It's so easy to go over-the-top with suit designs. The Heisei era for suits definitely has a maximalist, more-is-more philosophy to a lot of them. Most of my favorite designs are base suits, before the designers start adding on a ton of Powerful additions. Faiz has a great color palette, with the black/silver base and eye-catching red highlights. It fits in my brain right next to Wizard's base suit, another design I really liked.

I do remember a little bit of Faiz's story in that movie, and I'm trying real hard to forget it!

I will usually just grab a bunch of screenshots when I'm watching, funny lines or cool photography or stuff that feels relevant. Afterwards, as I'm writing, I'll choose two that work the best alongside what I've written.

This one, as soon as it happened, I'm like This Is It.

And it's the perfect way to do it on this show. No matter what happens for the rest of this show, Takumi's going to know he embarrassed himself in front of Kusaka and it's going to eat him up inside. That's exactly what I want to be at the core of their relationship.

The bit where Takumi tells him he hopes he doesn't get kicked by a horse and die has a really on-point follow-up that I didn't talk about before. Right after Takumi says it, Kusaka's like Why Would You Say That To Someone Ever, and Takumi says that he's just being sarcastic. Which is what every asshole says when they get called out for being an asshole. It is a response that is one step away from I'm Sorry You Were Offended. It's an asshole trying to pretend you're the asshole for calling them an asshole. It's, again, perfect.

Both Takumi vs. Kusaka scenes were great examples of their individual styles, strength against skill. Takumi definitely has some room to improve!

Probably yeah those aren't your favorite but, don't necessarily call those bad because that is subjective.

Oh well, you said you're drawn characters back then, and just realized it's an exact words, means a no for world building. But the thing is, I believe that those you mentioned will impact the characters like Mari real bad because those are big players of the story. I can predict who was discussed in the world building like Smart Brain/belts, and think how big it will impact the characters you care, even if not immediately.

I'm not talking about Kaido, only Yuka. I think I bring up Yuka's stuff because I also have been in her shoes, to blame myself for other's problem, but to solve that for myself I think again about that person, how do they behave toward others, if they're like that too to others, means it's not my fault.

What's Takumi's deal? Kusaka is infamous but, for this one, it's probably Takumi's fault? What did Kusaka do to him that sends Takumi into that weirdness? Was him the one actually brought Kusaka's bad side here (where would you place Kusaka in character alignments, just this time)? Oh and the part where he walked through horse shit, that's the part I saw on TV when it films Faiz, but only that. And it's proven here that Takumi doesn't have any fighting style ("boxing" is just giving him more credit) where he's just ineffectual on the honor duel.... and probably the brawling too?

Mari? Shipping? Did you just... ignore Masato Kusaka above? And Yuka just accepts Kaido's "date" even if she probably has Keitaro? She's just like Keitaro here to have thoughts of dating another guy.

I already know who's the infamous Masato is, and I was confused why the other Kusaka obliges when Mari calls him such. Turns out that his name is also... Kusaka, just not Masato lol.

Takumi even tries to justify himself by blaming it on his personality. He actively tries to avoid confrontation but everything that comes out of his mouth has a high probability of provoking someone. The rivalry between Takumi and Kusaka is going to test both of them.

I checked the kanji for the 2 Kusakas and.... 草加 They're both the same! What are the odds?!

Everything I'm saying is subjective! I don't ever feel comfortable declaring something objectively good or bad! Everyone's got their own view and all views are valid!

I mean, sure, all of this could/will become very important to Mari down the line, and when that happens I'll probably enjoy it. Right now it's not that important to her, so I don't.

This whole story is Takumi being an asshole to Kusaka for almost no reason, and that's what makes it so funny to me.

If I had to give it a reason, I'd reiterate that there's some core insecurities to Takumi. Him losing the Faiz belt really shook him. Getting it back made him feel more confident, maybe (definitely) overconfident, but it also probably stuck with him that he can be replaced as Faiz. Then Takumi keeps screwing up in front of this jock, and it's all of those insecurities exploding in his brain. He's not good enough, this guy's more popular, etc etc. Takumi's just lashing out because he's scared. It's basically the way characters on this show say Hello to each other!

What's fun is that you can see from the scene where the FaizCyKill falls over on some guy's car that Takumi can politely disengage when folks are mad at him. Something about Kusaka just brings it out of him. Oil and water, those two.

The best part is... this is actually a totally accurate if moderately clunky translation!

Speaking of, Translation Cop here again! The line works either way, but Takkun's actual excuse for his bad mouth is another classic entirely: "I was just born this way". Takumi is the kind of character who is not afraid to own how much he hates somebody! The idea he'd try to pass off an insult as sarcasm instead of immediately doubling down is ridiculous!

I think him claiming sarcasm kind-of is him doubling down on the insult, though? He's embarrassed in front of Kusaka again, and then Kusaka chastises him for being a smart aleck. Claiming sarcasm is a kind of asshole aikido, where you try and turn the the victim's (warranted!) offense against them. By writing off his insult as sarcasm, he gets to insult Kusaka AND try to make him the dope for getting upset about it.

If only Takumi had challenged him to an insult battle instead of fencing!

(Which, of course isn't the line, thanks for the clarification, but I think Takumi would totally use sarcasm as a defense!)

Nah, they should have just settled it with either a walk-off judged by the late David Bowie or a rap battle. :lolol

KAMEN RIDER 555 EPISODE 14

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/faiz/faiz14a.png

--1--

I mean, first of all, Fish Sandwich finished his Kuuga rewatch, and holy shit. If you've suddenly got some free time because of the Zero-One hiatus, or, uh, the world, I would queue up the recently re-subbed Kuuga on TokuSHOUTsu and use Fish's thread as a guide to one of the most celebrated Kamen Rider series. It's astonishingly thorough, made even more so by insights from Kurona, DreamSword, DreadBringer, FreshToku, and so many others. Plus, it's got people taking drive-bys at me, which is one of my favorite things to read. You owe it to yourself to give it a read. It's the healthy thing to do!

--2--

Meanwhile, I've got this episode of Faiz to talk about, and... it's okay. Anything after last episode's fever-dream intensity was going to feel like a step down, and this one sort-of steers into the skid by not really trying to craft a banger. It's a slower episode, with a couple good scenes and a lot of atmosphere, but not the most memorable of installments.

--3--

The big lure for this episode is more Kusaka, and it's got a nice sense of tension to it. Kusaka's quickly winning over the rest of Team Faiz, getting invited to live with them due to Keitaro's fan tendencies and Mari's rarely stated but common-sense policy of Yes The Tall Handsome Athlete Who Carries Around A Photo Of Me Can Stay The Night. Takumi, however, upgrades his irrational hatred of Kusaka to very rational distrust.

I'm, obviously, way more of a fan of Takumi losing his goddamn mind over Kusaka for no logical reason other than Takumi's regrettable psychology, but what's here definitely has more meat on the bone. It's becoming clear that Kusaka's altruism and decency is a little bit exaggerated, and his methods of avoiding questions he can't answer are huge warning signs for Takumi. It's funny if Takumi's mad at a dude that's better at him, but it's way more dramatically interesting if that hatred starts to make Kusaka's mask drop, the suspicions that Takumi won't keep secret dissolving Kusaka's veneer of respectability.

All of that is another way of saying that even a broken hero is right twice a Kamen Rider series, and Takumi's antagonism towards Kusaka may be warranted. I mean, it's definitely warranted, that dude's got capital-s Secrets, but what's in this episode is mostly Kusaka's overly-ingratiating behavior and heroic platitudes turning to sweaty accusations and bug-eyes under Takumi's intransigence.

The arc of Kusaka's slow collapse, it's a pretty great set of scenes. You've got the opening scene, with Kusaka acting the accidental hero, thrust by fate into the spotlight, oh please save your applause I'm but a humble man who blah blah blah. It's enough to make you gag, which is maybe the first thing that pings Takumi's radar. Kusaka's vague denial when questioned about the Ryuusei Cram School For Gifted Youngsters class reunion ("Go Meteors!”) serves as additional proof that this dude is probably a liar. That suspicion curdles into a big ol' Takumi pout, and my favorite visual of the episode. As Kusaka is humbly, so humbly, accepting the role of Kamen Rider Kaixa, he's lauded by Mari and Keitaro, flanking him on the couch. But Takumi isn't onboard, and the camera takes sooooooo long to pull back and get Takumi into frame, since he's seated about twelve feet away from the rest of the group, pouting at the dinner table. It's a beautifully done gag, with Takumi basically in another room, so reluctant to even breathe the same air as Kusaka. The next Takumi/Kusaka scene is the clincher, though, with Takumi telling Kusaka a) I hate you, b) because you're definitely a liar. And Kusaka just starts to lose it. Here's a guy that he can't bullshit, can't win over, and he's holding back a disturbing amount of rage that he wants to level at Takumi. But then the rest of Team Faiz shows up, and he's all smiles, all Me And Takumi Are Just Being Friendly Rivals. But then he's definitely willing to let Takumi get murdered by an Orphnoch at the end, so, maybe this Takumi guy is right?!?!?!?! Rough times ahead for this show's two or less Riders!

--4--

Although, Team Orphnoch isn't doing so hot this week, either. Kaido's committing himself as a lover, not a fighter, while Houjou takes aim at all disobedient Orphnochs with the deadliest weapon of them all: poetry!

It's a solid entry for the Orphnochs, mostly on the strength of that final fight. (The Kaido/Mari scene is very cute, too.) Yuuji tells the group early on that they need to understand that his decision to not harm humans puts them at odds with Smart Brain, and there will be repercussions. Those repercussions are that Houjou will show up to beat the shit out of a fully-Oprphnoched Kaido without even transforming.

It's so, so great. It's a classic You Go Big By Going Small dramatic move, where the fact that Houjou barely even has to fight to destroy Kaido is the most terrifying display of power imaginable. And he kicks his ass with Yeats! Just trounces him with an Irish poet!

Once Yuuji and Yuka show up, the fight becomes truly memorable, as three Orphnochs are no match for the nearly untouchable Houjourphnoch. There's some stellar choreography here, with Houjourphnoch constantly able to position himself in a way where one of his opponents takes the hit instead of him. It's all tactics, all strategy, and it makes him look like someone who can take three monsters without breaking a sweat. It's Yuka's interference that stops the fight, though, with Houjou clarifying that he's only after Orphnochs who won't kill humans... so she's in the clear.

Yuka's complacency has been one of the more interesting stories of the three Orphnochs, as she conforms herself to whatever role best suits her teammates. Even when Yuuji's looking for affirmation from the other two that they understand the risk and believe in his cause, Yuka's basically Uh Sure Whatever You Think Is Best. Not exactly a ringing endorsement! (Also, Yuuji's next line is that Yuka definitely wouldn't kill anyone anyway. Hilarious!) Her... I don't know, self-actualization, that's been a nicely simmering subplot, and I'm interested to see if the show's ready to bring it to the fore.

--5--

And that's a lot of what made this episode a solid-if-unexceptional one, the feeling of things ramping up, almost getting to the good part. What's in the episode is still entertaining, but it's a more subdued, tense version of what Faiz usually does in a more bombastic way. It's a little less of what I'm looking for in Faiz, but I still had a good time with it.

Now go read Fish Sandwich rewatches Kamen Rider Kuuga!

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/faiz/faiz14b.png

Excuse you, I have never had an 'insight' of any kind! Also wow, I remember how fun it was to see Takumi and Kusaka drive each other up the wall in such a specific way in this episode. Takumi's incredibly petty but in this case, it's exactly what is needed to crack Kusaka's oh-so-perfect shell.

I have some early thoughts about Kusaka, but I'm going to save them until you get to know him a little better. I'll just say for now that he is, hands down, the Toshiki Inoue-est character on the show by far.

And speaking of Inoue, we got one of his major go-to story beats this time around: a fight ending when somebody gets knocked into water. Two times in a row, no less.