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I will be discussing: The Weak, the Strong and the Secrets of Black Sun 02
#KamenRider #KamenRiderBlackSun #tokusatsu #RiderTears #HenshinInspection
CREDITS
Kamen Rider Black Sun Episode 2 – October 27, 2022
Writer: Izumi Takahashi
Director: Kazuya Shiraishi
SYNOPSIS
Prime minister Shinichi Dounami wields his power, as he lines his pockets through the kaijin business, taking advantage of the needy and minorities. The Gorgom Party, a political party linked to Dounami, sends an assassin to Kotaro with an order to recover the Kingstone. Nobuhiko takes action, but what is his true purpose?
WEAK
-Honestly this is my second time watching this episode and I watched it at 1.3 speed and had no issues comprehending it. I guess the slower pace and the scenes with more room to breath are good for setting mood and tone, but this is like a mashup between a superhero story, a dystopian future and a cultural critique against the current political regime. I’m not sure being ponderous is the winning formula to make this thing resonate with people.
STRONG
-Seeing that Kotaro and Nobuhiko were kind of the Double Riders back in 1972 when Gorgom became a thing is fascinating. I like that revisionist history to call back to the roots of Kamen Rider. That is neat
-The blend of old TV toku concepts like power levels and Amenone’s “henshin barrier” with this shows grounded aesthetic are cool. That zoom in to the particles in the air when Kotaro squinted was slick
-Shunnuske is a power indicator and he tells the audience there is a hierarchy to Kaijin that is likely expressed in how they transform as well as other subtle indicators. We saw that, but his dialogue clarifies that and makes sure we understand what is happening just by seeing kaijin transform
-The quick and brutal attack by Shadow Moon was intense
-Dounami and the Gorgom party are both clearly bad.-Aoi telling Shunnuske “It’s the bad ones who are bad” is the reason she is still fighting for Kaijin Rights even after Spider tried to murder her.
SECRETS
-Is 2022 Dounami the grandson who was kidnapped by Gorgom?
-When did Gorgom sign off on using, abusing and cannibalizing their fellow Kaijin?
-Is Kotaro’s “heroism” partly evidenced and represented by his refusal to eat Heat Heaven?
-How long has Gorgom known that Heat Heaven is made with human flesh?
-Where are the King Stones really? How do they work? Where do they come from?-What unites us? We are all part of a bigger story. We all hurt. We all need someone to reach out to us.
SCORE
Episode 2 – 9/10
The revelations from the past make the events of the present so tragic. I am intrigued to see how things changed so drastically and how it will all come to a head now. The relationship between Nobuhiko and Kotaro is delightfully painful to watch and it is full of yearning and regret
I am thrilled to see them get their King Stones and I hope we see them take down the Prime Minister and the Gorgom Elites who are at the root of this needless suffering and pain.
LESSONS LEARNED
I don’t remember how recently I talked about invisible questions, or what show it was in response to, but Black Sun is full of them. I think the story spanning decades is a brilliant move because the events of each period effect each other and raise questions in the audience’s minds. I heard about starting a story with an invisible question from Shane Miller on Joanna Penn’s Creative Penn Podcast.
LL000: Pack your story with invisible questions so you have more threads to pull on throughout the story. Telling a story over two time periods nearly does this by default.
SOURCES
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MJ Muñoz 