I could be wrong, but I don't think they even acknowledge her existence after episode 15. It's pretty conspicuous in retrospect. :lol

I think it works really well, but I'll be interested to see how you respond to it.

Well, episode 16.
Kujaku makes her return and she's still hunting down Gara. She's kind of a bitch in doing so, using a child as bait to lure her out.
I know the episode was supposed to show her in a negative light as she begins a path to recovery, but she's still a little on the unlikable side of things.

Anyway, Daigo is pretty cool. I like that he's sensible without being over the top about it. I'm rather interested to learn where this particular story arc moves to next.

Episode 17 and 18.

So Kou appears and, through the Byakko Shinken's telepathy, pulls him from the stone and becomes Kibaranger. Like the other rangers, the suit looks great. I absolutely love it.

The story as a whole was okay. We're introduced to a new villain, Akomaru, who turns out to be what's his name's son. Neat. Watching Kibaranger act like a kid while in suit was pretty nice. It was fun to see him screwing around.

Kou, though. Man, that kid is just an asshole. He completely alters Rin's life, he steals from and screws around with others, and he's just too rad for his own good.
I don't like him. He'll probably grow on me, but I'm just not big on him as of his introduction.

I saw Kou as like, "what would happen if Bart Simpson became a sentai hero?"

I mean, 1992 was the height of Simpsons mania -- Bart had to be at least part of the character's inspiration, right? Doesn't Kou even ride a green and pink skateboard?

I highly doubt the simpsons influenced Sentai back in 1992.

Yeah, you're right, I just looked it up -- Japan didn't get Simpsons until 2002. That seems so late! Considering it's been on in the U.S. since 1987.

Still, I feel like Kou and Bart are cut from the same Dennis The Menace-ian cloth. Even if only by coincidence.

having a child character being a troublemaker isn't uncommon, so yeah, they can be cut from the same cloth since they both share the same tropes.

If there was a troublemaker kid that might have inspired Kou, I'd rather say it's Crayon Shin-chan...

Kou may be a dick quite often (seriously how Rin never slapped him silly for constantly groping her is beyond me), but he does lead to some pretty damn emotional moments, heck one of the darker ones to be frank.

That is one of the things I love about Kou though. Kids are cruel brats, and Kou is written like he is a child. He isn't sugar coated and his plot lines aren't dumbed down because he is a kid.