[DreamSword]

Episode 6: Beauty

If any of you actually get the joke behind this edit then congrats, you have a fondness for obscure horror games just like I do.

As for the episode itself, this one cleared a few things up for me.

The big one being that, I'll be honest, I so far wasn't exactly seeing what made GARO here an "adult" toku, especially given the time of 2005. Alot of the content in it lined up with stuff already going on in Kamen Rider.

But then the premise of this episode came, and things started to make sense. The Horror Plot this time being about one possessing an old hooker, and tying into that(though very much a minor detail in the grand scheme of it all), Kaoru unknowingly taking a job interview for a bar/whore house hybrid.

And while that in itself is already an interesting hook(pun slightly intended), it somewhat unfortunately also has to share time with the arrival of Rei, another Makai Knight known as Zero. And I feel it's sort of apt to compare this to Kamen Rider too, given how Rei very much reminded me of Daiki from Decade in terms of both spotlight stealing and personality.

I'll give the episode some credit in that the primary focus this time around seemed to be about the action and building a mystery around Rei, and in those respects it does do well, I just wish it had leaned a bit more in either direction since combining those aspects with a Horror Plot that I felt had some solid potential made things feel uneven. I think that, had they made Rei only fully reveal himself at the very end after the Horror had been dealt with, that it would've worked a bit better for me, as him being the one throwing the Haja Daggers from the shadows was already enough to establish that he had it out for Koga.

Still, I get the general idea. Rei is very much meant to be the foil to Koga, and that's highlighted in alot of ways. From his outfit, to him dual wielding, to how he gets directly involved in human affairs, it's quite the interesting turnaround from the usual Main/Secondary Rider dynamic that we see alot of, and in that respect I very much dig it. Plus just from his introduction alone I can tell that Rei won't annoy me as much as say, Date or Kosuke, so that helps.

But yeah, this episode isn't bad, I just felt there was a bit of a better way to balance the two plots that it had. Or alternatively, just hard focusing on one or the other would've worked alot better to my tastes. What seemed to be the overall message about inner beauty felt a bit under cooked too. Koga's' prank giving Kaoru a hangover was pretty amusing though.

Next episode is one where I assume we'll get to see the Silver Knight in all of his glory, so I'm definitely looking forward to that.

[Enchilada645]

Yeah this is definitely a wonky episode in terms of it doing a balancing act from what I recall, mostly cause we're introducing a change to the status quo and going with a usual Horror Plot though a bit more screwed given the person who becomes a horror this time. I seem to recall her breaking tombstones and piling them into her purse to use as a blunt object to just, kill people with?

Also I did not get the reference but I did get a laugh out of the furniture replacing the tombstones in the picture.

That being said, Rei! Oh man Rei's a fun dude and I'm glad you've taken a liking to him already. He definitely makes a nice foil for Kouga, and it'll be fun to see you witness the interactions between the two going forward.

[Mesnick]

Oh, Ray's debut! Although hardly full-fledged, given that he did not appear in armor. In fact, I like him even more than Koga, given that Rei is not so wooden. Yes, and his solo shows are shorter and therefore better convey their story. Even though I'm already getting ahead of myself.
At the expense of adulthood, GARO agrees. Except for the occasional thread like this, these shows are very innocent compared to not only Amazons/Black Sun, but even Inoue's Cutie Honey version.

[DreamSword]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Enchilada645

I seem to recall her breaking tombstones and piling them into her purse to use as a blunt object to just, kill people with?

Yeah basically. Although in fairness, she didn't actually kill the first guy she assaults, and we don't see how the fight started, so maybe it was self defense?

Quote:

Also I did not get the reference but I did get a laugh out of the furniture replacing the tombstones in the picture.

For those curious, it's a reference to the obscure horror game Galerians, which is a game that's not exactly good, but man is it entertaining. The sequel is surprisingly good though.

Quote:

That being said, Rei! Oh man Rei's a fun dude and I'm glad you've taken a liking to him already. He definitely makes a nice foil for Kouga, and it'll be fun to see you witness the interactions between the two going forward.

My favorite aspect of him so far is just the sheer energy with which he does all that he does. The actor seems to be having fun playing out the role.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mesnick

Oh, Ray's debut! Although hardly full-fledged, given that he did not appear in armor. In fact, I like him even more than Koga, given that Rei is not so wooden. Yes, and his solo shows are shorter and therefore better convey their story. Even though I'm already getting ahead of myself.
At the expense of adulthood, GARO agrees. Except for the occasional thread like this, these shows are very innocent compared to not only Amazons/Black Sun, but even Inoue's Cutie Honey version.

Interesting comparisons. Having only seen Black Sun myself, I'd actually argue that GARO carries itself alot better than what Black Sun did. Politics aside, at the very least GARO is handling its story and characters in a way much more akin to my tastes, and atleast so far hasn't had a scene where the writers try to make the audience feel bad about themselves. The content might be less gory, but the overall tone and artistry is alot more appealing overall in my eyes.

[Mesnick]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

Interesting comparisons. Having only seen Black Sun myself, I'd actually argue that GARO carries itself alot better than what Black Sun did. Politics aside, at the very least GARO is handling its story and characters in a way much more akin to my tastes, and atleast so far hasn't had a scene where the writers try to make the audience feel bad about themselves. The content might be less gory, but the overall tone and artistry is alot more appealing overall in my eyes.

I meant exactly the "adult" part of the show. Personally, I would still rather consider GARO a teenage project, 14+ maximum. And in general, the show is very romantic and lacks the cynicism that is characteristic of most adult tokusatsu.
P.S. And Cutie Honey from Inouye, I would still advise you to look. This show is an insane masterpiece. In the first episode, this is imperceptible, but when it is revealed, it will not leave you indifferent.

[Fish Sandwich]

Watching Rei's initial scenes was fun for me because it was basically like "man, I'm really loving this guy; he sort of reminds of... like, like Kitazaki from Faiz for some rea--WAAAAAAIT!"

I've long been vaguely aware of this being Ray Fujita's other big toku role, so I guess it's to GARO's credit that I was drawn into the world enough to forget that for a second. I'm generally pretty down for fun foil characters in general, and I think this was about as solid a debut as a rival can have. He really does feel like nearly every individual element of Kouga flipped to the reverse setting, which is neat.

[Switchblade]

I don't know why, but I always forget that Rei shows up this early in the series.

[DreamSword]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

I'm generally pretty down for fun foil characters in general, and I think this was about as solid a debut as a rival can have. He really does feel like nearly every individual element of Kouga flipped to the reverse setting, which is neat.

Yeah, they definitely did a good job at showing every major way he's the opposite of Koga in one fell swoop. Would only be even more complete if only his coat was black and the rest of his outfit was white.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Switchblade

I don't know why, but I always forget that Rei shows up this early in the series.

I was actually surprised he showed up this early too, as I'm far more used to the Silver Knight showing up towards the halfway point due to the anime.

[DreamSword]

Episode 7: Silver Fang

I feel like Rei and Hiiro from Kamen Rider Ex-Aid would find some common ground.

The whole episode is a slow build up to an absolutely explosive third act that in any other show would've been a final showdown.

But before getting to that, I wanna highlight what, surprising even to me, was the aspect that stood out most for me in this episode: That being the overall sound design. Yes really.

And I'm not just talking the music either(though it is good). Whoever did the sound effects for this episode I think totally deserves a raise. Every sound effect, especially those during the big fight at the end, was absolutely on point and felt incredibly powerful to me.

But while that is the biggest aspect that stood out to me here, it's not like the rest of the episode is any slouch. Half the episode is dedicated to just how opposite to Koga that Rei really is. Not just in terms of looks and personality, but also in the way that they handle their work, and how despite those differences, both are every bit as dedicated in what they do.

What results is a very interesting juxtaposition wherein while Koga initially had no real attachment to Kaoru, and his overall stoic demeanor, he still ended up choosing to ignore the code of the Knights and spare her, and is currently trying to find a way to purify Koaru. Meanwhile, while Rei is much more easygoing and lighthearted, and though he does initially seek Kaoru's' affections, once he realizes how she's been splashed by Horror blood, he's all in on killing her.

And of course, this results in an absolutely explosive, top notch fight between the two, and what rightfully is what will stand out to most people when they think of this episode. And really, there's so much going on here that I'd find it incredibly surprising if anyone just didn't get anything out of it. From the incredibly well choreographed civilian fight, to the absolutely bombastic clash of blades as the two fall from the skyscraper after donning their armor, it's something that just keeps on escalating and had be really hyped up the entire time.

I think my favorite bit in the entire thing though has to be when a Horror spawns nearby, and what ensues is the two Knights fighting eachother while also still fighting the Horror, and in the end just getting rid of it as quickly as they can because the damn thing just keeps getting in their way.

Besides that, the other the that stood out to me most in terms of the fight is just how evenly matched the two are. Just when it looks like Koga is getting beaten down, he comes swinging right back just as hard. It's so great to see after so many shows where the new guy who shows up just outshines the hero in every which way, and it's one of my favorite ways of handling a rival battle, whether it be in toku, anime, or whatever. It reminded me alot of s-CRY-ed, which is what I see as the gold standard for this sort of thing.

So... yeah. This episode was almost like an entire action movie condensed into 23 minutes, and I couldn't be happier with it.

[Enchilada645]

Like I said, I appreciate just how much work goes into the out of suit combat scenes in Garo. They do some wonderful stuff every time and it's a joy to see.

Also as you touched on, both Kouga and Rei are evenly matched, with both gaining the advantage every now and again. It puts Rei has someone extremely competent but doesn't talk down Kouga's power in the slightest. They do just make really good rivals right off the bat.

But also man, that entire scene on the dual skyscrapers. That was insane and they pulled that out in Episode 7 of all things! Garo does love its big set-pieces and usually long enough series manage to pull out a fair few of them within their episodes.

That being said, there's one aspect I love about Rei present in this episode.



This dork has a gigantic sweet tooth.