[DreamSword]

Episode 7: I Summon You! Gorilla Beast King!

I was rather jiving with this one at first, only to end up with mixed feelings by the end.

A major part of the plot is an old man's' relationship with his son, who rather than taking up the family business, it focusing on a musical career.

And a plot like that, in a show like this, kinda writes itself, right? The father and son see value in eachother's' paths in life, and learn to compromise and love one another despite their difference.

Except... no. By the end, it's all but flat out stated that the dad was right in that his son was only wasting his time and that a life of heavy metal was never a serious thing, nor should it ever be taken seriously. Traditional work is the only thing that qualifies as real work.

It just left a really bad taste in my mouth. Especially after the episode itself had been doing such a great job at using these two as a vehicle to do some more excellent world building when it comes to Akebono City(well, them and the police). It'd be like if you were enjoying a really good pizza, only for the final bite of it to be suddenly filled with coleslaw.

The other aspect of the plot is a continuation of the gag that Kenji can't ever get along with the Beast Kings that he acquires. This time it's Fire Kong, of whom he tries to find various ways to tame but to no avail until he learns from the father and son from beforehand. In that regard, both plots are tied together alot better than the two plots of episode 2 were. And they were almost equally enjoyable too. Which is a rather nice step up.

In the end, I don't out and out dislike the episode, as it still has alot of the stuff I enjoy about Ryukendo as a whole, but man, what a letdown of an ending.