Kamen Rider Zero-One Episode 2- "Are AI Enemies Or Allies?" Discussion
 

New CEO Aruto meets with representatives of AIMS- a government agency created to investigate crimes committed by HumaGear- in response to the attack on the park.

Aruto is real annoying. The episode was overall pretty good, but his outbursts of stupidity just ruins it. They need to tone it down like how they toned down Lucky yelling lucky all the time.

I... I don't have enough good things to say about this show so far.

The drama. The visuals. The action. The premise. It's all right up my alley.

You can tell they went all out with the budget with this premiere. Both episodes were explosive as hell. The practical effects during the indoor fight scene were great and the VFX were outstanding too.

The comedy might seem a little overbearing but I couldn't help but laugh during some of the jokes. So it's obviously working for me.

The mystery, the intrigue. We learn a little about "Daybreak", the event that inevitably sets up the conflict in Zero-One, and how Fuwa was involved in said incident. And it's all very interesting.

The action is just phenomenal. That bike chase was excellent. Both Zero-One battles had some really great choreography. And Vulcan fighting atop the shipping containers was ultra dynamic.

On the topic of Vulcan, holy hell. That transformation sequence is fucking brilliant.

I'm going to guess the gag will be that Fuwa actually finds Aruto's jokes funny.

Next week we get Valkyrie and... surprise! Biting Shark. This is unexpected. Would have expected Flying Falcon to debut first.

And two episodes in and still no opening. I wonder if the Reiwa era will get rid of opening sequences altogether. I don't mind, leaves more time for the actual show.

This is such an amazing start. I can't praise it enough. The writing is smart and snappy, as I'd expect from Yuya Takahashi. I hope it continues to deliver this level of quality for the rest of its run.

Aruto's jokes ain't that bad for me, just a bit cringey... I do often smile hearing it but with my palm slapped to my faces.

That aside, Yuwa and Aruto's totally contrasting nature and how they blend together really takes the cake for me in this episode. Good episode overall combined with good visuals and cinematography.

I really think they really did it on purpose that Aruto and Yuwa can be a bit annoying to the eyes of the audience watching the show, they're probably banking towards then not really liking each other and making the two "closer" that way? Dunno but it feels like they're doing that... e.g. Yuwa laughing at Aruto's stupid pun joke at the end of the episode.

Raw:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWXfCRjN12o

Holy crap I'm sold on the first episode, this is a second strike!

If next week keeps this up we're going to have a triple strike turkey! (bowling pun sorry)

And goddamn, CEO Aruto walking in with the OP is badass.

Heh fact that he can have a serious face probably means that by the end of the series, he's going to be this upstanding young CEO who can be likeable and serious.

Hmm... I wonder if the Reiwa Riders would start with a Tony Stark and assemble the other Riders for a new universe...nice hypothesis to think about heh

I think they are skipping the opening until Valkyrie gets her introduction, perhaps, or because they simply do not want to spoiler something just yet.

The more likely reason though, they wanted the screentime and skippeed the opening due to it.

edit: The first two episodes have been utterly amazing for me so far, I have rewatched the first episode multiple times already, and I feel like I will do the same with the second.
The cringe humor attempts from Aruto has been pretty ehhh for me, but worldplay is not exactly the easiest to translate over languages, so yeah most of us would not really
get it, and even if we did the pun types are clearly intended to be cringe for anyone that hears them.

Except for Fuwa, and that gag actually had me in stitches at the end, well played Zero One, well played.

More importantly, I actually really like Aruto as a character so far, and it is clear there are going to be a ton of miserable fights
he has to do in the future taking in mind what he had to do in this episode, he clearly sees the HumaGear as people, or at least
as beings that deserve to be treated like they are more then just tools, like the majority of other characters sees them as so far.

I enjoyed the robotic armor add on henshin like the old yugioh episode. I was expecting he made a mistake by not inserting the key to the driver before flipping like japanese toy reviewers does. Turns out he really need force it open. Also, very nice aerial shots like lupin. It's nice to have cliffhanger with two different monster fights to contrast. I
Next week shuata2 and female rider with male suit actor.retrcoi

Very solid episode once again.
Zero-One feel so fresh my gosh. The way of filming, the dynamic between characters. Everything feel so new.
Even the locations somehow. I remember during Zi-O run that Toei said they were in trouble finding new location to shoot. And it's true that during Ex-Aid/Build and Zi-O, there was almost no episode without me thinking "hey it's the place bloodstark was", "hey it's the church Brave debuted" or "this factory has been used many times already"
So far with these 2 episodes, I didn't feel any of that. The only place I seemed to really recognize is that hidden part of Aruto's office. I think it's the same place as Build hidden room too and the parking place (and maybe that Hiden Intelligence building is the same building where Gentoku and all worked in Build ?).

I don't really agree with people saying the comedy moments are overwhelming and they should tone down.
Honestly before the show started, it was my main fear. Now that I have seen what we're dealing with, it's completely fine. I read some reviews for this Ep2 before actually watching and expected so many lame comedy moments that I would dislike it. But we got only 2 "real" comedy moments and it was just to create that special relationship between Aruto and Isamu (which is a surprise and funny in its own way. the serious guy is actually the only one who will laugh at Aruto's puns).
only 2 is overwhelming ?

I liked Yua treatment in this ep. They're doing their best to make her look very competent and a leading character. And the preview for next week with the split jump kick has already convinced me.

Isamu henshin sequence having him punching a bullet is badass.

Vice president actually turned into a goofy character like Ohsugi quite fast. I like it that way somehow and it was expected.


Now my 2 main serious questions about the show :

1) We seemed to get quite the infos about Daybreak town and what happened in the past with the explosion. I thought it was going to be the main plot of the show. But now I wonder if it's not just the first quarter arc. Just like Ghost had a Saionji/gathering eyecons arc for about 12 episodes

2) Is the destruction the fights bring going to be tackled at some point ? I mean. The mechanical grasshopper coming from the satellite and jumping destroying the ground, same thing for the Phone-Bike going through building just to appear, Aruto riding the bike on buildings destroying windows. That's quite something.


I'll watched the ep a 3rd time when the subs are out to not miss any infos.
Enjoying the show very much. it's very refreshing and pleasant to follow.
It has good action, a little mystery and not that awful comedy

Every week killed of innocent robot on side and secret risky rivalry. How do the villains collect the broken keys now after each battle.wt the drone like side action pretty neat. Didnt expect the tough mean brainy heroine.

Hope it could be 1s thing and he just parked it somewhere until he need teleport or summon it in Mach sped.

I watched the raw since I tend to wait for the TVN subs. The fights in this episode were dramatically better than any I've seen on Rider in years. Aruto's shrieking brings down every scene he's in, which is frustrating because I think I like this actor when he's not anime-clowning. I'm also relieved because, the nonsensical singing aside, the Driver's sounds are the coolest we've gotten in years. I'm tentatively very excited about this show.

And I thought Marcus from Digimon Data Squad going toe-to-toe with a digimon in a fist fight was the epitome of punching things you should not be or probably can't in real life. :lolol

I need to repeat this just to be clear: I won’t read this thread nor reply to your post if you answer to this one. I made it a rule to not read others option on new shows before mine is cemented. I don’t ignore anyone here nor am I angry with you in particular, I just won’t read the thread :)

Anyways – this show starts of insanely strong. I love it so far. The MegaMan X-like setting is great, the characters are fun in the short time I’ve seen them and the story is interesting so far. It speaks bounds when the usual breakneck pace at the beginning of a new show isn’t bothering me.

But what really needs to be pointed out in my opinion – the action scenes are amazing. Like, really, really good. And I know it will gradually become less and less interesting as the budget decreases, but at least they are doing some cool stuff early on. Both Zi-O and Build failed hard in that regard IMO, the first few action scenes in those two were boring, generic and all around lackluster.

Ex-Aid is the latest show I consider having a good first action scene, although the LVL.1 stuff isn’t for everyone. Now that I think about – Zero-One might have the best action scenes during the first few episodes period. I really enjoy the camera work, the suits and the effects. I mean, those Henshin-sequences are badass. Both Zero-One and Vulcan. And those Valkyirie shots in the preview? Holy shit man, so good.

So yeah, it feels good to be hyped about Kamen Rider again. Zi-O was mostly a snooze-fest, Build was great but took some time to win me over (but it remains the best overall Rider show I’ve ever seen IMO), I actually think Ex-Aid was the last show I was this excited about when it first came out.

Please Zero-One; stay this enjoyable, I beg of you.

Ok cool, shotazro is that you? Toku coincidentally or found excuse hire look alike actors from baron/gokaired,Alain,alata,Palau and more. It feels like ooos with elemental except full weaker combo comparable random medal. Petty cool villain archetype this week scaling wall to intro moto toy.em

Ill save myself the trouble and wait a few more episodes till Aruto stops being a goofball and all three riders are united.

The AIMS agents don’t know the prez is Zero-One until later.

I feel this is gonna be a show where it takes a while before the 3 unit
Lucky literally yelled his catchphrase 9 times in the first episode alongside the fact that he started out as a loud dumbass. I don't get how one can hate Aruto, he has those silly moments but those clearly aren't all there is to him, we literally saw him stop fighting what was in front of him to save a potential victim last episode and as shown here, not only does he want to help, but he's also got empathy, realizing how bad the damage is and the fact he showed up at the end to go "Yes, there's a problem and I WILL fix it" also shows he believes that this is more important than his own skin. Not to mention him realizing how tragic this will all be fairly early one has already made him stand out as Kamen Riders who deal with sorrow MotW don't do that this early.

I saw someone else say it but I like how Yua was handled here, pulling the authority card because she knows how dangerous Fuwa is if let loose, not to mention her restraining him when talking.to Aruto as she knows it's best to seek cooperation instead of antagonizing the new president.

Also the Akira slide was cool, don't remember Rider doing that often

I liked this episode alot more then Episode 1 and I'm looking forward to seeing where the show takes itself over the year. Don't got alot to say that hasn't akready been said so I'll just post this


https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachmen...9f5180802f.png

This is the face of somebody who enjoys shitty jokes, he's gonna be the only one who likes Aruto's jokes for the series

Wow, I do not remember the last time a Rider series clicked this hard for me right out of the gate. Gaim, maybe? Fourze? In any case, I am absolutely loving this show already. I like that, Aruto jokes aside, they're going for a really serious take on this. We have a mini apocalypse, a government task force, and a robot terrorist organization. This is definitely looking to be one of those shows that tries to add some legitimate drama and stakes to its weekly toy commercials. I appreciate that it seems to be following in Ex-Aid and Build's footsteps in that sense. I'm definitely happy to see that we're already diving into some "oh crap, that likable HumaGear just got brainwashed" territory.

I'm continuing to really like the action. The monster suits are very streamlined this year, which is giving them a good range of flexibility for more complex fight scenes and so far the CGI is mostly looking good (Aruto stopping the bike was a little rough, but that bullet hole tunnel dripping molten liquid was on point). Vulcan's transformation was also pretty freaking great. I'm sure we won't be seeing much of the bike after these first few episodes, but it's a good one and I liked the brief chase/fight scene with it.

It's probably too early to read much into the characters, but I like that we're seeing a kind of Kiva/Ixa relationship starting between Aruto and Fuwa. I'm not usually a big fan of the main Rider hiding his identity from other characters, but if the show pulls it off well (and doesn't drag it out too long) it can make for an interesting dynamic. As for Aruto's jokes... honestly, they don't bother me. That's only because everyone else thinks they're terrible, though. I'd be way harsher on the character if I thought the show was actually trying to pass him off as funny (see Shunpei, Onari, and most of Drive's supporting cast). It also helps that he can snap out of joke mode and be serious when he has to be. I think I'm going to like him, at least when he isn't being a dumbass.

Oh, wow, this show is already going places.

The obvious big thing to talk about is the amazing action, which is fantastic for several reasons that are liable to stop applying at some point, unfortunately. I think the real test of this show is going to be what episodes not directed by Sugihara look like. His particular kinetic brand of action is doing a lot of the legwork right now in making this actually feel like the start of a new era, so I really hope Zero-One can develop a sort of "house style" between everyone to go that extra mile and truly give this show a unique identity.

Likewise, it'll be depressing if we run out of exciting new locations to shoot fight scenes on and just go back to the same ones we've been seeing constantly for years and years. Obviously it'd be cool to have them in there somewhere, but setting the climax at a big shipping yard instantly reminded me of... well first of all, Project G4, which also had a memorable fight at as shipping yard, but more generally just how important a thing it used to be to have shooting locations organically dictate how fight scenes differ from one another and stay fresh and interesting. Like, just look at Wizard over here:

https://i.imgur.com/H1bVdb4.jpg

That's a fun shot! And Wizard was full of bits like that, as were most Heisei Rider shows, to some degree. That always used to be a fun thing to look forward to, but I think I completely forgot about that sometime around when half the fights in Build were taking place in empty rooms or the same quarry. So it's very, very good to see Zero-One finally paying some attention to the environment again. If there's one thing about this show I most want to have continue, it's definitely this.

Not that the story isn't pulling its weight. There's a ludicrous amount here to digest, but it all fits together really well, and everything about it lands. If the one thing anybody can think of to complain about is that Aruto's jokes, which are explicitly stated in-universe to be embarrassing and unfunny, are embarrassing and unfunny, I think that proves what a good job this show is doing so far. Like, that's not even an issue. It was an issue when Sougo barely felt like a human being for around a dozen episodes. This is nothing by comparison. I think even if your immediate conscious reaction to his silly faces and crappy puns is to cringe, it's adding dimension to his character, and in combination with the more serious parts of his personality, will probably all serve to further endear him to the audience in the long run. Especially when those serious parts are handled so well.

The trick of having two whole monsters was a great way to give both Riders here their own bit of action, and I can't even begin to count all the ways this clicks with me. I love the whole structure here, with the Aruto and Fuwa's plotlines being set up together, diverging to let them shine on their own, and then ultimately coming back together right at the end for a cool first meeting between Riders that again, really reminds me of Agito in the best ways possible. Those shots of them staring each other down are just so striking. It feels like this epic fated moment, a prelude to a heated rivalry yet to come. I can't adequately describe it, but it's this cool kind of slow burn versus instantly having them interact constantly, and I love that. I love secret identities and all that junk and if Zero-One keeps giving me that, then that's one more thing about this show for me to look forward to every week.

My problem with it is that I tend to associate this trope mostly with Toshiki Inoue shows, where it was rarely used well and mostly just got dragged out for the melodrama.

Still not a fan of the new main rider exaggerating acting style like a lot of recent red. I might say i prefer the shy insecure or confident yet cool rider instead of haruto bad pun that get lost in translation. The comedian aspect is a bit meh the way they execute it. I guess we will see more and more corrupts android get murder every week good or bad to begin with. Are we going to assume this take place in far future with Ai tech or like gobusters somehow it's still 2012.

So did they just rebuild Mamoru at the end? I thought that if the humagear get hacked it can't be turned back and have to be destroyed?

It was a new, different robot as far as I could tell. He had the little 'new driver' sticker on his ears which indicated to me that this was a brand-new unit that just looked like the old one.

Any Shotaro vibes from Vulcan y'all?

Why couldn't Fuwa be the MC of the show. I mean not only did he forcefully open his card (which is like trying to force open the top of a closed padlock with your hands), but he defeated a Magia with a broken arm.
As much as I like that moment and the action (which is more fluid and dynamic than previous seasons), I thought it was just safe and standard.
BTW, the main rider is a pain in the ass.

It's interesting that you provide Wizard as a comparison, because that was exactly my feeling as well.

I personally feel this is a little bit of Ex-Aid (naturally), mixed with W, and a bit of Wizard thrown in for good measure.

Henshin/Suits: I waited for the second episode before commenting. Totally worth it. I love the new suits. Zero-One's henshin and suit are stunning. The driver and henshin sounds are something that keep sticking with me because they are not grating like Zi-O or Ghost. "A jump to the sky leads to a rider kick"? MAGIC. Vulcan's suit is really one of the better secondary riders, but his Henshin? Maybe it's just me watching Kiva so recently, but I get such an Ixa vibe off of it, and I can't like it enough. It's a back to basics for the forms, and that's just right to me in a way I can't define.

My only downside would be that the driver doesn't actually do anything. I'm so used to last seasons spinning and whirling. I'll get over it.

Action: Just....wow. Yep, the budget was thrown in on this. I hope like the rest of you that they can keep some of the elements in place because the choreography, even down to the actual RIDING A BIKE sticks around. Ex-Aid did a lot of the same in the beginning, and then we got foam. Lots of foam.

The finishers? I'm going to be making animated gifs for that. They're so extra it is the perfect addition to a new Rider era.

The Roidmud....I mean Humagears are obviously a straight up way to deliver a menace of the week. But it's the fact that Aruto's grandfather had this dream to create something to help humanity and now it's being twisted that's going to have the bigger influence. Again, the W vibe really hits with the tone.

Main character: Aruto is a comedian in the same way that Wizard never did a magic show. He's terribly bad at it. But if you ever wanted proof that Kamen Rider shows are made for everyone watching? That Izu literally spells out the joke every time. I don't think he's annoying, more so I think the whole reason for being a comedian is already being pushed aside. Sure he'll have his moments, but eh, if that's the worst this new era can throw at us so far, Ill be fine.

Secondary Characters: I heart Izu. Isamu is Ixa 2.0. And what's this? Finally a third rider that is a female AND might stick around? YES. All the yes.

Villains: Horobi is still just background. But Jin? HOLY SCHNIKES. That first episode is thug level. MORE....I NEED MORE....

I'm really looking forward to this entire season if it can keep the energy up.

Zero One is 2 for 2 so far. Another great episode. Great job at creating a parallel between Aruto and Isamu. Both affected by the same tragedy but their motivations from it are completely opposite to one another. Awesome camera work and action scenes. Loving this series so far.

EDIT: Imma shamefully shill my full review for it. No shame, heh: https://youtu.be/ZfQ1RZjkRfg

I kind of want to post my thoughts here but, like, what can I actually say? Everyone's already covered it. Really good action, really good directing, story and characters seem to be going in a nice direction... yeah. S'good.

Something about the first episode didn't -quite- grab me - I'm not sure why; I think it might have been discomfort about the kaijin setup - but this episode has really got me into it. Looking forward to what comes next!

Has Aruto solved the problem of destroyed corrupt HumaGears by actually downloading their last recording during uncorrupted phase into new HumaGears?

Also why Fuwa's arm is broken?

Okay, Zero-One's riders have the coolest belt sounds since Faiz. Hands down.


And the show itself kicks ass so far.

I think Izu recorded that

Fuwa forced his arm so goddamn hard to open the Progrise key he broke it

This has got to be the first time a bike action scenes where civilians are around right? Even in W and Build the streets are 'empty'. Kudos to the filming crew.

Then again he uses his right hand exclusively with the gun.

I'll hazard a guess that he couldn't handle the recoil of the finishing attack as well.

great show so far, really enjoying it.

I get sort of a 'Build' vibe so far, (the main Rider overacts a lot like Banjo did), but the effects and fight scenes are really great so far. Really liking the suit and fighting style now that I see it in action. It's very acrobatic and interesting to watch, and the suit just looks fantastic. (imo) that's the best looking suit in a long while.

The way the mechanical tentacles come out of the Humagears mouths when they henshin is so bizarre and disturbing looking. It's creepy but neat.

There's a lot to like so far. I'm liking this so much more than Zi-O.

Already looking forward to a Figuarts of Zero-One and am seriously debating getting the driver system for him.

Bet he's gonna come bare handed with Attache Calibur is bundled with Rise Hopper..... Which would be justifiable if Zero-One used his bike a lot like Build did.

Yeah. Seeing him drive across a building was another thing that reminded me of Build. (In a good way)

Well, I was going to do a big ol' post of my thoughts but Fish Sammy mirrored mine right down to the Agito observation!

I love Rider, I even loved Zi-O, mess that it was. Zero One is off to a much tighter, more promising start. We are lucky!!

I think Zi-O got a bit too much hate considering what it was, a tribute season, with multiple returning directors, actors etc.

Making that a coherent piece is difficult to begin with, when you also have to deal with shoot times and un expected situations which they likely had during the season, it would be odd if they did not considering the amount they where dealing with.

Then yeah, it is not going to be a fully coherent or always well flowing, overall it was okay though, it was never boring, it had a lot of really fantastic scenes and ideas, but yeah it did struggle.

Naturally, Zero One like most of the runs before Zi-O will not have to deal with that, so it is far more likely to be in the ballpark of the last couple of seasons, except Kamen Rider Die, which I honestly think is still one of the worst over the last couple of years for many reasons, and with far more issues then Zi-O had.

Zero One has had a great start, a great setup, and interesting cast so far, it is way to early for us to say if it will do well though, but the beginning is quite promising, considering who they have working on it this season is far more likely to be in the ballpark of Ex-Aid or Build, the first three episodes are basically following the same idea as Ex-Aid with introducing the core cast of riders.

Though Xmas is.....Making me afraid......

You know, I've watched this episode in full twice, and the climax... way too many times, and I think I'm not actually done saying good things about it yet.

I can't stress enough how absolutely masterful the entire back half or so is. I didn't even mention there being bike action in my first post, and that's crazy when that entire sequence was so good. But the scenes right before and right after that are somehow even better.

The way the show maximizes the drama by contrasting Aruto and Fuwa's big moments of resolve before they transform, each of which would've been a cool scene on its own, is great because putting them right next to each other emphasizes that much more how much their perspectives differ. The way everything is edited together is perfect, and I really appreciate how the music jumps up in intensity exactly when Aruto slaps his belt on (see also: Zero-One making his exit at the end), and then keeps building until Fuwa opens his Progrise Key. Fuwa not being able to work a children's toy should just come off as ridiculous, but somehow they actually managed to communicate and sell the idea that there's some kind of super tough lock on that thing.

And then there's the sort of match cut between Zero-One and Vulcan both running into battle with what I presume is Vulcan's theme music playing which is... like, mere text just can't do it justice. That's why I didn't bother trying last time, but I feel the need to vent this out even though anyone who's seen the episode probably knows all this already. I mean, how cool was the spin on Aruto's catchphrase where he's clearly shaken up as he's delivering it? Again, that shouldn't land, given we've only heard him say that line one other time so far, but it does!

There's some real emotional weight here, and just to loop back around to where I started, I appreciate that Aruto and Fuwa's repsective backstories (raised by a robot vs. almost murdered by robots) give them extremely understandable reasons for feeling the way they do about HumaGears. They actually did such a good job building up Fuwa in particular that any potential Inoue-esque shenanigans in the future involving his stubborn inability to overcome his prejudice will actually be totally believable given the kind of trauma he's obviously carrying.