[DreamSword]

Kamen Rider Hibiki Episode 24: Burning Crimson

Live watch/review can be heard HERE.

It was a bit hard to choose which episode of Hibiki to watch for this thread, honestly, because alot of episodes, especially in the first half, have some really standout stuff that are worth talking about.

Heck, in the first episode alone you have what is no doubt the most unique opening scene of any Kamen Rider show, and just about every episode only ramps up my interests from there on.

Ultimately we decided to go with my favorite episode of the show though, and it's one that I think some people kinda misunderstand? From what little I've gleaned online, some seem to think the ultimate moral of the episode is that it's okay for Hibiki to be hyper-specialized, but not for Todoroki.

And like, while that's technically true, summing it up in that way really removes like, half the entire lesson as well as the context surrounding it. The lesson the episode is attempting to teach is that even if you're extremely skilled or gifted in one specific aspect, relying solely on that one aspect and nothing else isn't going to very effectively carry you through life.

Yes, by training himself in what he's already good at, Hibiki unlocks his new super mode, Crimson Hibiki, which helps to defeat the Summer Makamou, but had this episode taken place in any season other than summer, the tale would've gone much differently. Hibiki's' skillset works here because it's naturally attuned to the situation, which is why Todoroki needs to learn drumming in the first place. It's also shown that Ibuki and Hibiki have undergone training in the other instruments as well, so there's really no hypocrisy here.

To give a bit of a simply comparison, being really good at fixing a car isn't going to directly translate to you being really good at ballroom dancing and vise-versa.

Ontop of that though, the episode carries alot of the stuff that I just really love about the first 29 episodes of Hibiki in general: A warm atmosphere, stylish action, and really charming ad human feeling character interactions. It's got everything, and I really don't think I could ask for any more from it.

Up next: Kamen Rider Die joins me in watching/discussing Kamen Rider Ryuki episode 30, which is inferior to episode 29! I'm sure it'll be the advent to my defeat.