[DreamSword]

Episode 7: Team I-Guy

While a bit of a mixed bag, I still come out overall liking this episode.

Things start off really strong though with the first half of the episode being an all out brawl between the Reflected, and man is it cool!

I really can't say much more than that really, as it's an action sequence that I just highly recommend watching for yourself. This episode is full of great artistic direction, and the fight is one of the two reasons why.

In the end though, Margarette ends up sacrificing her life in order to save Nina, and while this would be strong enough on its own, the middle section is kinda where the episode stumbles. Why? Because X-On decides to blame I-Guy for the entire mess.

I've complained before about stuff like this when it came to other shows like SSSS.Gridman or even recently with Kamen Rider Zi-O; But if you don't know, I absolutely cannot stand when a story tries to paint a character as an asshole without having any legs to stand on. X-On really has no business pinning blame on I-Guy when X-On has been nothing more than a selfish douchelord throughout this entire show.

It would be one thing if it were simply an outburst due to emotions running high, but it's not. The way the episode is framed we are honestly meant to think that somehow it's I-Guy's' fault that the fight went south even though it was a situation no one could've done anything about. And making things even dumber is how X-On goes right back to being a dick immediately after. It's nonsense.

But, after that, and even if the setup is pretty weak, the rest of the episode is spent with I-Guy, and boy does most of it pay off really well. We get more of a look into Ian's' past, and a bit about how his production crew would later on evolve into his mission control which would help I-Guy take form. Ian is of course frustrated due to the whole affair of the night, but he comes around to celebrate with his friends over drinks and music. We even get a glimpse into the production of Sky Show, and just how much that song means to everyone.

It's not all ups though, because while Ian is out roaming the streets to clear his head, Wraith soon appears to Ian, rewarding Ian with money for staying away from the home base for an extended period. Ian immediately realizes the implications and rushes home, and what follows is simultaneously one of the best and worst sequences in the entire show.

Ian returns home, finding that all of his friends have been murdered. The art direction and atmosphere throughout this entire sequence are fantastic, with no sound other than Ian's' heavy breathing, and a final message recorded by Ian's' friends. Barely any visuals either outside of flashing red alert lights, which give us small glimpses around the murder scene. And all set to the pre-recorded message of Ian's' friends celebrating how they finished a new and improved version of the I-Guy suit, and how they know Ian has what it takes within him to become a true hero.

It's an incredibly well done scene that I was super into, but I'll also fully admit that killing off the crew is something done a bit too early. I get wanting to give Ian motivation to hunt down Wraith, but that could've been done via the death of Margarette, or heck even just having the base be attacked without any death, as it's such a shame that now, we'll never get to know more about Ian's' crew: Their backstories, their dreams, their family, nothing. The show still gave me enough to think that this scene works well for what it is, but it could've been so much more for sure.

Overall, this episode has some really strong highs, it's just unfortunate that it has a really steep low in the middle and debatablely the end. Either way though, Ian remains the best character, and that ain't gonna change.