[DH21965]

Great job on the writing so far in this, the actors work well together, but IF ONLY the suits and theme were actually COOL looking this would be better than Geats, but it’s too kiddy and garish-in-the-wrong-way for me.
Kamen Rider is now the same as Super Sentai, marking the end of “coolness” in this franchise.
Storytelling is on point, though, just too kiddy cute (throw up emoji here)for my tastes

[Leo Novum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DH21965

Great job on the writing so far in this, the actors work well together, but IF ONLY the suits and theme were actually COOL looking this would be better than Geats, but it?s too kiddy and garish-in-the-wrong-way for me.

The aesthetic makes it unique, just like Ex-Aid, in my opinion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DH21965

Storytelling is on point, though, just too kiddy cute (throw up emoji here)for my tastes

Critics who treat 'adult' as a term of approval, instead of as a merely descriptive term, cannot be adult themselves. To be concerned about being grown up, to admire the grown up because it is grown up, to blush at the suspicion of being childish; these things are the marks of childhood and adolescence.

[DreadBringer]

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Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Despite being the older sister, Emi is naive for sure, going to meet her crush even after finding out he was using Hanto's picture. Like, even if a Granute wasn't involved, that's still a way to end up abducted, assaulted or killed. While romance is good and healthy, it shouldn't be used as a substitute for street smarts.

And though not much is known about Emi, nothing indicates if she's a paragon of virtue, due to her naivety. Because many people equate kindness with naivety, to my dismay, which may have people encourage others to hate and mistreat others so they grow out from being 'naive'. People should use the term naive more to describe what Emi (someone they likely wouldn't consider compassionate) did here, than just about virtuous heroes for showing kindness, though people also often equate victims as being good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Failure must have consequences! Lango has already given those two liabilities enough "last chances" and like he said, they couldn't even deliver on their own damn terms, so they've proven that they are totally useless at their jobs.

Though then again, usually medias like this will have the good guys always win, and even though the bad guys may have some occasions where they got the last laugh, it won't last forever. So by this, failure is generally the only option for villains, what'd not count as a failure with deserving consequences for Shita and Jeebh anyway (not counting if they beg for last chance) if Gavv obviously will triumph?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fish Sandwich

Although I guess Gavv is scary to a lot of people in-universe anyway, isn't he? It feels a bit weird to say it's "nice" to see that emphasized again, but you know what I mean. Especially given how we're touching on the idea of secret identities getting revealed and all that, reminding the audience of the main reason Shouma keeps his own identity secret definitely strikes me as something relevant to have here.

What I personally find a bit weird is that Gavv didn't try to hide from people, to Emi here, like to Kirari before (while also telling Valen to do so) which seems to be what Gavv does to prevent people from freaking out.

[Sh Ranger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

And though not much is known about Emi, nothing indicates if she's a paragon of virtue, due to her naivety. Because many people equate kindness with naivety, to my dismay, which may have people encourage others to hate and mistreat others so they grow out from being 'naive'. People should use the term naive more to describe what Emi (someone they likely wouldn't consider compassionate) did here, than just about virtuous heroes for showing kindness, though people also often equate victims as being good.

Yeah, naivety is in the lack of deduction. Of course showing kindness to others is generally a good thing as the world really would suck if everybody was mean to each other. The exceptions should be determined using critical thinking, to judge whether a person is being honest or having malicious intent. Emi had no reason to trust Niwa and was given many reasons to doubt him, but she still made the most terrible judgment based on a misplaced romance. Cynics will probably use this to insist that romance is bad and naive, but that is not the case. The absence or rejection of logic is the problem. Logic can keep you alive and romance can give you a reason to live, so it's important to use both together to make better decisions. To quote the song: Love is an open door.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

Though then again, usually medias like this will have the good guys always win, and even though the bad guys may have some occasions where they got the last laugh, it won't last forever. So by this, failure is generally the only option for villains, what'd not count as a failure with deserving consequences for Shita and Jeebh anyway (not counting if they beg for last chance) if Gavv obviously will triumph?

Villains can still progress a long-term goal, as long as they manage to salvage something from the plot of the week. Like Nyelve with his experiments, he's productive regardless of the outcome and shows initiative, instead of asking siblings for help all the time. Jeep and Theta assure that they will bring a haul of Hitopresses, they fail and they never have the foresight to bring anything else as compensation for their losses. A serious determined villain on their last chance would usually bet something big like their life or powers, but Jeep and Theta aren't risking anything, only repeating the same shallow, "we'll win this time for sure!", which sounds less credible each time. They're unprofessional and self-entitled due to familial connections, treating their job like it's some kind of game they can reset and now they're getting the punishment.

[Mesnick]

Speaking of Sachika's reaction to Lango, I think it's time to voice my crazy theory. Let me start with the fact that the opening strongly hints that Sachika will face the fate of a rider. Otherwise, in her bubble, she would be in civilian form, and not just nothing. But I also have a hard time believing that she will undergo an operation similar to the one that Hanto had, unless this is not the only way to save her life. Plus, it doesn't explain her reaction to Lando.
So we need to find another explanation.
Who is Lando? The current head of the Stomatch family and the Dark Treats corporation. He produces drugs from kidnapped people and deliberately targets high-ranking Granutes. We'll get to know their aristocracy better through the twins, but isn't it obvious that there should be opposition to Lando's actions?
Now what defines Sachika? She helps people. Moreover, she is ready to help with absolutely everything. Who else on this show does the same thing? Gochizo. What is Gochizo? A special type of Agent that emerged from Shoma through his hybrid nature. What we know about Agents is that the stronger the Granutes, the stronger and more skillful they are. Temporary workers, as I understand it, do not have the ability to produce them at all. So it's logical to assume that Granutes' top-class Agents will be even more capable than Lando's. Especially if talented scientists work on them, including two candidates just from those shown.
So my theory is that Sachika is an Agent and... an agent. Sleeping, because she herself does not know about her own nature before activation.
Of course, there are things that do not fit into this theory. For example, Sachika's reaction to the other Granutes and her having a grandmother.
But if we imagine that this is an ultra-delicate operation of one of the high-ranking Granutes (or even Nyelv or Dente), this can be explained.

[Mesnick]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Emi had no reason to trust Niwa and was given many reasons to doubt him, but she still made the most terrible judgment based on a misplaced romance.

Speaking of which, are romance and naivety really the only reasons? The show directly compares her to Shouma. And, as it seems to me, they are related not only by the lack of experience, but also by the family that keeps you locked up. It seems to me that it is no coincidence that Yomi is the older sister whom the younger sister takes care of. This was done to hint at an unhealthy dynamic. Again, Hana grabbed her phone to block her boyfriend. Again, Hana grabbed her phone to block her boyfriend. And, as was correctly noted, Emi is an adult woman who has every right to make mistakes.
I think that while she was hoping for the best, she suspected that she would most likely be disappointed. But she wanted to do the act on her own and get into the situation. Even if it is a stupid act and a terrible situation. Simply because she wanted to feel like an adult and escape from her sister?s care.

[Zolda]

There were 2 instances of logical anomalies in this episode that I didn't elaborate in my first post.

#1:
How could Shouma immediately conclude that the strange kid had anything to do with Emi? Out of many people inside the cafe, outside the cafe, and perhaps the other shops inside the building, how could he pinpoint that the strange kid knew anything about Emi's location? Why didn't he ask other people inside the building or outside the building first? Why didn't he ask the cafe employees first? Don't know!

#2:
How could Hanto think that he would be able to find Niwa the scammer guy without using Emi as a bait? Hanto didn't know that Emi was going to go to the cafe at the very last minute, since when she was at Sachika's shop she said she wasn't going to go to the cafe. Emi only went to the cafe as a last minute decision that Hana didn't even know about it.

The sequence of events are as follows:
@ 08:24 : Hanto was shown Niwa's profile picture and confidently stated that Niwa wasn't him.
@ 09:04 : Emi agreed to Hana's suggestion not to go to the date.
@ 09:16 : Hanto decided to make an article about Niwa as a payback for stealing his photo. He then asked Emi and Hana for the exact time and place of the date.
@ 10:22 : Hanto arrived outside the building where the cafe was located.
@ 10:42 : Hanto passed the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise.
@ 11:06 : Shouma voiced his concern to Sachika that Emi was going to go to the date anyway, which confirmed that previously Emi did agree not to go to the date.
@ 11:36 : Sachika received a call from Hana who was surprised and concerned that Emi had already gone from her apartment on her way to the date, which once again confirmed that previously Emi did agree not to go to the date.
@ 11:52 : Emi was walking to the cafe, and licked by the Granute aka the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy shortly thereafter.
@ 12:17 : Shouma and Sachika arrived outside the cafe building to met Hana who had already been there.
@ 12:36 : Shouma, Sachika, and Hana met Hanto who had been waiting 1 hour in the cafe.

As I've laid out above, Hanto never knew that Emi decided to go to the cafe at the very last minute, because it's a, duh, last minute decision. Hanto, Hana, Shouma, and Sachika didn't know about Emi's last minute decision which was the complete opposite of her promise to them the day before. So, if the only information Hanto had was the fact that Emi did agree to cancel her date as suggested by Hana, then how the frak was Hanto going to find Niwa the scammer guy without using Emi as a bait? Was he planning to ask every guy in the cafe to confirm their identity? Was he planning to ask every guy, "Hey, dude. Are you Niwa?", or worse, "Hey, dude. Are you Niwa who has planned to have a date with a girl named Emi at this cafe at this exact time?"? Of course Niwa, even if he didn't put on his human disguise (the strange kid), wouldn't have answered that question honestly. When a criminal is asked, "Are you a criminal?", of course they would answer, "No, I'm not a criminal."

Hanto's plan to meet Niwa and interview him made no sense at all. Those 2 instances of logical anomalies above are solid pieces of evidence of how laughably, hilariously sloppy the writing in this series is. The writers of this story are trying to emulate Riku Sanjo who often used this type of detective/investigative-style of subplots as shown in KR W and KR Drive, but they've miserably failed. It's only 11 episodes, and the writers are consistently shooting themselves in the foot in all 11 episodes. Very very very impressive.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eclipyon

But he did.

Hanto did see the strange kid, but did he actually pay attention to the strange kid? Did he recognize the strange kid's face? He only passed the strange kid very briefly once, when he was walking to the cafe and the strange kid was waiting for Emi in the hallway. He didn't pay any attention to the strange kid because he did look like a normal, harmless kid, let alone look at and recognize the strange kid's face. So, even if the Granute put his human disguise back on as the strange kid in the scene @ 19:08, Hanto would've very likely not recognized him. He would've mistaken the strange kid again for just another random kid.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Hanto is clearly a patient and focused dude, as he once waited like a whole afternoon doing nothing outside Masako's house until his lead showed up. 60 minutes to us is probably like 6 minutes to him.

No, you misunderstood my argument. What took too long wasn't the fact that Hanto waited 1 hour, but the fact that the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise wait almost 1 hour to flee from the crime scene.

Someone might say that the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise only licked Emi shortly before Shouma, Sachika, and Hana arrived at the cafe, but that reasoning makes no sense. Emi was very eager to meet Niwa the scammer guy, so the only thing that makes the most sense is for her to arrive at the cafe on time, not 1 hour late, so she should've arrived at the cafe shortly after Hanto arrived there. Emi wouldn't have wanted to squander her only chance to meet Niwa the scammer guy by arriving late.

So, the most logical explanation is that Emi arrived at the cafe shortly after Hanto and then she was immediately licked and Hito Pressed by the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise. The perpetrator (the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise) waited 1 hour until he fled from the crime scene because the writers told him to do so in order to be discovered by Shouma (via another lazy, heavy-handed method). That's another piece of evidence of how sloppily written this story is.

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Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

They must've mistook him for some kind of cosplayer.

Lango only looked edgy, like a rockstar. You usually encounter that kind of visually edgy characters in metal concerts, haha.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

"Niwa" is more clever wordplay from Komura, as it's Wani with the syllables reversed, meaning crocodile. Which sounds similar to Wana, meaning trap like the catfish scam. In goroawase, you get 2 (ni) and 1 (wa) which add up to 3, the amount of mouths that Granute Early has. Catfish in Japan are also blamed for causing earthquakes (like Oonamazu from Hibiki), comparable to the strong hit that caused Valen to dehenshin. Man, there's like 4 different hidden meanings in this one guy, it's crazy! Keep it up, Komura!

What's so clever about using puns? Japanese love puns, so puns are very common. If the writers of this show are clever, then they should've allocated their mental acuity to identifying and eliminating the many instances of logical anomalies and other forms of sloppiness in the writing. Instead of focusing on writing cheap puns, they should've focused on writing a story that makes sense. Writers write stories, not puns.

[Eclipyon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zolda

Hanto did see the strange kid, but did he actually pay attention to the strange kid? Did he recognize the strange kid's face? He only passed the strange kid very briefly once, when he was walking to the cafe and the strange kid was waiting for Emi in the hallway. He didn't pay any attention to the strange kid because he did look like a normal, harmless kid, let alone look at and recognize the strange kid's face. So, even if the Granute put his human disguise back on as the strange kid in the scene @ 19:08, Hanto would've very likely not recognized him. He would've mistaken the strange kid again for just another random kid.

Do we really know though? All of these are just your assumptions.

[Mesnick]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zolda

What took too long wasn't the fact that Hanto waited 1 hour, but the fact that the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise wait almost 1 hour to flee from the crime scene.

Someone might say that the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise only licked Emi shortly before Shouma, Sachika, and Hana arrived at the cafe, but that reasoning makes no sense. Emi was very eager to meet Niwa the scammer guy, so the only thing that makes the most sense is for her to arrive at the cafe on time, not 1 hour late, so she should've arrived at the cafe shortly after Hanto arrived there. Emi wouldn't have wanted to squander her only chance to meet Niwa the scammer guy by arriving late.

So, the most logical explanation is that Emi arrived at the cafe shortly after Hanto and then she was immediately licked and Hito Pressed by the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise. The perpetrator (the strange kid aka Niwa the scammer guy aka the Granute in disguise) waited 1 hour until he fled from the crime scene because the writers told him to do so in order to be discovered by Shouma (via another lazy, heavy-handed method). That's another piece of evidence of how sloppily written this story is.

Granute could sit outside the cafe for an hour and read, because in an hour he had an appointment with an Agent nearby. Yes, it would have been more logical to move to another cafe, but perhaps he did not have pocket money, and the boy who did not order anything was kicked out from everywhere.