[Kamen Rider Die]

TOKUMEI SENTAI GO-BUSTERS MISSION 9 - “USADA RESCUE OPERATION!”



Ha ha, just after spending a day talking about the Buddyroids and how Usada is a hilariously literal and figurative helicopter parent to Yoko, here’s this story that kicks off with Usada feuding with Yoko over her inability to excel at schoolwork. The Go-Busters production team is reading this thread, you guys!

I thought this was a super charming episode, if maybe not as deep as a different Buster/Buddyroid pairing might be. Yoko and Usada have a comedically toxic relationship where they are pretty consistently getting on each others’ nerves, but the core metaphor is such a basic Helicopter Parent thing that it doesn’t feel like we’re seeing an additional layer to their relationship. Yoko obviously cares about Usada while being frustrated by his overprotectiveness and harsh expectations, while Usada obviously cares about Yoko while being frustrated by her snottiness and lazy attitude about schoolwork. They clearly care about one another, and they’re just in the middle of a stupid fight, so there’s not a ton they can reveal that we hadn’t already seen or intuited. It’s a cute story, but not a complex one.

Luckily, the execution is layered and ridiculous, and that makes up for thinness of the emotional conflict. Hinging this story on No Metaroids means we get a more tense story where Enter is fully featured, and there isn’t a goofy robot suit to muddy the stakes. It’s just the Go-Busters trying to outwit a kidnapper, and that turns out to be plenty. (I could not have cared less about the destruction of the two random Alpha Megazords at the end, and I think the show felt the same.) Yoko gets to prove her chops by helping devise a multi-staged ploy to trick Enter, which is exactly the sort of intricate plotting that makes me care about these fast-paced superhero narratives. Bonus points – it includes Morishita and Glasses Lady as duplicate Busters and solo work for Nick and Gorisaki, which is such a crucial part of this Every Go-Buster Matters Even The Annoying Rabbit Dad story, and I love it. This whole thing is half a complete goof, and half a sweet story of the bond between an overbearing parent and a bratty teen. It’s great. It’s dumb, and it’s great.



IT’S TIME FOR Usada!

He’s such a little shit in this one, and that makes him the perfect foil for Yoko, who is crowing with delight when she learns that he got kidnapped. They are both insufferable, and they are also they only people who can stand each other. I love their toxic parent/child bond, and I agree with Glasses Lady that the two of them screaming at each other back at base just feels normal.