[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER REVICE EPISODE 47 - “KARIZAKI’S REBELLION, THE PRICE OF TRANSFORMING”



We’ll probably talk about this more in the Series Wrap-Up post that’ll land… Sunday?, but this episode is kind of a perfect distillation of everything that works and doesn’t within Revice as a series. There’s an escalation in the plot that feels barely motivated and almost absurdly lurching in its tonal shift, and there’s an escalation in the character development of the Igarashis that’s heartbreaking and fascinating. The plotting fails, but the character work succeeds.

Like, the George thing. The crew of this episode does heroic work making Kamen Rider Juuga a terrifying threat, and George a tragic villain, but it barely feels tethered to the series thus far. It’s yet another random shift in George’s portrayal and goals, with only a couple episodes of C-plot to connect this version to the one that aimed for supportive heroism over a few dozen episodes. This one’s maybe had a mental break after losing his dad to a lifetime of devil-related sciencing, and seems to view the survival of the Igarashi family as a slap in the face. (Just my read, since we don’t really get a firm answer on George’s true motivations here. There’s a cover story, but it barely survives the first encounter intact, let alone when things get real serious.) But now he’s the Final Boss, and it feels as lackadaisically plotted as if Tamaki became the unstoppable threat of the last few episodes. But, whatever. George is the Final Boss we have, even if it’s not the Final Boss we might’ve wanted.

The most important part, as anything with Revice, isn’t really the details of the plot. The villains and obstacles are just ways of testing and enhancing the bond of the Igarashi family, and that shit is golden. Like, look at this shot of Sakura realizing that her and Daiji are going to have to fight on their own to save Ikki’s dwindling memories of their family:



GORGEOUS. That shot is such a goddamn bullseye that it forgives any number of poorly-motivated heel turns. The world turns to darkness as Sakura considers the consequences of Ikki’s condition. It’s the perfect encapsulation of what Ikki means to the rest of his family, and vice versa. This episode manages to extract its greatness from Ikki’s polite and well-meaning obliteration of the same love and warmth he’s fighting to protect; the pyrrhic victory as endgame adversary. Juuga’s some guy in a suit, and it could basically be any guy in a suit. What will always work on this show is how the Igarashi family has to protect one another in times of crisis.

That part… so good. Every scene in Happy Spa was as tense and affecting as most other shows’ imminent destruction of the planet. I don’t give a shit about a million people in peril, but my heart breaks for a Yukimi and Genta who realize that their eldest child has forgotten them completely. It’s been a weird ass plot over the last 46 episodes, but it leveled me here. Ikki’s been sacrificing himself to protect his family, but that sacrifice is killing them emotionally. It’s putting Ikki’s gut instinct to give up his own happiness for family up against the reality that he’ll be left isolated from that same family, and breaking their hearts for that isolation. It’s impossible, and inevitable, and it’s the best possible way for this show to work towards its finale.

So, yeah: Revice! Plots that bounce right off me, and character work that hits like a Rider Kick. I am still on the edge of my seat for this final arc, though.