Kamen Rider Geats Episode 3- "Chance Meeting II: Zombie Hunting!" Discussion
 

Neon encounters Ace & invites him to her livestream.

Very interesting episode. We got the backstory behind several of the characters and some additional insight into their true natures and motivations. Really like how Tycoon seems to be more focused on gaining points through rescuing people over fighting and got appropriately rewarded for it. Neon looks to have wished for freedom as opposed to true love like she said, and I like how they lampshaded Kanato not just wishing to be able to play basketball again as opposed to killing everyone. Lol.

Kind of weird how there are these weird variations of Jyamato with different abilities that just so happen to thematically fit into different genres of games. The obvious twist is that the entire thing's being set up by the DGP, perhaps to fulfill a higher nefarious purpose, but we'll see.

Something I did feel was a little weird was how Da Paan/Na-Go was considered a zombie but still allowed to play, as opposed to being disqualified. And they aren't considered players when they're attacked? Hm... We did at least get to see the UI from the Riders' perspective and how each armor has a durability meter that can be worn down.

Action-wise, it was good, though the CGI was a little bit iffy and goofy at times, especially when Geats used the Revolve On to dodge the shot. But I really liked how the Buckles seem to be constantly swapping hands and changing the power dynamic on the fly.

However, I did feel that the pacing and editing were a little bit messy this episode. They're really trying to cram in a ton of stuff, and it looks like another Rider (or two?) will be biting the dust in the next episode. At this rate, I definitely think we'll be seeing multiple cycles of the DGP, like some have already stated.

It was kinda weird seeing Geats just randomly spawning in and fighting around the forest, only to then rush in at the perfect moment to rescue Na~go in the abandoned building. If only there was some way for the show to convey how he was moving really quickly around the game area... Like having him ride in on a motorcycle...

Anyways, it seems Da-paan is possibly going to be "out" next episode, which is kinda odd as I had pinned him being show's early season major enemy like Olteca or Legiel. Although there was that rumor about the supposed Da-paan recolor named "Punk Jack"

Also, next week is Na~go's turn to use Boost, I assume Keiwa gives it to her for her last stand against probably the Zombie level's boss.

Yeah it's weird, I assume the narrative reason is to let Geats fight Da-paan with losing points while Da-paan does lose points for shooting at him. But for an in-universe reason, maybe the DGP's logic is that the two can still possibly do stuff to earn points before the infection takes over them?

I think it was just because he's not fully zombified.

Anyway, one issue I have is the pacing. Not only with the possibility of losing both Na-Go and Da-Paan next episode, but Da-Paan pulling the "I'm your ally, but not really" backstab within the span of, like, 2 minutes. There's so much stuff that could be played out better and given time, but it's just all scrunched together.
Geats teleporting across the battlefield is a good metaphor :lol

So Ace is trying to find someone. And the way he talked about the situation of japan being united after many conflicts makes me think he is old enough to have seen it himself.

Overall the episode is good, there is a lot of comedy but it doesn't feel forced or annoying to watch.
That being said, I feel the show is way too fast. Shirowe dying Ep1, Ginpen Ep2, lot of info dump on Nago and Daapan already.
I don't like slow shows, but it feels a bit too fast.

The pacing is totally breakneck, but at the same time that's just kinda how Takahashi rolls. My real concern is the possibility of blowing through the plot too fast resulting in things slowing to a crawl later on.



I'd personally call this one "densely packed, but good". One thing I always think Takahashi is *super* good at is how he slowly delivers information on the mechanics of his world and character motivations. We learn about how players can lose points for attacking others and about Geats and Buffa's rivalry, not through some big exposition dump, but by letting the scenarios around them naturally play out. Similarly we get to see things like Keiwa's gentle nature show through how he focuses on rescuing civilians, which also shows that characters can earn points from "secret missions". The show doesn't spell out that Neon wants freedom, because it trusts us to be able to follow the plot. It's all very self-confident writing that I appreciate. The humor is also on-point, the bodyguards fanboying over Ace and Neon asking if the game had a gacha both got me to laugh.

Dumb theory: Tycoon is gonna kill Dapan, when his ninja form debuts but as Dapan dies he's gonna rub it in how empty Tycoons beliefs are and that'll shake Tycoon. Then that'll be his arc up until he gets his end of q1 upgrade , and he reaffirms his beliefs.

Man this episode really managed to sell me on Geats, the first 2 episodes made me curious but this still has some gorgeous fight scenes and fleshing the characters out helps immensely. The breakneck pacing makes me think we'll get quite a bit more than just 2 games though seeing as we know players who don't win don't die necessarily. Very interested in what happens next.


Oh and Neon trying to whale her way to the top was a good gag

so i guess Panda is dying next? or he and Kitty maybe can last minute get cured by beating the round?

I'm waiting for Mary to just crack and go full-out villain. Since out of all the riders after Panda, he is probably the next to be 'bad'. xD

It's cool how the DGP have their own clothing range which Riders can purchase with in-game currency. However, considering the rule about no disclosure to third parties, does that mean those clothes could only be equipped in the lounge?

Kanato ironically has a functional solution to bring world peace, with his desire to create a world where humans don't exist, the root of desire. The downside is that it would be a meaningless world, since Kanato is more concerned with spiting everybody than improving his own life. I wonder how the DGP would even grant that in a way that would allow their game to continue, like maybe they just turn everybody in to kaijins instead, to the letter of his desire but not to the spirit. Desire can exist in any sapient lifeforms, not limited to humans.

I don't like Irumi (Neon's mother, according to credits). She claims that Neon doesn't need her streaming hobby since she's "destined for happiness", but if she actually observed, she would see that Neon isn't happy with the gilded life she's trying to force on her. Honestly, I think Irumi fits Kanato's image of a typical self-entitled rich snob, the kind that gives rich people a bad name. She probably doesn't care about Neon's happiness and only wants her to obediently fit in with her vision like just another asset.

This would explain why Neon continues to stream her escape attempts, despite being the reason why John and Ben always find her. She doesn't just want to run away from home, rather she truly wants to find her real home where she belongs and can be free to do whatever she wants. It's a cry for help in the disguise of a fun stream, hence her desire to create a world where she can be with her fated other, someone who will respect her for her individuality. Maybe Ace could be that person, considering how the fans watching the stream are already shipping them!

Ace proves to be a good sportsman here. He wasn't obliged to give Michinaga a consolation prize for losing the bet and I speculate that he could've taken back Magnum if he wanted, since looting from zombie-infected probably isn't against the rules if attacking them is also allowed. While he's willing to play others to an extent, he's ultimately fair and will intervene if someone takes it too far, like Da-Paan pretending to be nice to Na-Go with the evil intention of sacrificing her to the zombie Jyamatos.

While I'm okay with the pace for now, I share your concern about the plot slowing down later. This was exactly my problem with EX-Aid after Episode 23, where I felt like the plot could've ended there but it jumped to a different plot to keep the show going.

I attributed this to burnout, due to Takahashi writing the whole show without any secondaries, but considering the information I learned about how much Ohmori influences the works he produces, maybe this is his fault instead. If the rumor about Geats not having any secondary writers is true, then I think the deciding variable will be how Takebe operates as a producer. Takahashi needs the space to tell a good story, with limited restrictions.

Character focus particularly on Neon and Kanato, though dunno if them being fleshed out means the series are writing them out, especially for Neon as shown in preview.

So Neon'd make use of love and soulmate as her attempt to escape from her glided life, and even her streaming is done so her potential soulmate would notice her better. If it'd work out, dunno. And dunno what'd happen to her channel, which she claims she maintains for her huge over 10 million subscriber's sake. Her family, at least her mother (portrayed by Ryoko Yui, who also portrayed another terrible mom, Yoshie in W, albeit the lesser one compared to Mitsuko), are the snobby rich kind who views people who aren't on their level as pests that they can't stand. It's unknown too what are Kurama family's aims of using their wealth and restricting Neon so much from dating or even friends.

There's more between Neon and Ace here than just both being the series' celebrities that had "collabed" together. Seems that Neon is Ace's close match in popularity too (and Ace's even extends to John and Ben too). Ace too, had a goal (so far) in finding someone, which he also used his fame to make the person he's searching for know his whereabouts/existence better. So his fame isn't exactly a mere test, but a step towards his true goal (so far).

Though Neon's not like her shown family, and is actually pretty nice like shown in her interactions with... Kanato (didn't expect her to try asking him again, when Morio is there and accepted her before), like not getting mad at his hostility, accepting his "apology" teamup (to her detriment), and even consoling him by suggesting a better wish than human extinction, as someone born rich she seems to be someone naive and out of touch with reality too. Shown in her not realizing that, making her whereabouts known is how John and Ben find her at the first place, as Ace pointed out. And she also gets easily manipulated by said Kanato who only pretended to team up with her to lure her to hordes of zombies, not knowing that there can be two-faced people out there (likely due to most people showering her with adoration).

In contrast, Ace continues to display his intellect and perceptiveness, with him blowing all off the zombies by surprise flood, knowing that Neon's wish meant more than merely finding her prince, and figuring out that Da-Paan got infected unlike others. All of this gives quite clear reason why Ace always wins DGP, other than his hypercompetence, other players doesn't seem to play the game due to being less experienced, and for the experienced runner up, Michinaga's clearly inferior one as him losing to Ace in his bet as expected, due to likely not using smarts, only his brawn (or putting down others). And now Michinaga's the one who's stuck with whacking enemies with Raise Water, and it's Ace being generous due to him not needing to give him Water Buckle.

Ace here seems to show little concern about evildoings, at least in DGP, like letting Kanato do as he wishes, and using Japan's war analogy to compare with the game, though he would intervene when a player does evil things against others and doesn't put down Keiwa despite disagreeing with his peacemaking moves. It's not touched upon here, but dunno if him drowning Na-Go along with the zombies (despite saving her otherwise) is also him being cutthroat to DGP rivals or just being neglectful.

Turns out that, some people are expecting Kanato to be full-blown villainous (instead of mere jerk), like Riders such as Asakura, Shibaura, or Micchy (who's also cold at school), and they're right. Kanato coldly brushes off anyone he interacts with before like Neon or Morio because, they're humans and he's a misanthrope. He had a misfortune of getting an injury that ends his basketball career (.. like Asakura's victim instead, Yuichi Saito). He suffers due to that, losing his main life goal, but he's the type who drags other down (and thus he particularly hates happy people like Neon), and thus he wants to kill any other humans. Now we got the first genuinely villainous Rider in Geats. He also had school shooter vibes, with his flashback being the "quiet kid in school reaches for his bag" type, but of course it's the Desire Driver instead of a gun.

It seems rushed, but yeah this is unfortunately something realistic to curse whole humanity for a bad experience, just that, this series had the power to make a misanthrope's goals come true (aside from his Rider power too). Neon suggests him to make a wish that cures his leg, but yeah, it's not about basketball, just him knowing the truth about life's unfairness so yeah he won't care about playing basketball again. However, Kanato actually shows an interest in humans that he feels similar to himself, like attempting to team up with Michinaga... someone who's also filled with hatred towards other players and has bleak view of the world to paint everyone as selfish as him, though this time, he's the one who got rejected. But Kanato's really not levelheaded here, giving up Magnum Buckle which he really needs due to his injury that he can only fight with far-ranged weapons (like Kitaoka).

The DGP's scoring system seems to encourage good manners and deeds, with the biggest point being given for rescuing others. Which fortunately, Keiwa benefits from this due to his altruistic sense of saving the civilians. Though he's also generally lucky, fitting his tanuki motif shown in his thighwrap, that he easily gets Boost Buckle again. Dunno if those civilians are set up there or that the Jamatos just reached there. He also attempts to inform others about the dangers of Jamato, of which he got stopped by Tsumuri due to DGP's rules. I also feel less suspicious for Morio as he approves of Keiwa's altruistic approach and also being concerned of Neon, seems to be another genuinely good person in DGP.

Dunno why DGP had to be kept secretive despite its noble intentions. Tsumuri's nature is unknown but she seems to be able to be stealthy AND also jump off buildings from its window (wonder if there'd be Tsumuri action, her actress Kokoro Aoshima is a black belt in karate). I also didn't expect that, the Rider armor won't protect the players from zombies.

Contact Genm Corp! Someone made an illegal bootleg of Dangerous Zombie!

I strangely love how everyone's a jerk here, not uncommon in multiplayer video games, but the fact that it reminds me a bit of Ryuki just hits me right, I guess.

The Chadguards are already my favorite minor characters. Love how they're simultaneously imposing and incompetent in the best way and how dorky they can be, especially when they saw Ukiyo.

Really enjoyed the fights here, and I haven't brought it up yet, but I love the visual for the form changes looking like a factory/videogame selection with the sliding arm, even with the weird revolve gimmick, I think it works in a funny, yet makes sense kind of way. Also, Zombie's finisher is just plain cool with the tombstones.

Also noticed that the opening is longer than the usual length of Rider openings, now almost the length normal openings go for (1:30 while Rider usually goes 1:10-1:15).

Next Episode: Female Rider, make your bet.

I'm 90% sure whoever created DGP is the main villain of the show Da-Pann will likely be the villain of the show's first third like Daichi in Saber or last until the mid season upgrade IE Kuroto/Otelca in Ex-Aid/Revice respectively(funnily enough I Feel like Kuroto should've stayed dead while I don't think Olteca should've died then but only because of how godawful the other main villains in Revice were)