[DreadBringer]

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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER ZI-O EPISODE 30 - ?2019 - WE?VE BECOME A TRINITY!?

So, obviously, I have to comment on the monumental failure of this episode. How ? in the name of God and Seiji Takaiwa ? do you introduce Zi-O Trinity in a Blade tribute, instead of properly, in the Den-O tribute?! It?s a Den-O gimmick, you morons! You do it in the episode with Momotaros, at the very least! F MINUS.

All of this... How can you forget about the name of said Zi-O form?!

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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

That aside, this was a solid episode of Zi-O that maybe bit off more than it could chew.

I liked how this story managed to send Hajime and Kenzaki off happier than when they started. There?s the obvious emotional catharsis of Hajime and Amane navigating their relationship better as adults (I totally believe Amane depended on Hajime a little too much; I totally believe Hajime ran away without actually discussing things with Amane), but there?s also the resolution to the TV show?s Sword of Darkroaches that was hanging over our heroes. Locking the Joker powers up in two Ridewatches gives Team Zi-O the power of Legend Riders, and it also lets those Riders finally get a little bit of peace. It?s the exact opposite of the way the early episodes cut down heroes in their prime and just sort of shrugged at it. I like this new phase of storytelling for the Legend Riders!

I know, the character part is of course interesting, though while it's true that Amane depended on Hajime too much, her behavior towards anyone other than Hajime here (before and now) is not addressed. And technically finally both Kenzaki and Hajime got their happier ending to live as humans without fear of getting close to each other, but my complaint here is similar to both Ultimate Kuuga and Odin's newer portrayals before, the stakes in Blade is kinda undermined, despite about how Amane as Another Blade is absorbing both of the Joker's powers, of which one was already apocalyptic before, but now it's 2 combined. The stakes about Blade before was about how they're, Undeads, and thus immortality is their problem as they have to be sealed after beating them. And it seems that Joker is an exception on his sheer power.

Actually the premise is interesting about White Woz's schemes to end the world due to how he never got his desired future, thus for spite he destroys the current world, and he uses Blade's premise to do that. But the resolution? Like Ultimate Kuuga or Odin... turn Joker into ordinary monster that can be beaten like usual MOTW, albeit a stronger one and needs stronger form. Older Rider adaptations would have some traits neglected which would not earn my faith for its adaptation, which kinda cheapens the resolution they got by making their predicament easier by neglecting the actual problem, compared to in-universe Riders that would have explanation for something 'immortal' being killed like Ghost Mugen's infinite loop against Ganmaizers as well as Lovelica being hit by fatal attack while time was stopped by Cronus. Unless Another Rider trait somehow has a weakness to not share Undead's inherent ability.

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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

I don?t know that it fits great in a story about exactly two Legend Riders, but that?s not a deal-breaker. (But: BLADE WAS EXPLICITLY A FOUR RIDER SHOW.) It?s more that? the Geiz and Woz stuff felt a little rushed to me? I can see how the show might mean this quick resolution to the Geiz/Woz conflict. Geiz still doesn?t like or forgive Woz, but he?s willing to put aside his animosity for the greater good; specifically, Sougo?s vision of the future. Sougo?s built such a massive amount of trust in Geiz that Geiz wants to live up to Sougo?s example. Grudges are toxic. Why shackle yourself to recriminations about the past when you could be working together to build a better future?

Likely because Woz (as White Woz is erased from existence, it's now only Woz instead of Black Woz) was a backstabbing traitor before, his goal is to create Ohma Zi-O after all, not to help others by supporting Sougo or such, though he's now a more tolerating towards unexpected events which can make the history not 100% the same, as long as Sougo becomes Ohma Zi-O. Getting close to Woz can be disastrous if he pulls that shit. But I'd think that Geiz teaming up with Woz here is always Team Zi-O's predicament towards Woz, he's too useful, too knowledgeable about future elements and with his capabilities and behavior that isn't morally sound, he's also too dangerous to ignore. So Geiz is kinda forced to comply to Woz and work with him otherwise it can be a bad thing if he ignored Woz or such. He can be steps ahead of Geiz and Tsukuyomi as well as corrupting Sougo as shown in ep. 25.

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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Nowhere is that clearer than in the absolute best, most definitive moment in the show: Sougo?s pep talk to his enemy, Hat Woz.

Sougo prefering to fight White Woz than him giving up, other than that, kinda shows that traits like determination or willpower ain't exactly good/moral trait, it can also apply on villain who would never give up on trying to make their schemes come true. White Woz may not be the pinnacle of determined villains, but an example is again, someone satanic in Masamune from Ex-Aid that keeps going for each of his defeats, to collect all lives for himself of course. Then again, Sougo's pep talk didn't make White Woz restart his schemes though, it instead makes White Woz like Sougo a bit, to be interested in what future Sougo would create instead. So it's not White Woz keep fighting for his goal, but kinda giving up in a more benefical way instead of spiteful way.

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Originally Posted by DreamSword

And then there's my biggest point of contention: All of the stuff relating to Blade. I already talked about how I don't like that they got rid of the "erased show" aspect of the plot, as I felt they lead to really interesting stories, but there's a budget to contend with, I get it. Doesn't mean I can't dislike all the other changes that shouldn't really be concerned with that though. For example, as interesting a concept as Amane as Another Blade is, she doesn't at all inhibit being the opposite of Kenzaki like the other Anothers did.

Rider adaptations neglecting the stuff from previous Rider shows except about the basic traits like who's Blade/Chalice etc. and how they henshin. I'd hope that it's not canon and just actually a kinda fanfiction within a show that continues from the ending of Blade.

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Originally Posted by DreamSword

Kenzaki had everything I needed to love him. A great arc, plenty of charisma, a cool fighting style, and, atleast the way I read him, he presented a lesson that I wish alot of other protagonists I've experienced did, which is: "Be kind, but don't be a pushover." Dude was never afraid to stand up for himself and to push back against those he felt was trying to take advantage of him.

And anyway being kind is not inherently being pushover. Those traits can be mutually exclusive. Tooru/Gene Dopant from W is an example of a pushover without being kind. Calling out or acting against a wrongdoing, if not overboard, is a kindness out of consideration to not let that deed go unchecked and have others suffer under it. But there's likely only a few protagonists that are pushovers? Like Asumu, Ryotaro (at first), and Wataru (at first), not the rest. Even Ryotaro at mid of the series would frequently push back against others like Yuuto.