[Fish Sandwich]

Well, add this episode to the list of reasons I'm probably never going to stop praising Ayumi Shimo's Kiramager scripts.

There's always a super strong emotional core to them that often feels just a bit ahead of even the best episodes from the show's other writers, and even though those ones are often just as good for different reasons, the things Shimo places value on in a plot are things that make for stories that resonate with me.

Which is maybe an overly dramatic way of putting it, I know – I have a habit of describing Kiramager with way too much passion – but I genuinely did feel this one a lot more than the past few weeks. I love episodes like this that take a side character and devote time to why they matter to the show just as much as the stars in their own way. Combine that with a moral about how hitting monsters with swords is not the only way to be a cool and helpful person, and you've got a real solid foundation for a story. There are some nice dramatic beats in this one. It's good seeing things like Takamichi trying to support his little bro, or Juuru's always insightful ability to read his teammates.

What takes it from good to great is that very Super Sentai ability to also make the story a barrel of laughs while its at it. It's probably obvious Hakataminami isn't seriously going to become a Kiramager from the start, but the episode treats the whole concept so casually that it becomes a source of humor in of itself. The whole team just immediately take it for granted they're going to get an extra extra guy to help them out, as though they all know how Bandai rolls, which makes the lack of an actual ruse on Hakataminami's part all the more amusing. Like, of course he didn't feel the need to inform them about the exact details of what modifications he was making to the Go-Arrow, because they'd all have to be crazy to get that stuck on one offhand remark from Sena about how nice additional manpower would be. I thought it was pretty cute.

And all the little gags throughout are as great as always. My absolute favorite had to be Tametomo still being inside Shovellow when all the Machines get launched at the giant monster, but that's not to speak ill of all the other little moments that got a big smile out of me. Oh, and speaking of the mecha action and Tametomo, I do think it was sort of neat to have the designated marksman of the group demonstrating Zabyun's ability to become guns for Kiramaizin... even if it does give me bad flashbacks to Ryusoulger only having one person piloting the team's robot. Daring to be critical for a second, the selective focus here resulting in Sena not even getting to transform is a bit of a bummer.

Even so, it's all in the name of a good plot, and an inconsolable Mach still managing to be creepily enthusiastic when it comes to Sena was my absolute second favorite gag, so it's all good! See, I even turned my one negative into a positive! That's just how good a mood Kiramager always puts me in!