SHOTARO HIDARI HARDBOILED DELUSION DIARY EPISODE 7 - “WHAT IF AKIKO WAS A MAGICIAN?”

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In an episode full of ridiculous concepts – Shotaro being turned into a doll, the Puppeteer Dopant being a part of a magic show that takes place in the W Cave, Terui being attracted to Lily – I think my favorite one was Akiko doing an absolutely terrible somersault to mimic Lily’s acrobatic entrances. It’s so slow and tentative, and it is perfect. It’s expert goofy physical comedy, and I liked it more than any of the wacky flights of fancy this episode had to offer.

I mean, this was still a good one! Philip and Terui are underutilized (and the audio in the introductory scene could’ve been a little better at catching dialogue), but Shotaro’s incredibly charming as Akiko’s blustery but distracted victim, and Akiko’s somersault you guys. It’s really funny!

The Invisible Arc, I don't remember it in its entirety, but it is definitely one of the ones I recall liking a lot. There's some fun clever setup with Shotaro telling Terui there's still people who care about him, leading into the fun payoff where he himself restates Shotaro's own words to Lily. I just loved that moment of realization from him where everything just finally clicks.

That being said there are two parts I remember this arc for in particular. Twin Maximum. It's such a cool and dangerous concept, and while it is reckless on Shotaro's part, it is absolutely incredible to see him stake his life for Terui despite their differences before and in this episode. Likewise what I remember from the second episode isn't the Twin Rider Maximum which you'd think I would.

No it's the part which I ended up utilizing for one of my Fanfics, and that's Accel killing Lily to eject the Invisible Memory before reviving her. It's such a clever tactic and definitely puts the Denden Sensor above the Frog Pod for me now due to how vital it ended up being in keeping Lily from being another one of Isaka's victims.

That said, let's talk Weather Dopant. One in which I forgot that Ryubei was the one who interrupted the fight, and in my hazy memory I thought that Shotaro managed to scare Weather off. But also man is the Weather Dopant a very solid design, I totally forgot he had that cool electrical whip too.

The Delusion Diary was a rather fun one this time too. Not much to say but, puppet Shotaro is hilarious and that somersault is also incredible. That being said I wasn't expecting Akiko to take advantage of this and basically shove Shotaro in a magic box complete with magic blade and both Philip and Terui noping out in order to avoid the mishap that will occur after the minisode ends.

Yeah, and it's especially nice that Shotaro's risky maneuver is all down to not wanting Terui to cry, because Shotaro doesn't want anyone in Fuuto to cry because of Dopants. Like, Terui crying is something Shotaro can't stand almost as much as Terui can't stand it!

KAMEN RIDER W EPISODE 29 - “NIGHTMARISH H - THE MELANCHOLY OF SLEEPING BEAUTY”

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Solid enough episode, with an absolutely killer cliffhanger, but one that felt like it didn’t do enough with the premise.

I feel like an episode that delves into the dreamscapes of both Double and Accel should illuminate something about their characters – some hidden trauma, or secret hope, or unrecognized complication. Something that lets both the audience and the character see the psychology of the hero from a different angle. Instead, we get Terui confronting the goofy wedding of his dead sister, and Double going to the Toei Edo Set for the annual historical epic. Neither one rises to the level of last story’s deconstruction of Terui’s self-negating need for vengeance, settling instead for a wacky samurai riff and not much else.

And, y’know, I guess it’s okay to aim for Humor over Drama? It’s not the worst thing in the world, letting this whole episode flit from Adorable Ditz to Colorful Professor to Jinno’s Wedding to Shotaro Gets Hooked On A Samurai Drama to Double Ends Up In A Samurai Drama. It’s significantly lower stakes than a symbolic trip through a character’s unconscious, but it’s not nothing. The Nightmare Dopant makes a fun foil, mixing elements from less horrific Dopants like Liar to become a cartoony antagonist in an unusual setting. It’s different, if nothing else.

It’s just… I don’t know, the premise could be so much more than a cross between an HBV and those Heisei summer movies where everyone goes back to the Edo period/set. It’s carte blanche to really excavate intriguing details, and it’s slightly underwhelming to feel like that’s not of any interest to the producers.

At least we got a hell of a cliffhanger, though! Isaka wandering in to find Double asleep and at his mercy, with only Akiko to defend them? That’s real good. But Philip waking up to draw Isaka’s attention away from a sleeping Shotaro, and getting a lightning bolt in the back for his trouble? That’s great. It’s a fun complication to this story’s setup, to bring in Isaka as a separate threat in the real world to the Nightmare Dopant’s attack in the dreamworld. It’s extra fun because this isn’t some villainous strategy, it’s just dumb luck. Isaka came looking for a Dopant, and just happened to find the two heroes he most wants to punish. Bad luck for Double, good luck for the viewers!

I definitely felt like this one had a good enough ending to forgive some limited ambition in the writing stage. It’s a fun episode, but I felt like it could’ve been more than that. But at least Philip got murdered?

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DIE-A MEMORIES

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-I love that Terui’s nightmare is that his sister marries Jinno. That means that he’s more afraid of her being alive and marrying Jinno, than her being dead. Truly a fate worse than death!

-We get a tiny check-in on the Sonozakis, where Wakana is now in the full-on Drug Addicted Mood Swing phase of Isaka’s attempt to wean her off her Driver. I don’t love it? It’s fine for illustrating Isaka’s deranged view of Dopant supremacy, but it doesn’t really give anyone else on that side of the show anything to do other than look concerned and/or chemically-altered. It’s a plot that only Isaka is really participating in, which is… a bit of a letdown.

After the journey, now Terui puts his revenge quest aside, prioritizing on saving Lily, and like Philip claims, they're fighting Isaka here as a duty for a Kamen Rider instead of revenge. And by this Lily acknowledges Terui as cool despite being scary. Denden Sensor is used to detect the actually still-standing Lily so Accel can kill her by stopping her heart (but with her body intact), releasing it from her body at last, as the Memory will eject if the user is detected as dead. Like Lily herself for Dopant powers being used for daily job, Accel then uses his superpower to perform mundane (but important) task, which is restarting Lily's heart, successfully saving her and crushing the Invisible Memory in his hands. I'm a sucker for superpowers being used for mundane task, to show that there are other uses for it other than fighting, and there seems to be nothing really wrong in this case.

Terui seems moved by Shotaro's risky attempt, explaining that it's due to Terui's anguish, and as Philip said, Terui is a part of the gang now, insisting he save Lily as the city's Kamen Rider. Terui however still acts outwardly rude, claiming that Shotaro is to blame for getting in his way (and idiotic for worrying about Lily). Accel is the only one who can save Lily from her situation (Isaka's trap), but he refuses to help, putting his revenge above everything, and refuses any questions like usual. Honestly, what'd revenge accomplish if everything else is put aside, a selfish act for something rather useless? Though Shotaro was able to affect Terui in the short term, he didn't truly change for now, this episode shows his prejudice toward any Dopants too to see Lily as nothing more as a criminal due to utilizing Gaia Memory even for mundane tasks. Poor Shotaro at the end though where Lily thanks only Terui for saving her, as well as her falling in love with him. Akiko.. ships them both despite her crush on Terui as well. Terui saved her due to Shotaro's influence, this is a bit of a mean move for Lily tbh, whereas certain other Rider series like Ex-Aid teaches that behind one person that saves someone, there's teamwork as well in others contributing with other things.

As Phillip concludes that Accel's the one that only save Lily, Akiko offers him to ask Terui again. But Terui wasn't the only one that is affected negatively by a grudge, Phillip as well that he refuses to ask him for putting Shotaro in his current state (not that Phillip will succeed if he did, but reasonings matter, he's turning into a bit of Terui himself too here), which finally prompts Akiko to do it instead. Honestly yes, Akiko's the one with best chance as Terui mellowed down the most around her, even he explained Akiko's protest in a more gentle way for Riko ("only a Memory Break"). Akiko... interrogates Makura with her (dual) slipper as threatening device for Terui's information. The slipper's really a mighty weapon like the memes said as Makura submits.

Frank also points out that Terui looks grim and resembles a.. monster for that. Reminds how revenge can eventually turn someone into something as bad as their revenge target, if left unchecked, figuratively making them monstrous. Though Shotaro's influence kicks in in pivotal moments, where Terui warns Lily that she'll die if she keeps using the Memory, though Lily still insists to perform due to it being Frank's final performance, not caring if she'd die. HE also echoes Shotaro's words to him before that there are those who'd worry about her, which he realizes himself. So Terui puts a tsundere act, but still, harsh facade here causes some problem that Lily runs away for a while which likely could've been prevented if someone's straightforward against her problem.

More of Isaka is shown here where he finishes multiple dishes for a dinner, which corresponds to his power hungry-persona for seeking more and more Memories as Ryubee notes. But from Wakana's report previously, Ryubee notes that Wakana has been upset lately (criticizing Isaka as disgusting, well she directs her annoyance to someone deserving this time) and he won't tolerate any threats to the family, being suspicious to Isaka and Saeko's plan. A bit of redeeming quality to put his family's welfare above anything it seems, contrasting Isaka who had no qualms killing an entire family only for experiment (this seems to be why Saeko is attracted to him, being horrible, unlike Kirihiko doing bad things for good cause). Isaka confirms Ryubee's assertion of him that he had many Living Connectors throughout his body, exactly 7 on his chest, as a reference for Fist of the North Star. He saves his face (which Saeko praises him again for that) by claiming his belief to the Museum by doing those to help him, even offering himself as guinea pig if needed too, earning Ryubee's approval.

I remembered bits of this one, mostly the client desuuu. I don't speak a lick of Japanese outside of a few recurring phrases that I pick up from watching these shows desuuu. As such, it can be kind of hard for me to notice things like regional accents or vocal tics desuuu. But not this time desuuu. The actress playing Himeka puts so much effort into her moe vocal tic that it was impossible not to notice desuuu. I find it incredibly annoying desuuu. Not a huge problem, but it makes me dread all of her scenes desuuu.

And hey, it's the Edo set making it's annual Kamen Rider appearance for 2010! Nothing says early 2010s Kamen Rider like over-reliance on monster/victim-of-the-fortnight plots. Toei dusting off the Edo set for an episode and/or movie comes real damn close, though.

Desuuu.

When the episode opened with Akiko dropping a very large Edo-era samurai box set into frame, I was like Oh, and when I found out we'd be heading into characters' dreams I was like Oh. As far as contrived reasons to use that set, this one is... definitely up there!

Quite a thinking that Shotaro who can't sleep decides to try using his disinterest to historical stuff that he claims will put him through sleep within minutes, by watching Kaze no Saheji. But Akiko was right all along, Shotaro actually gets hooked into the series and marathoned it for a whole night instead. Green Eggs and Ham stuff of trying new things that aren't in one's interest but turns out they like it. It should be easier to sleep (wanting to avenge Terui), when you've stayed all night.

Himeka is described as beautiful as Snow White, which plays into some part of her given name Himeka Yukimura. The Snow White play is true with her frilly outfit. The resemblance to Snow White continues where her study group consists of her and 7 boys (and Himeka depicts them as Seven Dwarves in her drawings). She' also a cuddle bug where it's said her way of being nice is calling any men who do her a favor her fated prince, not an usual "Shotaro loser to cool Terui" as she hugs them both. Naturally, Akegi would be suspected as a mad scientist who turns into Dopant for his research (at least by Akiko).

And at that dream, Nightmare declares himself to be Himeka's prince. The actual Philip is immune to Nightmare's powers (erasing or projectiles) due to him being another kind who appears in someone else's dream. A bit confused where, there'd be 2 Philips in Philipachi (who's still works like real Phillip) and actual Philip. This also confirms that the Dopant isn't Akegi as Nightmare confesses that he had put Akegi to sleep too.

Yeah, unfortunately for W, the Dopant of the week being dream based that they have to sleep to get through him means they're left in a very vulnerable state (Phillip's hole in his strategy, should sleep in a more isolated area). Isaka raining lightning as Weather directly to W wakes Philip up and leaves Shotaro alone to fight Nightmare. Still Philip's in far worse condition than Shotaro's, only having Fang to defend him against Nightmare's assault which isn't enough. eventually taking direct hit from Weather's lightning barrage, giving scorch marks all over his body, and Akiko can only cry over Phillip's unconscious body.

And this scene also plays up as if Akagi's the Dopant, as he appears by answering Terui's suspicion as well as admitting to put 6 students to sleep. Apparently, Terui still can henshin as Accel in his dream, and as expected from apparently the ruler of the dream, Nightmare can alter the dream to his liking like changing the scenery into a billiard hall, and also pranking Accel by pretending to explode after being hit by jet Engine attack. I wonder what limits of the reality manipulation he can do in the dream, but Nightmare still defeats Accel by trapping him in dreamcatcher-like net. And Jinno and Makura are incompetent to be asleep when this happened, neglecting their duties to wake him up.

For this, Ryubee displays his protectiveness of his (apparently favored) daughter, warning Isaka that he'll make him pay if something happened to Wakana, the shot being done in a hole from pile of dishes.

It's a really good shot! It's got Ryubei leaning in one end, looking impossibly dominant; and it's got Isaka on the other end, looking like he finally realizes what the stakes are in pursuing his goals within the Museum. It's a very evocative staging.

As for Wakana being Ryubei's favorite... I mean, I think it's more that Saeko's always been the focused, driven daughter, and Wakana's always been the more emotional one, flighty one. Wakana needs to be protected (especially right now!) in a way that Seako would never allow.

Playing catch-up again, and I just finished the Invisible two-parter.

When I first saw these episodes way back, I was overall fine with them, but now, on rewatch, with the power of foresight, I actually don't really like them at all.

Why is it called "D Was Watching?" Up to now every title has had to do with the Memory being focused on, and not only is there no D Memory to be found, the only thing I can think D's short for is "Denden" which is a technicality.

We're also now up to the third time the phrase "It's too dangerous to use!" has been uttered. First with the Trigger Memory, then with the Fang Memory, and now with Twin Maximum. I'm not saying the situations aren't warranted, but hearing the same thing get parroted so often gets tiring.

And that in turn brings me to clinger: Isaka. The guy is way too invincible, and boringly so. Like, I get it, you wanna make sure Terui's' overarching villain has the chops to be a legit threat. However, him getting away with alot of what he does makes no sense. The big one this time being that Terror Dad decides to step in once he's discovered Wakan's' Driver has been tampered with.

...Only to then do nothing at all about it and let the dude be. So there in turn bring ups two possibilities. Either A) Terror Dad doesn't actually care about his daughter and thus stepped in to confront Weather for no reason or 2) He does care, but he just does nothing for the sake of the plot. Combine this with what the show tries to pull with Terror Dad later on and I just find myself more annoyed than anything.

Sure, there are some nice character beats throughout with our main cast, and the stuff with Lily is solid enough, but with how much these two episodes hinge on Weather, I just couldn't find myself having much of a good time.