[Paladin]

Shoma collapses from hunger after his battle, while a reporter learns of the strange fight between creatures and begins to investigate...

[Zolda]

In the opening monologue, Shouma says that he's a Granute who escaped to the human world. Like I hypothesized last week here, how did he escape from the Granute world to the human world through the trap door? Did he control that door, or someone else did and let him escape to the human world? It's unlikely that Shouma was the one who controlled that door, so I think there must be someone in the Stomach organization who controlled that place and deliberately let him escape to the human world. Who was that person? Was it Shouma's dad? Or was he the patron of the Stomach family, aka the Ryuubei Sonozaki/the main villain of this story? Based on Shouma's full name, his dad was/is very likely the patron of the Stomach family.

Shouma then says that he awakened a great power he didn't even know he had after eating the sweets given to him by Hajime aka the kid of the week. If eating human's foods awakens a great power within Shouma, then what did he eat when he was in the Granute world and lived as a Granute? Did he also eat Dark Sweets/Dark Snacks like other Granutes do? Or did he also eat human's souls through his Gavv?

Shouma also says that he thinks it's best to keep his true identity a secret. Well, if so, then why did he told Hajime that he was not a human in episode 1? Don't know! This element of secrecy could also mean that there could be an organization that's been monitoring the Granute invasion behind the shadow like I've hypothesized since the last several weeks. That organization could also be monitoring Shouma's movement right now.

Like I hypothesized last week, Shouma's fainted @ 00:38 due to starvation. Why don't the Gochizous help him find some foods, at least some leftover from nearby restaurants? Why do they let him starve himself until fainting? Why do they hide behind a tree instead? Don't know!

Shita says @ 03:55 that their father is dead, and "that" woman is no more. So, the patron of the Stomach family is already dead. The woman that she's referring to is likely Shouma's mom. Shouma is their half-brother who along with his mom were likely protected and given place to live in the Granute world by the father Stomach. It'd be better if this fact about the Stomach family is revealed through a flashback scene, not through infodump like this. Show, don't tell.

Lango says @ 04:22 that he's planning to receive Dark Sweets orders from the wealthy Granutes, and Glotta asks whether the factory will increase the production of the high-end variant. This could imply that there are several types of Dark Sweets with different levels of power. The flagship Dark Sweets will grant greater power and thus requires high quality humans as the ingredients. The way the Granute society works with their own social strata in this episode reminds me of the people of the Ganma world in KR Ghost.

Lango says @ 04:39 to Nyelv that the rule among Granutes is to remain in their human forms in classified areas. Is a Granute in the kaijin form stronger than the human form, or is the difference between the kaijin and human form only a visual/cosmetic one? Based on the scenes @ 04:50 and @ 10:41, it seems like the trinkets used by the Stomach family members and the ordinary Granutes function like a reverse-transformation device. It doesn't transform them into their kaijin form, but into their human disguise form.

Jeebh asks Shita @ 05:00 whether they should report that one of the part-time workers is missing. Is she referring to Shouma who escaped from the factory in the beginning of episode 1 last week? Why was Shouma forced to work there? Was it because he's a human-Granute hybrid? Shouma was likely forced to work there since father Stomach's death means no one is able to protect him in the Granute world. Shouma was likely seen as a lowly half-blood that's only suited for forced labor. Shita says that an escaped worker is a common occurrence, so there could be other defectors like Shouma who escaped the factory. Like I mentioned above, the question is how Shouma was able to escape to the human world. It makes sense if he managed to escape the factory but was still in the Granute world. The weird thing was he was somehow able to escape from the Granute world to the human world.

Like shown in the trailer, @ 05:56 Shouma does eat a proper/heavy meal from a bento box, but his Gavv doesn't produce RG's based on it. It seems like Bandai isn't planning to go all out on the food theme. So, my hypotheses about the existence of proper/heavy-meal based RG's here and here are proven wrong in this scene. The funny thing in this scene is Sachika thinks that Shouma is running away from home due to his parents being too strict and don't allow him to eat snacks and bento.

Mr. Shioya (Hanto's boss) does operate an online news service similar to the ORE Journal from KR Ryuki, although his operation seems to be smaller than the ORE Journal was.

Ritsu (Sachika's friend and the victim of the week) thanks Sachika and the part-timer for helping her to move to a new apartment. The part-timer she's referring to is Shouma, so maaaaayyyyybe the part-timer Jeebh is referring to earlier is Shouma.

Hanto is interviewing Hajime (the kid of the week in episode 1) and his mom about their encounter with KR Gavv and the Granute during the pier scene last week. The weird thing was Hajime's dad didn't go to the crime scene to save his son.

In the scene @ 10:45, the Granute of the week receives information about his target (Ritsu) from an instant message. It seems like the message is sent by a network of Granute agents who work as eyes/scouts/spies who identify potential victims and relay the information about their identities and locations to the Granutes of the week who work as "fishermen" who catch the victims.

From the flashback scene @ 11:35, it seems like the foods that Kid Shouma and his mom ate in the Granute world was some kind of artificial foods that looks like a mix of curry and porridge. She reminisced about the actual foods she ate as a human, in this case potato chips. But if she and Kid Shouma ate artificial foods in the Granute world, then why did she warn Kid Shouma to never eat any of their snacks in episode 1 @ 09:11? It's not like in the Granute world she had actual human foods to eat. Or perhaps she warned him just in case he came to the human world and actually encountered human foods.

KR Gavv Zakuzakuchips form looks fine, but dang, those swords are ugly. Several weapons that have appeared in this series so far (Zakuzakuchipslasher and Chocodangun) are definitely the ugliest weapons in this franchise ever. Only the Gavvgablade and Valen Buster look nice.

In the scene @ 20:55, Hanto says that he finally finds the clue to the monster he's been searching for in the last 18 years. The monster drawing he's always carrying was the Granute who attacked his mom(?). This elusive Granute is very likely has/had some kind of connection with Shouma's past. Perhaps he's Shouma's dad? This scene makes Hanto similar to other secondary Riders who encountered the kaijins/villains in the past and is having a deep grudge with the villain's species, such as Masato Kusaka/KR Kaixa and Isamu Fuwa/KR Vulcan.

Shita receives a new report from a field agent @ 22:29. The agent shows her a social media post similar to the one read by Hanto about KR Gavv appearance in episode 1. Shita is wondering whether that strange Granute (KR Gavv) was actually the escaped part-time worker previously mentioned by Jeebh @ 05:00. So yeah, Shouma was very likely a forced labor in the Stomach's factory. What baffles Shita is the fact that the suspected part-time worker (Shouma) is able to transform into a different form (KR Gavv) that she's likely never seen. Shita not knowing about KR Gavv could also mean that the existence of the red Gavv (Shouma's Henshin Belt Gavv) is very likely only known by the uppermost members of the Stomach family. The red Gavv could be some kind of an experimental device that was part of a top-secret/super-confidential project within the Stomach. The red Gavv was likely designed to be the ultimate device that's able to create Dark Sweets in a more efficient manner.

Next week:

As shown in the preview section @ 22:53, Shita and Jeebh are surprised to see the actual appearance of the red Gavv. This may imply that the existence of the red Gavv has likely been a rumor/hearsay within the Stomach.

[Omnikaiser]

Fun episode. Sachika is a lovely character.

Lore is kinda breakneck though. Shouma is confirmed to be a Stomach, either a direct or half sibling to the 5 antagonists.

And the Stomach father is said to be dead (yeah, right. As if. Smelling "daddy issues rider" here). While "that woman is out of the way" probably refers to Shouma's mother.

[DreadBringer]

The OP really emphasizes the primary, secondary, and the heroine being a trio to feature almost every scenes of them being together.

It seems like the Gochizos appear every time Shoma eats something, almost like Shoma's "poops", but just for snacks, not full dishes like bentos. For Gavv's other forms like Zakuzakuchips, I wonder if the Gochizos' abilities are unique to the type of snacks (candy, potato chips, etc.), or if they would be different for separate brands as well. I expect Shoma to make up stories about his interest in snacks to Sachika to cover up his origins (including using Inoue as his surname), but it's actually honest that Michiru talks a lot about foods in the flashbacks.

Feels Sachika lives up more to her character description than Sakura (too aggressive) and Rinne (rather haughty) did before, except for the small stern moment of telling Shoma to shower. I don't think Sachika needs to act as an inspiration for Shoma, because Shoma already cares about others, just with a new quote here to reprimand the Granute that he has no right to use human happiness for consumption. I think Shoma'd strive for everyone's happiness on his own sooner or later. This could be mutual with Sachika, as well, because she puts her heart into her job, like ensuring Ritsu's joy. I still think her picking up and nursing Shoma is better proof, especially since Shoma is a stranger.

Guess this is another time when a female's kind nature got acknowledged by a main cast member, other than Sougo bringing up Tsukuyomi in ep. 4. She's even the one who's seen as suspicious due to her generosity, by the main Rider himself, while other main Riders usually get this treatment (e.g. Ryuki ep. 4). Though perhaps she might not get acknowledged as heroic/noble by the fans, especially without action scenes or a job seen as heroic like a soldier, firefighter, or nurse (picking daily job as the choice to "help others in need" like Keitaro being a laundrist), and if Sachika ends up becoming a Rider, I'm not sure if she'd be hailed as a "true Kamen Rider" like many male Riders goody two shoes tbh.

It's good that they make use of Shoma's superhuman traits to have him easily complete Sachika's job in lifting heavy things. Though usually in KR, character traits are used as a one-off thing. Also I hope that Rider's abilities will also be used for this (for this, when others accept Shoma being Gavv). This part reminds me of Gaim (same producer), where Kouta tried to help with jobs using Rider powers, but ruins things instead by going overboard, and Sachika having a handyman job reminds me of what Akira reprimanded Kouta for in Gaim, where he's goofing off and playing rather than doing these types of helpful jobs.

It's nice to see Hajime featured again. It's related to the journey of the other main characters too, especially Hanto wanting more evidence about the Granute attacks for his writing career. Hajime has more experience with that than others. Like many secondary Riders, Hanto's backstory is also about losing a beloved woman, in this case, his mother as a child, being eaten by a Granute, which sparked his journey to take missing person cases. It's also similar to Shoma's issues. At least for Ritsu, there's hope to save the victims, that they're just turned into something else and can be reverted back.

[Kiwami]

Now that we have met most of the recurring cast I am absolutely enamored with this show, I really enjoy it!

Sachika is fantastic female lead, really dig her character. It's interesting how she wants to bring happiness to everyone, with an emphasis on everyone, it ties nicely into Shoma always asking the Granute monster of the week if they would rather stop and drop the Dark Treats before going for the finisher.

I dig the Stomach family so far, I haven't quite memorized their names yet but I like the designs and the dynamic they have going on. We get to see what happens inside Stomach Inc., seems like the acrylic stands, the subbing group I'm watching used the term "Pressed" are being used up immediately, and the big sister of the family snaps one in the scene, effectively committing murder on-screen, ouch.

But it does seem the people inside can be freed still if the red goo is removed - which is the Granute's tongue actually? Kinda gross

Anyways, the action was once again fantastic, Popping Gummy form is really growing on me fast and oh boy - Zakuzaku Chips is fantastic! I never thought we would see a Kamen Rider based on potato chips of all things but here we are, that's just the kind of unbound creativity I love about this franchise. And much like the gummy armor which is easily broken in fights and must be restored, the chip swords break fast if handled incorrectly, although the shards are still quite useful! I'm happy they realized a Rider based on sweets should be quite delicate in certain parts, and accommodate this with the rather endless amount of Minions that can be used mid-fight to "snack up" and continue fighting.

I also quite dig how Shoma keeps his powers hidden for now while accepting the role of a monster. This won't hold for long I would assume but I think they are portraying it rather nicely while it lasts.

Lastly, the opening: I like it. It isn't blowing me away but the tune is nice, the visuals are eye candy (heh) and it just fits the show nicely. Can see myself putting this one on the playlist, without seeking it out actively but being happy when it does play and just vibe along.

Feels good to be excited watching Kamen Rider again, hope this continues all the way until the end!

[gashatfreak]

Oh yeah, I'm gonna watch this one weekly alright. Last show I watched weekly was Revice, and skipped Geats and Gotchard due to burnout (Saber to Revice was way too much to handle). This looks like it'll be a fun show (even though it's impossible to fairly judge from just two episodes), and I really really love how they used potato chips in this form. It's just so creative, from the way the swords broke (Shouma testing it out on random infrasturcture was hilarious and clever) and the finisher, it's such a delight seeing it on screen.

We see in the opening that Sachika, Shouma and Hanto getting along, so I don't think Hanto is gonna be against Shouma as what it seems to be building up towards, at least not for very long. Wouldn't be surprised if Valen's Gochizou is generated by Shouna, because I don't see any other way for Hanto to get his hands on one otherwise.

The characters are fun. It's great to see the kid from last week again, even if his role was a cameo that served to move the plot forward. Good to see Hanto doing actual detective work. Also, Shouma is a bundle of innocence, but is done in a way that doesn't come off as grating. Like, he's an actual good boi. Loving him already.

I do find it darkly hilarious how the monsters Gavv is wiping the floor with are part timers. Like, I'm imagining all these random college students or washed-out middle-aged men just trying to scrape money for their rent or something and then suddenly getting attacked by this random purple guy out of nowhere while they're doing minimum-wage labor. As much as people are meming online about how diabetes would ultimately be the final villain, I wouldn't mind seeing a union or evil work safety group popping up halfway through the season.

Something I found interesting is that everyone is surprised by the red Gavv, even the Stomach Inc. ladies from the preview. So either it's an actual mutation due to Shouma being a human-Granute hybrid, or it's the result of a super secret experiment/weapons project that few or none in Stomach Inc is aware of. Also, they use the term 'Kamen Rider' in the preview as well. I wonder what would lead to Gavv being labelled one.

Anyway, real glad to be back to Kamen Rider after some time.

[Kiwami]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gashatfreak

Wouldn't be surprised if Valen's Gochizou is generated by Shouna, because I don't see any other way for Hanto to get his hands on one otherwise.

I thought about that too, the notion of having to rely on another character eating chocolate for the secondary Rider's transformation trinket to even exist is funny, I wonder how that will play out.

By the way, both flavors of chocolate Minions, Chocodon, make a cameo in this episode!

Quote:

Originally Posted by gashatfreak

Anyway, real glad to be back to Kamen Rider after some time.

Welcome back!

[DaikaijuSokogeki01]

Once again, everything about this so far is just clicking right. The scene where we introduced the Stomach Inc. leaders was a bit confusing to follow with how many characters and locations were being fired at us in quick succession, but the rest of the episode was paced brilliantly. And I love that Shouma is still dedicated to being a lonely warrior, because that's what being a Kamen Rider is all about.

[FairyKing]

I was worried the Gochizous would be annoying but after two episodes these little fellas are really growing on me. I love how in addition to being Shoma's transformation trinkets, in this episode they also served as his monster-detecting system by scurrying around and reporting back when they saw something. I hope that continues!

[Fish Sandwich]

I'm loving the layers the show is imbuing Shouma with so quickly.

His enthusiasm for snacks and his obvious love for people make him very endearing, which makes it all the more heartbreaking to think about just how sad he is, between those moments of joy. I think it's very telling that the last thing before the fight scene here is him settling into his "new world", only for him to once more run off at the end, after being called a monster again. There's the obvious aspect of it where he's scared people won't accept him for who he is, but it definitely comes off like the deeper problem is really that Shouma doesn't fully accept himself yet. He's so quick to resign himself to not fitting in with humanity, but he can't turn a blind eye to the Granute either, which leaves him struggling in this sort of void without a proper sense of place or identity. Which is a lot more messed up than I expected from Kamen Rider Candyman! It makes me pretty sad to think about, which is exactly why I love it. I love that Shouma is this stray puppy of a guy where you can occasionally see all this deep-seated trauma starting to surface. I'm rooting for him like crazy already, and given the way these things tend to go, I'm looking forward to the dramatic irony of the end here paying off someday, with our lonely Kamen Rider speeding off towards solitude on his bike, right over a guy who, just like Sachika, is no doubt going to eventually be one of those people who lets Shouma believe in himself a little more.

So yeah, two for two with Gavv so far, if it wasn't obvious. Personally, as a fan of that other Rider show Koumura wrote for that had a traumatized hero with a sweet tooth whose familiars/minions alerted him to monsters trying to steal people's happiness and/or hope, I'm having a great time. I thought this one did a great job firmly laying out the overall mission statement of sorts for the show -- that Shouma wants to make people happy -- in a way that makes it all, like, felt, if you know what I'm trying to get at. I thought it was especially brilliant that Shouma specifically describes Sachika as "cool" rather than just "amazing" or something along those lines. I'm not sure how to articulate the difference, but I think that word choice makes it a lot clearer how much Shouma (and by extension, the series) recognizes a kind of strength that isn't about hitting people, which is one of those things I'm always looking to see in these shows. Like with much of the episode, there's some appreciable nuance going on there.

Not that I don't also look for fun and engaging superhero action scenes, of course, because that was also still thoroughly entertaining here. Very happy to see Zaku Zaku Chips stressing how oddly fragile Gavv is in its own unique way with the swords. ...But then, not as happy as I am to realize Shouma offering that last chance to the monster is going to be a recurring thing. Dang, guess I looped right back around to talking about the drama. Probably says something about the storytelling going on here that it can get to me to only barely mention the action in something directed by Sugihara!