Oh I am well aware after hearing from friends spoiler free. I've just finished episode 2 as well and fucking hell am I glad I'm aware enough of Japanese politics to get what's going on here. I remember that for Amazonz, one of the people behind the show said their intention was to give the 'toothless' Kamen Rider series back it's edge but this does that and more so far

I’ll have to rewatch this again for a real opinion. My tired brain didn’t process everything I saw last night. Didn’t like the ending. Black… has plot issues to address. Back to sleep you people rock

I took it more allegorical. That Aoi is doing what Kotaro did for her, handing over the ability to fight when necessary to the next generation. And, given how young Aoi is, they can't properly show that without using literal children, or the generational message gets kinda lost. It's not perfect, but I feel it works well.

Maybe this such a bad edgy reference to the rider`s scouts from the first seasons?

I think that if the show's ending is so divisive and even interpretive, it's definitely an achievement for its creators and a milestone for the entire franchise.

I think that is both severely overstating this show and understating the franchise overall. Kamen Rider has done moral questions and allegories plenty in the past, and has many series with intelligent writing and messages. In fact those are usually messages created within the dynamics of the series itself, rather than just mirroring real life wholesale.

Even ignoring the moral implications of the ending, I find this version of Minami Kotaro quite unpleasant. He's unmotivated, lacks any personality or drive, and doesn't feel like a hero or even a human being. He's flat as a board and about as charismatic as one. He just goes through the motions, feeling like he's completely without agency. The fact that they played the original theme over him feels almost like a parody given the lyrics and tone.

The original Kotaro's optimism and hot-blooded personality were infectious. He treated every situation with the gravity it had, and was incensed by injustice and cruelty. He'd be the perfect personality type for this story, not the bland husk that we got. Again, this doesn't feel like it has anything to do with Black specifically. Kamen Rider Black was a hero of justice, Black Sun is just a prop.

Exactly. It makes it seem like they're preying on the young and foolish, the same way Nobuhiko did, with presumably similar results. He got a bunch of teenagers killed, along with everyone they were trying to save, and only two survived. The fact that Aoi is beat-for-beat repeating Nobuhiko's actions implies she and her conscripts are doomed to a similar fate.

One thing in particular that bothered me was the idea that Kotaro taught Aoi how to fight. This is repeated both literally and figuratively, as though he somehow imparted the will and drive to stand up and take action. He didn't do anything of the sort, and I can't imagine he'd be happy knowing she went on to create a terrorist cell comprised of young children. I was half expecting that scene to end with the whole building exploding because a preteen improperly wired a fuse.