[DreadBringer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER ZERO-ONE EPISODE 29 - “OUR DREAM WON’T BE BROKEN”

Fuwa’s story becomes a kind of third path for a story debating whether technology is an obstacle to human development or integral to it. The third option is to disregard those binaries, the Yay Robots or Boo Robots story we’ve been served, in favor of a focus on human decision-making and desire. Regardless of technology, you’re still a person. You still have innate complexity and aspirations. To cede that complexity, or those aspirations, to some indifferent corporation that views you as a product… why entertain that reality? The point of any choice should be to better allow for your growth as a person. Technology isn’t a blessing or a curse; it’s something that you interact with to the extent that it’s bettering your life.

About how the competition arc ended, it's something rather unexpected for Aruto to lose, though it does show that a defeat isn't necessarily an end, he walks towards us with grim determination. This shows while Gai may have won the competition, he still has not won the battle, and he'll not win the war. About technology being an obstacle to human development, even Gai's actually being hypocritical to use Naki to do his bidding too. I took Gai's stroking his ego more seriously here than just parodic stake or such, and it shows that, it's much harder to fight against a villain that has the public on their side, it takes much more to stop Gai than just beating him up. It has proven to only make things worse at every point as it further convinced the public to believe him over Aruto.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

We finally get Fuwa’s But Why Heroism here, and it’s nicely conveyed. It’s shades of Cross-Z, where Fuwa’s psychological inability to conceive of a future beyond warfare makes him more receptive to Aruto’s belief system. Fuwa doesn’t have a dream, but as long as he stays true to himself, maybe he’ll figure out a dream someday. It’s not Aruto’s big-hearted hope for uniting humanity and Humagears in a perfect future, but it’s more beautiful and optimistic than Fuwa’s previous dream of Killing Them All. These sorts of Buy Why Heroisms aren’t my favorite (I much prefer the specificity of almost any other Rider), but I think Fuwa comes by it so honestly and forcefully that it’s hard to say it doesn’t work.

Yeah, there can be some debates about if Humagears are in the right or in the wrong, in or out of universe instead of following Aruto's steadfast belief of them, or despite that Gai's the one responsible for Ark. But Fuwa's story here also supported Humagears in how the previously one of the most anti-Humagear person lets go of his grudge against Humagears here and focused on the responsible one in Gai and ZAIA. So even Fuwa had stopped pinning blame on Humagears, showing that Humagears aren't the deadly tool, outer circumstances made them a deadly tool (mostly anyway, MC Check It Out from previous episode, sorry, was the few exception to go rogue on humans by his own volition, but that's why his data wasn't restored and he only got slight sympathy from Aruto).

Regarding the fight, other than superb choreo, I also kinda like that the series aren't holding back to put down female enemies. And yeah, in contrast on how Fuwa's a man of action of his refusal to be a tool, more disappointment for Yua here is her insistence to not be a tool, but she keeps working against ZAIA without considering anything else, other than how "she's not brainwashed". Newsflash though, there are more type of being used as a tool than just being mind-controlled.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER ZERO-ONE SO-DO AI 07: KAMEN RIDER JIN - BURNING FALCON

I like the Shotriser-esque revamp of Jin’s suit. It’s got the same Angry Silver Tummy of the AIMS suits, but a more cohesive version of their animal motifs. It’s a neat twist, with this new Driver having some of that AIMS DNA while still giving it a unique outcome. The more symmetrical suit for Jin communicates that he’s in a less chaotic space, mentally. There’s a clarity of purpose to this design, which meshes well with his reintroduction to the series.

Didn't talk about this before, but because I like the suit I gotta have to. As Jin was revived from the dead, Burning Falcon also contains Phoenix motif. The name of his Progrisekey also had some theming on Jin's character. Previously he used ForceRiser, and he was forced to serve Metsuboujinrai.net; after his revival, he acts more mature and independent, and he uses SlashRiser can be interpreted as him slashing/severing his ties from the Ark while maintaining his loyalty to Metsuboujinrai.net.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER ZERO-ONE SO-DO AI 07: KAMEN RIDER VULCAN - RAMPAGE GATLING

Which is a fun choice, making this ultra-detailed costume for Vulcan. I like how it’s explicitly an upgrade for the Shooting Wolf design, not for the Assault Wolf design. It’s got that old Shotriser asymmetry, but now with regal gold detailing and a more outgoing multicolor fringe to half the helmet. It’s a suit that symbolizes the way Fuwa is pulled between different worlds, but has harnessed that struggle to create his own power. (I love how the Henshin is him just weathering this barrage of shots, and standing firmer because of it.) There’s more explicit heroism to Vulcan now.

Yeah, about how Vulcan was the beginning, this was the one that I really liked, his final form Rampage Gatling. With the reveal of how Naki's within Fuwa, Rampage Gatling has duality in how aesthetically, the cybernetic left side of Vulcan's Rampage Gatling form represents Naki's consciousness within Fuwa, and the normal right side represents himself, like W. And Rampage Gatling is also the secondary Rider that gets the final form that combines all previous powers, which was typically done to main Riders before, but not here.