[DreamSword]

I'm now up through episode 43 of Gaim, including the Soccer movie.

My big takeaway from said film is that Kota pulls off the glam rocker look surprisingly well.

With that out of the way, unless these last handful of episodes throw me for a total loop, I'm pretty sure I've got my final verdict on Gaim. With being that while I like the show, I don't find it anything super incredible.

Don't get me wrong, I can totally get why viewers of the time would cling to it, as it does have alot going for it. Essentially being a fresh new take on handling a Rider show while still retaining many of its core elements. And the usual nihilistic elements of Urobochi, while toned down some, are still very much present.

It's just that, for me personally, the show just doesn't really emotionally grab me all that much. I like a handful of the cast, some of the stunt work is rather neat, and the story, while having some pacing stumbles here and there, is overall structured well. But just, I dunno, the show hasn't really elevated past a level of "Yeah, this is solid" from me.

I think what also might not help is that, given Gaim's' overall (in)famy, it's kinda hard to just sit back and watch it without considering alot of stuff I've read over the years? But I'll get more into that when the show itself is done and dusted. But hey, I am atleast appreciating alot of what the show does in comparison to say, Build, which in my eyes tried to imitate alot of what Gaim did and failed at it. Especially its handling of atmosphere.

But yeah, solid enough time so far, but nothing mind blowing.