We now face part 2 of this 4 episode mini series. Last episode ended with Captain Marvelous rushed out to the ring to face Gaisorg. Will he avenge his team? Click "read more" for my full coverage. Also, shoutout to TV Nihon for the free fansub.
Analysis
The episode begins immediately where the last one left off, Gaisorg has begun battle with Takaharu and Stinger with Captain Marvelous rushing in to join them. They ask what Gaisorg's goal is and if he/she wants to destroy Super Sentai, Gaisorg says no and he only wants to fight the strongest. Cut to intro! Not wasting anytime.
Also, for the record, they have not revealed Gaisorg's gender so I'm not taking a chance.
 |
| Take note the title can be translated more than 1 way |
One theme song later, the fight continues and Takaharu and Stinger actually manage to get a couple hits in before Captain Marvelous joins in the fight. However, things don't last long; Captain Marvelous gets a couple shots in before being thrown back and almost takes another Ancient Break Edge while unmorphed but is saved by Takaharu who blocks 2 of the blade beams but gets hit by the third. Gaisorg retreats unsatisfied and Captain Marvelous shows no gratitude for being saved.
Why? Maybe because you would have been killed otherwise...
Stinger pushes Marvelous back and the three of them leave on grumpy terms.
Meanwhile, Gaisorg is summoned by Rita. Rita complains he/she is causing problems by not having an invitation, only to reveal there is one.
Plot twist!
Back at the Oddball Teams room, Yamato has had enough of Marvelous' attitude and takes a stand.
After calming down a little, Yamato pleads with Marvelous to work with the rest of them as a team, even having a flashback to their crossover. These are the leaders of the 40th and 35th Super Sentai, they had a special. Marvelous states he will only work the others to obtain treasure, nothing more. Takaharu tries to ease tension with a dirty joke before Rita contacts everyone about Gaisorg being an official part of the tournament.
Gaisorg is now a wildcard and will appear randomly to make things interesting. In other words, nothing changes. All of the Oddball team leave on not so great terms. Marvelous storms out, Takaharu goes after him, Kagura goes after Takaharu not trusting him to handle it, and Stinger rushes out for some "business".
Thanks Yamato, I never understood the name until now. Also, why did there have to be 3 reds in the main team?
Stinger tries to contact home but the signal is blocked which confirms that there is a barrier. Also, it is implied that he sees Gaisorg without the helmet. At this time, the quarter finals are about to begin and they are a 3 on 3.
Yamato, Marvelous, and Stinger are selected. Will Kagura ever get a turn? However, since no one else is still there, Yamato volunteers to fight alone, 1 against 3. He had better turn up the protagonist powers.
Elsewhere, Marvelous is looking at his Akarenger Ranger Key and has a flashback of them giving it to him. I feel like this could have serious plot importance later.
Even more shocking, Takaharu shows up and actually manages to get a smirk out of Marvelous.
For reference, Gyoza is a japanese pan fried dumpling.
Kagura, (who was watching from a distance) rushes over and is impressed because that brief smile told her that Marvelous is a good person. Then, the three of them start talking about their own personal treasures and goals. Marvelous doesn't open up, but he has become a little more accepting of them.
Elsewhere, it is show time for Yamato.
 |
| Gaored Kakeru Shishi |
Gaored is another returning actor. The other two are body doubles.
Everyone henshins, which somehow warps them inside the warehouse, and the battle begins. Yamato starts off with strong attacks to try and get an early edge, but he takes some strong hits too. However, despite being outnumbered, Yamato does put up a good struggle while clearly getting tired and vows to win. The other quarter final battles are rage on.
Super Strong Team seems to be holding the advantage against Gilded team. One standout moment is when Yellow Owl corrects Rita with some good old Super Sentai Trivia.
If I was more familiar with the older seasons this would have been hilarious.
The rest of the Oddballs minus Stinger return to their room to find Yamato fighting alone. This three on one battle is proving too much for Yamato, but he refuses to accept defeat. Finally, after being questioned by Gaored, we learn what Yamato's wish is.
Basically, Yamato made a promise to a terminally ill child who died before he was able to keep that promise. Now, he wants to wish him back, even just for a moment, so he can keep that promise.
It's a good motivation. Dark, sympathetic, and just the right amount of cliche'. Although, I still question if it outweighs world peace.
Now, burning with passion, Yamato unleashes 3 different animal forms and defeats Land, Sea, Air team and grabs the gem while all beat up. Kakeru, (Gaored), offers him some words of wisdom before he departs. Basically, he gives advice on being a red/leader that can be summoned up as never give up, no one will follow you if you aren't passionate and every Super Sentai team is built on trust. Cliche' advice from the 25th Red to the 40th.
 |
| For old times sake |
Takaharu goes down to get Yamato after seeing him win, unfortunately, he gets ambushed by Gaisorg.
Back in the Oddballs room, Yamato apologizes to Marvelous for not trusting him, he refers to their crossover as to why he should have already known he was a good guy. Yamato collapses and Marvelous catches him indicating that the team grew a little closer.
Rita appears on the magic screen again to indicate that Gaisorg will be deployed to speed up the other battles.
While this is happening, more unsettling hints are dropped. Rita ominously says "now the wish will come true sooner" and Stinger discovers something spooky.
I'm sensing some evil magic.
Stinger also finds a room of books that reveal that Rita has been researching Super Sentai. He gets suspicious and it is implied he discovers something horrible in one of the books before the episode cuts away. Tease!
Back at the fight, the 4 legacy rangers all fight desperately against Gaisorg but just cannot get the upper hand. Eventually, one of Gaisorg's attacks knocks Ryuuranger into the gem resulting in a win for Team Martial Arts.
Captain Marvelous raced onto the battlefield to try once again to defeat Gaisorg. This time, Marvelous has regained his ability to "Gokai-change" into any past ranger with ranger keys and is confident he can win. Surprisingly, things actually go in favor of Marvelous; he deals good damage using the Dekared and HurricanRed powers and even lands a "Final Wave" which knocks off Gaisorg's helmet. Now, the secret is out!
It's Takaharu! This was hinted at when Gaisorg used one of his ninja stances. How could it be when the two were already seen together? Find out next time. More cliffhangers!
Before the episode ends, we get to see a continuation of the Green and Black Ryusoulger. The two of them find a bunch of Ryusouls in the cave. But, they appear to be empty.
They leave these empty Ryusouls behind and continue their search for the Kishiryuu. The End!
Final Thoughts
This episode did exactly what it needed to do to mark the halfway point and keep the audience interested. Secrets were revealed, more questions were introduced, and the action was great. That being said, accomplishing so much is both this episodes best and worst point. It felt like a long series of sub-stories all crammed into one episode so, a lot of stuff got resolved fast. On one hand, it is impressive and I cannot think of many ways this could have been paced better, but at same time, the experience was pushing the excessive side. Hard to say for sure. Overall, this was still a great episode and worth the watch. 4/5
No comments:
Post a Comment