[Kamen Rider Die]

MASKED RIDER AGITO EPISODE 28



Oh my God, I needed this episode so bad. What a relief.

I mean, I could actually watch it, so, like, huge plus. It's weirdly in a 4:3 aspect ratio, not counting letterboxed flashbacks, but it doesn't detract from the story. (Any amateur historians who want to explain why this one's 4:3 for a reason other than "so you can tell it's something that occurred earlier", I'm all ears.) It's shot cleanly, with an emphasis on clarity and light. The whole thing takes place in an afternoon, so it's got a great summer road trip feel, all clear skies and freedom. Just, visually, a very pleasant episode.

And, story-wise, a real charmer. It's nicely built around not just Ryou's "life is pain, you can only survive it, it won't ever let up, but one day you'll die" attitude, but it also makes room for a quick Shouichi scene where he can reframe things as "life has pain in it, but it's not just pain, and that pain can even lead to something better one day." It's an episode that feels shaped around established character traits, something where we can see how characters like Ryou and Shouichi live their ethos, how they try to help people within their orbit.

Which, maybe it's just me, I really like Kamen Rider stories where they try to help kids. It keeps the stakes personal and rarely too violent, grounding everything in emotional journeys that can have a full arc in one to two parts. (Kids are not that emotionally complex!) This one's a great example, where, despite his mom and dad being killed earlier by an Unknown (ALL DADS ARE DEAD), there's kind-of no body count. Agito fights the Unknown, and eventually Gills kills it (by MENTALLY SUMMONING HIS BIKE!!!), but it's not really a huge action story. It's got maybe three action beats, the two Rider fights and a chase sequence, and they're great, but the story's pretty much just this kid who's going through a tough time and Ryou trying to help him out. It's sweet, and it's maybe my favorite use of Ryou in a bit.

This was really good! I'm glad I watched this one today, to wash that previous two-parter out of my mouth. It nailed all of the basics, telling a story rooted in character, while adding a new context to develop that character. We know what kind of man Ryou is, but seeing him have to protect a kid both physically and emotionally was a fresh way to experience his outlook.

Too bad I guess he's still dead or something!