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09-09-2021, 09:39 PM | #211 |
Kamen Ride Or Die
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Also yeah now I'm recalling things that I noticed when I first watched this show. And that's Tsukasa, while he still has his noticeable edge, I don't think he ever gets as volatile as he was in the Ryuki and Blade Arcs ever again. I could be wrong since I haven't seen this show in like 9 years but hey. Because well, this is the start where I feel Tsukasa becomes more genuine in his actions? Just the fact that he was genuinely alright with Takumi and and photograph girl in AR Faiz, and only pissed off Lucky Clover while also trying to show off against Diend. The fact that he's going out of his way to help Mr. Agito here for Onodera's sake.
Especially to make it contrast more greatly with Diend who is very much slowly but surely taking the jerk role of the series. At least that's how I'm seeing it. It's a positive change - Tsukasa is at his least Awful To His Friends than we've seen him since the debut episode - but it needed a little more groundwork laid for it. Comes off a little sudden.
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09-10-2021, 02:52 AM | #212 |
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A Kuuga-esque setting that shifts into an Agito-esque one? Insane!
As you’ve probably picked up, there’s a theme to Diend’s summons. Last time, he summoned anti-villainous Movie Riders (Kabuki and Rey), here he summons tertiaries with guns as transformation items. (Delta and Drake) Our new G3/new Gills/new Agito is played by the same guy who played Habataki in the Hibiki movie. Also, they didn’t kill the villain of the arc. Which totally fits with Agito (which had a similar ending), but still stands out. |
09-10-2021, 06:46 AM | #213 |
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What is really great about the Agito world was that Shoichi fulfills all three quotas for each rider identity. As G3 he was trying to be a rider, as Gills he became a rider, and as Agito he already is a rider. This really took me by surprise at the time and boy was it fun. Also, Onodera's subplot was fun too.
If I may point out a correction, Shoichi was Kamen Rider Kirameki in the Hibiki summer movie, the shachihoko motif oni who literally rode a kite to get around.
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09-10-2021, 12:28 PM | #214 |
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What is really great about the Agito world was that Shoichi fulfills all three quotas for each rider identity. As G3 he was trying to be a rider, as Gills he became a rider, and as Agito he already is a rider. This really took me by surprise at the time and boy was it fun. Also, Onodera's subplot was fun too.
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09-10-2021, 03:19 PM | #215 |
Standing By
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It's a cool idea to have the World of Agito as a sequel to the World of Kuuga, since those two shows are loosely connected. This arc just takes that concept to the next level, by having actual fights between the Unidentified Lifeforms and Unknowns. Even Yuusuke using G3-X is meta, since that suit was based on Kuuga. Speaking of Yuusuke, he's the real MVP of this arc. After how much of a bystander he was in the World of Faiz (which doesn't get a Kamen Ride here, what gives Decade!), it's nice to finally see him get some more development. Especially since it involves him scoring hero points against Kaito. Even though G3-X is basically a downgrade for Yuusuke compared to the lightweight and versatile Kuuga, I commend him for wanting to honor Yashiro's invention. He also learns to accept that what Yashiro needs isn't him, but his counterpart in this world, Shouichi. So there's a good moral about moving on and not getting too stuck in the past and Yuusuke's and Kivaala's friendship gets a few cute scenes as well. Enjoyable arc!
Agito is 17/19 in my Heisei Rider Ranking, just above Kuuga. I agree with Die's assessment that Agito is a better Kuuga, which makes sense considering how Inoue wrote the best episodes of Kuuga IMO. Although I think Hibiki is also a better Kuuga, in a different kind of way. Man, even this paragraph is talking more about Kuuga than Agito! Well, one improvement with Agito is the villains. The Unknowns are boring characters, but as a faction, I think they're more interesting and philosophical than the unambiguously evil Unidentified Lifeforms at least. The summer movie is just awful though. It's also pretty unique to have Ashikawa Shouichi be the counterpart of the whole Rider trio from Agito, who are all represented in his name. He goes from G3-X to Exceed Gills to his true Agito form. So it's like what if Hikawa was a dormant Agito and had to learn how to control that power, which is an intriguing concept that I think would have been cool to see utilized in the show, so I'm glad they did it here. Similar to Tatsumi Shinji, he seems to be a little edgier than his usually plucky main counterpart.
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09-10-2021, 04:55 PM | #216 |
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It's also pretty unique to have Ashikawa Shouichi be the counterpart of the whole Rider trio from Agito, who are all represented in his name. He goes from G3-X to Exceed Gills to his true Agito form. So it's like what if Hikawa was a dormant Agito and had to learn how to control that power, which is an intriguing concept that I think would have been cool to see utilized in the show, so I'm glad they did it here. Similar to Tatsumi Shinji, he seems to be a little edgier than his usually plucky main counterpart.
Like, the easy description is "G3-X who became Gills", but that misses how much Ryou and Hikwawa would deal with adversity differently. Ryou would grit his teeth and brood as the universe shit on him, then lash out at anyone who would pity him. Hikawa would assume that he brought it on himself... somehow, and then cheerfully step to the side so that his cosmic annihilation didn't upset or distract any of his friends/enemies. This Shouichi misses out on the Imposter Syndrome that defines Hikawa, the unshakeable belief that he isn't good enough to be worth cheering on. I wonder if this Shouichi would've felt less like a cipher to me if he'd had that weird I Appreciate You Giving Up On Me energy that Hikawa had, rather than Ryou's more stock Please Watch My Misery antihero thing. I don't know.
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09-10-2021, 06:54 PM | #217 |
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This is easily one of my absolute favorite two-parters from Decade. It basically defines everything a good Decade story ought to be, with a plot that's firmly focused on its own original drama, while paying tribute to earlier shows in new and creative ways.
Exploiting the connection between Kuuga and Agito was just the smartest possible decision to make, for one. It's just such an enticing concept for die-hard Rider fans, and yet adding a few scoops of Kuuga into the recipe manages not to detract from that Agito flavor. Heck, while I think Yashiro makes a so-so Ichijou, she's a heck of an Ozawa. But like, even more than that, she's Yashiro, and I think that's what ~maybe~ most impressed me about these ones – how well they work as Decade episodes. (It's a tough call though; the all-in-one Agito Rider concept for this Shouichi is utterly brilliant, both as another fun concept and as a way to streamline the narrative.) It's a story all about Newsuke that very successfully grounds its drama entirely in what viewers of this show know about him, and it's a great example of why it's really not that crazy that so many people watch Decade without having seen the previous nine shows. You can go into this with no context beyond it being about our pal Yuusuke Onodera arriving with the rest of the gang into this weird new world that's kinda like his weird new world, and it works simply on that level, above all else. I think his character arc here, basically overcoming this temptation to chase something that isn't there, is super compelling, and everything that springs out of that all ties together very cleanly, in my opinion. I honestly don't at all agree that this development for Tsukasa is abrupt. Pointing to the lack of focus for Newsuke over the past four episodes seems like a bit of a... mathematical way to look at things? There's been a month of distance, sure, but I don't think that changes how the Ryuki arc made a huge point of how much Tsukasa values Newsuke's friendship. (That two-parter literally ends with Tsukasa calling a picture of the two of them together a photo of the best team.) I don't see much about Tsukasa's attitude throughout these episodes as being particularly out-of-character, especially with how he refuses to be explicit about his motivations (even changing the subject the second Newsuke figures it out.) That whole "don't make me sound like a villain" exchange is one of my favorite Tsukasa bits ever, and the whole reason why is because Natsumi really isn't giving him enough credit? He's got an attitude problem and he revels in trolling people, but Tsukasa, since day one, has never actually been that hesitant to help people out – he's mostly just bad at it, because, by his own admission, he's not great at understanding people. So yeah, he pulls some stunts every now and then, but if he can do something nice for the one guy cool enough to stick up for him even when he's mocking Blade for getting fired, and maybe score some Agito trading cards in the process, I mean, why wouldn't he? Mind you, I also don't expect much from character development in Decade, so I don't know, I'm probably just giving a way too optimistic reading of Decade's apathetic attitude (...just like Newsuke in those Blade episodes!) Still though, yeah, even with potential issues regarding Tsukasa here, this is a very strong set of episodes all around.
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09-10-2021, 07:25 PM | #218 |
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I honestly don't at all agree that this development for Tsukasa is abrupt. Pointing to the lack of focus for Newsuke over the past four episodes seems like a bit of a... mathematical way to look at things? There's been a month of distance, sure, but I don't think that changes how the Ryuki arc made a huge point of how much Tsukasa values Newsuke's friendship. (That two-parter literally ends with Tsukasa calling a picture of the two of them together a photo of the best team.) I don't see much about Tsukasa's attitude throughout these episodes as being particularly out-of-character, especially with how he refuses to be explicit about his motivations (even changing the subject the second Newsuke figures it out.)
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It... I don't feel like Tsukasa's unaware, or disinterested. I think he's a guy that doesn't fit in, and he's trying to be a good friend/hero, but he keeps rushing things.
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09-10-2021, 08:40 PM | #219 |
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Given how close Agito and Kuuga is in certain aspects, I do love the idea that the Agito world is a parallel twist on the Kuuga world. It's like Jay Garrick and Barry Allen to me.
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09-11-2021, 07:02 AM | #220 |
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Sorry about that, I may have been exaggerating a little by saying Inoue's the only one who can deliver those philosophies. There are probably others writers who can do similar themes to Inoue, like Kobayashi who uses a lot of the same tropes and ideas, but generally I think that Inoue's style is just more aligned with my preferences.
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Being mocked isn't really a problem for transformative fans, but rather a problem for those people who disapprove of their work. The worst problem would be to have all that inspiration wasted by doing nothing about it, out of fear of how others might perceive it. We can't appease everybody all the time and we're not obliged to. As long as we're doing something we enjoy and that somebody else, even just one person, might enjoy and learn from, then I think it's worth it for that. Doing it for yourself and for pride can be a powerful and constructive motivation.
Kuroto is exactly the kind of guy who would bash transformative fans, like Emu innocently submitting his game ideas being the catalyst for pretty much everything that happened in that show. Kuroto was so possessive of his IP that he became jealous of Emu's creativity, instead of taking it as flattery like friendly game developers would. Quote:
SWITCHBLADE: I've been here from day one. I was really active in the older Rider Kick thread on TFW2005, so when Tokunation was spun off I followed over. I spent some time at Henshin Justice Unlimited, but never felt like I really fit in there.
KAMEN RIDER DIE: Well, as someone very very late to the game, let me thank you for making this collection of threads into a home. It's a nice site, with nice people. Good folks, the lot of 'em. Where do you find yourself spending most of your TokuNation time, thread-wise? Any particular favorites? Quote:
KAMEN RIDER DIE: It's a great way to utilize the Ozawa character, because it sort of dissects and interrogates the paternalistic qualities of our heroes. Yashiro is desperate to protect Shouichi/Hikawa in the same way that Shouichi/Hikawa is desperate to protect Yashiro in the same way Onodera is desperate to protect Yashiro, and it's all so unsustainable and destructive. I like that it's a story about how overbearing it can be to put someone up on a pedestal like that, to presume they can't take care of themselves. Ozawa was always a character that couldn't do nothing about Hikawa's tendency to self-sabotage - dude couldn't miss a bus without cheerfully giving up on himself - but she also needed to let him do the work on his own shortcomings.
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KAMEN RIDER DIE: Yeah, that was a thing that threw me for the first few Shouichi scenes: he's totally not Shouichi for the entirety of this story. He's Ryou's isolation from humanity with Hikawa's self-sabotaging earnestness. But Shouichi? I'm just not seeing any of that character in this one, besides an eventual form change.
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KAMEN RIDER DIE: He's a bit of a cipher in this one, getting through the narrative largely off of Yashirozawa's concern and the Exceed Gills suit.
Which, man, Exceed Gills: not my favorite suit from Agito! SWITCHBLADE: So the suit thing. The show used Exceed because the original Gills suit fell apart in storage. It was water damage and/or mold. KAMEN RIDER DIE: Interesting! I had no idea. That explains things! That's what they get for flinging Gills into the river so many times. Quote:
SWITCHBLADE: Tsukasa is a really frustrating character sometimes.
I think that part of it is that he feels like a guy who watched Kabuto and decided that Tendou was what a Kamen Rider is like, but had no handle on any of his nuances. But a lot of it is just that his goals and motivations tend to lack much consistency from episode to episode. KAMEN RIDER DIE: Him getting closer to Onodera, despite ignoring him for the last month's worth of episodes, reads a bit like a reaction to Diend's introduction. It feels like the production noticed how similar Decade and Diend came off in the Faiz episodes - they are each more or less solo acts, and happier for it - so this story has a plotline where Tsukasa is a more team-oriented guy, a friendlier hero. It's not completely unwarranted, as character growth goes. We'd already had a couple stories about working with people, and about believing in other viewpoints. I get Tsukasa respecting Onodera, and maybe feeling a little abandoned by Onodera's imminent departure. But Tsukasa's whole Of Course I Care About Onodera thing just feels like something entirely different happened in the last two episodes, instead of Onodera staying home and sometimes getting knocked out. Quote:
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KAMEN RIDER DIE: I think it did a decent job of landing some big Agito themes by the end. Using the Unknown to take out the Grongi, but framing it as Protection vs Keeping People From Achieving Their Full Potential, and then having the Shouichi/Yashirozawa/Onodera story run alongside that... it's muddled at points, but I think it gets at the messiness of what Inoue was after with that series. Agito was about change being unpredictable but necessary, and these two episodes honored those themes, I thought.
SWITCHBLADE: What I always come back to with Agito's theming is that so much of the show is about evolution and these episodes really nailed that for me. It's a big part of why I love how they handled the three Riders: Shouichi starts as G3, goes into Gills as a sort of pupal state, then emerges as Agito. Onodera definitely wants to go back to the relationship he had with his Yashiro but realizes he can't and decides to do what he can to help her get what she wants instead. Tsukasa is... also there. It's a good literal and metaphorical take on the concept.
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