(Where Wraithstrike Watches) The Toku Thread

[Wraithstrike]

I kind of wore out my welcome with the name-sharing jokes back in Changeman. It's just not funny to me any more.
How am I doing with the Precure personalities? Am I making them distinct enough from each other?

 

[Wraithstrike]

Liveman 17: The Crying Doll
Not good. Not good at all.

I get that they were trying to tug on the heartstrings, but it's just poorly written.

 

[cypsiman2]

Episodes like this one seem to me the product of Liveman's themes being too broad for their own good; "Life" as a theme does not give much guidance or course to a given story.

 

[Wraithstrike]

Liveman 18: Trap! Jou's Beloved Beast

Ouch. I was ready to write Jou off, but then comes this episode. I can't say I blame him. If you encountered someone who looked exactly like your mortal enemy, yet they had no trace of malice about them, wouldn't you hold out hope?
And of course, Urara's question at the end is my own. Why is Ashura so awesome?

 

[cypsiman2]

Personally I thought it a bit odd that we had an earlier episode about how Yusuke used to have a crush on Senda Rui, yet this didn't capitalize on that at all. Then again, Jou was in need of a good episode way more than Yusuke, so that works out in the end.

 

[Wraithstrike]

Liveman 19, Obler's Cram Grudge

Ok, we got a truckload of setup here. Let's review, shall we?
1. Obler/Gou's mutation can be reversed.
2. Gou has had the cram mentality forced on him from a young age, fostering resentment towards his mother.
3. The mysterious new guy with the cross daggers is definitely a scam by Bias.

Now, the silly side of this episode: The Study-dzuno was defeated because Falcon hit him hard enough to launch him up into a roller coaster car. That means either this copy of Gou was exceptionally weak, or Falcon got exceptionally lucky.

Also: Cram Schools: Necessary Evil or just Evil?

 

[cypsiman2]

I'd say Cram-schools are just straight up evils that pervert what education is supposed to be about, swapping personal enrichment and fulfillment for rote recitation of facts. Of course, I've hardly put any study into how cram-schools actually work, so take my opinion with plenty of salt and all that.

Also, regarding the mystery new guy, Arashi came out of nowhere so why not this guy? The one seems just as convenient as the other.

 

[Wraithstrike]

Arashi didn't come out of nowhere, though. They spent an episode building up how badass he was before he was taken by Bias. A crime boss, willing to drag a beast behind his motorcycle and bite said beast to bring it under control. They made sure we saw he was awesome before re-introducing him as Ashura. The new guy appears dramatically, zaps people and leaves.

 

[cypsiman2]

Good point, that is significantly different then.

 

[Wraithstrike]

Liveman 20: Obler's Failed Counterattack.

I think this was an awesome episode. Just the right level of drama, and a monster that actually makes sense. Not bad, Gildos.