[Fish Sandwich]

Now this is what I like to see, right here – two dudes sharing an emotional conversation while cosplaying as food. It really doesn't get much more Sentai than making that kind of contrast feel totally natural.

As the inaugural first "normal" episode now that the team is assembled, this sets a great standard for the show to come. It's especially appreciated how much it slows down for those more dramatic and heartfelt moments. (Which is something that seems to be a specialty of the director, Satoshi Morota?) It still keeps the usual momentum up everywhere else, but the time spent exploring the characters more thoroughly is very much appreciated. They don't make a wacky joke out of Kaito's obvious distress at having the issue of his missing parents kicked up, and the result is an episode that made me feel like I know Kaito way better now. If nothing else, him and Zyuran certainly became a lot closer this time, didn't they?

...

See, I slid right back into making wacky jokes there, which is something the episode does, too, only probably way better. Like, don't get the impression I'm saying this is some seismic shift into melodrama for Zenkaiger or anything. The usual whimsical humor is still here in full force, and it's great. From sight gags as minor as Gaon cuddling stuffed animals while he sleeps, to an entire elaborate sequence paying tribute to the immortal words よっしゃラッキー！ The episode has still got you more than covered on that front. And even though I just said they didn't make a wacky joke out of Kaito's distress, I think my favorite wacky joke was him making a staircase out of Zyuran and Gaon to pointlessly jump into thin air assuming it's some kind of secret portal. I'm telling you guys, irresponsibly earnest.

It's a trait the show seems to be outright praising here, with a moral that's twisted enough to give Kiramager a run for its money. Have to make a difficult choice between your own needs and the greater good? Why not pick both! As a message, it's got a similar sort of reckless punk energy to last year's show, and yeah, it's definitely nice that the show doesn't go out of its way to chastise Kaito for having an entirely human reaction to something. He got way too focused on his parents, and that wasn't good, but it also wasn't wrong. Just a real nice angle for the episode to take on a common superhero dilemma.

In general, this episode was a pretty great twist on the usual "stuck together" plot that's one of the many Sentai standbys you see every couple of years or so. Zyuran and Kaito have fantastic chemistry throughout, to the point that a callback to a first episode that wasn't even that long ago feels like a totally earned, almost nostalgic moment. Again, I think always keeping in mind the finer points of the dynamics between her protagonists is something Koumura excels at as a writer, and this episode very much gives the impression that Zyuran not only has a particular respect for Kaito, but, as Kaito points out, is the most mature member of the team, no matter how much he pretends to be the cool party guy who's totally "with it". But then, why can't he just be both, right?

So yeah, fantastic episode in my opinion. 3 is still the one to top in my (glaringly biased) heart, but this is probably the show's most solid outing yet.