Well...

- Three of them are the currently airing ones. So. Y'know.
- Two of them are my OOO and Ghost rewatch, which I intentionally am trying to watch weekly; matching the release date
- One of them is Tsupro's uploads of Gridman, which do in fact expire after two weeks!
- One of them is Ultraman Tiga, which I would be willing to put off; but soon enough Ultraman's airing a chronicle series about it which would spoil it so I wanna watch it before then
- The last is Abaranger, which I can put off just fine... but im so close to the end cmoooon

Oh, okay, gotcha.

I don't think it's a binary thing? I think there's an amount of responsibility that's mature and honest for Kagami to deal with in regards to his time with Shadow, and it's on a spectrum of Blameless to Martyr. Closer to Blameless (I'm not suggesting he was wrong to abandon a posting that required him to fight his friend, someone he knows is a hero), but there's still some negative aspects to him just cutting Kageyama and team loose. Like, when I quit a job because I couldn't work for the owner anymore, I stayed on for a month to help the next guy transition into my role, just to make sure things ran smoothly for the other employees (and customers). I don't feel like Kagami gave any notice? Seems like a bit of a dick move!

Sure, but if you have a genius, perfect hero as the star of your show, you need to elevate the plots to account for that. If you have an idiot plot, the solution isn't to have the perfect hero avoid the plot until the very end, the solution is to have a smarter plot.

Yeah, I get that (Hiyori even describes Kabuto as "a weird guy" she saw today), but it's not clear from her flashbacks and accusations what exactly she thinks happened seven years ago. She keeps saying that Kabuto murdered her parents, but I can't tell if that's a) a poor translation; b) her conflating The Boy In The Belt's inaction and indifference with her parents not surviving; or c) she genuinely thinks that The Boy In The Belt physically beat her her parents to death. I can't tell what her headcanon is for this, is I guess what I'm saying.

That actually doesn't sound too bad, when it's laid out like that. Certainly nothing to feel smothered by, or stressed out in regards to time-management. I mean, that's a little over an episode a day? That's a totally reasonable amount of time to spend each week on toku shows. It's not like you're watching an episode a day, and then spending an hour... writing them... up... oh god that's so much time each week on toku

https://media.giphy.com/media/wrXAtc...SKpw/giphy.gif

Well since anybody with good enough reflexes can just grab a Zecter in midair, the brand might be a helpful way to remind people who's supposed to be that Rider. Like if someone hijacks a Zecter and frames the chosen one for a crime, the chosen one can show their brand as credentials to prove their innocence.

Alternatively, it looks cool I guess? The Bee Zecter is notoriously picky compared to the others and is never satisfied with its user, abandoning them if it detects even the smallest flaw in their corresponding personality trait.

I second this. I love the modern take on the original 3 Riders. The First is cool and I think The Next does horror even better than Amazons.

After Decade, there's going to be the "Die watches miscellaneous Kamen Rider movies" or whatever thread right? These two movies should definitely go there.

https://i.imgur.com/DTF7rQr.png

What's that? Something stupid in a Kamen Rider show that Die didn't like and barely wants to talk about? Sounds like just the job for me! ...especially since Die has seemingly pulled a Kageyama on me when it comes to talking about Hiyori by essentially making my help completely obsolete. I basically can't add anything to a post like that, so, yeah, let's see how much I can talk up a supremely subpar subplot instead, because who else will, right? Actually, that reminds me of something important. I just compared Die to Kageyama, but there's a pretty huge difference there that should be noted – Die is actually good at what he's doing.

Kageyama is just the worst, in so many senses of the word. If you want a theme or an overall takeaway from the ZECT part of this episode, that is it without a doubt. He's a slimy little snot-goblin who takes glee in manipulating people to his own ends to demonstrate his own intelligence, and then in the end still doesn't manage to totally crack the case he's working even with all the underhanded means he readily employs.

It's no wonder I hate this kid when one of his earliest outings in the spotlight goes out of its way to make him look as horrible as possible, centering it around him messing with audience surrogate and designated bad luck magnet Kagami. It's not even so much a matter of me feeling anger on Kagami's behalf; I'm mostly just offended that Kageyama takes such great pride in pulling it off, as though taking advantage of him is any great feat. The ruse at the core of this plotline really isn't that smart, and only some of that seems to be done intentionally. It's far from a defining story for the show... and yet I totally ate it up, because it sort of helped me define what I personally think makes Kabuto stand out?

My secret move here is that the thing that made me like all those silly, overwrought scenes so much is how they made me consider more stuff broadly around the show, which always seems to be where I'm at my most enthusiastic with Kabuto. But you know, the cool sci-fi vibe with aliens making people paranoid about imposters in the midst; Tendou doing Tendou things; extremely standoffish people being jerks to each other; I do like all that stuff!

And this is great episode for Tendou things in particular, even. Him being completely uninterested in the plot because he's looking to grab a meal first, it might be a cheap writing move, sure, but it's also wonderfully in-character for the guy. Him sneaking up on Kageyama to get info on why he's trailing Kagami, hiding his secret identity by putting Kageyama in a hold and sarcastically claiming it's because he's shy, that's just a plain fun superhero bit, and so is his big just-in-time entrance to save the day at the end. I mean, yeah, all of this would've been massively elevated by some proper substance to get you invested in the story, but, for what it was, I still had a great time with it. It absolutely helps if you actively think of it as the B-plot to the Hiyori stuff, though, which is easy for me because Hiyori is always at the top in my eyes anyway.

I'll also take this space to add on to the pile of people recommending Die absolutely check out The First and The Next at some point. They're movies written by Toshiki Inoue that also seem to actively hate the Showa Era; I don't think anyone has ever been more in the target audience.

I was going to struggle to come up with an answer to the question this time because I was overthinking it, but thankfully I can just point at Kurona's, right down to the occasional feeling of being overwhelmed by taking too much on at once. In total honesty, the fact that Ultraman Z is ending basically right after I write this fills me with a huge sense of relief knowing I'll have that much more time each week to dedicate to this rewatch I accidentally committed myself to. :lol

I was planning on it being me rewatching all of the Legend Rider appearances in the movies between Decade and Zi-O, so I'm not sure those'd slot in there. (Also, rewatching movies is a lot lighter on my brain, and the Decade and Zi-O write-ups are going to be such big projects that I think I need something lighter between them.) It's going to have to be post-Saber, I think. Mmmmmaybe post-The Show After Saber, depending on how long Decade and Zi-O's projects take.

First of all, thanks again for the kind words. Much like Hiyori, I can only communicate how much I care for all of you by hopefully making something you'll like.

Second of all, thanks for doing a slight variation on my favorite Fish Sandwich move, the classic Boring Thing Is Actually Sort Of Great Because It's Boring. I utterly, unironically geek out when that rhetorical stance gets brought to bear on something I'd dismissed, so thank you for hyping up Kageyama's weirdo one-note bullshit and that dumb plot. You are always finding something notable in even the most dire stories, and I truly appreciate that viewpoint.

I think the big problem with Kageyama is in the choices the actor is making? They are all the most obvious, off-putting ones he could make. I'm not sure if he couldn't find anything redeemable in Kageyama (I mean, there are things to his character that are positive! Or there were, anyway!) or just didn't want to, but everything in his performance is gross. I've seen genocidal villains in this franchise that elicited more of my good-will than Kageyama manages, and I wish that weren't the case. Like, he's not even of the So Hateable It's Funny model, where his schemes and plans are adorable in their pettiness. He's just awful, and it didn't have to be that way. I feel like the actor took something on the page that could've been more nuanced, more cunning, and just went I Need You All To Hate Him More Than Anything. Too much! It's too awful of a performance.

Always happy to help! :)

It's especially weird for me, going back to this show after seeing Ultraman Nexus, so I'm now much more familiar with Masato Uchiyama as a likable and eager teenage hero with a subtle hint of angst, which really emphasizes just how abrasive and simple Kageyama is. I definitely agree there was a bit of miscalculation in how exactly he was made unlikable. There's no real grand charisma to him to get you perversely rooting for him, but he's also not pathetic enough to elicit pity or anything. He just exists and is kind of a jerk and that's it, and it's not a great look.

I'm one of the weirdos who likes The Next more. I have a lot of issues with The First's pacing and all the time spent on the sick kids subplot. The Next is really weird, but narratively tighter. Honestly, I feel like both are cases of Inoue wanting to branch out and do something different, but Toei telling him "No, you have to write Kamen Rider." So he just wrote a romance drama that also happened to have some Kamen Riding in it and a Ringu-style J-Horror that also happened to have some Kamen Riding in it.

Either way, the suits are goddamn fantastic and I'm really bummed that we never got to see updates to the other OG Showa Riders. The movies were weird, but I would have been totally down for Kamen Rider The X, Kamen Rider The Stronger, or Kamen Rider The Man.

Same. I was sad we never got a Movie Reboot of X and beyond. Absolutely love the suits too and would be super tempted to get Seihous of them.

They should do Seihous of them, the First/Next Riders were the original Figuarts.

KAMEN RIDER KABUTO - EPISODE 15

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/.../kabuto15a.png

Hoo boy, is this the first part of a two-parter. I hope you like mysterious motivations and a bunch of twists, because that's what you're getting in this one. Almost impossible to talk about, because some very key things (whatever the deal is with the Worm, Tendou joining ZECT) are left for the next episode to explain and justify. What's here are some very funny gags, and a lot of Kagami. That's not bad, but it means that I can't exactly break this episode down as much as I'd like.

I really did like this episode, though, and mostly for its focus on Kagami. It's an episode that reframes the previous story as Kagami hitting a self-respect rock bottom, and asks how to best help someone who has lost all of their confidence.

Like, it treats the previous (incredibly stupid) ZECT plot as Kagami's breaking point; where the old, weak Kagami needs to figure out how to be strong enough to keep from being victimized again. It suggests that Kagami's ego is something worth protecting, that his confidence has value. He's been kicked around a lot, and his very life was just treated as a joke. He needs to find some way to prove he can cut it in the fast-paced world of monster detonation, and a solo Worm hunt might be just the way to do that.

Although, no, he's not doing it solo. It's a story that's as much about how we support our friends as it is about how we move on from failure, so we definitely need to spend some time on how the rest of the cast is assisting Kagami.

Tendou loudly and repeatedly proclaims that he will not be helping Kagami?€? so, of course, Tendou ends up shadowing Kagami the entire episode. I actually really like how subtle (for an Inoue value of Subtle) the episode is with Tendou's support. Misaki's all like Hey We All Need To Cheer Up Kagami and Tendou's like Cool So We're Just Coddling Him Like A Baby Got It. Public displays of friendship are currently not in Tendou's skillset, so it's not like he was really going to be much emotional support for Kagami. But it's more than that, I think. It's Tendou viewing Kagami's recent failure in the same light as Kagami's dad, and drawing the same conclusion: The only way Kagami gets stronger is by dealing with his failure directly, and trying harder in the future. Giving him an easy win by tagging along on his Worm hunt would just reinforce how much he feels like a pawn, a sidekick. Making him stand on his own two feet and go out and get a win by himself, that's how he starts to feel more confident. But, like, Tendou 100% cares about Kagami, and wants him to succeed, so he stays in the shadows (if you'll pardon the pun) to make sure Kagami gets his win.

Misaki, however, is coming at Kagami's crisis from the opposite angle.

She believes in Kagami, but also thinks he's biting off more than he can chew. He shouldn't have to go get a solo win, because that's not his job. His job is to work with a partner like Misaki, to be a part of a team that doesn't put themselves at risk unnecessarily. In a way, I think she takes Kagami's emotional crisis as a reflection on her, on her inability to protect him in the last story. She let him get put in danger, and she doesn't want it to happen again. He doesn't need to go out and save the world himself, he needs to trust in his team to protect him. He didn't let himself down, ZECT let him down.

(I super loved Misaki chewing out Tadokoro for him not being more livid about Kageyama using Kagami as bait. Tadokoro is clearly checked out in that scene, spending more time thinking about how his 401K is doing, and if he can put off getting that Check Engine light in his car looked at until his next paycheck, than he is his underling berating him for a lack of moral fiber. Just take it up with ZECT HR and stop giving him shit about some interoffice attempted murder, okay, god, thank you.)

So we've got this story about whether we should let our friends process their problems on their own, or try to get them to open up. Tendou is the friendship where we're left alone to get our shit together, and Misaki is the friendship where we're surrounded by people who want us to lean on them. It's a pretty interesting way of exploring Kagami as a character, the ways these two try to support him.

And then there's all of the very Inoue things in this episode: Juka's morning mukbang; Misaki's makeover in La Salle; the way Hiyori is only in it for a couple jokes; Kagami running off crying after Tendou insults him, like the world's most professionally-dressed four year-old; and the entire thing with two old men at the food cart. All great, and very fun. There's maybe some tonal whiplash (like, Kagami is wrecked, opening credits, Juka's morning mukbang), and that detracts a little bit from the stakes for Kagami's story, but it's such fun that I don't really mind it.

(Plus, I could maybe make a case for some of those things supporting Kagami's story if I really tried. Juka's morning mukbang is about how Tendou can offer guidance, but allow Juka to make her own decisions, similar to how he isn't trying to fix Kagami's life for him. Misaki's makeover is about how Tendou and Daisuke are both characters that she'd like to have help Kagami, but Tendou would rather Kagami move forward, and Daisuke is okay with him reverting to his old self. The old men at the food cart are about how difficult it is to protect people from themselves. Kagami running like a petulant child is about Inoue needing a big emotional moment to make a smaller story seem epic. There's no defense or explanation for minimizing Hiyori, though; that's just a top-shelf failure of imagination.)

It's an episode that'll probably feel a lot different after the next part, but I did like what was here. Fun, in a light way, while still feeling like it was saying something about Kagami and his friends. I even liked the scene with his dad (being driven by Goro, a chauffeur on every series he's in) and the monster suit (General Shadow reference?). Not a barn-burner, but a pretty solid episode of Kabuto.

A QUESTION

I'm not sure how probing or introspective I want these questions to get, but this episode got me thinking about friendship, and about emotional support. It's so tricky sometimes, to know the best way to help our friends out when they're having a tough time. I think both Tendou and Misaki are right about what someone might need to feel better, even if they both might not be right about what Kagami needs. So, and feel free to skip this if it's way too baring of the emotions, but how would you prefer your friends help you when you're feeling bad about yourself: by being there for you, or by leaving you alone? I'm definitely more the type to just need some time alone to reset, so maybe Tendou's distance would be what I'm looking for. I'm sure I'd regret experiencing his tough love, though!

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/.../kabuto15b.png

I'm wondering how much input Inoue had into Daisuke's character. He seems to have been in charge of the major Daisuke focused episodes so far and a major factor in how incredibly goofy the character is and his episodes really ratchet up the sillier characteristics.

(As a side note to tie in to the earlier conversation, Daisuke's actor would go on to also play Kazami Shiro, aka Kamen Rider V3, in The Next).

So I've mentioned a few times now how much Kabuto failed to stick in my long term memory. Well, this episode has one of the few things that I really did recall long after the show ended: the drunk doctor's specific drinking ritual and accompanying noises. Not sure why that endured where Kageyama's freaking name got lost, but it did.

The most I remember from this episode is someone commenting “Good god, is there anything Tendou can’t do?” I had to check the wiki to find out one of the guest stars was also the Liar Dopant in W and the recurring science guy who helped Takeru’s Dad build the Ghost Driver(I forget his name) in… um, Ghost.

I’ll have a bit more to talk about next time, especially with how arguably important it is for future crossovers. I’ll explain why afterwards.

Typically I'm the friend who's energetic and annoying most of the time, so during the rare times that I'm feeling down, I tend to shut myself off and lock myself away in a cave so to speak. That said, in my own personal experience, having someone reach out to let me know that they care does wonders, and it's almost always been just the thing I needed to get me going again.

Tip for those who prefer to be left alone though; If you have friends like me, be sure to let them know that it's not a personal knock against them that you need time to yourself. Even though my brain knows the situation has nothing to do with me most of the time, it still hurts that all I can do is sit back and do nothing whenever it happens. So if you have friends who are very affectionate, then they'd probably appreciate the heads-up, I imagine.

To be fair, at no point are we really going to complain about a lot of Kagami. And as you v eloquently proceeded to say, the episode says a lot about how to support a friend. I really enjoyed seeing how it played out with the different approaches; this isn't a story that I have a specific memory of from the first time I saw Kabuto, so I also don't know how I'll feel about it after the conclusion, but the setup was ridiculously fun.

Tendo and Kagami's relationship developing throughout the show is my favorite non-Hiyori part of it. I'm not always fond of Inoue's writing, but this is where I felt like he really hit his stride and balanced all of the aspects of the characters and story in a way that resonated with me. Best moment for me in this one was Kagami's expression as Tendo-the-ZECTrooper pulls out his "Grandmother always said" line.

:lol :lol :lol I had a lot of sympathy for Kagami there, partly because there was this half-second at the start of Tendo's insult where he could conceivably have been insulting Kageyama, and then it becomes blindingly obvious that he's stamping all over Kagami's ego instead. Poor Kagami, even though he should know better than to expect overt sympathy from Tendo, lol

This thread is a bright spot and I love that you're doing it. I will repeat this FOREVER. :)

It really feels like Inoue called dibs on Daisuke! And (so far) like he called not-dibs on Hiyori! Daisuke's inclusion in this story is... it doesn't feel particularly motivated by anything? He's treated like he's always around, despite being in none of the last story but randomly showing up at the cliffhanger to fight Kabuto. It's like Inoue wasn't told that that Daisuke stopped appearing after his last two-parter?

In fairness, that drinking ritual isn't constantly a smug asshole to beloved characters, so it's worth remembering in a way that Kageyama isn't.

Huh! I don't remember that scene. I'll have to dig around for it. Thanks for the info!

Yeah, it can be tough sometimes to be appreciative for a friend's show of support, while still being honest about your own emotional process. It's no good to ghost your friends to protect yourself, but getting across I Value You But My Brain Needs You To Back Off is... god, it can be stressful. Definitely worth doing, though.

The climax (which I really couldn't talk about yet) is both exquisitely done (just that slow ratcheting up of Boy That One Trooper Is Talking A Lot > Wait I Know That Voice > "My Grandmother Always Said" > OH SHIT WHAT) and something that I'm actually upset that they ruined in the preview. Of literally all the things in the episode you'd want to withhold, the last five seconds of the episode should be at the top of the list. Kills me that I knew it was Tendou before his helmet came off.

But, yeah, I think Inoue had a stronger grasp on how antagonistic the relationship should be between Tendou and Kagami, without having it tip over into parody or cruelty...

...except for the opening, which is laughably broad. It needs to be there to establish stakes, but having a grown man run off in a tantrum... not a lot of nuance there! I actually think it reflects worse on Kagami than Tendou, since it mostly proves Tendou's point that Kagami's been too thin-skinned, too trusting, too naive. If someone's like Why Are You Being Such A Gigantic Baby, and your response to run off, bawling your eyes out? I mean, yeah, neither side comes off great, but I feel like the side that can be soothed with animal crackers and a juice box is the bigger offender.

You are very kind! Everyone's been very un-Tendou-y in volunteering their thoughts and time, which makes me feel like none of you are actually paying attention to the show. Where is the closed-off snark? Where are the seven competing threads, to show dominance? The only reason everyone would be so generous on a daily basis is... wait, am I Juka?!

To clarify, the comment was from somebody online. Not in the episode.

Probably not Kagami as overall character other than this one moment, but this is what I talk about showing goodness by only selective care (and typically, about those with guaranteed care like family or friends) being not particularly convincing. Several for protagonist side had caring and siding with your beloved ones being portrayed as good in story and it expects the audience to agree with that, anything else like other characters or consequences be damned (a case of protagonist-centered morality; where character or events being good or evil is based solely on their actions toward the main character or if they are the main characters). Other than that, what do you mean regarding blameless to martyr spectrum for this one? And it being a dick move, that's what I thought as the only other choice if responsibility issues to make things right made someone can't function as a person and isn't being healthy emotionally or processing it which means the other choice, which means neglecting it..

Hoo boy, lecturing incoming. While deep down, it's likely Tendou caring for Kagami in his own ways, which is leaving him alone as he wants to prove his worth, by actually contributing to something and accomplishing it, which would mean best done without any help, unfortunately this can be used to excuse people's awful behaviors. The belief that bad things are good for people opens a door for those to use said belief to justify their rotten behavior, any occassions of people behaving awful to others is treated as tough love, even for those that aren't doing so. And those that had problems or showing weakness (no matter how many amounts) on any occassions like Kagami is treated as spineless cowards who can't handle the suffering in life, and those got the blame. It's also how some audiences unfairly bash a character, particularly main one, who had tons of flaws/weaknesses (relatable) and isn't living up to the badassery they expect; they got considered pussies and when they lament about they failure they got treated as crybaby.

And yeah, as someone who you said, wants to see others succeed, Tendou's someone who expects everyone else to live up to unrealistic high standards, and that'd be an automatic social brick wall. Tendou may care deep down, but I think the first scene showed him at one of his nastiest, tearing down someone who's in despair, at least outwardly. While Kagami's dad, although you said he had the same light as Tendou, in contrast to his earlier appearence that reminds me of Blade's Jin dad, comes off as supportive like usually a parent would be.

And talking about Tendou's words of only being saved as something that matters (you can't complain at all), about the audience again, like what's discussed in Ryuki thread in ep. 27, about the misunderstanding of what makes superheroes heroic, not only children, but also for those that carries that since little. Namely that the mindset that heroes are people who beat up bad guys, and the bad guys are bad because the heroes beat them up. In relation to beating up bad guys, some people can think that heroic deeds is as simplistic and limited to saving other's lives, and by that those that are saved have no right to behave in any manner other than being grateful; like objecting to something. While admittedly, someone who acts completely as a jerk to the savior is a complete dick move (and it'll infuriate me, and other audiences), but some people simplify heroic as only about saving other lives can be an uncaring view to it.

There are much more legitimate life problems other than just being saved or not, like Kagami feeling worthless after realizing that he's just a tool used by Kageyama. The view of heroic being only about saving lives can be callous towards anyone's problems as long as they live and not get killed, and while obviously saving others is a good thing to happen, performing heroic deeds is much more than only that, saving is only a part of it, but neglecting the other part isn't complete heroic deeds; what I said is aimed to someone who thinks characters like ideal heroes such as Eiji or anti-heroes such as Kaito as exactly similarly heroic because limiting hero definition as just anyone that can actually save people in need and treating what they do it for (money, recognition, etc.) or any character flaws as something that doesn’t matter, as long as they can save people. Which means that definition only takes "save people" into account and applies to my lecture here, as in KR mostly anyone on protagonistic side regularly kill monsters that attack humans.

Other than Tendou here, Misaki is also someone that frequently chews Kagami for his blunders, though rightfully so. And still does here while he's moping in the food store. Misaki however, I think it had happened other than the part here where it's a reflection on her failing to protect Kagami. Previously, she, like other ZECT members, was heavily against Kabuto being used by Tendou and one of the reasons she chewed out Kagami, but later Kagami rubbed off on her; she decided to entrust Kabuto Zecter to Tendou, and she also shows a bit of defiance against ZECT where she covered Tendou, and was against their policy of eliminating any Zecter users not affiliated with ZECT. And by that, Mishima (Goro) devalues her, claiming her as not knowing anything. So by that Misaki becomes more and more of an equal to Kagami, even before this episode, and for being at the top of ZECT's shit list. Probably with their equal infamy, it can cheer Kagami up, if Misaki told so, with Misaki also being deemed as worthless by Mishima.

I mean, Misaki's already doing this before right? She objects to Tadokoro and Mishima about HQ's decision of eliminating non-ZECT Zecter users. Tadokoro did represent about how workers can act as drones and blind loyalty; cult-ish belief to believe that anything their organization did was righteous and for the benefit of everyone, and to never question their rule. It's the classical "to be lawful or good" debate; dilemma between doing the honorable/legal thing, or the compassionate thing? And also many times in history humans have had to choose between what the law system expects of them and what their conscience or the circumstances demand. Tadokoro's firmly on the former though, no struggles between the choices, although Tadokoro seems to care about Misaki and Kagami from previous episodes. It's still unknown yet that why ZECT HQ is practically worshipped though.

I think I'd want to point out that, something like Juka's morning mukbang and Kagami running off crying isn't Inoue thing (unless about some of the camera takes), as the former is established before Inoue takes a part, and the latter happening in many other occassions where the writer isn't Inoue. Tendou offers guidance for Juka yeah, but I don't think that he offered Kagami any guidance here, unless you're counting the part where he acts as a Shadow member. For once, shockingly an identical people isn't about a Worm disguising as one here for the old men here. Daisuke's a white knight who only treats women well (and to speak of this, Kagami's issue of his existence being only seen as worthless and Daisuke's view of gender being something socially acceptable can correlate to me, where this creates male expendability idea in society, to clarify about something I fear in what I talked about Daisuke at his debut, where only women lives are the ones that are important and deserves special treatment and men's lives, like Kagami's to Kageyama, are less important and more disposable - like how Daisuke behaves, but extended to wide range of society) and the way to make him contribute in action is a women asking him for it as he'd oblige (I didn't know what happened in Misaki-Daisuke conversation in previous episode though, both Kagami and her also asked him to cooperate there).

W̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶i̶f̶ ̶i̶t̶'̶s̶ ̶s̶o̶m̶e̶o̶n̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶h̶a̶s̶ ̶n̶o̶ ̶f̶r̶i̶e̶n̶d̶s̶ ̶a̶t̶ ̶a̶l̶l̶,̶ ̶l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶a̶n̶ ̶o̶u̶t̶c̶a̶s̶t̶ ̶(̶w̶h̶i̶c̶h̶'̶d̶ ̶l̶i̶k̶e̶l̶y̶ ̶g̶u̶a̶r̶a̶n̶t̶e̶e̶d̶ ̶f̶e̶e̶l̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶b̶a̶d̶)̶?̶ I'd be likely the part who prefers to be left alone, though won't automatically reject helps (although helps barely happened anyway). Because those who help can border on toxic positivity (they're well intentioned, but doesn't have the capability to properly help), or even worse, the risk about them betraying you by using your problems as an information to ruin you (moreover with rotten behaviors being justified by others). And as I said above, Tendou's ways would just hurt more for my eyes, it's like the sink-or-swim mentor type, it should be something like Kagami's dad.

I'm thinking of accepting responsibility as more of a sliding scale, where it could be anywhere between accepting no responsibility for anything (Blameless) and accepting all responsibility for everything (Martyr). In this instance, while I think Kagami bears some responsibility for Kageyama's resentment, it's not really a huge amount.

I don't completely follow your second point, but I was just saying that abandoning coworkers for your own issues (especially if they might depend on you for their jobs/lives!) is maybe selfish in a way the show hadn't really addressed.

Misaki and Kagami do it constantly, and that's why it's so funny to me. Practically the only use of Tadokoro on this show is him sitting in a van and getting lectured by his subordinates. I think that's hilarious? I had to create a headcanon for why this dude just absorbs these moralizing outbursts, and Frustrated Salaryman is the one I landed on. I really enjoy creating an internal monologue for Tadokoro, where all of the judgment that gets heaped on him... like, he knows all of this is insane. Of course he knows that Kageyama is an asshole for almost getting Kagami killed! He would definitely prefer for half of his division's manpower to not get shot to death so some reprehensible toad could feel smart! But, like, Tadokoro is middle-management, and Kageyama isn't in his department. Misaki yelling at him is, like... lady, you are chewing out your boss for something he didn't get a vote on. Take it up with ZECT HR! Or quit your job! But, god, leave Tadokoro alone. He does not get paid enough to deal with your judgment.

For what it's worth, I consider you a friend? So don't feel like an outcast!

I guess we must both be weirdos then since I also prefer The Next. The pacing is never too slow and the horror and mystery keeps me intrigued for the whole movie in a way that only a guy like Inoue can manage. There's also Hopper 1's green Sakurajima suit which I prefer to the teal version.

It would have been cool to see "The Stronger" upgrade Tackle from sidekick to Kamen Rider Tackle and I was excited for "The Man" to happen in Amazons after Kazuya got his right arm eaten, that's the perfect origin story for a Riderman and I thought that was a missed opportunity.

Kagami's problem seems to be a continuation of his personal development arc from Episode 4 and 10. Tendo wants him to be more independent and make the difficult decisions and now that Kagami is committed to being Tendo's friend over The Bee, he wants to prove himself worthy of that friendship and that he's not just using Tendo as a safety net for his potential failures as a flawed human being. His choice to give up being a Kamen Rider means he's more suitable for being a Kamen Rider since he has an admirable devotion to his principles that sets him apart from posers like Yaguruma and unscrupulous people like Kageyama. Tendo doesn't want to diminish that by interfering in his development.

There are a few factors to consider here, such as whether the character is introverted or extroverted, or what kind of help the friends are willing to offer. For example, Takumi is introverted and the pushy methods of his friends in Team Faiz are insufficient to get him to open up, while Kiba knows exactly the right things to say to console him. Keitarou seems to be the opposite. He craves affection and needs to be around people all the time or else he'll get lonely.

There's a sweet spot between being too dependent on friends and indulging in self-destructive behavior by pushing them away. Where that sweet spot lies is determined by the individual. For me, I like my space to recharge my energy, I enjoy my own company but I don't want to be alone all the time, I need to interact with fellow intellectuals to keep my mind stimulated and give me inspiration.

https://i.imgur.com/i2TKlEs.png

Trying to write about this perfectly enjoyable episode of Kabuto really gave me an appreciation for what Die was talking about when he said it's hard to break down. Naturally, right after saying that, Die broke down the episode very nicely, but me? I just can't find an angle to save my life right now. The amount of trial and error it took simply to reach the paragraph you're currently reading was rather substantial. There's no big disagreement I have with Die; no piece of the episode that could've stood to be covered more; no general yet pertinent thoughts or fun trivia to work in.

Maybe that's the secret, though? This is a very tight episode of the series in terms of focus and structure. There's no dangling threads for me to swoop in and talk about, because every scene is advancing the same, singular plot. Even something as simple as Tendou cooking for Juka is used as a method to allow for elaboration on the central theme. There's close to nothing extraneous in this one, and that's a huge point in its favor. There's no highly contentious thing I can take a bold stance on, because it's delivering that one plot in a very competent manner that maybe doesn't leave much to the imagination, but also doesn't expect you to fill in holes yourself. Kagami's dilemma here is pretty well-conceived, I'd say, and it's neat to see him be allowed to reel from the events of the previous story, giving it more weight retroactively by not brushing off the stress of being framed for serious crimes as just another day at the office that he can forget about and go right back to the status quo. There's no general thoughts or trivia because... well, on second thought, I'm sure I can find a few random things to cover.

These next two episodes were directed by Nobuhiro Suzumura, who's a tiny bit younger and less experienced than some of Toei's other usual suspects, which admittedly shows in how basic a lot of the episode looks, but it's a very competent, by-the-book sort of basic that's appealing enough, and there were still some little touches I found neat. One was the use of Clock Up here, which won't sound like a compliment for a second, but bear with me. It seems apparent the show doesn't have the budget to keep up the elaborate slow-motion setpieces in every episode, which leads to Drake's use of it here being almost pointless. Remove the sounds, and taken out of context it would like any other fight. Because I'm assuming this is a budget issue, however, I appreciate the very blunt establishing shot showing speeding trains slowing down, with the sound of them rushing by cutting out, and then right back in once the sequence is over. It's only a background element; they don't go fighting in traffic like Kabuto in the second episode, but it works wonders to quickly build the right sense of atmosphere without breaking the bank. Plus, I mean, the whole fight is shot at night, so just in general it looks cool.

Another bit I liked was the increasingly petty escalation of Tendou and Daisuke's squabbling until the scene just ends with them having their backs turned to each other in disgust, although in that case, I have to give just as much credit to the writing for getting me on-board with this dynamic more than last time. It becomes really clear in that scene why exactly Tendou can't stand putting up with Daisuke in a way that makes his frustration feel more natural and in-character. The way his snickering facial expression when Daisuke asks to do Misaki's makeup changes to shocked horror as soon as she says yes is what sold me. Tendou is waiting for this guy to press his luck too much and embarrass himself to the point of self-destruction like most of his potential rivals do, but Daisuke is keeping his composure and getting results just like Tendou would, and the concept of someone who can even come close to matching him entering his life out of nowhere this way freaks Tendou out. Their animosity is borderline instinctive, like two magnets with the same polarity or something. Its honestly pretty adorable.

Alright, that turned out a lot better than I thought it would for a while! This is the first of six straight episodes written by Inoue, which will no doubt be great fun for Die, and hopefully won't always leave me struggling this much to contribute?

It's so strange to me that, after a not-that-well-received (commercially, if not critically) Kamen Rider series that was mostly about a non-powered character going through a ton of personal growth while being mentored by a Kamen Rider who was already great at his job... we get this series, which is doing the exact same thing. I mean, it's not Hibiki, by a long shot, but the broad strokes are remarkably similar. Weird!

I never ever want one of these posts to just be me saying This Was A Satisfactory Episode Of Kamen Rider, but, like, sometimes that's all they are? This one in particular, the way it jettisons the usual ZECT bureaucracy (short a cryptic comment from Kagami's dad and Tadokoro getting chewed out) for a story about a small group of friends/"friends" trying to stop a series of monster attacks, I mean... that is a super generic/basic/stock/less-pejorative Kamen Rider setup! They even lay out their strategy in the cafe! The characters make it pop, but the setup could've been in nearly any other show. (Like, this story is already 90% a Faiz story, just switch Kagami with Keitaro and the other Kabuto characters with pretty much exactly who you think.) Without all of those Kabuto specifics, and without Hiyori having a prominent role, it's a very difficult episode to find stuff in.

I know there were other words in that post but these ones kinda seem the most critical to me when it comes to explaining our troubles here. It's like, without her, what's even worth talking about from this show?! :p

You probably won’t be too keen on the first few post-movie episodes then. The actress playing Hiyori got sick while making the movie and had to take several episodes off to recover.

KAMEN RIDER KABUTO - EPISODE 16

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/.../kabuto16a.png

Do you know how badly I want this post to just be me talking about Hiyori and Gon? And the adventures I have already crafted for them in my head? (They definitely run a bowling alley in one.) There's almost nothing to their scene in this one, but it's a joke that is so perfect that I can't stop thinking about it.

It's Hiyori at a produce vendor, trying to buy fruit. But she can't, y'know, communicate, so she's just ineffectually pointing at an orange, while the frustrated vendor tries to get her to enunciate her request. And then Gon walks up, displays the orange, and Hiyori does the Daisuke thing of Yes Yes That That.

It killed me. It's such a simple thing, but it's simultaneously adorable (Hiyori!), heartwarming (Gon!), and 100% on-topic for one of this episode's themes: we never really achieve anything alone.

As a theme, it's one that filters through this episode without really coming together until the end. Kagami is still looking for the solo success that'll renew his confidence, and it's made elusive by how insane this episode's plot is. (Tendou goes double-undercover, so, yeah, still an Inoue episode.) He gets a hand from Misaki and Daisuke in the beginning, as we recap the details of last time. He gets a hand from Tendou in the middle, as the two of them expose which Drunk Doctor is the Worm. (...which requires Kagami to act as bait, so Tendou's sort of pushing it in this one.) And then at the end, as Kagami finishes off one of the Worms, he gets invisible Clock Up help from Tendou to make sure he gets his victory.

Continuing on from last episode's conflict of how best to help a friend, Tendou basically splits the difference between his and Misaki's previous approaches. In the hospital, he goes with Misaki's approach: he makes sure that Kagami is aware of their partnership, and asks for his trust that this will help expose the Worm. It lets Kagami feel like his contribution matters, that he can depend on Tendou to support him. But during the battle with the Worms at the end, Tendou does it his way: a tiny bit of secret help, and letting Kagami feel like he has value. It's a very pleasant view of the specific way Tendou can be a friend to Kagami.

The other theme for this episode is one that fits alongside We Never Really Achieve Anything Alone, and it's probably the bigger point in this installment. It's that you should always go into partnerships with your eyes open.

Drunk Doctor throws in with a group of Worms, hoping that he can use their mimicry to save more lives, but eventually they just want to kill him. Tendou joins ZECT to help expose the Worms, but is fully aware that they can't be trusted. There's this feeling in both scenarios that partnering up with any organization... like, you can't expect them to care about you. Drunk Doctor thinks these Worms are on his side, believe in what he believes in, but they never did. They worked with him for mutual benefit (he got to save lives, they got to hide and murder), but once that benefit came to an end, he was dead meat.

The thing is, though, you can make use of organizational strength. (On a micro level, the team of Tendou, Kagami, Daisuke, and Misaki do a pretty great job this episode!) This isn't a story about how you should never work with anyone. (It's the opposite of that!) But it's suggesting that a lot of the problems of Drunk Doctor and Kagami are that they put their faith in an organization, and the organization took advantage of that faith. Meanwhile, Tendou made sure that he was getting what he needed from ZECT without making himself vulnerable, so he couldn't be taken advantage of. It's a pretty nuanced take on work-for-hire, where it's not cast as good or bad, just as something you should be careful with.

So, yeah, fun story about protecting yourself in partnerships, but who cares: HIYORI AND GON HUNG OUT ON A PLAYGROUND

A++++++

A QUESTION

One of my favorite beats in the episode is, unsurprisingly, from that scene of Hiyori and Gon hanging out on a playground. When Hiyori asks where Daisuke is, Gon says that they both needed some time apart, and the implication is that Daisuke Is Kind Of A Lot. It makes sense that Gon might need some time here and there to go have her own adventures, ones that aren't built around putting women on pedestals or grudgingly fighting monsters. Assuming, like Gon, you lived in a world where you could actually go do things, what's something you regularly do outside to have fun by yourself? I certainly hope one of them is to help socially-awkward strangers get the fruit they need!

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/.../kabuto16b.png

Yeah, this one didn't work that well for me. I think the main issue was that it crossed the line with Tendou.

Tendou is a tricky character to work with. Being an arrogant prick is very much central to his nature and that's a hard trait to build your show's main character around. It's really easy to take it too far and make the character turn obnoxious. I think Kabuto generally does a good job of avoiding that, but I feel like this episode took Tendou too far. Strolling into ZECT and getting put in command of Shadow, waltzing into a hospital and get trusted to perform surgery, the whole "I'm the greatest human alive" bit. It went too far. I usually love Tendou when he's being a troll, but this episode just went overboard in a way that I found more annoying than amusing.

Yeah, it might’ve been this episode I read that comment on.

Anyway, the reason this episode is arguably important in later Rider media? While Not!Goro or as I know him, NotYet!Bando, only turns into TheBee in this episode, the RiderWiki considers him to have been in the suit in every later appearance of the suit after Kabuto, even though all of them are in situations where it could be ANYONE for different reasons

Decade: Alternate universes

That OOO anniversary movie: An alternate timeline

Chou Super Hero Taisen, on a screen as part of Team Insect (with Wild Chalice, Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger’s KuwagaRaiger, Kamen Rider V3 and Mahou Sentai Magiranger’s MagiPink: The game world has multiple versions of the same character appear (OOO is on the Blue Rider, Flying and High Speed teams in different combos), so there’s really no reason it can’t be anyone else. Especially since he doesn’t actually appear on screen.

https://i.imgur.com/0fxRf2h.png

I feel a lot more comfortable with the concept of a huge stretch of episodes by Inoue after this one. His wild vision for the show hasn't totally been gelling with me yet, but this episode, it felt way more satisfying despite being much the same wacky antics with a somewhat clever yet thin dramatic thrust. Maybe it's just the insane amount of stuff going on. Definitely plenty to talk about this time! I feel like I learned so much this episode.

I mean, I learned that ZECT's management is even more questionable than previously thought, and yet I also respect them way more now. Sure, the idea they would make this Soujirou Tendouji guy the leader of their most elite combat team within a week of him signing up is absurd... but are they really wrong about him having the skills for the job? I'm not even going to complain about Tendou's apparent fake identity fooling them, because the way this place is run, I'd believe it if you told me they knew he was lying and just didn't care. That man gets results, and results are all ZECT cares about! Tendou in this one totally worked for me, and I appreciate the show being willing to concede that he wouldn't have been able to pose as a doctor without the backing of ZECT. For whatever reason, it's way harder to believe a hospital being so easily fooled than it is a highly clandestine organization. It doesn't make much sense, I know, but it makes enough sense for Kabuto, and that's what counts.

Oh, and speaking of the management, I learned that Mishima would kill it in a slam dunk contest, but settles for merely using those mad hops to metaphorically dunk on Kageyama instead, totally showing him up as TheBee. This episode is one big chain of embarrassment for Kageyama, and every moment of that was one of my favorites from the whole episode. He's completely ineffectual the entire time, and so petty that when he came randomly charging towards Daisuke in the middle of the episode, I honestly expected him to just stick his arm out and clothesline the guy without stopping. But no, instead it's part of a ruse to pit Tendou(ji) against Daisuke, a plan that fails so hard Kageyama is doing dishes two minutes later. And he's bad enough at it that Kagami gets to pile on to the nonstop humiliation. It is, by far, the best use this show has had for Kageyama yet. He's just not intimidating enough to be taken seriously as a threat, so having him be this wannabe schemer with ambitions that far outstrip his abilities, I thought it was a much more natural fit for the guy.

Finally, and most importantly, I learned that Inoue can in fact write good scenes with Hiyori! Which I also would've been happy to talk about for the entire post! I wasn't too sure he could pull it off for a bit there, but, simple as it is, Hiyori asking for an orange too quietly, and then getting talked over when she repeats herself even more quietly a millisecond too late for the much more tense person she's talking to, that is everything I love about Hiyori packed into like five seconds. That's all I need, and on top of that, there's the whole scene with Gon. I know Die did the A+ thing as a joke, but man, you would not believe how much a little bit like this can elevate everything around it.

I have some thoughts on this! Just keep scrolling!

(But, yeah, he's way more controlling and manipulative in this story, which is not what you usually do with a heroic character. Tendou's got that Sherlock Holmes thing, where he's brilliant and reliable, but you wish he didn't have to be such a dick about it.)

Oh, Wikis. Always trying to be definitive, when often flexibility is the right choice.

I cannot thank you enough for those thoughts. 16 was one I felt like I didn't really get ahold of in the writing phase (had thoughts, didn't communicate them super great, sometimes we're all a little bit Hiyori), and your post was both funny and insightful, which reassured me that folks following this thread would be looked out for by someone. That bit about Goro metaphorically dunking on Kageyama... *chef's kiss*

Anyway, it was so good of a post that it reminded me of two things I wanted to talk about, and sort of forgot to when I was writing.

The first was something I was thinking about way back in the first Kabuto episode Inoue wrote. There's a scene where Misaki is asking Tendou to join ZECT, and all I could think was Oh God Misaki No You Do Not Want That. I thought, at the time, that if Tendou joined ZECT, he'd be running that place in a week. Well, he was running Shadow within a day, so maybe that timeline was too long? It's such a Tendou thing, the way all systems bend themselves to his will. It totally tracks that Tendou would be a high-ranking ZECT member basically midway through his initial interview.

The other thing was that all of that stuff with Kageyama getting humiliated... it's all a Tendou plan? And it might actually be two Tendou plans?

Any time Tendou does anything weird in a Kabuto plot, or anything that looks sloppy or like someone's getting over on him, I think of it like a heist movie. There's a giant plan, and the plan calls for these weird things or apparent failures to happen. So Kageyama's scheme, that's not an accident. It's something, I think, that Tendou designed.

He's going out of his way to tease and provoke Kageyama, and I think he knows that Kageyama will eventually try to get Daisuke to bump him off. (Kageyama's a schemer, and he hates getting his hands dirty. Better for his two rivals to take each other out.) So he maneuvers Kageyama into action by humiliating him, and then neutralizes it by acting ashamed and accommodating. (Inoue could not have hung a bigger flashing than having Tendou apologize to Daisuke!) But why provoke Kageyama? Why allow Daisuke to even briefly think Tendou was out to get him?

So, the short-term reason was revenge for Kagami. Forcing Kageyama to do Kagami's work, making Kageyama's punishment happen right in front of Kagami, that's not by accident! This is a gift from Tendou, to Kagami.

The longer-term reason is that it refocuses Daisuke's animosity away from the reasonable, accommodating Tendou, and onto the duplicitous, untrustworthy ZECT. (Which works great, considering how tight the Kabuto/ShootHopper teamwork is at the end of the episode.) I mean, that's why Tendou left, Daisuke! Those guys couldn't be trusted! Tendou's not your enemy!

So, yeah, real fan of how much of a puppet-master Tendou is in this one.

Again, always happy to help! I mean, not having to do things alone was even a theme in these episodes. :p

Man, I wasn't even considering all those layers, but I really should've known better. I'm definitely most into Tendou when he's being written more as a force of nature that manipulates the events of the story than when he's functioning in a relatively standard hero role. That strange sense of detachment he seems to have, while simultaneously never missing a detail and always having a plan, those are the things that make him such a unique "protagonist", and when the scripts leverage it right (4 is the gold standard for this), it can be a very interesting way to propel the development of the other, less certain characters. There's a sense that it's something that could only happen in this show.

Hiyori's communication problem is already established before this, where in her early scene the way of her communicating with her tone, eye contact, etc. And this part of her against vendor... never occured to me even once, if talking about necessary communicating such as asking for something you need such as buying things. The talk about Gon's name, her name comes as a short short for "nanashi no gonbei" (nameless person), which is said here that she is amnesiac and nameless, but given Gon as a name from that.

Again, this is another show of Tendou's superiority, which other than himself with his outright god complex of claiming himself as superior than 6 million human combined, is even addressed by Mishima that he's a first-rate human, he's a master in every single thing and will always accomplish anything without any problem. He can take any role that he wants, be a priest, Shadow leader, doctor, etc. And so far from what's shown, he partakes in various job fields to uncover Worm disguises (and he had uncanny detection of Worm). He's, uhh... embodies the dreaded term you'll get if you create a character, "gary stu" (means a character who is portrayed as perfect, unrealistically free of weaknesses, and sometimes without having to do much to gain it. It originates in fan fiction, a Mary Sue is often an author's idealized self-insertion. Mary Sue stories are often written by adolescent authors). It's one of the highest tips to write fiction, don't make a character mary sue (female) or gary stu (male). And I think, while several number of people can't stand Tendou for that perfectness, he's one of those in fiction media that gets free from the universal hatred that those type of characters will receive.

At least, that Kagami is used as a bait, again, if Tendou's someone that berates Kageyama for doing the same and takes pride in it, and also had him in his mercy here by controlling him as his subordinate and forcing him to apologize for his misdeeds, he at least had to show that he's not a hypocrite, by at least giving Kagami credit to make him feel worthy to be alive, even if it's a fake one where it's actually Kabuto killing a Worm yet again. And about the theme, it's more that we never really achieve anything alone... except if you're Tendou.

Isn't a story about how you should never work with anyone, but Tendou's a character that is an embodiment of it, which is why perfect characters like him are unrelatable. ZECT is just one of the organization Tendou uses to expose Worms, and while they can't be trusted, could the same be said for other organizations like the hospital, or the church dude?? It's the same as Tendou, he joins them temporarily to expose Worms, so that means those can be trusted either? Alternatively, probably Wakabayashi agrees with those Worm's deal to save his own life, that if Wakabayashi agrees with the Worms, the Worms will not kill him, albeit obviously, those are all lies as shown in this episode.

Haven't go outside by myself much other than necessity ones...

There's a bunch of actually controlling and manipulative main characters in media, and it even exists in, for example, one of the most popular anime in its home country. Protagonist just means a main character after all, it has nothing to do with alignments. And from something what I said before, sometimes people limits hero definition as just anyone that can actually save people in need and treating what they do it for (money, recognition, etc.) or any character flaws as something that doesn’t matter, as long as they can save people. So people can think that it doesn't matter if Tendou is being obnoxious, or "I'm the greatest human alive", or being controlling and manipulative, etc. because the only thing that matters is that Worms are killed and people are saved. By this also people can think that ideal heroes such as Eiji or anti-heroes such as Kaito as exactly similarly heroic (and potentially bash the type of former for not having "interesting" traits the latter have due to viewing them as the same).

Did not know the etymology of her name, so thanks! I'm still going to think of her as a tiny dinosaur, though.

Tendou needed ZECT, though! And Kagami! It's a big part of the story!

KAMEN RIDER KABUTO - EPISODE 17

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/.../kabuto17a.png

Pretty fun episode of Kabuto! A lot of ups, and just a few downs.

Let's tackle the downs first, since they're less about this episode and more systemic. Namely, they're all related to this being the first part of a Kabuto two-parter, so get ready for people acting like complete assholes with no clear motivation (yet), and a plot that mostly revolves around When Exactly Did Tendou Figure It All Out.

The first part is the big flaw in this episode, even if I'd say it didn't really harm the story. Daisuke is almost unconscionably dismissive of Gon here, treating her alternately as a liar; a slacker; a pest; and an anchor. In the same way that the show wants there to be no confusion as to whether Kageyama deserves to burn (gleefully assaulting both women and children in one episode), there's just wall-to-wall Daisuke being awful in this chapter. Worse, it basically comes out of nowhere? I'm sure (I hope) the next episode will sketch in why Daisuke suddenly didn't give two shits about Gon's obvious terror, but here it's just him getting worse and worse until WAIT HE DOES CARE. It is... I do not love a surrogate father slowly abandoning his ward! It is not a fun thing to watch, especially when it's like Of Course Daisuke Actually Cares About Gon. There isn't shock or tension, there's just this steadily mounting disappointment in both Daisuke as a character, and Kabuto as a show. Him fighting Kabuto at the end, it's like... where was all of this at any other point in the episode. (He is so disinterested when she says a man grabbed her at night in a park! What the hell, Daisuke?!)

And, speaking of that fight with Kabuto, that's kind of the other downside of this one, and Kabuto stories kind of in general? I mean, it's a setup, right? Not from Daisuke, maybe, but Tendou has totally Clocked Up to what's going on here. He always does, which makes cliffhangers that put him in jeopardy sort of nonstarters for me. There is a trick, or a ruse, or a stratagem, and he'll do his Skinny Jeans Poirot thing later in the second part, where he lays out what's really been going on in the story, and... like, that's this show. I'm not completely mad at it, but there's a use of the formula that is wearing a little thin, and I really felt it at this episode's conclusion. I didn't buy the cliffhanger (the cut to the ZECT camera on ShootHopper's gun felt way too intentional), so the end of the episode was a bit of a shrug for me. It's something that's happened more than once for me on this show, where the tension of a plot evaporates because I never for a second think the dilemma has gotten away from Tendou. That's a structural flaw that... I mean, I'm only a third of the way through the show and it's becoming hard to dismiss. That's not great!

But, again, neither of those things really sank the episode for me. It's an inventively-shot story that focuses on Gon's past, Hiyori's compassion, and the ways found families carry within them a fear of abandonment that never goes away; while also making time for bathroom antics, quality fights, and an overconfident Kagami who will not stop telling his one story.

That Kagami story... I mean, the joke is how over it all of his friends are, but I never got tired of that gag. The way it keeps escalating in his mind, where he looks cooler and cooler the more he thinks about it, and how from the first telling of it in this episode Tendou wishes he made a different choice last episode to help him. But the fact that the episode kept visually embellishing it, it just sold the joke for me.

Similarly, Gon's flashbacks are, like, the version of Hiyori's flashbacks that I wanted. The way the world outside the bus is a children's drawing of the world, and Gon's mother's face is blurred out (wild guess: the woman who's interviewing Daisuke) because she can't make sense of it all yet... it's a lot of incredibly specific touches that make the tragedy of Gon's past something that feels like more than just some random accident. It's like Kagami's story, where it feels heightened, mythical. It's less an accident than an origin story.

Daisuke may spend the episode being total scum (Tendou's words, not mine, but also I would use those words), but there's a lot from Gon's side that makes him seem worth caring about. That little scene, when Gon asks to hold Hiyori's hand, and then drops it because it only feels right with Daisuke? My heart! I can only take so much sadness! And it's all so sad here, as Gon is so much more of a little girl than the Brains Of The Outfit we're used to. To see her need comfort, reassurance, and to look for it in Daisuke... it's doing this double-act of making him seem like a refuge, and then making it hurt more when he refuses to comfort Gon. It is taking a dynamic I was already invested in, and making it seem like its dissolution would be the end of the world.

And that's a theme that... I'm not sure if I'm reading too much into it, but it seems like it's exploring how precarious found families can feel. Found families are all over Kamen Rider (since, typically , ALL DADS ARE DEAD), as a group of weirdos and outcasts find strength in their friendships, elevating them into unbreakable bonds. But, there's always this sense that people could still leave that you don't get with your original family. There's a strength in choosing to say These People Are My Family, but it's still a choice, and that choice can always be unmade. God knows people can (and do!) choose to break familial connections all the time, but most stories are about how hard that is to do. You Can't Turn Your Back On Family and all that. But with Gon and Daisuke, it feels totally insecure, like an agreed-upon delusion. They're family as long as neither of them gets sick of it. Even in the beginning, Daisuke says he can't commit to always holding Gon's hand. Telling a story about that, how a found family is a constant, daily commitment to one another... that's a story I'm not sure I've seen before?

Like, I can't for a second argue with the stakes of this episode. Daisuke's motivation is frustratingly vague (he's a dick from the jump), and I don't believe Tendou's out of step on this one, but A Little Girl Needs Her Rider Dad is such a bulletproof idea for a story, I can't really come down too hard on the flaws. This episode was a machine designed to put my goddamn heart in a vice, and it did that with precision. Sort of terrified to watch the next episode!

A QUESTION

Kageyama! Boy oh boy, Kageyama. Him giving Gon that little smile, just before he abducts her? Pretty terrible! On a scale of 1 (Let's See Where This Goes) to 10 (I've Already Wiped Him From My Memory, Like Gon's Mom's Face), how done are you with Kageyama?

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/.../kabuto17b.png

I'm in pretty much complete agreement over this one. Daisuke hasn't been around that long and he's been more in the background for a lot of that time, but he still feels really out of character here. I'm not sure why he's so callous here, but it definitely undercuts the entire episode to have it based around this abrupt turn.

Totally agree on Kagami's limited role in this one, too.

The comedic timing on all of Kagami's storytelling is, maybe, a series highlight. The way he's always ending his story with Not To Brag! So perfect!

(The way Tendou groans out "That was all bragging"... So, so perfect!)

This sounds like a great episode of tv. Though I do think having daisuke not listen and be distracted would be better then having him be cruel. Daisuke has always come off as absent minded and not like fully paying attention.

Yeah, it gets off to not a great start with Daisuke responding to Gon's claims of scary men attacking children as Oh You Kids And Your Stories. Like, it's necessary for him to disregard the threat, or else the story goes very differently, but... I mean, Gon's never been set up as a fabulist? And there are literal monsters at work in Tokyo? Nothing she says feels too unreal to believe, so the fact that Daisuke immediately dismisses it... yeah, not a great start!

(The rest of it is more what you're asking for, where Daisuke isn't paying attention to how continuously spooked she is, and is being a petulant ass about her screwing up his moment in the spotlight. That stuff feels more in line with how he's previously been portrayed.)

Not much to say on the episode, beyond answering the question. I wasn’t quite done with Kageyama at this point, since I knew the best/worst was yet to come. And that’s all I’ll say, beyond this is the third episode of Kamen Rider to be called “Restored Memories”, with the previous 2 being in Agito and Faiz.

This is a major turning point for Daisuke's character development. He values his freedom, which is why Drake Zecter is attracted to him. Gon is his responsibility, a limit on his freedom since he needs to be emotionally available to her like holding her hand and protecting her from Worms and he doesn't enjoy that commitment. He considers her a burden, a feeling that is mutual considering how difficult Daisuke is to be around.

Gon obviously values her freedom as well, considering she's currently abducted and unhappy about it. But she doesn't want freedom from Daisuke, she feels safe with him even though he can be difficult and considers him her best friend. Her abduction is the catalyst for Daisuke realizing that he cares about something more than making girls beautiful. Gon is a burden he can't live without and she's the only person he truly cares about. Freedom without purpose is meaningless and that little girl gives him the motivation to be a better person.

Everything about their strained relationship in this arc with their conflict of needs and how their separation causes them to open up about their true feelings really connects with me and I really want to see them make up (haha, get it?) and become closer by accepting how they make each other feel safe and valued. I also want to see Kageyama get the Rider Shooting he deserves for splitting them up and generally being a terrible person. I love this arc and how it adds more depth to the unlikely friendship between Daisuke and Gon.

Yeah, you'd have to be pretty awful to abduct and ransom a little girl like Gon. I'm not sure how your scale works though. I hate Kageyama for his immoral actions but it's for the same reason that I can't forget him. That's like the whole point of his character. He should watch his back now cause Drake's going to make him pay!

Yeah, nice observation, let's add that to the list of episode titles Inoue likes to repeat alongside "[x] Dies".

This is a thing that you've brought up, and maybe other people have, too, but I wish it were clearer in the show. I mean, I love this idea, that the emotions that create a Rider/Zecter partnership can wane, and how that effects the power of the Rider. The need to constantly embody one personality type at the risk of being unable to wield power? That is a very cool idea! I just feel like it's not really something the show is explicating that well. I'm not sure anyone's stated what the Zecters want, beyond a tough to define I Choose You thing. (Like, Yaguruma losing TheBee, or it picking Kagami... I'm not sure what TheBee's criteria is? No one really talks about it.)

It's a read I really love, and I super appreciate that you're able to pull that out of the show and share it... I just wish the show made it clearer?

The connection between Riders and Zecters may also parallel the Worms, with the Zecters seeking out users based on a resonance with a trait or emotion they embody and admire in others. Since they're not exactly talkative, they're just as mysterious as ZECT itself and figuring out their criteria for selecting users is partially trial and error by observing who they bond with and what causes them to abandon a user.

The Bee Zecter abandons Yaguruma and Kagami when they exhibit internal conflict such as hesitation or doubt. So far, Kageyama is pretty consistent in his subordination to ZECT which seems to resonate with The Bee Zecter in a way that his predecessors couldn't live up to. I think the Zecters are deliberately made to be mysterious and abstract in what they want and why they value certain traits over others.