[GuardianAngel87]

This is honestly my favorite of the two Inoue-helmed episodes of Timeranger. Dead Heat and Battle Casino are among my favorite episodes of the series.

[Androzani84]

New week, new set of four reviews. Starting with?

Timeranger Case File 15: Find the Sniper 21/05/2000

We open on Lila transforming into Tatsuya wearing Ryuya?s uniform for the benefit of the Londars? latest hire, Sniper Reihou, a famous hit woman they?ve hired to wipe out the Timerangers. After some bartering, Dolnero agrees to pay her 35 million yen to wipe the group out (7000 per member). Meanwhile, Sion sees Honami in his magazine getting an article about her exploits, much to Yuri?s (and my) annoyance. She?s announced her intent to interview all of the Timerangers, which makes the group determined to keep her safe.

But as it turns out, the article is basically the prose equivalent of clickbait. Honami already said she refuses to get anymore picture of the Timerangers and further refuses to take responsibility for the article. But we learn she still has a crush on TimeYellow and Ayase (who she?s mistaken for the same person). Once Honami gets home, she finds Reihou waiting for her. Yuri leaps off the Time Flyer to spy on Honami?s apartment, which she finds has been ransacked and is now empty, as Reihou has taken the photojournalist hostage.

Checking the apartment, Ayase discovers a blast mark, which Tock attributes to Reihou, who was imprisoned for 120 years on a murder charge (kind of predictable as crimes go). Meanwhile, unable to gather any information from Honami, Reihou uses her sniper gear to shoot out the elevator, trapping them in the room. When Honami still refuses to talks, Reihou manages to find her wallet with pictures of her crush, which gives her an idea.

Soon, Sion detects an irregular space time pulse at a plaza, where Honami sits, a collar of some sort (I?m guessing a bomb) around her neck. As Tock identifies the source of the pulse, and warns them that Reihou can not only penetrate their suits, but she could be anywhere within a 1 kilometre radius (and no, I don?t know what that is in miles). And it turns out the collar is a bomb, one set to go off in 30 minutes. As Honami has an imagine spot of TimeYellow being gunned down, Reihou shoots her badge off her jacket to get he to stay in place.

Elsewhere, Sion reconfigures VolPulsar to create a barrier around the area so they can ascertain Reihou?s location. The group approaches the square with Tatsuya, Ayase and Domon disguising themselves before transforming, while Yuri and Sion sit in the back, waiting for when the barrier will become stable. But the sight of TimeYellow gets Honami to move, despite him tying to warn her otherwise (for a camerawoman, she?s really bad at reading body language).

Fortunately, Reihou can?t hit her due to the barrier. Unfortunately, it?s unstable as a result of being set off prematurely and Honami won?t sit still long enough to be defused. But they do have Reihou?s location, and can defend against her shots long enough for the three main males (Sion?s counted as a femboy for this descriptor) to corner her, while Yuri and Sion get the bomb off Honami by knocking her out.

Reihou?s battle proceeds to the docks, where she summons a load of Zenits for the trio to battle (and I thought she was a professional killer). But she screws up her shot, before Yuri leaps in to beat her up (good thing the Timerangers have one woman on hand). But Reihou proceeds to trigger a rebound to avoid arrest.

After inexplicably ineffectually shooting Reihou with the VolSniper, Yuri has Tock summon the TimeJets, combining them into TimeRobo Alpha (wouldn't Beta be more appropriate? Then we could have a shoot-out). But Reihou proves just as slippery as a giant, planning Tod est Roy the robot for more money (but given she?s stuck as a giant, how would she spend it?). But they quickly do what I suggested and switch to Beta purely to shoot her and trap her in a forcefield, before shifting back to Alpha for he finishing blow to recapture her.

As Yuri returns Honami to her bed, Sion sees just how many pictures she?s taken of TimeYellow, which causes Yuri to ruminate how her frustration caused her to miss the obvious. They then leave her with an email. Meanwhile, Dolnero and Lila return to hear the bad news from Gien, but they?re not broken up about it. And back with the heroes for one last scene, Domon reads an email from Honami, and asks Sion to teach him how to reply, making both parties happy.

Next time: Domon tries to help out a down on his luck soba chef learn the business at the expense of his duties as a Timeranger, in Timeranger Case File 16: A Dream of Soba.

Final thoughts: I liked this better than Honami?s previous outing (and Honami herself came off as more likeable here), with an appropriately tense situation, and we get what looks like the beginnings of a romantic subplot. How well they?ll pull that off remains to be seen though.

[Androzani84]

Ok, you know by now I?ve got very little to say in these intros, so I?ll just say that from next week, it?ll be back to normal business, because I cannot keep up this current upload schedule and maintain my mental health (though I?ll probably move the second weekly review to Saturday). Anyway, let?s get on with the show.

Timeranger Case File 16: A Dream of Soba 28/05/2000

(Also, this is another Yamaguchi episode)

We open on Dolnero? brushing his teeth. With a toilet brush. (Yeah)



The conversation soon turns to the topic of food, to which Gien chooses that moment to reveal that, appropriately enough, he?s sent out a food themed prisoner to cause chaos.



And then we briefly cut to said Vincent burning down a restaurant.



The next morning, Domon wakes up while Tomorrow Research is amazingly very busy with potential clients.



But in his tired state, he stumbles over a table to answer the phone, which causes all of their customers to leave. (Domon obviously isn?t as good with women as he presents)



Sol to punish him, the others force him out of the building until he can gather new customers to replace the old ones.



But it turns out that going around with a placard and wearable sign isn?t he most glamorous of jobs.



He thus decides to do lunch at a soba shop run by a guy named Sugahara. But the food there is terrible, which Sugahara freely admits is because he went into this as a last resort and he isn?t very good at it.



Domon sympathises, and decides to take him back to Tomorrow Research to try and get the others to help improve his business.



Unfortunately, he decides the best way to do this is have them eat Sugahara?s soba. Which Ayase uses to be blunt about why it?s so terrible.



So aside from Sugahara?s soba lacking the four ?ings?, Domon hasn?t actually bought any new customers in, so the two of them are thrown out, and Sugahara is ready to give up.



But Domon reassures Hik and convinces him to learn and improve so they can turn his luck around (and Domon can show up the others).



Their first step is to head to an actual professional soba place and ask for the recipe. After the chef refuses to give it, another customer proceeds to criticise his cooking.





After the man points out that their ?secret sauce? is just salt, Domon and Sugahara take the hint and leave. As the chef complains about the other man driving his business away, he transforms into the Londars and sets the place on fire.



Meanwhile, Sugahara has been reinvigorated into improving his craft, with Domon?s aid.



And thus, we have a montage cutting Domon and Sugahara learning the art of soba making off by heart, while Vincent burns down several restaurants where he dislikes the food.



Meanwhile, the Timerangers, still down by one, figure out that Vincent is the culprit based on the pattern of the restaurants targeted. Thanks to a cut, Lila states what he?s serving those 120 years in freeze-compression for.



Gien then clarifies that he?s a very picky eater who has a habit of burning down places where he doesn?t like the food.



The 4 Timerangers then appear to arrest him. And unusually, the fight is one-sided in the heroes? favours with the only reason the episode isn?t ended here with Vincent?s arrest being that they can?t form the Voltech Bazooka to freeze-compress him, allowing Gien and Lila to get him to safety. Meanwhile, Domon and Sugahara have reached their final preparations.



It turns out that Domon has learned the four ?ings? of soba making: harvesting, grinding, cutting and boiling. But then Ayase shows up, and gets annoyed that Domon is laser focusing on this over the Londars.



But Domon retorts with a passionate desire to help Sugahara turn his business around, which causes Ayase to leave without a fuss. Back at the apartment, the others are shocked that Domon seems to be seriously considering leaving the Timerangers behind.



As they head out to intercept Vincent, Ayase asks Tock to do something for him. Meanwhile, Sugahara opens his shop up, and while Domon is out, he gets his first customer: Vincent.



Sure enough, Domon soon comes running back when he hears that the soba place is on fire. Sugahara is dismayed, but Domon reassures him.



And Vincent doesn?t stop there, as he menaces a fast food place with a fork (thing Quena) he pulls from inside his tunic and enlarges, before the Timerangers appear to battle him.



Meanwhile, Domon points out that the main issue with Sugahara?s soba is the season. They can?t grow fresh wheat to make really good soba until Autumn, meaning they can?t get the ?harvesting? part right. Cue Tock flying in with a box around his neck.



As the others are defeated by Vincent in battle, Domon pulls up with a soba stand, in full chef?s gear.



He makes the Londars a challenge: if Domon can make really good tasting soba, then Vincent has to turn himself in willingly. Tatsuya thinks this won?t end well, but Ayase insists on letting it play out.



Vincent accepts, and we get treated to a cooking montage.



Playing over this is our third insert for the season, and the reason I consider this a plot relevant episode: Chi * Ka * Ra 2000.

...Element of love

It begins with a smile...
Billions of years of repeating history...

...are forever etched in my heart

Everyone feeling the same pain weighs heavily
...
preventing the page from turning
We ride this rust-eaten Earth

Keep spinning! Keep holding the tears! I said, don't cry my heart!

For the endless future, and to protect those eyes...

Slip through the darkness of sorrow and revive that PO-WE-R!

Vincent takes one bite of the soba, and finds it really mouth watering.



Domon explains that this is because the soba he used for the cooking was fresh soba.



As Yuri questions if Tock can casually do that, Domon equips his Chrono Suit and transforms, with the group forming the Voltech Bazooka? which makes Vincent change his mind.



He thus triggers a Rebound, leading us to the standard robot battle. But Vincent has a clever strategy to avoid arrest: hiding behind a skyscraper full of innocent people (This is why this episode wasn?t adapted: they?d have to explain why the Rangers were reluctant to destroy an empty building).



The solution: Use the Dimension Shoot to have the laser fire redirect in midair and hit Vincent from behind.



After shifting to TimeRobo Alpha, Vincent is finally recaptured. We then cut to sometime later, where Sugahara has not only successfully set up his soba business, but his wife has come back to him (eh, she seems like a gold digger. No true love there).



As Domon gushes to the others about how proud he is, Yuri asks the question on her mind.

The episode ends on his answer: No, he just flew down to the southern hemisphere where soba is in season. All at Ayase?s request as well.

Next week: Tatsuya?s teenage prodigy turns to crime and becomes a delinquent in Case File 17: The Twisted Fist.

Final thoughts: I?ve noticed all of Yamaguchi?s plots for the series so far have someone bonding with a guest character. Not complaining, just an observation. It?s an interesting distinction from Kobayashi?s script. But in terms of opinion, all that comes to mind is that I like that we get a softer side to Ayase?s relationship with Domon, compared to their usual sniping.

[Androzani84]

Sorry for the delay, I?ve been a little distracted. But I?m ready to begin now with?

Timeranger Case File 17: The Twisted Fist 04/06/2000

In our second episode in a row from Yamaguchi?s desk, Dolnero is annoyed at his low income numbers due to the spending that results. Noting they need a larger source of income, Lila unleashes Extortion Gang Leader Franc (the source for Flamecon in TimeForce), whose first act is to assault a pretty woman (just in case you thought he was going to be a sympathetic monster).

The next day, Tatsuya hurries off early in the morning, a recent ritual he?s adopted for training his teenage disciple Urasawa Makoto (played by a pre-Kamen Rider Gaim Hiromi Sakamoto). The other Timerangers? attempts at snooping fail, so Tatsuya decides to formally introduce him, revealing that Makoto insists on one-on-one courses. But later, as Makoto looks on at the bullies at his school, he chooses to hide from them. He asks Tatsuya when they?ll get around to a ctual sparring, but Tatsuya insists on sticking to the basics.

Makoto thus keeps cowering from the bullies and pushing himself unhealthily at night. As Tatsuya worries about his disciple, Makoto?s mother arrives at Tomorrow Research and reveals that Makoto has been getting up to things involving money late at night. Tatsuya agrees to investigate, as Makoto gets beaten up by bullies for not giving them enough of his money. A teacher breaks them up and goes to tend to Makoto in the nurse?s office, as the kid refuses to share his problems with Tatsuya. The teacher reveals that she?s given up on the boys after they got involved with the yakuza, while Tatsuya refuses to keep teaching Makoto if he?s going to exploit his teachings for revenge.

Meanwhile, Yuri has noticed a similar pattern of that gang targeting students across several high schools. The gang?s leader Shibuya learns that Makoto wouldn?t pay up and appears to ruin his gardening work (Well, they are kids in a country with strict gun laws, they can?t really do much else). This angers Makoto enough to lay out Shibuya in one punch? which gets applause from the teacher. That night, she?s installs him as the new head of the gang extorting money, teaching him that strength is justice, and the strong have a right to money. After Makoto lays out the one dissenter, the teacher encourages him to lead through example? as she turns out to be Franc?s human disguise victim.

And thus, after an offscreen makeover, Makoto begins beating Kida who won?t pay their share up. Franc explains to Dolnero that his logic is that not only are kids likely to have money, but keeping it to schools ensures word doesn't get out. Cue Shibuya confessing everything to Tomorrow Research, as Makoto is encouraged to begin beating up old people, adults and kids (Now isn?t that just self-sabotaging on Franc?s part? That ensures word gets out).

Tatsuya?s had enough and challenges Makoto to a karate duel? which he spends not throwing a single punch, not even in retaliation. The lesson works its magic, giving Makoto the realisation that using power for personal gain is not justice, but using it to protect those without is. Makoto tells Franc that he?s quitting the extortion business, which gets him to drop the disguise to try and kill the kid. But thsi turns out to be a sting for the Timerangers, who realised his hand in things offscreen (we don?t even learn what crime got him locked up, or how long for).

Battle ensues, with Franc initially dominating with his chain weapon, until Tatsuya fights back by tickling him, before, hitting with a barrage of karate moves until Franc begs for mercy. Cue a rebound, and our giant battle. This time, they start with TimeJet Gamma and attack with the Gamme Tornado, before switching to TimeRobo Beta and delivering enough rapid punches to send Franc flying through buildings. Finally, they switch to Alpha and recapture the Londars.

We then cut to Tatsuya?s karate class, where Makoto has started showing improvement. And that?s pretty much how it ends. Not much else to say.

Next time: Ayase is Alton in a locked down science lab against a Londar trying tos teal a new energy source in Case File 18: A Shadowy Premonition.

Final thoughts: A pretty basic episode with a pretty good moral (even if someone on the internet somehow interpreted it as ?fighting is always wrong?, and no I don?t know who that person is for you to go and egg their house), and a likeable guest star. I?m noticing that Yamaguchi?s episodes tend to be lighter on in suit action than most others.