[Kamen Rider Die]

TOKUMEI SENTAI GO-BUSTERS MISSION 28 – “WARNING: LIKELIHOOD OF CHICKENS!”



There are episodes of this show that are difficult to talk about because they’re mostly just a single problem for the team to solve. They aren’t illustrative of much more than a previous character attribute – in this case, how Nick looks after Hiromu – and the character dynamics aren’t really tested in a serious way; we’re repeating, not evolving. (Well, Messiah...) It makes for an enjoyable episode that it’s hard to talk about in deeper ways, because there really isn’t much depth to it. It’s wacky action and puzzling obstacles and explosions and that’s sort of it. It’s a superhero problem that the characters face, not a human problem.

That’s not the end of the world, for sure; lots of shows barely even manage to reach this episode’s bar of Fun Superhero Problem With Inventive Climax. But it’s just… what am I even supposed to talk about here? The closest we come to a genuine emotional moment in this episode is Nick telling everyone that Hiromu’s weak point comes from a formative childhood trauma that’s also played as low-key ridiculous, so that’s great. (It also doesn’t make a ton of sense in relation to Yoko and Ryuji’s weak points, that are a biological consequence of their powers. Hiromu’s is just a phobia?) Hiromu never has to overcome his initial trauma, and Nick never really learns anything as his partner. It’s just the two of them getting a spotlight to show off their teamwork, but that isn’t a revelation or anything, you know? I want to see something surprising or learn something new, and this episode kept all of that for the last couple minutes of Shocking Plot Developments.

Which, naturally, I didn’t give a shit about. The Gog/Magog revelation points to Messiah having a connection to Hiromu and Rika’s parents, but there’s no explanation forthcoming; ditto Jin’s alarming declaration that the Vagras have stolen all his hyperspace Enetron, details to come next episode. It’s all stuff that I can react to when it’s inevitably revealed, but I never expend much energy on in the Theory stage of things. It’s a two-minute sequence that might as well be the Next Episode trailer, and I don’t watch those to begin with. No thanks!

And yet. And yet! This was still a fun superhero adventure, with multiple characters playing multiple other characters, and a clever Metaroid who almost found a way to kill the Red Buster. On that level, this thing was a success. In every other way – theme, character development, moral, etc. – it was just a blank for me. Not gonna be the most memorable one in the series for me, sadly.



IT’S TIME FOR a new opening sequence!

Diiiiiiidn’t love it. The new theme song lacks the spark of the original, even if it never counts four numbers out of sequence, and I sort of hate how the previous emphasis on the entire organization (especially the original three Buddyroids and the support staff!) is jettisoned in favor of a Five Superheroes Only theme song. I dislike the change!