[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER W EPISODE 39 - “THE LIKELIHOOD OF G - BAD CINEMA PARADISE”



You know a plot decision is going well when it requires an entire two-parter to add both context and consequence, but still manages to feel like wasted energy.

Basically, I have officially stopped caring about Wakana, and I now zone out whenever the plot focuses on her, or tries to redeem her. She has pretty much ceased feeling like a person, and exists solely as a character that behaves in whatever way is required by the current scene. There’s an attempt in this one to say that Wakana’s completely new character is down to her mind being warped by excessive Memory usage, but it’s a hard explanation to accept. For one, Wakana barely used the Clay Doll Memory recently, so it’s difficult to say that she’s suddenly deranged or malevolent. For another, she was fine in one scene in 38, and then immediately ready to kill Philip. It’s not… I don’t think it’s ever been like a switch got flipped, right? It’s been more of a process to be corrupted by a Memory. (You could maybe point at Isaka’s experimentation on her Driver, but again: she never really used it, and she was fine for multiple episodes.) With Wakana, the show clearly didn’t feel like it needed to do the work to flip her, and I don’t enjoy their attempts to do so now.

So, yeah, a story largely about whether the Gene Dopant can be redeemed from his Memory addiction – and, therefore, whether Wakana can – is one that is fine when it focuses on its small stakes love story -slash- self-actualization, less so when I consider it in terms of Wakana’s story.

The Dopant story is a good one, though. I like how it’s using this weird couple to talk about the necessity of communication in any relationship, and how you’re allowed to be critical of people you care about. Philip’s in this weird place where he’s written off Wakana in much the same way I have, but he’s clearly feeling betrayed by her in a more personal way, while also not that ready to cut her out of his life. Akiko’s here to remind him that you need to be honest with yourself when you’ve been hurt, but you also need to help the people who’ve hurt you try to improve. It’s a sweet little lesson for Philip, wrapped up in a pleasingly absurd adventure.

Everything with the cinema, the Gene Dopant, the cow-puppet hand, and the filmmaking… so good. Such a great low-stakes conflict after the last few bigger, more epic scenarios. This one’s full of terrific details (Toru’s movie is over seven hours long and no one knows why, including him) and cute performances (the Gene Dopant 100% does not know what to do in a fight) that are a perfect distraction from a Museum/Foundation X plot that does not really do it for me.

Except for Saeko, that is. Her desperate mission to regain some small amount of control over her fortunes is, once again, the Sonozaki story I’m most invested in. Her need to show everyone that she’s better than them, no matter what risky thing she has to do (sneaking into Digal by dressing up like a custodian!), is exactly the sort of character-based plotting that Wakana now lacks. The Saeko stuff feels like an effect from a previous cause, instead of a bizarre plot-dictated reality we all have to live with. Saeko’s still fun to watch! Because she’s a red Nazca now!

Despite the lingering Wakana cloud, I liked the majority of this episode. The quickest way to get me back on this show’s side is to have Shotaro and Akiko take off on a ridiculous investigation, and at least Saeko’s still fun to watch on the villain side of things. I don’t hate this show! I just hate some of its decisions!

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DIE-A MEMORIES



-I love the callback of Shotaro and Akiko’s samurai TV show obsession from 29/30. Can you imagine, getting to see a version of your favorite action-adventure show on the big screen? What a lovely summer dream!

-Do… Terui and Makura not have actual police jobs they should be doing at this point? (Watcherman is very busy, but at least notes it Akiko.) Or is Jinno covering for both of them while they’re off filming a 90-minute amateur film?