Kamen Rider Zero-One Episode 36- "The Ark & A Kamen Rider" Discussion
 

The legendary Ark has returned and taken on a new form. What can Hiden Manufacturing do against this new foe?!

I'm just gonna say now way ahead of time that I'm expecting the final episode to be titled "I'm Hiden Aruto and a Kamen Rider!" or something close.

Kamen Rider Naki is coming next week!

What's her key?

So just even on the Raw Video, Ark-Zero is a damn abomination of a monster and definitely is our Final Boss.

*Thouser existing*

Ark-Zero: "let's go kick his ass"

Given the claws... maybe a wolverine? :lol

Called it, as was seen when Ark possessed Jin, so likely Naki and Ikazuchi will get their turn of being Ark Zero.

I'm actually not sure how I feel about this. This is basically the equivalent to Cronus and Evol's debut, and according to the recent scans, it seems like Ark Zero being the big bad guy is going to be the status quo from now until the end of the show.

The show has a bunch of different antagonists, on both the human and humagear sides, and it's been intriguing watching Aruto in the middle of it even if I think literally none of it has been capturing the full potential it has. For the show to now just be about everyone banding together to take on one generically evil monster who just wants to do bad things to everyone else... I don't normally mind toku shows going for the most straightforward direction, but this time it feels especially uninspired.

I think the main reason I feel that way is because despite how many times Thouser has gotten beaten, the show never made any actual steps towards settling things with ZAIA, or even imply there was ever an endgame other than 'beat up Gai every time he tries to do something bad'. Now it feels like we're moving on from a story we never actually started.

Ark Zero is kinda cool, at least. The effects and sounds all come together to really make it look like this technological monster came straight from the deepest and darkest pits of humanity's depravity. Only weird thing there is that I thought for sure it looked like it was gonna take a turn in Fuwa's body, but it just sorta tickles him for a bit instead.

That was a pretty good episode, Ark-Zero impresses greatly and I welcome him as our big bad for the rest of the series. Also you know, Sho Hayami very much impresses when it comes to the voice work.

The thing is an absolute technological monster that is also basically a symbiote, can just create and toss Attache weapons like it's nothing and basically can hack anything.

Also I got to say I did enjoy the Fuwa stuff this time around, I wasn't sure on him just being a normal guy, but I kinda like this development for him. Just the fact that we have like an actual stable family that is alive in Kamen Rider is amazing.

Not much more to say other than I am excited for this weeks episode.

I get what you're saying, but I think some of it I feel was the virus screwed things up in some areas. It's one of those unfortunate things.

Is it kinda weird that I enjoyed Fuwa's scenes with his AI-friend the most out of this episode? Because I did.

No not really, I loved that part of the episode tbh. I really do dig the idea of Aruto figuring that an AI without a face and just a voice would be easier to talk to about personal stuff. And I also love how it rubbed off on Fuwa so much he left it with Yua before the confrontation with Ark-Zero.

Now that I think about it isnt this the second time aruto thought of this solution already?

Very happy to see that this show's episode titles have now completed their own four part "I'm a Kamen Rider!"/"We're Kamen Rider!"/"We're Me!?"/"Goodbye Me!" saga. Although if they want to do a surprise crossover episode with Drive called "俺は刑事で仮面ライダー", that would make it really perfect. :p

This was a cool episode, although it's another one of those mostly setup types that's kind of hard to talk about on its own. It's a little surprising to see that Masaya Kakehi is the one given the honor of kicking off the show's final arc, but then, I've been saying since the start his writing is on the same level as Takahashi's, so what does it matter, right?

I ended up really enjoying Fuwa's dilemma here, and the idea that he finds a sort of inner peace in the knowledge that there can be a plain, ordinary life waiting for him if he wants it hits me right in that Go-Busters sweet spot. It makes a lot of sense that someone who was manipulated into defining his life by melodramatic trauma would be thrilled at the thought of having a nice, boring, stable family. Fuwa's development could've gone in a million directions, but I wouldn't mind it at all if he ends up becoming a more mellow guy at the end of it all. I know you modern kids with your Kamen Rider Taisens will have trouble believing it, but Showa Riders were actually chill dudes a lot of the time. It'd just be one more old-school parallel for Vulcan, and I'm always up for more of that. Although, on the other hand, Showa Riders also have just as many dead parents as the newer ones...

Hopefully that doesn't end poorly!

I also really loved Aruto on the phone with Fukuzoe? It's a little thing, and there's obviously a lot of tension between them, but I like the idea that Fukuzoe would like to keep Hiden Intelligence on-track, and does not for a second entertain any ideas that Gai is an improvement over Aruto, but is also, you know, himself, so there's really nothing he can do, so he mostly does nothing except complain and cling desperately to what little status he's managed to hang onto. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: there's a lot of dramatic potential in this goofy side character I would really love to see drilled into for even an episode! This is why I'll always stick by episodic shows. Being on this Ark train for the rest of the show inherently makes that harder to find space for, so I'm not exactly getting my hopes up, nor am I really holding that against the series. A little scene like this, even if it's mostly there to make Aruto aware of the plot, is pretty good for what it is.

Oh, and speaking of the Ark, that guy kinda seems like a jerk! I don't know what Horobi did to deserve getting tackled through a concrete wall like that, but I do like this twist on Gold Drive's whole body-snatching concept of jumping between several hosts. It allows for Ark-Zero to actually have multiple onscreen transformations, like a real Kamen Rider would, despite not having a proper "human" form to call his own. It's neat.

So Premium Bandai A.I.chan probably is gonna be a thing. :lolol

that and this show might be cut short sadly

Im so glad i wasnt the only one to get gold drive vibes from ark zero.

Aside from the painful shtick with the fortune teller, this was a really good episode. Nice to see Jin is ostensibly on the side of the heroes (when he has a choice) and that Yaiba actually had a good reason for working with him. I also liked the bits picking up on Fuwa's family.

It's just really nice to have new episodes again, even if Gai didn't get his ass handed to him again this week.

In terms of function, I can see it. In terms of design, though? The black suit; the red, white, and yellow accents; the belt: I'm seeing a lot of Kamen Rider Black in this guy.

We definitely see where Fuwa got that sense of humor from, and not even false memories can take that away from him.

As for character introduction, its those little moments where Aruto remember what his grandfather created the company for, the values that it stood for, solidifies that family theme for him as well.

Yeah i was talking function. Im also seeing the roidmude arc of basically the villains (evolved roidmudes and metsubojinrai) turning on their leader (banno and ark) because they realize they are actually terrible and goals arent the same. We kind of already see it beginning with jin. Horobi is definitely starting to go that way too.

Can't wait for Jun to "accidentally" get posessed by Ark-Zero and become to big bad of the whole show.

But yeah, as a big return from two months of hiatus, this was well worth the wait. Well, except maybe the fortune teller. Oof.

Fuwa's stuff with his family, and with Ai the Friend Disc, was some good character work for him trying to work through his now-not-so-tragic backstory, and while I thought we were gonna have him become Ark-Zero at the end, I guess that's a later problem.

Yua and Jin teaming up as a B-Team was also unexpected, but I kinda digged it? Jin being friends with someone other than Aruto is nice to see, and hey, she helped get back Naki, so guess he owes her one life save. Sure, he keeps calling her "Valkyrie", but him, Horobi and Ikazuchi all named their rider forms after themself, so maybe he just thinks that's her name. Also like Yua in the hospital bed basically admitting to making a bad decision helping bring back the Ark because Yua's been making bad decisions all series.

And oh yeah, the Ark itself. It's pretty cool. Nice transformation sequence too, as others have pointed out, makes it a little more distinct from Gordon Drive.

It only just occurred to me I forgot to mention one of my other favorite things about the episode, which was seeing Aruto take some action as the head of a company and come up with an idea for a product. I mean, it's just a robot voiced by MAO, and this one isn't even a Kyuranger, so like, distinctly a freshman effort, but still, it's a level of proactivity I like seeing from him. Hopefully he can be equally actively involved in the development of any future projects for Hiden Manufacturing. Imagine how amazing their 02nd product could end up being!

Can I just say that Jin, outside of Fuwa, has been the most dynamic character on this show? He's served so many roles throughout this show, from lackey, to leader, to wildcard, to double agent/ally and the shift between each has been really well done.

Jin started out as my most hated character but now he might be my second favourite next to Fuwa.

It's a bit of a shame when your main rider is more of a satellite character.

Happens many times in Kamen Rider franchise

Ryuki, Faiz to a degree (boy, so many kamen riders), initial part of Hibiki, heck technically the riders in Den-O are satellite characters, main character is just a singularity point.

Even Build, Banjou Ryuuga is very enjoyable and overshadows the main character often.

You all realise this isn't what a satellite character *is*, right? A satellite character is purely defined, and has no character traits outside of, a single other character. Somelike like Shesta is a satellite character, becuase she's purely defined as "Jun's assistant", and has no character outside of that.

Aruto has goals. He has dreams. He doesn't just exist as a prop for other characters, he influences them, he changes them. He drives the series forwards. A satellite character has a meaning, and when you're calling Sento (!!) a satelite character, you've either not seen Build, or just donbn't understand the term. Someone not having a massive, dramatic backstory doesn't make them a satellite, and neither does the show taking a few episodes to develop other characters.

I think Ark definitely qualifies as a satellite character.

And that's how you know it's Aruto!

Rider fans watching a show with a lighthearted protagonist like

https://i.imgur.com/oX5cfOKl.png
https://i.imgur.com/slYexlGl.png

Ryuki I feel works, as Shinji was like the bright spot when most of the Riders were assholes.
I feel I don't include Build as Sento has a unique personality than other Riders, like he comes across as egotistical and witty, like I feel he's someone you could meet on the street.

I can't believe I didn't make this joke myself, blew the perfect chance.