[DreadBringer]

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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER HIBIKI VOLUME 2 - “HOWLING SPIDER”

Plot-wise, there’s a monster, Hibiki finds it, and kills it. Asumu is there to chase Hibiki around and gawk at the superheroic action, but he doesn’t really do much. No one else really gets much of a look in. (There’s another call back to the temple, which we’ll get to in a minute, but it doesn’t have a ton of bearing on the plot outside a little piece of exposition.) There isn’t… I can’t really think of any big reveals or key pieces of info. (Hibiki is a Kamen Rider! Also named Hibiki, one would assume!) It’s a solid, if unexceptional episode of superheroic action. The monster fight is sort-of dull (White Spider gets eaten by the Spider House, which executes a sort-of cheesy CGI chase against Hibiki for the action component of the episode), and it’s mostly characters walking around or eating.

Asumu is well, just a normal person. He obviously won't be able to do much between the supernatural fight between Hibiki and the Oni. And now you're concerned about that there aren't any big reveal or key pieces of info, unlike before?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

It’s great to see how easily Hibiki fits in with Asumu’s family. Even the most outgoing Riders have this… distance, I guess, from people.

Ah yes, would change your mind about camaderie then, with what you say about Hibiki here getting along with Asumu's family? Although Hibiki left anyway.... And yeah, their kindness being so pure means they will treat anyone equally, friends or strangers, because it's what they mean to "protect everyone", not just protecting those that are close to them. And well, for Hibiki here, birds of a feather I guess for having many similarities to Asumu at least, and that does make for getting along easier.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Trusting your instincts… that seems like a big part of this episode?

Trusting your instincts can be negative too, but this show portrays it being advantageous here... but it's usually not be considered as such, like instinct is usually considered as being based on heart, instead of maturely thinking.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

It… I mean, we’re only on the second episode, it’s a little early to be talking about the themes of the show. But, like, one of them has to be The Power Of Music or what are we even doing here. (Hibiki literally defeats the monster with drumming!) Music is the way this show is communicating, more than images or dialogue.

Yo man, don't underestimate The Power Of Music, drumming means you literally smacking the monster many, many times with your weapon! It's just accompanied by music for thematic effect. And yes, that'd mean Hibiki is a musical genre series in the franchise, it's the genre when you do conversation by singing like Asumu's biking.

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Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Like, I get the backstory of the series' genesis, but it's definitely a Kamen Rider series. Specifically, it is very very Kuuga. The template is just Family Comedy, rather than Cop Drama.

There're Kamen Rider trappings they're not really doing (no "Henshin!", no belt/driver, how often Hibiki takes his helmet off, no bike), but the storytelling is 100% Kamen Rider.

Oh please, I mean it. The entire series was based on Onigeki Hibiki, a story by Shotaro Ishinomori. Instead of deciding to adapt said story into a Kamen Rider series, Toei had created a new Kamen Rider series... and also, this series got retooled due to business and toy viewpoint. It truly is meant to be a radical departure from the standard Rider formula in order to shake up things in response to the declining ratings and sales of the franchise, and well, it really wasn't supposed to be a Kamen Rider at first.