Kamen Rider Zeztz 49

Watch Analysis

The video and audio above contain the full unfiltered analysis. What follows is the razor focused version of the strongest point(s) I had to make.

Setting the Stage for the End

Despite the fact that Kamen Rider Zeztz 49 is the penultimate episode, or maybe because it is the penultimate episode, it spends a lot of time setting things up for the finale. That’s good and important, but it also means we’re moving the board and setting everything up once again for something still to come.

The status quo changes in some important ways. Baku brings Nem back from Oblivion, which consequently brings the Oblivion Gore Nightmare back too. The Lady dies after finally breaking free from the Phantom Gore Nightmare. Odaka is reinstated in the Public Security Bureau and returns to the Paranormal Affairs Division. Baku tells Minami that he’s pretty much a goner, while she clearly wants him to stay.

There’s a lot happening here. It wasn’t frustrating or unsatisfying. It wasn’t boring. It wasn’t not entertaining. I liked the episode.

But I don’t know. It’s almost a little unfortunate that it had to be done this way because we know these things have to get set up like this. I’m impatient to see the conflict fully evolve, be fully on display, and finally see the conclusion of the series.

Not because I want Zeztz to end.

Because everything deserves a good ending.

To echo something I said last episode, the endings and temporariness of things are part of what makes them beautiful, important, and special. I’m ready to see Zeztz come to a close, say what it has to say, and finally let us know exactly what the point of all this has been.

Because right now, I really don’t know.

What Is Kamen Rider Zeztz Ultimately Trying to Say?

I feel like only by ending can Zeztz really give us the resolution of these ideas, tie everything together, and let us understand exactly what its message is.

I’m looking forward to finding out what that message really is because I don’t know what it is yet.

Even the moral question surrounding Nem keeps shifting.

Previously, we had the issue of whether it was right to sacrifice one person to save the world. But Zeztz ultimately sidestepped that issue because Nem sacrificed herself. Nobody else made that decision for her.

Now we have almost the inverse problem.

Is it right to bring back someone who sacrificed herself to save the world if bringing her back puts the world in jeopardy again?

Is it moral to save one person if saving that one person puts everybody else at risk?

That’s essentially the accusation Oblivion makes against Baku and the others after Nem returns. They brought one person back knowing Oblivion would return with her.

At first, that felt weird and morally complicated to me. But the more I thought through it, the less complicated I found it.

Saving Nem Doesn’t Make Baku Responsible for Oblivion

Baku isn’t actually the one choosing to destroy the world.

Oblivion is.

Bringing Nem back creates the circumstances in which a bad actor can cause tremendous harm, and Baku knows that risk exists. But Oblivion destroying the world isn’t an automatic consequence of Nem existing. Oblivion is choosing to do it.

That distinction matters.

And if Baku has the ability to stop Oblivion, then his responsibility becomes to stop him. That’s exactly what Baku says he’s going to do: save Nem and save the world.

So I guess the morality of the situation isn’t ultimately as complicated as I initially thought it was. It felt complicated. It felt weird. But I’m actually pretty comfortable with Baku’s choice, and I think it lands as fairly standard superhero fare: save the person in front of you, save everybody else too, and stop the person who’s actually trying to hurt them.

Now Zeztz Has to Give Us Its Ending

That’s ultimately where Kamen Rider Zeztz 49 leaves me.

I liked it. I wouldn’t call it an amazing episode, although there were definitely some cool things in it. More than anything, it feels like a penultimate episode doing the work necessary to get everything into position for the final act.

And I’m ready for that final act.

I’m ready to see this conflict fully evolve. I’m ready to see these ideas reach their conclusions. Most of all, I’m ready to find out exactly what Zeztz has been trying to say with all of this.

Maybe that’s what a penultimate episode is supposed to leave me wanting.

Inspector’s Notes

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Loose Thread

The Lady’s Brutal Last Stand for Nem in Kamen Rider Zeztz 49

The fact that we get to see The Lady confront Phantom Gore Nightmare in such a profound way in Kamen Rider Zeztz 49 is pretty awesome.

The Lady previously had the Lady Gauntlet, but she hasn’t had that since she became fused with a Nightmare. She’s basically been bereft of extra powers since then.

But that doesn’t bother her, because this lady is shady, and she’s able and capable of doing all sorts of stuff, including apparently killing a Nightmare on her own. By her onesie. By herself. No weapons, no magic, no anything.

The funny thing is, there’s no real worldbuilding or lore reason for us to know that she even has the possibility of doing this. So I was doubly shocked.

First Phantom comes out of her and starts killing her. Then The Lady pulls Phantom back into herself. At first I thought maybe she was taking this thing back in unwillingly to save herself, and then perhaps she was going to take control somehow.

But no. That’s not actually what’s happening.

She somehow finds this vulnerable point while they’re fused together where she’s able to take control of the situation and attack herself and Phantom at the same time.

And I don’t really understand how this works.

Again, Zeztz is very soft and nebulous about this stuff, but somehow blinding herself so that she can’t see dreams or illusions injures Phantom in such a way that Phantom dies. The Lady kills her.

Which is pretty awesome.

I love how metal it is. I love how extreme it is. And I love that The Lady really seems to get provoked when Phantom basically tells her, “It’s going to be me and Nem. I’m going to remake her in my own image.”

And The Lady is basically like, no, sister, you’re not.

So she destroys her own ability to see dreams because somehow she knows that doing so will destroy Phantom.

Interestingly, Phantom asks her if she would really give up her ability to see dreams. And The Lady’s response is basically: I’m a woman who can’t sleep anymore. Of course I’ll give up my ability to see dreams.

That’s totally logically consistent for her. She just accepts it.

But I wonder if maybe the idea they’re going for here connects to what we’ve already seen with Nem and Baku.

If you have a dream and believe in that dream, your Nightmare seems able to take that dream and draw power from it as you become more powerful. So maybe what’s happening with Phantom and The Lady is that The Lady’s current dream is this world of illusions where she can be with Nem and live out the life she wants.

But The Lady can’t sleep anymore, so she can’t dream normally. Then she deliberately destroys her ability to even see dreams and illusions.

Maybe, functionally, that means dreams no longer exist for her.

And if there’s no dream left for Phantom to feed on, Phantom has no sustenance. Therefore, Phantom dies.

Maybe.

I don’t know. That’s kind of convoluted. It’s a little bit of a long walk to get where I’m going, but I think it works functionally. I just wonder if that’s actually how it’s happening.

Regardless, it’s cool.

I love how extreme it is, and I love how The Lady is willing to go for it and do whatever she has to do to protect her daughter.

Then, after this incredibly metal moment, we get this moment of sweetness when Nem and Baku find The Lady lying there dying.

Nem comes up to her and calls her Mom, and The Lady tells her, “As long as you’re alive, this world will always be beautiful.”

That sentiment hits me because it’s not just true for The Lady and Nem. That should be the parent’s perspective.

I remember my mom telling me a long time ago, probably 30 years ago if not a little more, that no parent should ever have to bury their child. I don’t remember what prompted her to say it. Somebody must have lost a child.

But I remember thinking that was an elegant way for her to put it.

Years later I found out my mom was writing poetry. She had a notebook, maybe more, full of poetry, which is pretty cool. So maybe that eloquence makes sense.

Anyway, The Lady is over here gladly living that idea out, and it reminded me of my mom saying that.

It just works.

It’s great to see the level of dedication and care and love The Lady has for Nem. And the funny thing is that she carries all of this love and concern for her despite how little time they’ve actually been able to spend together.

She saved Nem from CODE and dropped her off at an orphanage. She watched her from afar. Then everything with the talent agency happened, and eventually The Lady took her away from there. Somehow Nem got into the Dream World, and I don’t think we ever really understand all of the mechanics of that.

But it doesn’t matter.

The story is a mother watching over and protecting her child no matter what.

She’s willing to give up anything to ensure that her child is safe, has the chance to live her own life, and can be free from other people hindering her in that.

I wouldn’t necessarily say The Lady causes her own death here. Phantom has already fatally wounded her. Maybe if she had just allowed herself to be assimilated, there would have been some other possibility for her, but as far as The Lady is concerned, she’s dying anyway.

So if she’s going to die, she may as well save her daughter while she does it.

And she does it by doing something incredibly extreme: blinding herself.

I just think it’s pretty awesome.

You even get to see it for a moment. She has these long Phantom Lady claws that she uses to gouge out both of their eyes, and the Phantom Gore Nightmare suit gets these gashes across its eye markings.

That’s such a cool detail.

So, yeah, I really enjoyed The Lady’s last stand here. It’s emotional and meaningful, but it also looks cool. The character work, the violence of the choice, the suit detail, and the tenderness afterward all work together.

It’s a fantastic end for The Lady.