[DreadBringer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Izumi originally auditioned for the role of Takumi and even though Handa was chosen instead, it's cool that he still got to be Faiz part-time. Kiba seems to be the only person other than Takumi who shows expertise at using Faiz. Takumi made a good choice for his successor but Kiba assures him that he will become Faiz again someday.

If Takumi didn't seem aware that he was an Orphenoch, it's probably that he was trying to hide it from himself ever since whatever happened at that reunion. He's a guy who prefers to run from his problems rather than confront them so it makes sense that he wouldn't bring it up until Mari's life depended on it. There's definitely a lot of mystery surrounding his involvement in the reunion. But I've already said too much yesterday.

Late response but yeah.... so even if Izumi is not chosen to be Faiz he's still chosen to play a role of someone else instead.... still good then. Also for Takumi it's not about him hiding it, but also from how he was apparently bloodthirsty by slaughtering Ryusei School alumnis, so OOC. Assholes aren't inherently psychopatic or villainous.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

One of the things I like about the villains on Faiz is that they’re so much more competent than the heroes. Not more effective, necessarily (there’re too many dead Orphnochs to claim that), but there’s a professionalism to them that I really appreciate. To paraphrase Emma Stone in Maniac, they’re not crazy, they’re goal-oriented.

Ha yes, the villains are more competent and goal-oriented than the heroes, which also makes for something that work less well to you... Which is not that much interiority to Lucky Clover, no sense of who they are when they aren't in Lucky Clover. Because they're solely focused on their mission, where heroes can neglect or be distracted by the daily stuff. The heroes change and grow because they're as you said, less competent than the villains, albeit the villains aren't necessarily more effective, but there's not much to change or grow for the plans. The thing for Murakami and Smart Brain is that as Orphnochs are the evolution of humans, they want the Orphnochs to replace the humans as Orphnochs are superior (blatantly power wise).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Basically over Kusaka now. Your mileage may vary!

Keitaro too for confronting him, the one person that idolizes Kusaka... now probably has finally seen his true colors. "Your mileage may vary" hahaha.... actually for this one, you just joined in the majority of KR fandom (not for people here perhaps), for the Kusaka bashing, and here, you just see for real, why Kusaka is so infamous within the KR fandom. Though for this one, I feel you're talking about this subjectively? As others have said, while this is an escalation of Kusaka's insanity, with him finally lashing out at the only one person he cares about, the one person he acts nice to, this isn't worse than any acts Kusaka has committed before (or in this episode hey? trying to spread more of Takumi's infamy like to Mihara). I mean the thing you've complained about Kusaka before was him interacting with Mari like.... getting in the way of Kaido/Mari.... so his way with Mari is the only thing that makes you complain about Kusaka like this one and treat this as a far worse thing he has done? That's quite subjective, treating an important character bad doesn't make the act worse than his acts to a less significant character just because it has more spotlight... or because a bias to a specific thing.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Washing the taste of that scene out of my mouth, hey, let’s talk about how the whole storyline about acceptance swings (briefly, but still) back to Mari.

Real right, Takumi being an Orphnoch isn't his fault (other than the mysterific Ryusei School massacre flashback), you cannot change that (at least no found way currently to erase your Orphnoch inside) but the way a friend treats that to make him feel unacceptable, that's the actual wrong move and the thing you should take responsibility of. And yeah about apologizing, if you want to apologize, freaking back it up, not just uttering that word. Honestly I've lost trust in a mere apologizing word because that can be used as an excuse to get away from your faults. With you talking about how Yuji being the only one can properly approach Takumi.... her "dating" with the only man she likes, should remedy the methods.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Also, there are super-powered men fighting monsters, if that’s something you care about. (I’m probably on the wrong board for that.) Both of the final battles had some very fun ideas in them, enough that I feel like I want to talk about them. I hope that’s cool!

"If that's something you care about"... lol, that's obviously the main reason and the appeal for tokus like KR and the reason people watch it. For me being one of those who actually care and tolerate about the parts not about that in KR series and wishes for people to also think like that.... For the fights, I've talked about various things of it previously like a finisher in Faiz, cool looking as it may be, can be blocked like in Faiz vs Horse Orphnoch's first fight. I guess for Dragon Orphnoch, his ability to turn things into ash seems to be unchanged as his blows don't have that effect on Yuji Faiz, unless for prolonged one like Kitazaki stomping on Faiz. Also I never knew that Dragon Orphnoch has his own Axel Mode. Just strangely for one of most significant Orphnoch, and Faiz version of Ouja, Dragon Orphnoch only truly fought now. And ha.... you said you weren't into Murakami as a monster? What you described here, is actually what makes me intrigued to Murakami as monster, not to mention, with so little info about him as a monster otherwise. Also I wanna know about his power level compared to other Orphnochs, because flashy =/= actually powerful. The stereotype is that the leader is the most powerful yeah but...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

I’m generally liking how this series is approaching its final episodes. It’s maybe not the mix of characters or stories I was expecting, but this installment really felt like it was tooled up to conclude things. The threads are all being pulled closer together, and it really feels like time is running out for the good guys.

Thankfully, Mihara’s ready to OH OUCH DAMN

So Mihara scene is a proof that Kusaka fully being cordial (at least on outside, dunno what he wants to get from them if he's two-faced too) to any Ryusei School students (though in flashback he was only concerned about Mari) right to actually believe what Kusaka told him about Takumi being a threat.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

I mean, they're in the soap opera parts now, but they used to get their own stories.

I was half-stirring shit with saying them being in soap opera parts (this can still hold truth though) but real talk? The real one holding soap opera parts? Kusaka! (that I've said multiple times that never get response unlike the characters I mentioned here) Turning on the TV and have it air a soap opera program recently just served as a reminder of how soap opera-ish his sthick are, about constantly scheming with exaggerated expressions to create drama and animosities based on lies and slanders while relying on two-faced personality.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Magnugiga

This is the point where I was probably a bit lower on the series than you are. There are still a few good stuff left (and when Faiz gets good it's really good), but Murakami didn't click for me (I understand your reasoning but he's just not that interesting to me for some reason), while the jarring transitioning between sub-plot/characters and uneven pacing have become increasingly noticeable. It felt like they're attempting to juggle too many balls than what they can handle.

I mean.. who really gives a damn about Mihara's story at this point of narrative and with everything else that's been going on (even with the occasional hilarity he provides!).

I don't think that Kusaka scene is really jarring; at that point, I've stopped to chuckle at Kusaka's antics (ever since Mari's 'death' probably when he lashed out at everybody; that's the tipping point I think) and started to think "whoa this guy is genuinely fucked-up and started to crumbling apart". The tongue-in-the-cheek sense of "'That's Our Kusaka!" moment has been gone for a while, and the show now frame him as... not a villain, per se, but a genuine threat? That's how I read it at that time, at least, and I was super invested at how far the deep end the show would push him.

For Murakami it's adding more variation to me. It would be generic if all the villains are equally as sadistic and remorseless as the other Lucky Clover members, like Saeko, Takuma (outside his fear of...), and especially Kitazaki, the most evil person in the series. He's more businesslike in his approach, prefers negotiating with others, and is seemingly more tolerant of any misdirections while also seemingly more sensible and knows more than any of the other straightforward villains, unlike other villains who has more brutish approach with usual throwing power around. Also for villain vs threat, villain is about how you act, not about which position you have in the story. Kusaka is just on the protagonistic side, because he fights off Orphnoch due to racism, but the fact is actually, a rather unknown one, protagonist isn't synonymous to hero, and antagonist is also not synonymous to villain. Those 2 words are just roles. Protagonist is the main character, the character story revolves around, antagonist is anyone opposes the protagonist, regardless of their morality. There are various villain protagonists in stories. Kusaka is one of the protagonists, but doesn't mean he can't be framed as villain (only as a threat) because he's in that position.