[Sh Ranger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

TOKUMEI SENTAI GO-BUSTERS MISSION 31 - ?SPACE SHERIFF GAVAN APPEARS!?

IT?S TIME FOR Space Sheriff Gavan!

Boy, is it ever. I think half of the dialogue was folks saying ?Space Sheriff Gavan??!? I liked him in this, thankfully, because he?s in too much of the show for me to just ignore him. I like how Geki is a real modern hero ? smug, hot-headed, smirking in the face of death ? but Gavan is all shot-for-shot Showa stuff. The little break to show us the Electroplating!!! Bonkers. The second Gavan shows up in costume, the logic of this show tilts into completely insane Showa nonsense ? the Metaroid gets a dirt bike from Somewhere, the Makuu Space makes evil three times stronger in a quantifiable way ? and it?s awesome to watch the Busters try to retain their sanity in the face of such absurdity. Gavan?s a toku fever dream compared to the coherence of your normal Go-Busters cause-and-effect, and the collision of those two sensibilities made for a fairly rousing climax. I will give this Gavan guy one more shot!

The convenient thing about this new generation Uchuu Keiji content is that it can be enjoyed without any knowledge of the original trilogy. I haven't watched any of that trilogy yet, but I became a fan of Uchuu Keiji (and by extension Metal Heroes) starting with the adventures of Geki and Shelly. In general, the ridiculous Super Hero War movies are probably a terrible introduction to any unfamiliar characters due to Yonemura often writing them OOC, so I'm glad to see that this Gobusters x Gavan crossover is giving you more to enjoy. Hoping you'll give Metal Heroes a chance, even if it's just those new generation Uchuu Keiji movies!

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Hoping you'll give Metal Heroes a chance, even if it's just those new generation Uchuu Keiji movies!

Probably not? I dug this last episode mostly for seeing how the Metal Heroes vibe intersects with the relatively more grounded Go-Busters vibe. Absent that contrast, I can't say I'm super curious? But maybe someday!

[Fish Sandwich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

TOKUMEI SENTAI GO-BUSTERS MISSION 31 - “SPACE SHERIFF GAVAN APPEARS!”

This one got me real scared back in the day. Completely irrationally, mind you, but still, it's hard to talk about my personal experience with this episode without bringing that part up. Like I said, when I got around to watching it, I had heard just enough vague talk of some controversial(???) "retooling" Go-Busters had underwent that, between the new opening and the Plot seemingly being over, for all I knew, this one's vibe just was the show now? I mean, I could be pretty sure Gavan wasn't here to stay or anything, but also, like... could I? It was like the wilderness period of this show for me, where I knew nothing about what was coming up, and that uncertainty made it difficult for me to just take this as its own thing and enjoy it on the level it wants to be enjoyed on.

Because, I mean, with the benefit of hindsight, it's a perfectly cute example of a crossover story like this, as long as you can get over that basic of hurdle of "why is this show shilling a Metal Hero movie?" Naturally, I have a lot more fun with it on a revisit than I originally did. Heck, who knows, maybe some day, I'll come back again having watched the original Gavan and realize this was actually some masterpiece homage the whole time or something.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

I don't mind it as an insert, but even then, it has to compare with the excellent Perfect Mission.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, I also think it compares unfavorably to Perfect Mission for pretty similar reasons.

Another issue I have with it as the new theme song is that the timing seems off by a few weeks, with the opening changing *before* the obvious turning point in the narrative of the series? Not that I wanna just sit here ragging on a song I like just fine nowadays but I mean, did anybody tune into Super Hero Time for Wizard's premiere and actually think "man, thanks to that spiffy new theme tune, suddenly I care about these Go-Busters guys!"? There's just a lot about the decision to make the change I still don't understand, even though I completely accept it at this point.

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

This one got me real scared back in the day. Completely irrationally, mind you, but still, it's hard to talk about my personal experience with this episode without bringing that part up.

I don't know if it's completely irrational? Like, we've all hit patches with shows where we can feel the strain of Production Changes warping what once was reliable into something different and uncertain. I think you'd be okay to have some trepidation on this one... at least until Shelly and Yoko go on their date, and then I can't imagine anyone feeling like this show was in trouble.

[Kamen Rider Die]

TOKUMEI SENTAI GO-BUSTERS MISSION 32 - “TAG-TEAM WITH GAVAN!”



While I appreciate that the show decided to use the second half of a Gavan two-parter to put the spotlight on Morishita of all characters, there’s really no way to get around the fact that the end result is a dumber version of Mission 26, the Nakamura spotlight episode.

Like, the impetus for this story is that a) Morishita 100% phones it on on his report about Makuu Space, to the level of a kid whose book report is just the synopsis on the back of the book, read verbatim; and b) the Buddyroids are at their most ridiculous and overlappingly cartoonish for an entire scene, which Gavan can’t deal with. It’s two things that should set up a fun story about how the Go-Busters are more than just the three Busters in the field – which is weird to do with a space cop like Gavan who presumably has not just Shelly, but an entire space police force to answer to, but whatever – except the episode sort of doesn’t know what to do with them.

Let’s handle the B section first, because it’s fastest: Gavan pretty much forgets about this, and the show never lets the Buddyroids shine anyway. Gavan’s like They’re Clowns, and then the show doesn’t pull them back in until the finale, they get beat, and then Gavan helps Hiromu succeed. This is not making the anxious/insulting/befuddled/drunk Buddyroids seem like an integral piece of the Go-Busters machinery! For a story that kicks off with the Buddyroids at their absolute most unprofessional, the show never takes a minute to refute that, beyond some bland But We Love Them Anyways stuff at the end. Gavan weirdly had a point, and that’s all that came of this part of the opening scene?

The other part, the Morishita part, gets a lot more work done with it, but I still never felt like it came from anywhere. Morishita is moping because Gavan’s cool and awesome and shiny and did you hear he’s got a movie coming out, which just… what? Morishita sort of shrugs off his own work in the beginning, which feels random and undermotivated. (You can’t do any science or math on Makuu Space? Your whole goddamn show is about transporting things across different dimensions! You should be okay with the theory!) The idea that he’d overhear Gavan rightfully criticizing some shockingly poor work by the support staff and just go FINE, HAVE YOUR NEW FRIEND, HIROMU… where is any of this coming from? I get why Nakamura’s immediately pissed! This is a guy who never shirked from a task before, suddenly taking minor criticism from a stranger as a reason that he doesn’t ever need to do his job again. It’s weird! It’s a weird overreaction, and it makes Morishita seem like a needy friend instead of a coworker. Gavan’s point is that the support staff is unprofessional, just like the Buddyroids, and everyone’s proving him right this episode!

This whole episode feels like it’s got its heart in the right place, but no idea how to make it work as an episode of Go-Busters. Spending time highlighting the value of the support staff is smart, but not when it’s trying to prove something to a guy who arguably knows how to work in a similar command structure and has basic expectations of decorum and professionalism. Letting Morishita get a win is great, but maybe don’t make him weirdly underperforming as a way in. Highlighting the unique bond between the Busters and Buddyroids is never a bad idea, but try to remember to show their actual value to fighting monsters. All of these things… they aren’t small things! They’re big story problems, and I can’t believe how many there were in this episode. I wanted to like this one, but it’s sloppy.



IT’S TIME FOR Losing Both Looks Like Carelessness!

Speaking of sloppy! Another group of scientists studying an alternate dimension get trapped inside of it by a monster? Come on! JAPAN! Start nailing your dimensional scientists to the floor or something!

[Androzani84]

Even when he’s the main character of the episode, I barely remember Morishita’s name. I recently went back through my VS movie reviews and there’s a bit in the Go-Busters vs Gokaiger review that states I had to scroll up to remember his name when he did something.

As for the episode itself, we’re in a fairly classic Metal Heroes plot, where the villains’ scheme is really out there. Kidnapping everyone of any use to society is up there with…

Making mothers abandon their children and become apathetic.

Creating a hit band hated by adults.

Having a scientist whose secrets they’re after suffer from voodoo performed by his daughter.

Opening a department store and selling clothes that turn people who wear them evil.

Giving out computers that allow people to talk to friends and buy things without leaving the house (Jury’s out over whether this one is all that bad)

And that’s (with the exception of the first one) all from one show.

And we get the Go-Busters doing their own version of Gavan’s transformation, complete with narration. Sadly, we don’t get to see a stock footage esque “let’s see the transformation one more time” due to the director trying to avoid any use of “mirror effect” (the Japanese term for stock footage”.

And now, for some stuff I didn’t mention last time.

Keeping with the theme established by Tubaloid, Soujikiloid, Parabolaloid and Filmloid, Rhino Doubler is voiced by one of the guys singing the ED, in this case Kohsuke Toriumi.

And also, while it was written for the movie, these episodes, by virtue of coming out a month early, debut a new version of Gavan’s opening theme with modernised instrumentals.

You're a man, aren't you?
Then you shouldn't hesitate.
The engine of your heart,
Start it at full burn.

I'm on the scene, always one step ahead of you,
Moving at the speed of light towards tomorrow, now dash!

(Beam! Beam!)

Youth, youth, what is it?
It's never turning your back.
What is love?
It’s letting nothing stop you.

Gavan! Wipe away the tears.
Gavan! Welcome your courage.
Uchuu Keiji Gavan!

The villains might look like angels
But they’re sharpening their claws in their hearts
We will be men who would never trample on nameless flowers

(Beam!)

Youth, youth, what is it?
It is never giving up
What is love?
It is having no regrets

Gavan! Say goodbye to yesterday!
Gavan! Welcome the future!
Uchuu Keiji Gavan!

Youth, youth, what is it?
It's never turning your back.
What is love?
It’s letting nothing stop you.

Gavan! Wipe away the tears.
Gavan! Welcome your courage.
Uchuu Keiji Gavan!

Next time, chapter 2 formally begins, after some set up here.

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Androzani84

As for the episode itself, we?re in a fairly classic Metal Heroes plot, where the villains? scheme is really out there.

It definitely takes a left turn from Stealing Enetron and Trying To Murder Superheroes, that's for sure. Glad to know that Makuu Space crime is also three times more ludicrous than normal crime!

[Sh Ranger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

TOKUMEI SENTAI GO-BUSTERS MISSION 32 - ?TAG-TEAM WITH GAVAN!?

Let?s handle the B section first, because it?s fastest: Gavan pretty much forgets about this, and the show never lets the Buddyroids shine anyway. Gavan?s like They?re Clowns, and then the show doesn?t pull them back in until the finale, they get beat, and then Gavan helps Hiromu succeed. This is not making the anxious/insulting/befuddled/drunk Buddyroids seem like an integral piece of the Go-Busters machinery! For a story that kicks off with the Buddyroids at their absolute most unprofessional, the show never takes a minute to refute that, beyond some bland But We Love Them Anyways stuff at the end. Gavan weirdly had a point, and that?s all that came of this part of the opening scene?

Geki's complaint also sounds a little hypocritical coming from a passionate fireball like him, which makes him a good partner for Hiromu who also has a history of complaining about his teammates' mistakes. Considering how this is supposed to be advertising for Gavan's big upcoming movie, I guess it's expected that it would mostly highlight his good points. However, Redbuster isn't going to lose to him in coolness either. The scene with them riding their bikes together in Kamen Rider Quarry was an enjoyable climax to this rare crossover.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

The other part, the Morishita part, gets a lot more work done with it, but I still never felt like it came from anywhere. Morishita is moping because Gavan?s cool and awesome and shiny and did you hear he?s got a movie coming out, which just? what? Morishita sort of shrugs off his own work in the beginning, which feels random and undermotivated. (You can?t do any science or math on Makuu Space? Your whole goddamn show is about transporting things across different dimensions! You should be okay with the theory!) The idea that he?d overhear Gavan rightfully criticizing some shockingly poor work by the support staff and just go FINE, HAVE YOUR NEW FRIEND, HIROMU? where is any of this coming from? I get why Nakamura?s immediately pissed! This is a guy who never shirked from a task before, suddenly taking minor criticism from a stranger as a reason that he doesn?t ever need to do his job again. It?s weird! It?s a weird overreaction, and it makes Morishita seem like a needy friend instead of a coworker. Gavan?s point is that the support staff is unprofessional, just like the Buddyroids, and everyone?s proving him right this episode!

Morishita had been asked to be a decoy for both Redbuster and Bluebuster in different episodes, so maybe he feels like he can only pretend to be a hero and wants to do more to support his friends like Shelly does for Geki. Out of the 3 computer guys at the base, he's the one who doesn't stand out at all compared to Nakamura and Kurorin. So I guess Morishita is experiencing what Nick did when he wanted to be more than just the Bike Guy. The important part that Nakamura reminds him is that the Gobusters can rely on Morishita when they need him the most.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Androzani84

Uchuu Sentai Gavan!

It's 5 years too early for that!

[Fish Sandwich]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

TOKUMEI SENTAI GO-BUSTERS MISSION 32 - “TAG-TEAM WITH GAVAN!”

One thing I remember about this one is appreciating the attempt to give Morishita his day in the sun, while also being quite underwhelmed by how that day turned out.

The other thing I'll always remember about this one, that's extra fun for looking back on in retrospect, is that during the warmhearted goodbye between Hiromu and Geki at the end, they made sure to put up some ad-copy on the screen just to be as transparent as possible.



I assume this kind of thing is lost in an age where everyone can watch Go-Busters with Blu-ray rips and the like now, so I just want to take a second to appreciate this.

It's a pretty straightforward bit of text. I'm not much of a translator, but it basically goes:

"Space Sheriff Gavan The Movie in theaters October 20th!
You can see Gavan again on the big screen!"

So you know, just letting all the viewers at home know that if they're sad about seeing our fun new guest stars leave for their next adventure, they can go see them in their own story and everything. Pretty harmless I guess, but again, very transparent, as well.

I suspect something about that rubbed someone at Over-Time the wrong way, though, because their subs from back in the day decided to go ahead and translate the message, and they did so uh... a little more according to the spirit of the words than the words themselves.



The funny part is, as much as I didn't vibe with these episodes at all, I did go watch their movie once it got subbed, and actually liked it a fair bit. I gained a decent-sized soft spot for Geki, and pretty eagerly followed the films he was in after that, all of which I had a lot of fun with. So you know, some good things came out of these episodes for me, even if they'll probably never be my favorite episodes of Go-Busters.

[Sunred]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Geki: Watch our movie.
Hiromu: (Goddammit)