
Posts: 4,423
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(a big thank you to both kurona and die for being good sports about getting shot and kicked in the head, respectively, just saying.)
But yeah, it goes to show that having artistic integrity really pays off in the long run. |
05-20-2020, 07:00 PM | #239 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
Posts: 3,833
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EPISODE 47: "Decision"
Daguva cannot be stopped by Kuuga. Not the way he is now. The beginning of this episode wastes no time in establishing that. The initial fight between Amazing Mighty and Daguva is nothing short of a disaster. It barely qualifies as a fight, especially with how the decision was made to film it. The entire cold open is shot entirely from Yuusuke's own perspective. It very specifically emphasizes how the experience feels to him. It's chaotic and jumbled. The rain is pouring down so hard he can barely see, yet despite this, Daguva manages to light nearly everything in sight on fire, including Kuuga himself. The pain is so intense, the only sounds he can focus in on are his own pained gasps, and the laughter. The horrible, horrible laughter of the one causing all this destruction. Daguva is having the time of his life, and taunts the injured Kuuga to put up a better fight. After all, Daguva wants to smile more. This is the last thing Yuusuke hears before collapsing. This wasn't a fight. It was a nightmare, and it can't happen again. Yuusuke won't let it. But to do that, he still needs more power, and that means making a fateful decision. Yuusuke is going to do it. He's going to become the fearsome warrior. Hidenori Ishida will be closing out the series by directing the last three episodes, and the first few minutes of this one might be his most creative work on Kuuga. Unusually, the episode preview had some unique shots in it implying a more straightforward fight scene. The simple but effective visual of Daguva putting Kuuga under his foot. Perfect for a short trailer, but what the episode itself has is perfect for the story. This is one of the most pivotal moments of the show's entire narrative, and that's why I think focusing so much on the emotion of it was the right choice. For half the series, we've heard about how the fearsome warrior will bury the sun in darkness. For the entire series, we've seen how much Yuusuke hates solving things through force. We need to understand why Yuusuke would make this choice here and now, and this opening conveys that beautifully. It's heavily visual, relying a lot on imagery to get those emotions across. The dialogue is kept to an absolute minimum, with Yuusuke's big declaration itself being deliberately subdued, in contrast to the striking, dramatic view of the four-horned Kuuga, coming more clearly into view than ever before. One thing that is the same between the preview and the episode? The choice of ambient noise. Daguva has brought about a perpetual downpour, and in all but a few select scenes, you will be hearing the noise of it constantly. Rain being sad can be pretty trite as far as symbolism goes, but it's taken to another level here. It's not just that there's a downbeat atmosphere, it's that there's no escape from it. The episode jumps from familiar location to familiar location, but all those cozy little rooms you've gotten to know over a year inevitably still have that noise going on. And yet, even with that darkest hour finally having come, the heroes still don't give in. You can tell it's affecting all of them, don't get me wrong. But the tone of the episode, it's more bittersweet than anything. It's probably best summed up by a scene from early on where Yuusuke is watching a news report about the latest casualties. He's clenching his fist, clearly feeling that anger again, but when a voice he knows well calls out to him, he turns and smiles. It's Kanzaki. And that's really what this episode is about at its heart. Yuusuke going around, having his last chats with some of the supporting cast. Whatever else he's feeling on the inside right now, he's planning to go beat Daguva, and then he wants to finally head back out on an adventure again. Even though he just received the beating of a lifetime nine days ago, Yuusuke, you know, he can't help but be happier when he's around the people he cares about. It comes off like Yuusuke basically trying to take himself back to why he started on this path in the first place now that the end is in sight. There's still that same warmth in these scenes, even with all the worrying going on. It's a very specific mix of emotions I have trouble describing. This episode, it's all about the worst things happening, this sense of impending dread, and anger at the damage Daguva and the rest of the Grongi have done. Scenes like Tsubaki telling Yuusuke about the rage he feels when he thinks about all the bodies he's seen over the past year, knowing everything those people's lives could have been has been stolen away from them forever. The look on Yuusuke's face as Tsubaki says that, and the scene of him driving along the street where his fight with Daguva took place, stopping in the rain to see the flowers placed on the ground for the victims of that madness. Enokida musing on how much time she's spent making weapons. Yet the episode is also about the bonds that keep these people looking forward. About moments like Yuusuke telling Enokida that once the Unidentified Lifeforms are gone, she can make something for Sayuru instead, or them having a good laugh about the concept of "failing" at going for a walk. The scenes with Kanzaki. Keiko calling Minori from at that hospital, as she gets ever closer to bringing a promising new life into the world. It's such a complex combination of feelings, and that's pretty much where Yuusuke is at right now. There's an ambiguity to him here. The entire point of the fearsome warrior is gaining ultimate power by giving in to hatred, and it's more than evident at this point that Yuusuke is capable of that. He's still smiling and cracking jokes, he says it'll all be fine, and his friends believe it, but is it really true? Can Yuusuke really say for sure he won't get carried away in a moment of passion again, like with Jaraji? And if he doesn't, does that mean he won't be able to beat Daguva? With the Amadam still cracked from their earlier encounter, his odds don't seem great. That air of nervous trepidation is what makes this such a great episode. It's a calm before the storm happening during a literal storm. Nobody can be too sure of anything right now, but there are things they're willing to bet on. For Yuusuke, that's the relationships he values so much, and he ends the episode continuing his farewell tour by working up the courage to head into Pole Pole. For Ichijou, it's the dedication of the police force, and he ends up investigating a Grongi hideout, stuffed with encyclopedias and whatnot that I believe are meant to imply how the woman with the rose tattoo caught up on human culture so thoroughly. What Daguva is willing to bet on is the simplest of all. Whatever happens next, it's going to be so much fun. THUMBS UP COUNTING CORNER The show has managed to top itself yet again, with a frankly astonishing amount of thumb action, including one from Minori so hard to make out you'll probably just have to take my word for it! Total thumbs up count: 101+9 = 110 EPISODE 48: "Kuuga" Yuusuke warms up inside Pole Pole, sharing some more casual banter and good times with Pops and Nana before announcing his intent to leave on an adventure, which sours the mood a bit. Nana in particular can't stand the thought of him leaving, but Yuusuke insists he has to go defeat #0 this time, because he's Kuuga. In a nice little moment, after Yuusuke walks out, Pops seems to finally have the epiphany that "Kuuga" meant "#4" this entire time. People make fun of shows written by Inoue for characters being poor at communicating, but honestly, Yuusuke never stopping to realize Pops might need further elaboration on what a Kuuga is for 40+ episodes might be the single biggest misunderstanding in the history of Kamen Rider. Yuusuke's never made his identity a secret, and I guess because of that, he just figured they were all on the same page the entire series. Every scene where he brings it up, it's like Yuusuke assumes Pops knows he's #4, and Pops assumes Yuusuke isn't all there, and neither of them really wants to make a big fuss about it, so they each just say what they want to say and go about their business. It's probably not everyone's cup of tea, but I find it all sort of low-key hilarious. Over at the Grongi hideout, the woman with the rose tattoo stops by for what will turn out to be her final encounter with Ichijou. He tries to interrogate her again, getting as few answers as usual out of pointing a gun at her and asking. She rubs his aggression in his face, insisting that the Linto have truly become like the Grongi, and that Ichijou's role as a cop, in her eyes, a Linto warrior who hunts his own kind, is evidence of this. Not being one to indulge him too much at once, she shoves him aside and heads out of the building. Ichijou responds to this by unloading six nerve-disruptor bullets directly into her. She gives the most perfect possible response, turning to smile at Ichijou as blood streaks down her mouth, and saying a few last words in the Grongi language before falling into the nearby water. This marks the end for Ra-Baruba-De, the rose Grongi so classy, we never saw her monster form throughout the entire show. I really love this conclusion, and how it pays off of how she was built up over the course of the story. The fact that we didn't see her as a monster gels with how she clearly takes to modern society more than any other member of the Grongi. The fact that she takes so much to human society means it makes sense she develops that sort of rivalry with Ichijou. And since she isn't a monster in a rubber suit to be fought, it means that rivalry is enhanced by the fact that Yuusuke never once met her. And all of that combines to make this such a satisfactory resolution. Her fate is ultimately tied not to Kuuga, but to the completely ordinary warriors of the modern Linto, and in the end, more than anything else, she seems to simply be proud of how much they've embraced violence over the years. And that's only looking at it from one angle. I feel like there are a lot of equally valid things you can draw out of this scene, and that's what makes it great. Yuusuke heads to the last two stops on his tour. Neither of which includes seeing Jean, but, as much as I don't want to admit it, he always was the character with the least connection to Yuusuke, so leaving him out is a smart move in a way. The first stop is the preschool, to say goodbye to Minori and the kids there that are always so happy to see him. It's a simple scene, but I like how you can see Minori and Yuusuke's facial expressions communicating some of those more complex emotions they obviously don't want to burden the children with by bringing it up in front of them. Things they say with a look. Plus, Yuusuke's optimistic assertion that there's a blue sky waiting on the other side of all this rain is just great. You can't even complain it's too on-the-nose, because he's speaking to little kids. Of course he's not going to be subtle. He saves the subtlety for his talk with Sakurako at the university, which has considerably more tension. There's still a bit of time for some awkward chuckling, but Sakurako knows Yuusuke well enough that she's already deduced what he's planning to do, and she's completely powerless to help him from this point on. All she can do now is believe in Yuusuke, and hope things will turn out okay, and it's obvious how much that eats at her. It's a pretty uneasy conversation, and of course it's cut short when duty calls, and Yuusuke receives a call on the Beat Chaser from Ichijou telling him Daguva's making his next move. Yuusuke arrives at the scene to more burned bodies, and Daguva telling him that if Yuusuke can finally become like him, he's looking forward to seeing him again at a place that holds a lot of significance. Ichijou rides up on the repaired Try Chaser, and if that wasn't full circle enough in its own right, Yuusuke than explains what the deal is. This is ending where it all began. Daguva is waiting at Kurogatake. Once they reach their destination the next morning, there's a little more time to talk before heading up the mountain. Pretty much every one of Yuusuke's conversations with the rest of the cast has been better than the last, and it probably goes without saying the one between the show's two main characters is the best of all. I'm going to say it anyway, though. This is a fantastic scene. There's a ton of weight to every moment. The things that aren't said, and the moments of silence matter just as much as what Ichijou and Yuusuke can manage to put into words. And that's probably the key to why it works so well. They're "managing" to speak. There's an entire year of emotions between these two that neither of them will ever know how to fully express. After all, they're so similar, remember? There's inherently going to be some sadness in that conversation, and neither of them is good with that kind of thing, because lives dedicated to protecting smiles and stoic public service mean they're both conditioned to avoid "bothering" others with their own problems. The way Yuusuke ultimately chooses to break the ice is by matter-of-factly telling Ichijou he should aim for the damaged Amadam if he ends up going out of control. I think the strength it takes to say something like that so casually is what prompts Ichijou to admit what he's been worried about since the second episode. He wishes Yuusuke was never put in a position where he had to be strong. Ichijou considers the fact they ended up relying on Yuusuke to this point to be a failure on his part, and the more and more attached he's grown to him, the more that regret increases. It was never fair that he had to take on this burden, but Yuusuke makes one thing clear in return. He doesn't regret the path he's taken. Certainly not if it meant getting to meet Ichijou. It's a touching bookend to what started off as a rocky relationship, as Yuusuke asks Ichijou and the audience, one last time, to watch his transformation. After all those episodes of buildup, the fearsome warrior finally arrives, and Kuuga heads off in his new Ultimate Form to finish off the last surviving Grongi, and end their threat once and for all. This is one of the most monumental showdowns in Rider history for a bunch of different reasons. Much as Ultimate Form is only truly first seen here, this is the first time we've gotten a clear glimpse at N-Daguva-Zeba's true form. It's a direct mirror to Ultimate Form, with a matching four-horned stag beetle motif, spiky bits in similar places, and the notable contrast of being primarily white, which also happens to match his human form's taste in clothing, just as Yuusuke himself has started wearing more black lately. The inversion of stereotypical good/evil colors was almost certainly deliberate, although there's room for debate about how much that's really meant to imply. What's for sure is that there are a lot of very effective parallels between these characters, and while Daguva has only properly been around for this last stretch, he's made every bit of screentime he's had count towards building himself up as the polar opposite of everything Yuusuke represents. I tend to be fond of villains with these kinds of setups, and Daguva, man, he's as good as they come. Going into the fight, there's a brief phase where the two basically test out their incredible powers, with Daguva lighting Kuuga on fire again, only this time, Kuuga returns the favor. This supernatural duel doesn't last long. The two quickly start pounding into one another the traditional way, and the whole time, Daguva is just ecstatic. He lives for combat, and nobody has given him as good a time as Kuuga in forever. He's laughing all through the fight. Even once his belt, as well as Kuuga's, are broken, reverting them to their human forms, he's still laughing. No matter how bruised he is, no matter how many hits he takes, he wouldn't trade this experience for the world. Fighting is what gives his life meaning. It's what makes him feel happy. But that's only his perspective, and there's a question here that needs to be asked -- how does Yuusuke feel? And of course, he feels like absolute garbage. He despises every second of this. He's always despised it. This is what that mask has been hiding an entire series. All the pain and misery, not simply at taking all these wounds, but at being forced to deal them back in kind. The heartache of this whole miserable, pointless cycle where a punch to the face is all that decides who's right and who's wrong. That look on Yuusuke's face, how he sounds almost like he's crying as the blood rolls down his chin before he strikes the final blow on Daguva, I can't even begin to describe the impact this had on me. It's a moment I won't ever forget. Kuuga was a show that had a lot it wanted to say, and this climax says everything louder than any amount of words ever could. It is intensely powerful, and without question my favorite final battle in all of Rider. It's the pinnacle of a series-long trend of asking you to reexamine everything you think you know about hero tokusatsu. By stripping away the fancy powers, all the special effects, the costumes, the music, all the spectacle, it implores you to take a second to truly think about what exactly you're rooting for. Watching larger than life characters sort their problems out through violence, it's ingrained in pretty much every form of storytelling there's ever been. That kind of physical conflict is primal and easy to dramatize. We all want to see heroes defeating villains. But why exactly do we want to see it? What exactly is it we should be idolizing about those kinds of characters? Kuuga was a show that often aimed for realism, and, in real life, what is trying to solve things exclusively through force more likely to result in? Will it lead to a thrilling showdown, with the fate of the world at stake, filled with exciting colors and fantastic abilities? Or will it just be two men, beating each other to death in the snow, savage and senseless? Refusing to give the audience what they wanted, in this case, I firmly believe to be the best possible choice this story could've made. This is what the show was building up to since all the way back in the second episode when Yuusuke told us he'll never get used to this feeling. Taking all the glory out of fighting, exposing how ugly and repulsive it is so unapologetically, that was the only way Kuuga ever could've ended. But there was one thing that could've gone more than one way. Originally, the plan for the ending was to have Yuusuke die. It would've been a sort of way for him to atone for the violence he was a part of, regardless of his selfless motives. While we'll see what became of that plan in a second, there's one part of it that's just as true in the final product. By the end of this episode, Kuuga is gone, and we won't be seeing him again. THUMBS UP COUNTING CORNER With some help from the kids at the preschool, the show tops the record it just set last episode. I don't believe it either. Total thumbs up count: 110+14 = 124 EPISODE 49: "Yuusuke" Kuuga's finale is a unique ending to a unique show. First of all, this is hard to appreciate watching it now, but there's no commercial break in the middle. It's still the normal length, so I don't know if they had to stuff 7 straight minutes of ads before or after to compensate or what, but the episode ran on TV from beginning to end completely uninterrupted. I think that speaks to a certain level of pride in the end product. It gets special treatment because it is special. So let's get into why. The episode opens with about half a minute of nothing more than a sort of ethereal zoom through the clouds. The credits that would normally be reserved for after the opening are put here instead, as is the simple title of the episode. Yuusuke. Just "Yuusuke". It may seem like a lot of nothing, but when you put it in context of how the previous episode, called "Kuuga", was so downbeat and violent, that simple, peaceful shot of the clouds starts to make a lot more sense. One thing about the opening from the second version onwards I've neglected to mention is that it added a feature where the initial flashes of images that start it off include a sort of preview, usually of that episode's monster, but also sometimes used for things like each of the Rising forms. What is it this time, at the end of it all? It's Yuusuke's hand, giving a thumbs up. Perfect. It's the first we see of him this episode, and, believe it or not, those couple of frames are the most we'll see for a while. Three months after the showdown with Daguva, Ichijou is getting a bunch of files and whatnot in order, now that the Unidentified Lifeform task force has served its purpose. Looking over the records that go all the way back to Growing Form's initial fight with Gumun, he can't help but feel a little nostalgic. It was a long year fighting, after all, as Sakurai points out by noting they dealt with 48 different Unidentified Lifeforms up to now, counting from #0, and going up to Dorudo, who was #47. I feel like there's a chance it's a coincidence, but with Sakurai taking the time to call attention to it here, that number seems to double as a meta reference to how many episodes it took us to get to this point, which is an impressive thing to line up like that! Just one or two extra offscreen Grongi would've thrown the whole thing off, but no, it lines up exactly. Sasayama muses on the possibility that if anyone but Yuusuke had become #4, they might not have been able to see things through to the end. In fact, everybody seems to have nice things to say about Yuusuke after everything he's done. Sakurai admires the way he always kept up his smile no matter what. Sugita wonders how he does it. Matsukura says there are few men out there like him, and even mimics a thumbs up. After this, he goes to the window to ponder what Yuusuke is out there doing right now. We cut back to that same blue sky from the cold open... and then to Pole Pole, where Pops is wearing a Kuuga-branded apron, evidently in tribute to Yuusuke. Pops has just finished writing a response to a letter he received from Mika, who's been accepted into the high school she was shooting for, and is still keeping up with playing the flute. A lot of things are going very right for people right now. Nana's even finally landed a role herself. The structure of this episode has clearly taken shape now. It's about following everyone around to see how they're doing now that things are finally peaceful again, and their thoughts on Yuusuke's impact, with a particular emphasis on Ichijou heading around Tokyo to say his goodbyes before he transfers back to Nagano. It's essentially a twist on what Yuusuke did before facing off with Daguva. Next on his list is Enokida, who's finally found time to spend with Sayuru without the Unidentified Lifeforms to worry about. She's even planning to head to Disneyland the next day. But of course, she can't help but wonder what Yuusuke is up to, and wishes he'd stuck around long enough that she could've gotten to see what his friendship with Ichijou would've looked like in peacetime. True to his personality, Ichijou doesn't have any words to respond to this, but it's obvious from his wistful sigh he would've liked to see it himself. Elsewhere, the blue sky pans down to reveal a beach. Back at Pole Pole, Pops has received a few customers looking to drink Yuusuke's own special blend. One of them is Kanzaki, who happened to be in the neighborhood. The other is Jean, who's feeling great knowing that tomorrow, he'll be heading to Disneyland. This tells you pretty much everything you need to know about how his relationship with Enokida is progressing, and I adore how indirect the show is about explaining it. It's all very subtle, but there just isn't anything else that needs to be said, and the slight ambiguity of their exact situation is something I appreciate. It fits a subplot that was always treated with a light touch. Always eager to please a customer, Pops calls in the guy Yuusuke based his blend on. It's some dude named Tamasaburou Kazari, who turns out to be... Pops, having done an elaborate bit where he walks up the stairs pretending to call out to somebody else. Now, explaining what Pops' real name was is hardly some necessary part of the lore to fill out, but, I mean, if you've got the time in the finale, why not? The way he makes such a scene of it, like his pride has been damaged by people assuming he can't make drinks as well as Yuusuke, that's also more of that delightful Pops arrogance I can't get enough of. Ichijou stops by Tsubaki's place, where Tsubaki is remarking on how incredible Yuusuke was to soldier on for everyone's sake, in spite of the frightening changes his body was undergoing the whole time. As always, Tsubaki has a really deep appreciation of just how much pain Yuusuke went through, and he makes it clear how much he resents the Unidentified Lifeforms forcing Yuusuke to chip away at his own smile just because they were so obsessed with their own. That kind of selfishness, it's an easy way to live, but it was never Yuusuke's way, and that's what made him special. Tsubaki is confident things are looking up in the world though, especially thanks to a letter he received from Chouno. The text of it is only onscreen for a brief moment, but it's fully written out. Chouno describes in it how little seems to be changing in his life, for better or for worse. He's still working part time jobs he hates, and he's still drawing pictures when he has the time, though he doesn't even know why himself. He's still got no clue what to do with his life, but an experience where someone liked one of his pictures enough to buy it off him has led him to start thinking it's okay for him to be alive, and that, just maybe, like Yuusuke told him, he's better off trying to enjoy it, even if he doesn't know how it will all work out. To that end, he sent something along with the letter to Tsubaki, and it tells you all you need to know even without the context of the letter. He gave Tsubaki his knife, and Tsubaki takes that as a sign that Chouno is finally ready to put his own self-centered ways behind him for good. This is one of the most powerful moments in the episode, I think, proving just how much Chouno always did belong in this show. He was exactly the kind of guy the Grongi were talking about when they said the Linto would become like them, but here, at the end of it all, even Chouno was able to find hope in himself, and maybe that says something for the hope of humanity as a whole. Back at the beach, someone seen only from the legs down sets a backpack on the sand. Pops looks through his #4 scrapbook with the rest of the group at Pole Pole, and they discuss how Yuusuke always wanted to see everyone smile. Pops brings up the letters Minori and him received from their father, and speculates how much those must've stuck with them from a young age. Combine that with Kanzaki's words, and even Yuusuke's childhood experience in Nepal that he mentioned in his very first scene in the premiere, and it's not hard to see why this guy made it his mission to protect happiness the way he did, taking it upon himself to master 2000 skills to that end. And what do we find out his very first skill was here, thanks to Kanzaki? It was smiling, of course. It might not sound that impressive, but like Yuusuke said back at the start, there's nothing cooler than someone who can keep smiling no matter how hard things get. It's safe to say he lived up to that standard. Ichijou's next stop is the preschool, where Minori thanks him for looking after her brother for so long. Ichijou tries to downplay this, and insists he put Yuusuke through hardship, but Minori knows Yuusuke did everything he did because it was what he really wanted. One of the kids there asks why #4 left, even though he's a good guy who beat #0, and Minori replies that a world that doesn't need #4 around is better for everyone. The kid's blank expression implies that, perhaps like much of the target audience, he's having a little trouble grasping what Minori means by that, but everybody is soon distracted by the arrival of Keiko, who's stopped by the school with her newborn child in tow. The future is looking bright for her son, who gets to grow up in a world free from the Grongi's menace, thanks in large part to Yuusuke. After this, Ichijou heads over to the university to see Sakurako, who shows him a bit of the ancient text saying Gouram is supposed to crumble to sand if Kuuga's "holy spring" ever dried up and he became the fearsome warrior. It was the Linto's attempt to avoid giving the fearsome warrior any more power to use for evil, but Gouram is still perfectly fine over at the research institute, so what gives? Well, that's obvious isn't it? Yuusuke became the fearsome warrior, but he didn't do it using his hatred as fuel, even though that would've been easy. He instead chose his own path, and gained that same power through his heartfelt desire to protect the things that matter to him. Ichijou calls out how this is symbolized by Yuusuke's visions of Ultimate Form having black eyes, while the one he actually turns into (first seen in-series as Yuusuke makes his decision in episode 47) has the same passionate red eyes as Mighty Form. This is another one of the most powerful bits of this episode. Sakurako's meta paraphrasing of the theme song, saying Yuusuke rewrote the legend, is really inspired in how much it works on both levels. Yuusuke did things his own way, and changed an ancient prophecy, and Kuuga, the show, did things its own way, and changed a franchise. It's a very celebratory remark, and there's something so blunt about the idea of Yuusuke doing the impossible and achieving Ultimate Form through kindness I can't help but love. Especially since we did see him going around talking to all his friends before heading out to face Daguva. But that's just it, isn't it? He was essentially saying goodbye to everyone, and we still haven't really seen him in his own finale, even though the episode is nearly over. He seemed so eager to leave, it makes you wonder how well he's doing as much as the characters. Can he really be happy after everything that's happened? Was his desire to leave so soon reflective of him trying to get as much distance from his trauma as possible? Will he ever feel any better, or has all the fighting left him corrupted forever? A man lying on the sand raises his fist in the air. This is Yuusuke, obviously. After all that buildup, we finally see him again, but we still don't see his face yet. Just that image of him putting his fist in his palm, as though the unpleasant feelings of his days as Kuuga haven't left him, even months later, and in another country entirely. Maybe he really did crack. After all, the last we saw of Yuusuke was him in horrible pain before passing out in the snow. There are a lot of questions to be asked of him, but that might have to wait, as he looks down the beach to see a group of children angrily shoving one another around. Yuusuke leaps up to run over to them. We cut to the blue sky yet again, and a small white ball flies through the air. Yuusuke's juggling act is a huge hit with the kids. They've all stopped fighting to watch him and smile, and Yuusuke is smiling too. Of course he's smiling. It might not have been the first plan for the show's conclusion, but really, I can't imagine it any other way. This is just the most poignant possible ending to the show, perfectly in line with everything it's ever tried to convey to its audience. The fight with the Grongi being over doesn't mean Yuusuke is done making people smile, it means he can finally get back to it. This bookend with the first episode, it's a touching resolution to the journey of a hero who refused to ever give up on his ideals. That triumph of the human spirit, of compassion and selflessness over cruelty and ego, that's what Kuuga is all about to me. However much Yuusuke has suffered, he won't ever stop moving forward, he won't ever forget why he does it, and for a show meant to inspire, there couldn't be anything more fitting. The whole scene, from the juggling, to Yuusuke walking off, all with the ending theme, Yuusuke's theme, playing both verses over it all, lyrics perfectly complementing the scene as Yuusuke finally manages to take everyone to that future without suffering or fighting, it chokes me up in ways few things can. It's beautiful what they accomplished here. The superhero show that rejects violence as something to be glorified, putting its money where its mouth is, and doing an entire episode where the hero never, ever transforms. Where there's not a single fight scene to be found. No costumes. No bloodshed. Just all the people we've grown to care about over the past year, finally able to live out our hero's dream of a world where everyone can be happy. And it's still every bit as interesting. It's as perfect a finale as a Rider show could have, and they did it all without ever feeling the need for any grand final action scene. I didn't quite expect to have this much to say about the finale. I mean, I knew it'd be a lot, but I've always considered "Kuuga" and "Yuusuke" to be a package deal (and obviously they are), and I thought I'd have more to say about the former. Instead, this is by far the longest I've gone on about a single episode. Part of that is because I couldn't seem to help myself from summarizing nearly every single scene in order. Maybe that's down to me knowing this is the last time I get to do this, but I think what that really speaks to is how sublime the structure here is. I almost certainly could've trimmed this down, but I was too mesmerized to even consider that. I think the sheer volume of this one expresses how I feel as much as the words themselves. Hopefully you all don't mind indulging me here. I can be pretty harsh of finales when I think they disappoint even a little bit, but you'd never know that judging by this post. Every single scene here, they earn the episode's title by focusing so squarely on making a final statement on why Yuusuke, and not Kuuga, is a hero. Each has a unique point to make, and in the process, they follow up on what the extensive roster of supporting characters is up to as well, giving them the closure they need. Punctuating them all with subtle progressions of that blue sky motif, gradually building up to the eventual reveal of Yuusuke himself at the end, it's beyond punchy. The restraint it took to hold back directly showing Yuusuke for so long pays off brilliantly, because you feel his presence the whole time all the same. It's easily one of the tightest written episodes of the series, with everything pulling in one direction precisely and without waste. I always loved this episode, but I'm a little astonished to go back and realize that I might love it a little more than even the previous one. It's a tough call. You can't really have one without the other, but if there's a single episode that most represents what this series is all about, it might just be this one, and you couldn't ask for anything more of a finale. THUMBS UP COUNTING CORNER The last episode holds the record, but this entire trilogy milked the thumbs budget for everything it had left. A fitting way to say goodbye to an amazing series. Total thumbs up count: 124+9 = 133
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Last edited by Fish Sandwich; 04-06-2023 at 06:25 PM.. |
05-20-2020, 07:00 PM | #240 |
The Immortal King Tasty
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Every diner you've ever been to.
Posts: 3,833
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And with that, this adventure is just about over. You'll notice I haven't covered the handful of odds and ends Kuuga has, like the Super Secret Video, but to be perfectly honest, I need a break from writing about Kuuga. I'd love to come back and tackle all that stuff at a later date, but for now, I'm wrapping things up with some "final" thoughts on the series as a whole. This is it for the time being.
I never found much time to talk about it here, but I really love Kuuga's opening and ending themes. They're a perfect paired set. The awesome OP always gets you pumped up with that dun-DUN-dun-DUN *pause* dunnnnnnnnn~, and its lyrics about how awesome Kuuga is. The ED, in contrast, is a much more gentle tune reflecting Yuusuke's hopes and dreams. I'm the slightest bit more fond of the ending sequence, which you may have gathered from the fact that my signature image this entire time has been that first frame of Yuusuke napping on the ground, finding some peace in his often chaotic life. It's always really stuck with me. That doesn't mean the opening is any less great though, and I don't think it's any secret that one of the coolest things about it is the meta layer to all the lyrics. It's as much about Kuuga the show as it is Kuuga the character. There's one line in particular from the second chorus that sums up what the series set out to accomplish. As per the (excellent) official translation, it goes "Racing to the top, I'm here to change all of this". A bold statement for a song that would've been written before the show even premiered, but here's the thing. Kuuga did change all of this. The impact Kuuga had is something that deserves to be appreciated. It's not hard to argue that when it hit the air back in 2000, there genuinely wasn't anything else that could come close. It really was at the top. This was no halfhearted reboot; it was a complete reinvention of a vintage franchise that catapulted it back into the spotlight, where it has since remained, uninterrupted for two decades straight at this point. That success is up to each individual show too, of course, but I think merely saying Kuuga got the ball rolling would be an understatement. It sent that thing flying. It was a wildly experimental show that took more influence from shows like ER than it did anything relating to tokusatsu. It remembered to respect the roots too, with copious amounts of throwbacks and thematic similarities, and I think that's another reason it went over so well, but in terms of production style, it was uncharted territory all the way. The more cinematic direction, the deeper, more rounded characters, the fondness for two-parters, which allowed for more complex stories, and the subsequent ability to have episodes that don't need to end with the hero blowing up a monster every week. Many of the things we take for granted in Kamen Rider now, Kuuga was the first to try, and it proved the viability of this stuff all on its own, resulting in a series that exceeded expectations, becoming popular not only within its target demographic, but beyond it as well. But all of that, it's just about what Kuuga was, and I'm even more interested in what it still is. The thing about Kuuga is that, despite putting down the groundwork for so many future shows, I also consider it to still be a truly singular, distinctive piece. There still aren't any shows quite like Kuuga. The kind of uncompromising, borderline counterculture attitude it had was something no other Rider show could've ever gotten away with. It's a moment in time that won't ever be replicated. You can point to all the individual elements that have gone on to be used later down the line, or other stories from before it shares similarities with, but the specific, unique mix that is Kuuga is entirely its own. It's bursting at the seams with raw artistic vision. A show that respects its legacy, itself, and the viewers all enough to question everything that's taken for granted in a show like this. Why don't the police ever get involved when monsters start attacking? Why can't characters have more real problems? Why should violence be something to be celebrated? Kuuga is often described as "deconstructive", which I think can be a pretty loaded word. There's often a negative connotation to it. A show that just sits there telling you everything you like is dumb and you're dumb for liking it, that would be rude at best, and intolerably self-satisfied at worst. It's not inherently a good thing, but it's great for Kuuga because of its pure motivations. The biggest creative voices behind the show were all people who grew up on the very shows they were challenging. They loved the stuff. It wasn't a matter of claiming superiority, despite the boastful theme song. They asked those questions not out of hate, but because they believed the answers would lead to an interesting story in its own right. That it could provide an opportunity to grow into something even better. It's good to look at things from a different perspective sometimes. And Kuuga's perspective is exactly what remains wholly original even all these years later. No other hero show is anywhere near this dedicated to its message. It's easy to file that message under "pacifism", and call it generic, but that's doing a disservice to how thoughtful and considered Kuuga's story is. This kind of subject matter can be inherently difficult for an action show to handle without coming off as hypocritical, and that's why it's a good thing Kuuga's take on it is so precisely tailored to examining the very nature of superhero narratives. It's not telling you fighting is bad, period. It's asking the audience to consider how readily they leap to it as a solution to problems. How we put on a pedestal these characters who excel at fighting, worshiping them at courageous heroes. Kuuga's main message, to me, the specificity that sets it apart from the pack, is in how it says that it takes far more courage not to fight. Wanting to simply hit things we perceive as threats, or that we just plain don't like, is basic human instinct. It's not special. It's easy. But controlling those impulses, taking the time to think things through calmly and rationally, trying to understand the things and people around you, all of that can be extremely difficult at times, and that's why maybe it's the kind of thing that truly deserves to be venerated. This line of thinking feeds into every facet of the show. The word "justice" is never used a single time, likely because that's a word easily appropriated by people who refuse to listen. The Grongi are just ordinary ancestors of modern humans turned into creatures in the same way Yuusuke was. The only true difference between them is in what they choose to value. And what Yuusuke values, what makes him the hero, is that he'd never call being Kuuga "cool". His most heroic feats all revolve around him helping others out without even needing to be Kuuga. His real worth is in his ability to inspire the people around him, and to help out those in need by engaging with them on a personal level, always showing deep empathy for their problems. Those are his talents. It's the same deal for everyone that supports him as Kuuga. He's surrounded by people like Sakurako, Enokida, Tsubaki, and Jean, that aid him using their brains, rather than their brawn. Even the police, who try to participate in the fighting, are most helpful when it comes to applying their investigative and organizational skills to take control of the situation. Kuuga actually hitting a monster at the end of the episode is an important part of this routine, but it's only one part. From a main writer most known for Super Sentai, I suppose I should expect no less, but there's a very strong sense of teamwork in Kuuga. The Grongi are defeated not because Kuuga is a better fighter than them, but because they do things alone, competing against each other, while the humans work together in harmony, always valuing what every single person has to contribute. We have the potential to be like the Grongi ourselves, but we can also choose to be something better. If we persevere, never forgetting our ideals, we can rise above any cruelty and misfortune that comes our way. That's the meaning this show imbues the thumbs up with, I think. When Yuusuke or somebody else flashes it, it's a reminder not that things will just magically be alright, but that even when things are going bad, it's important to give it your all anyway. If I had to sum up Kuuga in a word, it'd be... "healthy", maybe? A strange choice, I know, and there are plenty of other good options, but that's a thought I'd keep coming back to every now and then as I was writing these posts. I first watched Kuuga give-or-take 8 years ago, and, thinking back on it, I feel like it's kind of shaped my life more than I realized? In a really positive way, to boot. I mentioned how that shot of Yuusuke looking miserable in his final fight with Daguva left an impact on me, but, after writing that, and thinking about it even more, that one scene might well have gotten me questioning everything I thought I knew about action stories and superheroes. Nowadays, I'm way into like... I mean, Ghost is my favorite Kamen Rider show. The one with magic empathy hugs and the constant emphasis on debating conflicting perspectives in a respectful and productive manner. One of my favorite tokusatsu heroes ever is Ultraman Cosmos, the one whose defining trait is his fighting style that revolves around pacifying monsters without lethal force. I was never some huge edgelord obsessed with blood and gore or anything, but my tastes after Kuuga started leaning more and more saccharine. I started placing more value on stories that themselves placed less value on action for action's sake. Going back, I think that's a sign of how much I was listening to what this show had to say to me. It shares more DNA with my other favorites than I would think at first from how different it can be in terms of tone and style. Again, it's a "healthy" show. One that cares about you enough to ask you, more than anything, to just think a little deeper about things, even as it still provides all the thrilling hero action you came for. Kuuga was a show that was happy to exist, and it wanted that existence to mean something. At least for me, I definitely think it did. I suppose that's about all I really wanted to say about Kuuga. Or at least, I have to stop eventually, right? I mean, I've got 49 episodes worth of other thoughts that have touched on a variety of other points. The tone, the style, the characters, the action, the heart, there is a whole lot to love about this show, and I'd like to think I captured that somewhere in all this rambling. This project was a pretty big undertaking for me, and without that affection, there's no way I ever would've seen it through this far. Going in, I was honestly a bit worried about going back to Kuuga after so many years. Was I overselling how good it is all this time? I mean, I forgot so much of it. Maybe everything between those first and last few episodes was totally unmemorable and not that great? But it was great. Aside from the mildly (mildly!) uneven second quarter, darn near every arc in this show gave me more than enough to talk about. Tons and tons of extremely well done stories with compelling narratives filled with great dramatic tension and heartwarming exchanges between endearing characters. Some of the episodes of this show I remembered the least turned out to be new favorites after seeing them again. Kuuga has always been one of my favorite shows, and now that's even more the case. That alone makes doing all this worth it, but I could've gotten that simply from rewatching the show. Writing about it like this was something else entirely. As always, I am extremely grateful to everyone who not only stuck with me on this whole ride, but actively enjoyed doing it. I wrote a ton about Kuuga in the process. Way more than I could reasonably expect anyone to take time out of their day to read. This thread has been an eclectic mix of opinionated recap, thematic analysis, trivia, the odd gag here or there, counting... It's basically unthinkable it would have any appeal to anyone. So if you did find that appeal, and feel like you've gotten something positive out of the experience, the honor really is all mine. Again, I'll probably come back here to talk about the leftover stuff like the Super Secret Video at some point, and I'm also more than happy to keep discussing the show here with anyone who wants to, but until then, thank you all so much, and here's to your smiles.
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Last edited by Fish Sandwich; 04-06-2023 at 06:29 PM.. |
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