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09-20-2019, 12:40 PM | #111 |
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In regards to the secondary, third and fourth riders, Build gives all of them a lot of love compared to many rider shows before build, even though I love Ex-Aid, it did feel like the main secondary rider got a bit shafted here and there in favor of other things, but he got a great final section.
Poppy got a shitty turn out though I feel..... Build though.... Oh my lord yes ! The amount of focus the other riders get, not to mention proper emotion and fantastic acting in regards to multiple episodes is just wonderful. Okay I might be a bit hyper fanboying about the season, but I truly do love this one quite a bit. |
09-20-2019, 01:29 PM | #112 |
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Quote:
In regards to the secondary, third and fourth riders, Build gives all of them a lot of love compared to many rider shows before build, even though I love Ex-Aid, it did feel like the main secondary rider got a bit shafted here and there in favor of other things, but he got a great final section.
Poppy got a shitty turn out though I feel..... Build though.... Oh my lord yes ! The amount of focus the other riders get, not to mention proper emotion and fantastic acting in regards to multiple episodes is just wonderful. Okay I might be a bit hyper fanboying about the season, but I truly do love this one quite a bit. Yeah, Build takes care of its non-Sento Riders, for sure. I'm watching some episodes of Build right now (I'm taking a quick lunch break!) that do a lot for all three hero Riders. And it's not even some time-filling spotlight episode!
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09-20-2019, 03:01 PM | #113 |
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KAMEN RIDER BUILD EPISODES 26 - 28
This is a step in the right direction. It's an episode that's building to a big story element, (another) proxy battle between Kamen Riders with nations at stake, but also making sure the individual characters aren't lost within the conflict. Since this is the middle chunk, a lot of the character development is spread amongst the supporting characters, with Sento in full-on Rider Science mode. That leaves Banjou and Grease to piss each other off, bond over the catharsis of battle, and cheer each other to victory. It's a fine line, drawing them closer as friends and teammates while still keeping them unique and slightly antagonistic. The show does a good job of it, though. The "who is the traitor" scene between the two of them is hilarious, hearkening back to the goofiness of the first chunk. Really, there's a lot of what I liked in the first chunk here: an emphasis on small groups bouncing off of each other, meta humor leavening the exposition, and a little bit of investigation to uncover the traitor. Which is Sawa. Sawa is the traitor. Again! She faked them out twice. I wish the show had integrated her a little more, which would have both concealed her involvement better and made her betrayal (or "betrayal", who can tell with her anymore) hit a little harder. As it is, the show would frequently forget about her for episodes at a time, pulling her back in when there was a plot reason for her to appear. So, yeah, when they're like Who Planted This Bug and it cuts to Sawa being back on the show, no points for guessing she's the traitor. I guess it's not a big deal, her reveal. She's a clear suspect, the show doesn't really drag it out, and it's not like suspicion is tearing the team apart. Everyone else is really clicking as a team, leading to a rousing, emotional victory for Grease over Engine Bro. Grease's post-invasion motivation is something I've had trouble seeing, and I'm glad the show took a moment to elaborate on why he's fighting, what the Crows meant to him, all of that. It makes the fight personal, which is awesome, but it helps explore where Grease's attitude and perspective fit into the team. Good use of a fight to deepen a character. Yeah, pretty good episode! I'm really digging this tournament story. Build is back on track for me. I thought this was going to be an episode fully devoted to Banjou, to give a clear idea of what he's fighting for as Cross-Z, but that ends up being only half the episode. It's a good half, though, with some interesting twists. Sento is a Rider who fights for everyone, Grease is a Rider who fights for his people, but Banjou is a Rider who only fights for himself and his friends. His motivation in this tournament is to end the war before Sento has to fight. He doesn't care that much about the horrors of war, or about who has Pandora's Box, or any of that. Sento's his friend, he blames himself for the war, so Banjou's going to end the war for him. It's straightforward and true to Banjou's character. So of course the show has to throw an obstacle at him that makes him question that straightforward goal. I really really loved that the Hell Bros fake him out the way they did, appealing to the guilt he'd feel ending one life to help his friend. It looked like the show was going to grow Banjou, widen his perspective, but nope! The Hell Bros were lying, it was bullshit, don't never trust nobody. Interesting lesson for a character to learn! The rest of the episode was the Build/Rogue fight, and the debut of RabbitRabbit. (Beautiful suit, love the little wing cape and the symmetrical bunny ear eyes.) Rogue comes in with the by-now standard This Is All Your Fault guilt attack, which gets a full-throated assertion by Sento that he's not going to feel guilt about what Takumi did any longer. I hope that's true! It was a cool idea, but the show's really worn it out. I'm ready for a less guilt-ridden Sento to emerge from these war arcs. Time will tell, I suppose! God, yes. This is the show I've been missing. After the post-Hokuto War episodes left me feeling like the show didn't know where to go next, these three episodes just did the work and stuck the landing. Maybe they didn't reach the emotional heights of 21 and 22, but there's a great synergy of character-focused emotional storytelling, long-term plot machinations, and clever individual episode plotting. Like, the tournament structure is awesome for providing character-driven fights that center one character's story while progressing the entire show's storyline. We've seen Banjou, Sento, and Grease get their moments in the previous two episodes, and in the finale we get a bit more with Sento, plus Rogue and, uh... Sawa? Yeah, Sawa. So, I've got this friend. They're fun to hang out with, and they're a caring person. You also cannot believe a single thing they tell you. Everything, even the most innocuous thing, is in doubt. But, yeah, they're fun to hang out with as long as you remember that they're probably lying to you. That's where I'm at with Sawa. The show's probably told me everything there is to know about Sawa, and she's probably legitimately regretful over her actions against Team Build, but we've been here too many times for me to believe it. Instead, I'm just going to go with it. Maybe she's repented, maybe it's another ruse, I'm good either way. The Sawa stuff was good, though. I like that, even in the midst of an epic struggle between Rogue and Build, the show found a space to tell a story about someone who got so caught up in the fake feelings she had for Team Build that they became real. That peace and love actually worked. It's sweet, and it's sweet that Team Build (especially Misora) is able to let Sawa know how she hurt them, but clearly want to forgive her and move on. It's nice to not have some bullshit hand-wringy But Can I Ever Trust You Again thing. That's boring, and Sawa's great, so let's all just move on and have fun. Speaking of having fun: that goddamn Rogue/Build fight! Epic! TankTank is awesome, Rogue's counterattacks are cleverly portrayed, the sleight-of-hand of showing Seito RabbitRabbit so they won't expect TankTank is a great strategy, it's all excellent. Loved the fight, loved it more as the conclusion of tournament storyline. Especially, especially, the use of on-set projections to visualize Rogue's mental state and emotional journey. I wasn't expecting the story to slow down a bit for him to get a word in, but I'm incredibly glad he did. What could have been a simple Hero's Declaration-type finale for Sento to triumph over Rogue instead gets a bit of subtlety, where Rogue's view of "one person should have the power to protect everyone" is set in opposition to Sento's "one person should protect everyone's power" view. It's more shading than is strictly necessary, especially when the loser is going to get blasted in the face by a tank, but it's (as always) to the show's credit that it's willing to do the extra work. Looking at the episode count, and feeling the wave of relief coming off of the cast at the end of this story, I think we've reached the end of the second act and the middle of the series. The second act, from 15 or 16 to 28, had some incredible highs and a few bum notes, but it ended really well. I don't know if I'm going to say I'll miss these war stories, assuming they're over. It's an interesting genre to play in, for a little while, but it ends up taking the series away from the lighter tones where I find it most effective. I'm really hopeful that the tone recalibrates for the next act.
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09-20-2019, 03:07 PM | #114 |
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I know everyone loves episode 21, and don't get me wrong, it's amazing, probably one of the best single episodes ever, but arc-wise, my heart will always belong with the second tournament arc. Just for what it manages to do with all the characters, each one reaffirming their goals, even the villains, to the TankTank ploy, it's all so good!
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09-20-2019, 03:11 PM | #115 |
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Quote:
I know everyone loves episode 21, and don't get me wrong, it's amazing, probably one of the best single episodes ever, but arc-wise, my heart will always belong with the second tournament arc. Just for what it manages to do with all the characters, each one reaffirming their goals, even the villains, to the TankTank ploy, it's all so good!
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09-20-2019, 03:19 PM | #116 |
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I think my only issue at the time of watching these episodes as they aired, was that I couldn't let go of the question of why this tournament set-up was happening again. Like, Rogue was clearly winning and he had stolen the box, so Seito really didn't have to agree to this 'whoever wins gets everything' contest. Not that it matters in the end thanks to Blood Stalk but still.
I actually have another critique that was at the front of my mind at the time, but I thought the actual action for RabbitRabbit's debut was pretty underwhelming. They tell you it's a super fast form capable of bouncing all over the place and... we don't see that. They show it's 'speed' with a really weak special effect before having him stand in place and shoot Rogue with his gun three times. Seriously! So many of the Riders and forms from Drive managed to get super speed done well, so I guess I got my hopes really high up for an amazing fight. Ah, well, TankTank I had no complaints about. I also really liked the back-and-forth speeches between Sento and Gentoku, it went such a long way to making the fights more epic and also personal. I hope the rest of the show manages to keep you as entertained as these war-based conflicts. Also, Ready Go is a really great song, definitely my favourite from Build! (Hope you don't consider it a spoiler that there's going to be more than one insert song.) |
09-20-2019, 03:33 PM | #117 |
Showa Girl
Join Date: Jun 2018
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I was actually thinking about this today and how you'd react to it, especially after 21! I'm so, so glad you like it!
Even after the show started to wane for a bit, RabbitRabbit's debut was one of the strongest parts of the show to me and represented Sento at his best. Arguably, yes; the idea of using a power-up to represent character development and moving on is pretty standard for Rider, especially in the more recent series. It's effective, yes, but still something a lot of series do, so usually it's not worth noting especially. But RabbitRabbit really, really does stick out to me. Just how strongly both Sento's regret of his past and the strength of his resolve to move forward as the hero makes this all the better, and it's honestly difficult for me to come up with a better example of such in Rider. Which isn't an insult, because it's a high standard to live up to! Like... one of the reasons I like Kobayashi's writing so much, and especially OOO; is how she's effectively able to drag the hero down to such a low place and yet pull them right back up again in a way that's believable, inspiring and hopeful. And for a series to come not just close to that effectiveness, but do better at it; is no small feat -- I don't say this lightly, but I genuinely believe that this aspect was pulled off even better than in OOO. Sento might just be the greatest dragged down to resolve character I've ever seen, and it's wonderful. And then there's how the power-up representing this actually goddamn works, and this is where it gets genius for me. Now any sort of power-up would have worked, really. Any sort of cool new item that gives a sweet new form, woo; yay. But I don't know if the writer got the toy people to do this or he was taking full advantage of what toy plans Bandai had supplied him with or something, but the idea that the new power-up works with the one that represents everything awful about both his past and current actions, goes on top of it, and turns it into a force of good that represents his resolve to be a hero? Like. This is top-tier symbolism, sorry, but it just is. It's so, soooo fucking good, and I love every little bit of it. The fact that it's essentially bringing out the full power of one bottle's essence and enhancing could also arguably be read into as representing what he's learned from Banjou and what effect the guy's had on him, even if never even hinted at here. Just everything about RabbitRabbit is wonderful. It's beautiful and I adore it. ... oh, and then he uses it to make an effective plan and trick Rogue and an entire government of bad guys as well! Because being a genius and being a hero is a best goddamn match that makes Sento. GOD I love this show. |
09-20-2019, 03:34 PM | #118 |
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Join Date: Aug 2019
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Quote:
I think my only issue at the time of watching these episodes as they aired, was that I couldn't let go of the question of why this tournament set-up was happening again. Like, Rogue was clearly winning and he had stolen the box, so Seito really didn't have to agree to this 'whoever wins gets everything' contest. Not that it matters in the end thanks to Blood Stalk but still.
Quote:
I actually have another critique that was at the front of my mind at the time, but I thought the actual action for RabbitRabbit's debut was pretty underwhelming. They tell you it's a super fast form capable of bouncing all over the place and... we don't see that. They show it's 'speed' with a really weak special effect before having him stand in place and shoot Rogue with his gun three times. Seriously! So many of the Riders and forms from Drive managed to get super speed done well, so I guess I got my hopes really high up for an amazing fight. Ah, well, TankTank I had no complaints about.
Quote:
Not a spoiler because I, uh, didn't notice. Shit! I don't have a music video for it in my folder, so I hope they play it in an episode where I can concentrate on it a little more.
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09-20-2019, 03:51 PM | #119 |
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Quote:
I was actually thinking about this today and how you'd react to it, especially after 21! I'm so, so glad you like it!
Even after the show started to wane for a bit, RabbitRabbit's debut was one of the strongest parts of the show to me and represented Sento at his best. Arguably, yes; the idea of using a power-up to represent character development and moving on is pretty standard for Rider, especially in the more recent series. It's effective, yes, but still something a lot of series do, so usually it's not worth noting especially. But RabbitRabbit really, really does stick out to me. Just how strongly both Sento's regret of his past and the strength of his resolve to move forward as the hero makes this all the better, and it's honestly difficult for me to come up with a better example of such in Rider. Which isn't an insult, because it's a high standard to live up to! Like... one of the reasons I like Kobayashi's writing so much, and especially OOO; is how she's effectively able to drag the hero down to such a low place and yet pull them back right up again in a way that's believable, inspiring and hopeful. And for a series to come not just close to that effectiveness, but do better at it; is no small feat -- I don't say this lightly, but I genuinely believe that this aspect was pulled off even better than in OOO. Sento might just be the greatest dragged down to resolve character I've ever seen, and it's wonderful. And then there's how the power-up representing this actually goddamn works, and this is where it gets genius for me. Now any sort of power-up would have worked, really. Any sort of cool new item that gives a sweet new form, woo; yay. But I don't know if the writer got the toy people to do this or he was taking full advantage of what toy plans Bandai had supplied him with or something, but the idea that the new power-up works with the one that represents everything awful about both his past and current actions, goes on top of it, and turns it into a force of good that represents his resolve to be a hero? Like. This is top-tier symbolism, sorry, but is just is. It's so, soooo fucking good, and I love every little bit of it. The fact that it's essentially bringing out the full power of one bottle's essence and enhancing could also arguably be read into as representing what he's learned from Banjou and what effect the guy's had on him, even if never even hinted at here. Just everything about RabbitRabbit is wonderful. It's beautiful and I adore it. ... oh, and then he uses it to make an effective plan and trick Rogue and an entire government of bad guys as well! Because being a genius and being a hero is a best goddamn match that makes Sento. GOD I love this show. It's totally on-brand for this show, and this story in particular, to be about building heroes, Sento especially. He's the guilt of his past and the hope of his future. The genius who fights. It's about how he combines those things that defines him as a person, and it's how the show uses power-ups as representations of where he is as a person that's Kamen Rider-storytelling at its best. RabbitTank was a starting point, a name he was given by a villain who was manipulating him. RabbitTank Sparkling was him expanding his abilities, trusting himself more to define who he was. Black Hazard was the guilt of his past, the danger that he could be to everyone around him. RabbitRabbit and TankTank layer over the base of Black Hazard, the guilt that'll always be there, to make a new person, emphasizing the aspects of his personality that he wants to see in the world, fully embracing his future. This isn't the work of Takumi, it's the work of Sento. His true self, fully expressed. And, I mean, that's on top of every good thing this story does with Grease, with Cross-Z, with Sawa, with Rogue. There's really no shortage of things to praise this show for, which is pissing me off. It's hard to keep coming up with different ways to praise this show! I've got so many episodes to go, you guys!
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09-20-2019, 04:11 PM | #120 |
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My logic with the second fight is that Touto agreed because they have nothing to lose, and Seito agreed purely because Nanba sees the thing as a weapons demo - it's something they can show to other corrupt governments as a demonstration of their product line, which is all that guy cares about. He can go to someone and go "Hey, remember the Japanese Civil War? Well, all the players in that were too scared to go up against these gear boys. Here's a demo!" And Seito, at this point, is a puppet state ruled by a corporation.
As well as, you know, having a child army,
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