[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER ZERO-ONE: FINAL STAGE



I can’t think of a more brutal indictment of this stage show than the following: In a thirty-minute Zero-One story, Aruto doesn’t make a single joke.

Like, what’s the point of this stage show, then? Why bother getting any of the actors (including an alarmingly tan Fuwa) to come back? It’s a stunt show, and that’s it. There’s no story worth delving into (Ark Zero-One is a repaint suit with a rehashed motivation), and no writing worth discussing. It’s the most boilerplate Zero-One project I can imagine, and it’s relentlessly underwhelming to think about.

The main positive, maybe the only positive, is the fight choreography. It’s clearly the only part of this that was given any care or attention (that Ark Zero-One suit, jesus), and it’s definitely worth watching maybe four minutes of clips if you can find them online somewhere without sitting through this whole thing. The Valkyrie/Vulcan action rivals anything from Zero-One outside of REALxTIME, with their fight against Ark Zero-One being a particular highlight. All of the suit actors do an admirable job trying to create something of value, when the writing does them absolutely no favors.

I don’t… like, if you want to say It’s Just A Stage Show, fine. This is a children’s matinee trifle, where you clap along with the theme song to empower the heroes. It ain’t striving for anything more than a reason to buy a glow light at some stupid markup. But, man, these shows can at least be less mercenary in their obligations, you know? You can try to say something with the characters. (The Build stage show excels at this, if I recall.) This is just boring platitudes and misapplied encouragements, and it really let me down.