Well, it was a long road, with many surprise twists that continuously changed the status quo of the show. But I loved nearly every second of the show. Neo Heisei has been shaping up to be a pretty awesome era for Kamen Rider over all, and Build is yet another awesome contribution to that trend.
From things like Gaim to Build... I honestly feel like Tokusatsu is reaching the point of achieving its own potential. There was a time when doing big scale, universe-changing stories like this were near impossible. People would say to leave it for comics/manga or cartoons/anime because there's no limit to what can be drawn. In decades past, if you tried to do grand-scale stories like this in Tokusatsu or its western adaptations, the production values and effects just weren't up to par and would take you out of the experience. KyuRanger, Build, and many more shows from recent years are proving that those limits of old are quickly disappearing. It's becoming a lot easier to bring a vision to life without making as many sacrifices to the visuals and so on. And yeah, you could argue that the CGI is still glaringly obvious and not as high-end as the average Hollywood blockbuster these days, but I just saw the CGI from "Dimensions in Danger". I think Japan is not only doing pretty good with what they've got, they've also greatly improved their CGI abilities over the years. Not once while watching Build was I ever taken out of the experience because of the CGI.
The only thing semi-sweet was the ending. I am glad they were able to set things right, even if it means no one will remember Sento or Banjo. Becoming the traveling hero with no place to call home just doesn't seem like a fitting end for Sento or Banjo. But I guess the show writers just had no where else to go.
I also feel like the writers wrote themselves up against a wall because they're only way to resolving the issue was to hit that world reset button when you have no idea how to end something. Big O did it. Evangelion did it. Ryuki did it. RahXephon did it. And now Build does it. I am tired of that trope.
Ah, but here in Kamen Rider, it's a bit more fitting and can be explained (not perfectly, but explainable none the less). I've said this before, and there is evidence to support what I'm saying. The Kamen Rider franchise has an
>implied< connected universe. It's implied that everyone from Kamen Rider #1 to Build live in the same Earth, that maybe the Riders of old are letting new heroes handle new threats, but at the same time are ready to be a mentor for the new generation if it's ever necessary. And the show creators want that so it makes crossovers easier. They want that option, and having to traverse dimensions/realities as a story subplot makes things too complicated, especially if it means cutting precious time out of the crossover specials. I'm not saying it's a perfect solution, it doesn't explain how a connected universe is possible nor does it fix plot holes of such an implication. But we had a previous series revolving around Alternate Universes (Decade), ant that didn't work either. If anything, that just made things worse. This way, if the show runners want to make a crossover, they can just do it!
Again, not saying it's a perfect explanation. Even the creators of Kamen Rider can't make up their minds if every show takes place in the same Earth/Reality or not. And one could argue crossovers never needed an explanation for how or why. But sometimes the creators of Kamen Rider (and Super Sentai) try to put some thought into this or explain how crossovers are possible. Even if their explanations are flawed, if they want to treat it like a serious thing, then I'll do what I can to piece together their logic.
