[DreamSword]

FINAL THOUGHTS ON GARO

My favorite era of Kamen Rider is Phase 1 Heisei. The earlier stuff especially.

There are many reasons why, but I think the biggest factor of it all comes from its overall atmosphere and how the shows of the time tended to carry themselves.

They all felt genuine. Having confidence in their material and ability to draw you into a world which, on a surface level, would look rather ridiculous to the "common" person. They wanted the viewer to care just as much if not more than they did.

There was no need for any sort of tongue-in-cheek, self-referential humor to undercut its own story, no winking at the audience calling out how "stupid" something is in a real world setting. They had a story they wanted to tell and they stuck to their guns about it.

I tell you all of this because in the world we currently live in, where the biggest superhero property around is entirely predicated on characters making self-aware one-liners practically every two minutes, thus making the stories border on self parody, GARO absolutely stands out as to one of many reasons why superhero stories can resonate with audiences while taking itself seriously.

That's not to say there's anything wrong with having humor in your story; GARO has a good handful of levity, even in its final episode. But if you have nearly every character constantly talk about how outlandish or dumb the overall plot, visuals, and characters are, then why should we as an audience at all care about what's going on in terms of events or character? Constantly saying "we're in on the joke!" infact kills said joke, and that's me putting it lightly.

All throughout its run, GARO never once felt the need to talk down to itself or those watching it, and infact did everything in its power to tell a compelling story. Whether it be the personal stakes for every character involved, the incredibly well choreographed action scenes, the absolutely stellar directing, or, perhaps most importantly for me, the wonderfully thick and encompassing atmosphere that drew me into this world of horror and mysterious intrigue that had me hooked from the very first episode.

Now, I could easily be wrong here, but all throughout the show it really felt like there was a serious passion behind every aspect of the show. Never at any point, even during the episodes that I felt were a bit weaker than others, did I feel as though the people behind the scenes were just phoning things in or assuming that their audience would just roll with whatever was handed to them. None of the plot details felt out of nowhere or made up, none of the character arcs felt bungled, and while not a show that focused on lessons or morals, what few it did have to showcase never felt like a double-standard.

The short version of all of this is that I feel like GARO as a show is something special, and I liked it a whole lot.

I'll admit, I was a bit nervous going in, given that my intro to the franchise as a whole was its first anime. But, to my absolute delight and surprise, everything that made the anime so good was also done here, but still in a very distinct way as to not at all be repetitive. The action was just as over the top as ever, the characters were equally as well written, the overall tone was preserved, and unlike The Animation, this show didn't have an absolutely forced romance at the end of it!

It's to the point that it was honestly really hard for me to pick any sort of favorite episode out of this season. There are a bunch of ones that stand out for one reason or another, and it made me actually have to use my brain and think it over, as rare as that is.

In the end though, I think I'm gonna give it to episode 5: Moonlight. Because sure, it's not the most plot important or one which progresses the character arcs in any super big way, but it's the episode where I knew was sure that GARO was a show for me, as it immediately captivated me with its incredibly well done directorial style which drew from different sorts of horror films. That opening scene is probably one of my favorite opening scenes in any toku show ever. And I do not say that lightly.

But characters are always the biggest draw for me, and while I love the cast as a whole, I surprisingly found myself most drawn to Kaoru more than anyone else. Her personal journey of coming to terms with her parents while also being a struggling artist whose time was unfairly cut short, along with a strong personality that made her very likable just really sold her to me. I felt for her every step of the way, and I honestly consider her the real main character of the show despite Koga being the title character and the guy who gets into all of the big battles.

Sure, the show isn't perfect. A few episodes are a bit uneven in their execution, and Rei, much as I like him, does feel a bit less developed than practically everyone else in the cast, but really, I find those lesser aspects to be incredibly minor in the grand scheme of things. Some people like to judge a show based on every individual piece, some like to think about how well it showcases its overall message or theme, but me, I primarily look at stories based upon my own enjoyment while experiencing them as a whole, with a bit of reflection to help sort my own thoughts out, especially if I had a rather strong feeling one way or another. And looking back at my previous posts on the show while thinking about all of the things that really stood out to me...

I dunno if I'm confident in saying that GARO is one of my favorite toku ever(who am I kidding, it most likely is), but it is a show that I ended up having a rather big fondness for, and in terms of GARO as a franchise I'd easily put it on par with Carved Seal of Flames, if not slightly better. And I liked that show alot!

In the end, I feel like GARO is a great show for people who feel like Power Rangers needs to be dark in order to survive, or who feel that a show can't feel complete unless it has 50 episodes, or many other common claims I've seen people make about the Big Three. It's easy to see why this became 4th place amongst Toku! I really loved a vast majority of it, and I'm so glad I chose it as the show to watch as I approached my 30th year on this Earth.

I give GARO a 5/6. Not perfect, but there's alot to love, and I really struggle to think of ways to make it any more special.