[Switchblade]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Inoue is clearly having some fun with it, though. That living room scene where Mutsuki goes I Have Problems With Self-Worth and Tachibana goes I Too Have Problems With Self-Worth and Kenzaki goes Welcome Back? Come on. Come on. That's a beat that only someone willing to write unlikable, weak characters could not only attempt, but land.

I thought of you during that scene. I was watching it and thinking “ Mutsuki and Tachibana’s proofs of identity are both moping; Die is going to be so tickled by this.”

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Switchblade

I thought of you during that scene. I was watching it and thinking “ Mutsuki and Tachibana’s proofs of identity are both moping; Die is going to be so tickled by this.”

And the thing that's so great about that joke is that they don't think that's what they're doing! They think the Proving Themselves part hasn't started yet! Mutsuki just volunteers his sense of worthlessness, and Tachibana's just like Same Feels Bud. And Kenzaki's so happy about them being total failures, because they're Team Blade's total failures! It is so, so perfect.

[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER BLADE EPISODES 45 + 46

This time(s) on Kamen Rider Blade: We're in the endgame now! Tennouji merges with Cerberus to become Elevennouji! And Scissors Undead shows his true colors!



Hoo, boy. This is maybe going to be a tough/bad one. Just did a few paragraphs about Tennouji as a boring but thematically appropriate villain (stuff about the various villains who are bosses, stuff about a theme of the series being about how the pursuit of power absent morality is doomed to failure), and it just did not come together. I usually got one of these in me every series, where I get a very particular kind of Writer's Block. Typically, it's from an episode where I have a lot of feelings that I have trouble expressing. (There was a Ryuki one that basically demolished me.) This one... I'm not sure what I want to address?

It's a very plot-heavy section of the series. It's the final arc, and we are getting a very fast-paced version of Kamen Rider Blade. We get introduced to Cerberus in one episode, he's defeated by the end of the episode. We get introduced to Tennouji's evolved form, Elevennouji, and he's defeated by the end of the episode. Hajime is critically injured, and then he's fine by the middle of the next episode. Plus we've got reveals about what you get for winning Battle Fight (unlimited power, which is kind-of unexciting for a prize), thoughts on if humanity can coexist with the Undead, and some specifics about Kenzaki and Tachibana's employment that I find mystifying. For two episodes, it's a whole lot.

I just... I had fun watching them. They are so crammed with incident that you'd be hard-pressed to be bored. But all that Tennouji stuff I wrote and deleted, I deleted it because it felt like I was straining to find something inside this story that's bigger than the plot. It's just not coming through to me.

Like, Tennouji as Tachibana and Kenzaki's boss. There's stuff at the end of 46 where they're refusing to follow his lead, determined to follow their own code. (I love that both Tachibana, who has never met an evil boss he couldn't give the benefit of the doubt, and Kenzaki, the eternal helper, immediately bail on Tennouji. That's how you know he's irredeemably evil!) It should feel like a final refutation of Kenzaki's I'm Just Doing A Job deflection, or Tachibana's belief in the greater good trumping his need to be told what to do. But Tennouji comes from out of nowhere to do this, and his vague authority over them feels retconned in. Weren't we told way back in the second or third story that there was a brand-new BOARD, and that Team Blade had nothing to do with them? Weren't we told that Tennouji had resigned from BOARD in disgrace after Undad let loose the Undead? But now we've got Tennouji cutting off their pay, demanding the return of their gear, and threatening them for their disobedience. I don't understand how any of this lines up with what we'd seen of Team Blade's dynamic over the last 44 episodes.

Or, if they wanted to do a thing where some authority figure tightens the leash, can it at least be someone Kenzaki, the star of the show, has met before? Tachibana is the only one who ever shared a line of dialogue with Tennouji before, and it was literally one line of dialogue. There's no history with him, no sense of respect that could be leveraged against our heroes. He's just some asshole who says he signs their checks. It'd be like if Kotaro's dad showed up to kick them out of the house. It'd be bad for the team, but it'd also feel completely unestablished.

So, yeah, Tennouji doesn't really work for me. Or, uh, didn't really work for me, since he got offed by Scissors Undead. That twist... I don't know, it was fine. I appreciate that someone in the cast brought up the possible loophole of all of the Battle Fight stuff, that no one technically has to win, but it was pretty clear Scissors wasn't just going to wander off to... I mean, what does he do with his days? He's always skulking around, smirking, watching people from behind trees and corners... shit, why wasn't Tachibana the one to reach out to him? They've got way more in common!

As it is, it's interesting that it's Mutsuki who tries to make peace with Scissors Undead, even if it's a little hard to square. He's clearly found a well of empathy after defeating the Spider Undead, and he's seen the possible good in the Undead. (Although, boy, seems like a bit of a stretch to file Tiger Queen under One Of The Good Ones. She was nice to Mutsuki, but she did not love humans!) It just comes off maybe a little too empathetic for me, a Mutsuki who wants to avoid fighting if possible. I got him not knowing if it was safe to be a Rider, a fear of his own power, but this is just a little too caring for him. I don't know. It didn't 100% work for me, but it's not a big deal since the show is mostly bringing it up specifically so it can close that door. Battle Fight has to finish. There will be a victor.

Wow, god, feels like I just shit all over this one. I honestly had a good time watching it! The fights were fun, and it was nice to see all the Riders teaming up again. I just, man, Tennouji's story never worked for me on anything other than a metaphorical level, and even that is very difficult to explain. (Like, this isn't really a show about structures, or hierarchies, and the whole point of having villains who are bosses is to interrogate the idea of structures and hierarchies. The only one who benefits from Tennouji as a metaphor is Tachibana, or Kenzaki circa episode 4-ish.) The idea of Undead/Human coexistence is worth addressing, but the show never really gave it a thought beyond Hajime before now, and he's basically the exception that proves the rule. (I guess Shima, too, for a portion of two episodes.) There's some very fun in-the-moment storytelling here, but talking about it just makes me think of the flaws, the ideas that feel shoehorned in or incongruent with the other themes. I don't know. I hope this made any sense!



Next time on Kamen Rider Blade: Team Blade versus Scissors Undead! Amane might finally learn the truth about her dad's death! And I guess we're at the point in the series where there are a bunch of soldier monsters running around! I'll see you on Monday!

[Androzani84]

Hoo boy, this post is gonna be a big one.

1. On with the Rouse Card Information Kiosk’s penultimate entry for this thread, here’s one I deliberately left out of the movie cards.

Change Kerberos


An artificial Undead born from the card Hiroshi Tennoji made from the DNA of all 53 Undead (Beetle, Stag, Spider, Mantis, Lizard, Lion, Boar, Locust, Deer, Trilobite, Buffalo, Jaguar, Scarab, Armadillo, Frog, Pecker, Whale, Fly, Tortoise, Bat, Zebra, Chameleon, Human, Hammerhead, Dragonfly, Shell, Hawk, Plant, Moth, Camel, Centipede, Bee, Mole, Rhinoceros, Cobra, Polar, Jellyfish, Scorpion, Squid, Tapir, Eagle, Capricorn, Caucasus, Peacock, Serpent, Giraffa, Wolf, Orchid, Paradoxa, Elephant, Tiger, Tarantula and Joker),surpassing the Black Joker itself, Kerberos was created as the fifth Ace that Tennoji intended to be the victor of the Battle Fight he set up. In an alternate future, the Change Kerberos was used as the Ace card for Kamen Rider Glaive, with two copies of the card used in creating Riders Lance and Larc.

* Suit: N/A
* Category: Ace (A)
* Effect name: CHANGE
* Card name: Change Kerberos (チェンジ・ケルベロス Chenji Keruberosu)
* Consumption points: +3







2. So this episode ends with Kubodealer (that is what his actor goes by online, if you’re confused) declaring his intent to kill all humans, with the moral dilemma that whether they defeat him or he defeats Hajime, they’re screwed. Did I mention this aired the day after Christmas? The worst Super Sentai’s episode on the same day did was being a clip show (but still, it can’t top next year’s last episode, which aired on Christmas itself and is even bleaker).

3. To borrow a joke from an admin on RangerCrew (I’m not on that forum, I just follow his twitter) if this series was being made today, Kerberos would be Tennouji’s rider form.

4. While they probably planned it out before they cast him, I’m half-heartedly disappointed that Tennouji’s “Undead conversion device” (for lack of a better name) isn’t a pair of glasses (someone else can explain that joke.)

Anyway, that’s my rant over. Next time, a rundown on Garren’s cards and one last meme that can’t really be summed up with a picture or a video.

[Sunred]

Notice how each card resembles the movie rider. Glaive's Ace card has a yellow center head, Larc's is red, Lance's is green.

[Fish Sandwich]

Since this is the kind of thing Die doesn't care about, I'll also point out that 46 is the one with that awesome sequence of all the Riders transforming together on their bikes when fighting Tennouji. I say Blade really embraces just being a classic superhero show sometimes, and that moment is peak uncomplicated good guys fighting the evil monster. It feels like a really earned moment seeing the Riders truly united after all the squabbling they've done throughout the show (everyone fought everyone at least once!), and is all the more reason them teaming up against Discount Monster Leangle comes off as comparatively weak, what with Mukki still being evil then. Adding in the bikes to this team-up was a great way to... I don't know, escalate it, I guess, so that it still feels above previous instances of everyone being together. One of my favorite scenes in the whole show.

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Androzani84

On with the Rouse Card Information Kiosk’s penultimate entry for this thread, here’s one I deliberately left out of the movie cards.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunred

Notice how each card resembles the movie rider. Glaive's Ace card has a yellow center head, Larc's is red, Lance's is green.

Neat! Thanks!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Since this is the kind of thing Die doesn't care about, I'll also point out that 46 is the one with that awesome sequence of all the Riders transforming together on their bikes when fighting Tennouji. I say Blade really embraces just being a classic superhero show sometimes, and that moment is peak uncomplicated good guys fighting the evil monster. It feels like a really earned moment seeing the Riders truly united after all the squabbling they've done throughout the show (everyone fought everyone at least once!), and is all the more reason them teaming up against Discount Monster Leangle comes off as comparatively weak, what with Mukki still being evil then. Adding in the bikes to this team-up was a great way to... I don't know, escalate it, I guess, so that it still feels above previous instances of everyone being together. One of my favorite scenes in the whole show.

I wouldn't say I don't care about it. I am of the people! I enjoy the simple pleasures of four young men becoming superheroes and riding their bikes in formation! It's a fun moment!

...But, since I apparently have a reputation now of refusing to engage with the franchise on its upbeat, heroic storytelling, I'll just mention that the pre-Henshin staging of all four Riders being fifty feet away in their bike helmets facing the opposite direction of Tennouji and whispering their responses to his shouted speech was cracking me up. Aesthetically, it's a very cool scene of all four Riders telling this dude that he's not going to win. Logistically... that's not how sound travels! The guy next to Hajime wouldn't be able to hear him whisper into his helmet. Tennouji wouldn't even know they were talking to him!

[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER BLADE EPISODE 47

This time on Kamen Rider Blade: It's the calm before the storm! Scissors Undead makes his move against Hajime! And Tachibana! Just, Tachibana!



God, what an episode.

It starts off a little bit more contemplative than I'd've thought. Even though Scissors Undead betrayed them at the end of last episode, briefly hospitalizing Mutsuki, there isn't a ton of urgency to the plot in the first half of the episode. Scissors Undead is out there, somewhere, but nobody knows where. It's unclear what his next move is going to be, or when he's going to make it. (He's a monster from eternity who's close to winning Battle Fight through largely avoiding it. I assume he's pretty patient!) It's like, I guess we can all take a break?

What follows is a bunch of peaceful, relaxing scenes that completely stressed me out. Everything that's happening feels like The Last Time We'll See. The last time we'll see Hajime and Amane together. The last time we'll see Mutsuki and Nozomi together. The last time we'll see Kotaro and Hirose clean the living room I guess? (I mean, all of Team Blade was sleeping in that living room last episode, so it probably needed a thorough cleaning. Like, have you seen how Tachibana lives? And eats?) It's all very charming, and I love that the show made some space for little conversations, small character beats before the Sturm und Drang of the finale, but man oh man was it making me anxious.

Speaking of those little conversations... some really fun pairings in this one, doing some interesting stuff. There's a little bit with Hajime and Tachibana, two characters that have rarely (if ever?) shared a solo scene. It's mostly exposition, Hajime explaining some of the significance of the Sealing Stone to Tachibana, but I thought it had a really neat tone. There's a reverence that Hajime has for the Sealing Stone, what it represents to him and his culture. Tachibana plays off of it with this dawning comprehension of Oh Shit There Are Literal Gods Out There And This Could Be The End Of The World. Like, the stakes went from metaphorical to literal, all in one facial expression. It's just a really well-acted scene between two guys who I never got to see much of together before.

The other little scene that was neat was the one where Kenzaki and Mutsuki are leaving the hospital. Kenzaki's been... not super integral to Mutsuki's story, for the most part. It's more been about Mutsuki on his own, or with Tiger Queen, or with Tachibana. Seeing Kenzaki and Mutsuki together, the energy's a little different. It's more buddy-buddy with them, like coworkers who are going out for a drink or something. They feel more like contemporaries, you know? There's less judgment from Kenzaki, even if there's still some hero worship from Mutsuki. Like, they feel like two guys who could be friends outside of all of this.

But the main point of the Mutsuki/Kenzaki scene is to bring up the idea of fate, and the need to challenge it.

It's placed so centrally in this episode that I've got to assume it's what the theme of the series is supposed to be. (Not what I think the show is about, Death Of The Author and all that, but still.) A whole bunch of characters bring it up, and there've been plenty of episodes in the past that've done so. There are speeches about how characters need to fight against a fate or destiny that they dislike or fear. There's the whole motif of the cards, drawn from fortune telling. The inevitability of the Joker's role in destroying the world isn't ignored or accepted, it's fought against, a refusal to treat any outcome as set in stone. (The adversary is a literal stone!) There's that whole speech Kenzaki gives Umi, from a million years ago, where you fight against something because it's impossible, because it's inevitable.

There's one character on the show who hasn't gotten onboard with that message, though. Until now.

Skipping ahead, Garren's fight against Scissors Undead is an all-time great. There's smart strategy, letting his opponent get in close so Garren can shoot through his shield. There's the rarely-deployed shattered helmet, to let you know just how much punishment Garren is soaking up to win this fight. And there's the fact that Garren's doing all this to protect the creature that could end the world. To protect Hajime, someone he's wanted to kill multiple times. Some he tried to kill right before this fight.

It's the Hajime/Tachibana scene in this episode that... best scene in the whole series so far? Maybe. It got to me. It's Tachibana being Pure Tachibana, going against his friends because He Knows Best, willing to do the Smart Thing when they're all too naive to get the stakes. So he takes out the injured Mutsuki (in one move!) in order to save the world, and it's actually a pretty good plan that he came up with! It's arguably the best plan anyone's ever had on this show! For anything! Tachibana's going to use Mutsuki's Remote card to free the Human Undead. Then he'll seal the Joker, seal the Scissors Undead, and the Human Undead will win Battle Fight. Humanity is saved. After knocking out Mutsuki, and with Hajime severely injured, it's an easy plan to enact.

And then Amane calls Hajime. She misses him. She wants to know when he's coming home. But he's not coming home, because Garren's about to murder him. But he can't say that to Amane, can't tell her any of this. So he lies. He tells her he's shopping. She asks if he's buying her a gift. He confesses that he is. She's excited, he's calm, and I'm crying. Just crying. It's a moment that has to show Tachibana that there's something in Hajime worth risking the world for, and it's all there in that scene. It's all about how, even in the face of his death, he cares so much for Amane that he'll protect her happiness. It's more important to him that she have one last fond memory than that he survive. It's a beautiful scene. Beautiful.

After that, yeah, of course Tachibana goes to face Scissors Undead. Of course he sees that these moments, these human connections, they're the only reason to have a world, the only thing you're really protecting as a Kamen Rider. What Hajime has with Amane, it's what Tachibana has with Kenzaki, and Mutsuki, and and and. It's not about what he's supposed to do, what he has to do. It's not about sacrificing others or harming your friendships because you alone know what's right. It's about believing in others, and trusting that caring for people will have a positive outcome. It's this guy who convinced himself he had nothing, realizing the he's had so much this whole time.

Too bad learning that lesson may've gotten him killed.



Next time on Kamen Rider Blade: Bug monsters everywhere! Blade won't give up! And Mutsuki calls out Hajime!

[Fish Sandwich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

I mean, all of Team Blade was sleeping in that living room last episode, so it probably needed a thorough cleaning. Like, have you seen how Tachibana lives? And eats?

They didn't show it onscreen, but I'm sure Hirose and Kotarou had to pick up like twelve completely empty jars of kara miso and a bunch of boxes for jigsaw puzzles that are suspiciously missing all the pieces.

Okay, we have our fun with Dadi, but in all seriousness, this is an episode that absolutely nails his characterization and goes to show why I like more unironically than I do ironically, and with how much I like him ironically, that says a lot!

The bit with Hajime on the phone, it's brilliant and all, but it's always going be that speech Tachibana gives after his mask breaks open that gets to me the most. Him just sitting on that rock, admitting to this monster that absolutely nothing in his life ever works out for him, basically acknowledging what a total f***-up he is, it really gets to the core of what a genuinely sorrowful character he is, and makes it all the more powerful that he's finally deciding to just do the right thing for once, and act not out of fear, or even purpose, like after Sayoko died, but just faith. Seeing Tachibana believe in something for once is exactly the conclusion to his arc I want to see, and this episode did a lot to make me feel all the ups and downs of his development were worth it.

Lots of cool beats in the Garren action, too, with him once again proving he's a much smarter fighter than the other Riders, despite appearances, and then another great variation on sealing an Undead with him tossing himself over a cliff with the monster after the card gets knocked off the edge. I've mentioned before how much I love that status quo of the Riders chucking cards at the monsters, and the ability to mess with the formula with the bigger villains like this is exactly why. It's amazing how many different spins they found to put on that idea.

Plus, speaking of kara miso!, they even punctuate the start of the fight by playing Rebirth one more time! It's neat to see it actually being used as a sort of motif for the character, rather than just a general insert song.

[Switchblade]

One of my first exposures to Blade was a video review of some Motion Revive figures - an older, mid-00s precursor to the S(h)odo lines. The wave included several Kuuga plus Blade and Garren. The Garren figure was based off of this episode with the damaged helmet. It was a long time before I saw the scene in context and it was definitely a satisfying pay-off. It’s a brutal fight, especially the end where they’re just wailing each other at point-blank range. I like a good, flashy action scene, but sometimes a more minimalist approach can be even more effective.