It can be tough sometimes to remember why we love doing the things we do. This is why it can be so damn difficult to sit down and do the otherwise fun activity of writing after putting together three to four college projects. The problem is only exacerbated further when forced to write about things you hate, such as the philosophical implications of Pixar movies, god how I loath them. What is very much appreciated is a show that reminds me why I watch silly imported childrens' action shows. Which is that despite all its warts, and yes there are several, this is such refreshingly honest entertainment to settle in with after nights of playing intellectual pretend.
I had hinted at covering this final run of Ryusoulger episodes in smaller chunks and the plan is to hold to that proposal. It's a good thing too as the show is really moving now. Characters are coming in, characters are going out, it's the hokey-pokey of serialized entertainment and, as usual, I'm already a few steps behind. So strap on your spandex and let's talk Ryusoulger.
Story:
The 40s begin with a relatively standalone episode that works to refocus the heroes as they move towards the grand finale while providing a few hints at the greater threat. The primary story involves a monster that can make fears a reality. This manifests in different forms such as Towa's legs locking up, robbing him of his speed, or Asuna putting on some poundage from her outragious eating habits. Even once the trick behind this critter is descovere he still proves nearly impossible to defeat as the whole group fears the potential deaths of their friends. As I said it's mainly a challenge to get them in the correct mindset for the dangers to come.
The key thing that was introduced here is master Eras, leader of the Druidons. Currently it's just a shiny ball inside an old temple but apparently its regeneration has been kick started with the usage of the Ryousoulcalibur. Not only does this suggest a deeper connection between both the Ryusoul tribe and Druidons, good thematic connections btw, but it's interesting to think Eras was on Earth this whole time while the underlings had fled to space.
Episode was a little bit of everything all in one package. On one front it was about Canalo and an ex-fiance, it was also about Oto's friendship with said ex, another Druidon general was introduced, and he tries to kill Kreon, oh and the team takes on a job as stuntmen. Yeah, it's a lot so let's bring it down to two key developments.
Remember Uden? The one episode general who killed off Nada? He's brother Saden is in town and while not quite up to the level of his sibling he's still one nasty lil bugger. The guy basically lives to take orders and destroy shit. When sent out to steal the Ryusoulcalibur he attempts to murder Kreon who got to it first.
As for our goopy guy Kreon, he is saved by the Ryusoulgers and in turn gives back the Ryusoulcalibur. After denying he was helping them the poor dude runs off to fine Wyzul that maybe the Ryusoulgers could be the key to getting Wyzul's heart back.
That's where episode 42 picks up, and while it's not clear how the established plan would resore Wyzul's heart he's basically going all out to finally crush the multicolored heroes by trapping them in a stage play of his own design. Among his many traps are having Canalo and Asuna act out Romero and Juliet with actual poison. As a whole the episode is tons of fun and has some great novelty such as using tricks from the live sentai stage shows during the final showdown between Wyzul and Koh.
This brings us to the big moment when Wyzul is defeated, a moment that ties Kreon and Koh together in a strange way. The Druidons killed Koh's friend and now he's taken the another of theirs which leaves Kreon alone with nowhere to turn.
Heroes:
Before getting too far into the heroes section I wanted to mentioned a leftover plot thread that's been bothering me for a few episodes. Anyone remember how the prime minister was another ryusoul tribe member who'd been hoping for death? Well she had a fairly chummy relationship with Gaisorg, presumably she knew it was Nada in the armor. What the hell happened to her? Like what was the point of linking her and Gaisorg only to never bring it up again? Just something I'd like to see covered in the remaining six or so episodes.
As for the main crew just about everyone has matured a little more of late due to the recent upgrade in threats. Koh and Bamba in particular with the former seeing a potential ally in Kreon only to possibly make him an even bigger foe while the later has been thinking ever more of his teacher who taught him to avoid attachments. Towa is still lagging behind everyone else and has essentially reached the point of being that guy in a war movie who's talking about his favorite candy bar mere seconds before getting blown up.
Meanwhile in the ongoing saga of where the hell is Ui? She's supposedly been very busy of late because she's been discovered by someone in Hollywood and is traveling over there for a bit. For as much as I've grown to enjoy this show the absolute lack of direction regarding this girl is just plain baffling. Remember when she helped with missions and actually spent time with the team? In the beginning she was very much an embodiment of the theme of human connection and now she's just jetting off to Hollywood. Far be it from me to suggest some damsel in distress outcome but can this please be an evil scheme or something?
Villains:
Obviously the major talking point is the exit of Wyzul. After Tankjoh stepped out way back in ep 5, 6? We knew Wyzul wouldn't last the whole show but that doesn't make his goodbye any easier. I wouldn't say Sentai has had a villain problem these past few years but there has been a higher than average amount of generic bad guys. Watching this cocky, eccentric blow-hard thoroughly enjoy his evil work has been a blast and while his final scheme didn't make the most sense it was a perfect send-off for a guy who viewed villainy as a show.
Kreon is definitely becoming more interesting given recent developments. the current command structure of Druidons has no interest in him, His best friend is dead, and the Ryusoulgers who he was starting to believe in are the ones responsible. Whether or not my prediction of him becoming the endgame villain comes true he's absolutely primed to be a key figure in however this conflict will end.
For her part Pricious continues to be evil for evil's sake. Her new lacky Sedan isn't quite as cool as his brother but he is a formidable opponent. There's nothing terribly wrong with either of them but fingers crossed one of them or Master Eras turns out to have deeper personality traits than just pure evil.
Overall:
It probably seems like I have a lot of complaints about this series but that's more from the lens of the story nearly being over than with my enjoyment of it. By and large the characters, action, and plots are better than ever. Plus it's great to see a show doing so much better in it's back half after witnessing Lupinranger vs. Patranger aimlessly wander during several points in its run. Ryusoulger really is one of the better sentai I've seen from this past decade to the point that even if it doesn't fully stick the landing it'll still be a solid wrap up to the Heisei era.
That reminds me that we now have plenty of information on the next sure that will fully usher in the Reiwa era of the franchise. So far Kirameiger looks like a real trip with lots of retro looking aspects alongside some modern production values. The suits ares very straightforward with a few nice touches, I really like how some of the villains have humanoid features rather than being fully costumed. What excites me the most is that these heroes have established careers. After years of each hero only working at being a hero it's exciting to imagine how the pink ranger being a doctor, or yellow being an e-sportsman might interact with their battle against evil. There's some very interesting talent behind the scenes with writers from Abaranger and Dekaranger, a decent looking cast, and some spiffy looking light-up robots. Color me excited.
There will be another review up soon enough since I already have a couple more episodes in the can. Blessedly the next couple of weeks are far less busy which leaves plenty of time to catch you all up on more super-heroics, snacks, and the first Star Wars book in a good long while. See you all soon.
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