reported to mods

We are in the first part of this arc, so of course the Inoue-isms aren't strong yet. But I like how much presence Another Kiva gives, she's a lot more different compared to the other Another Riders where she just reins in the fangires and even gets Ora mad, but maybe it's not that hard to get her mad. She even throws manholes!

And we get a bit of backstory on Sougo where he was smitten by a high school girl and that girl also happened to be this convict. Woah, Inoue. I have to agree that Inoue does best with MOTW stories, there's something about how he writes characters that makes them sing, ya know?

And then Ginga shows up. That's pretty weird, honestly. Dunno why he's here, but I'm guessing toy schedules and what not. He is very cool tho. He's voiced by Tomokazu Sugita whom is most known for Gintoki from Gintama. And for me, Dr. Roman from FGO.

Next episode umbrella-isms and Woz's final form

I feel like they're already pretty strong? No one got amnesia by being thrown into a river, but, like, the first scene is someone being ground up by an uncaring system! That's some top-shelf Inoue right there!

And, yeah, so many fun details to Yuko, which is another of Inoue's specialties. Yuko has this amazing ability to read people, similar to Sougo's, but hers is more analytical; removed. She picks up all these little clues and uses them to break people apart. Really cool villain.

Well, apparently Inoue is enough of an event that I have two of these pictures.

Armour Time! Bite! Kiva!

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachmen...KivaArmor.webp

Finish Time! Kiva! Wake Up Time Break!

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachmen...KivaWakeUp.jpg

And I’ll just say, you can tell right away this is a different beast to the usual fare. Not only does the Uncle actually get to fix a watch, but the usual music gets replaced with a maudlin piano track for much of the episode.

So, as has been mentioned, Ginga is a homage to Ultraman Ginga, another Tokusatsu anniversary series (though his gimmick is closer to Decade’s than Zi-O’s, in that he has to shift into an iconic monster before assuming his base form). He appears here solely because Ginga’s titular character (and also its main antagonist) share a VA with Kivat.

Anyway, enough explanations, on with the showing off of the toys, starting with a comparison between the 4 Mirai Driver variants and the corresponding Miridewatches (As one person put it, clearly the Beyondriver doesn’t care to homage the original finishers, like the Ziku Driver)

https://youtube.com/watch?v=V-riPhILsnc

And now, to contrast with GeizRevive clashing with Geiz’s digital watch theme by being an hourglass, the Ginga Miridewatch compliments the Beyondriver’s camera motif by being a reel of film, with one form for each of regular Ginga’s finishers.

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

‘The burning sun, countless planets, this faraway space is my garden. Kamen Rider Ginga’

And to complete the reference, I went with Ginga’s OP (the actual one, not the foreign DVD replacement. The only place you’ll hear this in show is on TV-N’s subs) Legend of Galaxy - Ginga no Hasha https://youtube.com/watch?v=9SzV8Vxx...53PYhmohBO-mt_

Next time: Iwae! The strongest in the galaxy, GingaFinaly (yes, that is officially how it is spelt)

I also quite enjoyed this episode, to tell you (I'd also confess that some of my favorite commercial in TV are the bizzare funny ones). This ain't something like RT Ryuki (you'd be quite mistaken for what to count for Inoue things that can inspire hate there other than 50/50 the horny one, it'd be about Inoue being overly edgy but especially about what's written in novels), and for me personally, there aren't really any OOC moments here (other than Sougo likely turning more stupid in his judgment) so that's good, including those being done for comedy; being comedy doesn't mean it's not OOC like Kaitou causing trouble by his funny actions (o̶f̶ ̶w̶h̶i̶c̶h̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶f̶y̶i̶,̶ ̶I̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶ ̶q̶u̶i̶t̶e̶ ̶g̶l̶a̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶y̶o̶u̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶p̶r̶a̶i̶s̶e̶ ̶T̶e̶z̶u̶k̶a̶ ̶t̶u̶r̶n̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶i̶n̶t̶o̶ ̶d̶e̶p̶r̶a̶v̶e̶d̶ ̶m̶a̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶r̶e̶ ̶d̶e̶s̶p̶i̶t̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶f̶i̶r̶s̶t̶ ̶p̶a̶r̶t̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶p̶r̶a̶i̶s̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶h̶i̶m̶ ̶t̶o̶s̶s̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶c̶o̶i̶n̶s̶,̶ ̶p̶a̶r̶t̶l̶y̶ ̶I̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶ ̶r̶e̶a̶d̶ ̶y̶o̶u̶ ̶f̶r̶o̶m̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶r̶e̶a̶c̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶K̶i̶b̶a̶,̶ ̶b̶u̶t̶ ̶a̶n̶y̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶c̶a̶n̶ ̶h̶a̶p̶p̶e̶n̶). The one that can earn 'everyone hate' regarding your list is the horny one (either being seen as creepy or derogatory-memed like Kusaka having oedipus complex to Mari) though probably this one I don't hear it, probably this one's not on that extreme stuff so more tolerable. Yuko's actually is one of the more popular MOTW in Zi-O too, the other one is Rentarou (so give that one credit too... though not rewarded in proper way if RT Shinobi is like that).

Well hehe, Yuko's still shrouded in mystery in general, so I can't talk more about what about her yet, but kinda glad too that Yuko's not immediately seen as good here for her intentions (if it's "evil ace attorney"), her fun character, or how the protagonist (Sougo) views her while also being someone who knows her more compared to the others. But if she's already rightfully seen as bad here, then I gotta tell that it's still just the beginning too. Other than probably being comedic, I actually like about how Yuko's a creative fighter that makes use of everything she can around her to get upper hand? Manhole cover? It's a really effective weapon! It can be used as a shield, and it's effective enough as a bashing weapon or throwing weapon. My argument's the same as how Hibiki makes use of musical instruments as weapons. Her fighting against Time Jackers, specifically Ora, ain't about her being actually good to fight off cruel villains or being undercover as "Queen", but it's about how she has little regards to anyone for her superiority complex as a "Queen", actually is 'ungrateful' to the Time Jackers.

This shows about Geiz changing too. Preivously he'd be more similar to Yuko, that's probably still a stretch, but about him being more merciless, about how Geiz would eliminate anyone he perceives as evil like Another Rider simply for being Another Rider. But now, Geiz won't approve on extreme law enforcement (and that's only the surface of Yuko for now), speaking up against eliminating subjects. Other than that, while Sougo does have dumb and naive traits, here his love for Yuko makes him dumb in his judgment and manipulative abilities too, he shuts off his brain and believes every word she says. When usually Sougo's the one that actually gulls other people despite his outwardly silliness. Here Sougo also has a genuinely naive view (dunno if this is OOC as this probably isn't love related but the job in general) about how lawyers are inherently good due to what's expected of them alone. I'd think a person/character shouldn't be judged by their job/occupation alone, either elevating them as beacons of goodness simply due to taking jobs that are seen as heroic or being scums for not taking those jobs.

I'd say that Ginga's showing is cool though, he actually makes use of his abilities well and it fits his galaxy theme (as per the name 'Ginga'). And though for above, Sougo is the one that is ridiculous in this episode, as Zi-O Trinity, turns out that the other males are no better than Sougo too, they actually can't use Trinity right with constant arguing that even reduces their effectiveness. For this one, Tsukuyomi's the one that rolls her eyes about how incompetent her comrades are, though well, potentially infuriating that she's "useless" compared to the others as she isn't a Rider for now and she cannot come close into doing as good as bickering Zi-O Trinity towards Ginga, thus has no "right" to complain about the actual Riders.

The Kiva episodes would have been my choice if we’d done the “TN Watches” format for Zi-O. I have a deep-seated ironic love for them that comes around so full-circle that it becomes unironic. Unfortunately, I can’t really go into the nuts and bolts of that affection yet, because so much of it is based on stuff from the second half. What I can say now is that while I intensely dislike the set-up being based on Sougo’s intense love for the girl that has never once been mentioned in 34 episodes, one movie, and lots of bonus content, Yuko is still my favorite Another Rider in the entire series. It’s not even a close contest, she is streets ahead of all the others, even Amane.

I don't think that I got he was an Ultraman reference? I thought maybe they just shared a name. So thanks for clearing that up!

I think it's also that, like, Kiva is The Horny Show. Even if you don't like it as a tone, you can't really do a Kiva tribute and not have a main cast member get all hornt up.

She's really great! There's some great physicality to her character, even before she henshins into Another Kiva. She stops a car with her foot!

It's amazing to me that Yuko is so compelling and fleshed-out in one episode, but Another Zi-O had four episodes and I can't even remember that kid's name. Some real night-and-day stuff when it comes to building out a short-run adversary.

(Fish Sandwich also watched Kamen Rider Zi-O - EP35)

Hey, so this episode continues to make it a point to reuse music from the earlier show it's paying tribute to, which means that I might as well take the opportunity to do this again, for old times' sake:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UrczEdSezE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-a73MWqEsc

These were the two I caught skimming back through the episode, and someone at Toei clearly has very good taste to pick tracks from the second volume of Kiva's soundtrack. Lots of real good stuff on that one, but then, it's not like Tsuneyoshi Saitou's score for Kiva was ever anything but excellent.

...That being said, they unfortunately seemed to balance it out by using a lot of stock music, which, I mean, that's fine and all -- stock music exists for a reason -- but I've gotten to a point where I can usually pick that stuff out as not belonging immediately, and it takes me out of the story a bit. Totally just a me problem, though.

But yeah, as for the episode itself, it's the beginning of another really special and exciting two-parter I'm going to wait for Die to finish before really diving into my thoughts about. Before I say anything else though, I really am glad Inoue was allowed to do a couple episodes of the big final Heisei Rider show, because there's an argument to be made that it's not really Heisei Rider without the guy. Sure, okay, he stayed away from TV after Decade, but up to that point, he had written episodes for literally every Heisei show except Den-O, and with Zi-O doing this whole block of episodes spotlighting the first half of the era, you couldn't pick a better time to bring him in.

And hey, while they were at it, we even have our old pal Naoki Tamura (TV Asahi) back directing two episodes for the first time since... uh, well, two of Ex-Aid he did, apparently, but most of his Rider work was also from earlier on, including quite a few episodes of Faiz and a couple of Kiva, so that's a connection to Inoue, I guess. He's not someone I can immediately define the style of, but I have really liked the visuals in episodes by him, and since I skimmed through the episode, I can back up Die and say that Yuuko's finger-pointing is indeed pretty magnificent.

Him and Kobayashi are really the two voices I most associate with Heisei Phase 1. She was the one who wondered if you could do a show where there were a bunch of Riders who didn't all get along, and he was the one who said Yes Yes That That. Inoue brought a fun combination of emotional ambiguity and melodramatic lunacy to Kobayashi's template of curiosity and empathy. It's really not a proper Phase 1 celebration without at least one of them putting their fingerprint on it.

KAMEN RIDER ZI-O EPISODE 36 - “2019 - FIRST LOVE, FINALLY!”

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/zio/zio36a.png

Yuko’s maybe the ideal character for an Inoue Heisei tribute. She’s messy. She’s shockingly cruel. She’s contradictory. Everything she does is according to her whims, and then she constructs a flimsy justification afterwards. Her ending doesn’t make a ton of sense. But she somehow ends up being memorable both in spite of and because of her flaws.

Like, Inoue Forever.

This wasn’t the best Inoue episode, despite maybe being the definitive Inoue episode. All of the major elements land, for the most part, but this story lurches between tones with a clumsiness that makes me wonder if this wasn’t supposed to be a three-parter and got cut down. Every moment this episode veered away from Yuko it felt like Inoue was blaming us for it, and so he punished us with the Ginga subplot. The end beat for this story is trying to balance pessimism with optimism, and I’m not sure it gets the mix right?

It mostly did. The death of Yuko is tragic, but it’s… like, the twist of Yuko not even being Sailor Girl makes the conclusion kind of difficult to parse. The episode wants to have its apple pie, eat it, and also have Yuri from Kiva come back for an unconnected guest appearance. (Which: HOLY SHIT! YURI! Such a perfect button for this episode!) We get to have Sougo lose his innocence a bit, but also have his childhood crush not be a murderer. The point isn’t really about Yuko or Yuri or whoever. It’s not really about the women, because Sougo doesn’t even know them. It’s about him loving an idea, and that idea dying… but also that idea never being gone for good?

Like, it’s a Kiva story, so it’s about Love. Sougo’s experience of love isn’t really a reciprocal one, because this isn’t that story. This one’s about him getting to feel heartbreak, to know that it can happen, and then learning that it’s not the end of his capacity for love. First heartbreak… man, that’s what it feels like! It feels like everything in you that can have faith and love in another person is wrung out, obliterated. But, you know, it isn’t. It could take a minute, or a month, or a year, or a decade. But it isn’t ever really the end of love, because that’s not how love works. It just comes back, blooming, renewed.

Yuko’s character wasn’t the point of Sougo’s story, but she was still an amazing one. A character who can justify any action by it being what they felt like at that moment? Boy, that gives you a lot of options as a storyteller. She can leave people to die, save them later, try to kill Sougo, die proclaiming his heroism, and it all plays as one person’s psychology. Nothing she did across this two episode stretch felt out of character or poorly motivated. It’s just, like, that’s Yuko. She’s a crazy lady who does whatever makes her happy. That’s pretty interesting to watch!

Less interesting was all of the Kamen Rider Ginga stuff, which: hoo boy. Dumbest subplot ever for an Inoue story? Maybe! Ginga falls out of the sky, goes on a rampage, and then gets detonated by Woz, resulting in a new powerup. It’s insultingly stupid, without even the Eff The Fans charm of someone just whipping the Ginga Miridewatch at Woz’z head. Ginga’s motivation is nowhere. Even as an entropy enthusiast, he just sort of wanders around, randomly blowing up causeways. His participation in this story is completely incoherent.

The episode can’t even keep the continuity of Ginga’s appearances coherent. There’s a bit where Woz and Swartz are fighting Ginga, and Ginga goes into some cocoon. Multiple scenes happen, clearly denoting that time is passing. Then Ginga breaks out of his cocoon, and Woz and Swartz are standing right where they were when the cocoon formed. Were– were they just standing there for a solid day?! Did the two of them go their separate ways and then rush back, just in time for Ginga to bust loose? It’s lazy writing/directing/editing/production, but so is everything else about Ginga.

But, just like last time, I kinda love how sloppy and stupid this episode could be, even as it created something singular in Sougo’s crushed crush. It’s never just Good or Bad with Inoue, and that’s so fun to experience. It’s like love, you know? It’s good, until it’s bad, but it's always worth the effort.

https://kamenriderdie.com/images/kr/zio/zio36b.png