[cosmicrescend0]

Episode 16, just in time!

-I'm having trouble saying why I really enjoy this episode other than saying "that was nice!" over and over. But I'll do my best!

-The Bromance Pit! It's here! One of my favorite scenes in all of Zi-O! Geiz and Sougo having a bit of a heart-to-heart in the way only Riders can: by smacking each other around a bit, perferably in or near water! It's a very nice scene, declaring their beliefs and trust in one another so passionately.

-Sougo not having a real reason for wanting to be a King (other than Weird Dream Man says I should be one to save people) kinda puts a damper on the Sougo stuff this episode, but the rest? With Sougo coming to terms of Oma-Zi-O's true terror, the weighty presence (or I guess the lack of presence, lol?) of Tsukuyomi and Geiz's absence, his fear of the future, his conviction to change the future....it's all really solid for me. I think this episode is where in my inital watching that I jumped on the "this Sougo kid's pretty alright!" train.

-Woz is just really fun in this episode. Him coming down on a ladder into the Bromance Pit to IWAE, arriving with a fresh-out-of-the-box Driver for Sougo, his satsifed smirk as things are set in motion....it's not much but it's always just a delight to see him have a bit more presence.

-With the end of Episode 16, we've offically finished Zi-O's first major arc! I overall remember not having much enjoyment of this beginning part on my first watch, it being a bit too weak and even sloppy in places. Now.....I wouldn't say that I suddenly see this first arc as this hidden gem, the issues I saw during my inital watch are still pretty much there. But like, I feel I have a much better grip on Sougo(something that really hindered my first watch), and much better apperication for these early episodes and what they were trying to do, yknow? This episode just really works as both a solid conclusion to the events so far, and a new beginning for the story to start off of.

(Man, it sucks to see the .5 episodes go. I really wish we got them at least until the 30-40s or something, they're so fun and occasionally informative.)