[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER DEN-O EPISODE 24 - "THE PRINCE'S GOODBYE LULLABY”




This is probably the definition of a B+ Den-O episode. It's fun when it needs to be (tiny Deneb!), utilizes a big chunk of the DenLiner Imagin (that interrogation scene!), has a compelling guest star (Sieg!), a good set of stakes (he's dying!), and a fantastic action sequence (Ax Form!!!!). It even throws in a brand-new Form Change!

It's just, it's not really saying anything about our core cast, and that's where it misses the mark for me.

This isn't a story that asks Hana, Ryotaro, or Yuuto to do more than witness Sieg's story. It's a good story, no complaints about that, but this story could've basically happened to any cast. You could tell this same story in Ghost, in Ex-Aid, in Wizard. Sieg's story doesn't reflect the story of a main cast member, and no human really learns anything because of this story. No one changes or grows on account of Sieg's survival. It's just, like, some adventure they go on. It's a good adventure! It just doesn't connect with any of the cast emotionally or thematically.

And it seemed like it was going to? For a second? When I saw Airi, I was like Oh Sure Protecting Your Sibling. And then Airi never shows up again? And she never shares a scene with Ryotaro? It's the easiest way to use Sieg's story to say something about Ryotaro's relationships, about how it feels to protect a sibling or be protected by a sibling. But the story never really moves its lens off of Sieg. That's useful, inasmuch as the finale of this story desperately needs you to care about Sieg. The more we spend time with Sieg in this episode, the more invested we are in him sticking around (or at least not dying). But by keeping the stakes all on Sieg, and reducing the rest of the cast to grieving onlookers, it keeps this episode from being more than an entertaining adventure.

That said! Very fun episode with some real pathos. All of the Ryotaro Arrested stuff was terrific, with each of our OG DenLiner Imagins working together to keep Ryotaro from going away for a long time. Ryotaro is a very sweet Kamen Rider, but the real hero of this part of the episode was Urataros. If you need a plausible alibi concocted at a moment's notice from thin air, you tag in the turtle. I love that Ura not only lied his way to nearly being released, he basically filibustered his way to freedom? Asking Urataros to explain his side of things is basically signing your death warrant, and it goes as well for the cops as you'd think. Bonus points for Ura's masterstroke: subbing in a sleeping Kin to avoid any follow-up questions. This team is coming together!

Speaking of Kin, I loved that Ax Form fight scene. (The Wing Form scene was nice, but it's mostly just a Henshin and one move and that's it.) It's just Den-O taking hit after hit after hit as he stalks towards the Imagin. Those shots of Kin shrugging off these spark-inducing blows, so heroic, and then a palm strike into Dynamic Chop. Just the kind of badassery you cheer for. It's a really nice moment, that fight.

I'm not sure this is a two-parter I'm going to rank highly, despite its many pleasures. (Deneb gets his head stuck in a gate because he forgot he got big again!) It's too disconnected from the cast, too much just them rescuing someone without it feeling relevant to their stories. It'd be like if they saved people from a burning building, or fixed a flat tire. It can be a fun story, but it doesn't feel like a Ryotaro (or Hana, or Yuuto) story.



THE BAGGAGE CAR

-I hope Sieg returns! I feel like he will. A character with a nice arc over these two episodes, and a smug nobility that works well in the show's dynamic. The very fact that he pisses Momo off makes me root for him a little bit!