[DreadBringer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Mutsuki is told by Team Blade that the Leangle belt is evil, and he has to forget about it. Kenzaki tries to console him with the enjoyable normalcy of the life he gets to lead, as opposed to the harrowing danger Team Blade has to face. Mutsuki mopes his way out to the front gate of the farm, while Nozomi is calling him. He can’t even talk to her, can’t say that his dream is dead, can’t say that he can’t live like he did before the Leangle belt. He gets to the gate, and he just sits down against it. He brings his knees up to his chest, folds his arms on top, rests his head, and cries. It’s not a big speech about what he’s lost, or how broken he feels. He just cries. He can’t explain what’s happening inside him, because the only one who’d understand is Leangle.

Well, it's not that Mutsuki being stubborn and takes the belt that time (not talking about the one in episode, but the one before the team's lecture). Leangle belt returns to him. Shame no one knows about this. And for Nozomi, she likes that the usual clumsy Mutsuki returns here, while previously she likes Mutsuki's flawless play on basket? Yeah, for him sitting down moping, it's already seen in his previous fallout with Nozomi, that his explanation is too outlandish to be believed....

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Kenzaki, follower that he is, believes in Tachibana. He believes that Tachibana is the only one who can bring Kiryuu back into the light.

So, Kiryuu is actually not as rotten as this in past time. Hirose and Tachibana knew him well (as Tachibana convinces her to forget the past him), but I wonder what's Kenzaki doing against him back in the BOARD days (he gets introduced to Tachibana that time so...). Then I still wonder what actually makes Kiryuu fell from grace at the present time here, his acts are done before Leangle chose him. Previously he seems envious that Tachibana is chosen to be Garren instead of him, and mocks him while he can. Then it's revealed that Kiryuu actually pleads for Tachibana to fight in his place (something that finally made Tachibana return!). And what Kiryuu thinks is only his take, not a factual description about justice and power.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

It’s a death that’s a tragedy, despite Kiryuu only being introduced two episodes prior. It earns every tear the heroes shed, because it’s partially about how senseless a loss it is, but it’s also about how much Kiryuu really gave them in the end. It’s about how power isn’t worth dying for, and how easily you can be hollowed out in the pursuit of it. It’s about how power is finite but empathy is infinite. It’s about how living without power can feel like dying, but living for power can kill you.

What differentiates this death scene, compared to death scenes like Sawada? That both of them has done nothing to redeem their vile acts but is being mourned by the heroes. I wonder what made Mutsuki lash up to his parents, and ouright talk about the belt even if nobody knows about it, Leangle influencing him outside Rider form? And Mutsuki getting the belt back is about Leangle choosing Mutsuki again, abandoning Kiryuu. And with Tachibana being able to beat Isaka, I've always wondered how'll he fare against the ordinary ones. Well this episode finally showed it. Now Blade and Garren can beat a horde of Undeads (no fodders like Guardian in Build in early Heisei and those Undeads aren't).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

It’s all these little moments from Inoue that add up to so much more in the end.

It’s just a goddamn great Inoue episode. I haven’t… I don’t feel like I’ve been getting as much out of Blade as I was Faiz. They’re doing different things, trying to do different things, and it’s early days yet, but… There’s a lot of surface to Blade, a lot of fun fights and cool suits and engaging characters, but it doesn’t have the thematic depth that Faiz had. Or, if it does, I can’t find it as easily. There’s stuff about grief, and about death, but it doesn’t really come through with any regularity. Like, the series is about something, but I don’t always feel like episodes are about something.

This one, man, it’s what I’ve been missing. Beautifully acted, intelligently plotted, magnificently directed, and all in service of emotional beats that hit like a train. Really loved this one, you guys. Inoue forever.

Well yeah, as you said, different things they do, but just because the different thing doesn't let you find something beneath the surface easily, doesn't mean they are worse. Like I said, don't force shaping other Rider series with one like your preference either, or only limiting the good and bad based on it.What you said of "it doesn't have the thematic depth that Faiz had" seems like an undisputable objective statement based on fact, when that's actually opinion. And even if he did a good job like this one, I don't want for Inoue as a person to be glorified tbh. Actually I was only half-truthing about only the wild, over the top, and weird way, there's more of that. I didn't talk about it because it would be spoiler-y. Inoue still had some form of restraint on TV series, and it's shown in form of the wacky melodrama parts. But outside of that, he outright went into taboo territory. He normalizes things that are too taboo for its own good, and I'm bringing him up upon that community, where it legitimately made someone truly uncomfortable, partly because they're a victim of that taboo thing Inoue wrote, seeing that in media just normalizes it, and it sickens them, and they're a writing major. To the point that the community pleads (in a non-hostile way) to not bring up about Inoue. I hope that you can understand about this part, I'm afraid with you writing about this, you can probably went into the "Fourze Cosmic States vs Magnet States" regarding Inoue, that can come off as disturbing even if probably intended as a joke (especially that, seems that nowadays people aren't allowed to be offended about any joke).