[Magnugiga]

INFINITY. INFINITY. INFINITY. INFINITY. INFINITY. SOMETHING SOMETHING BUBBLE WATER SOMETHING.

Good work, Wizard belt. You'd been mostly tolerable after that insanely obnoxious first impression, but this moment reminded me again of how much I (love to) hate you.

But yeah, I want to talk about Wizard! Episode 31-32 in particular is obviously an important point in the show, a pivotal moment for Haruto's character and how I perceive him in particular. A main character temporarily losing power isn't a new ground as far as toku or basically any superhero-adjacent show goes, but this one worked well for me. Haruto has always radiated confidence and poise since the very first episode, and the way he keeps showcasing/getting new power practically every other episode, it's easy to label him as a Gary Stu; which makes this display of vulnerability effective to me. It's not like he's got a hero complex or strive for the power in the first place, but it's so revealing to see how much he derives his self-worth from being a Wizard, how shook he got when he lost that.

Haruto's penchant for plain sugar donut has always been interesting to me beyond its function as mildly amusing recurring gag. It signifies his preference for a sense of order and status quo, of being in a comfort zone and not giving a damn to those people yelling at you to try out new things or learn to spread your wing. I can actually vibe with that. Sure, you need to get out of the comfort zone if it's actively harming others or stunting your growth, but what if you had worked hard to get into that zone in the first place? It's not a bad thing, just like how it's not a bad thing Haruto keeps eating the same type of donut. On the other hand, this arc also reflects how you don't just define yourself by that one thing you're doing/having, since you can also lose it at any time. Be comfortable doing the same thing you like, but also be mentally prepared of dealing with change when it comes to be. Something like that.

Good battle/confrontation with a pretty unnerving Phantom, too. Koyomi's role is as predictable as ever, but at least they give her something to do after basically being a background decor for twenty episodes for so. Haruto regaining his power through a teardrop does feel like a cheesy deus-ex-machina solution, but okay, I'm willing to let that one slide. The belt noise, and that super bubbly insert song during the battle, tho? Yeah, they're a really bad fit to what is supposedly a tense and emotionally charged scene. I dunno, maybe it's just me taking this thing too damn serious :v

Apart from that, I found the Phantoms' group to be the most interesting element of the show, definitely moreso than the good guys' group; whether it's Phoenix' fatalistic path of destruction, Gremlin's apparent hidden agenda and curious insistence on referring to everyone with their human names, or Medusa's cunning pragmatism and the link with her host's twin sister. Speaking of Mayu, I guess she'll come back as a tertiary Rider and hopefully makes the protagonists' group dynamics more interesting; on the other hand, the White Wizard is obviously shady as hell, and there's a trend with female Riders going in a quest for vengeance that tends to end up badly (see Miho in Ryuki, Shuki/Akira in Hibiki). We'll see, but this is a development I'm looking forward to see how it goes.

Generally, my viewing impression of Wizard follows a similar trajectory to Blade's: lukewarm beginning but gradually gets more interesting, mixed bag of intriguing characters and people who are just there without doing much, and a main Rider who felt really bland in the beginning but slowly grew on me as the show progressed. Oh, and while not exactly my cup of aesthetic, it's undeniably pretty to look at.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

Rider Time Ryuki: Hold my beer.

Though, it's in line with reality, ORE Journal was an online publication that relied on tips sent in by its readers. When Zi-O revisits the series, it's revealed that the ORE Journal had gone out of business because of the rise of social media, since the people who used to send in tips could now just post them to their accounts.

Haven't seen Rider Time yet, and it already broke my heart.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

I spent the last couple days reading the manga version of Kamen Rider Black, and I dug it! You know that awesome tone and atmosphere Black had for its first six episodes? Yeah, the manga keeps that for the majority of it. That's not to say it's perfect(the last few chapters are all kinds of what), but I do prefer it over the toku version for the most part. That said, I feel like the ideal version of Black is some sort of inbetween of the two versions. Maybe one day we'll get an anime or a movie reboot that'll do just that. I'd totally watch it.

Whoa, what a coincidence, I just bought used hard copies of the manga couple of weeks ago (it's localized and published in my country in the 1990s). I remember reading a volume of it as a kid, and not liking it because it's very different to the show, but now I'm very eager to revisit it. Was planning to post about it in the manga thread at some point.