Oh, man, exactly the opposite for me. I always hated those little trumpeteers on Rook's shoulders, so I'm glad they led to his demise.

Nago is so pleased with himself for not seeing Wataru as a soulless beast that's only gift to the world is his death at Nago's hands. He's so warm, in a smarmy way, that I can't imagine anything better for a resolution to this problem. It's way more interesting to have Nago declare that Kiva is now his apprentice than any dumb My Code Demands Your Soul death-duel would ever be. Like, this outcome is arguably worse for Wataru? Nago taking an interest in his training? Because, look at how Kengo is doing.

It's a Transformers joke. In Transformers the Movie the Autobot Brawn dies from being shot in the shoulder.

KAMEN RIDER KIVA HYPER BATTLE VIDEO - "YOU CAN BE KIVA TOO!”

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/kiva/hbva.png

Oh, HBVs. I really do enjoy them. This one's the first in what would be a few years of Branching Path HBVs, with a couple minor choices you make throughout the story. (The last one I remember doing it this way was... Gaim? I think Drive was back to the linear short film approach.) It's cute, in an emerging-technology way. Nothing's too perilous of a choice, and it's easy to feel like you accomplished something.

It's a little weird to see it applied to Kiva, though? It's a goofy story about Nago, Otoya, and Wataru training You The Viewer to be as strong as Kiva. It's fun in a minor Net-Movie way, with some good-natured teasing and a lot of enthusiasm. There's some exercise (IXAcise, of course), some action, and a new HBV-exclusive form that is like Kiva lost a fight with a box of crayons. Everything is built to make you think you're getting physical and emotional support from the men of Kamen Rider Kiva, and that you could be the next Kiva.

It's just... are those things any kid wants? Or should want? Any of it?

I mean, not to get into something I'll probably spend a bunch of time talking about in the Series Wrap-Up post, but, who would want to hang out with any of these characters? This isn't Den-O, where you're going on an exercise adventure with all of your favorite monster friends. This is Kiva, where your tutors are a sweet boy who is just starting to get wrapped up in romantic turbulence; a dude who thinks the main skill a child should learn is how to pick up women; and Nago, who is psychologically unfit to be a positive role model to anyone. They are all horrible mentors! Even the very sweet teenage boy who is the star of a superhero action show!

And, like, that's not just for children. (Although: do not let any of these men instruct children.) I'm an adult, and I definitely would not want to spend time with these guys. The show's funny, and I love how crazy they all are, but, like... to watch on TV. I would never, ever want to be in the same room as Otoya or Nago, because they're lunatics. Even Wataru is a shy/infatuated teenager, and I am not looking to spend time with someone like him. He's a very compelling character to follow over the course of a TV series, but I can't deal with some real-life mumbling teenager who is dating a supernatural executioner. No thanks!

But, setting aside how No Thanks the entire premise of this HBV was, I still enjoyed it. The stars have some great chemistry, the fights are a great reminder of how kneecapped this show has been without the Arms Monster forms, and there're "bad” endings where Nago scrubs your back in the bath and Otoya teaches you how to flirt with a mannequin. It is the most Not For Kids children's entertainment around, and I dug it.

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/kiva/hbvb.png

Ah yes, the appearance of the best worst Kamen Rider song ever (at the very least, it was iconic enough to make it onto the reunion album as Nago’s contribution). So good that Otoya came back from the dead just to take part.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=OPgq4cCthaE

That aside, I haven’t seen much of this beyond images of DoGaBaKi Emperor which… it doesn’t look good, put it that way (plus, it’s redundant, since Emperor can already use all of the Arms Monster weapons).

DoGaBaKi Emperor is pretty bad, but I mean, it's also something quickly kitbashed together for a friggin' HBV... so it's the worst suit in Kiva by a long shot but I can't exactly blame it for that? What I WILL note that I discovered recently is that it strangely removes Emperor's thigh armour, and I cannot fathom why. So random!

Anyway, uhhh. Yeah! Aside from Wataru himself I completely agree, to probably no surprise, I would never want to hang out with these guys! It's, like, possibly one of the most scary combinations of people to be in a room with aside from Kusaka. But all of that hardly matters when Ixa-Cise is the best thing ever, and also it blessed me with a screenshot I get so much use out of

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachmen...94/unknown.png

I've been sort of lukewarm on the whole Kiva Is Aping Den-O debate, but even I got a little squinty at Kiva's first segment for an HBV being a workout video.

Oh, for sure, it's not at all a big deal that Quaternity Emperor has a color scheme that makes you wonder if your retinas detached. It's a "secret form", not the culmination of a story or anything. It's in maybe one optional minute of the HBV. I'm not mad at it being ugly!

I wonder if there was even a brief amount of hesitation in doing a story where Nago and Otoya get directly involved in a child's upbringing. Some flicker of Do We Have A Responsibility As Storytellers before deciding to do a story where a psychotic button-enthusiast and a womanizer with a heart of gold shape the youth of Japan.

I don't know what's the deal with Yuri handing IXA to Otoya, especially that she does that while gaining upper hand (kicking away the enemy), unlike Megumi who gets actually overwhelmed by Kamen Rider Rey (Takoto). I'd also say Yuri in 1986 when Wataru is there, by just attacking without second thought, it can be completely dangerous method to use in fighting off baddies like it being applied to Wataru here, if Wataru is killed?

I don't know about the other ways to improve the relationship if it's 'too easy', but I'd want for no other choice than Wataru and Otoya being completely sweet towards each other. I don't want for drama to be shoved into anything, or glorifying conflict (and potentially giving free pass to Otoya if he's being bad parent for this... remember Den-O's Kasumi) and that conflict isn't only about people on each other's throats, and that drama isn't necessarily "right" way to tell story as it can be exhausting aside from being entertaining. I'd want for It's obviously guaranteed for Wataru to be completely sweet to Otoya, but it can be not for Otoya, like if he notices about his son's 'lameness' compared to him. Though the only one I fear about this is about how Wataru unfailingly supporting his dad, I'm afraid of Wataru excusing unappropriate things he did just because it's family without regard to others. While Otoya completely loves Wataru, their early interaction shows how Otoya views men though, as a womanizer he'd hate them (directly claims it) and can be unreasonably hostile to them for the sake of women (albeit he assumes Wataru is Fangire). I'd likely want for the Otoya's legacy part to be touched upon, and I just reminded for that while reading here that Wataru is about Otoya's legacy, though I still hope that it's done without strife between those 2.

In this movie the part where he was friends with Nago is touched upon too, with them greeting each other at present time. But I guess it's true that their relationship is touched upon a little here, other than how Nago claims he's no longer himself in the past as he defeats him. What he does is clear that he made himself into a Legendorga so he could use the artificial Rey Kivat and become a Kamen Rider, though it's unknown that if he's someone that is power hungry, or truly had an animosity towards Nago and seeks to ,ake sure to surprass him. Regardless of personal feelings, still think that there's no such thing as zero character, enjoyable or not, when spending time with the heroes, I'd describe that he seems formal and uptight, and seemingly had high standards to appreciate legendary stuff such as meeting Otoya, and badmouths his inappropriate behavior to a (Fangire) girl.

I was afraid of Natsuki noticing Wataru's 'lameness' and likely turned enemy or something (it can happen when someone befriended a socially withdrawn person, then betraying them after knowing their 'lame' traits), especially that it's blatant with his performances at soccer and shogi. For the soccer part though, I guess this is one of the media where a shoe bottom left its mark on something above it (the keeper's face). I thought for the part of Natsuki playing violin and handing it to Wataru after, it's about her hating violin because of Wataru's deep ties to it and knowing his 'lameness', but it turns out to be animosity for her mom. I also think that Wataru opens up unexpectedly faster despite his shyness? (I know he's sweet boy but... there's shyness that goes hand to hand with sweetness like how by being shy they won't want to disappoint others, cause conflict, etc. which doubles as a form of sweetness).

Terrific gag yeah, someone literally named Sanjou, so ore sanjou can be used as introductery scene for them. Other than that, in this scene, it's a showing of a cop that isn't excessive to the inmates, asking if Otoya's all right.

Me too! I didn't mean to suggest that the movie would be better with some uncomfortable conflict or actual animosity. That would be bad! It's more that I wanted the dialogue to feel more nuanced, to make the relationship feel less simple. These are two people who don't really know each other, but they both act like they've had this bond forever. I guess I was hoping for a few fun angles on this new information from them, rather than them just being Father and Son after a couple scenes.

He's a lot more outgoing by this point in the series, but I think it also has to do with the specifics of Natsuki's story. She's a young woman with a complicated relationship to the violin, thanks to her absent parent. That is something that Wataru is going to take a very keen interest in!

Another extremely easy choice this time, it's Ixa-cise, which might just be the pinnacle of all human achievement. Everything was leading up to that glorious moment in 2008 when this starting existing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VA472hgrTfs

(Obviously this loses something without the accompanying video, but thankfully Androzani has us covered there already! Please let Nago help you get in shape too!)

So yeah, this is pretty peak Nago-san right here, and I have to imagine there are Rider fans who have never watched Kiva that know the guy entirely from this, which is a hilarious thought, all the more so because it's honestly a reasonably good summation of Nago's character? Just one more thing that's rather worrying about him, I guess! ...I have to admit being in a room with Nago and Otoya sounds like it will inevitably end poorly. We should all want to hang out with Wataru though, if only to get him out of that environment for a bit.

(And that description of DoGaBaKi Emperor as Kiva losing a fight with a box of crayons is priceless, by the way. It's almost sort of endearing, put like that.)

I don't know if it's a product of where we're at in the series, or just because Wataru is the only one of the three men who can be a voice of reason, but Wataru's nicely assertive and level-headed in this special. He's quick to support Nago's workout regime, but also quick to tell his dad to maybe be less of a horndog around impressionable children. He's bright and upbeat here, a million miles from the Ghost Boy of the early episodes.

If it wasn't for the non-Emperor version of this suit already debuting in the actual series, I'd've bet this suit was the winning entry in a Design Kiva's New Form contest for kids ages 4 to 7. But then, what company would ever pick such a garish design from a children's design contest?