[Dr Kain]

And here it is, the final week of this incredible series. First off, episodes 46 and 47 were just amazing despite Tennouji's earring changes places again throughout the episode. Does he have something against wearing it on his right ear when he is going to be watched by Kenzaki and gang? :-p

Anyway, it is really cool to see all of the riders not only fighting all together, but even getting to see them riding their bikes and transforming together. Really makes this moment feel like the end is indeed near. Speaking of the end, that final fight with Tennouji was pretty amazing. I also love that there was a thunderstorm occurring during it as I love thunderstorm battles just as much as I love night time battles, and we really do not get too many of those in Toku shows for some reason. I feel it really adds an additional type of atmosphere to the fight, especially on battles with big villains like this one.

Poor Mutsuki though. He gets hurt once again, at least, I think he was hurt. He seemed to lose that cast pretty quickly. I swear, these riders are all Undeads themselves for they never stay hurt for more than 2 minutes. Nevertheless, that battle between Garren and the Giraffe Undead (even though it is a beetle) was great to watch and another broken helmet. THAT IS AWESOME!!! But alas, with Joker the last Undead, what happens? Cockroaches inherit the Earth.

DA Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck?

No wonder he is called the Joker Undead, we always make jokes about how the cockroaches will survive anything and that is exactly what Hajime really is, a cockroach, making the joke be on us. I could so make a Tony Montana joke right now, but I'll save that in case Bandai ever does a Figuart of the Joker Undead (which they better!!).

With that said, I kind of wish Tachibana had stayed dead, as it kind of ruins the moment, but when there is no body, death is not guaranteed. It was still a neat idea though during episode 48 that the only two riders left were a teacher who started out in the series as a student and a new student. The highlight of these episodes is easily the fantastic final battle between Kenzaki and Hajime. Not only is it great to watch (could use a little lightning though), but it is also quite tragic as Kenzaki pretty much sacrifices his happiness for Hajime's. I remember this episode have such controversy when it first aired, but I feel it really fits with Kenzaki's character and everything that had been being built up throughout the series. Plus, it makes it feel quite conclusive while leaving a little open if they ever wanted to revisit the Blade universe again. Honestly, this is one of the most satisfying conclusions to any Kamen Rider series, which really helps seal this series as my favorite Kamen Rider series to date.

Finally, story and characters aside this show has some truly incredible designs, lighting, cinematography, and most of all, a truly epic score. The first opening is down right incredible, but it is the music throughout the show that really helps the shows mood and themes. I just cannot get enough of the theme used for Leangle when he first appeared, the Artificial Undead's music, and then the various battle tunes. It is a shame Toei never released every single track from the show, but at least they released the majority of it. Overall, it was a real pleasure to revisit this series, and see things I had either forgotten or never noticed before, as it reminded me of why I love this show so much.