[Kamen Rider Die]

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Originally Posted by Switchblade

So the big thing that struck me watching this episode again was the realization that we really don't get episodes like this anymore. It's been a really long time since a show just dropped a brand new character on us and said "Here you go, here's the secondary Rider." I'm thinking either Specter or Mach; I forget exactly how Specter was rolled out because I block as much of Ghost as I can from my longterm memory (I also can't remember if it's Specter or Spectre and I don't care enough to check). Ever since Ex-Aid we've gotten a secondary who's either an established character or who's introduced so early that you can argue no one is really established yet.

I feel like Mach was the last of the Sudden Arrival Secondaries, if I can coin a phrase. (And I can!) Everyone afterwards is, like you said, either there from the start (Ex-Aid), baked into the premise (Ghost), or is a supporting cast member that gets the nod (Build). As an Ex-Aid guy, I'm certainly not going to feel like that's the wrong way to go, but I honestly do enjoy arrivals like Accel. To wit:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Switchblade

This two-parter feels - and this is both 2010 and 2024 Switchblade talking here - disruptive.

I like that disruption. Beyond taking the cast and show out of their comfort zone -- Terui is very murderous -- it gives the show new ideas and tones to play with. It's a friction that immediately generates fun stories and jokes.