Kamen Rider Black RX Episodes 35-37

"It's them damn enchiladas!"

EPISODE 35

An unintentionally goofy episode. I get the feeling the script came about like this:

Jun'ichi Miyashita, writer: "Ooh, wouldn't it be interesting if the villains framed Koutarou for a crime?"

Network stooge: "Yeah, Miyashita, that sounds good. But what if they gave him a tapeworm on top of it?!!?"

Such is the thinking of RX.

Because characters are as smart as the people writing them, this week's plan involves Maribaron's learning about computers and deciding to frame Koutarou for a bombing. Not content with just that plan, she also sends the monster of the week to his innards to cause him intestinal pain. (That's how Kurata plays it. The monster of the week's name? Kaima Beast José Olé.) I don't think Maribaron, the monster of the week or the writers know how the body works, because the monster's obviously in Koutarou's guts, but the monster also thinks he successfully kills Koutarou by stabbing his heart. (Koutarou fakes his death by quickly switching to Bio Rider. Of course he does! Bio Rider's always been an all purpose Get Out of a Jam Free card.)

Random notes, randomer show:

1) The frame job is successful and Koutarou is arrested. He escapes prison by transforming! I guess this is Jiro Okamoto prepping to play Kamen Rider Ouja twelve years in advance. Also: Golgom would be proud of Koutarou using his power in such a way.

2) There's a hilarious scene where Koutarou breaks into the police headquarters by oozing his way through as Bio Rider in order to check their computers. Our Kamen Rider, in his effort to prove he's not a criminal, has no problem committing all kinds of other felonies.

3) For some reason, in this episode, Shigeru keeps almost revealing that Koutarou is RX. Hitomi even picks up on it, but not the parents. Stupid as always. Actually, I will say that they're actually pretty toned down here. It would have been nice if they didn't begin the series at 11, so maybe you could tolerate them, but why should this show do things right?

4) We see twice in this episode that Koutarou is supposed to be 20 years old. Well, well, well. That's interesting. Remember that he turned 20 in the 46th episode of Black. RX is supposed to take place an unspecified amount of time after Black, with most people assuming at least a few years. Well, I guess not. But I guess some fans will be like "Maribaron screwed up when she was entering all that other false information!" Nice try, Jun'ichi Miyashita! You left a hole! And you should know better since you're one of the only writers who actually worked on Black! (IIRC, it was even you who wrote that episode with Koutarou's birthday!)

5) Koutarou gets out of this dilemma by faking his death and being taken to Maribaron's lair, where he comes to and breaks all of her computers. Like your grandpa, who doesn't know how computers work, he thinks breaking them will solve his problem. But because this is his show, it works! The moment all of Crisis' computers are destroyed, the files on the police's computers vanish.

Randomer note:

While it's depicted extremely goofily here, a Rider who's been framed and/or on the run from the law is kinda where I pictured Shin Kamen Rider going. He was a true monster who had no problem killing, so he would have found himself on the wrong side of the law.
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EPISODE 36

Dreadful, useless episode. One of the ones for the kids, in which Crisis makes a really lame gold-colored Lucha libre wrestler who goes around and bests the top guys in each sport, stealing the kids' admiration. Why? So the kids following this Crisis monster will become Crisis Youth! You've got yourself another winning plan, Crisis.

The funny thing is, Jark makes this declaration "Kids are dumb! They're easily swayed by athletes and will worship them!" Well...a lot of adult sports fans are like that, too. You could have made something of this plan, Jacko, but, as always, you go about it in your horrible Dr. Evil way.

Twenty minutes of kids following this Oscar statuette ice-skater, chanting "Great Mask, number one!" over and over and over again in a drone gave me such a g'damn headache. It's also one of those episodes where Koutarou's barely in it, it's Shigeru and his pals investigating the plot. (And then quickly being discovered and getting brainwashed, too.)

Disposable garbage. People's Exhibit Z that RX was going to be killing the franchise for a while.

The only thing I find really notable about this episode is that the target pro boxer, Sawada, is played by Kazuyoshi Ozawa. I've seen Kazuyoshi and his older, more known brother Hitoshi in many, many yakuza movies. Kazuyoshi returns to Rider 20 years after RX, playing ex-con Sam in Kamen Rider W, a memorable episode for highlighting Soukichi/Skull and for having an actor like Ozawa in the part of the reformed criminal who respected the man who brought him down.

Kazuyoshi Ozawa, I mentioned in my Turboranger coverage, is my dream pick for Yamimaru. Although he's a year older than Yamimaru actor Yoshinori Tanaka...I still kinda think Tanaka's lying about his age. He looks older than the 24 years he claims to be in the show. While it's certainly not the first or last case of an older person being cast as a high-schooler, you can make jokes about how much older Tanaka seems. The real problem is that I feel like Tanaka might be a little self-conscious, so a lot of the times he's playing the Hikaru part of the role, he's not giving the performance all he can. He's great as Yamimaru, he completely conveys the rage of the character...

But being able to convey that Hikaru side was also needed. And since Yamimaru is such an old character, I DO think they intentionally cast someone a little older to further convey how old he really is. (Centuries old.) I think Ozawa would have been believable as the vengeful Yamimaru, but he would have also played the Hikaru side smoother. And not only that, but I think Ozawa has a certain look to him that makes him look like he could be from an older era, and I think that would work to the character's advantage, and be a cool little detail.

Oh, yeah, about this episode. Anyway, Koutarou saves the day by merging with Sawada as Bio Rider's gross goo and challenging Golddust to another battle, with Rider controlling Sawada and winning the fight with his moves. Am I the only person who finds Bio Rider disgusting?

Random(er) note:

There's a scene where the Sahara parents bicker and...it's actually restrained. It's sad that the show got off to such a horrific start (period), but also with these two, because they HAVE been toned down compared to earlier on, but that initial presentation of them just colors the way you see them for the entire show. I still dislike them. First impressions and all, I suppose. Kinda like the way that I always judge Takeshi Inoue based on the obnoxious kid he played in Fiveman, when he's more tolerable here as Shigeru.

Sorry, Reiko. He's just not that into you. #Joetarou

EPISODE 37

An episode mainly noteworthy for being the return of Joe. (Jesus, did I just type that?)

In this episode, we begin talk of Crisis altering Earth's atmosphere so they can start to bring their people over. Maribaron has a plan for these little contraptions that will cause fog or something, but gets nixed in favor of Bossgun's plan to take over a village and cover it in gas that will allow Crisis folk to live and...ugh. They take over this village by posing as aliens invading. Why? Who knows! This show doesn't. It's not known what it's been doing from the start.

Koutarou and Reiko go to the village to investigate. Who follows them? Goro! Who's that, you ask? I haven't talked about him. He's a cook who works at the Saharas' chopper place, played by Ishinomori's son Jou Onodera. He's barely been in the show -- just a few bits in a couple of episodes -- and I don't know why they felt compelled to bring him back for this episode in particular.

On the way they encounter Joe...Kasumi no Joe, not Jou Onodera. Where's he been? How did he survive his injuries? Who knows! But he's back and Koutarou's VERY happy to see him. Really, Kurata hasn't been this alive in quite a few episodes. Between his reaction here, and the way he absolutely lost his mind and shrieked his name back when Bossgun cut him, it's obvious that Koutarou seriously loves Joe more than he ever loved Reiko. Sorry to break it to you, Reiko. (Joetarou is their cute little couple nickname.)

Anyway, the geniuses at Crisis strike again. The monster of the week -- inexplicably a ninja -- disguises himself as Joe and instantly gives himself away -- twice! (Once to Goro and Reiko, once to Koutarou.) The show's not aware of how dumb they make Crisis. They really think Crisis are cool and interesting and formidable, and they're far from it. They're practically on Rita Repulsa levels. Might as well send a football monster to tease Koutarou that he didn't make the football team or some such shit.