Kamen Rider Zeztz 24

Watch Analysis

The Real Tragedy of Episode 24

Baku’s apparent death is not the most important thing that happens in Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24.

The most important moment is much smaller.

Baku sees an injured man lying on the floor. Whether he was a civilian or a CODE employee, the man is dying. Baku has the recovery capsule. He could save this man’s life.

But he walks away.

That moment says more about Baku than anything else in the episode.

Baku Used to Be a Hero

Earlier in the series, Baku risked his life to save strangers. In real life he even put himself in front of a truck to save a child.

That established a clear pattern. Baku was someone who saved people even when it was inconvenient or dangerous.

Episode 24 breaks that pattern.

Now, as Zeztz in Catastrom form, Baku ignores someone who needs help and continues pursuing his mission.

Something fundamental about him has changed.

Destroying Nightmares Becomes the Only Thing That Matters

Throughout the episode Baku annihilates Nightmare after Nightmare while the Lady releases more of them with the Lady Gauntlet.

CODE accuses him of going rogue, but from Baku’s perspective he is still carrying out the mission. The Nightmares are in his way, so he destroys them.

The problem is not that he is destroying the Nightmares.

The problem is that he no longer sees the people around him.

The injured man becomes irrelevant because Baku is focused on the mission.

Saving Nem at Any Cost

Baku claims he chose his own mission: to save Nem.

But that raises a troubling question.

If his goal is to save one person, is he justified in ignoring the life of another person lying in front of him?

Is it acceptable to sacrifice one life to save another?

And if Nem herself is a Nightmare based lifeform, does that change the equation?

The episode never answers these questions directly, but it clearly puts them in front of the audience.

Has Baku Lost His Heart?

That brief moment where Baku turns away from the injured man may be the most important scene in the entire episode.

It suggests something terrifying.

Baku may already be dead in a moral sense. Even though he is still fighting as CODE Number Seven and wielding the power of Zeztz Catastrom, the person he used to be might already be gone.

The hero who once saved strangers without hesitation now walks past someone who needs help.

A Small Moment That Changes Everything

Episode 24 of Kamen Rider Zeztz is full of spectacle, lore reveals, and chaotic action.

But the most important moment lasts only a few seconds.

Baku sees someone who needs help.

And he walks away.

That single choice may reveal more about the direction of the show than any of the explosions or battles happening around him.

What Did You Think?

What stood out to you most in Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24?

Did you notice the moment where Baku leaves the injured man behind?

What do you think that moment means for Baku, for Nem, and for the story going forward?

Let me know your thoughts.

Drop a comment below or tag me @MJ_Scribe on Twitter. Let’s have some fun talking about this.

If you enjoy thoughtful stories for kids and families, check out my book Mockwing Mayhem. It is a heartfelt adventure about magical bugs battling monsters and protecting children.

You can find more of my reviews, reflections, and stories with spine at mjmunoz.com, and join the mailing list there for behind the scenes updates and new releases.

Bonus Reflection

Is Catastrom Actually Evil?

One thing I still don’t understand about Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24 is why Baku is supposed to be evil or corrupted by the Nightmares.

It doesn’t really make sense to me.

Catastrom doesn’t actually seem that bad.

Baku is clearly still in control of himself.

He chooses not to hurt his sister.
He could have attacked Fujimi, but he doesn’t.
When Nem tells him to stop because of her mother, he stops.

In fact, he breaks down completely and refuses to fight anymore after hearing that.

That isn’t a Berserker.
That isn’t someone taken over by the Nightmares.

But the show seems to frame it as if Baku has crossed some kind of moral line.

I honestly don’t see it.

So what do you think?

Is Baku actually doing something wrong here, or is the show trying to frame his actions as darker than they really are?

Catastrom vs Impact Transformation

One thing I really love in Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24 is the contrast between how Baku transforms into Catastrom and how he transforms into regular Zeztz Impact.

When Baku becomes Catastrom, the transformation is aggressive. He clenches his fist and strikes the device from the right side. The motion is forceful and direct. It feels like raw power.

By contrast, the regular Zeztz Impact transformation is smooth. He slides his hand across the device from the left side in a controlled motion.

One transformation is about finesse and control.
The other is about brute force.

That difference becomes especially interesting at the end of the episode. After losing the Catastrom power, Baku has to fall back on the regular Zeztz transformation. The way he uses it feels desperate, but he still performs the old motion.

That visual contrast tells a story without saying a word.

I think it’s a genius example of visual storytelling through a transformation device. The new power, the upgrade, and even the toy itself become part of the narrative language.

I’m not always excited about all the forms and toys in Kamen Rider, but if they’re going to exist, they should serve the story.

And here, they absolutely do.

Why Is The Lady So Powerful?

The Lady in Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24 seems strangely overpowered, and I’m not sure the show has explained why.

She was CODE Agent Number Two, yet she appears to have abilities far beyond what we’ve seen from other agents. She can influence people’s minds, at least inside Baku’s dreamlike reality. She also claims she created the subliminal space connected to dreams, the place where the Nightmares appear.

On top of that, it seems like she’s harvesting the Nightmares through Nem.

That raises a lot of questions.

Where do these powers come from? Were the early CODE agents special somehow? Did CODE recruit people with psychic abilities, or did it create them? And if the Lady has these abilities, why was she unable to control Baku?

That failure suggests Baku might have some kind of resistance or power of his own.

Right now it’s all very mysterious. The Lady clearly has immense influence over the dream world and the Nightmares, but the source of that power is still unclear.

If you have any theories about how her abilities work or where they come from, I’d be curious to hear them.

Twenty Years Without Sleep

When the Lady says she has not slept for years in Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24, it suddenly makes her behavior make more sense.

Think about what would happen to someone who went years without sleep.

I have heard that sleep is something the brain needs, not just the body. When people are severely sleep deprived, they start behaving irrationally.

Even a day without sleep can be rough. I remember once being so sleep deprived that I actually fell asleep while driving. Another time, after being awake for around thirty hours, I did something completely bizarre at a social event and couldn’t even explain why.

Sleep deprivation messes with your mind.

So when the Lady says she hasn’t slept since Nem was taken away, that detail reframes her character. She has been operating in this obsessive state for years, possibly inside the dream world she created.

At that point, it’s not surprising that she’s acting unstable.

Her actions might not just come from grief or obsession. They might come from a mind that hasn’t rested in an impossibly long time.

Is Nem a Nightmare Messiah?

The birth of baby Nem in Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24 raises a strange possibility.

The show presents Nem’s origin almost like an immaculate birth, a new life brought into the world through the Nightmares. That imagery immediately makes me wonder if the story is hinting at something bigger.

Is Nem meant to be some kind of Nightmare messiah?

That idea raises a lot of questions. If Nem has a special role among the Nightmares, does that mean the Nightmares themselves function like a people or a race with their own purpose or destiny? And if so, were they waiting for the right moment—or the right human host—to bring Nem into existence?

Right now the show hasn’t explained much about what the Nightmares really are or where they come from. But Nem’s birth suggests there may be something larger happening behind the scenes.

Maybe Nem has a unique role to play in whatever conflict exists between humans and the Nightmares.

Or maybe the Nightmares themselves were trying to bring something into the world through her.

It’s unclear for now, but it’s definitely one of the most intriguing mysteries in Kamen Rider Zeztz so far.

The Robert Downey Jr. Meme Face

I cannot be the only person who saw this and immediately thought of the Robert Downey Jr. meme face.

The moment I saw this expression from the Nightmare lady in Kamen Rider Zeztz Episode 24, something in my brain clicked. I knew I had seen that look before. About a second later it hit me. It’s basically the classic Robert Downey Jr. eye roll meme from The Avengers.

And once you see it, you cannot unsee it.

Look at the details. Her eyes rolled upward. The iris partly hidden under the eyelid. The expression of absolute “I’m done with this.” It’s almost the exact same visual language as the meme.

What makes this funnier is that tokusatsu shows sometimes sneak in little pop culture nods. For example, Ultraman Omega had a clear Spider Man reference earlier in the season when Omega tried to activate Rekiness and it felt very much like the classic “go web go” moment.

So it honestly makes me wonder if this expression was intentional. Maybe it was. Maybe it was not. But the resemblance is hilarious.

Our Lady of Nightmares definitely has that same energy.