[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER BLADE EPISODE 15

This time on Kamen Rider Blade: Hajime comes home! Kotaro freaks out! The new Driver tests go about as well as you'd assume, as long as this isn't your first Kamen Rider series! And Tachibana takes out Trenchcoat Mastermind, so I never had to learn his name!



Outstanding episode! The Tachibana stuff shrugs off the weird motivations (or lack thereof) to tell a straight-forward story of redemption. Hajime gets to come home in a way that honors his journey and allows really great stuff from Kenzaki and Kotaro. Plus, the Garren fights are top-notch, with some huge emotional catharsis and really clever choreography. A+ episode.

We always talk about Tachibana first, it feels like, so let's save him for last this time. I really want to start off with the Hajime story, and what it means for him, Kenzaki, and Kotaro.

(Actually, I want to start by saying that, again, I love how easily Kenzaki defers to others. When it comes to his work as Blade, dude's got zero ego. When he sees Hajime racing by in the beginning, as everyone is looking for Haruka and Amane, Kenzaki looks up at Hirose to make sure he should go after him. She's in charge, and he never forgets it. Later, as he sees Chalice fighting Grasshopper Monster Or Whatever, Chalice orders him to go save the civilians, and Blade hops to it. He's so ready to be told what to do, it's kind-of adorable.)

Hajime has been dying to come home, dying to reunite with Haruka and Amane. But, as much as that would make him happy, he cares more about their safety than his own happiness. Leaving was to protect them. Staying away has been to protect them. He fought off the Grasshopper Monster Or Whatever to protect them, but now he has to leave again.

It's Kenzaki, hero of the show, who tells him that he might be torturing himself for nothing. Yes, the Undead attacks are occurring because of him. Yes, that's why Haruka and Amane are in danger. But, him leaving won't stop the attacks. This episode proved it. If anything, Hajime leaving puts the people he cares about in more danger than if he was around to protect them. If he leaves, he's miserable, Haruka and Amane are miserable, and no one's safe. Maybe him staying is what's actually best for everyone?

It's a sweet solution from a sweet boy. It isn't about Hajime's feelings, or Haruka and Amane's feelings. That's not the way to get Hajime to change his mind. Instead, it takes that stoic sense of duty and says that he can guard his cake and eat it too. (Metaphorically!) It means that Hajime can keep his pride and hide his heart by saying that he's only going back to Haruka and Amane to protect them. It's all the excuse Hajime needs to head back for an endearing homecoming. It's a little sappy, sure, with Hajime getting soaked in some TV Rain, but it's so earned that I'd forgive them buckets more water on that tiny man.

The Hajime homecoming not only works for Hajime and Kenzaki, but it gets a little moment for Kotaro that I loved. Hajime returning home is something Kotaro is not okay with. It's putting tAmane and Haruka in danger! He has to warn them, let them know that Hajime is an Undead! Kenzaki calmly points out that telling them the truth about Hajime would only freak them out, and it's better if Hajime's there if and when the Undead return. They're good points, rational points, and they're delivered with a kind tone.

And Kotaro 100% freaks out. It's a histrionic meltdown. He needs to be cradled by Kenzaki, and looked after by Hirose.

But, man, I thought it was super smart writing. Kotaro is feeling more and more useless as the episodes roll by. He couldn't help Tachibana, and now Dr Ladyfriend is dead. He can't do much for Hirose around the house. And now he can't even keep his family safe, instead needing a monster to save them from monsters.

The reaction is... maybe a bit much, but the emotion is totally honest. It's hard for Kotaro to continually feel like he's incapable of being useful, all while trying to keep a smile on his face. (Like, if you are in a group that includes Tachibana and you think you're the least useful one... that can't feel great!) He wants to be strong enough to help his friends, strong enough to protect his family, strong enough to contribute. It's echoes of Tachibana's story, but with a directness and purposefulness that I enjoyed a lot more.

And, hey, Tachibana! Great episode for that dude.

I mean, that suit! It's nice to see him in a suit that fits so well, you know? He's a slim guy, he needs a slim-cut suit. The black tie pairs well with it, and a nice one-button jacket (I think?) is very trendy, especially considering this is in 2004.

And he wears it to go call out a monster for killing Dr Ladyfriend! There's a kind of forceful competency that Tachibana displays this episode, and I never stopped rooting for him because of it. He walks into Trenchcoat Mastermind's lab, shoots him in the face, and then proceeds to have the second-best fight of his Rider career in a gorgeous cherry blossom grove. It's all Garren offense, as he mercilessly pummels Trenchcoat. There's no hesitation in his moves, no mistakes. It's a fight that makes Garren look like a million bucks.

Then he faces Trenchcoat on the beach, for a Feelings Fight, and it's the best fight of Garren's Rider career. He has an answer for all of Trenchcoat's moves. He gets in close with punches. He takes his opponent's sword. He shoots down projectiles. He hits him with both halves of a Burning Divide. And then, in the baller move to end all baller moves, he doesn't fling a card to seal Trenchcoat. He slowly walks over to his defeated foe, and just drops the card on his chest.

Epic. Epic.

It's a great episode for Tachibana beyond slim suits and boss battles, though. He seems... better now? I kind-of hate that it's even partially down to Dr Ladyfriend getting fridged. I don't think that's why he's better, exactly. I think it's a corner he turned with her help in the previous episode (for reasons!), and now he's paying the price for turning that corner so late. (It's always corners with this guy!) Like, her dying didn't fix him, she helped fix him and then she died. So it's a lot less problematic than it definitely could've been, but not zero percent problematic. There's still some elements of A Woman Died To Tell A Story About A Man's Pain, and... never going to be a great look on a show?

I did end up liking how Tachibana became a mostly-functioning human through this episode, though. It's not just his superhuman effectiveness as a Rider. It's the bravery in destroying his prehistoric drug tub. It's the kindness in matching Hirose's generosity with a compliment. It's the way he carries his guilt without succumbing to it. It's a Tachibana that has lost more than he thought he had, but won't cheapen that loss with selfishness or cowardice.

Great episode, man.



Next time on Kamen Rider Blade: A new Rider! People exchanging Drivers! A lot was happening very fast and I didn't really follow it!