[Sh Ranger]

It was humorous how Kito felt uncomfortable about Machineki drawing her without her permission, but became jealous when she found out he was actually drawing Kaito instead.

The red balloon stuck in a tree is a cool reference to Inoue's Kamen Rider Faiz, where a red balloon stuck in a tree was a plot device that allowed Yuka and Keitarou to figure out each other's identities.

Kijino's and Inuzuka's partners sound so similar, almost like they're the same person or something! Maybe that's why Inoue chose this episode to use the balloon reference. Machineki abducts Miho (who might be Natsumi), but she outwits him and escapes. There's something going on with her for sure.

Tarou and Sonoi get to work together to perform some heroism, as they save people from a burning building while conveniently only being morphed when the other isn't around. It's interesting to see a member of the Noto do something good, since it further complicates their role as an antivillain group. Sonoi seems to relate to Tarou in a way that normal people can't.

However, the real surprise of this episode for me wasn't even anything to do with the identical person thing. It's the part at the end, where Kijibrother deliberately allows Machineki to get murdered by Sonoi, out of spite for abducting his wife! Yeah, kind and gentle Kijino shows no mercy to him and even before the credits, he admits in his internal monologue that he has no remorse for his action! Damn, I thought Inuzuka was going to be the antihero of the show, but Kijino has that base firmly covered! Tarou was really ticked off and he knows where Kijino lives, so I'm excited to see where this is going from here. To paraphrase Kijino's work boss, "the pheasant kept its talons hidden"!