[Fish Sandwich]

Blowing up Ark-Zero for good was one of the best decisions this show has ever made. The story we're getting at the end here instead, one driven not by heroes fighting an easily defined menace to existence, but by the clashing emotions and creeds of layered *people* with the capacity for both kindness and cruelty, is vastly more interesting.

These last two episodes have astounded me with how much I'm on board with the decisions the writing is making. It's a feeling I'd almost totally forgotten I could have towards Zero-One, but right at this moment, I'm feeling it more strongly than I ever have, even back in the glory days of 2019. There's a lot of potential here for the show to completely blow all this newfound momentum right at the end, admittedly. Depending on how they wrap the series up, I could be looking back on these posts later and either be pleased by the knowledge things worked out, or filled with my very own malice at the idea I was suckered by the show twice, but I'm not going to downplay how well this is working for me in the moment.

Having the drama be driven by things that are internal, by the decisions characters make, and not merely by the obstacles placed in their path, that's always been my kind of story. To see Zero-One come down to this conflict between two characters starting to waver in what were once firmly held sets of beliefs, it's just about everything I could ever want. It's not exactly erasing the issues the show undeniably has. I still 1000% doubt Gai will get a satisfying resolution, for example, and Yua's probably destined to keep drawing the short straw to the very end. But the core of the plot, the real thematic meat, I think they're *nailing* that right now, and the result is some of the most intense episodes of Kamen Rider I've seen in a long while. It's also, uh... it's also reminding a lot of Faiz's endgame, which could mean a lot of things to a lot of people. Good news to some, bad news to others, or maybe just an ill omen all around. Who knows?!

What I do know is that I'm on the edge of my seat, eagerly anticipating whatever's next, because if it stays at this level of quality, it could turn out to be something special. One thing I'm particularly interested to see is who the director for the last two will be. At this point I'm almost thinking Sugihara's raw energy would be a poorer fit for the mood of the plot than Tasaki, who continues to add a real sense of weight to what was generally a rather frenetic series. Stuff like those shots of Ark-One where the background goes away, or that one of Jin's earpiece falling that must've required a million takes to get exactly right, the perfect match cut right after of Ark-One limping away transitioning to Aruto... I mean, that second one is arguably a bit heavy-handed, but still. Just a gorgeous episode all around.

I also have no smooth way to mention this, and it's the kind of thing only I care about, but you've gotta love that Fumiya Takahashi's credit in the opening has gone from reading "Aruto Hiden/Kamen Rider Zero-One" to "Aruto Hiden/Kamen Rider Zero-Two" to "Aruto Hiden/Kamen Rider Ark-One" in such a short span of time. It's like, man, I can't even read the credits without it being melancholy.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreshToku

When was the last time the show even brought up the fact that Jin and Horobi and technically child and parent? Not since Jin's first transformation, I'm pretty sure...

Please don't let the disappointment you feel towards this show cloud your memories this badly. Horobi being a daddy has been a majorly relevant plot point as recently as episode 35, where it was the crux of Aruto deciding he might have the potential to redeem himself, which basically set us directly on the road to this current plotline.



Despite this defense and the glowing praise, though, I still do feel a lot of sympathy for anyone being left cold by Zero-One! It's a long way from a perfect series!