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03-12-2022, 06:35 PM | #91 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
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KAMEN RIDER ZI-O EPISODE 3 - “DOCTOR GAMER 2018”
Sorta split on this one? It’s an episode that takes forever to get going, but I was way less into it once it did? Like, I could’ve watched an entire episode of Sougo being an average student and the team of Geiz and Tsukuyomi being incredibly weird. It’s the best part of this episode, by a mile. The time spent establishing this potentially combustible grouping is the smartest decision this show has made to date. They’re very fun together, once the show lets them get into a routine. Sougo snaps into focus here, as a kid who’s well-meaning but overmatched by the world. Him talking about how a friend is going to have a place in Sougo’s future kingdom comes off less as a warning sign to get a mental health professional involved, and more as a cute affectation. There’s a lot of warmth to his ineptitude, and his earnestness makes him feel central to the narrative. He’s a comedy character intersecting with a sci-fi story, and that tension finally starts feeling like something valuable. Everything in the school was great, for the ways it reframed the story as one that’s interfering with a normal kid’s normal life. Having Tsukuyomi and Geiz very poorly surveil Sougo is a fantastic plotline, because it grounds the story back into Sougo’s life, instead of dragging him all over time and space for reasons he can’t comprehend. It’s also funny as hell? Every cut to our two Time Orphans pressing their faces up to windows or peering from binoculars at a six foot distance was great. It’s a big episode for our core trio. But Geiz! Big episode for Geiz, specifically! As this episode’s (non-cameo) Legend Rider would indicate, this is a story about pushing Geiz to be less of a taciturn assassin and more of a goddamn Kamen Rider. Hiiro’s a dude who, ironically, took a while to become a hero. As Kamen Rider Brave (a thing he is not called once in this episode), he warred against the Bugsters for pride, for vengeance, for guilt. It took him a long time to fight for people, to protect their futures. Geiz is sort of in the early stages of that, where he’s willing to fight monsters and threaten teenage doofuses, but actually helping people is something he more or less needs to be cajoled into. Tsukuyomi teases him about it in this episode, that he’s accidentally giving Sougo valuable advice and pretty integral to their success as a group of heroes. But it’s Hiiro’s direct plea to investigate Emu’s disappearance that feels like a turning point. It’s the Zi-O story I’d hoped to see, where a hero sees something of themselves in our cast, and wants to make their journey a little easier, a little more navigable. Hiiro handing Geiz the crucial clue and Geiz being like What Wait… best point in the episode. And then everything after that is a bit of a bummer. It’s the dumb rules they set for themselves that help weaken the finale. We were told last time that only Ex-Aid’s power can defeat Another Ex-Aid… but Zi-O and Geiz don’t have that yet, so they can only fight Another Ex-Aid to a standstill, at best. That sucks! I’m all about Kamen Rider stories where our heroes try and push back an unrelenting tide, or battle a foe that’s impossible to defeat in order to stall for another shot at success. Stories about never giving up, or taking on insurmountable odds? Yeah, sure, definitely. But not in the third episode. It’s way way too early for our heroes to be like Welp Time To Bang Our Heads Against The Wall, but that’s sort of the only outcome we’re likely to get in these multi-part stories? This isn’t about our heroes being unaware of a monster’s pattern, or weak-point, or whatever, all the normal narrative tricks to delay a successful resolution until the concluding installment. This is the show outright saying You Can’t Win Until Part Two, and it sucked all the fun out of the fight for me. Beyond that hiccup, it was a fun episode. As much of an Ex-Aid fan as I am, I wish they’d never fought a monster. Everything up to them ending up in the Game World was delightfully strange, and addictively sweet. Letting Tsukuyomi and Geiz get as weird as Sougo was a godsend. Gimme a hundred more scenes of Sougo being terrible at tasks and Geiz accidentally being helpful and Tsukuyomi cheerfully stalking people. That version of this show is the best. — KAMEN RIDER ZI-O COMPLEMENTATION PROJECT EPISODE 3.5 - “REGAL SPOILERS” Hey, I never talked about Ora! She’s okay! In the actual episode, we only see her tease Heure about last episode’s disaster, and convince a terrified father to become Another Ex-Aid. It’s not a lot! I liked her playful demeanor, but it’s not a million miles away from what we got with Heure. Ora’s taller, though? So there’s that? Also, this short film was the best one yet. It continues the theme of the episode, where our heroes work as a team for the first time (it is a Kamen Rider Ex-Aid tribute story, so expect Teamwork to be a main theme), while being recalibrated for Insane. When Ora informs the heroes that there’ll be a Rider War in the future, Team Zi-O strategizes how to prevent it. Tsukuyomi wants to “persuade” the writer (which comes off as “seduce”), Geiz wants to kill the producers, and Sougo (with the most unrealistic suggestion, naturally) makes a case for blowing up all of Toei Studios. They’re way better when they’re a group of lunatic teenagers! I’m glad this show finally figured that out!
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03-12-2022, 06:46 PM | #92 |
Alias: ZeroEnchiladas
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 2,570
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If there's one nice thing I can say about the Ex-Aid Episodes... it's that they continue the nice setup in terms of the dynamic the cast has. And one of my absolute favorite dynamics is that while Tsukuyomi and Geiz will dress for the time period, they will not fully dress for the time period. Tsukuyomi rocking her cape while Geiz is wearing his harness. It also cracked me up how he had his lunch just hooked to it too!
I never really got deflated by the "Oh they can't beat it the first time" style this series basically gives out at the beginning. Mostly cause I just enjoy some fun fight scenes, and there's some neat stuff in here. Might just be my mindset though. Anyway, now that we've more solidly settled into our dynamic. While the scenes at school are great, I absolutely adore the 9-5-DO (Clockshop) scenes in particular. Not just in this episode either, I'm talking about like... in all of Zi-O. I feel like the scenes set in that shop/house are some of the strongest ones for a variety of reasons. And I can't wait for you to get more of them as you continue through. Not much to say on the BGM Swap this time, just more EXCITE! Zero's Legend Episode Previews Corner - EP 4 Preview: |
03-12-2022, 06:52 PM | #93 |
Precure enthusiast
Join Date: Dec 2021
Location: Amongst the Cosmos
Posts: 304
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Episode 3, oh man, Episode 3!!!!!!!
This is the episode where I started to enjoy what Zi-O was putting down? With the tutorial arc out of the way, this is where Zi-O properly takes its first step, in my opinion! I liked this episode alot better than 1 and 2. -Our main trio! Their dynamic is on full display this episode as they try to work out the Mystery of the Week, and it's great! (That whole school bit? Perfect.) I love how Geiz is so adamantly I'm Not Going to Help You, standing away as far as possible from Sougo in every other scene, only to push the investigation forward in his own ways. Tsukuyomi and Sougo are a bit more in sync, with Tsuku being our brain, and Sougo Doing His Best off of that infomation, and I kinda love that? This episode reminded me that I really did love these 3*, excited to see their escapades again. (*Sougo is probably at his best for me when he's bouncing off these two? Still pretty nuetral on him atm.) -Oh yeah, the Ex-Aid guys are here! I thought Hiiro's Legend Rider apperance was pretty solid. Fun little callback here and there, provided some info for the kids, didn't overstay his welcome: that's all I needed. Definitely felt like a step up from the Build one. I have genuinely forgotten what Emu's deal in this arc was, so looking forward to discovering it again. Overall, solid episode, only hindered by that odd cliffhanger due to the rules of the show. -Feel free to use "Destroying Toei Studio would be faster!" for expressing all of your Rider related woes, I know I sure have. |
03-12-2022, 06:52 PM | #94 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
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Quote:
Anyway, now that we've more solidly settled into our dynamic. While the scenes at school are great, I absolutely adore the 9-5-DO (Clockshop) scenes in particular. Not just in this episode either, I'm talking about like... in all of Zi-O. I feel like the scenes set in that shop/house are some of the strongest ones for a variety of reasons. And I can't wait for you to get more of them as you continue through.
Plus, I just like scenes where everyone sits around and eats? It's a nicely de-escalated version of the normal tensions, where people can sort of be dicks but still take part in a communal activity. (It will not surprise anyone that Inoue excelled at these scenes.) For all of the cafes in the franchise, there're precious few scenes of casts eating together. It's surprisingly beneficial to investing in the characters?
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03-12-2022, 06:57 PM | #95 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
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Quote:
Oh yeah, this Ex-Aid guys are here! I thought Hiiro's Legend Rider apperance was pretty solid. Fun little callback here and there, provided some info for the kids, didn't overstay his welcome: that's all I needed. Definitely felt like a step up from the Build one. I have genuinely forgotten what Emu's deal in this arc was, so looking forward to discovering it again.
I have for sure seen that screencap, even before I knew where it came from. I'd never blow up Toei, though. They make all my favorite stuff! Sougo is being characteristically short-sighted in this scene! Do not emulate his behavior!
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03-12-2022, 07:57 PM | #96 |
New Member
Join Date: Mar 2020
Location: Evanston IL.
Posts: 95
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What do you think Another Ex-Aid Designs?
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03-12-2022, 07:58 PM | #97 |
Warrior of Delusions!
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Wait, you dont know either?
Posts: 5,825
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Sougo is at his best when he's just a doofus somehow managing to obtain horrendous powers and going "Yeah, I can use these for good". The dynamic established here is honestly the best part of these early episodes, and gives Zi-O the thing that always comes up when I compare it to Decade. Consistency. Decade is constantly moving between worlds, never belonging, with the cafe/photo shop/the old guy and Kivara never really fitting in. Here, Junchiro and the Clock Repair shop is an essential part of the show, and I think it's stronger for it.
Also, I compltely forgot Hiiro was in this one, whoops!
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03-12-2022, 08:24 PM | #98 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 6,159
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It's fine? All of the Another designs just read as Kamen Rider S.I.C. to me, honestly. They're all monstrous takes on established designs. They're good at what they're doing, but there's very little in any specific monster suit for me to get excited about.
Quote:
Sougo is at his best when he's just a doofus somehow managing to obtain horrendous powers and going "Yeah, I can use these for good". The dynamic established here is honestly the best part of these early episodes, and gives Zi-O the thing that always comes up when I compare it to Decade. Consistency. Decade is constantly moving between worlds, never belonging, with the cafe/photo shop/the old guy and Kivara never really fitting in. Here, Junchiro and the Clock Repair shop is an essential part of the show, and I think it's stronger for it.
To me, it's that Sougo needs help. (In many different ways!) Tsukasa always vaguely-to-loudly resented anyone trying to assist him, and most episodes backed him up. Here, Sougo is definitely unable to do anything without someone giving him a hand. The team aspect of the show is significantly heightened from Decade, which makes similar scenes feel a bit more caring.
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03-12-2022, 08:48 PM | #99 |
Member
Join Date: Dec 2019
Location: World of Ataru
Posts: 857
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Part 1 of the Ex-Aid Tribute was definite step up from the premier imo. I felt that spending more time seeing Sougo average school day while contrasting with his current interaction with Geiz and Tsukuyomi was a piece of concise storytelling.
Also I can't help but bring this up but while Sougo trying to find "M" he runs into these two guys. That's Tom Constatine a senior editor of Tokusatsu Newtwork and Paul Sullivan aka IgaDevil. I just thought it was fun two well known English speaking Kamen Rider fans who's done alot in terms of help bridging the understanding of tokusatsu and Japan for us that don't live there. This is somewhat unrelated but I recently saw a Youtube video complining every single eating scene in Ultraman TDG Trilogy. And made me come to the realization that these are humanizing moments for characaters so I'd definitly agree with the sentiment here. Though with Covid (understandably of course) these types of scenes have been drastically reduce.
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Last edited by GrandComplete; 03-12-2022 at 08:51 PM.. |
03-12-2022, 08:52 PM | #100 |
Reiei
Join Date: Sep 2018
Posts: 3,691
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Tom Constantine is also a suit actor (I don't know which ones he wore), and also made a cameo in RealxTime.
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