[Fish Sandwich]

Oh, wow, this show is already going places.

The obvious big thing to talk about is the amazing action, which is fantastic for several reasons that are liable to stop applying at some point, unfortunately. I think the real test of this show is going to be what episodes not directed by Sugihara look like. His particular kinetic brand of action is doing a lot of the legwork right now in making this actually feel like the start of a new era, so I really hope Zero-One can develop a sort of "house style" between everyone to go that extra mile and truly give this show a unique identity.

Likewise, it'll be depressing if we run out of exciting new locations to shoot fight scenes on and just go back to the same ones we've been seeing constantly for years and years. Obviously it'd be cool to have them in there somewhere, but setting the climax at a big shipping yard instantly reminded me of... well first of all, Project G4, which also had a memorable fight at as shipping yard, but more generally just how important a thing it used to be to have shooting locations organically dictate how fight scenes differ from one another and stay fresh and interesting. Like, just look at Wizard over here:



That's a fun shot! And Wizard was full of bits like that, as were most Heisei Rider shows, to some degree. That always used to be a fun thing to look forward to, but I think I completely forgot about that sometime around when half the fights in Build were taking place in empty rooms or the same quarry. So it's very, very good to see Zero-One finally paying some attention to the environment again. If there's one thing about this show I most want to have continue, it's definitely this.

Not that the story isn't pulling its weight. There's a ludicrous amount here to digest, but it all fits together really well, and everything about it lands. If the one thing anybody can think of to complain about is that Aruto's jokes, which are explicitly stated in-universe to be embarrassing and unfunny, are embarrassing and unfunny, I think that proves what a good job this show is doing so far. Like, that's not even an issue. It was an issue when Sougo barely felt like a human being for around a dozen episodes. This is nothing by comparison. I think even if your immediate conscious reaction to his silly faces and crappy puns is to cringe, it's adding dimension to his character, and in combination with the more serious parts of his personality, will probably all serve to further endear him to the audience in the long run. Especially when those serious parts are handled so well.

The trick of having two whole monsters was a great way to give both Riders here their own bit of action, and I can't even begin to count all the ways this clicks with me. I love the whole structure here, with the Aruto and Fuwa's plotlines being set up together, diverging to let them shine on their own, and then ultimately coming back together right at the end for a cool first meeting between Riders that again, really reminds me of Agito in the best ways possible. Those shots of them staring each other down are just so striking. It feels like this epic fated moment, a prelude to a heated rivalry yet to come. I can't adequately describe it, but it's this cool kind of slow burn versus instantly having them interact constantly, and I love that. I love secret identities and all that junk and if Zero-One keeps giving me that, then that's one more thing about this show for me to look forward to every week.