[Kamen Rider Die]

MASKED RIDER RYUKI EPISODE 39



Man, what a difference a couple of episodes makes! If last episode was a solid course correction after a real weak outing, this one's firmly in Damn Near Perfect territory. Some smart writing, a few fun teases, terrific action sequences, and a great use of the cast.

Even Yui! In an episode that's got two main storylines that're basically Yui: Threat Or Menace, it's a little weird that she's talked about far more than she's seen. I actually thought that there was a reason behind that, that she'd had something happen to her off-screen, but ha ha NOPE she's just something for men to argue about for two-thirds of the episode, same as always. But! But once she's chased by a mirror monster, she gets (a very small amount of) agency, activating some weird powers in the Mirror World and getting saved by a Sort-Of Troubling Bit Of Cultural Appropriation Slash Stereotype Just I'm Not Sure Having A Native American Warrior Is A Great Choice monster. All the while, she's thinking back to her and Shiro as kids, drawing pretty much all of the Contract Monsters on Ryuki. That... I feel like that's going to be important! The whole thing with Yui in the mirror-version of Kamen Rider Warehouse, she doesn't really do a lot, but it feels more like she's got ownership of her story than, uh, maybe ever? It feels like it's valuing her reaction to what's happening as a primary consequence, at least. It's usually like it is in the first two-thirds of this episode, dudes arguing about protecting or destroying Yui, but this one felt like it valued Yui as more than a plot commodity. Really nice surprise!

That said, I really enjoyed all of the scenes of men arguing about Yui. The Second Secret Science Society continues to pay dividends, sparking some of my favorite challenges for the main cast.

Shinji and Tiger, very strong stuff. It's fun at first to see Shinji try to be a mentor, to try and bridge this empathy gap he has with Tiger. Shinji's someone who's demonstrative and forthright, so it's cool to see him have to play off of the unnerving and false Tiger. You don't find out until the end of the episode that Tiger's been faking (to some degree) everything he's been saying to Shinji, but even before that you kind-of know. The performance is all big smiles and dead eyes, this weird feeling of ingratiating interloper. There's no connection, and the things he says feel constructed, rehearsed. When he drops the mask, it's fascinating how little of his behavior changes. Yes, he's going to kill Shinji, and yes, he despises Shinji's weakness, but he's still going to feel sad. Oh, not because he's going to kill Shinji, but because Shinji's weakness made him have to die. Tiger's view of heroism won't allow Shinji to disgrace it. This kind of antagonist, he's got so many intriguing steps, from his awesome costume to his distant behavior to his heartbreaking betrayal, and he's really helped the show elevate its game.

I still don't love where the show has left Ren after Eri's recent flare-up of EGS (Endangered Girlfriend Syndrome, the only known cure is a penultimate episode), but they throw him into stories with a couple characters that help... not fix what I didn't like, but put it into a more appealing relief. His first scene is with Shiro, who, as goddamn always, needs someone to go help Yui. (I am honestly unclear why half of the cards in Riders' Decks aren't, like, Buy Groceries For Yui Vent or Tell Yui Her Hair Looks Good Today Vent. Just be more upfront with how this whole thing is about his sister being taken care of.) It's in that scene where I feel like Shiro sees a lot of himself in Ren, someone who's willing to damn everyone else, even himself, to save the person he cares about. It does a lot to, my jokes aside, humanize Shiro's actions, in a way that him being a Mirror Creep sort of obscures. It's also great for Ren's character, to have Shiro act as a Worst Possible Version of Ren, someone that he's on the path to being. It's a great little scene.

The scenes he has with the Professor, it's like the flipside to his scene with Shiro. The Professor (I'm sure I'll remember his name someday, but it ain't today) is the opposite of Ren. Ren loses himself in isolation and brooding, while the Professor is a gregarious family man. Ren's quick with threats and loath to explain himself, while the Professor gives honest explanations and tries to avoid conflicts. But, the big one is how they view sacrifice. Ren's a guy who will burn everything down to save the person he loves, while the Professor will look at the costs involved and decide what can or should be saved. There's a logic to the Professor that's the opposite of Ren's emotional decision-making. Way more than the debate about sacrifice we saw in the past between Shinji and the Professor, the Ren/Professor conflict feels more vital, more direct. Pairing them up, it's fantastic.

All of that work on the character pairings and the thematic opposition, it made the fights really pop. The Knight/Alternative one was the best, with some early Knight ass-kicking giving way to a huge Taskmaster-esque rally from Alternative, incorporating his photographic memory to predict Knight's attacks. It's got a nice sense of storytelling to it, where there's a well-delineated and clearly explained change in momentum, instead of the typical Bunch Of Moves Final Vent. The pacing for the fight was good, with a fun mix of sword moves and card effects, and it was all refreshingly coherent. (I don't want to make it sound like Ryuki fights are something I suffer through. I genuinely enjoy watching masked superheroes beat the holy hell out of each other with crazy effects from cards. It's just, this one seemed to have more thought put into what was happening when, a good rhythm to it.) The Tiger/Ryuki fight was a little less flashy, a little more Monsters Are Tough To Fight Wait Final Vent, but the cruelty to Tiger's beatdown of Ryuki was a great twist. Or, not cruelty... nonchalance? He's just stomping Ryuki down and telling him he's a disappointment, whatevs. Great storytelling in all of the fights in this episode.

This was an overall stellar episode of Ryuki, and I didn't even get a chance to talk about the awesome Reiko/Kitaoka stuff! Well, real quick, defining interaction between the two of them: He's trying to get her to give up on investigating Asakura, telling her that things that are difficult to learn are usually too dangerous to know. Her response is that it's literally her job to learn difficult truths, and, hey genius, it's a lawyer's job, too. It's the perfect comeback, and I maybe actually out-loud cheered when she said it. I want a million more scenes of hard-charging reporter Reiko and Kitaoka, her Guy Friday. It's the best, all of these scenes were amazing, this show's so good again, I love talking about it so much you guys.

[FreshToku]

I feel like this is the first good and fully proper showing of Alternative, so I feel like taking this moment I really love everything about his aesthetic, both by itself but also he and his equipment contrast the regular riders. In present day, a new guy showing up with a whole new belt that's similar but clearly different from the main characters is just tradition, but little me watching Ryuki for first time was (and still is) so enarmoured with Alternative. Like woah, who is this what is this he's so cool.

It's kinda funny how Tiger was introduced as sort of a tag-along powerset with the science team, but he's now established himself as his own 'unique' piece of work. His suit, his axe, his big claws and big tiger pal all accompanying possibly the most twisted player in this game make for a really memorable character. Yeah, Asakura's a violent killer who murders for fun, but Satoru has a murderous ideal of heroism that nobody else could even wrap their head around. Makes you wonder where does Shiro find these people.

[OmegaEclipse]

Personally; the only thing I don't like about tiger is his final vent. Last I recall it was pretty boring. To be fair though it has been a while because I refuse to rewatch ryuki after realising how much asakura and satoru remind me of myself. There also is this occasional debate I hear where his name is actually taiga. Which I think works better than tiger.

[AkibaSilver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreshToku

I feel like this is the first good and fully proper showing of Alternative, so I feel like taking this moment I really love everything about his aesthetic, both by itself but also he and his equipment contrast the regular riders. In present day, a new guy showing up with a whole new belt that's similar but clearly different from the main characters is just tradition, but little me watching Ryuki for first time was (and still is) so enarmoured with Alternative. Like woah, who is this what is this he's so cool.

It's kinda funny how Tiger was introduced as sort of a tag-along powerset with the science team, but he's now established himself as his own 'unique' piece of work. His suit, his axe, his big claws and big tiger pal all accompanying possibly the most twisted player in this game make for a really memorable character. Yeah, Asakura's a violent killer who murders for fun, but Satoru has a murderous ideal of heroism that nobody else could even wrap their head around. Makes you wonder where does Shiro find these people.

HELP WANTED
Job: Murderous fighter in a 'Rider War' for a wish, also must be willing to help Yui if needs be.
Skills: Having no morals, be a willing killer, enjoyment of risk, good with animals
Shinji Kido need not apply.

[DreadBringer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

The whole thing with Yui in the mirror-version of Kamen Rider Warehouse, she doesn’t really do a lot, but it feels more like she’s got ownership of her story than, uh, maybe ever? It feels like it’s valuing her reaction to what’s happening as a primary consequence, at least. It’s usually like it is in the first two-thirds of this episode, dudes arguing about protecting or destroying Yui, but this one felt like it valued Yui as more than a plot commodity. Really nice surprise!

That said, I really enjoyed all of the scenes of men arguing about Yui. The Second Secret Science Society continues to pay dividends, sparking some of my favorite challenges for the main cast.

Wut... so her victim episode is the one you talk about like this? I've been trying to predict your reviews from before (including Shinji in ep. 38 ofc! because your complaints in ep. 37 got answered in a dramatic way there, or even for no really drastic changes for the leads in these 2 next episodes), but I guess now I feel what Tezuka feels...

Aside from that, are you sure that it's her power to make GuldStorm (the monster Tiger finished in ep. 35!) defend her? She's confused and there's Shiro thing you talk down there. There's a little misconception there; Yui knows nothing about her past. Yui's whole deal about her past is, actually, like amnesiac Ren's in ep. 11-12, both having no knowledge of the past, but something/a certain event spurs pieces of their past bit by bit and also gives them aneurysms (her asking for childhood pics is also a work of searching for truth, that she has no memories about her past and Sanako being avoidant). Here something (Psyco-Rogue's explosions) again, spurs her past memories (it's not her thinking back about it), just like Ren regaining his memory or her in ep. 20-22, albeit in significantly more detailed way, though for some reason she didn't get aneurysm here. What do you mean about valuing her reactions?

Actually, for the "arguing about Yui", what I like about it is that Shinji also does it because of his mindset of keeping everyone alive, not agreeing to sacrifices. Not merely because him being biased towards one of his best friend (Ren's deal here). I don't want those that presents themselves as selfless is blinded by those closer to them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Shinji and Tiger, very strong stuff. It’s fun at first to see Shinji try to be a mentor, to try and bridge this empathy gap he has with Tiger.

Shinji putting himself on odds with Ren by trying a way to seal the Mirror World. And this brings me back to what I said during Ren's amnesia 2-parter... Ren investigating Room 401 together with Yui is incompartible at the first place because... that would get in his way of winning Rider War, as shown to Shinji here potentially jeopardizing their relationship. And being a derp once again, Shinji gets them both lost, lol. And coincidentally bumps to Reiko. Didn't you make it there previously when Shiro strips your Rider power? Tiger isn't really faking, you just find out how much of an insane lunatic he is. He knows more about Shinji, and by his depraved mindset, he concludes that Shinji is also like Nakamura, doesn't fit to be a Rider unlike what Professor Kagawa taught him, and for Toujou, those like that must die. Tiger is more dangerous as an ally than as enemy! "A hero kills everyone who doesn't match his ideals! Hail Hitler!" "My mentor is the one who told me that sacrifice is what makes a hero! But he also told me Kanzaki Shiro is the villain. Oh well he can't always be right."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

I still don’t love where the show has left Ren after Eri’s recent flare-up of EGS (Endangered Girlfriend Syndrome, the only known cure is a penultimate episode), but they throw him into stories with a couple characters that help… not fix what I didn’t like, but put it into a more appealing relief. His first scene is with Shiro, who, as goddamn always, needs someone to go help Yui.

Shiro, as established in ep. 25 (though probably Inoue also had a hand on this), is someone bloodthirsty who uses violent threatening just to get someone to do stuff, after constantly trying that to Ren, like mysteriously hurting Eri, or forcing him to choose between his friends or Eri, he's finally forced to be honest to him and just get to the point. This also brings back Ren to Atori (and gaining Sanako's full approval now)? Jokes aside the one I'm unclear about is actually why Shiro didn't pull out the stuff he did in ep. 25 when Yui was like, in worse situation like being kidnapped. And you realize it early that Shiro is like a darker counterpart of Ren, though I can't bring up about it more due to spoilers.

Probably it's also presumed by here that... the other reason Shiro gives Shinji a Survive card (not a wise move for his war to give Shinji a higher chance to, well, survive greater odds!), is to get him stronger to fight back those after Yui like SSSS. He's the single biggest obstacle for Rider War, but he's the one that cares about Yui and therefore Shiro has no choice but to.... rely on Shinji to keep her safe.

Other than that, Odin being killed is only to show yet another broken trait of him. He can be replaced like he did here. As long as Rider War exists, 13th Riders will always exist, so killing Odin (by luck or purposely) is only a futile rare occurence.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

The scenes he has with the Professor, it’s like the flipside to his scene with Shiro. The Professor (I’m sure I’ll remember his name someday, but it ain’t today) is the opposite of Ren.

Kagawa prioritizes being hero, but he's losing and detaching himself from his humanity himself. While Ren prioritizes humanity (another moment he calls out people perceived as worse than him, after Kitaoka, Asakura, Toujou). It's natural for human to keep someone they care about safe at all costs, but Kagawa seems to be losing humanity in his hero mindset. The family moment makes Ren cannot treat Kagawa as a monster like Asakura yet, but Ren gives a selfish-vibe here that even him hearing the presumed benefits of SSSS' plan, he insists to protect her only because he's close to her, completely uncaring about the other consequences without any other solution (even at odds to Shinji like above). Probably this is the beauty of Ryuki? There are wrongs on both sides. Though to Ren's credit, it's also partly due to distrust of SSSS, as he stated to Shinji. Also other than Ren being conflicted to Kagawa, I see Ren as resembling one of Kagawa's underlings, Nakamura ("Angry Man"), at least just in personality and behavior, t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶K̶a̶g̶a̶w̶a̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶s̶e̶e̶m̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶i̶c̶e̶.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

All of that work on the character pairings and the thematic opposition, it made the fights really pop.

I do like that Kagawa's genius, photographic memory specifically, can be used as an advantage in a fight too as a move and pattern analyzer, then adapt with it, he's not that much of a fighter but his brains make up for it, giving a trait a fighter would possess. There's also strategy involved where Knight uses Blust Vent to escape and save Yui, after Alternative Zero monologuing about his plan in motion (why should you tell him?).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

This was an overall stellar episode of Ryuki, and I didn’t even get a chance to talk about the awesome Reiko/Kitaoka stuff!

Yep, confirmed here that this is another case of someone constantly denied an information he wants, and also a show that Kitaoka genuinely cares for her. Obviously Kitaoka would give vague response about it, where Reiko feels it's only about her cannot handling the harsh truths, but Kitaoka, unbeknownst to her, thinks it's about her wellbeing, her safety, presumably he wants to prevent her being attacked or hunted by Mirror Monsters, or worse, Shiro (I still wonder why he killed his professor instead of Reiko in ep. 33), which will get her killed quickly, "Curiousity Killed The Cast".

Apart from those 2, there's A Dangerous Sign (episode title) for Asakura! Due to that lawyer, Morimoto, who is an idiotic idealist on even worse level than probably Shinji by seeing only good in Asakura, even when Asakura's a nationwide infamous felon (every stuff with him is a breaking news!), and only seeks to prove that he's truly good and mistreated, by catering to every single of his needs like his Deck (he probably thinks spoiling him would get on his good side). This one's also something to cheer for Kitaoka without feeling conflicted, really 1 to 100 difference. I want to know what are the contents of Morimoto files Goro give to Kitaoka, no subs translate them!

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaEclipse

Personally; the only thing I don't like about tiger is his final vent. Last I recall it was pretty boring. To be fair though it has been a while because I refuse to rewatch ryuki after realising how much asakura and satoru remind me of myself. There also is this occasional debate I hear where his name is actually taiga. Which I think works better than tiger.

Tiger's Final Vent is also impractical. There is wide window for Riders to free themselves. Asakura's real life equivalent would be more like Luis Garavito. Also if you learn Japanese, non-Japanese names/words are spelled in katakana, based on how they're pronounced, but in available katakana Japanese letters. "er" usually becomes long "a" in katakana.

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FreshToku

I feel like this is the first good and fully proper showing of Alternative, so I feel like taking this moment I really love everything about his aesthetic, both by itself but also he and his equipment contrast the regular riders. In present day, a new guy showing up with a whole new belt that's similar but clearly different from the main characters is just tradition, but little me watching Ryuki for first time was (and still is) so enarmoured with Alternative. Like woah, who is this what is this he's so cool.

His Henshin is also bizarre. On a show with a dozen different Henshins, his is the one where I thought they'd go small (he's a scientist, he'll probably just say "Henshin" in a regular voice and insert his Card Deck normally) but they went SO BIG. He throws his Deck in the air, leans in super close to the mirror to shout Henshin, catches his Deck and inserts it. Man, what.

In my head, he's some goofy dad who doesn't really get it, but wants to play along. His Henshin is like some middle-aged dude learning a TikTok dance to impress his preteen daughter. Like, Dad, no, that is not how you Henshin, oh my god please don't do that in front of my friends from Rider Battle.

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaEclipse

Personally; the only thing I don't like about tiger is his final vent. Last I recall it was pretty boring.

It's definitely not my favorite.I think it's that it's got all this momentum from the Contract Monster, and then there's a switch-over, a hand-off to Tiger, and it just halts. It's like a roller coaster that gets to the top of the hill, and up there's a platform to unload the passengers.

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

Aside from that, are you sure that it's her power to make GuldStorm (the monster Tiger finished in ep. 35!) defend her?

Man, I ain't sure about nothing on this show. These are all just guesses!

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

What do you mean about valuing her reactions?

I mean, this is a show that doesn't do a great job of keeping Yui central to any story that is largely about her. There's a ton of time spent protecting Yui, which becomes a story about the men protecting her. There's a ton of time spent investigating Yui's background, which becomes about the investigators (Reiko, Tezuka). There's a ton of spent on how Shiro's actions reflect on her, which becomes about Shiro's motivations. This show has an uncanny ability to start a story about Yui, and end it about someone else.

This one, it felt like it ended being about Yui, about her, on her own, learning something of importance that could affect the trajectory of the story. That's pretty rare to me!

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

Probably this is the beauty of Ryuki? There are wrongs on both sides.

Oh, absolutely. One of my favorite things about its construction is how every option feels bad for the cast. Like, the Second Secret Science Society is a terrific endgame-ish adversary because they aren't a more powerful group of villains, but because they're a more effective team of heroes. (Well, maybe not Angry Man!) The way that their plan unfolds here, it marks them as cunning foes, but it's in service of Shinji's own goal. They're a combination of the At All Costs attitude of Ren and the End The Rider Battle goal of Shinji. They're Team Ryuki, but they work together. Like, they have a plan to save the world, it's just a plan that's abhorrent to Ren and Shinji. That's what makes them so fun to watch, the way that, from a slightly different angle, they're as much the heroes of this show as the actual heroes of this show.

I love that shit, that kind of moral complexity. No heroes, no villains, only Riders.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

after Alternative Zero monologuing about his plan in motion (why should you tell him?).

That's something I like a lot in this one, is how Professor's busting to tell Ren what's going on, what his plan is. He's secretive with Shinji for a while, but this episode shows he really wants to tell someone about his cool science plans, because he's a big nerd. Nerds loving talking excitedly about stuff to sometimes exhausting ends. Just look at me!

[DreadBringer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

I mean, this is a show that doesn't do a great job of keeping Yui central to any story that is largely about her. There's a ton of time spent protecting Yui, which becomes a story about the men protecting her. There's a ton of time spent investigating Yui's background, which becomes about the investigators (Reiko, Tezuka). There's a ton of spent on how Shiro's actions reflect on her, which becomes about Shiro's motivations. This show has an uncanny ability to start a story about Yui, and end it about someone else.

This one, it felt like it ended being about Yui, about her, on her own, learning something of importance that could affect the trajectory of the story. That's pretty rare to me!

For bolded one, what's the difference between then and now part? If you talk about "on her own", would that mean stories about her should be done by yet isolating herself from the main cast/everyone again so it's clear that it's only her without others' involvement (Tezuka's only around shortly, then died, then her going back anyway)? And isn't this one also about... her background again? She tried to stop the Rider War by investigating, and the aneurysm-inducing regained past memories are potrayed as presumed clues, and this episode shows deeper part of those memories.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Oh, absolutely. One of my favorite things about its construction is how every option feels bad for the cast. Like, the Second Secret Science Society is a terrific endgame-ish adversary because they aren't a more powerful group of villains, but because they're a more effective team of heroes. (Well, maybe not Angry Man!) The way that their plan unfolds here, it marks them as cunning foes, but it's in service of Shinji's own goal. They're a combination of the At All Costs attitude of Ren and the End The Rider Battle goal of Shinji. They're Team Ryuki, but they work together. Like, they have a plan to save the world, it's just a plan that's abhorrent to Ren and Shinji. That's what makes them so fun to watch, the way that, from a slightly different angle, they're as much the heroes of this show as the actual heroes of this show.

I love that shit, that kind of moral complexity. No heroes, no villains, only Riders.

SSSS is a group who wants to achieve good intention by doing bad things.... that means an anti-villain. I think someone having wrong or right part in them doesn't negate your current allignments (hero/villain), just confused on what's the best choice. This is kind of what happened if everything you deal is a human, instead of just monsters like in previous Rider series (Ryuki being an oddball again which gets some petty flak), it's good lesson to teach about human nature, human contradictions but, for this series (I'm not criticizing here btw), seems like it's presenting a choice between supporting one of two equally horrible groups or hoping for one of two equally despairing outcomes, making those not choice at all; the outcome's going to be awful either way. And like I told you before keep remember Nakamura (though he already died) when he appeared first, for this part.

Apart from the connection of SSSS to Team Ryuki, have you also read my part about how Alternative is opposite to Shiro's Riders in every way? I forgot that the belt (with difficult transformation pose Kagawa employs) only forms in this episode, spins vertically.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

That's something I like a lot in this one, is how Professor's busting to tell Ren what's going on, what his plan is. He's secretive with Shinji for a while, but this episode shows he really wants to tell someone about his cool science plans, because he's a big nerd. Nerds loving talking excitedly about stuff to sometimes exhausting ends. Just look at me!

Talking about how Kagawa tells Ren he already hunted Yui with Psyco-Rogue while battling with him. Or is that the one you talk about? (I think you may refer to the one Ren confronts him in his lab).

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

If you talk about "on her own", would that mean stories about her should be done by yet isolating herself from the main cast/everyone again so it's clear that it's only her without others' involvement (Tezuka's only around shortly, then died, then her going back anyway)?

It's a difficult thing to define, but I feel like I know it when I see it. Too often, Yui stories barely even guest-star Yui. I don't need it to only feature her (although, Jesus, that would be a start) but I need to feel like it's about her, how she changes or grows as a result of a story. I don't feel like the show does more than pay lip service to Yui's character when it comes to the plots she's in (a ton of times it's just Protect Yui, like she's a priceless vase instead of a human being with thoughts and emotions and a rich internal life), so a story like this where she has to protect herself, it's a tiny step in the right direction.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

Talking about how Kagawa tells Ren he already hunted Yui with Psyco-Rogue while battling with him. Or is that the one you talk about? (I think you may refer to the one Ren confronts him in his lab).

I don't know who "Psyco-Rogue" is (I guess one of the monsters?), but, yeah, I meant that scene in the lab.

[Kamen Rider Die]

MASKED RIDER RYUKI EPISODE 40



It is insane how quickly some of these episodes evaporate from my memory. One of the reasons I stopped talking about two episodes at a time during Agito was that, a lot of the times, I just ended up talking about the second episode because I could barely remember the first. Now, I finished watching an episode, hopped on the boards to respond to a post, and now I'm like What Happened In This One Again?

And it's not a bad episode! I'm pretty sure I liked it! It does a good job exploring the various values of heroism in the cast, how a concept like heroism is largely subjective, how anyone can create a justification to think of themselves as a hero. Some of it's a little repetitive (Shinji's 8th or 9th I Don't Know What To Do/It's Better To Do Something Than Nothing story beat), but nearly everyone shows up to the party, and it's a fun little watch.

If the plot's ever in danger of stagnating, that's a good time for Shiro to stir things up, and boy is he ever all over this one. He gets a little moment with Yui in the beginning setting up her new perspective of having sympathy for Shiro rather than anger. It's a mature outlook, seeing the bad decisions he's making as similar to Shinji and Ren and all the rest, men who need to fight against their fates and try to change things. It's a different version of Yui and Shiro's relationship, and I appreciate that, but... Shiro's started a murder club? And he controls (?) mirror monsters? And he's directly or indirectly led to the deaths of maybe hundreds? This is not some small mistake Shiro made. This is not an Oopsie. For her to be wanting the Rider Battle to end partially so he won't feel sad... it's asking for a lot of sympathy from the audience that I don't think the show has written Shiro to deserve. Like, I see where they're going, but it's a little too much like Morimoto's incredibly misguided defense of Asakura. I feel like she's projecting a humanity onto Shiro that really isn't there beyond the motivation of Protect Yui.

I mean, he definitely sent a monster to kill Professor's wife and child, so, yeah, not exactly too concerned about Shiro's emotional well-being. It's a good tactic, though. Professor's whole thing is about necessary sacrifices, so forcing him to live that creed, it's a great threat. It also completely doesn't work, as he chooses to stay and fight Knight with Tiger, rather than save his family. That decision, it's the crux of the episode, and leads to the one thing I really liked about Shinji's role in the story.

In general, I'm kind-of done with Shinji's crises of conscience. Forty episodes in, I think we've got a pretty good read on Shinji's character. Especially since this episode treats Tiger's betrayal of Shinji as both physically and emotionally devastating (Shinji drops his Rider Deck to the ground in some very heavy symbolism), but also something he gets over with a quick Yui pep-talk (sort-of?) and probably just remembering all of the past instances when a morally complex situation could be resolved by deciding to do something rather than nothing. So it is with this one, as Shinji saves Professor's family. I liked the idea here, a refutation of Professor's It Is Heroic To Sacrifice in Shinji deciding to save an enemy's family because all lives have worth and no one needs to be sacrificed if you have the courage to try and save them. That saving people doesn't have to serve a greater good, or be part of a heartless calculus. That real heroism isn't sacrificing the people you love, it's saving even the people your enemy loves.

But, you know, it's all self-justifications on this show. I love that. I love how everyone's right and everyone's wrong. How Shinji's view of heroism has the unmistakable ring of truth, but it's still just one view of heroism. Tiger's not willing to suffer false heroes, and that's got something to it. Ren's willing to burn everything to save one person, and that's got something to it. Professor's willing to lose everything to save the world, and that's got something to it. And, of course, Kitaoka understands that the world is better for him being in it, forever, and maybe that's the real heroism.

Sounds like it to me!