KAMEN RIDER 555 EPISODE 21

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/faiz/faiz21a.png

--1--

Why does the Takumi/Yuuji friendship work so well?

I've said before that their chemistry makes for one of my favorite pairings on this show, so nearly an entire episode devoted to them slowly growing closer as friends? YES. But, like, even after this episode it's hard to say why they work so well together.

--2--

In past encounters, there was more of a sense of Yuuji being above Takumi. Yuuji, sweetly, hilariously, would implore Takumi to stop his roguish ways and finally make his sister (who is not his sister) proud. Or Yuuji would be there for Takumi during a crisis, ready to lend an ear to someone who's struggling.

Here, there's more a sense of them as peers, two young men trying to survive. The pizza job is an example of their similarities, as well as their differences. They both get handed this job to help out their friends, and they both somehow grow to care for it. But the how and why are so specific to them as people.

For Yuuji, it's nice to have a human job, to care about human things again. It's not about fighting or killing, it's about applying yourself and honoring a commitment. There's a boss, and he's depending on you, and you're part of a machine that makes sense. There's not that pressure of being an outcast. He can work his job and find peace in a simple life.

For Takumi, he's reluctant and bad at his job. He'll do the bare minimum, and complain the whole time. He hates people depending on him, but he's tired of being a disappointment. At a time when he can't be Faiz, he wants to feel like there's something he's good at, so he applies himself and honors his commitment. He cares about the pizza place and wants it to succeed.

There's this great feeling of these two completely different men finding a core that's the same. Maybe that's it?

--3--

Or maybe it's the way they innately care for one another?

There's a... I don't know, a softness (?) to the relationship they have that's so different from everything else Takumi would call a friendship. Previously, they had that little scene where Yuuji's like Don't Worry About That Monster And Corpse and Takumi's like I Was Going To Say The Same Thing. It was very cute. Here, once again, Takumi wants Yuuji to feel safe, to know that it's clearly Takumi that endangered them. Meanwhile, Yuuji needs Takumi to know that, actually, it's not Takumi's fault, it's Yuuji who's endangered them.

And, look, I'm sure people could be screaming at the scenes of them talking around their secret identities, furious that they wouldn't just get their secrets out in the open. But they care too much about one another to do that. Takumi doesn't want Yuuji to be scared, and Yuuji doesn't want Takumi to be scared. It's all of the bullshit that usually gets applied to the women of the supporting cast, the coworkers and sisters and whatever, but applied to the two male leads. It's lovely.

Their whole thing, it's lovely. I don't want to make this a different kind of post, but if you asked me which pairing on the show had the best romantic chemistry, it's Yuuji and Takumi by a mile. (#takkiba) Even their bickering, running for their lives, might as well have But You Know You Love Me appended to every exchange.

It's, god, I don't know why their friendship ("friendship”) works so well for me. I think it's just the actors, taking what could/should be a heated rivalry or Agree To Disagree standoff and just going full-on Star-Crossed Romance with it. I don't give a shit about anyone else on this show falling out (untrue), but the idea of Yuuji and Takumi not being together is incredibly tense to me.

--4--

Especially after what they went through in this episode!

It's got a lot of moves on it, from the workplace comedy aspects at the pizzeria, through to the humans vs Orphnoch hunting sequence.

It's a great predicament for Takumi and Yuuji to be in, with Yuuji reluctant to transform in front of Takumi, and Takumi finding himself without the Faiz belt. It reminds me a lot of the early episode of Mari and Takumi almost getting killed, and how that near-death experience gave Takumi the strength to be honest about his feelings. Here, it's doing everything he could to protect Yuuji, while Yuuji did the same for him. That little back and forth smile they give each other as they cause the Orphnochs to split up! I mean, come on. That is Big Emotions right there.

--5--

I liked the conclusion, but it's still the weakest part of the episode for me.

Faiz gets a power-up, and it looks boss. The quick run through of the enemies followed by a slowed down instant replay? Really great visual. And it's nice that Takumi's faith in Orphnochs could be rewarded, as he let's the pizza shop owner go live a life of making pizzas and being very specific as to what angle you should bow to the customer. (Forty-five degrees.) And, man, I love that Yuuji wakes up from being murdered and the first thing he says is that he couldn't save Takumi. God, yes. And of course the next person he sees is Faiz! Who he wants to murder!

The weak part, though, was all of the Kaixa stuff. Way too many unanswered questions in this one. How did Kaixa defeat Houjou? Is Houjou still alive? What was Kusaka doing in that weird warehouse? Why didn't he answer his phone? (Other than, it was Takumi and he didn't care to?) Where did he get the Accel watch? I get that this will all probably be dealt with in the next episode or two, but it's such a weird thing to skip over that the Accel stuff in the end didn't completely work for me. It was fun to watch, but the Kaixa stuff was just too mysterious to stay unaddressed this time out.

Still! Takumi and Yuuji in a whole episode that deepens their connection! Always something I'll enjoy!

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/faiz/faiz22b.png
https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/faiz/faiz22c.png

Of all the ways Riders have received power-ups over the years, Kusaka just chucking the Faiz Axel at Takumi's head is one of the all-time greats.

As for the rest of that, I don't remember how much explanation we actually get. This is one of Inoue's biggest problems as a writer; I don't think it gets that bad on Faiz, but you can definitely consider all this missing exposition as a small teaser for Kiva.

I always knew I was really into the relationship and dynamic of these two. I sometimes forget I am more into them than even Shinji/Ren. (It's probably because it's always Kaixa they reference in all the nostalgia baiting specials in modern times.) They're the reason to watch the show for me, as they should be since their the protagonists and all!

Faiz Accel is cool, certainly. I unfortunately can only think about how I think it falls short in coolness to Accel Trial (I know Trial ripped it off but still) and his thousand kicks. Anyhow, that scene where Kusaka just chucks the watch at Takumi is probably one of the best ways to receive a power-up there is. EDIT: Wow I got sniped on that last point!

Kusaka having the Accel Watch is an artefact of an earlier version of the toyline where the item was intended for use by Kaixa. For whatever reason, they changed it when it came to design the advertising. Personally, I don’t mind the lack of explanation, since I kind of get bored when EVERY power up is treated like a religious artefact that was touched by Jesus himself.

But anyway I digress. Because they chose to give us Faiz Accel instead of Kaixa Break (that was the name they had planned, by the way), Faiz ends up as one of five KR shows where only the lead Rider gets a power up (the others are Hibiki, Kabuto, Decade and OOO[Birth Day doesn’t count]). Ironically, that practice is more at home in Super Sentai. Most of the Power-up warriors in these pictures I’m about to share? Most of them are one user at a time, or one user period.

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/...20180928192748

https://twitter.com/4thdocactinfig/s...695607810?s=20

If someone asked me earnestly to find something good to say about Faiz; something I really liked about it; the greatest positives I could come up with for the season? I'd point to this episode.

I might not have cared too much for Takumi himself, and Yuuji's first deeds in the series always felt a little too casually tossed to the side and forgotten; but a lot of their other character traits were very intriguing and any scene they were in together had them bringing out each others' best parts. This episode exemplifies it best for me, and when they got to team up it had me cheering and when they once again fought each other due to misunderstandings, it's tragic. Just so much going on here that's great.

I agree that Mari is a good friend for Yuka and now that you bring it up, the first girl she ever bonded with. However, I must continue to disagree with your perspective of Yuka's motivations. While she is trying to find her place in the world like Takumi, she's actually a very selfless person who genuinely cares a lot about Kaido's welfare, not just her own. She may have used Keitarou (IRL) to make herself feel better but that definitely doesn't apply to Kaido. She really does just want him to be happy, even if that means she can't be with him.

I'm not sure if you were being hyperbolic when you said "she doesn't need a man to attach herself to" or just that you meant she needs more in her life but there are certain boxes that romantic partners tick which friends, as great as they are to have, don't. Friendship is wonderful for sure, but I think it's realistic for Yuka to want a boyfriend, the same way even Takumi sometimes expresses a passive interest in finding a girlfriend.

Apart from Faiz? Well I already mentioned how I consider Faiz the Jetman of Kamen Rider. Black Condor is my favorite Black Ranger in all of Super Sentai, he's such a bad*ss in every scene. I think Faiz and Jetman are Inoue at his best. They have drama, comedy, romance, action. I mean, what don't they have? Jetman also has the highest number of destroyed park benches I've ever seen! Inoue really used to have some kind of beef with park benches.

Kiva is pretty good and has a lot of what made Faiz and Jetman so enjoyable, although it has a few problems. When Die reviews it, I'll definitely have some opinions.

Agito and Hibiki are okay but inconsistent, especially Hibiki.

Just don't watch Shougeki Gouraigan! Inoue at his worst. Trust me, it's not worth it. Unless you really want to see for yourself. I don't advise it though.

I made sure to mention this in my first post in this thread. Definitely grateful to Die for facilitating discussion of this awesome show that doesn't get much attention anymore compared to recent shows. The way these characters have their own lives and problems beyond the plot makes them so much more human and relatable and that's something I think Faiz does best. Not everything has to be about fighting monsters, that's maybe the best part of superhero genre, but I still enjoy seeing these characters just doing normal human stuff. It allows you to really appreciate what's at stake when the fighting monsters part actually happens.

Looks like I'm the first to mention this but the insert theme, People With No Name, debuts here. It has a much faster pace than Dead Or Alive which is a perfect compliment for the much faster Faiz Axel form. This form is a lot less colorful than the default and definitely my least favorite of the Faiz forms but it's still okay.

I'm glad that Takumi's sympathy for Orphenochs finally paid off with him sparing Master's life knowing he hasn't lost his human soul. When Master asks why, Faiz responds indifferently "Who knows?" but of course you know Takumi was just trying to hide his feelings again. He doesn't want Master to think he cares!

I don't understand why Faiz Axel and Kaixa Break had to be mutually exclusive anyway. Kaixa Shot is just a repainted Faiz Shot after all so surely Smart Brain could've made another watch device compatible with Kaixa Gear. Faiz and Kaixa will both get more stuff later so I think it's weird that they ultimately decided not to give Kaixa the first power-up when it probably would've made more sense, especially with this being Kusaka's "heroic" return from his road trip to save Takumi.

I think my favorite part of Kaixa's heroic arrival at the end of the episode is that he never even gets off of his bike. He's like a grumpy parent, driving on his lunch break to his kid's school because the kid left his science project in the car. No, Kyle, I am not coming in, you need to come out to the curb and get your posterboard on the lifecycle of an earthworm. You need to take more responsibility for your things!

Yeah, golly, just some incredible chemistry with these two actors. It's like the Mari/Yuka scene from the previous episode, where there's this lightness and warmth to their friendship. It's supportive in a really healthy way.

Oh, neat! Thanks for the info!

I just keep feeling like Yuka wants a boyfriend because she's supposed to want a boyfriend, or because she thinks having a boyfriend will fix what's wrong with her. She's... I don't think Yuka has dealt with her emotional trauma at all, and her leaping into a romantic relationship seems like a bad idea for her and her partner. I think her rushing from boy to boy on this show is an indication that she wants to be a Girlfriend more than she wants to be someone's girlfriend.

And, man, the stuff with Mari just feels so much better for her than jumping into a relationship where she has to sublimate her ego. I'm not saying she should never be with a man ever, but I think this woman needs time to get her head right before she ties herself to someone.

It's a really good show that seems to have some really polarized views about it! I'm happy to give people a place to talk about it!

I'm not great at recognizing when songs are new on the show. (I think I called out Dead Or Alive around Episode 6 and Fish was like It's Been In Every Episode, Guy.) But this sounded new to me, so I'm glad I was right! It's a solid song, for sure. I like that Accel has it's own theme song?

Yeah, he even gets a little moment before this, where he tells Pizza Boss that he's not capable of killing someone. I like the idea of Takumi inadvertently becoming an Orphnoch crisis counselor.

I have to say this, talking about a character's flaws and bad traits isn't the same as being bugged or disliking them. You can like character while admitting their flaws - the best characters always do. Actually that makes real fans stand out, unlike those who defend aimlessly, like calling favorite character an asshole.

Apart from that, this also attributes to the Riders' weakness here, the belt is easily removable (it's NOT attached to the Rider form it transforms!).

Not talking about how this is your dream fanfiction of them actually working in pizza place? Besides, how were their friends got sick in the first place there? While both of them here are fine so far.

Both Takumi and Yuji are superpowered beings who are targeted and think the other ones are just ordinary people caught up in their trouble, which is plausible to blame themselves as they think the others are just poor powerless victim who can't fight back against the monstrousity like they can. While Takumi can't transform... I think there shouldn't be much problem for Yuji to fight back and transform into Horse Orphnoch, like what Yuka did, though admittedly that'd be troublesome, but not in a way that Takumi would be scared, but that it just further cements to Takumi that Orphnochs can be human with his own problem of not wanting to tell this to others. I wonder what Kamen Riders are viewed among the public here if you think this is the one makes Takumi "care" by not telling about his secret identity. Probably not the noble inspiring hero they usually considered as, because telling that can actually give hopes.

Faiz Axel, opening up the chest to reveal the core! It's power is sound level speed, but it can only be used for 10s. I thought he's known as a "fragile speedster" type, but was the speed actually also helped up his attack momentums to defeat those Orphnochs? And yeah like a certain series before, Kusaka just winning the fight without it being revealed? (I guess it's just to make it shocking with no result and Kusaka just casually walks up to Takumi) And Takuma dying? Uh... there's Takuma's beating of Takumi before.... Takumi didn't die, just taking the Faiz belt. It could be the same too for Kusaka that he only succeeded to take up the Faiz belt, but screwed up on Takuma. And Yuji thinking Faiz is Takuma.. man sure it's actually suck that this is a world where there's multiple Rider user.

And asking "Why didn’t he answer his phone?".... I suppose even you here are talking about how usually people talk and question about Faiz.

Oh well yeah, don't overlook the morality part of a character and thought each of them (except Kamen Rider protagonists) as all for themselves. I don't think I really like that much that people assumes that anyone caring to others (except Kamen Rider protagonists) as just wanting something from them like shipping or such.

Not about which series is his best or worst, but what people think of him in general. Looking by this thread, it seems that people should actually hail Inoue, but we know about his infamous reputation.

That's just like every Phase 1 not just this one. In general Phase 1 just seems fairly obscure too, not as much as showa, but to Phase 2 on the internet. In various forums there are just more posts made Phase 2 related, even someone posting a scene from Phase 1 has them be questioned it's from what material. And for the informations, let's just say common sites like wiki or TVTropes contain so little for Phase 1 compared to Phase 2. Phase 1 only contains common summary for the plot , characters, etc. while Phase 2 contains many breakdowns to little details. This even extends to those loving Phase 1, they only gave remarks about how the series is good and must-watch, without actually discussing or knowing the contents from them, unless watching those yourself. There's also obviously those that just can't stand the special effects in Phase 1....even if KR effects usually aren't perfect even in newer ones.

My point was that I thought Inoue should be given a break with actually measuring how much good or bad he gave, which seemingly, only Kiva for bad? Then for his involvement in Kiva, treat it as just a downturn for a period of time.

So Keitarou is Takumi's mother and Kusaka is the father? That's one messed up family!

Sure, I can understand that. Yuka's eagerness to jump in to a relationship might be why Yuka/Kaido isn't really working out so far. Kaido is also rushing in to relationship to fill the void left by his broken dream, so Kaido/Mari will need some work as well. These platonic friendships like Mari/Yuka and Keitarou/Kaido are a good first step to making them more likely to succeed in future relationships. I mostly wanted to emphasize that Yuka is a kind person deep down with genuine feelings, even if they're a little chaotic due to her terrible past.

Leave All Behind? :p

Oh, I mean, my dream is for this show to abandon all pretense of monster fighting and just drill down into a story about these six young people and all of their emotional issues. It being in a pizza place is as good as them working in a coffee shop, or starting a bed and breakfast, or a small paper company, or any of a billion sitcom premises.

For the rapidly spreading illness, the way these people live dangerous lives, and stay in close proximity? They are absolutely going to transmit all kinds of things within their social circle.

I think it's reasonable that Yuuji would be reluctant to have (what he thinks is) a normal person to find out he's a giant grey horse monster. People can have judgment about that stuff, and Yuuji values his friendship with Takumi.

I don't imagine the public is even dimly aware of Kamen Riders or Orphnochs in this series, and I'd think Faiz and Kaixa would be lumped together with the monsters if anyone found out. The Kamen Riders haven't really done a lot of protecting in this series. They mostly just fight and kill monsters, which I'd think would only look like black monsters fighting grey monsters to an outside observer.

I happen to think they're very progressive! Takumi's a handful, but, y'know, they're doing their best.