[Sh Ranger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER W EPISODE 4 - ?DON?T TOUCH THE M: BETTING ON JOKER?

The mystery plot fares significantly better, as it?s both a tense battle to defeat the Money Dopant through either high-level mathematics or bluffing through use of the worse gambling partner, and also a fun exploration of Shotaro and Philip?s unsteady dynamic.

The bit that really landed with me is a two-part thing, apropos to Double. The earlier part is Shotaro trying to connect with Philip?s sense of frustration by quoting something Sokichi once said. It bounces right off of Philip, because he never knew Sokichi, and Shotaro?s invocation of his memory isn?t dealing with Philip?s current struggle. Philip feels an absence, and Shotaro?s like Let Me Talk Like My Work Dad. But later, when they?re at the Million Colosseo, Shotaro speaks from the heart and tells Philip that yeah, he?s following in Sokichi?s footsteps, but the result is him dedicating himself to protecting Philip. It takes what was previously a tossed-off detective cosplay and turns it into something personal and heartfelt. There's warmth and vulnerability where there used to be performative manliness, and it's Shotaro once again missing what makes him effective in pursuit of someone else's personality. It's always fun to watch that play out.

I enjoyed the Million Colosseo hustle as well, showing how Shoutarou and Phillip work as a team to outsmart Money Dopant. This also shows how Akiko functions between them, when she translates Shoutarou's well-meaning yet vague Soukichi-like wisdom in to something clear, to make Phillip understand and appreciate that Shoutarou is being genuinely serious here. Terrible advice for actual gamblers who don't need to take the risks, but in this context, it's a good moral that Phillip's pessimism prevents him from making a decision and that if he can't think of a solution using his own merits, then he should at least have faith in his partner Shoutarou when he takes initiative, or else they can't really call themselves the 2-in-1 detective. They're both halfboiled, which is why they need to rely on each other's strengths for balance.

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Originally Posted by DreadBringer

I brought up Akiko in Saber thread before to you when talking about Mei (about her being similar to Mei yes), but you didn't address those (particularly about Mei's admiration of Rintaro part) so didn't know. I understand that Mei is the heart as she's even more optimistic than Touma, for W though, Shotaro is the certified heart of the team, it's what acknowledged by his companions like Philip much later on, and also what transforms a hate-filled men like Terui into someone fighting for love of Fuuto. And despite above, I think Shotaro and Philip typically gets along well and interact in pleasant manner, they almost never got into intense fights. Dunno if Akiko also ranks up high/peak among heroine list like Mei, of which, I wondered why do you think the bar of heroines (not female Riders) is low.

True that Shoutarou is a solid candidate for heart, but I think he mostly shows that side of himself towards his clients and suspects, using emotional intuition to figure out motives and deliver effective pep talks to victims. The dynamic in the Narumi Detective Agency kind of places Akiko in the role of a mother, since it's usually her who tries to make decisive judgments for the direction of the company whenever Shoutarou's hunches come to dispute against Phillip's cold logic, or vice versa. The fact that Shoutarou and Phillip are able to honestly debate and make up after shows that their friendship is healthy and strong for sure. And yeah, Akiko ranks as my 7th favorite Heisei heroine, so fairly high. I think I generally liked heroines more often in Phase 1 and early Phase 2. Everything after that seems to be a mixed bag, IMO.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

I think Metal Branding, W's finisher attack as HeatMetal, is a really bland attack, just smacking the opponent with burning Metal Shaft (that I think should be standard attack of the form).

Agreed. For Metal finishers, I prefer Metal Twister.