If it helps, I don't think I've ever met anyone who didn't think that the change led to the show's best tribute episodes.

It's not easy for me to do it, but I always end up doing it. There's a point in almost every Rider show, where there's an extended character development that just bothers me on either an execution or concept level, and I eventually sort of give in. I don't like it, but it's hard to spend multiple episodes getting mad at, like, convoluted Sakurai nonsense in Den-O, or anything with the Ryuusei School dinks (Go Meteors!) from Faiz. I don't enjoy being mad at these shows. It's easier to be like I Have Registered My Complaint and wait for the show to get sick of its dumb subplot.

It feels as earned as Zi-O II's debut, just replacing Emotional Catharsis and Acceptance with Self-Loathing and Martyrdom. Geiz is... he's not doing as well as Sougo was when he got his upgrade!

Hiryuu gets chumped out pretty bad here? His backstory (if this is the extent of it) is comically thin, some weird survivor trauma that doesn't get nearly the nuance it needs to work. His powerset makes sense as Evil Zi-O, but mechanically it's just reused suits and the exact same special effects. As soon as Geiz Revive shows up, the story just 100% forgets about Another Zi-O.

Instead of RIDER TIME, Geiz'z driver jingle should just be someone shouting THIS IS ALL MY FAULT.

I don't expect to get a bunch of forms for Zi-O characters (basically, none of the Armor Times), but I definitely plan on picking up a Geiz Revive figure. I'd say "to go with my Zi-O II", but, uh, sort of tough to find a Zi-O II on Mandarake right now!

Yeah, it wasn't an all the time plus, so I can see how a more straightforward team-up story could help with the plotting. But still! It was what made this show unique!

if only there was some sort of decade catchphrase that would cover this situation

I think I should warn you that SHF Revive can’t replicate his form change gimmick in a screen-accurate way (though bizarrely, the RKF figure can, despite being much skinnier)

Speaking of Revive, let’s get onto talking about the watch.

Ridewatch Display: Revive

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

“The warrior of furious power. Geiz Revive Gouretsu”

“The warrior of incredibly gale-force speed, Geiz Revive Shippu”

One brilliant thing about it is that it actually works as a fusion of the three MiRiders. You’ve got the speed from Shinobi in Shippu, the strength from Kikai in Gouretsu and the choice between them, echoing Quiz.

As for why Revive is killing Geiz (that’s irony for ya), it’s not because the watch is designed to kill its user, or because it’s too powerful for human use, like a lot of people assumed. It’s because Geiz’s body is unable to handle the amount of power it gives off, since he’s never used anything like it (Shirakura explained that it was inspired by an incident where he tried a new exercise program and started getting nosebleeds because he was pushing himself too hard)

That's the tragedy of this conflict between the two timelines. Sougo and Geiz don't want to fight each other. Even though they trust each other now, the bus incident shows Geiz that inaction can be just as dangerous as the wrong action. Despite his doubt, he has to push himself to do something. He's not fighting Zi-O out of intense hatred anymore, but out of an obligation he feels he needs to fulfill for the sake of a better future, since destiny says he's the only one who can. This leaves Sougo out of the loop about everything that's happening, as both his comrades are now trying to kill him for reasons nobody really understands. I'll talk more about the bus incident later, since there's still a surprising secret about that.

I think Geiz Revive might be a reference to Sanagiman and Inazuman, that classic Ishinomori hero who got a modern counterpart in Movie War Ultimatum, my favorite Movie War of all time. The tanky orange/brown form that opens up to reveal the speed type blue form. I love speed types such as Kabuto and Build RabbitRabbit, so of course I think Geiz Revive Typhoon is awesome! The blue looks good on Geiz. I don't care for Fury, but considering Shirakura's explanation that Androzani mentioned, my headcanon is that Geiz needs to alternate between Typhoon and Fury to regulate the side effects of time compression/expansion on his body.

The Zikan Jaclaw is a cool weapon as well and I like how Geiz's weapons in general are more varied than Zi-O using a sword or gun all the time.

There's just a slight problem with the DX Geiz Revive Ridewatch that I found out from a review I watched. Those small magnetic balls are so clingy!

I'm glad it happened this way, since it makes the real final boss all the more intimidating!

No matter the timeline, Woz loves to IWAE!

This is the clever bit that I mentioned earlier with the Quiz plan not mattering.

Never noticed this the first time, but this plus other weird consistencies was the show setting up that fact that the RULES HAVE CHANGED! It wasn't just suddenly tossed at us, although it might seem like that if you don't know the hints to look at, but in reality, the writers have been hinting at this for a while, and that particular sequence was the biggest one. It already showed that the rules the audience and the characters thought they had to play with no longer mattered.

Also, I've been out of state most of the week, so I missed the discussion about Tsukiyomi's about face.

To me, it rings very true, because I've been there, and I've seen other be there. When the foundation of what you believe gets pulled out from under you, it's pretty dramatic. It can caused a seeming about face in believes and behavior, and can cause some inconsistency as you don't quite know what you do believe anymore.

For Tsukiyomi, her foundation was that Sougo was really a good person and as long as she helped him, there would be no darkness in him. Well, that foundation got well and truly yanked out from under her, so what is she to do now?

I guess most people haven't experienced something that dramatically life changing, but it comes across as very believable if you have.

Attacks aren't necessarily about innocent victim getting mauled. None getting mauled would still have an attack happen.

I guess at least you didn't buy into the implication of a chance of Tsukuyomi killing a busload of people, I mean like, making a rant about this and think surely they're going this route, when it's set up as a mystery here still. Even when Geiz, someone who previously would only listen to Tsukuyomi (he bonded more with others, but feeling she's still the closest), kinda bought it. Regarding Tsukasa, this part makes Black Woz start his own investigation, and his method was putting all the terminal into a sleep. Other than that, Swartz being likely involved in Hiryu's rise is also something that changed Heure as well, he now starts drifting away from Swartz further and questioning the actual goal of Time Jackers, and even here talked about Geiz, also to investigate the bus accident albeit understandably Geiz won't tell about Tsukuyomi against someone like him. Heure is the only one among Time Jackers to have a semblance of conscience.

As ep. 15-16 showed, Ohma Zi-O's existence faded away for a while, shouldn't kill Sougo, but likely left the time to go back to 2068 after destroying his belt, though the one who dragged him back was Tsukuyomi seeing Sougo getting attacked. Many battle Sougo's been is because of the Time Jacker's schemes, it'd be just straight up villainy, regardless of what Sougo's actions are, they want to reshape the world into what fits in their eyes, 2 of them has no conscience at all, it just happened that Sougo was the main threat as Ohma Zi-O. Their only concern was about Ohma Zi-O's sheer power. Same goes for White Woz who goes into sociopathic tendencies to shape the world he wants by using Geiz Revive. Hiryu though, is the one that has purely personal grudge against Sougo, and if the pic I shared in last post was any indication. As Geiz Revive appeared now, it does kick both Zi-O's asses easily (of which have White Woz going IWAE), and he'd have been able to kill Hiryu if Swartz didn't intervene, and he's the counter to Zi-O II's future prediction ability, due to attacking too fast before Zi-O II reacts. So the solution is just being a speedster... one of the most wanked powerset.

Oh, that's some neat analysis! Thanks!

This... hasn't happened yet? There hasn't been anything in the show about Revive being dangerous to use. (I mean, Geiz as had only it for not even one entire fight.)

It's also a reflection Hat Woz'z influence versus Woz'z influence on Sougo. Geiz is being treated as the imminent star of the story, and everything depends on him. Sougo was always treated as someone whose importance would be up to them to solidify. They're similar asks -- savior of time -- but the phrasing of the demand is different. There's more pressure on Geiz to be Geiz Revive, to RIGHT NOW be the hero OR ELSE. With Sougo, Woz is a little more hands-off: hopefully he'll become Oma Zi-O, but it's a choice he'll have to make for himself.

Yeah, the introduction of the Future Riders seemed to indicate that the specific causality was off the table, and we're into a realm of alternate timelines and the future being so in flux that it can handle potential contradictions.

I just wish the show had allowed the characters to comment on the change more? To make it seem more intentional?

Sure! I don't think the idea of Tsukuyomi losing faith in Sougo and cutting ties with him was a bad concept. I think it's just that the show took Tsukuyomi Wants To Destroy Zi-O as a given, rather than an idea worth exploring, and then shifted all of the compelling material to Geiz. That's where I think the show failed Tsukuyomi, not in the premise.

OF COURSE Geiz bought it! Geiz is someone who has put Saving The Future entirely on his own back! He's definitely going to think his inaction caused a major catastrophe! He probably treats the milk running out at home as something that could've been prevented by stopping Zi-O's rise to power...

(Slams book closed) Forgive me, I seem to be reading ahead.