[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

Heck, in these episodes along you just kinda have him conveniently knowing how to modify both Dopants as well as Drivers? Some dude who came out nowhere as far as the narrative so far is concerned? I don't buy it.

I can see it? All of the set-up scenes, before Isaka debuted, were all about how important he was to the organization. Since then, he's been revealed to be a medical professional, so... I can give them this one? He's got a vague Mad Scientist thing going on, so I don't think it's as preposterous as, like, Jinno suddenly reconfiguring the Double Driver or whatever.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

The only thing left to note is that I still don't agree with the Akiko and Terui pairing. Even if we keep it to these two episodes. Terui shows nothing more than bemusement and very basic empathy towards her, and on the side of Akiko, her gestures aren't really outside of her typical antics.

Oh, for sure. In retrospect, it's easy to read into this first real Akiko/Terui story as being the foundation of their relationship, but it's not really that emphasized in the episodes. (Which is why I put it in the Die-a Memories section; that's where retrospective stuff lives!) The tone throughout the episode is, at best, Mutual Respect from Terui, and Gigantic Crush from Akiko. It's only years later that I can see romantic sparks there.