[DreadBringer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER FOURZE EPISODE 03 - “THE QUEEN FESTIVAL COMPETITION”

With Miu, we’re in kind of a different space. She’s full-on Mean Girl Miu in this episode, assured of her own majesty and disdainful of everyone else in the school, most of all her adoring fans. She’s maliciously ungrateful, which bites her fully on her ass at the climax, where her mid-episode venom is replayed for all of her fans. There’s a little bit of back and forth between her and Gen over the course of the episode, a little runner about him betting her he can Pygmalion some other girl into beating her for Queen of the school (valiant effort from Yuuki, who correctly points out that three dancers in the talent portion should be against the rules), but it’s sort of just Miu being awful, she’s exposed as being awful, cliffhanger into next episode. It’s kind of hard to not just see it as just desserts, you know?

This was something similar as Kengo in episode 1 against the girl's letter. I wonder if Miu and Kengo's similarity in behavior would be pointed out. This is something that happened to the recurring cast though, unlike Yamano of OOO or Miura in ep. 2 before. Then again, other than Miu destroying the gifts, she still doesn't hide her snotty behavior in front of everyone, of which it doesn't affect her reputation unlike how she treats the gifts (of which she still completely ignores them when she's in public). I feel that for her default behavior she shouldn't only mistreat Gentaro, but just everyone except Shun and her own posse as everyone'd be inferior to her.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

What makes it work is that it feels like the second part of a third storyline this episode, about Gen refusing to give up on the Hopping Switch. Kengo thinks it’s difficult to control and marginally useful, so he immediately gives up on supplying it for Fourze. But Gen refuses to give up on it, pledging to keep using it until a purpose reveals itself – which it eventually does, securing a brief victory over the episode’s Zodiart. It’s a cute bit of heroism and dedication from Gen, but it’s kind of not really about the Switch. It’s about friendships.

Feels like Yugioh about insisting that no items are useless and Gentaro determined to prove about something that seems worthless to others, with as much determination as him wanting to make friends. Gentaro did say that he's about making the impossible possible before, so he's the type to encourage people to constantly chase after your dreams, where not every KR main characters cover this aspect like Eiji or Shoma. But shonen MCs are often the ones who are about being ambitious to a master dream, they won't inspire the jaded audience though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Kengo instantly discards people who can’t help him in his mission, and that’s kind of his whole decision-making matrix when it comes to letting people in. With Gen, it’s… like, making friends with everyone means making friends with everyone. You gotta spend time with cool, passionate dorks like Yuuki, but you also gotta spend time with vain, imperious jerks like Miu. You might have to argue with them, or get insulted by them, or directly challenge their status and inherent sense of self, but in doing so you can get to know them enough to find the value in them. Refusing to even try out of dismissiveness or pragmatism isn’t some smart move, it’s laziness and lack of imagination. You never know which weirdo or jerk or sleazeball or constantly-fainting misanthrope could be your next new friend.

Then again, it's not like Gentaro would be the only one who wants to befriend Miu. Miu is so popular in school, so everyone wants a piece of her (at least even when she's visibly snotty to them outside of the gifts part), just like Gentaro. Popular jerks like Shun and Miu usually have a lot of friends in school (and a lot of people who has other awful behaviors that can be seen as entertaining like gossiping), the ones who people are less likely to be friend are the outcasts, people of lower status, or the people who don't bring anything on table, who feel like burden, where befriending them can carry a risk, not from them, but from the surroundings to likely humiliate you from befriending them. Meanwhile, being insulted by Shun/Miu would have everyone side with them. So far, the 'proof' I got from someone I met who claims to want to befriend everyone (other than me) is her willing to talk with a dustman.