[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Androzani84

Aqua?s death is basically the plot reaper at work. He won?t leave until he?s taken both Geiz and Tsukuyomi back before it?s too late, but they don?t want to go back until it?s too late, so killing him is pretty much the only way to resolve his role in the show. (Since he wouldn?t make a good regular)

I mean, I feel like he'd've been okay with a very forceful Our Place Is Here from the Time Orphans? Kamen Riders in general are okay breaking the rules if it's for a greater good, and Aqua specifically is a massive push-over. It wouldn't've felt out of character for him to acknowledge the ways Geiz and Tsukuyomi have made things better by being in 2019, especially after teaming up with them against Swartz.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

To borrow the words out of Shirakura's mouth -- "a television show is a living thing."

That's the frustrating part about all of this, is that it feels so inflexible compared to the last twenty-odd episodes. Much like (the late?) Aqua, this show has been astonishingly good about turning weaknesses into strengths, and redirecting force to create surprising reversals of fortune. So much of what made this show great was it letting the characters (and actors!) help dictate the story.

So to get these gratingly false moments of plot-driven storytelling... why? Why not lean into the dynamic you already have and try and craft something towards that? Why randomly bump off characters to Raise The Stakes, when all of your best moments -- including the one in this very episode -- come from the smaller, interpersonal struggles of poorly-socialized teenagers? Why shove a celebratory, warm show into the hacky mold of Now It's Personal? Why?

I love when production teams are willing to recalibrate their visions towards what's on the screen. It's the absolute best outcome for a year-long project. I'm not sure why this show forgot it right when it most needed to remember it?