[Sh Ranger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

Kekera has finally registered as a scoundrel and, it seems, may well take away the title of the most cruel supporter from Beroba.

They're both bad for trying to induce misery, regardless of their reasons. But yeah, at least Beroba was actually consistently helpful to Michinaga, while Kekera is figuratively and literally two-faced and mostly a hindrance to Keiwa.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

The return of PunkJack plus

You could say, the return of Punkjack is a Win.

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Originally Posted by DreadBringer

About Win calling Ace brother, so this'd show that he's genuinely attracted to Tsumuri, and sets on marrying her, turning Ace into his brother-in-law, not just a facade.

Win could already be considered Ace's older brother due to the granted desire, "to become DGP staff's family". If two people accept each other as siblings, then I think that's good enough. This is like how Shinnosuke and Gou were already honorary brothers before the former's marriage to Kiriko, so there's the option that Win could marry Tsumuri as well. Tsumuri doesn't seem interested in him so far though and honestly, I'd like to see Tsumuri finally reciprocate Ace's sibling dynamic before anything else. Ace is going through a hard time and he needs his sisters.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

But this just feels like downplaying his crimes (and the term anti-hero being used in-universe for this), with the question of Michinaga leaving Riders to die or not like pretending it never happened, when he did to Takeshi, extending to civilians, and also directly murdering Tycoon and Geats. Ofc, later Michinaga's still going on about hunting Riders, and only fighting Archimedel to take back the ID Cores, which Ace again frames him as being tsundere (that he genuinely wants to save Sara, after ). I hope that actually, it's just Ace's tricks to try to appease him, since he has no way of beating him in battle now, trying to stay on his good side so that he doesn't die. Otherwise, Ace also outclasses Michinaga, in drawing. As an artist, I fully take Ace's side against Michinaga claiming it's tryhard and overdesigned.

I definitely won't forget about the JPG civilian deaths this time! Tsumuri and Beroba brought back Ace and Keiwa respectively, but as long as those civilians stay dead, then Michinaga can still be held culpable for that. However, only the DGP and killed Riders themselves should be help culpable for Rider deaths, as Michinaga understands that DGP is a competitive game and thus he's not obliged to help out other Riders or give them eulogies. There's also his own acknowledgement to Beroba that he doesn't claim to be better than the other Riders, since he still chose to sacrifice people's desires and lives, even if that was for the sake of a world where those sacrifices no longer happen. If being lame at art is a crime though, he's totally guilty of that as well.

It's pretty convenient how the Rider-proofing effect of Buffa's Gods Wall can also provide utility to Riders partnered with him, as Geats shows by using him as a portable wall to rebound off and then humorously shooting him at point blank range just to prove a point that it's okay to do that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

I thought the screenshot of Keiwa and Neon smiling proudly to Sara was about her growing as a fighter (though she shoved a Pawn Jamato away), but actually not yet, albeit there's actual character progression of her. Though she has stated that she can't keep going without Neon TV, she still views Neon as a person, and not a fodder for her entertainment, thus she'd accept Neon's decision to sever ties with the current world, albeit she'd still continue to be devoted. Beroba and Kekera's schemes successfully lure Keiwa to take Sara away from the Jamatos, and Sara actually got quite angry for Keiwa joining. Neon's now get even more involved with the Sakurai siblings to defuse the argument, but Sara now extends her motivation of fighting for Neon's happiness as well... which'd be what gets Keiwa to accept her participation, thus he's not overly protective. And what Keiwa and Neon are proud of is Sara's inner character strength, not capabilities.

Sara is easily the most supportable Team Pro-DGP Rider for me, as her desire is actually simple and good, without any downsides (other than typical DGP ethical problems). Now that Daichi's no longer around to sow distrust, we can see how Sara functions as the heart of Team Pro-DGP to raise the morale of the conflicted Neon and Keiwa.

She's more willing to fight for Neon's happiness than Neon herself, who'd rather disappear. Sara's support could be how she eventually encourages Neon to believe in her fans and her authenticity as a person as well. Sara has essentially become an ambassador for all her fans, fighting on their behalf to protect the one they all love and give her their hope, which I think is a very noble motivation.

While in fighting, Hakubi is currently inexperienced and underequipped, she's still a Rider in her own right, so I hope Tycoon can start to assist her more constructively and allow her to become stronger to fight independently for her desire.