[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunred

But it's even more crazy that both him and Ryo Yoshizawa, who portrays Ryusei/Meteor both went on to become big names after this show.

All I'm hearing is that I should not get my hopes up for a Kamen Rider Meteor 15th Anniversary film.

(Also, holy shit, that kabuki movie looks amazing. Definitely going to check it out if/when it shows up on streaming, because it looks like I already missed its scattershot theatrical domestic release?)

(Also also, let me point out that in Kokuho, Ryo Yoshizawa plays a character named... Tachibana.)

[Sunred]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

(Also, holy shit, that kabuki movie looks amazing. Definitely going to check it out if/when it shows up on streaming, because it looks like I already missed its scattershot theatrical domestic release?)

Same here, I'm gonna have my eye out for Kokuho. But since we're talking post-rider careers, there's also another movie starring Yoshizawa which was fun that I stumbled upon a while back.

He plays a man who aspires to be a Shogi master, but a twist of fate has him give up and end up coding an AI Shogi program and take on his rival once more. Oh yeah, Fumika Baba, aka Medic, and Kanna Mori aka Natsumi Hikari, are in this as well. Baba plays the role of the sister to the AI club guy who helps Yoshizawa's character, while Mori plays the role of the rival's wife.

[Kamen Rider Die]

KAMEN RIDER FOURZE X CRAYON SHIN-CHAN CROSSOVER SPECIAL



I had no idea what this was before I watched it! I guess it was a series of 30-second shorts to promote a Crayon Shin-Chan movie? I don’t know, there’s really nothing to them (it’s maybe 90 seconds of actual storytelling) but it’s neat to see a Kamen Rider crossing over into something with the global ubiquity of Crayon Shin-Chan. This was cute!

—

KAMEN RIDER FOURZE EPISODE 31 - “THE FIEFDOM OF PLEIADES”



I can’t imagine what the Meteor version of this series would’ve looked like.

We’re here at what’s nominally (to my limited memory) the conclusion of Ryuusei’s main arc, and it’s probably coming at least two episodes later than I’d’ve liked, with a compelling structure (melodrama and unrequited love and switched roles!) and a heel turn I don’t fully buy. Aries is finally found, and at the same school that Ryuusei transferred from in order to find Aries, which is the kind of dramatic contrivance that Yamada would find delicious. Ryuusei is exposed as Meteor, at precisely the moment where he murders Gentarou, which doesn’t feel like it’s going to do wonders for either identity. It’s a bunch of major plot things happening, and I don’t know that I connected with much of any of it.

Like, this is a problem that should be a slam-dunk for Ryuusei: Aries is right there, zero mystery as to his identity, no backup from the other Zodiarts, he’s got Fourze on the scene, and all they have to do is defeat Aries, recover his Switch, and use that to synthesize a cure for Jirou’s hilariously convoluted malady. (I think this is the first time it’s completely spelled out? Jirou activated his Switch, it went haywire for some reason, and it’s stuck in the Switch On position because he’s in a coma and can’t switch it off. This… for sure feels like a health problem the show decided on fairly recently!) But instead of doing the absolute final step in a multiple-month plan that Ryuusei was 100% dedicated to, he gets frustrated, and anxious, and headstrong, and decides to trust Aries over Tachibana, betting on the verifiable actions of an untrustworthy adversary over the uncertain outcome of a trusted ally.

That’s the part that sort of lost me? Ryuusei’s strategy here is just, like, impatience. Tachibana has a plan; it’s not a guarantee, but there’s literally nothing to suggest that Tachibana can’t deliver as promised. (Also, I assume this was always the plan? But right this second it’s not good enough for Ryuusei?) Abandoning the plan to date to hope that Yamada – a legit and visible psychopath – will do what he promises, at the cost of Gentarou’s life, is bonkers. If there was no other way, or Tachibana was less certain, or a million other things that’d give Ryuusei some narrative cover for being all I HAVE NO CHOICE, then fine. But he’s just opting to trust Yamada because he can’t risk Jirou’s life, and I just don’t know that he needs to? Jirou isn’t more at risk than he was an episode ago, and the worst case scenario for Tachibana’s plan not working is that there’ll just be another Aries later, right? The Zodiarts still need a full complement of Horoscopes, right? So why the insane gamble?

If it works at all (and it didn’t for me), it’s because this is an episode of Kamen Rider Meteor, not Kamen Rider Fourze. Fourze is the show about the beauty of friendship; Meteor is the show about the tragedy of friendship. Ryuusei’s a guy that can’t stop turning himself into a monster in the hopes of saving his friend, when heroism would get the job done just a little bit slower. His whole story has been about expediency at the cost of empathy, and this final turn is no different. He could trust in his friends to come through for him, or he could take it all on his shoulders and suffer the consequences of that isolation. What’s one more moment of distrust on top of months of deception?

And, y’know, hell of a cliffhanger: Gentarou, dead; Meteor, unmasked; Tomoko, sad. Typical episode of Kamen Rider Meteor!

[Androzani84]

When you transfer schools to find a guy, but he transferred to your school.

Also I love how they use what is clearly Toei’s stock bunny mascot suit for Yamada’s Zodiarts form’s silhouette.

And what a cliffhanger!

Anyway, random thoughts over. Actor trivia time.

I missed out on it last time, but Ryusei’s implied old girlfriend Mei is played by Runa Natsui, aka the female Shinken Red in Shinkenger, Gokaiger and that Go-Busters movie.

And Yamada himself was previously Decade’s alternate Leangle Mutsuki Kuroba.

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Androzani84

And Yamada himself was previously Decade?s alternate Leangle Mutsuki Kuroba.

And now he's the Strongest Zodiart!

[DreadBringer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

KAMEN RIDER FOURZE EPISODE 30 - ?NO NEED FOR SENIORS?

You can sort of tell by how many extra plots this episode had? We?ve got the Ohsugi B-plot that?s exceptionally funny and hugely important to the storytelling dynamics of the show going forward, without it really feeling terribly looped-in on the core idea of trust across generations. (It sort of does ? Ohsugi doesn?t trust the kids to take care of themselves ? but it?s not like he?s been burned by trusting kids before, or that it?s a two-way street or anything. He sort of just needs to feel like what they?re doing matters, and that by helping them he could keep the Club safe. It?s a pretty different cross-generational story?) And then we get a random field trip to Ryuusei?s old school to set up next episode?s escalation of the Aries plotline, with a Libra fight that just feels like it?s an obligatory Meteor showcase, padding out the runtime of the episode. That?s a whole lot of stuff that?s happening around the Haru/Ran story, and that does not speak to the depth of the conflict the KRC are trying to resolve.

Just like Horoscopes regarding Kijima compared to Hayami (albeit Kijima was really a lower level threat by his defeat in ep. 28...), for KRC, especially that Miu and Shun are no longer a part of AGHS, thus they aren't in uniform too, teachers and students have more equal position, so by this, Ohsugi would answer to Miu and probably Yuki as those with higher position, and even he has to obey students' orders like Kengo. Ohsugi insists that teachers and students shouldn't be friends, but Ohsugi still has some integrity in his job as a teacher to protect students, which aligns with what the KRC is doing. Like Miu to change her deal with Gentaro to let her know about KRC, after the KRC is clearly seen as protecting students like teacher's jobs, he changes his deal in obeying rules from reporting them to becoming their advisor.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

It?s a story that?s simultaneously believable and exhausting, this Ran stuff. The entire second part exists because Ran got burned by some older kids she trusted, so now she?ll never trust older kids ever again, but she also won?t ever explain why, because that would require trusting the people who are asking, so we get nonstop narrative obstacles from hell to breakfast that our cast has to puzzle their way around. It?s like the bit about her looking for the friendship charm, where instead of saying what she?s looking for, Kisaragi and the rest of the club have to dredge the viaduct for literally everything, and then try and intuit which single piece of debris is relevant. It?s time-consuming, which honestly wouldn?t be as bad if it weren?t also a completely obvious resolution as well. (I love seeing the cast dedicate themselves to insane demonstrations of friendship!) Haru has been saying loudly and violently that he?s tired of Ran thinking he needs to be protected ? he started using a psychologically-scourging cosmic collectible just to be powerful enough to stand on his own two feet! This was not hidden information! It?s a setup that makes Ran a giant boulder that everyone alternately needs to work around or try and sand down, and I just got real tired of it. I don?t doubt that a kid who found her best friend bullied by older kids she trusted would be a little gun-shy and overprotective in the aftermath, but the level to which Ran drags her feet in order to drag out this kind of thin story was mildly disappointing. They could?ve done more for Ohsugi?s inaugural Switch Story!

This is miscommunication stuff that drags the plot, of which, though you may like it in Faiz, this feeling you have, for others, seems to be the reason why something like Faiz got criticized a lot by them in West, and that miscommunication trope is seen as one of the most annoying running trope for KR as a franchise. Ran has Michinaga Azuma-level of extremity in lumping everyone in a group (teachers included) as rotten after a bad, but common moment, in meeting asshole older students. The solution seems to be about actions over words (and again, what one does at their lowest, like how Gentaro won Miu over by encouraging her as she likely loses), where the KRC proved themselves in wanting to befriend Ran by finding the charm, compared to Gentaro saying he wants to befriend her/Haru before. I guess, compared to usual enemy conflict, Ran should be used as an example of what not to do as a friend (for an active one, rather than the 'passive' one like abandoning), like being overprotective and infantilizing (for other examples that may be brought up, perhaps toxic positivity), where conflicts are created from well-meaning intentions/gestures in this case.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kamen Rider Die

Which, that part was great. I think he?s treated with appropriate level of respect ? he gets rightfully offended at JK?s casual suggestion that he doesn?t care about his students, and he gets nicely intense when Ran reveals that a teacher is the one distributing Switches ? while still being a buffoon that maybe is not a net positive for the Club. (Well, Net positive, maybe.) Where the Haru/Ran story felt like the show going through its paces ostensibly in the service of expanding its world with a new generation, the Ohsugi story felt like the show actually widening its aperture by looking in the other direction, with the staff of Amanogawa High collaborating with the students to forge a path to victory. The stuff with the kids was just a gentler version of the stories we normally get with the 3rd and 4th-year students, while the Ohsugi story had a spark that broadened the scope of what?s possible on the show. Like Gentarou, maybe I had Ohsugi wrong all this time?!

My sub has JK's words translated as "did you really think it has nothing to do with the students?" so, this one isn't about accusing Ohsugi as not caring about students. Ohsugi's plot seems to be about some misunderstanding to be on conflict against the KRC, like how he just now learned that the teachers are distributing Switches, confirming JK's words above that the monster attacks are about the students. Ohsugi is also now on the receiving end of being accused by Ran or being dependent on KRC due to Haru. Ohsugi had Gentaro wrong a lot more than Gentaro had Ohsugi wrong, Ohsugi was just like the previous KRC members who were jerks to Gentaro at first, like Shun and JK, but later moved by his dedication of befriending them. And obviously, thinking that Gentaro drove away Sonoda because she can't stand him. The truth about Sonoda should be revealed in-universe (also related to monster attack) to have Ohsugi's feud with him finally ended, though it might traumatize him to inactivity.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Androzani84

Despite the two parter?s best efforts, I still kind of hate Ohsugi. It doesn?t help that he spends it doing stuff that, in real life, would result in him being at best, fired, at worst, arrested.

Guess, albeit there's a hidden depth for Ohsugi revealed in this episode, Ohsugi is/was an asshole, obviously he'd do unacceptable things like that. He's unpopular among the students because he has bad personality too alongside bad looks. Being a loser and/or comic relief (except for villainous ones like Kuroto or Chirami) doesn't mean that they'd be innocent nice guy (albeit annoying) like Shunpei or Onari. It'd be likely ironic to have Ohsugi report KRC, yet he's the one who got punished (fired/arrested), because of the method he used to try reporting them here, he's the problematic one, not KRC.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Yeah, like, I get Ran just got out of middle school and all, but even by that standard she's way too childish for me to tolerate. If it was just the cold shoulder, or aggressively flipping teachers, or being insensitive towards her only friend's feelings, then that would be more okay. All of them at once is obnoxious and makes me gravitate even harder towards the much more enjoyable Ohsugi plot.

I agree with this part, though Ran may feel like a reharsh of Utsugi before, of which she seems to have the first two part (albeit her kick didn't really hit people). Thus it seems to be the insensitive to the friend's feeling part that is the big factor of her unlikability.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sh Ranger

Well, guys like Gentarou are right there, but it doesn't stop some people from gatekeeping the title of True Kamen Rider.

Maybe Gentaro can still fit said sacrifice mentality, as it can seem that he's sacrificing his life by only dedicating himself to others by becoming their friends and acting as true friend to them, preventing any personal gain. What's seen as real friend by people would involve sacrifice (not being fair-weather friend), like suffering or dying together with them, bearing all their predicaments and becoming their punching bag. He also became a teacher at the end, a profession that has hero label (like doctor or firefighter), only about dealing with other people.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Switchblade

Last time I watched the show I remember thinking Ran and Haru were a lot of lost potential: interesting characters that could have been fun additions to the show if Fourze was allowed to either expand or change its cast. After this viewing I'm going to have to revise that: Ran is an interesting character with potential; Haru is also there. Is there maybe something to him that could be worked with in terms of his poor self-esteem and general weenieness? Probably. But given how much screen time the secondary batch of KRC members are getting I don't think he would've gotten much development. Ran seems pretty fully formed, though, and her proclivity for Akido-tossing everyone could make for a reliable source of comedy. In any case, you can practically feel the writers backing themselves into a corner when they realize that these characters would make a great fit for new members of the KRC but they couldn't actually add new cast members to the show.

The aikido tossing gag would be like the crazy violent tsundere gags. But maybe not have her skills utilized against actual stakes such as the Zodiarts, perhaps likely Dustards, like Hana in Den-O only beating up the core 4 Imagins.

[Kamen Rider Die]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DreadBringer

for KRC, especially that Miu and Shun are no longer a part of AGHS, thus they aren't in uniform too, teachers and students have more equal position, so by this, Ohsugi would answer to Miu and probably Yuki as those with higher position, and even he has to obey students' orders like Kengo.

I don't know if this is right? I see Ohsugi as being a faculty advisor to an afterschool club: he doesn't fit into the hierarchy, because that's only for students, and he exists more as an additional resource for the club, but one that's entirely optional. Like, he's just there to monitor them and make sure they're safe -- he isn't in charge, and he doesn't answer to them. That said, this is just my extrapolation of how clubs usually work; I imagine Ohsugi and Miu would have very different views of things!