|
As of episode 3, I'm still enjoying the show, but the problem is Kouta is an awesome character... and no one else is. Kouta's actor is wonderful at character acting from how he displays his emotions to delivering his lines. His reaction when Kaito transforms was very well done with Kouta shrinking and realizing what he's done. The rest of the cast falls flat for me. Kaito is a one-note shallow character who represents an ideal and that's it. There's nothing else to him. I'm going to keep enjoying Gaim for Kouta alone, I'm sure, but they really need to build up the others characters. While I get it's supposed to be a takeoff of Spider-Man, the whole scene with Kouta's sister was very awkward and bizarre in its execution. There was no power and warning behind it like Uncle Ben's classic words. I don't really get why they went for the whole "stop playing games" angle when it should've been more direct about how Kouta needs to become a man. It's a strange message in a kids show about dudes in fruit samurai suits. Like Urobuchi and the other staff are trying to be clever? But it just comes off as borderline incoherent. I have issue with his sister talking about helping others in the workforce too, but that's just standard Japan moralizing that I'm used to in their entertainment media by now. If anything, Kouta "selfishly" working to help his friends and family, and not other people he doesn't know, is what the hugely vast majority of people do when making a living. Of course Kouta is going about it entirely the wrong way and this is a TV series about him becoming a hero. That's the whole point. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 17:25 on Oct 24, 2013 |
#
¿
Oct 24, 2013 17:19
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 21, 2024 00:09 |
|
|
Edit: Ignore this.
Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 07:12 on Jan 14, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Jan 13, 2014 21:45
|
|
|
Blaze Dragon posted:This was a mistranslation, the scan talked about "the Lock Dealer era", which the translator thought was talking about Sid proper as Sigurd. We still have no idea who Sigurd actually is. Oh, I see. I'm glad they're keeping it a legitimate surprise! It's very likely Sid shows up later on as another Rider if he isn't Sigurd though...
|
|
#
¿
Jan 14, 2014 07:13
|
|
|
Man, this show is so good. Kouta is officially up there with the coolest Heisei Riders like Gentaro and Shotaro as of episode 23. I've liked him since the start, but dang. I did not expect the Kachidoki Arms reveal to be that excellent in every way. The craziest part is we still have more than half of the series to go! The possibilities are endless. I'm looking forward to how Micchy will claw himself back up the totem pole next and manipulate everyone in grand fashion. I think he's going to try gaining new power this time, in addition to manipulating all parties involved after what happened last time. It's funny because if Sid (what an idiot), Ryouma, and Takatora didn't intervene, Micchy would've been the supreme victor with almost no opposition. He just didn't predict everyone else to be much less competent and magnitudes less ballsy than him, which is why I expect him to find other avenues for achieving his ambitions. He's my second favorite after Kouta and I enjoy rooting for the underdogs. I hope the show spreads around some of these upgrades because, while I get why thematically, it's been extremely one-sided in Kouta's favor. I like seeing everyone getting cool as heck new forms, so I hope that changes soon. I hope Kaito receives an upgrade... and doesn't get killed by the Overlord Inves, which I'm expecting at this point. RIP Kaito. Your strength brought you places, but not far enough. Really, I'll be shocked if Kaito is living past the next 2-3 episodes, since there was endless death flags this week. Well, either that or he becomes Kouta's ally for real this time. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 00:15 on Mar 25, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Mar 25, 2014 00:06
|
|
|
TerminusEst13 posted:Wizard was basically Kiva all over again. Incredible suits, kickass theme and motifs, interesting introduction, completely blows a fat one by episode 10 and never quite picks it up again. Wizard and Kiva are both similar to Faiz too, which also has incredibly awesome suit design, one of the best belts ever, very creative themes and premise... and it's terrible after a few episodes and somehow declines more in the most laughable ways from there. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 18:50 on Mar 27, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Mar 27, 2014 18:46
|
|
|
I can't believe I liked Micchy and his manipulative ways at one point... but now it's looking like the point of no return for him. He's more detestable than Sid at this point. But it's the strength of Gaim that it's shown such character development for several characters. Especially in a short period of time.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 21, 2014 22:46
|
|
|
Some Numbers posted:Micchy had a slow, steady and believable descent into shitdom. I thought he was the most interesting character in the early part of the series and I still like his character a lot. He's completely detestable, but I like how they got him to this point. I think his arc was really well written. Don't get me wrong. I agree that Micchy's gradual progression into the biggest rear end in a top hat in the series is very well written. It's a sight to see who was initially most harmless dude turn into a guy who literally and figuratively shoots his best friend in the back, while also scheming against every single other individual around. Including his goddamn brother who legitimately cares about him. Micchy deserves to be hated and he's done an impressive job setting himself up for his descent into the worst Armored Rider alive. It's also interesting how he's one of the most influential, powerful characters, despite still having a standard Sengoku Driver with zero upgrades. Even if said power and influence is waning. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 05:12 on Apr 22, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Apr 22, 2014 05:01
|
|
|
Well, I guess that's how Micchy gets his upgrade, since I wasn't expecting him to stick with base Ryugen forever... But drat, what a stone-cold incredible unrepentant rear end in a top hat. It looks like Kouta finds out Micchy's true colors in the next episode though, if the preview isn't being tricky. Now can Takatora show up with Melon Raiment soon and destroy everyone? I hope he's back sooner rather than later because he's the most admirable, compelling character. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 04:27 on May 5, 2014 |
|
#
¿
May 5, 2014 04:21
|
|
|
I have to say Kiwami Arms looks super lame in comparison to the awesome design of Kachidoki, though we haven't seen it in motion yet. It has too much garish plastic junk and a bog standard design, which is the exact opposite of Kachidoki's sleek, creative design. I don't know why they didn't swap the suits for Kouta's upgrade progression because it just doesn't fit... Otherwise, Gaim is such a ridiculously great show at this point. It shocks and amazes me more and more by the week. Kaito's even becoming an admirable person!
|
|
#
¿
May 26, 2014 20:22
|
|
|
jonjonaug posted:Some new magazine scans have surfaced. Linked for spoilers. I'm very happy to see Pierre back in action. It's awesome to see him fighting Micchy. Jounouchi's ever-failing ways will surely be endlessly amusing too.
|
|
#
¿
May 28, 2014 00:45
|
|
|
I can't wait to see more of Commander Kaito and where Yoko goes as a character now that she's no longer under Ryouma's grasp. I hope Kaito and Yoko become the strongest team. It's crazy how Kaito went from a gimmicky walking plot device in earlier episodes to the most admirable, compelling character in the series. Yoko can have actual character development now! I'm glad Oren is still a pivotal character! Jounouchi coming back as a bro was the best! I love this show! Kiwami Arms is, by far, the dumbest looking suit in the series, especially after how superb Kachidoki's baller design is. But I'm okay with it because the fight in this week's episode was amazing. Kiwami can be as silly looking as it wants if it has powers and choreography that sweet. Plus I like the cape, even if the suit itself is junk. Baron Lemon Arms is so cool too. Every new form been looking more stylized and svelte as the show progresses, so it's a little lame to have the final form look like an overly plastic busy mess. But I can deal with how excellent Gaim is every week. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 23:07 on Jun 2, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Jun 2, 2014 23:03
|
|
|
Oren goes nuts and it's beautiful. I'm glad he's still around and at his best, even with missiles about to strike Zawame City and Roshuo having the goddamn power to purge them reality. Gaim is a Really Good Show.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 23, 2014 02:05
|
|
|
That was an insane episode. Superb stuff. Wow. I'm thinking the preview is being extremely deceptive and Takatora is the one who is murdered by Micchy and the Overlords at the last second. But I'm hoping it doesn't happen because Takatora is the best and I want him to be a real player in the plot again.  Then again, that outcome would be too easy, so maybe not? It's tough to say. Since Micchy was deathflagged nine ways to Sunday too.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 2, 2014 03:38
|
|
|
As amusing as soccer antics look, now of all times to have another movie tie-in is a little unfortunate. But I hope Takatora is saved by a whale and returns to finish off Micchy! It'll feel totally wrong if Kouta ends Micchy, since it really isn't his fight.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 7, 2014 01:48
|
|
|
Wow. Gaim is such a great show. I love how Mai goes back in time and does absolutely nothing except make it easier for Sagara to move it all along. It's so clever. Kaito is a boss. Total boss. It's a shame he can't win because of genre conventions though.King of Solomon posted:That said, I'm disappointed in this episode, because Micchy remains unmurdered. Goddamn it Gaim. It's much more fitting that Micchy lives through it all to see how much he hosed it all up at this point. He deserves to suffer. It's fun to see that juxtaposed against Ryouma, who died because of his sheer selfishness and accomplished nothing.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 1, 2014 01:21
|
|
|
Rei_ posted:I don't think we're going to get a reset button ending. This has been Kaito's arc and undoing it would leave him robbed, honestly. Mai can easily being Kouta back, and Micchy is still alive, and I HONESTLY don't think Takatora is really dead. He died in a way literally EVERYONE comes back from. There is no way in hell that that Takatora is coming back to life. It would be amazingly silly with how his death was framed for Micchy's character development. I can totally see him coming back in a movie though. They've done it before with characters like Ankh. But I agree that they're not doing a reset ending, especially since the main three Riders aren't dead. I'm halfway expecting Oren and Jounouchi dying too. Maaaaybe Zack will live, but I wouldn't be surprised if Kaito kills him for some reason or another. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 06:13 on Sep 1, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Sep 1, 2014 05:54
|
|
|
That was a pretty hardcore episode. Even if Kaito's dialog was kinda awful at times. It was too over-the-top, if that's even possible by Kaito standards. I think Urobuchi is leaning too hard on his overwhelming strength and it feels like a parody at this point. I liked following Kaito as a badass underdog who you wanted to see succeed. Now he feels like a caricature of that. Maybe that's fitting thematically with how he turned into a literal monster, but I feel like it's leaning too much on cheap writing. Last week's episode was much more balanced when it came to Kaito. It didn't feel as cloying and overbearing. I still enjoyed episode 45 very much, but hopefully next episode turns it down a couple notches. Looks like next week's episode will have a Kazuma vs. Ryuhou battle, if the preview is any indicator! Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 03:00 on Sep 15, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Sep 15, 2014 02:58
|
|
|
Potsticker posted:Mage from Wizard at least got a character arc. Marika has just stood around the entire show. Yeah, it's unfortunate. I was all like "now that Yoko is free of Ryouma, she can get some character development" when that episode aired... and that never happened. Urobuchi has never written a decent female character though, so it's nothing new. But it's still a waste of potential. Then again, it could also be mandated (and nothing to do with Urobuchi or any of the writers) because she's a female character in Kamen Rider, which is depressingly likely. Mai's treatment has been a dodgy mess too. She's literally a trophy for the cast to fight over in the finale. Sigh. Remember when the show runners said Mai was as important as the Riders? Yuuuup. Even with all its dubious writing faults, Gaim is still a drat great show. The Rider War flashforward was pretty cool, even if it was ultimately meaningless!
|
|
#
¿
Sep 16, 2014 00:59
|
|
|
That ending was pretty good overall, even with the obvious flaws. Fabulous epilogue, especially for Micchy and Jounouchi. Even if it's cheap, I really like the concept of Takatora coming back to guide Micchy on a new path. But I don't really get the preceding bit with Kouta/Kaito/Mai. It was much too clean, bland, and bizarre, even by Gaim standards. At all. Like what was going on there? What were they going for? The battle was short and poorly paced with a dull finale. But it feels like the episode before the epilogue was written by committee with how lame it was. I get the whole death/rebirth theme, but boy, it was horribly awkward and tonally off. Still, the epilogue redeems it, and it's easy to forget it with how the whole thing feels like two wildly different episodes. But man, I wish that Kouta killed Kaito in an impressive way and not literally cheap-shotted him with his own weapon. Ridiculously dumb. It didn't even work thematically, given how it was a battle of ideals... and Kouta doing that goes against the concept! The episode just felt so half-assed before the epilogue. It's straaange. I'm looking forward to Jounouchi finally getting to be The Man on his own terms next week. Should be a fun episode to send off Gaim before Drive. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 03:21 on Sep 23, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Sep 23, 2014 03:18
|
|
|
That final episode was okay, I guess. Last week's epilogue was much more satisfying and this just felt unnecessary. I'm not sure why they gave Hase's belt to Jounouchi and then... he got owned hard. He didn't put up an ounce of fight. Bizarre writing, though it's obvious Urobuchi didn't write this one with how wildly inconsistent it was. I'm really looking forward to Kamen Rider Drive next week. It has lots of potential! It's weird how this last episode decided not to sneak in a Drive cameo too. That would've been much cooler than God Kouta showing up to save the day.
Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 01:59 on Sep 29, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Sep 29, 2014 01:57
|
|
|
RBX posted:The real point of this ep was Michy's redemption. He's even officially the "second" rider for future stuff which is pretty cool. That's an interesting point, actually. Micchy is the only Rider, outside of Kouta, who still has his belt and lockseed. Unless a future movie pulls silly antics through Kouta or the like, Micchy is the one taking on the torch, which is pretty nice thematically. A Kamen Rider Ryugen Returns movie would be super cool, actually.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 29, 2014 19:07
|
|
|
Dexie posted:I wish they had kept doing Returns movies. I would have loved to see Birth Returns or Meteor Returns. It's a shame Beast Returns never happened because Nitoh was like 9000000x more interesting and amusing than Haruto ever could be. Now Beast is forgotten forever with all that potential lost. Speaking of the next Movie War, it seems that the film has Ryugen and Zangetsu Shin, so both Micchy and Takatora will be fighting. I wonder how they pull that off. Maybe it takes place in an alternate dimension with Ryouma back with new belts... or maybe Ryouma never died. I wouldn't put it past the dude to fake his death! Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 02:24 on Sep 30, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Sep 30, 2014 02:10
|
|
|
Serious Frolicking posted:You know, the only thing really stopping Kouta from popping in at random to chuck lockseeds at people is good taste. That, and no one wants to see more blonde Kouta. I really hope the next movie doesn't overuse Kouta's omnipotent godly powers too much because he's on another level far above every other Rider in existence. Well, maybe Tsukasa comes close, but still, it will incredibly stupid if Kouta can do everything under the sun AND he's always in the spotlight. I don't even see how there can be a proper challenge for Kouta... unless he fights the embodiment of the universe's darkness itself or something equally absurd. And yeah, Kouta looks super hammy and lame as a blonde rock star walking out of an 80s boy band.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 30, 2014 05:39
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 21, 2024 00:09 |
|
|
glomkettle posted:Didn't Ryoma show off some sketches of potential future driver designs at one point, or did I just imagine that? Yes, that happened, but I assumed Ryouma never had anything stable created beyond the Genesis Driver. I bet all his ultimate belt designs turned out like the Hell Lockseed and had too many problems to be truly usable. It could have also been grandstanding because Ryouma loves to do that. Alternatively, Ryouma's subplots, and therefore the belts, were cut down because had to minimize his actor's role in the series due to scheduling. I could totally see that kind of stuff come back in the upcoming movie though. Cough Drop The Beat fucked around with this message at 06:59 on Sep 30, 2014 |
|
#
¿
Sep 30, 2014 06:55
|
|