Kamen Rider Gavv Episode 22- "The Truth Is Sweet And Bitter!" Discussion
 

Hanto attacks Shoma when he sees the Granute attack humans.

The fact they don't drag this fake souma too long is great

finally back to commenting about the episode again... xD

man I love that the show is just being direct and stop beating around the bush too much. Misunderstandings? Have it last under 3 eps.

About Bitter Gavv... so he gets more stronger the more he eats and the more he gets his own gochizou. He's already a very flexible combatant so him getting "jealous" of Shouma's variety of powers and his soon to be BakiBaki Stick form is a forewarning of awesome badassery.

Sachika being the heaven sent angel that she is has cemented on why I don''t want her to be a rider. She's basically the ground to the Positive and Negative moments in the show. Literally the home to go back to. Don't wanna anything happen to her or I'll go depresso mode... just like what happened to Izu. She's the one who believe on our boy when Hanto was being emotionally driven.

Saga though... he just continuously prop himself as a "villain" I'm sure he'll scale to Genm and Ryouma definitely. The fact that he's secretly housing Bitter Gavv and just being coy about it... makes me giggle tbh.

Bitter Gavv, I have noticed that he likes to use the word "pittari" as a form of wordplay on his "bitter" name. You can translate "pittari" into "perfect(ly)" something that he really aims for... a perfect being.

So, turns out Shoma did create a Gochizo after eating the macaron from last episode. It's just that his Gavv fails to spit the Gochizo out due to stress, causing him to faint...

Also glad to see Sachika standing up for Shoma, as well as Shoma confessing to Hanto about seeing the latter's mom. Based on next week's preview, it looks like Lango has forced kid Shoma to watch Hanto's mom being turned into an ingredient...:eek:

Hanto is shaping up to be secondary rider of the year for this year's end of the year list. Never change, Karakida. Never. :rock:

Shouma wakes up at Dente's cave after having a blackout and collapsing in episode 21 @ 10:40. Dente says @ 02:19 that Shouma's Gavv was stuffed with a Gochizou and that Gochizou couldn't be spat out by Shouma's Gavv, and he managed to pull it out after trying several different methods. It's then shown that that Gochizou is the Elegan Macaron RG that was created from the blue macaron that Shouma ate in episode 21 @ 09:04. Shouma asks Dente why his Gavv couldn't produce that Elegan Macaron RG, and Dente says that it was likely caused by a psychological issue inside Shouma's mind, and Shouma then confirms it by telling Dente about his strained friendship with Hanto after Hanto received the very very very convenient infodump from Glotta about Shouma being the youngest of the Stomach family in episode 20 @ 21:31. So yeah, like I elaborated in my post in episode 21 thread several hours ago here, Shouma didn't produce a Gochizou based on the blue macaron because he was upset/unhappy due to his strained friendship with Hanto. This scene validates my question in the same post: How could Shouma produce the Poppin Gummy, Punchin Gummy, and Kickin Gummy RG's in episode 1 @ 06:48 after he was given a pack of gummy candies by Hajime the kid of the week? If Shouma requires hApPiNeSs in order to be able to produce Gochizous, then it means that he was in a happy state of mind, just several hours after his mom was brutally murdered by Glotta right in front of his two eyes prior to episode 1. If his strained friendship with Hanto, a person he barely knows, is already enough to make him unhappy, then the sight of his mom (the only person who treated him well during his 2 decades of existence!) being brutally murdered by Glotta right in front of his two eyes should've made him unhappy beyond belief. He should've been super duper hyper mega ultra depressed and shell-shocked for at least a month. He should've got a severe case of PTSD, not hApPiNeSs!
Gavv 01 @ 06.48
https://i.imgur.com/WBJS6iF.jpeg
Gosh, the writers and producers of KR Gavv love making the internal logic convoluted. They added an unnecessary variable (Shouma's hApPiNeSs) into the internal logic, and unknowingly create a severe logical anomaly. They reaaaaalllllyyyyy love shooting themselves in the foot.:lol:lol:lol

Shouma asks Dente how Dente could find him, and Dente says that it was Shouma's RG's that contacted him via Shouma's Gavvphone. It's shown @ 03:16 that Dente didn't even use his Mimic Key while searching for the collapsed Shouma. This scene is weird. How the heck Dente, the most genius scientist who created the Hito Press process, the Mimic system, the Stomach's Drivers, and Shouma's Henshin Belt Gavv didn't even bother to use a Mimic Key to disguise himself among humans? How come a creator of the Mimic system doesn't have a Mimic Key? Where the heck's his Mimic Key? Is this how he's been living all this time? How is he able to call that crappy disguise a perfect disguise @ 03:29? It makes no sense at all if he's been living in the human world as a Granute only using a crappy disguise that can't even cover his monstrous face, without using a Mimic Key at all. I'm really not sure what the writers are trying to pull here. If they think it's a comedy, then I completely fail to see what's funny about it.

In the scene @ 05:42, Sachika says to Hanto that she doesn't believe that Shouma is a monster Kamen Rider like she previously thought @ 04:03. This makes Hanto reconsider whether Dark Shouma is actually the real Shouma.

Lage 9 also notices that Dark Shouma he saw earlier had a black Gavv, which makes him conclude that Dark Shouma isn't the real Shouma who has a red Gavv. He's considering the possibility that Dark Shouma was made to look like the real Shouma, and thinks that Nyelv could have something to do with Dark Shouma.

Dark Shouma eats a bunch of human foods @ 07:47. He says that he was told that his power would recover if he slept and ate a lot. Who told him? Yep, it's like he's manipulated by someone, who is very likely Kenzou.

Shouma returns to the crime scene which was the candy store robbed by Dark Shouma in episode 21 @ 17.25. Several people recognize him as the culprit (Dark Shouma) so he needs to cover his head. This scene @ 10:21 Shouma arrives at a ramen stall (at Toei's studio parking lot, haha) that was robbed by Dark Shouma in episode 21. He then arrives at the crime scene at the Nagihama tunnel where a truck of snacks was robbed by Dark Shouma/KR Bitter Gavv several moments ago. He conveniently encounters Hanto there, and they're apologizing to each other. In the scene @ 11:12 they move to a new place where Shouma is telling Hanto his full sob story about his mom being one of the humans who was kidnapped by Stomach's part-timers to be used as a Dark Snack spice, and also tells Hanto that Bouche made her pregnant. This scene is kinda weird. Several moments ago @ 08:21 Shouma was recognized by people as Dark Shouma, so he needed to cover his head, but why does in this scene from @ 11:12-15:18 he decide to casually talk to Hanto in a very public place where there are many people, without even covering his head? What if those people recognize him as Dark Shouma? Why don't they talk at a closed place where there are no other people? Dang, it seems like the writers (and producers) didn't even bother to storyboard-proof their scripts to see whether there were logical and or visual inconsistencies within it. Yep, one more proof of how pathetically, laughably, indefensibly lazy, cheap, sloppy, and atrocious this story is. Congratulations, Gavv's writers (and producers)! *facepalm
Gavv 22 @ 08.21
https://i.imgur.com/dUhr75l.jpeg
Gavv 22 @ 14.08
https://i.imgur.com/01Yu3vB.jpeg

Dark Shouma is robbing a candy warehouse @ 15:18 and eats a candy that makes him produce the Vrocan Spicy RG. Dark Shouma has been roaming freely (without even covering his face!) for 2 episodes, and no one from the Tokyo police department comes to arrest him? Impressive! Or rather: Impressively dumb! And of course, as always, Shouma and Hanto conveniently appear out of nowhere to stop Dark Shouma and save the day! How are Shouma and Hanto able to pinpoint Dark Shouma's location at every single plot-crucial moment like this? Don't know, don't care, don't need to bother about it! Anything goes, as long as the super duper hyper mega ultra convoluted plot is developing like the writers intended.

Shouma is surprised when he sees that Dark Shouma does look identical to him. Dark Shouma is also surprised to see the real Shouma, another creature that looks identical to him, which implies that Dark Shouma has never been told by Kenzou that he's Shouma's clone. Dark Shouma introduces himself as KR Bitter Gavv, and proclaims that his goal is apparently to be the strongest creature in the world, which implies that Kenzou likely designed him as a tool that functioned as a blank slate of a creature with Granute DNA which was let loose in order to create unknown RG's (such as the Sparking Gummy RG and Vrocan Spicy RG) and spar with the other Riders to evolve/increase its fighting abilities. It's likely that the cells inside Dark Shouma's body function similarly to Cell's (haha) from Dragon Ball Z, where he was created by Dr. Gero as a blank slate with adaptive ability in order to absorb the powers of several of the strongest Saiyan fighters and Androids 16-20. If my hypothesis is correct, then Dark Shouma's cells could likely have a similar viral ability to move between several different Granutes (likely the Stomach siblings) as its host, and the sole goal of its creation by Kenzou is to augment his ultimate Driver/transformation device (the Bake Gunner?). Kenzou's plan may or may not succeed, and if it's indeed failed, then Dark Shouma's cells (and or even Kenzou's own cells!) would then likely be claimed by Nyelv, who very likely has also been planning to create his own ultimate Driver/transformation device, and would then be repurposed/recombined with other experimental cells. The resulting creature could be some kind of creepy, grotesque human-Granute mutant who would be made to undergo similar evolution phases as Dark Shouma, and Nyelv would then inject its cells into his own body to upgrade himself with human DNA.

Kenzou is collecting Dark Shouma's leftover foods @ 17:25, so yeah, he's very likely the one who created Dark Shouma as a clone from a strand of Shouma's hair. His crummy office/lab is visited by Lage 9 @ 17:36, but why does he need to hide Dark Shouma's leftover from Lage 9? If Lage 9 asked him what it is, he could simply say that it's his own leftover/trash, and Lage 9 would believe him because Kenzou is just a normal human that eats normal human foods. He's asked by Lage 9 to connect him to Nyelv, but he says that he's also unable to contact Nyelv. He's asked by Lage 9 why a human like him is siding with Stomach, and he simply says that he's not on anyone's side and that he's just researching things that he's interested in. So yeah, it's more and more likely that Kenzou has been having his own plan for some time, and the creation of Dark Shouma is one of the final steps. Let's see who will lose first, him or Nyelv. I think it's him who will lose first, and he'd be defeated by Hanto/KR Valen who would likely get very angry when he found out (likely via infodump, as always) that Mr. Shioya's death was a mere manipulated event.

The team-up fight between Shouma/KR Gavv & Hanto/KR Valen vs Dark Shouma/KR Bitter Gavv is as common as it is in this franchise. And yeah, like I hypothesized last week in episode 21 thread here, Dark Shouma/KR Bitter Gavv does have a higher raw power with his basic forms. Fortunately, Hanto manages to narrowly escape the trap of being transformed into a Sad Boi dark secondary Rider like what happened to Sad Boi Keiwa/KR Tycoon. Or perhaps his conflict with Kenzou is the final nail in the coffin that will transform him into a Sad Boi dark secondary Rider?

A woman is shown thrown into water in the flashback scene @ 22:04, and based on the clothing, that woman is definitely Hanto's mom. Soooo, Hanto's mom was very likely dead by drowning before being processed into Dark Snack spice.

The funnily weird scene here is @ 21:41 where Shouma/KR Gavv is thrown away by the shock wave of the explosion from Dark Shouma/KR Bitter Gavv. Shouma/KR Gavv uses the Gurucan form which is known for its super heavy, bulky armor that's able to withstand a very high degree of damage, yet he's the one who is thrown away, not Hanto/KR Valen who uses the Doumaru form which is much much much lighter, in a very close proximity. The writers were probably like, "Just make Shouma the one who is thrown away to the sewer. Hanto needs to hold Shouma's arm to remind Shouma of the similar flashback scene 18 years ago when Hanto's mom hold Kid Shouma's arm." And that's how you write a lazy, cheap flashback scene.

Next week:

Kenzou gives Hanto several Chocold RG's as Valentine gift. Kinda gay, ngl. Haha.:lol The Chocold RG is what allows Hanto to transform into KR Valen's dark rider form. Based on the black-red color combination, the Chocold RG's are very likely created by Dark Shouma. It seems like Kenzou give the Chocold RG's to Hanto to see whether a human user (Hanto) will experience negative side effects of using the dark RG's created by Dark Shouma. Yeah, seems like Hanto will be a fool once again, and he'll finally snap and go crazy, likely due to the Chocold RG's containing Dark Shouma's DNA.

In a flashback scene, Lango is showing Kid Shouma how humans are processed into Dark Snack spice. This scene is likely the same flashback scene where Kid Shouma saw Hanto's mom being drowned before being processed into Dark Snack spice like I elaborated in the second to last paragraph above.

Lage 9 is visiting Dente, very likely to find out about the endgame of Nyelv's plan. Little does he know that Dente could be the ultimate mastermind of the whole conflict like I hypothesized last week in episode 21 thread here, haha.

And gosh, Jeebh is still frakkin' absent! He's the only character in this story whose transformation I've really really really looked forward into, but at this point all the momentum and all my expectations about him have completely evaporated. He's completely missed his momentum.
Let me repost my point about him last week in episode 21 thread here:
"Jeebh is still absent after his last appearance in episode 16. He doesn't appear at all since then, not even 1 frame. The fact that Jeebh is still nowhere to be seen could mean that he'd likely transform into the 5th Rider or the 6th Rider, since there has been a rumor about Kenzou transforming into KR Bake. Perhaps Jeebh would be one of the normal Granutes who are possessed by Dark Shouma's cells and gets his Gavv corrupted, or perhaps he's the final user of the Henshin Belt Bitter Gavv. That, or he's simply forgotten by the writers due to the super duper hyper mega ultra convoluted plot, haha.:lol Jeebh is supposed to be the person who has the most problems with Shouma due to Shita being killed by Shouma in episode 14, so he should've been consumed by revenge and *wait for it* bitterness. He should've been searching frantically for Shouma to exact his revenge. He should've ordered his agents to search for Shouma and attack him at first sight. Heck, he could've even decided to play dirty by using Sachika as a hostage to lure Shouma out. But that didn't happen. Instead, Jeebh has been completely gone from the story. So yeah, perhaps he's simply forgotten by the writers due to the super duper hyper mega ultra convoluted plot, haha.:lol"

My only words for Jeebh:
You either die a villain, or live long enough to see yourself become a forgotten villain. The worst fate is not being a dead character, but being a character forgotten by it's own writers. *facepalm

Dente did mention that he's unable to assume a human form, so I assume that the required technology to make a Mimic Key for himself is unavailable.

The ending teases another dark secret, but it seems likely that there won't be any further conflict.

Hanto still maintains some rationality regarding recent events, but Sachika has a clear advantage in this department. In this episode, it's Sachika who praises Shoma's virtue as someone genuinely wanting to make everyone happy. As a result, her judgment is much less clouded. Hanto, on the other hand, does something inappropriate to expose someone's secrets. It makes me wonder how she would handle a Disney plot twist-style villain who acts good while hiding their true nature, as their actions would inspire faith from others.

In this episode, Hanto reflects not entirely on his own, but due to the criticisms from Sachika and even Rakia, who call him out for his reckless behavior and hasty conclusions. So embarassing... to aggressively confront Rakia, only to discover that he's the one in the wrong. Social media posts help Hanto realize that Shoma and Bitter Gavv are different individuals. He eventually finds the real Shoma behind the crowd, especially when Bitter Gavv is reportedly attacking a truck, which obviously means there are 2 Shomas.

I believe Hanto is more in the wrong here since holding prejudice is a dark trait, understanding why Shoma is hesitant to reveal his secrets to him. However, Shoma is also becoming more open about his past, not only to Sachika—who reassures him (as expected, the main Rider-like figure should unconditionally accept him)—but also to Hanto. By the end of the episode, Shoma also reveals to Hanto that he has already met Hanto's mother.

I rather hope Hanto discusses how his modifications make him stronger than the average human (also related to his punch), when Shoma mentions that half-Granutes are significantly stronger than regular humans. Hanto makes amends with Shoma, and the next may involve the characters journeying to the Granute World, where Hanto discovers that Granutes aren't just the man-eating monsters associated with Stomach Inc.

Rakia's plot also continues as he uncovers that Suga is working with Nyelv. He attempts to get Suga to contact Nyelv, who claims he's not affiliated with anyone and only wants to further his research. For Suga, characters like Hanto or Nyelv are merely means to an end. It seems likely that Nyelv might assist Rakia, as he isn't entirely loyal to Stomach Inc. From what we know about Bitter Gavv, he desires to become the ultimate lifeform.

Well, if a Sachika-kind of person is a male, they would be those who stumble upon a belt and use said power to protect everyone.... like Shinji, Eiji, Takeru, Aruto, etc.

Another fun note, the episode reveals that Hanto has always assumed Shoma's Gavv is actually a belt. Not surpising, as even a Granute like Rakia has once made the same assumption as well.

My final response:

I love these characters man, they are so good. Sachika is the champion, never doubted even once. And Hanto is just as real; to come around and face one’s mistakes isn’t easy. Plus, I like to see how Shouma now has the confidence to properly tell Hanto everything, as evident by him telling Hanto about meeting his mother.

The action scene was awesome, did not expect Bitter Gavv’ blade being able to absorb powers and turn into gummy, that’s super fun. The whole scene was just a slew of great effect work and clever ideas. That’s Gavv in an essence really, the characters are fantastic, the action is a joy to watch, the whole show is just the best.

So Bitter Gavv really is an experiment by our mad professor, huh? I wonder how that will end. Maybe our “Dark Shouma” will develop a consciousness one day?

Which does not refute and has nothing to do at all with what I just said, but please go on again with your irrational behavior.

https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca88...RY5W62p57575cs

I really love that Sachika's shirt says "appearances are deceptive" in this scene. It's so perfectly fitting, both for how she's realizing Shouma wasn't what he appeared to be before, and for how she still wants to trust him despite what he appears to be now. Just great attention to detail!

You're labeled as "new member," so just in case you don't know: If you're tired of seeing someone's posts, you can click the "User CP" button (it's on the black bar below the thread title), then the "edit ignore list" option on the left-hand stack, and enter their username. You'll still see that they posted and have the option to view their individual posts, but by default their posts will be hidden and only take a single line of space so you can easily just scroll past. Not as thorough as blocking someone on most other sites, but I highly recommend doing it for anyone you get frustrated by!

I'm good, apologies if the disagreement between me and Zolda from the other threads are derailing the topic. Based on the way Zolda is replying to me, looks like he's the one who'll be doing the blocking. :lol

Another thing I loved in this episode was how, for lack of a better word, floppy Bitter Gavv was when he fought. Huge kudos to the suit actor for really selling the idea that Bitter Gavv, as this newborn monstrosity of science, doesn't really know (or maybe care) how to move his body like a normal person.

So Gochizou constipation is now a thing. Considering that Gurucan is heavier than the others, this has the potential to be extremely painful if Shouma eats those while depressed.

I awarded best main actor to Hino Yusuke, so looks like I made a good choice. Amazing performance as Karakida Hanto!

As mentioned before, Sachika was smart enough to see through Niwa's catfish scam, so she'd probably be immune to such Disney plot twist villains and love at first sight. She's already known Shouma for almost 6 months, so she can vouch for him being a genuinely good guy and correctly deduce that what's shown on social media is not what it looks like.

Good to see Shouma finally being comfortable about being honest to Hanto, even volunteering information about his flashback to Sae. I agree that Hanto was wrong for having prejudice, but between his own critical thinking and interaction with Sachika and Lakia, he proves that he's still a good person who won't hold on to bad thoughts when he understands that he was wrong. I still think this could've been prevented if Shouma revealed it sooner, before the thoughts of prejudice developed.

Suga only wanting to further his research reminds me of Sylens supporting Eclipse to get to HADES without concern for loss of human life.

"The person to return home to" kind of reminds me Yukimi, the only non-Rider Igarashi whose personality is similar to Sachika's. However, Yukimi's job is running the sento, which is also her house, whereas Sachika's job takes her to whatever place her clients need her, so she's sometimes not at home to return to. She also does stuff outside of her job, like helping look for Takeshi, so she still seems to be a good fit for a Rider.

Actually, it says, "Appearances are deceptive", which basically means the same thing but I wanted to point that out.

Hanto and Lakia were accustomed to seeing organic Gavvs, so yeah, makes sense that they wouldn't associate it with Shouma's prosthetic one. Especially since Kamen Rider Gavv has a belt strap mostly to hold a Gochizou.

Happened to DreadBringer 2 years ago. Happened to me yesterday. We should start a club. :p

I cannot believe I messed that up, how embarrassing ^^;

I can see why. I just love how Hanto isn't fixed on one thought and instead constantly questions himself and asks if he's left out or forgot something.

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

I'd imagine a lot of people will like this episode simply because they're happy to see a misunderstanding in Kamen Rider cleared up so quickly, but I think that superficial joy risks missing what actually makes the story work. It's not a matter of if it avoids the kinds of themes and character dynamics you might see elsewhere; what's important is that it stays so true to the themes and character dynamics of Gavv.

Sachika is the person to look at if you want to know what I mean by all this. (As she so often is!) There's a simple relief to seeing her refuse to give up her faith in Shouma after last week's revelations, but that by itself doesn't actually move the drama *forward*. Where that comes from is how specific an angle the show finds to have Sachika express her feelings, with her instead being explicitly upset with Hanto. Trusting a friend is one thing, but Sachika shows an immense consideration for Shouma's own perspective on top of that, and both of those things are key to how Hanto ultimately makes amends with Shouma.

Last week, he was smart enough to step back and try to view things objectively, but that was also part of what led to him being fooled by Bitter Gavv. What he learns from Sachika here is that it's still important to think about those subjective viewpoints too, which leads first to him understanding his own feelings better, and realizing why he instinctively got in Vram's way.

That's enough to get him to that conversation with Shouma, and I think, of all the great things going on in that scene, the one that most speaks to Gavv's overall themes is how Hanto, with so little direct prompting, figures out his own culpability in why Shouma kept that secret for so long in the first place. The two of them are able to patch things up so thoroughly -- to the point their bond is ultimately even stronger for it -- in large part because Hanto stopped to imagine what it was like to be in Shouma's shoes. And I feel like that's kinda the show in a nutshell? Finding happiness by allowing yourself to feel the sorrow of others as if it were your own? Maybe?

I know I'm on the right track because I was just talking about something like this with Vram a few weeks back, but I'll also probably try to express this same thought several different ways talking about episodes yet to come. It's sort of like putting together a thesis on a work, but the work in this case isn't even halfway through, so I'm also still just guessing at what the full picture looks like any time I try to make broad statements about Gavv as a whole.

What I can talk about in its totality right now is this one episode, which was supremely enjoyable. I picked my one thing to dig into, but of course, on top of that, there's obviously copious amounts of smaller plot threads that move in exciting ways, and a bombastic action scene bringing Doumaru back seemingly just so it can team up with Caking to make cream-filled donuts. That's how they choose to symbolize the teamwork between the two Riders through the action! And you get this level of creativity basically every week on this show!

Sachika is also the reason why Hanto ends up facing his mistakes, because of her calling him out. And also even Rakia.

As what I've said in my posts, I do compare/treat Sachika similarly as most of the main Riders (which I also wish that the fandom will see another females that has all-loving type of personality the same as those main Riders too), which unfortunately for KR franchise, do often have this type being portrayed as having unwavering belief to others particularly their loved ones, which also usually translates to naivety. Do you view Sachika differently as for example, people like Shinji by this? Because I do want to differentiate what's the difference of someone having full faith on people but the ones that are naive (though tbf, it can be hard to figure out one's true colors) and isn't. Those kind of Disney plot twist villains are often the charismatic villains that as what you said, hide their true selves to deceive others and gain good publicity, allowing them to be transparent and get away with doing bad deeds behind the scenes and turn people against the heroes.

People are praising Gavv here for not doing the misunderstanding trope, which you may agree, but I guess what you said here still sounds like a misunderstanding, but ofc you like Faiz (and Shoma and Hanto hiding each other's identity gives me Takumi and Yuuji vibes). I really understand why Shoma doesn't reveal his identity to Hanto, which is why I put more blame on Hanto for having an actual dark trait which got resolved here (he already had the prejudice thoughts since Soji's death, it's about all Granutes not what he plans for Shoma). I really relate to Shoma here, where I'm so closed-off and secretive, not wanting to reveal more/enough detail when I'm asked or wanting to convey something, because I fear about what others would react or do to other people following it (I guess, like Hanto telling Sachika to reject Shoma, for Gavv comparison here).

And about what people praise here, this'd be what a handful of people consider a good and a right way to write stories/characters, where the misunderstanding part would be what they consider a bad writing and contrived drama. You're a Faiz fan too, but I wonder what actually counts as a bad writing, and what counts as a misunderstood work where it's more of people not getting it. I know you do usually defend unpopular stuff, and I can have a similar feeling of being conflicted if something bad is actually bad or people not understanding it (can sound snobby, but dunno).

Sachika is someone exactly similar to the goody two shoes kind of main Riders, her goal is to make everyone happy. So she should act the same as those main Riders too where they often want to put their full faith on other people. Then again, obviously her putting faith on Shoma is the right way, where those main Riders are often criticized and getting their kindness seen as naive, when they put their faith on someone audience find unlikable, or especially if they put a misplaced faith.

And even Rakia also called out Hanto about attempting to kill Shoma after finding out his identity. Rakia is a worse person who's still uncaring about humans, which is why even though Rakia's lecture is shorter of telling Hanto that he sucks, it's probably more embarassing to be in the wrong compared to a supposed permanently villainous species that Hanto accuses Shoma and Rakia of being in the same league together.

I have several new hypotheses:
- So far, the normal Granutes of the week have pinkish/brownish Gavv, and none of them have red Gavv. The elusive Wolf Granute had a red Gavv because he was likely another human-Granute hybrid similar to Shouma's, and he worked as one of Stomach's part-timers. But why did the elusive Wolf Granute look like a normal Granute, only with a red Gavv? If he was a human-Granute hybrid, does it mean that he also had a human form, just like Shouma does? And, if he was a human-Granute hybrid yet had a full Granute form, then does it mean that Shouma also has a full Granute form too?
- Since Hanto's mom was actually fine and pretty much unharmed after being kidnapped by the elusive Wolf Granute, it's very likely that he did his crime with 100% full awareness (though maybe still under the command of Lango or another Stomach elite, or even Dente(!)), not due to being in a berserk state like I previously hypothesized.
- Like I mentioned in my first post, as shown in the preview section @ 23:08, based on the color scheme, the Chocold RG's are very likely produced by Dark Shouma, and Kenzou give them to Hanto to manipulate him further. But if they're indeed produced by Dark Shouma, then doesn't it mean that giving them to Hanto will fully expose the connection between Kenzou and Dark Shouma?:eyebrow Hanto could simply ask Shouma to confirm whether or not the Chocold RG's were produced by Shouma, and Shouma (being the only sole producer of RG's prior to Dark Shouma's appearance) would immediately know if those strange-looking RG's were his products. If Shouma told Hanto that he never produced such strange-looking RG's, then Hanto (if he still has normal, healthy, and well-functioning logic, rationality, and common sense) would immediately be able to conclude that those RG's were produced by Dark Shouma. If Hanto knows that those RG's were produced by Dark Shouma, a known villain, then Kenzou's plan to manipulate him further is a very very very stupid plan that has already failed even before execution. And there's also the other possibility that those RG's were produced by Nyelv (via a still unknown method like he did with the Doppudding and Purujelly RG's), which is also bad because it exposes the connection between Kenzou and Nyelv. Since Hanto's problem with Shouma is pretty much resolved, if Hanto needs a stronger RG, then he could just borrow it from Shouma, and he'd no need to rely on Kenzou as a middleman giving him RG's anymore, since all the RG's from Kenzou are stolen from Shouma anyway. If my hypothesis is true (that the Chocold RG's were produced by Dark Shouma and they're used by Kenzou to manipulate Hanto) and Hanto is still fooled by Kenzou's stupid plan and decide to use the dangerous Chocold RG's and let himself be manipulated by Kenzou again, then Hanto will have succeeded in demonstrating that he's the stupidest second Rider in this franchise.
Gavv 22 @ 23.08
https://i.imgur.com/AZ76ccm.jpeg
- A further elaboration of my hypothesis above is that if Hanto does end up using the Chocold RG's to transform into KR Valen's dark rider form, then there's a possibility that the upgrade form and or final form for KR Valen are also granted by RG's produced by Dark Shouma. There's even the possibility that there could be one RG or power-up device that would be shared between Dark Shouma/KR Bitter Gavv (or other Granutes who could be the next KR Bitter Gavv) and Hanto/KR Valen's dark Rider form in upgrade form (and or final form). Perhaps that RG or power-up device would be used by Jeebh who would transform as the final Granute who is infected with Dark Shouma's cells (like I hypothesized in my posts in episode 21 thread here and in episode 22 thread here), though he may not ultimately use the Henshin Belt Bitter Gavv, which opens the possibility of the appearance of a new Premium Bandai-exclusive Driver, haha.:lol
- Yet another elaboration of my hypothesis above is that Hanto's use of the Chocold RG's and the Granute internal organ implanted inside his body will finally cause his human DNA to mutate into Granute DNA like I've hypothesized in my post in episode 7 thread here.
- How was Kenzou (if he's indeed the one who created Dark Shouma as a clone of Shouma) able to create a copy of Shouma's red Gavv/Henshin Belt Gavv? Shouma's red Gavv/Henshin Belt Gavv is a prosthetic device (just like the Stomach Drivers), not an organ, so Kenzou should not be able to copy it by cloning Shouma's cells. Did Nyelv give him Dente's schematics of Shouma's Henshin Belt Gavv? There's no reason for for Nyelv to allow Kenzou to access Dente's schematics of Shouma's Henshin Belt Gavv because Kenzou is only responsible for developing the Valen Buster (and manipulating Hanto).
- I forgot to mention that the most likely endgame of Kenzou's plan is not only creating the ultimate Driver, but also creating the ultimate Driver that would allow a human to transform into a Rider without even requiring the Granute internal organ to be implanted inside his body. So yeah, his motivation is likely similar to Sengoku Ryoma/KR Duke who was also a genius scientist with no skin in the game who only wanted to consolidate the most power for himself without exposing himself to any form of risk. He, like Sengoku Ryoma, only wants to get the end product, and manipulate other people (Hanto, Lage 9, Shouma, and Dark Shouma, especially Hanto; or in Sengoku Ryoma's case, the Beat Riders, especially Kaito Kumon/KR Baron) to be used as pawns. He, like Sengoku Ryoma, only wants to get the prize without getting himself dirty. The scene of Hanto/KR Valen in his dark form killing Kenzou/KR Bake(?) could be similar to how Kaito Kumon/KR Baron in his Lord Baron kaijin form killed Sengoku Ryoma/KR Duke. This point also adds another explanation to the possibility of Hanto's human DNA mutating into Granute DNA like I mentioned above.
- I also forgot to mention that in the preview section @ 23:12, behind Lango is likely shown at least one human corpse laying on a platform, ready to be processed into Dark Snack spice. That human was another human who was killed by drowning like I mentioned in my first post above, and Hanto's mom was the next human in line to be killed. In my post in episode 12 thread here I asked who told Kid Shouma the crucial details of the Dark Snack production. From this preview scene, it's likely the answer is clear: Lango the stupid CEO. In my post in episode 20 thread here I asked who allowed Kid Shouma to freely roam inside the Dark Snack factory and get near the kidnapped humans such as Hanto's mom, and who even allowed Hanto's mom (an obvious hostage) to freely roam inside the factory in the first place. Once again, from this preview scene, it's likely the answer is clear: Lango the stupid CEO villain. So yeah, Kid Shouma was likely able to encounter Hanto's mom simply due to Lango's utter stupidity as a CEO who didn't bother to keep the factory sterile out of external interferences (like Kid Shouma) who posed the risk of messing with the Dark Snack production line (and even leaking the internal secrets of Stomach's illegal drug factory). As usual in this story, one of the main laws of atrocious writing applies: No stupidity = no plots.
Gavv 22 @ 23.12
https://i.imgur.com/C0MfSfP.jpeg
- Why haven't the Granute police do anything to deal with Stomach's criminal operation? I find it really really really weird that it's pretty much halfway in the story, but there's not even the slightest activity from the Granute police/law enforcement, except the very brief statement mentioned by Lango the stupid CEO villain in episode 5 @ 04:53 when he said that he was concerned that the Granute government might've cracked down on Stomach's illegal drug operation. Apart from that, the story has never hinted any investigative activity by the Granute police/law enforcement. None. Nada. Nothing. Nothing. The Stomach corporation is not only involved in manufacturing the Dark Snacks as a form of novel, luxury drugs, but they've also dealt in trafficking. When kidnapping humans from the human world and smuggling them into the Granute world, they've dealt in human trafficking, and when smuggling the Granute part-timers out of their their homeworld into the human world, they've also dealt in *drum roll* *wait for it* *drum roll* Granute trafficking! What Stomach corporation is doing is the textbook definition of a drug cartel dealing in a 2-way human trafficking operation! So many junkie Granutes have been mysteriously missing (and or dead, such as in Komel's case) from their society in 2 decades(!), and the Granute police/law enforcement authority hasn't done nothing to investigate it?:eyebrow And worse, like I mentioned in my post in episode 19 thread here, if Lage 9, a mere ordinary civilian with virtually zero detective/investigative skills, was able to connect the dots and trace the name Dark Snacks to Stomach corporation in just several months, then the Granute police should've had done 1.000.000x more than what he did. No friggin' way the Granute police/law enforcement authority are still in the dark after 2 decades of Stomach's Dark Snack operation.
- Mmmmmaaaaayyyyybbbbbeeeee...

Yeah, Shinji looks for the good in others, while Sachika clearly sees the good in others. For Primary Riders, I'd say Sachika is more like Kenzaki or Eiji, who were good influences on Hajime and Ankh. While she doesn't act on conjecture for quick accurate judgments, she can take the measure of people by being in their company long enough. So it's not like her faith in Shouma is based on nothing, she's just been his friend long enough to know he's a good guy.

Takumi and Kiba did resolve the misunderstanding soon after learning each other's identities though, with Kusaka being necessary for the plot to extend it. The healthy example of Wataru and Nago is from another Inoue season, so his favorite misunderstanding trope isn't as extreme as people like to exaggerate.
It's good that you relate to Shouma, as he's certainly a strong role model hero. However, his hesitation to speak his thoughts is still a flaw, albeit a fair and understandable one. Being a good influence on others sometimes means being willing to say stuff they don't want to hear. If they're healthy enough, they'll respect the honesty and strive to become better. If not, that's their problem.

All of the boy scout primary Riders would be good influences to the other characters around them (not all but still). Though tbf, said charismatic villains who deceive others could be in the good guy's company for long enough, likely for example Sou Fueki in Wizard, or the figures in a seemingly good organization like Tennoji in Blade.

It's indeed a flaw, which should also be acknowledged that a character being morally good doesn't mean that they're "mary sue"/flawless like some claim, that flaws don't only consist of dark traits - this kind of flaw is like one being socially awkward or shy though. But if people can't see flaws in even a likable villain, then they likely would never view Shoma as having flaws he needs to work on. Something like Kusaka still insisting that the Orphnochs are all evil including Takumi or Kiba might be viewed as the miscommunication part too to accuse the series as creating contrived conflicts by not making Kusaka know better like he's supposed to be, that he should be smarter than the way he presented than the way he was in the show. Though Inoue was kept on a leash for the TV shows, as in the unrestricted Kiva novels, Nago was villainous.

I'm getting caught up on Gavv (again) and I just wanted to note that the opening scene with Shouma and his uncle is aggressively not changing my mind about my whole "Gochizos are poop" theory.

Either that or male pregnancy. Considering that after Shouma "eat" them by his Gavv, it`s hard to say which is worse.