[AkibaSilver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

This is my favorite pair of episodes in Fourze, and a big part of why was the introduction of my favorite character of the season: Spooky Chick!

Honestly, I can believe it. It's a great showing for Gentarou - yes, he's a force of personality who should probably think first before grabbing a girl and rocketing her to the moon(!), but also like he says, he does listen to Tomoko and understand some of her worries by the end. Spooky Chick is both great on her own, and fills a niche the group is missing. Also Fire States - I'd always thought it was an ugly suit, but in motion, as with all toku suits, it works really well.

[GuardianAngel87]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreamSword

This is my favorite pair of episodes in Fourze, and a big part of why was the introduction of my favorite character of the season: Spooky Chick!

They are among my favorite pair of episodes too and Tomoko is easily my favorite character of the series as well, as much as I love Gentarou and a few others including one certain character that joins the show's main cast later on.

[Switchblade]

My favorite bit of trivia about these episodes is that the head of the mean witches is the same actress who played Amane on Blade.

[AkibaSilver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Switchblade

My favorite bit of trivia about these episodes is that the head of the mean witches is the same actress who played Amane on Blade.

Hajime leaving really set her down a dark path, huh?

[GoldenXtreme]

I finished up Saber! As a certified Ghost Disliker I didn't exactly have high hopes going in, but it was an very solid show!


The Good

• I think stylistically the show almost feels like a last hurrah for the "late Heisei style Kamen Rider", from the ratio of episodic and overaching plots to the tendency towards funny background events. I tend to quite like this era, so no complaints. Honestly, Geats and Revice almost never add in characters just... hanging out casually or doing something out of that isn't for the sake of plot.
• The cast tends to just be very charming overall. Not everyone shares the same amount of focus of course, but its hard not to enjoy things like Ryo interacting with his son, Yuri checking out the modern world, or Rintaro just being amusingly awkward.
• The stretch of episodes near the middle where Touma falls under suspicion from the other Swordsmen is great! Very satisfying to see the protagonist slowly work towards regaining the trust of the others (especially considering how often he just protagonist ex machainas his way out of bad situations at other times), and the push and pull of the various conflicting interests and beliefs of the cast during this stretch is SUPER interesting.
• Generally speaking this show has some very stylish choreography and cinematography. Fights are clean and with distinct fighting styles and cool moves and shots.
• The bit at the end with all the clips of the real-life viewers talking about their favorite stories just made me happy.

The Bad

• There are definitely parts of the plot that feel very contrived or random, like things just happen a certain way because... that's what will make the plot go in the desired direction. Everyone turns on Touma because of a bunch of suspicious comments taken at face value and the universe conspiring to make him seem extra suspicious. Kento is back because he didn't die he just went to the Realm of Shadows (what) but now he's evil because he really believes in his fortune telling sword. Stuff like this happens in tokusatsu, but it happens a LOT in Saber.
• Why are the Shindai siblings even hereeeee? They're so one-note and the cast is too big!
• The antagonists in this show are just... completely forgettable to me. I think it says a lot with how the best bit of the show is focused on the discord among the protagonists, and once Master Logos really reveals himself as an antagonist things get much less interesting. I spent large amounts of the show forgetting the Megid existed.
• Aaagh, the CGI.

The Neutral

• The story is very JRPG-esque. This means the plot can be very predictable at times, but it does have unique moments and the JRPG vibe is fun if you can go along with it.
• I don't *love* Touma, but I think he's miles better than Takeru and fits the aforementioned JRPG vibe as "the chosen one". I think it helps that Touma's actor has what I consider better acting abilities and the fact that I feel like Touma has to suffer a bit more before his super special boy powers are allowed to kick in.
• I don't say this lightly. I think this show might have the most "guys crawling around on the ground going UWAAAGH" energy of any Kamen Rider show. Entire episodes felt like nothing BUT this at times.

Solid B tier I think! A fun time was had.

[Annuga]

I have now seen up to episode 16 of 555. Zelda's been keeping me away from watching for a while but I'm still enjoying myself, Takumi's starting to struggle with fighting after realizing Orphenochs are still people and meeting Yuka, Yuji's now involved with solving the case of his ex despite being the killer and Kusaka... Wow, what a scumbag lmao

[AkibaSilver]

Kamen Rider Fourze Episodes 11 and 12 - "The Lunar Gate Disappears" & "Duty and Noble Intentions"



Something that kept coming to mind this episode was the difference between colleagues and friends, and where the line blurs. Kengo sees the KRC as, effectively, workmates to defeat the Zodiarts. He keeps his professional distance, and has no time for their social activities. That's frivolities. He thinks that's what the others care about. But for Gentarou and the rest, the social stuff is part and parcel of supporting each other so they can fight Zodiarts. People work best when they're with people they trust. It doesn't help that the rest of the KRC are all Grade-A morons and losers, so Gentarou's earnest attempt at rocketing to the moon comes across, in his eyes, as worse than useless. It's obvious Kengo is basing himself a lot on his dad, and how self-supported he was - as well as being terrified the entire two parter because he's going to die alone on the moon - and probably doesn't want to reach out. Because, well, the KRC are colleagues. They hunt Zodiarts. Until the end of this episode, where Kengo realises that they can be both. They can be friends. He's not weak or stupid for letting them in.

On the complete other side of the scale, Pyxis Zodiarts! KR Fourze really out here inventing incels back in 2011. Makise is just detestable, to the point where there's not much to say about him. I thought we might've gone in a much more possessiv direction when Yuki basically offers herself as his friend, and look at how one-sided transactional friendships just aren't worth it, but no! He blows up the locker! He tries to kill a bus full of his classmates! More interesting is probably the revelations about the Headmaster (Administrator? Super-intendent Chalmers?). He's an astronaut, he set up the school almost certainly as a Zodiarts farm, and he's happy sitting about letting Fourze detonate his plans because it's funny I guess. Also, not really a fan of Yuki acting like begging him to launch a rocket to rescue Kengo is realistic? I get it shows her devotion to him, going to what is one of her idols, but I'm getting a worried feeling about things other people have said for where Yuki goes from here.

(Also, Ohsugi getting real creepy over Sonada's locker this time round. Please, please let this be the lowest he ever goes. Unless it manages to be funnier and not as creepy.)

All in all though, a fun pair of episodes that solidify the full gang, do some good stuff for Kengo, and just have a Zodiarts I don't mind being detonated.

[AkibaSilver]

Kamen Rider Fourze Episodes 13 & 14 - "Kicked Out of School" & "The Stinger's Relentless Assault"



TACHIBANA-SAN! WHY ARE YOU THE LIBRA HOROSCOPE? TACHIBANA-SAN? IS IT TRUE THAT YOU'VE BETRAYED US?

Now I've got that out the way, ahem...



A nice sequel episode here, dealing with how exactly do you pick yourself up in the aftermath of becoming a monster. It's honestly a pretty nuanced take for a kid's show - the Switch is symbolic of any kind of destructive behaviour, Miura doesn't want to go back to school because he's afraid it will effectivly trigger him into a relapse, but honestly what got me the most was the sheer depression he seems to have outside of it. He hates the part of himself that wants it, but hates the rest of himself even more for not, in his eyes, being strong enough to just say no. And the resolution, for all he's cheered up... his driving goal is just to go back to school. Not to never be tempted again, but to have the willpower to manage his addiction. And hey, maybe with the sudden support network of his photographer girlfriend and the KRC, he'll be alright. It's always one day at a time, but getting to the point where you're starting day one can sometimes be the hardest part.

Kengou being willing to put his life on the line to cure Gentarou because Gentarou would do it for Miura is a nice followup to last time's, but it's a minor moment in a busy 2-parter otherwise. Still good. On the other side of things, it's a reshuffle episode for our villains. Mr Scorpio gets one final chance to shine as the embodiment of temptation, this time for more than Ohsugi, and gets to become a massive CGI scorpion for her troubles. Her motivations basically seem to be "Do what Gamou says because he's kind enough to keep giving me power", which are fine enough I guess? It's clear she's sticking around, even if not as an active threat anymore, but would be nice to see something more. Tachibana-san, aka Libra Zodiarts, seems to be the replacement, and I look forwards to milking all the Blade jokes I can everytime he does something. Stag beetle mfer.

[GuardianAngel87]

Funnily enough, one of the main reasons I watched Blade right after I finished up on Fourze is due to the Libra Horoscope/Zodiarts and Tachibana-san/Kamen Rider Garren just happened to share the same actor and I did enjoy his role in the former beforehand. Oh, in case anybody's wondering, yes, I also enjoyed him as the latter as well.

[GuardianAngel87]

As of now, I just started watching the Director's Cut version of Movie War Ultimatum which serves as a crossover movie between Kamen Rider Wizard and Kamen Rider Fourze. I'm even already a quarter through both the former series and Kiva. The shows are not bad so far. Although, I think I enjoyed Wizard just a little more.