[Fish Sandwich]

(Fish Sandwich also watched Kamen Rider Zi-O - EP32)

I feel like that big action climax Die mostly doesn't care about was a huge moment for this series, in a lot of ways, so allow me to try and unpack the significance of that a bit.

Like, the whole feeling of this two-parter, I'd describe it like watching a Rider summer movie, but it was two episodes of the show in the spring instead. There's some very commendable work the show does to make Tsukuyomi a more rounded character in there, sure. I honestly really love everything they do with her here. Especially after I had complained that the show was writing her like a prop, it was wonderful to have a story where she was a developed character with genuine emotions that I could sympathize with as a viewer, and be invested in for how they affect her, and not her friends.

That all feels secondary to what a big party this arc is in my mind, though.

The overwhelming feeling I get from these episodes, and what that climax in particular symbolizes for me, is how dang fun they are, and I feel like they sort of speak to Zi-O as a whole in a way. It was a show that was always doing whatever it thought would be entertaining in the moment, even if it came at the expense of precise plot logic or whatever other finer details. But when that goes right -- and I feel it went right more often than not -- you get something that feels exactly like these two particular episodes about Agito feel -- a celebration of Heisei Kamen Rider.

It's the simplest thing, but it seems this particular arc resonated with basically everyone who watched the show, from people who were sour about certain elements, to people like me who were pretty much on the same wavelength from day one, and I don't think that's just some coincidence. There's an extremely approachable warmth to these ones, and a focus more on simple joys than trying to craft some huge daring narrative. Hence the movie comparison, since a lot of those are ultimately most concerned with getting us to a huge exciting fight scene in the end, just like these two episodes.

There's no huge twist to Shouichi, for example. His emotional baggage was all resolved nearly two decades prior, so he's here to be a friendly mentor character who helps out the current heroes, which is super uncomplicated, and also something a lot of people are going to want to see out of Zi-O. It's fundamentally happy, and that sense of constant wish fulfillment carries directly into the climax. As soon as everyone heard there was a Zi-O Trinity, what was the Rider everyone thought of? Well now you get to see that exact team-up, and everyone's favorite hype man Woz even comments on it! Have you been disappointed that Zi-O hasn't used any old music for the Legend Riders? Well here's one of the most iconic insert songs of the era playing in all its glory.

And I mean, speaking personally, I will never forget the first time I watched that scene. That exact moment where I heard the first .5 seconds of that guitar and was just like "no WAY dude!" Here I was, a Kamen Rider fan for years who had a strong attachment to that exact song, and now it was playing in Zi-O! Totally unprecedented! Totally surprising! Totally amazing! And then Sugihara's kinetic direction, already a huge highlight of the entire two-parter, just hits this insane peak, culminating in a perfectly executed double Rider Kick that ends on a shot so good, he'll go on to use it in at least two more movies after this. Because, again, this was a movie as two episodes. The visual flair was so far above was you usually get week after week. It felt like such an *event*, and I was so happy to be there for it.

So yeah, loads and loads of sentimental value wrapped up in these ones. Actually, I mentioned how Trinity was my pick for best suit design of 2019, but what I neglected to bring up was how the whole joke I did in that thread was to borrow a gag I was still thinking about from these episodes even like 8 months later:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Best Suit Design:
I really want to say Rising Hopper, for being an almost objectively perfect design, but I figure that's not too interesting to talk about. And...




Yeah, we've reached the obligatory contrarian section of my picks for the year. But forgive me, I honestly do love Zi-O Trinity that much. Part of it may be how much dang fun it was in the show building my attachment to it, between Seiji Takaiwa getting to do a version of his Climax Form body language that's somehow even better, the stretch of Zi-O where it was in use being a string of one memorable episode after another, and Sougo adorably acting like he was in a super robot show and always exciting being all like "Let's combine!" in every fight scene while Geiz and Woz roll their eyes, but it's my favorite Zi-O design by far. It's a great mix of bulky and sleek. The black and gold mix really well. Having the word "Rider" engraved on all of said gold bits over and over again is such a gaudy extension of the show's usual design sense I can't help but respect it. And most importantly, something about the whole heterochromia thing super jives with me. I just think it looks cool, alright? It's another one of those designs where I thought it looked super ugly in the catalogs, but as soon as it was in the show, I was almost instantly won over.

And apparently I really did like that gag, too, because it was also my favorite comedic scene of the year:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Best Comedic Scene:
It doesn't really translate all that well, but the bit in episode 31 of Zi-O (which, yes, means another bit of greatness from the Agito arc) where the Zikan Despear's "kamashisugi!" sound plays after Woz embarassess himself with the overly dramatic speech I have screenshots of above is definitely the hardest I've laughed at anything toku all year. It's one of the very, very few times one of the gags Rider likes to do nowadays where they use sound effects from the belts and weapons comedically actually landed for me. Although I think Zi-O pumped that that well a lot less than other recent shows, so maybe the fact that it was an actual occasion is what made it funnier.

Not to mention how, even among the wealth of choices offered by Zi-O alone, Shouichi was my choice for favorite returning character:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Best Returning Past Character:
There were a lot of great guests this year on Zi-O, but I've gotta give it to Shouichi in the Agito arc. His actor slid back into the role like he never left, and as cool as everyone else was, they can't compete with how warm Shouichi is. He's the perfect guy for a nostalgic return like this, because even back in his own series 19 years ago, he was already about making people feel like they were home. Seeing him again put a huge smile on my face to a level nobody else managed, and it doesn't hurt that the episodes he was in were absolutely amazing besides.

And of course I picked Sugihara for favorite director:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Best Director:
Teruaki Sugihara, who is generally awesome, but also has the particular honor of directing the best action scene in all of Zi-O, the big throwdown at the end of the Agito arc in episode 32, which is destined to go down as one of the all-time great moments in Rider history. And the rest of those episodes aren't too shabby in their own right.

...Which is no surprise, when my explanation for my favorite fight scene was literally just the lyrics to BELIEVE YOURSELF:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Best Fight Scene:
動き出してる未来を止められない
その先のポシビリティー
俺たちだけの・・・

誰のためでなく
挑むこと、恐れない

熱く、なる、躰、心
それに、ただ、従う、本能

強く、なる、想い、願い
それに、ただ、独り、動く

Believe Yourself 明日へ・・・

...And I want to stress here, ALL of this was written when Zero-One was already a quarter in, and I was still *this* hyped about these episodes. I said episode 28 is probably my overall favorite, but I also said in that post linked up top that this one is, and really, in either case, I think I'm right.