[Fish Sandwich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kurona

This is one of the best first episodes Kamen Rider has ever had and you won't convince me otherwise.

Amazing. One sentence into one episode of Ghost and you're already being more glowingly positive about something than even I am. You know Christmas isn't for another month, right?

Ghost's first episode is one I've always considered a just ~tiny~ bit too packed for its own good, but it's also not exactly lacking in cohesion, or anything like that. And after reading that post and thinking back on the episode, it's funny, because I'm trying to think of what I do find wrong with it, and it's entirely those mechanical plot details. Stuff like Takeru's reaction to getting told to become "Kamen Rider Ghost" being a confused "GO~SUTO?!" as though that's the one of those three words that should be stumping him. Stuff I learned to find more endearing than anything a long time ago, but which admittedly still speaks to a certain lack of polish.

And again, I'm thinking about that, and it's just like, is that even a real problem? Is it unforgivably bad pacing and/or editing if Takeru is randomly on a motorcycle he never had before during the transition between the two fight scenes? Heck, for all I know, they were just paying tribute to the Cyclone's non-origin in the OG show. None of the nitpicks I can think of have all that much to do with the true meat of the episode's story, which, despite being so busy, still cleverly establishes everything to the point that even the arguably unnecessary debut of Musashi Damashii is set up in Takeru's very first scene, and built upon throughout the episode. And also, that fight scene is super uplifting and great! So yeah, maybe this is up there with heavy hitters like the Kuuga premiere in its own way. I certainly wouldn't be opposed to that. I mean, I say I have my issues with it, but it's not like I didn't already love it to bits anyway.

Good on you for picking up on Takeru's self-esteem issues and sloppy fighting style early on, by the way. The huge amount of growth he gets on both those fronts is a huge part of why I find him to be a legitimately great protagonist, so it'll be interesting to see your reactions to even just some of these early episodes going forward. I mean, you mention the good choreography in the fights, and now I'm just itching for a chance to talk about how intense some of Ghost's fights with a certain blue rival character get. Or just the first arc in general. Really love that first arc. And the ones after it...

...I really like this show.